Vegetable Garden

Worth the trip! Especially if you get the General Tsao’s yams, crispy mushroom appetizer, orange beef with pineapple and sweet and sour delight! (They weren’t too hot, don’t let that scare you.) Delicious, healthy, excellent service. Good for the mind, body, and planet. What more could you want? Thank you Vegetable Garden, and thanks again for the birthday pie on the house!

I was in high need of Chinese food on a rainy & cool day. What a good excuse to try a new spot out… the Vegan aspect was a plus.
The small eatery that is located in the Leisure World strip mall, was very busy for a later afternoon meal.
Our Server Susan was the perfect one woman show in managing all of her customers, including our table of 3. We nestled in a booth & began the menu review. It was very extensive with offering colorful pictures & ingredients of the main dishes. There were some creative dishes I haven’t seen before such as the General Tsao’s Yams & Exotic Cumin Fries.
Appetizers we shared: Pan Fried Dumplings, Spring Roll, & Exotic Cumin Fries… which were perfectly seasoned, fried with sautéed onions & red peppers.
I decided on the Weekday Special for $ 12.99 that offers a soup & 2 entrees that comes in side order portions. Hot & Sour, General Tsao’s Chicken & Sweet & Sour Delight that was organic, battered & fried sweet potatoes with pineapples.
Every piece of food that I consumed was very good. & to know that the restaurant takes pride in offering a high percentage of organic ingredients, no MSG or TransFat, filtered water, an array of desserts & refreshing smoothies… in addition to the healthy, creative & tasty Chinese cuisine, makes the dining experience more enjoyable.

I visit Vegetable Garden about once a month. Each visit I try something new until I discover that favorite. Well, I have my favorite and it seems to get better each time «Vegan Beef Noodle Soup». Made pretty much to order and comes to you piping hot and good.

Moo Shu Vegetables — addictively tasty. I will go there again. It’s in Leisure World so the staff do not rush you at all!

We all (10 & 15 yr old included) loved our food! We had General Tsao’s & some other dish I can’t remember the name of.

Vegetable Garden blew my socks off. My fellow vegetarian friend was excited to bring me here but I was honestly skeptical. I ended up raving about it during my whole trip and wanted to go back the next night. We ordered potstickers, fried rice, the Mushroom Forest and sesame «chicken». All highly recommend and I will definitely be returning upon my next visit to MD.

This is a decent vegetarian place with a wide array of Chinese dishes. Had a wonton with coriander soup for starters. I was not much pleased with it. It had a weird aroma and taste to it. I have tried their Mongolian vegetarian beef dish which was really good. The chocolate rice icecream was delicious!

Delightful meal. Kale was stellar. Tofu hot pot was good too! Amy took me there for my birthday which is superfluous, but gives you insight into my state of mind

All-​vegan Asian cuisine with health at the forefront which is refreshing. Lot’s of good options on the menu, mock meat twists on classic dishes, etc. I prefer the straight up vegetable dishes the best like the Sweet& Sour Delight which also happens to be organic. It’s awesome! And I’m mildly obsessed with the Vegan Sesame Cold Noodles (which they also sell at my local MOM’s Organic Market)

This place is an absolute gem! My boyfriend and I have visited twice so far and were very impressed on both occasions. All of the dishes we’ve ordered were outstanding, here are some dishes we’ve tried so far with a rating:
Vegetable buns (¹⁰⁄₁₀)
Spicy beef noodle soup (¹⁰⁄₁₀)
Crispy beef (¹²⁄₁₀)
Crispy eggplant (⁸⁄₁₀)
California roll (⁵⁄₁₀)
Vegan eel sushi (⁹⁄₁₀)
Inarizushi (⁹⁄₁₀)
Veggie duck hot pot (⁷⁄₁₀)
Servers were very nice and welcoming. I love this place!!!
Did I mention this place carries VEGAN TREATS dessert??? Yup. Go there now!

The food is pretty good, but I wouldn’t call it great. I used to enjoy getting their weekday lunch special when I lived in MD, though, because that is definitely serious bang for the buck. The lentil soup is delicious. In an apples to apples comparison, though, I’d say that Yuan Fu’s «chicken» dishes are tastier.
We like this place, but don’t love it. It’s closer to my mom’s house but we’ll drive out further to Yuan Fu for better flavors.
I must add one thing, too. About 5 – 6 years ago, when they were still in the Rockville location, I remember seeing a bottle of fish oil supplements behind the counter. I don’t know how I feel about patronizing a vegan restaurant that has fish oil supplements on premises.

Whether you are a vegetarian or a meat eater who sometimes feels in need of a good healthy meal out, this is your place. Don’t let the location (next Leisure World) or the décor (adequate…there are tables and chairs) dissuade you from enjoying some delicious food. We are big fans of the tofu dishes and you can’t go wrong with the crispy eggplant. Added bonus: you can call in your order and pick it up. Hurry up to the Vegetable Garden. You can thank me later.

Growing up in a Buddheist family, vegetarian has always been big, so my expectation for vegetarian food (especially Chinese version) is unreasonably high.
Fast forward 20 years, and I’m still searching for awesome Chinese vegetarian food in the DMV area. Vegetable Garden does a decent job of presenting their dishes, so you don’t feel like eating a bunch of grass, tofu-​imitated meat, or heavily oiled/​fried stuff.
Between the 7 of us, we had 4 appetizers, 6 entrees, soup, side dishes, and so forth. The fried mushroom (that look like seaweed calamari) was excellent, the sesame chicken-​looking dish also was great. The rest of the dishes was average and wasn’t all that memorable.
Considering their move from Rockville to Silver Spring (it’s much closer to Wheaton than Silver Spring), I suspect they’ll have a difficult time to get new customers to come from the geography. However given that they have a ton of experience with vegetarian food, it’s unlikely you’ll find anything terrible so that’s an achievement in itself.
To really get a feel for what they have to offer, call ahead, bring a big party, and ask them to cook up a feast for you. That’s the best way to try Vegetable Garden so you’ll get a chance to try a variety of dishes, and find the ones you like.

Fabulous vegan fare
I started with the pan fried dumplings
I love anything GREEN
Love these tiny pockets of heaven
For my entrée I chose the spicy beef with
Mushrooms, carrots, and broccoli
Why 4 stars instead of 5
Well…
Hour do you not give hot tea if you’re Asian based
And also the server told me that my total was
BEFORE TIP
Uhh
Squeeze me
Tips are optional and earned
I’ve been a server for 17 years
Great food though
Going back this week
Pay cash
10%discount

The excitement that The Vegetable Garden reopened seemed to wear off when I realized it was like a 50-​minute drive from DC in traffic. Every time we think about going back, we instead opt for restaurants within walking distance because they are so much easier. But, we could only go so long before heading back. This time, I met my brother, Darren, who I hadn’t seen in a while.
We were supposed to meet at 6:30 p.m. on a Saturday, but I arrived a little early. Well, it appears that this is no longer a vegan’s secret because this place was bustling! My brother informed me that he got stuck at work and would be late so I told them I’d wait for a booth. He ended up getting lost and didn’t show up until 7:15 p.m. or so, but it took that long to get a booth, so I guess it all worked out!
I started with a burgundy wine, which, as I knew, was not at all good. I wish I could just bring my own wine to this place. *sigh* The most exciting part of the night was when I discovered that the warm leek bread they used to serve at the old location is back! Oh, how I’ve missed you!
We both went with the dinner combo special so we could try as many items as possible. You get an appetizer, soup, and two entrees. I started with a Moo Shi Cilantro Roll, which was loaded with tofu and other faux meats and was pretty good.
The surprise of the night was the Hot and Sour Soup. I don’t normally order hot and sour soup, but when they told me that was the spicy soup, I was willing to try it. This soup turned out to be fantastic — it was thick and full of mushroom flavor and tofu and spice. I loved it!
For my two (side order size portions) entrees, I went with one new dish and one I knew I loved. The one I know I love (on the left) is the Garden Feast filled with soy and wheat gluten beef, chicken, and veggies galore! There are snow peas, cauliflower, broccoli, shiitake mushrooms, tomatoes, carrots, jicama, and kale in brown sauce. For the new dish (on the right), I ordered the Asparagus with Oyster Mushrooms and Yuba. It was exactly as described — asparagus, oyster mushrooms, and yuba (tofu skins) in a delightful brown sauce.
My brother ordered two that I wouldn’t normally order. He got the 8-​treasure eggplant (on the right), which was surprisingly good. This dish was loaded with diced eggplant, shiitake mushrooms, yellow squash, zucchini, red bell peppers, lily bulb, pine nuts, cranberries, cashews, and tofu in a spicy sauce. Other than the cranberries, I loved this dish! He also got the Sesame Beef Taro Root (on the left), which was really good, but a bit too much of the wheat gluten and not enough of anything else. Raw veggies were on the side, but I guess this dish is more for people who don’t love veggies and I’m sure there are many people like that!
So, all-​in-​all, it was a great experience. The food was fantastic and my brother left there thinking vegan food is awesome. The service was great. And the price of the combo was only like $ 13 so very cheap for what we got. I love this restaurant and only wish it weren’t so far away!

I’m going to give this place 3 stars because it is rare to find an entirely vegetarian/​vegan place in the DMV but I don’t feel like my experience was particularly stellar or standout either. I guess they did try to be creative and give vegans/​vegetarians different options but taste-​wise, it was only okay.
We walked in our 6:20 for dinner and the restaurant was about half-​filled which wasn’t bad, and the restaurant filled up to almost full capacity by the time we left. I felt that our service was mediocre; I guess they might be a little understaffed because we needed our waitress several times and had to wait to flag someone down for service.
Now, let’s talk about the food. We ordered the vegan beef noodle soup, Hunan veggie beef, cumin crispy tofu and one other dish (that I can’t seem to find on the menu!). The vegan beef noodle soup was probably my favorite dish (by far). The broth was flavorful and reminiscent of Taiwanese night market food though a little salty. The soy protein/​beef was tasty; overall not bad but my biggest problem was the noodles were way over cooked. The description for the cumin crispy tofu made my mouthwater and I couldn’t wait to try it but when I bit into the fried tofu, I was disappointed. The sauce/​spice mixture that the tofu was coated in was pretty bland and not spicy at all. The Hunan veggie beef was another mediocre dish; the protein/​soy used tasted okay but pretty fake. Not sure which one I liked less, the cumin cripsy tofu or Hunan veggie beef.
I would come again and give them another try but I was pretty disappointed with my experience overall. My brother (who is a vegetarian) and I agreed that if we had wanted chinese food, it would’ve almost been better to go to a regular chinese restaurant and have him pick out the meat parts of the meal and eat the tasty veggies.

Best vegetarian/​vegan place in the area! I’ve tried something different every time I’ve visited, and every dish was a slam dunk! What I love most is that MSG is not used, so I am not thirsty hours after the meal. The dishes are also not too laden with sauces oil, or salt. They also offer gluten and soy-​free options.
Some winners are the beef noodle soup, veggie duck hot pot (huge portion, filled with many veggies as well), cumin tofu, veggie eel sushi, and the dumplings. Will try their seitan, veggie chicken, or veggie abalone next!

Dreams of vegetable garden could be a movie about my life. Yes, it’s for real that good! It is worth the drive for any animal-​loving or health conscious vegetarian. They make the food so savory, that you would never miss the meat in it.
We had:
1) pan-​fried veggie dumplings: I thought these were just ok, but made oodles better by the spicy sauce that came with it!
2) basil eggplants were the bomb! Super flavorful eggplant, all braised slowly and tasted fantastic
3) cumin tofu: very flavorful, but very dry
4) Sacha beef: AMAZING! The shredded snow peas were a great touch that added just the right amount of freshness to the dish. Very flavorful and satisfying
Tips: as other Unilocalers mentioned, this is close to a retirement community with a giant shopping center. Parking is plentiful, but be careful while driving!

My favorite vegetarian place in DMV! I used to go to the old location (Rockville) so often the 2 ladies at the counter and the 2 bus boys knew me by name. I was happy they reopened and been there a few times already. This is farther from me so I don’t go as often as I like. I don’t see the 2 ladies anymore but the some of the staff is still the same.
I always get the Veggie Duck Hot Pot — I love the thick layers of tofu skin and the basil and broccoli. I also enjoy Sesame Beef — pecans and yams are great compliments with the mock beef. Hunan Beef — this type of tofu sucks up all the juices. If I could eat this place every day, I wouldn’t need to eat meat as often…
Hot & Sour Soup, Miso soup, and Wanton soups are good! Looking forward to trying their beef noodle soup!

In my opinion this is one of the best Chinese Vegetarian/​Vegan restaurant in the Washington Metropolitan Area. I drive 40 minutes one way from downtown DC to eat here, that says something.
I had my usual great Cumin Fried Tofu, I tried the Mongolian Beef with Ginger and Scallion this time, it was amazing. My dinning partner and I are not vegetarian or vegan, but we both agreed that we could have been fooled by the Mongolian Beef, it tastes so real!!! Only I wish there were more beef, they are made of wheat gluten. I also tried the Spinach Roll this time, now this comes in the form of a sushi roll, tightly packed with green goodness, I swear there must be at least ²⁄₃ cup of spinach in 2 rolls. (Trust me, I measure my food at home!). It also comes with a sesame ginger sauce.
The best thing was that when I told the waitress I am starving and drove a long way to eat here, asked her if the kitchen can hurry up to feed me? Yay! The food arrived.
What more can a girl ask?

I can see why people like this place. From the outside, it looks just like another nameless restaurant with Asian cuisine, but once inside you have nothing but healthy vegan and vegetarian options to choose from, no MSG-​laden meals here. I wish I had paid attention to the reviews more before going here though. It would have been nice to take advantage of the «10% off if you pay with cash» deal. Lawd knows, mama loves a good deal!
Our waitress Maggie was sweet, albeit slightly obsessed with my infant daughter, at one point taking her out of my hands «so you can eat,» she said, and taking her on a tour of the restaurant. If she weren’t so sweet or had moved out of eyesight, I might’ve had to call the authorities. I will say by daughter seemed to love her too, so who was I to object to their strange, newfound friendship.
Food-​wise, Vegetable Garden was really tasty. My cousin got the Golden Rice Bowl and I got a Shiitake Mushroom stir fry. We started with the pan-​fried dumpling. Everything was delicious. My only complaint was that most of the dishes were made with soy, which I try to avoid. That being said, there were enough items to choose from for lunch, so I wound up ok.