Vegetarian Haven

I am going to go against the grain and say that this place was not as good as everyone makes it out to be. I’ve been a vegetarian for 10 years and have had my share of fake meats.
I got the king oyster as an appetizer. It was ok. Nothing crazy and delicious. Sauce was decent… mushroom tasted like a mushroom? Nothing special here.
I ordered the spicy Singapore Seitan for my entrée. I really expected this to be better. Seitan was flavourless and the sauce was chunky? Not my favourite and the flavour was not really there.
The cheesecake was delicious however. I haven’t had a cheesecake in forever and this one was vegan so it was amazing! Also the service is very very friendly so I made sure to tip well.
Overall, I don’t think I’ll be coming here again and it’s not my favourite vegan spot in Toronto.

Great FOOD! Was so glad that we visited Vegetarian Haven.

Will highly recommend this place. Flavorful food
Atisa– the hostess– is amazing. She made our time there extra special

One of the best places.
The service was amazing, the food was amazing.
I wanted to order everything. I asked the server who gave me some recommendations and I was NOT disappointed.
I can’t wait to go back!
Everything looked soo good!

Delicious vegan food. A lot of flavourful and the French press coffee is really good as well.

I wasn’t too impressed with the menu, I thought it would have had more options. I ended up getting the special that was offered that night (because I wasn’t intrigued by anything on the menu), which was tempura tofu in teriyaki sauce with pad thai buckwheat noodles and broccoli. The person I was with got the moroccan wrap that came with a salad. Both dishes were good, but not amazing, and if I were to go back I would not order them again. I ended up taking half of my meal home, which is rare. I do want to go back and give this place another try based on the positive reviews. I plan on going back in the summer because the patio is cute and I want to give the other menu options a try, such as the matcha smoothie.

As you can probably tell from the name, Vegetarian Haven serves vegetarian food but what you can’t tell is that they do it with an Asian flare. It’s a cozy place and has that Baldwin street hipster feel.
Why only 3 stars? Don’t get me wrong, the food was good, vegetables tasted very fresh but it was pricey for what it is… which is various forms of soy and vegetables. The mains start at around $ 15.
The menu is extensive and was a little overwhelming as the indecisiveness in me decided to come out and play. I ended up getting the mushroom tofu clay pot and it came with a good variety of different mushrooms, some veggies (carrots, baby corn, zucchinis, bok choy, among other) some purple rice and a heck lot of sauce. It tasted fine, no complaints.
Our server was super friendly but my friend’s request for hot sauce was never delivered.
I didn’t have any room for dessert but there are lots of gluten free cakes on display that looked very yummy. The free apples on the way out was a nice touch. I myself am not a vegetarian but given the great reviews, thought I’d try it out. I likely won’t come back as a meatless meal leaves me feeling a little unsatisfied.

Went here on a Wednesday evening with a friend. We’re meatlovers through and through but wanted to try something different. And I’m glad we did! Just an FYI, Vegetarian Haven is a bit of a misnomer… it’s actually a vegan restaurant. Nothing wrong with that but I do want to put it out there if you’re the kind of person who likes cheese on everything (like me).
Quick take:
— small restaurant
— great & knowledgeable service
— good menu selection
— $$
— great and filling food
— would definitely go back
One of the things I liked about their menu was in the back it explained some of the items on the menu. Being a vegan restaurant they use substitutes for meat such as this thing called seitan which I had never before heard of in my life but kept seeing it in multiple dishes and was like what the heck is this thing. Turned a few pages over and they had an explanation of a variety of items that non-​vegans or non-​vegetarians like myself may not be familiar with which was super handy.
Our server was awesome. I was debating between getting an appetizer and a main dish and the server instead of pushing me to get both when I asked her how big/​filling they were said I would be fine with the just the main that I wanted which was the Bird’s Nest. And I was! I couldn’t finish it actually. It was chock full of vegetables, tofu and seitan and the sauce was this spicy sweet flavour with these crunchy noodles. It was delicious! The seitan was really yummy, I’ve since learned it’s a pretty common mock meat. I’m not usually a huge fan of tofu, but I liked the way they did it. To drink I had some ginger tea, which wasn’t some packaged thing but literally shavings of ginger steeped in water. I love ginger so it worked for me, but if you’re expecting a teabag, you have been warned!
I will admit the décor is nothing to write home about, but in a place like this I prioritize food quality and service more, especially at this price point. With that said, food quality was fantastic! Which I’m sure is the reason why on a Wednesday evening the restaurant was steadily busy.
So if you want to try out some great vegan food, come here!

yeeeeesh.
I have had two exceptionally bad experiences here…
the food was alright enough the last time so I wanted to go again. It was the customer service that hinders the atmosphere and made the meal have a sour taste. I went twice and I am the kind of person to give people a second chance (but not food!).
The first was a year ago and I can’t remember the reason why but I do remember the servers were uninterested and sarcastic and made you feel guilty for making requests. She was also snippy with my boyfriend. And our wait time was exceptionally long.
The second time was hardly different from the first. Except worse. All I asked for was salad and I wanted to know my options for the dressings. First, the server didn’t know the dressing selection (odd, as she was the server we had LAST time a year ago. but forgivable). Second, she conversed with the woman who OWNS the restaurant about it bickering back and forth RIGHT BEHIND ME about my order and other customers… then came back and still didn’t have the options but said «it’s like tahini… but it’s not tahini, so don’t take my word on that» OK? I’ll take that one.
So our appetizer shows up 20 minutes later… steamed edamame… takes like 5 minutes or less typically but I’m fine with a 20 minute wait as they were half full/​busy.
Then my salad makes an appearance: warm kale salad. Beautiful. But no dressing. I tell the waitress, she gets the woman who runs the operation and bickers with her behind me and then … owner comes over and says «No there’s definitely dressing on it. It’s there. «After explaining politely that it in fact isn’t (because I know people make mistakes) she huffs and goes «I’ll take it back and see what they can do». She brings out a side plate of dressing and says «so you wanted it on the side?» I said no, she went back and bickered again with other employees and then took it back and «fixed it». Brought it back out and my salad is now less than luke warm. It was bad.
The food here is interesting and has not 100% classically predictable gluten free options. Which is why I’ve fooled myself into going here twice. The service is terrible. Would’ve been happy with a smile from an employee than a guilt trip for asking if I can have a different salad dressing/​have salad dressing at all.
Service is a no no here. I wish I had better things to say about it.

Very chic and rustic place! Comfortable inside. Great for casual group outings.
Ordered Moroccan Pad Thai. dish wasn’t described as it was. Not really spicy, as advertised.
Full of vegetables and beans: very interesting, well made dish (I think some sautéed tofu would do wonders for this dish).
Initial service was great. Took a long time to bring our bills after we were done!
Reasonable experience… great place if your into vegetarian and vegan food.

I love this place. It’s cozy, warmly lit and has an extensive menu. Both times I’ve been there’s been something with taro root on the menu and that’s an ingredient I wish I could eat every day. The food is tasty and complex but I’m here to talk about the service, which is by far the best of any place I have ever been.
Some background: My husband is a vegetarian with fifty food allergies, many to commonplace vegetarian ingredients like nuts, avocado, coconut flesh, basil, raw vegetables and lentils. It’s been an uphill battle to track and understand these allergies, which result in something called allergic esophagitis, but we do all right. Some of his allergies are life-​threatening, but the majority just result in pain. Going out to vegetarian restaurants is usually not so great, as the idea of allergies is met with skepticism at best all the way to a waitress laughing in his face. It flabbergasts me because we learned how to feed him healthfully, so I don’t appreciate the cracks about «but what do you eat??» from people who work with food.
At Vegetarian Haven, we are treated with respect and understanding. They always take down the list, consult with the kitchen and do everything to make sure he can eat his meal safely. We feel cared for and that’s all one can really ask of service, isn’t it?

Stopped in for a vegan meal coz it was Ash Wednesday. It was my first time in a vegan and vegetarian restaurant and I wasn’t disappointed. I like how entering the restaurant they have a plate on display show casing the chefs special.
The menu main menu provided a lot of choices from apps to the entrees. After eating a dish it kind of wants to make you challenge yourself to try something new every time. If the meal doesn’t fill you up you can explore their delicious desert or try one of their specialty drinks for an after meal finisher.
For my first visit I chose the chefs special:
My starter was the soup of the day: vegetable curry. It was delicious. The taste of the soup reminds me of an Indian dish called sambar. It was also full of vegetables so you get a mouthful every time.
For the main, the chef special is a vegetable + tofu ‘meatloaf’ with an Asian sauce, accompanied by flat noodles with sesame seeds, and a salad. Not much to say about the salad but the ‘meatloaf’ was yummy. My favourite though was the flat rice noodles with the Asian sauce. It makes me want to order pad Thai from them in my next visit. I ended my meal with a satisfying ginger tea (it was written on the menu how ginger helps with digestion).
All in all it was an enjoyable experience of which I would gladly recommend.

Really cute and sweet.
I got a pad thai and my friend got a gargantuan brownie sundae thing which was delicious (and did not taste gluten free/​vegan/​healthy at all).

I came here for lunch with a co-​worker as I had seen good reviews and they have lots of gluten free options for the person I was with. We made a reservation for 1pm and it was good as the place was quite full. It is not a very big restaurant, kind of a hipster vibe inside and located on a very cool street.
The staff was amazing, knowledgeable, friendly and just the right amount of attentive. For apps we got the California avocado Temaki — A hand-​held cornucopia of perfectly ripe avocado, tomato, apple, cucumber, lettuce & sprouts, wrapped in crisp nori seaweed. They were super fresh and the creamy sauce it came with was delicious, the only complaint is that they were so big it is a mission to try to eat! You can’t do it in one bite but you can’t cut the seaweed with a knife!
My co-​worker got the Organic Kale Quinoa Salad — Rich in calcium, iron, protein & anti-​oxidant properties, a nutritious salad of kale, quinoa, seaweed, beets, raisins & seeds are dressed with apple cider vinegar, olive oil & fresh lemon/​lime juice. She liked it a lot and it was a huge portion! It is obviously GF as I previous mentioned.
I got the Spicy Singapore Seitan — Tender slices of succulent seitan cooked in a sweet & spicy pineapple peanut sauce, served with purple rice & vegetables. Oh My Gosh. This dish was amazing. The seitan was marinated and had this wonderful cinnamon flavour. The dish was just spicy enough. Presentation is absolutely lovely here and the purple rice was fantastic! I have never had a dish like this before.
This place is a true gem for veggies and carnivores alike!!! Will definitely return.

I went with my sister and we had such a lovely meal! I’m a vegan and my sister is not even vegetarian BUT she is open to trying new things so I love taking her to vegan restaurants :) She lives close by and had been saying that she wanted to try it for a while.
I had the Shangai noodles which were delicious. She had the special, unsure what it was, some tempura, some kale, some noodles, she loved the sauce (it had pineapple in it which I’m not fond of so I declined that). Both our meals were just amazing! Oh and we had tofu drumsticks which my sister found AMAZING. Some places are incredible with tofu and some are terrible, this is definitely one of the ones that had good tofu. I’ll definitely be back again!

Disclosure: I’m not a vegetarian but my partner is so we tried this place for the first time.
On a Friday/​Saturday if you want to come during peak hours you need to have a reservation otherwise you may be waiting quite some time as this place is very busy (testament to its popularity).
Environment: It has a nice intimate ambiance. Very narrow restaurant. There is nothing particularly unique about its décor.
Service: Very friendly and informed. However given how busy it is you can expect to wait a reasonable amount of time for your order to come in. This definitely is not fast food.
Food: We ordered the Oyster Mushroom Tempura as an app which was absolutely delicious (I wish I ordered 2). Then for entrée we got The bird’s nest and Mushroom Tofu in a Clay pot. The Bird’s nest was on the sweet side, not bad. The Mushroom Tofu however was very saucy and actually good (I would recommend it).
Overall this place was great and I would come back.

It’s nice to try a vegetarian/​vegan restaurant once in a while to change things up a bit. Made my way here on Baldwin street with a famished appetite which was shortly satisfied with a hearty and wholesome meal.
They won’t be selling you on fancy décor as the place look like it’s been kicking for quite some time now but it oozes a sort of zen aura. You will be greeted at the door with a visual display of their daily specials. That’s how they sold me on the red pepper & tomato lentil soup.
The menu is Asian inspired and has quite a wide selection from soups & salads to wraps and curries and noodles.
— Spicy Bali stir fry noodles: One of their most popular items and I can see why. Loaded with veggies and rice noodles, this dish is very flavourful with the perfect amount of sauciness and spicy kick. The tempeh is different from other ones I’ve had with the texture and taste being a mix between fried tofu and taro.
— Seitan in black bean sauce: sizzling on a hot plate, this is the steamy vegetarian take on Chinese style sizzling beef. The star was definitely the seitan which I had no idea what it was but actually tasted quite similar to real meat protein especially with the black bean sauce.
I can’t say that I was particularly wowed with the food BUT they know how to spice up the flavours and keep things interesting. I felt like I was introduced to new and unique vegetarian/​vegan items which I’ve never tried before and appreciate — I think that’s the key to loving this place. Didn’t miss the meat last night!

Best vegetarian restaurant in town. I came with an expectation for asian fusion vegetarian food, hoping to please a party with both vegetarians and meat eaters, and this place exceeded all our expectations.
We ordered the following items:
— «King Prawn» & Oyster Mushroom Tempura
— Spicy Singapore Seitan
— Spicy Basil Stir-​Fried Rice Noodles
— «Seafood» in Clay Pot
— Bird’s Nest
We collectively voted the «Seafood» in Clay Pot dish as our favourite, however all dishes were great as well!

As a vegan, I absolutely loved the food, but some of my meat eating friends strongly disagreed. If you don’t like vegetables or ‘healthy’ foods in general, this probably isn’t the place for you. I wouldn’t say this place is completely healthy with all the oil added, but there is quite a bit of vegetables (which I loved!!)
The servers were very nice always asking if we were doing okay, but they charged us 18% service tax which was pretty unbelievable if you ask me. My mediocre-​sized dish of noodles cost me $ 20. Definitely on the pricier side.

A tad pricey, but well worth it for the excellent service, quality of food, and environment.
If you’re into vegan, this is definitely the place for you. I’ve been here twice, and their service is so speedy, that as you’re putting down the lid of your clay pot, it’ll literally disappear from your hand before it reaches the table (true story).
I love mushrooms, and the fact that most meals there include mushrooms makes me insanely happy. I’m not normally a vegan/​vegetarian, but I don’t miss the meat when I go there at all, as they do an amazing job at having subs for the food.
All-​in-​all, I’d definitely return there many more times :-)

Ce n’est jamais facile (ni très objectif) d’écrire un avis sur un resto qui remonte à quelques mois, pendant les vacances, quand on y songe en rêvassant un peu…
CERTES, mais même en sortant de Vegetarian Haven, je me suis dit que c’était top ! C’est dans une petite rue charmante, pleine de terrasses estivales et de petites guirlandes lumineuses, ce qui rend le diner en terrasse fort agréable ! Pour né rien gâcher, un menu varié qui donne envie avec bien marqué ce qui est sans gluten, sans blé… J’avais pris une sorte de pad thai fusion à la marocaine (oui un peu étrange sur le fond), et c’était très bon et copieux ! Les prix sont assez corrects si je me souviens bien.
J’en garde donc le souvenir, pas si déformé que ça je pense, d’une excellente soirée et c’est avec plaisir que j’y retournerais.