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MADAMELEACH · Joined: 27 Aug 2009 Posts: 46 Location: WELLINGTON

I AM NEW TO SHANGHAI and so far have only been able to find one expensive place that serves vege foods.

I am sure there are many more vegetarian places around but I need some helpful advice quickly.

The restaurant I discovered near The Bund and out of the way is too expensive and so I am asking any of you teachers who knows a budget Vege place to eat.

I welcome your feedback for myself and one other vegetarian teacher here.
Naturally, we are in China so we are not asking specifically for western Vegetarian foods! We love Chinese vege food.

Just no animal products. no fish, no animal meats.
I am not vegan so Dairy ok. Wink

bythebookie · Joined: 04 Apr 2011 Posts: 51

I find it hypocritical - vegetarian versus vegan

Either the SUPPOSED use/abuse/exploitation of animals is okay or it's not.

So basically in Real Life - murder is horrible, well, unless it's someone you really want to kill instead of other normal people...

That being said .... why not buy and cook your own food and solve the need to seek out the useless concept of vegetarian menus elsewhere?

Riviello · Joined: 12 Apr 2011 Posts: 66

D'Marco Italian Restaurant has wonderful pasta!

sistercream · Joined: 18 Dec 2010 Posts: 497 Location: Pearl River Delta

The Happy Cow website has a Shanghai section, divided into vegan, vegetarian and vegetarian-friendly.

daCabbie · Joined: 02 Sep 2007 Posts: 244

Why not go into a Chinese restaurant and say, "我是素食主义者。没有肉."

They will gladly make you any dish without meat. A lot of my students don't eat meat, it's very common in China.

Do you eat bugs? The silk worms are coming into season soon. Mmmm, they are so yummy.

Riviello · Joined: 12 Apr 2011 Posts: 66

Another thought - join www.shanghaiexpat.com and ask there.

MADAMELEACH · Joined: 27 Aug 2009 Posts: 46 Location: WELLINGTON

Chinese vegetarian food anyone?

Let's stick to the Topic request please.

yaramaz · Posted: Thu Apr 21, 2011 1:54 am Post subject:

There's a really good place called Vegan in the 700 block of Guoding lu very close to the Shanghai University of Finance and Economics (SUFE). I eat there sometimes when doing exam work. It's vegetarian Chinese stuff- very nice soups and dumplings and whatnot. Very affordable, lots of students eating there.

sojourner · Posted: Thu Apr 21, 2011 3:33 am Post subject:

Da Cabbie has made an excellent suggestion - merely ask any Chinese restaurant to prepare a meatless dish for you ! But, if you might be a bit sqeamish ,thinking that such a meal could have been cooked in a pan that a few minutes earlier most likely contained some meat (horror of horrors !); and, thus, would prefer a "dedicated" vegetarian restaurant, here are a couple of suggestions.

I take it that you know Nanjing Dong Lu ( East Nanjing Rd), that runs between the Bund and People's Square. About half-way along that road you'll find the Sofitel Hotel - just opposite it is a Chinese vegetarian restaurant - they have plastic models of some of their most popular dishes in the widow.

At the People's Square end of West Nanjing Rd you'll come across the Shanghai Art Gallery - you can't miss it, it has a clock-tower. If you walk for about 50 or 60 yards from the Gallery, in the direction of Chengdu Lu, you'll come across a restaurant called "Godly", which on a large notice outside proudly proclaims that it is the city's oldest Chinese vegetarian restaurant (estabished sometime in the 1920s) !

I should point out that I have never been to the aforementioned restaurants; thus, can't vouch for their prices or quality. I came across both places whilst strolling through the city.

Peter

Laurence · Joined: 26 Apr 2005 Posts: 401

dean_a_jones · Joined: 03 Jul 2009 Posts: 1151 Location: Wuhan, China

Can't name any specific places, but a lot of temples have a vegetarian places attached to them (sometimes inside, not so helpful as you have to pay to get in, sometimes you can just go to the restaurant).

The other option is to adopt a place as your 'local', or a few places, and be very specific about the 'no meat' thing a few times. It might take a few complaints, dishes sent back, but they will eventually get the idea. This obviously works better at the smaller, family style places of course, rather than the 200 seater restaurants. Also, once you get the hang of the menu, you will know which 'vegetable' dishes normally come with meat, and which don't.

A'Moo · Posted: Thu Apr 21, 2011 2:02 pm Post subject:

Trebek · Joined: 30 Oct 2003 Posts: 401 Location: China

I have a vegan friend... What a total pain in the ass it is to hang out with a person like that. I can see eating primarily veggies, and often go a few days without meat, but to have it like a chain around one's neck worrying "does this cake made with egg whites", seems ridiculous to me. You can't avoid meat. Bugs, bacteria, protozoans, ect, find their way into your system. Just order all veggies and forget the fact that pig flesh was cooked in the same pan. It ain't gonna kill ya!

Sorry, this rant is for my friend and not you OP. I should hope your life isn't as bleak as my friends is.

Nice to see your still eating dairy. there is still hope for ya! <grin>

7969 · Joined: 26 Mar 2003 Posts: 5782 Location: Coastal Guangdong

vegans are a pain in the a$&. i mistakenly hung out with one of them on a trip once. When we got a meal in a restaurant the broccoli came with what looked like a hollandaise or cheese sauce. She angrily sent it back and ordered the cook to make her another one. The broccoli returned without the sauce but it looked like the cook just washed it under the tap and put the same vegetables back on the plate Laughing

Old Surrender · Posted: Fri Apr 22, 2011 8:01 am Post subject:

I'm vegetarian and I've never had a problem being vegetarian in this country. I had more problems being vegetarian in the US. A few good items is tomato egg soup and Japanese-syle tofu. You can find both of these in most hole-in-the-wall places.

chou dofu 臭豆腐 is pretty good and widely available on the streets.