Laughing Seed Cafe

One of the best vegetarian restaurants in Asheville! Even the ardent meat eater can find a scrumptious and filling meal that can be shared in a comfortable and ambient settings with friends or for business. The Thai Panang Curry is my favorite:)

So sorry to have to give this 2 stars. I had high hopes for the Laughing Seed, but left wondering what just happened and where did my $ 45 dollars go. Once we sat down– we were informed they were closing for renovations and because of this they were out of many items. Why not tell us that at the door? Oh, because if we knew 25% of the menu was gone we may not have chosen to eat there. I had the «manicotti» which was two slivers of zucchini rolled up with some innards. The innards were good, but– not worth $ 15. My boyfriend got the sloppy joe which wasn’t served hot, or even warm I should say. Overall, disappointed with the prices, the short menu due to renovations, and the portion sizes weren’t what I expected. Makes me wonder who’s laughing at the laughing seed, because it definitely wasn’t me.

I’ve been here a few times over the last five years and it’s always been a pleasure. The atmosphere is nice, the service is friendly, and there are plenty (for me) of vegan options that are interesting and yummy.
I got the vegan Tejas Melt today for lunch. The jalapeño-​onion fries that came with it were good, and so was the sandwich.
And they had a kids’ menu! That helped. And the kids’ menu actually had a variety of meals instead of the standard 1) pizza, and 2) grilled cheese.

This used to be my favorite restaurant in Asheville, but having gone and been disappointed last week I am sorry to say that it has gone severely downhill. Prices went up, portion sizes went down, and menu options also appear to have diminished. Waitstaff messed the order up with no apologies, food was not hot, service was not great. Bummer, I hope they clean their act up so they can be great again!

Always good food. Great wait staff. I had a fantastic grilled cheese sandwich and my wife had a Rueben. We have lived here for 12 years and go to «the Seed» at least 6 times a year. It is an iconic Asheville staple for dining.

Loved the vegan egglant parm!!! Enough for two people! It was a toss-​up between that and the manicotti, but the sudden cold front turned my cravings to something served warm.
The hemp nut burger came with a delicious sauce that I kept snatching away from my husband for use with the jalapeño fries– which were also fantastic.
Vegan chocolate mousse was lightly sweetened and a great end to the meal. Waitress recommended her favorite elixir which was also quite tasty.
The gluten free beer we tried was horrendous-​just don’t. The pakoras had a very odd aftertaste I didn’t care for, the oil may have needed to be changed.
This place can get a bit pricey, at $ 10+ a plate, &6+ drinks, so stick with the winners. We will definitely be back on our next trip to AVL.

It’s rare that I can go to a restaurant and order anything on the menu, so I was super excited to try Laughing Seed while on vacation. I was not disappointed. Not used to having this type of menu freedom, it probably took me a good 10 minutes or so to decide. I went with the Dragon Bowl and loved it! So fresh and healthy. Definitely recommend.

I was a vegetarian for a long time and after years of having to eat bland food at vegetarian restaurants, I am generally skeptical. After reading all of the great reviews and seeing the gluten free options for my friend, I was excited to try The Laughing Seed. We came here on Columbus Day and it was fairly busy. They may have been understaffed, because it took about 20 minutes for our drink order to be taken, even longer for our food. The food coming out to the other tables looked great, so I patiently waited. After about an hour from the order time, the food started to come out one plate at a time over 15 minutes. Since we had been waiting so long, everyone just started to eat as it came to the table. This is admittedly a huge pet peeve of mine, but if the food had been great, I would get over it.
Alas, the food was disappointing. No one’s food was hot when it came to the table. My sweet potato tacos were pretty bland overall and the boyfriend’s banh mi was just ok. However, my friend’s soup and gluten free grilled cheese were both excellent, so the potential is obviously there.
I hope that we just caught The Laughing Seed on an off day, but I won’t be rushing back. After sitting somewhere for over two hours to get lunch, I just expected more in both service and food quality.

As a vegan, the whole «what do you eat besides lettuce» stereotype gets so. damn. old. There are tens of thousands of veggies in the world; needless to say, those of us who opt to eat plants have a diverse diet.
And thankfully, there are places like Laughing Seed that show the world what’s possible when you go animal-​free. Take any omnivore for a meal here, and they’ll leave with a food baby and a new appreciation for the wonders of cruelty-​free cuisine.
This spot is all vegetarian (and largely vegan), but with options like jalapeño-​onion fries (MOTHER OF TASTEBUDS THESE ARE EVERYTHING); Thai Panang curry with crispy fried seitan, a reuben with marinated tempeh and purple saurkraut, a tofu barbecue sloppy joe — and lots of others on their lengthy menu — any meat eater would be satisfied.
They have cocktails, too, so it’s the perfect place for vegans to shed their straight-​edge image once and for all.
Bring omnivores, order alcohol, french fries, and ice cream (from The Hop!), and watch those tired stereotypes shatter like diabetes on a plant-​based diet.

Yum and I’m carnivorous! They had a huge selection of fresh farm to table vegetables and elixirs to choose from. The rueben was amazing… we need to visit again as the entire menu looked amazing.
Cheers

A charm and a delight is this class example of modern vegetarian/​vegan cuisine.
No, friends, this is not the place you go to get your hippy dippy veggie food. Rather, if you would like to be presented with 3 different cheeze dips alongside a Pimm’s Cup (!), then enjoy a fine dine at the Laughing Seed.
My meat-​eating partner was pleased to accompany me to this location. Our favorite dishes present were the Cheeze Plate, along with the Lasagna. The vegan cheesecake was adored by him, but I rarely like them and found this one to be overly vanilla-​y.
Looking forward to the next time we pass through and can dine at this delectable dining locale.

I ordered the tofu florentine, to go, and ate it while walking to early girl eatery. It’s on the pricey side for the portion but it was so good! I’m not sure what they used but it did not taste like tofu at all. I love when restaurants are able to create such amazing dishes out of simple common ingredients. So from a first glance, it looked like a tofu scramble, which it sort of is, but with veggies. But their tofu was flavored so perfectly to taste like a regular egg scramble. I think that’s why I was impressed.

Fantastic foods and creative beverages and juices. Desserts look awesome too but no room after an awesome lunch. Must go back!

If you come here you must get the Manicotti!
We got the hemp burger that was ok needed some seasoning. The French fries with onion and jalapeño seemed like an awesome idea but it cane out burnt do I would skip that. Tried their mint fudge ice cream and it was watery. Could not taste the mint. Service was perfect. I would say they need some work on some of their dishes.

This place was recommended by a stranger in Staunton, VA who learned we were visiting Asheville. I am very glad we went!
We visited on a Sunday evening. It’s a little hard to find– on an alley/​sidestreet, not the main street.
As a vegetarian, it’s so awesome to go somewhere with more than 1 or 2 menu choices. I was overwhelmed! We sat outside because we had our dog with us. The waitress kindly brought a bowl for our dog. We got the jalapeño onion fries for an appetizer. They were yummy, but not very exciting. The dipping sauces were really good (an aoili and ketchup).
I got the hempnut burger. It was great, but had some room for improvement. The hempnuts (?) gave it a pleasant texture, but without the crunchiness from them, it would have been way too mushy. The bun and the red pepper aoli were really, really good though. It was on the small side. The tortilla chips as a side are interesting.
My husband got the Tico Taco salad. It was huge! The lettuce was crispy. The tofu/​rice/​bean combo was spicy and delicious. The salsa was also yummy. This dish was a winner overall.
Service was really good. Our waitress (Brooke) was sweet and quick to respond. Beer options were good.

I loved that everything was vegetarian and gluten free. We stopped in here when visiting Asheville before we hit the road to head home. They were only serving brunch at noon on Sunday — we had already eaten breakfast earlier at the hotel so were really looking for a salad or sandwich and the brunch menu was pretty limited in that regards.
We did end up ordering the only two salads on the menu — the tofu bowl and the Laughing Seed salad. Both were good and big portions. Would want to return for the lunch menu!

Solid 4 stars. The staff are super friendly and it’s a really nice looking restaurant.
I got the sweet potato tacos and a Oasis beverage. Very tasty. I wish there were more pieces of sweet potatoes on the tacos… seemed a little skimpy.
My waitress– I wish I could remember her name… brunette with short hair… was so nice !! Perfect blend of professionalism and friendliness! I had my kiddo with me and she made sure I was well taken care of.
Solid place to go in Asheville! Perfect lunch date spot.

This place is amazing. I’m a vegetarian who doesn’t appreciate all the fake meats. I’d rather have sweet potatoes and beans. This place has a great mix of everything! I had the sweet potato tacos and my husband had the tofu burrito. Both were amazing and really filling.

With deepest apologies to the staff, who are all just lovely and the sweetest people you could ever hope to see in Asheville, the food prepared at Laughing Seed is depressing as f**k.
I can’t even remember what I personally ordered, because I did my best to erase it from my memory. Never mind, though. There were 5 people at my table, and they all ordered different things. And every different thing was equally sad. After lunch I felt like I had to lie down with the shades drawn and cry into a pillow. The seed might be laughing, but I think the joke was on me.
Mind you, I’ve eaten raw/​vegan food before that was delicious. I’m not inherently against the concept. This is simply not a place that serves good tasting food. This is a place that serves stuff that tastes like rusty cardboard.
I noticed a lot of people are raving about this place. Having eaten there, I really don’t want to even talk to anyone who thinks this is actually a good place to eat. There’s clearly something wrong with your judgment and I can’t be associated with you.
Seriously though, really nice people work there. Really, really, really nice people. People so nice I feel bad for saying I don’t like your food. Sorry. I swear it’s not personal. Please don’t let it get you down, guys. I love y’all. You all totally rock. :-(
Also worth mentioning, the location is excellent. If you’re on Wall Street and the idea of eating virtuous food that tastes like molten sawdust appeals to you, please by all means, go ahead. Just don’t expect me to join you.

Stopped here on an Asheville visit. Really liked the honey pooh smoothie and jalapeño fries (absolutely worth ordering!), as well as two soups. However, we were disappointed by the sandwiches. I got the tempeco wrap, and she had the Cuban. Mediocre at best.
Overall, good choice for something unique!