***Note: Vegan Kitchen's Coffee Lounge has now shifted from their initial location to Boralesgamuwa. They currently only take pre-orders as their sorting their stuff out and will open a full fledged cafe very soon.
It's often hard to eat out when you're a vegan, especially since most dishes include cheese, eggs, and milk. Vegan Kitchen's got those dishes too, but they've got vegan substitutes for everything!
Wedged in between houses on Ramakrishna Road in Wellawatta, Vegan Kitchen is the place to be for all you vegans. It's only been a couple of days since they've opened up, and they're doing a pretty good job.
The Drinks
We started off with some good old Nescafe (Rs. 60) since we went in the morning. They used soy milk and I've got to say, trying it for the first time, I liked it even though I generally drink my coffee black. The coffee just tasted like normal Nescafe- nothing to complain about there.
We also got an Orange Juice (Rs. 100) which had the perfect ratio of water to freshly squeezed orange. With no added flavours or sweeteners, it's exactly what you would want with your breakfast.
The Food
Our food took a long time to arrive because the chef wasn't in when we went. While we waited, they gave us some Del Chips to try out, on the house. It was sweet and crunchy, not bad.
We got the Spanish Omelette (Rs. 300) which came with a side of toast and their very own homemade tomato sauce. The toast was just the right texture, not too crumbly and not too soggy either. The sauce was packed with flavour. The whole thing was superb. It was my personal favourite.
It was nicely presented and the omelette included potatoes and vegan sausages which were cooked perfectly. The Vegan Eggs were imported from Australia and were surprisingly tasty. We finished the whole thing in less than 10 minutes – so good!
We also got the Grilled Cheese (Rs. 300) which could be improved in my opinion cause it's not worth the money. However, we did find out that they make their own vegan cheese. That was really impressive because that melted cheese was delicious.
For dessert, we got a Chocolate Muffin (Rs. 60). It was more of a mini muffin but, with rich cocoa flavour and the right amount of sweetness, it was a great dessert to finish off the meal.
They also gave us Date Cake on the house to try out. We found it to be way too sweet and dense. We brought them back to the office, and they weren't fans of it either.
Service & Ambience
It's a simple little place with plastic chairs and tables, with some art on the wall.
I was really impressed with their service. The owners were very friendly and strike up a conversation with you from time to time. The chef especially seemed to know a lot about vegan cuisine which was a good sign. They might not be as efficient as you want them to be, but that's okay for now. They're still figuring stuff out.
The prices aren't as exorbitant as you'd think cause they're vegan. We got all of that for just Rs. 880. One thing I noticed in everything was just how fresh and homemade they all tasted, with no added preservatives or chemicals and very little oil.
Overall
It's a great place for vegans, but anyone can try it because the food truly is delicious. It might not seem much from the outside because even I went in not expecting much. They also have vegan chilli paste, coffee creamers, cookies, cakes, and cupcakes, but they're not always available. However, they did say you can call them and request what you want and that they will make it for you.
