Stumptown Vegans

Date: December 11, 2007
Times Visited: 4 times

This is the prime example of why vegans must inquire about the ingredients at Thai restaurants (shrimp paste, fish sauce, oyster sauce, eggs.) It’s important to always do your own research and not just reply on what others tell you (including this website because what we are told one time may be what they think we want to hear, rather than the truth - this is always the risk of eating out at omnivorous restauarnts). Damn that person who told us that Thai Peacock can make their dishes vegan!

Thai Peacock has many dishes listed as ‘vegetarian’ if you get tofu instead of meat, but that’s not the case. If ‘vegetarian’ was replaced with ‘pescitarian’ it would be accurate. To our dismay, only the Pad Ruam Mit can actually be made vegan - everything else can hold the fish sauce but not the oyster sauce.

The Pad Ruam Mit is a simple mix of vegetables with fried tofu and a very light brown sauce. We added soy sauce and a variety of spicy peppers to bring some flavor to this poor, oily dish. Why did the Vege Thai Cart have to leave downtown?!

Lunch is a busy time for most downtown restaurants and Thai Peacock is no exception. They pack the tables close together. Perhaps they pack too many people in and the kitchen cannot accommodate. We’ve eaten here when there was a 30 minute wait and it’s not worth it. The mezzanine seating didn’t seem as hectic, but I am sure it was during lunch. Even the people who were waiting for “to go” meals were standing around awkwardly.

In the end I would much prefer visiting a Thai cart like Vilai Thai Food, order steamed vegetables and brown rice for $4, and add soy sauce. It would be quicker, taste better and be a lot cheaper than the $7.50 lunch meals we received.

Pad Ruam Mit - The Only Vegan Meal:

Cashew Tofu - not so vegan, no matter what they told us:

Rad Nah - not so vegan, no matter what they told us:

Rating: 1 out of 5
Address: 219 SW 9th Ave, Portland, OR 97205, (503) 228-2310
Hours: Everyday 11am-9pm

November 10, 2007
Times Visited: 2

It seems everyone has their favorite Chinese food restaurant. Maybe it was the delivery you ordered while pulling an all-nighter in college or the place your family went to dinner on Sunday evenings. That tofu and broccoli, or fried rice you crave when hung-over, or stuck at home in the suburbs. For some of us, it was the most (assumed) veg*n friendly food we knew about when the path to vegetarianism started.

When it comes to Portland, my Chinese-food craving hearts, or taste buds, don’t belong to one restaurant. I’m sorry Vegetarian House, but the best Chinese food I’ve had in the Pacific Northwest so far has been in Seattle at Teapot Vegetarian House. It wasn’t the crappy wonderful Chinese food one might crave; it was practically classy in comparison. The closest thing to great I’ve had in Portland is Golden Jade on SE Belmont, which sadly does not deliver. Last winter, I went to Bamboo Garden and it didn’t leave much of an impression on me, but this time, I got it.

Bamboo Garden is a faux meat focused restaurant with tons of classics. You’ll find Chow Mein, Kung Pao ‘Chicken’, Sesame ‘Chicken’, Fried Rice, Hot and Sour Soup, Sautéed ‘Eel,’ and even Fried ‘Chicken Fingers’ - ironically familiar to those of us who may have been subjected to less than stellar buffets growing up. There are over 100 menu items, and this vegetarian restaurant is open to special dietary restrictions, “Ask your server for special dietary needs requiring special preparation, including no salt, no oil, no sugar, or other restrictions. Only the fortune cookies contain eggs.”. The restaurant is also certified Kosher. The restaurant uses tofu, soy products and mushrooms to create their faux meat features.

My partner and I shared our entrees - a hefty portion of ‘Chicken’ Chow Mein ($7.50) and smaller Sesame ‘Chicken’. While the chicken was obviously, and easily more identifiable as seasoned tofu strips, and more ‘pork’ like then chicken, it was still delicious. The tofu, noodles and vegetables were all thin, and bites were easily pierced and wrapped around a fork. It was a dish that 2, if not 3 people could dine on alone and something I’d order again and again. Lo Mein was one of my favorite Chinese food dishes growing up, and the Chow Mein was better than anything in memory. The Sesame Chicken ($8.95) can more aptly be described as chicken ‘balls’ - golden, fried nuggets with a soy protein center, coated in a sweet and sour sauce. Just picture that sweet crunch, and take a sip of water. The chicken balls were served in an edible potato nest, with rice and broccoli. It’s one of those dishes that you know is just awful for you, but you love anyway. Or, you hope your partner orders so you can steal a ball from him.

We also ordered the ‘Chicken Fingers’ - which were predictably greasy, but not bad, and the Spring Rolls. The Spring rolls were the low point of the meal. The filling tasted ‘old’, and I put mine down after a bite. I didn’t want anything else to do with it. On the plus side, it was cheap, and everything else contributed to a positive experience. Between the two of us, the bill was comfortably under $30, and that’s certainly not bad for a special dinner out in Seattle.

Sesame Chicken:

Chow Mein:

Spring Rolls:

Rating: 4 out of 5.
Address: 364 Roy St. Seattle, WA 98109