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vegan eats at bulan thai vegetarian kitchen
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December 9th, 2008quarrygirlbulan thai vegetarian, LA restaurants

for ages i have been meaning to check out bulan thai. it’s this all vegetarian thai place where most dishes can be made vegan, serving up food from two locations—one on melrose and one in silver lake. the melrose location is kinda near to my work, and it always looks so clean and inviting…for so long though, i was just never able to resist the urge to grab a panini or burger from m cafe instead. plus, on any given day of the week i’m probably already asian-fooded out, what with the ten million vegan thai places with the word vegan in the title, hawking their wheat meat and salty noodles on every major street in los angeles.

bulan vegetarian is different though, it doesn’t adhere to the same rules as all these other thai vegan clones. there are no cowboy burgers, no wraps and no salads swimming tahini dressing. nope, none of that westernized stuff at bulan. the standard vegan cookbook that the other thai places have adopted, bulan completely ignores. it’s so refreshing to visit a thai food restaurant with food that both a.) is authentic and b.) i can trust. bulan is just that place, and i love it.

the husband and i hit up bulan recently and decided to get a full on feast: 2 main dishes and an appetizer to share. we started with the summer rolls. so simple, but so exquisite.

summer rolls: baked tofu and fresh vegetables wrapped in clear wrappers, served with vietnamese dip. $8

i’ve had rolls similar to this at a million thai places in the past, but none have been this good. the summer rolls were tiny and tightly packed with the freshest and most delicate of vegetables. the peanut sauce was also supberb and went down well with several spoons of chili powder. i would definitely order these again. the somewhat hefty price tag was made up for with the finest ingredients, great taste and beautiful presentation.

we also shared the broccoli with dried chili and tofu. It turned out to be the perfect mix of greens and protein.

broccoli with dried chili plus tofu: broccoli sauteed with dried chili and choice of protein in house sauce. $8

this was a great light dish for 2 to share. the broccoli was fresh and crunchy, while the tofu was moist and well seasoned. the chilis provided some definite heat, but not enough for us. we of course had to drown our plates in spoonfuls from the hot sauce carousel. it was so tasty. plus, i love any thai restaurant that brings an impressive selection of hot sauce to the table.

lastly, we split an order of the pad kee mao or “drunken noodles”. these were probably my favorite.

pad kee mao "drunken noodles" plus veggie chicken: pan-fried flat rice noodles with carrots, mushrooms, onions, bell peppers, basil, chili and choice of protein. $8

the drunken noodles were thick, fried and slathered in the most impressive sauce along with nicely cooked vegetables and scrumptious “chicken” chunks. there was nothing about this not to like. everything was moist, crispy, and full of flavor. bulan really shows what quality thai is all about.

i really can’t wait to go back to this place. the menu is simple and traditional, but truly outstanding.
plus, who doesn’t want to eat at a restaurant with a sign as awesome as this posted on the window?!??!!

you really ought to check bulan out asap.

bulan thai vegetarian kitchen on melrose

and for all you drunken vegans out there, as an added bonus, the village idiot is right across the street. this slick gastropub offers my all time favorite vegan lager, craftsman 1903 at the fair price of 5 bucks a pint. a few beers and some vegan food is just way too good to pass up. head to melrose now.

Tags: beer, broccoli, melrose, noodles, spring rolls, thai

11 responses to “vegan eats at bulan thai vegetarian kitchen”

Kirby! December 9th, 2008 at 13:35

Oh man, I used to always go to the one on Melrose when I lived near there. I would get the Pumpkin special: soooooo yummy and totally different from anything else I’ve ever gotten at a Thai restaurant. I always forget that there’s one in Silver Lake because it’s kind of tucked away behind the trees, but you reminded me to check it out again……
Vegyogini December 9th, 2008 at 14:48

YUM!
lisa (show me vegan) December 9th, 2008 at 17:18

Whoa, I think I love Bulan too, and haven’t even stepped foot in the place! That food, those signs, the variety, very impressive!
¡Yo Soy Liz! December 9th, 2008 at 18:19

if you are a yellow curry fan you have to try Bulan’s. I am obsessed with thai yellow curry and after having it a million and thai places around LA, ive found the absolute perfect one at Bulan.
Melisser December 9th, 2008 at 23:45

I keep hearing about Bulan, but have yet to make it there. Sounds good!
Lex December 10th, 2008 at 01:22

+1 hear nothing but good things about Bulan but never crossed the street from MCafe to make it in! Will definitely check it out now! Thanks for the great pics!
xscottx December 10th, 2008 at 10:40

their Sizzling Pra Ram is absolutely amazing also.
Lucy December 18th, 2008 at 10:57

Their fried “fish” is amazing!! It’s a seitan type of cutlet covered with panko crumbs and fried. It comes with a side of apple slaw that is also delicious as well.
vegan chick January 3rd, 2009 at 15:33

one of my favorite haunts for all the reasons you said and a few more…
grilled dumplings are out of this world, mad good!!! and the takeout comes in totally green packaging, so you don’t feel guilty about the landfills when disposing of it all. fave!!!!!!!!!
Greg February 16th, 2010 at 22:54

Their Crispy Fish with Green Apple is to die for. We’re usually wary of vegetarian fish after some previous unappetizing run-ins, but after mustering the courage once, we now get it every time.
morgan! May 12th, 2010 at 12:55

Hot Wings!!! SOOOOOOOO good. Bulan is great!