Viet Chay Restaurant

Meet the new modern vegetarians - Viet Chay Restaurant

It’s no longer just Buddhists who are finding delight in a diet of vegetables.

It’s not until the first day or the 15th day of a lunar month that people like to eat vegetarian meals at restaurants in major cities like Ha noi and HCM. But things are changing. And it’s not just Buddhists who want to visit vegetarian eateries.

Vegetarians restaurants have become popular places for young people because they like the atmosphere and the simple menus offered here. Plus, many young people want to find their inner calm and escape from the hustle and bustle of their busy lives.

Vegetarian restaurants may be crowded but customers are not hurried out, said Thu Ha, a student from the Ha Noi University. "I don’t think vegetarian food is that plentiful but the dishes are made well and taste very good. I used to think that vegetarian food was tasteless and vapid," said Ha, who was trying vegetarian food for the first time and enjoying it.

There are many varieties to be found in vegetarian cuisine as the choices available in vegetables is limitless. Viet Chay Restaurant in Vinh Nghiem Pagoda, Hcm city has a menu of 400 dishes.

"Viet Chay Restaurant has been designed on the principles of Zen. I collect Zen music from many places in the world," said the restaurant’s director Huynh Long Ngoc Diep.

The dishes too have names related to Zen Legend For example, a coconut salad is called Cuu nien dien bich. When having this dish, people have to think about the great effort coconut growers make in growing their produce. Viet Chay has become a national brand with 27 restaurants set up in pagodas nationwide.

A few years ago, Buddhists made up the bulk of vegetarians, as they wanted to maintain a simply lifestyle and inner calm. The trend has now changed to include people from all walks of life. The vegetarian restaurants are not just about style, said vegetarian Dieu Trang, director of Lac Thong Company.

"Vegetarianism is now trendy in the business circle, which is why restaurants have also adapted," said Trang.

Nang Tam restaurant was the first of its kind in Ha Noi. It was established in 1995 and has since drawn many middle class customers. It also has branches in the northern province of Quang Ninh as well as in HCM City. Working at an auditing company, Pham Minh Hai has always been a busy woman. She finds that she becomes less stressed when she sticks to a vegetarian diet. "I became a vegetarian two years ago. At the beginning, I was just curious, but now it is a habit," she said.

Hai doesn’t wait for the first and the 15th day of a lunar month to eat at a vegetarian restaurant. "I love going to a vegetarian restaurant as it helps me release the everyday stress of life," said Hai.

For others, a vegetarian diet is a great way of maintaining their youth. An owner of a vegetarian restaurant in Lang Street, Ha Noi, Nguyen Thi Gai, said that three years after becoming a vegetarian, her health improved dramatically. "Vegetarian dishes are very tasty. I learned to cook a vegetarian diet and then decided to start making it for others," she said.

Although they are not Buddhists, Gai and her husband have been vegetarians for 12 years. Her children also have vegetarian food weekly. "I prepared a big vegetarian feast for my eldest son’s wedding. The vegetarian wedding party had no meat or wine but everybody was happy", said Gai.

At the United Nation’s Vesak Day held recently in Viet nam about 5,000 international guests and vegetarians were thoroughly impressed by Vietnamese vegetarian cuisine.

(Source:VNS)

Tag: Cuisine , Ha Noi , Hcm , Hcm City , International , Pagoda , Vesak , Viet Nam , Vietnam , Vietnamese

Meet the new modern vegetarians - Viet Chay Restaurant

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