Franchia Vegan Cafe

Four stars because I love Korean and I think it’s pretty great there’s an all vegetarian specifically Korean restaurant.
But if no one in your party is vegetarian don’t go– regular Korean is WAY tastier. Also I ordered the «wine sampler» for $ 20 which was three baby sips of wine. A regular glass of wine was like $ 9 and double the amount of the whole sampler.

I am a Hangawi lover. But unfortunately, Hangawi is usually all booked for al last minute weekend dinner. So here we were, me, hubby and the two little girls (3 & 7).
With Hangawi on my mind, I allowed Franchia to put food in my mouth. And you know what — Not bad! In a way, I am glad I came here as I was craving vegan ramen and their spicy vegan ramen in miso hit the spot for me.
I am going to write my review comparing this place to Hangawi so people who look at both know how they compare. (they have the same owner btw)
So!
Food — I would say both are as good. The presentation of the food is better at Hangawi but Franchia has its own unique dishes that make it worth a visit. (Ramen, Ramen, Ramen)
Service — The service is slower at Hangawi, but certainly kinder. The servers at Franchia were not rude or anything, but more mechanical. The service was very quick though.
Ambience — Hangawi has a more high-​end feel and the traditional low wooden seating. Franchia was casual, a bit crammed but not bad.
Price — Comparable.
So, if you have are in the mood for last minute vegan Korean and Hangawi has its doors closed, Franchia will welcome you with open arms and the visit will be worth it. And may be, one day it will take over your love for Hangawi!

I love this place. Every time I’ve come here, the food has been absolutely fantastic and their menu options are really healthy. Their soy products taste like they are good quality and the servers are attentive and friendly. I highly recommend this place!

5 of us had dinner here. We started off with the warm sake, which was good but nothing to rave about and also a few teas while the dandelion tea was tasty the tangerine tea just tasted like warm water even after steeping the tea for almost 10 minutes. We thought its better to drink the tea before it gets cold.
We had the assorted dumplings, which was a compete disappointment, the wonton wrappers were straight out of the bag you get in any supermarket and use at home. They served Sriracha as their chili sauce, for a vegan place that charges as much as they do, I don’t think that’s great. We also had the combination pancakes, which was really tasty, greasy but tasty.
For main course we had the spicy miso Ramen, which was just bad, starting with the broth which was bland and the noodles which were overcooked, the only good thing about it was the mock beef and that’s not saying much cause that obviously also comes straight from the supermarket. We also had the kimchi fried rice, which was tasty. The claypot with tofu and assorted veggies was really good, the broth had a real nice spice profile. We also had the avocado and vegetable stone bowl, which was the star of our meal, the heat of the bowl made the bottom layer of the rice crispy and all kinds of yummy, that mixed with the avocado and the other fixings was really tasty.
The décor is nice, the service was adequate. I would stay away from the appetizers I tried and stick with the stone pot/​bowl. We didn’t try dessert. This place is not cheap. Overall it was ok.

This is an restaurant that attempts to dispel the myth about healthy food tasting «too healthy» (if you know what I mean). Though their Korean, all-​vegan menu clearly serves up small-​niche fare, the moodily lit duplex ambiance stakes its swanky claim amongst the other Park Avenue bad boys. In fact, when my girlfriend and I came for dinner on a Wednesday night, there were no empty tables around us while neighboring corporate restaurants seemed cavernously quiet.
We started with a trio of appetizers. The samosa rolls arrived at our table looking a lot like fat, crispy cigarettes. With a spiced potato and pea filing and an accompanying lime and mango sauce, this was a lovely start. The steamed ‘baby dumplings in spicy sauce’ were far less inspired with a slightly gummy wrapper and a forgettable filling. Our last appetizer, the spicy buffalo wings, were ordered more for curiosity’s sake than anything else. Wheat gluten or seitan with an appropriately crunchy layer of fried ‘skin’ is wrapped around a popsicle stick to mimic the experience of tearing meat off a bone. While I applaud their efforts to recreate such a quintessential bar food for non-​meat eaters, I found the actual taste of the seitan just slightly off-​putting, with a strong faux meat flavor that threw me off. Still, my non-​vegan friend was quite impressed with its consistency, claiming that it was more like a piece of chicken than any other faux meat she’d ever had.
For dinner, we both chose the vegetarian stone bowl rice, which takes the traditional bibimbap (rice mixed with an assortment of veggies and meats with a spicy chili sauce) and serves it in a heated stone bowl that continues to cook the bottommost layer of rice while you eat, allowing you to get beautifully crunchy bits of rice mixed in that is not unlike the soccarat that forms in the bottom of a paella pan. Being the spice-​loving gal that I am, I had for a double serving of the gochujang, or the chili garlic sauce, which was brought speedily and cheerfully. My only complaint about this entrée was the addition of some broad-​leafed veggies that were incredibly tough and herbaceous. I tried to gnaw my way through them but found the taste and texture so overpowering that I picked them out before making sweet mouth love to the rest of the bowl.
As a Korean diner, I was tempted to give Franchia a 3.5. Along with my slight misgivings with the food items, I found the overall value of the meal (price vs. serving size) far, far less than what I’m used to seeing in my hometown of Flushing. Still, the fact remains that vegans have a hard time in many of these places because of the prevalence of fish and meat products in broths and marinades. That they would open a restaurant where vegans and strict vegetarians could order to their heart’s content without conducting long interviews with the chef about ingredients is an enormous plus. Additionally, the service was entirely correct, with water glasses refilled and plates cleared peremptorily. They even made sure my chopsticks and spoon were properly repositioned onto the tiny utensil stand after they cleared our table. The clear care and attention from the staff tipped my hand for the four star rating.

I originally found Franchia on happy cow, and decided to come here because I wanted to try Korean food other than kimbab without worrying that meat or egg would get thrown in it!
My fiancé and I got the duck bun appetizer to share, they were delicious, but really small. From other Unilocalers photos, I thought they’d be at least twice as large as they were. The veggie duck reminded me more of pork than duck, but it was still delicious so that doesn’t really matter.
I got the vegetarian stone bowl for myself. The menu description didn’t say it’d have mushrooms (whereas others were described as having mushrooms), yet it was loaded with mushrooms. I’m not crazy about mushrooms and wish the menu reflected that so I could’ve ordered something else. I still enjoyed it a lot (I traded my fiancé mushrooms for tofu and avocado).
Overall the service and food were good. But it felt overpriced given the portion sizes. I still want to come back and try more of their dishes, but I’ll be asking the server about mushrooms.

It really depends on what you order. The first time we ordered entrees — they were all super expensive and you def don’t get enough food for what you pay. Their signature noodles were overly sweet and nothing special.
The appetizers and sushi on the other hand are very good and reasonably priced. The soy and grain meat dumplings were excellent and served with a carrot/​ginger sauce. We also had the spicy tuna roll, the spicy chicken roll and the tropical mango & avo roll (you can skip that one). All very good.
I added one star because it gotta be one of the nicest restaurants I’ve been to: wooden floor and ceiling, candlelight atmosphere… Love it!

Service is so bad!!!
The food is good but same thing you would find at a Korean restaurant.

We found this place on Unilocal after losing our Friday night reservation at Hangawi for being late. It turns out they have practically the same menu but with no wait and cheaper prices! We’re suspecting that it’s the same owner because of the menu similarities. Overall their food is good, but expect most dishes to be oily or saucy. Our line-​up:
–Combination pancakes
–Assorted dumplings
–Buffalo wings
–Avocado Stone Bowl (my favorite! A combo of avocado, tofu and veggies on a bed of sizzling rice — a bit dry though so find a sauce you like and request it)
–Spicy Vegan Meat Balls and Chicken in Garlic sauce (another favorite)
–Soy Beef in Spicy Coconut Sauce
We tried 3 of the desserts. The ice cream was the best hands down. Mochi and soy cheesecake were unremarkable.
The servers needed a lot of prompting to get our straws, bring more utensils, and bring the check.

Disclaimer: I had Thanksgiving dinner here. The dinner was not a special dinner for the holiday, but it does mean that there was a different kind of service and atmosphere to the place. Summary — I wasn’t there on a normal day.
Loved my experience here. The restaurant itself is set up like a series of steps which makes it feel like you are in a cozy place without feeling squished. The staff were on point with water and service. And then the meals were superb. I had a delicious dish that I just wanted to drink the curry sauce afterwards, it was so good. House sake was great and hit the spot. My friend’s meal was also enjoyed, which is big because he isn’t a vegan/​vegetarian at all. We had some appetizers too — kim chi pancakes were great (and I’m not a kim chi fan) and the buns were pretty good (not a lot of filling).
All in all, I like this place. I think the ingredients are fresh and justify the price, as there are other vegan asian places throughout the city. But this one was consistently good in every aspect, so definitely worthy of a meal.

Good vegan food and original menu. For a vegan this is heaven but for a vegetarian lover like me I never got full. Prices were high and we kept ordering dish after dish. The sizzling bowl w rice and vegan beef was tasty, especially the siracha sauce. I also liked the «chicken» sizzling bowl which did seem like chicken. Overall food was a bit too salty for my taste. I would prefer cilantro or peanut or some other taste then soy. The restaurant is very cool, dark, and nice décor and atmosphere, well it was a vegan crowd. On a positive note their wasabi dressing was sooo good. Vegans enjoy, carnivores stick to what you love.

An OK Asian inspired vegan restaurant. The porridge was quite sweet, which makes me suspect sugar was added. Gluten free options were few — surprising given the variety of possible gluten free Asian dishes. The dumplings for instance are all made with wheat flour. There are a number of dishes that propose ‘vegan scallops’, ‘vegan duck’, or other vegan meats. This to me marks a lack of respect for vegetarian/​vegan style cuisine. The aim should be to celebrate the vegetable ingredients rather than to imitate meat.
The noodle and vegetable dish i had for main course seemed fairly average for mid range Asian fast food. That’s too say neither the quality of the noodles nor the freshness of the vegetables was on par with that of higher end establishments.
Generally, the menu makes me suspect that Franchia is more a commercial exploitation of than an establishment that truly embraces veganism.
The service was friendly. The atmosphere warm with dark wood tables and detailing.

The menu here looks amazing… it took me like 20 minutes to order since everything sounds so good. I love that they have a variety of teas and fresh fruit juiced mixed drinks, I ended up ordering the chai type spice tea that has chillis in it (It was great). For the main dish I ordered an egg plant dish with vegan shrimp and other vegetables, it was tasty but a little too much on the saucy side.
The service is good, the décor and feel of the place is beautiful, the dishes are pretty pricey. I would definitely come back here to check out more dishes.

I visited Franchia based on a coworker’s rave recommendation and unfortunately thought it fell a bit short of expectations. I see a lot of reviews saying the food is delicious for a vegan place, but I feel like we shouldn’t make excuses for the fact that it doesn’t use animal products. The dishes should be good, period. No caveats necessary.
Also don’t be fooled into thinking that the dishes are healthy, the only thing remotely healthy about the menu offerings is portion size. They do indeed serve alcohol and the laksa noodle soup and faux beef rendang I ordered were doused in oil. The flavors were not well developed as I found the soup overly sour and strangely chemical tasting (this is the only way I can describe it). I did enjoy the faux shrimp though and I give them props for their efforts. Perhaps with Asian cuisine being generally meat and fish-​heavy it isn’t the easiest to translate traditional dishes into their vegan counterparts.

Lovely Korean vegan restaurant in Midtown East offering inexpensive lunch specials, wonderful tea list and beautifully plated compassionate food.
The layout is inviting and attractive with their multiple-​tier seating areas, offering large tables for many guests or small tables for more intimate affairs (and this can be a rather intimate place.)
They offer many vegan-«meat» dishes, as well as some intuitive variations without processed foods as well.
There are many things to love about Franchia. And they love you back, with their health-​oriented menu and organic teas; you wont find booze here, but that’s part of the self-​love they offer — sacrificing profitability for health promoting menu options.
The dinner entrees can be a little on the pricey side, but nothing out of the norm for the area. All in all, I would recommend the lunch specials if $ is tight and you want some delicious, healthy vegan food at a reasonable price.

My lunch at Franchia was delicious! Emaan M. and I shared the steamed kimchi dumplings which came with a ginger sauce. The filling in the dumplings was deliciously fresh and the ginger sauce on the side went well with it.
I had the Penang noodle soup which had the perfect amount of spice. The coconut broth was delicious and full of flavor, perfect on a cold day. The veggies were cooked well and the mock chicken surprisingly tasted very close to the real thing… how do they do that? The noodles were very good too, maybe just a little too soft. I do wish the soup was a little less oily, but it was very good nonetheless. I loved the pickled cucumbers on the side too.
Everything was delicious, can’t wait to return and try something new.

With vegan food being this good. i don’t see why I would ever need to eat meat again!
My Penang Noodles in Spicy Curry & Coconut Broth was absolutely amazing; way better than some of the non-​vegetarian ones i’ve had in an «authentic» Malaysian/​Thai restaurant. The broth is amazing, it’s not overwhelmingly spicy and is packed with flavors from the coconut milk. The noodles are a bit soft to me but the delicious «chicken» made up for it. Their «chicken» is way taster than real chicken.
I also tried the avocado bibimbap. it was creamy and soft. But the flavors from my coconut curry broth was strong so i couldn’t taste much flavors in the bibimbap. Still a great rice dish though.
I would pass on the pancake appetizers. they are tiny, i could finish it in 2 bites! and i take small bites! It’s also a bit bland and was served slightly burnt.
I can’t wait to come back to get some more Penang Noodle with EXTRA BROTH! I would totally go vegan, if i could always eat vegan food as delicious as the ones served here. :) A MUST TRY!

Was looking forward to eating here so much and I’ve got to say that it just wasn’t as good as I hoped.
Ordered the spicy steamed wontons and the spicy ‘tuna’ roll to start off. The wonton texture was just off and had no taste. The filling was very bland! The spicy tuna roll was made out of soy and was pretty good but I still prefer vegetable sushi rolls more than the fake tuna.
The spicy ramen in miso soup with ‘beef’ was just gross. The ‘beef’ was made of mushrooms that tasted so bad and it contaminated the taste of the soup. It didn’t even have a hint of miso anymore. It was so oily and such a let down.
The best part of the meal was the spicy kimchi basil fried rice. Definitely recommend.

I had dinner here on New Year’s Eve. It wasn’t crowded at all, which was nice. The service was top notch. I had the avocado bibimbap which was delicious, aside from the bean sauce, which was very much on the salty side. I also tried the Korean plum tea which was a bit too sweet for my liking. For dessert we had the gluten free Black Forest cake — quite good, but not mind-​blowingly so. All in all, this place was lovely, but for the price range it didn’t quite meet my expectations.

Das Essen war der absolute Wahnsinn! Echt super lecker!
Wir hatten Chickentofu — sehr lecker!!!
Das beste am ganzen Abend war aber definitiv der Plumtea! Wahnsinn!
Leider war die Bedienung sehr unhöflich!

Nous avons voulu tester ce restau veg car il pleuvait et a deux pas de chez
Nous, mais nous avons été un peu déçus. Non pas par la qualité mais un peu par la quantité. Nous avions commande un plat de noodles, qui était notamment un peu léger… Et un plat avec du riz sauté et du poulet végétarien, qui se tenait plus, mais qui n’a pas suffit a nourrir mon compagnon. Nous avions aussi pris des rolls en entrée… Bref c’était goutu mais en trop petite quantité!