Loving Hut Vegan Restaurant – Portland Oregon
A sweet & sour dish at Loving Hut vegan restaurant in Portland, Oregon. Fried soy protein and mushrooms, bell peppers and pineapple. My kids didn’t even know it wasn’t meat.
The Place
I was in Portland with my family for the World Domination Summit and we decided we wanted to get some Indonesian food. So we used our iPhone to locate the nearest Indonesian restaurant which was about 6 blocks away. Ten minutes later with the help of GPS we found ourselves at the doorstep of a place called Loving Hut.
“This doesn’t look like an Indonesian restaurant” my wife said.
“Maybe it’s around the corner” I replied.
But no, this was the correct address so we decided to step inside and see what was up. As we sat down the owner came out and told us this was a vegan restaurant and no meat or meat products were used at all. He assured us we wouldn’t know the difference.Now we’re not vegans or even vegetarians. We eat meat although we tend to limit it to fish and poultry. But this guy was so friendly and convincing that we had to stay and try the food. And boy, are we glad we did!
The Meal
Our host started us out with some sweet and sour soup which was made with tofu and bamboo shoots. It was incredibly flavorful and so tasty. My kids were not as enthused about it as I was so I ended up eating 3 bowls of it.
A cup of sweet & sour soup from Loving Hut vegan restaurant in Portland Oregon
Our first entrée was a fried rice dish that consisted of steamed rice, soy protein, tofu and vegetables like carrots, peas and onion. My kids enjoyed this dish. It was colorful and prepared perfectly. The next entrée was a sweet and sour dish which had fried soy protein, peppers, pineapple chunks and sweet & sour sauce.
This dish was fantastic and I dare anyone to tell the difference with a similar meat based dish. My oldest son couldn’t eat enough of this and I ended up sharing half my entrée with him which was fine because we ended up ordering one final dish.
Our final entrée was called Spicy Cha Cha which was a yam based protein with a mix of green and red bell peppers, onion and celery coated in a spicy sauce all topped on a bed of green leaf lettuce. We could see the idea behind the dish was shrimp based. The yam-based protein was shaped like shrimp, looked like shrimp and I have to admit even tasted like shrimp. It even had the same texture as shrimp meat. An incredible dish and I highly recommend it.
A Loving Hut dish called Spicy Cha Cha in Portland, Oregon. Looked like shrimp, had the texture of shrimp and tasted like shrimp. Only thing was, it wasn’t shrimp. A very good dish.
Drinks
We also had a few drinks to go along with our vegan meal. We had a Pink Lady which was cranberry juice, organic soy milk and rose petal. The Sunny Forest that I had was really tasty and refreshing and was comprised of orange juice, mint, sparkling water and zesty petal. The mint made this drink so refreshing after a hot day of walking the city.
We didn’t go for the dessert as we were already full and satisfied but they did serve flan, cheesecake, carrot cake and banana cake; all vegan. We’ll have to give those a try when we go back. Yes, even this family of meat eaters plans to return to feast on vegan delicacies.
A beverage at Loving Hut vegan restaurant called the Sunny Forest. It’s orange juice, mint, sparkling water and zesty petal.
The Effect
After eating at Loving Hut and talking with the owner, who is very passionate about the benefits of veganism, I have to admit that I am considering going the vegan route.
Over the years I’ve limited myself to chicken and fish but after sampling this vegan food and discovering that it tastes just like meat I may make the switch to an entirely plant based diet. The reason is more environmental than anything.
On the bottom of the menu was a section that started with the words; “One Vegan meal…”
• Saved about 3000 gallons of water
• Saved about 16 pounds of grain
• Saved your money and your health
• You helped save the planet
I don’t think many of us realize the toll a meat based diet has on the environment. As the earth’s population continues to grow and resources become pinched the need to veer toward a more sustainable diet becomes more apparent.It’s also a much healthier diet. We actually felt more energized after eating our meal at Loving Hut and both my wife and I commented that maybe we should start incorporating more vegan dishes into our family menu. It will be a challenge to wean ourselves off the meat we have incorporated into our diets but we truly owe it to ourselves and the earth to make the switch. [pullquote]we truly owe it to ourselves and the earth to make the switch.
Loving Hut is the fastest growing international vegan chain with over 120 branches worldwide. If you are vegan or are just curious about vegan food you owe it to yourself to check them out.
Loving Hut in Portland Oregon is located at 1239 SW Jefferson Street.
Matt Koenig is a photographer and world traveler who will be taking a 1 year sabbatical with his family and late 2012 riding a motorbike across Indonesia.
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