Vegetarians: Taiwan is your country!

Before coming here I never would have guessed the abundance of vegetarian restaurants on this island. But thanks to Buddhist and Taoist teachings of non-violence and compassion, we have plenty to choose from. Interesting fact: most of these restaurants don’t use the ingredients onion and garlic because they can cause physical excitement and would, therefore, be detrimental to meditation. The seemingly impossible has proven to be possible though: the food is still very tasty! Here are the perfect places for vegetarians to sample Keelung food.

佛光山基隆極樂寺 a.k.a. ‘The One Inside The Temple’

This popular vegetarian restaurant is hard to miss because it’s situated inside the big temple on Xin’er Road. It’s a great place with very friendly prices. We went here three times and it was full of guests every time. Because of this, the staff are always a bit rushed but they are also always friendly nevertheless. This might not be the place for a romantic dinner, but if you’re looking for a quick healthy bit of Keelung food you came to the right place.

Language barrier
Their menu is in Mandarin, but they have one copy with the English translations written on it. Don’t worry if you happen to not get your hands on this precious copy though: each menu item is accompanied by a picture, so you can just smile and point at what looks tasty to you. Picking out food has never been easier.

Food and drinks
They offer both entrees and small (side) dishes. You can either go tapas style and order a number of small dishes (generally 50 TWD per dish), or you could choose to go for an entree-portion dish (generally 100 TWD per dish) and maybe add one or more side dishes of extra veggies.
Water is free of charge and some of the dishes include a cup of tea. You can also order drinks (mostly (ice) teas to choose from) from the menu, prices seemed to range from 70 – 100 TWD.

How much?
Expect to pay between 200 and 300 TWD for two persons. If you order drinks from the menu, count on 150 – 200 TWD more. This makes it the most affordable on our list, hurray!

金玉食堂蔬食創意料理 a.k.a. ‘The One Next To The Harbor’

This attractively decorated little restaurant near to Keelung harbor has delicious and unique Keelung food. The staff don’t seem to speak English but they are friendly and accommodating. There were only two other tables occupied when we were there, so it’s a nice and quiet dining experience.

Language barrier
Their menu is in Mandarin, but some of the menu items have pictures and when we were there, the waitress did some Google Translate magic to help us decide on what to order. When you combine Keelung food and vegetarian options, it’s hard to go wrong.

Food and drinks
We ordered a hot pot, fried rice, and skewers. It all tasted great!

How much?
We paid almost 600 TWD for two persons, which makes this one the most costly on our list. You get value for money though!

深耕園素食餐廳 a.k.a. ‘The One With The Sweet Owners’

What a lovely place. The elderly couple that are running this place are very sweet and friendly. The woman seemed to be enjoying the fact that we were liking their Keelung food so much. This was for sure our favorite of the bunch! There was only one free table when we arrived, but it was on a weekend day so it might be more peaceful during weekdays.

Language barrier
This was our most adventurous restaurant trip since the menu was in Mandarin and NO PICTURES (aaah!). The great thing about a vegetarian restaurant (and Keelung food!) though is that you can just point at something on the menu without having to worry to end up with a plate of black pudding, so that’s exactly what we did.

Food and drinks
They welcomed us with a small dish of really tasty (smoked?) tofu. It was so good that I only remembered to take a picture of it when it was almost finished. Oops.
We chose the first and second options on the menu (see picture) and were very happy with what we got. Our 200 TWD menu pick included water and tea and a little sweet jelly thing as a desert. Good value for money!

How much?
We paid 400 for two people, including everything described above. There were also 250 TWD menu items, so expect to pay between 400 and 500 TWD for two people.

Vivaio Pasta a.k.a. ‘The Risotto Place’

This is the only restaurant on our list that is not exclusively vegetarian, but if you want a day off from Asian Keelung food, this is a great choice! Also, it’s the only restaurant on our list that serves beer. Just saying. The restaurant has nice ambiance lighting and therefore feels a bit homier than the others on our list. They decorated the place with hip wooden furniture and vintage Italian items. We went here twice and both times it was quite lively, so the Taiwanese seem to like it as well.

Language barrier
Their menu has English translations and the vegetarian options are listed separately.

Food and drinks
Pizza was not bad, but we especially loved the risotto. It’s so good! Water is included, other drinks go from 50 to 190 TWD for what’s probably a somewhat exclusive type of beer. You can also choose to have a drink and a desert for a discounted price.

How much?
The vegetarian dishes go from 95 to 175 TWD, but there’s a minimum charge of 150 TWD per person, so expect to pay between 300 and 350 TWD and quite a bit more if you’d like a drink with that.

水產餃子館 a.k.a. “The Vegetarian Dumplings Place”

The small restaurant is hidden on the street that leads to Heping Island. Before or after visiting the island, this dumpling place is a must-stop for everybody – including non-vegetarians. The owners of the restaurant are preparing the dumplings with seaweed from the local coast just in front of your eyes. You can’t get them fresher.

Language barrier
The menu is in Chinese only but some waiters of the friendly staff speak English and will help you out.

Food and drinks
There is also soup and a couple of non-vegetarian dishes but don’t even think about it – get the vegetarian dumplings! They are so delicious that we ate ten of them each in about a minute.

How much?
You can get a set of ten dumplings for only 60 TWD. Soy sauce and spicy sauce is provided for free. You can also get the other options for an affordable price.

Note: These restaurants are not the only places in Keelung to offer veg(etari)an food, so don’t hold back from doing a little research yourself! Tip: Use Google Maps to find vegetarian restaurants in Keelung by copy pasting ‘素食 Keelung’ (‘vegetarian food Keelung’) into your search bar. If you find a nice gem, be sure to let us know in the comments section.