Meat-free folk find it challenge to eat at ordinary Chinese restaurants, as most use fish oils and other meat products in the kitchen, and cook vegetables and meat in the same pan. Bad news for veggies. And what's worse, many dishes in Chinese restaurants come with bits of meat (usually pork) mixed in, even if it's not mentioned on the menu. It's safe to assume that everything on your plate will have come into contact with meat at some stage in its preparation.
Vegetable dish in the restaurant
Broccoli, carrot and edible tree fungus
Vegetarian snail
Vegetarian shrimp
Vegetarian pork
If your diet is strictly meat-free, it can be less of a gamble to go to specialised eatery. There are several vegetarian restaurants in Guangzhou. Beyond serving vegetarian dishes, they offer a glimpse into the Chinese tradition of meat substitutes, a concept which chefs have been refining for centuries here. Though quality varies widely depending on the recipe and the chef, meat substitutes made from ingredients like wheat gluten, tofu, and potato are standard in China for Buddhists who keep to traditional dietary practices.
Non-vegetarian restaurants in Guangzhou might still be suitable for vegetarians if they don't use meat oils and other meat products in the kitchen. Chefs at Lucy's, a Western-style restaurant on Shamian Island, use only peanut oil and olive oil in their cooking, and can prepare plenty of their regular dishes without meat. Other restaurants may be able to do the same thing, if you speak good enough Chinese to ask them.
Guangzhou's vegetarians should head to Jinghui Road, which has the city's largest concentration of vegetarian markets and restaurants. Take the metro to Ximenkou and walk up Guangxiao Road onto Jinghui Road, and walk to the Guangxiao Temple. There you'll find meat-free delights to buy and try, and some great restaurants.
So whether you’re a veggie or not, it's worth paying a visit to one of Guangzhou's vegetarian outposts.
