A vegetarian restaurant serving modern Asian plant-focused cuisine. Chefs representing Japan, Hong Kong, China, Thailand, India and Sri Lanka take inspiration from the near and far East. The menu consists of bites, small plates and larger dishes all designed to share, some of which are vegan. The drinks menu features organic and vegan wines, bespoke cocktails and sustainable New Zealand craft beer. Open Mon-Sun 11:00am-10:00pm.
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63-67 Nelson St, Auckland CBD, Auckland, New Zealand, 1010
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Last update on 24 Aug 2022 by Tiggy
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Added by deadendjob on 13 Jan 2021
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53 Reviews
First Review by renatedesully
US Kiwi
Points +136
Absolutely fantastic! - Edit
One of thee best restaurants I have been to in a long while. The food was absolutely fantastic and the drinks also so tasty and well presented. You MUST try the dumplings! There was not a thing on the menu we tried that we didn’t like. #Veganuary
Read morePros: Amazing food, Awesome drinks , Great staff
Cons: They keep the recipes very close to the chest….
Guest
DanielSchroppe
Points +329
Great food and ambience - Edit
Loved the cool open place, linked to a hotel. A lot of light throu the windows. Very nice presentation of the food. All dishes I had were delicious..
Read moreGuest
MatureVegan
Points +115
Delectable - Edit
First time here. Will definitely be back. The Bang Bang shitake mushrooms were a revelation. Highly recommended.
Read morePros: Lots of vegan options, Vegan Chef's Choice menu for 4, Friendly staff
Cons: 1 satay skewer between 4 not enough!
Guest
Zelena
Points +168
Cozy and stylish resto with delicious food - Edit
The vegan options are clearly marked and ingredients listed to ease choosing and altering per your needs. The food is yummy and nicely presented. The pancakes with jackfruit were really filling and flavorful.
Read moreI certainly recommend the place for a nice dinner.
Updated from previous review on 2022-11-14
Pros: Vegan options clearly marked, Location and ambience, Service
Guest
deadendjob
Points +2592
Delicious - Edit
Great food, drinks and service. The Bang Bang Mushrooms & Peang Curry in particular were excellent.
Read moreUpdated from previous review on 2022-10-02
Guest
Einahpets216
Points +943
Delicious, fun and central - Edit
East has some very delicious dishes, friendly staff and an overall elegant yet funky vibe. The bang bang mushrooms were very tasty and every dish we had was a hit. Would happily go back again with more people and get the “trust the chef” menu.
Read morePros: Largely vegan menu with a few vegetarian dishes, Nice cocktails , Lovely decor
Cons: A little dear, No easy parking
Guest
KateGreenaway
Points +40
Amazing - Edit
So nice to have some authentic and delicious vegan options that are different from the typical vegan options in NZ! More towards fine dining than a Friday night takeout. Portions were varied! But so delicious. Gorgeous venue too with lovely staff.
Read morePros: Delicious, Different
Guest
RaneKD
Points +72
Interesting fusion flavours - Edit
Had a selection of mains and sides for our table of 4. The 'smaller plates' were just that - small. But otherwise, really nice flavours.
Read morePros: Mostly vegan menu, Interesting new flavours, Excellent service
Cons: Portion sizes are small - especially for the price
Guest
MeiLi
Points +391
Flavours that pop! - Edit
Half vegan, half vegetarian menu. Creative pan-asian, fusion dishes full of flavour. Highly recommended.
Read morePros: good variety, all veg/vegan, Pretty sure it's wheelchair friendly. no steps.
Cons: decor is nothing special, no barriers/privacy between tables
Guest
plantbasedlifestylenz
Points +75
Feast at East - Edit
This was our second visit to East Restaurant, and it was just impressive as the first. Great menu, which is completely vegetarian with most items (about 80%) also being vegan, without any modifications to what’s stated. Great service and a great vibe.
Read moreHighly recommend the shiitake mushrooms, bao buns, edamame, fried rice, peking jackfruit pancakes - let’s be honest, the whole menu is great - you can’t go past the deserts either.
Pros: Lots of vegan options, Very tasty food, Welcoming and friendly service
Guest
McCraineToia
Points +112
Vegan - Edit
Second time visiting East, amazing food. Vibe and atmosphere is in point.
Read moreHighly recommend this place.
Pros: Lots of vegan options
Guest
ianel
Points +234
Okay - Edit
Not bad, not great. Very quick service (worryingly quick service of hot meals.) Rubbery mushrooms, nice overall, but not very special. Feels like it would be great for a corporate power lunch.
Read moreUpdated from previous review on 2021-07-23
Guest
jodoyle
Points +134
This is the place to go for a special meal - Edit
I've only been here once and enjoyed every dish I tried. A great spot for a special dinner. Not cheap but worth it. The menu is mostly vegan so lots to choose from. Some very creative dishes with an Asian spin.
Read moreGuest
Estelle.ghost
Points +1122
Fantastic! - Edit
Dined here with some vegan friends and we shared multiple plates of food. Everything was really delicious and full of flavour, and the staff were really lovely too.
Read moreGuest
Jackie07
Points +16
Loved my experience - Edit
My partner and I heard so much about this restaurant from fellow mates that we starved ourselves to make the most of this night. We arrived there at 7:30pm with a booking and were greeted immediately. Our server was exceptional with a beautiful smile (karishma) if I spelled this correct looked after us extremely well. She asked us if we had been here and gave good details on the food concept and drinks she recommended the East margarita and my lord it was as amazing as she said. The food is by far the tastiest food I have had being East Asian and vegetarian. Our favorites being the caramelized mushrooms , dumplings, tofu salad, som tum was more of so yum. Beautiful ambiance lovely service ask for her as your server when you visit if you want to have fun, amazing drinks good job bartender I’m coming back for more.
Read morePros: Lovely service , Drinks are exceptional , Food will take you to wonderland
Cons: No parking for guest diners valet is expensive , I didn’t like the noodles much but personal choice
Guest
JinkiCambronero
Points +64
Delicious dining - Edit
Most of the menu is vegan-friendly. I have been a couple of times and loved it. Flavorsome and inventive dishes. It feels special to dine there. The whole wine list is vegan friendly.
Read moreUpdated from previous review on 2021-07-08
Pros: Inventive flavours, Great options, Relaxed up market feel
Guest
AlexandraOliver
Points +36
Must try ‘duck’ pancakes - Edit
I’ve been vegan for years and duck pancakes are the only thing I’ve missed and these guys solved that problem! Their mock duck pancakes with jackfruit are amazing. Also a great wine list that’s mostly organic and fully vegan. Great restaurant, nice to have a higher end vegan option.
Read moreGuest
edelany
Points +213
Good decor, attentive service, food fine - Edit
Expected a little more from the food. A few interesting options but 80% are veggie dishes you could get in any decent Asian fusion restaurant.
Read moreMains portion small and unimaginative for the price.
Pros: Upmarket decor, nice ambience , Has a full bar.
Cons: Portion size, nothing that exciting. , Staff were a bit pushy on selling drinks
Guest
Buckymum
Points +93
Asian fusion food at its best - Edit
The food was outstanding, especially the Ginger caramelised bang bang shitake mushrooms.
Read moreThe service was excellent and prices are high.
Pros: Full of flavour
Cons: Prices are a bit high
Guest
Akeks
Points +24
Very impressive - Edit
Great food and service, wish this place was in Christchurch 😫
Read moreGuest
nicole_m
Points +3531
Delicious food - Edit
Amazing food - we tried the betel leaf bites (delicious, heaps of flavour), the black pepper tofu (favourite dish of the night) and spicy garlic eggplant (spicy but not too spicy). We’ll definitely be back to try more.
Read morePros: Heaps of vegan options, Delicious food
Cons: A bit expensive, especially for drinks
Guest
AnnettevZ
Points +382
Great Asian restaurant - Edit
This restaurant was a suprise to us, we never noticed it although we spend a lot of time in the weekends walking through Auckland City. A few people on Facebook recommend it, so we walked a bit out of our normal way. We really liked the the interior, the friendly attitude of the staff and most importantly: the large amount of vegan dishes we could choose from! We chose dishes to share and enjoyed excellent dishes with dumplings, pancakes, mushrooms and vegan pudding (they call it creme caramel) as dessert! We will definitely be back for more!
Read moreGuest
citizenInsane
Points +1453
Beautiful food and place - Edit
I had wanted to visit this place for a while, after all the good comments I had heard. I went there with quite a big group and it was a feast! First, the place is very appealing, with high ceilings, a lot of light, minimalist furniture and refined colours.
Read moreI regret I didn't take more pics of the dishes, but in short: everything was prepared with much love (fresh ingredients, full of flavours, attention to cooking times and consistencies, beautiful presentation and dishes). What I tried directly was:
. Miam kham bite - fresh, spicy and zingy, a perfect starter
. Ginger caramelised bang bang shiitake - just stunning!
. Sticky jackfruit bao - perfect! very sticky and amazing flavours, a bit sweet though
. Steamed mushroom cheung fun - beautiful and delicious
. Caramelised pepper tofu - very flavourful and perfectly cooked, but the sauce was a bit too sweet for me
. Typhoon fried rice - delicious although a bit on the oily side
They also have a nice selection of wines and beer, but I had a local ginger-pineapple kambucha.
Also, the staff were very nice, friendly with a quiet, non-obtrusive vibe, which was great.
Updated from previous review on 2021-03-27
Pros: Beautiful spot, Fresh and very flavouful food, A lot of vegan options (3/4 of the menu)
Cons: A bit too heavy on sugar and oil, for my taste
Guest
ShannonDoidge
Points +33
Must eat! - Edit
This place was a 10/10!
Read moreI simply couldn’t fault the menu; there were so many vegan options to choose from, making the experience so incredibly refreshing.
The items were clearly listed either vegan or GF, and I’m pretty sure the majority were in fact vegan.
We feasted on a range of different options from the starters/smalls and salads/larger dishes to the sides and a dessert to share.
The staff were so friendly and just seemed generally happy to be there and serve you.
The starters came out within about five minutes of ordering. The mains took a little bit longer but that was only a problem considering how tasty the food was, we couldn’t wait to try what was next!
Pros: Lots of delicious vegan options, Happy, hardworking staff, Great atmosphere
Guest
AbundantlyClear
Points +29
So good to have so many choices! - Edit
This restaurant is in the Sudima hotel on the corner of Nelson St and Wellesley St. It has a bright, fresh fitout, and the food is entirely vegan or vegetarian. I am vegan, and avoid processed grains, so it was so good to have so many choices!
Read moreAll the food we got was delicious. My partner had the Southern Thai Corn Cakes, then we shared the Crispy Tofu salad and the Southern Thai Yellow Curry, with some rice. We were hungry, and this was just the right amount of food. I was also pleasantly surprised that the yellow curry wasn't mild. It actually had a good hit of chilli, which was great.
You get the feeling that the wait staff have been well trained, and are getting into their groove. Small things will improve over time, like trying to seat us beside the only other seated table in a near empty restaurant (we were there really early, 6pm on Saturday).
Pros: The food tastes amazing, and great choice., The food contained a good amount of chilli
Cons: Slightly confusing bathrooms
Guest
renatedesully
Points +213
Modern Asian Fusion - Edit
What a find! We went for dinner there tonight after a recommendation from a friend.
Read moreA newly opened modern clean and amazing Asian Fusion plant based restaurant.
Every dish we had just burst with flavour and you have to try the bethel leave entre.
The service is lovely and very attentative. Looking forward to our return
Pros: Only pros
Cons: Maybe the not so appealing street outside
Guest
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