We’re looking for more vegetarian options in northern Monmouth/southern Middlesex county. Yes, there are a zillion Indian restaurants (especially in Edison), diners have salads, and Italian restaurants have vegetarian options, but a little more variety would be nice. (I know about Vegan Tree, but we found the food there pretty oily the last time we went.) Even a lot of Chinese restaurants have hardly any vegetarian options. And I discovered that none of the three Thai restaurants near us seem to offer tofu as an option instead of beef/pork/chicken/shrimp.
In Asbury Park:
Lentil Tree
Twisted Tree Cafe
Both get great reviews from the handful of vegetarians I know.
Talula’s and Cardinal Provisions also have tons of yummy vegetarian options.
There are two Thai restaurants in Monmouth County that I frequent with a vegetarian friend. They have lots of tofu options.
Bamboo Leaf: Bradley Beach
Siam Basil: Sea Girt/Wall
How about Pho Da Nang? https://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/pho-da-nang-parlin?start=60
This place is great. Not vegetarian but the table beef BBQ is very tasty and veggie centric. They also have a veggie section on the menu. There’s also a nice veggie market right next door. 
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In Red Bank, there’s:
Kitch Organic
Good Karma Cafe
Ocean Cafe
New Brunswick - Veganized
Pho Da Nang has (so far as I can tell) only a half dozen vegetarian dishes , of which the only one with actual protein in it that I like is Dau Hu Zao Xi Ot.
But at least you named something in the area I asked for.
I’ll have to keep these in mind. At least they’re only 15 miles away, as opposed to the 25 or 30 of some of the other suggestions.
Unlike most of youse guys, for whom eating out is something you have no problem driving a distance for, Mark and I eat out five or six times a week, and so we are less willing to drive hither and yon to a restaurant. (Hither, maybe, but definitely not yon.) We think of going 15 miles to Red Bank as a major excursion, and generally eat there only when we’re down there visiting the dentist or some medical office. Heck, we were saying that Tropico in keyport is kind of far, and it turns out to be less than 5 miles away.
Hunan Express (near Old Stage Rd, East Brunswick/Old Bridge) has “vegetarian meat” options and a great deal on their Option V, which is a full vegetarian meal. Penang in Edison also has a lot of faux meats. Vegan Tree has new owners and I thought it was more like Loving Hut was when we went a few weeks ago, so maybe try that again? Orchid in East Brunswick (next to A&P) has vegan options, tofu, not meatless meat. Ibby’s in Mid-State Mall has amazing falafel and lot of other vegan/vegetarian options (amazing lentil soup!). Shanghi Bun in Matawan will make anything vegan/vegetarian. They sub the meat out for tofu or veggies, and charges us a lot less than when we were ordering the meat versions…which is nice. Most places don’t adjust the price. Speaking of Keyport, Nemo’s has vegan sushi. There are more, but those are the places we go to the most. Hope that helps!
Hunan Express sounds like some place we should try (though a Chinese restaurant with chop suey doesn’t sound incredibly authentic…). We didn’t like the Loving Hut (the food was too oily) and now that everyone says Vegan Tree is more like it, it makes us less willing to go back. I didn’t realize Ibby’s was in East Brunswick, but it seems very similar to Sahara 34 (which is less than 2 miles from us). I hadn’t realized we could ask for vegetarian options on the stuff at Shanghai Bun; we’ll have to start doing that. And Nemo’s looks like a definite possibility–it specifically indicates tofu is available.
Thanks!
I can’t offer a specific recomendation but i’m veg and have found that middle eastern and greek restaurants have tasty vegetarian dishes with enough beans and tahini and cheese to be satisfying.
and japanese restaurants always seem to have some tasty tofu dishes in addition to noodles and great veg appetizers like miso eggplant and grilled rice balls
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Your mention of a Greek made me do a head slap… my veg mom loves Stamna, which has an outpost in Lincroft, literally a mile in from the GSP.
Glad it triggered more ideas for the OP!
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Here are some vegetarian options in the Belmar area:
Kaya’s Kitchen - Belmar
Rajin Cajun - Belmar - has vegetarian options on menu
Siam Basil Thai - Wall Twp.
