09/14/08

yummy!

by hellolover

The prices have gone up and it makes me sad, however, it's still worth it. It's basically your average Chinese restaurant, without the help of dead animals. Said that, it's not "healthy", I've known people to come in and not like Vegetarian House because they expected "healthy" dishes. So not healthy, just pure yummy! I've taken a meat eating friend who actually forgot that her chicken chow mien was meat free!

• Pros: no dead animals

08/06/08

I dream of orange chicken

by baileyy71889

Omg omg omg. Vegetarian House is quite possibly the greatest Chinese restaurant in Oregon. I've been dining with them for close to 4 years now and I don't plan to stop any time soon. My favorite dish is the orange "chicken", followed closely by the tofu in brown sauce (don't be scared by the name, the sauce is brown, but it's delicious!) The prices can be cheap depending on what you get. Most plates are between $8 and $10, but the more exotic "meats" ("fish", "squid", etc.) are at the higher end, $13-$15. The only things I would say that are bad about the Vegetarian House is the location, atmosphere, and some of the wait staff. But in all honesty, I think those are the reasons it's so weird and wonderful. PS. Everything is vegan too, except fortune cookies.

• Pros: Orange chicken, corn and tofu chowder, chicken chow mein
• Cons: Could be hard to find parking on the weekends, not enough water refils

02/10/08

Authentic Chinese food that I can actually eat!

by ownedtigress

YAY! I love this place, I also would eat there everyday if I could. It's conveniently located right off of burnside, and close to lots of great shops. My boyfriend and I often make a date out of Powell's books, then vegetarian house and saint cupcake for dessert. I would highly recommend the lemon 'chicken' or the cashew 'chicken' dishes. Great spring rolls too. I wouldn't recommend any of the fake seafood, but I do know people who like it, so it's just a matter of taste.

• Pros: Well prepared tofu and soy meat, attentive staff, good location
• Cons: none i can think of.

12/30/07

Great food, terrible location

by topaz4321

My husband humored me by going to this restaurant because I'm vegan and he is not. I happily ate pan fried p*tstickers, General Tso's "Chicken," and "pork" fried rice. I enjoyed the food quite a bit and I would definitely return to this restaurant more often if it weren't for two things: (1) The atmosphere inside the restaurant is brightly lit and horribly uninviting, (2) The street where the restaurant is located is downright scary. We walked from a parking spot about a block away and it was like running a gauntlet. There were two police cruisers on the street as well and we were actually grateful they were there. It is a shame because terrific vegan Chinese food is tough to find.

• Pros: Tasty vegan Chinese food
• Cons: Unpleasant atmosphere, scary location

07/13/07

I would eat here every day if I could afford it.

by hulahulagirl

I love love love this place. I crave Chinese food, but usually have to stick with rice whenever I go to other places. Here I can eat Kungo Pao Chicken, Orange Chicken (fake chicken) and not feel bad at all. Their food is delicious; I haven't been disappointed yet. But it is a little pricey for me at around $10/dish. The spring rolls are delicious as well (and cheaper). I've heard that service can be slow but we usually get take out so we don't have to deal with that. We did eat in one time and we were one of 2 or 3 tables. Service was fine, even seemed fast since I was prepared for slow. I will definitely be eating take out from here again--often!

• Pros: delicious Chinese food for vegans! hooray!
• Cons: a little pricey, but worth it for specialty food (and it's delicious!)

07/01/07

Average veggie chinese food

by sugarxbooger

I think I've been spoiled on really good vegetarian chinese food, because I found this to be very average. I have to admit the hot & sour soup was very hot AND sour, which is crucial, so I enjoyed this. The general tso's chicken tasted really awesome - battered chunks of seitan with sweet and spicy sauce, and a teensy bit of bok choy - but the portion was very small. For $10 I expect more! I'd stay far away from the other dish we tried - the twice-cooked beef. We determined by twice-cooked, they probably meant steamed, then boiled - it's flabby, pale, soft bits of gluten. It came with lots of cabbage which reminded us of the way a sketchy grocery store smells, and the sauce was too bland to hide the flavor. I'd definitely have to go back to fully judge the place, but I'm not entirely sure I want to!

On a side note - the service was amazing.

03/10/07

Good food, slow service

by belmontlover

I thought this place was pretty good overall. My main complaint was the service. No one greeted us when we entered, we finally just grabbed our own menus and sat down. Our server then immediately brought us some tea and water. We ordered steamed potstickers, which were pretty tasty. We then ordered the orange "chicken" and eggplant in brown sauce. It seemed to take forever for our order to come. Our server just sat at another table and did what appeared to be homework. It was us and another couple at a table and that was it. It was extremely slow, but atleast the food finally came. We were both shocked to see the amount of orange "chicken". I mean, yes, it was tasty, but it was a TINY portion for $8 bucks. Good thing the eggplant was also tasty and a decent portion size. I would come here again, but don't think the orange "chicken" is worth the price.

• Pros: yummy veggie food
• Cons: small portions, a little overpriced

02/12/07

Wonderful food and service

by madidi

On a rainy Sunday, we headed for the Vegetarian House after a day excursion into the city. We live in Salem and my husband misses the city sometimes. But he now really misses Portland after being able to go into a Chinese restaurant and order anything off the menu! We were cold and wet and started with cups of tea, followed by won ton soup. My husband can't remember when he was last able to have won ton soup! He's the vegetarian and I'm a reduced meat eater - both of us delighted with what we ordered. We waddled out full and happy, with a take out menu in hand, and wishing we lived closer in order to eat there every day!

11/13/06

Great Lunch Buffet

by drdanpdx

It has a great veggie lunch buffet. The things that can be done on a meatless menu are endless here. The ways tofu is combined in dishes more than make up for the meat that is missing.

07/28/06

Vegetarian waiting for service.......

by kfcook

Well, it's Friday night. My husband and I are new to Portland and looking to get out of the house and get some good vegetarian food served up! But, unfortunately after being seated, ordering an appetizer immediately (steamed potstickers), and ordering our main course about 5 minutes after that......20 minutes goes by and as we see EVERYONE else in the restaurant (meaning the two other tables of 3) get served food and the waiter just walking right past us I decide to ask "where is our food" I get "steamed potstickers take about 10 minutes to make" and he walks away. Ummmm.....okay it's been 20......

Okay, not real happy, but I assume he is working on it. I get up to use the bathroom in hopes something will be on the table when I return, but instead I just see my husband sitting there......hungry. So, we wait another 10 minutes as the waiter just keeps walking right past us totally ignoring us. A half an hour has gone by with nothing.

We leave hungry, disappointed, and unhappy. Not a word is said to us as we leave. So, the food might be delicious, but we were never served. I probably would have held out, still a little annoyed if we would have at least been updated and apologized to. I would suggest not going here if you are hungry or have any interest in good service. This is not a restaurant that you can sit down and really enjoy the scenery. It is a place to eat....with no food.

• Pros: Vegetarian & Vegan food on the menu (not on my table)
• Cons:  Bad Service, Terrible Service, No Service