French cuisine is world-famous, however, not so much among vegans. Generally French food shines with its butter, cream and sources, most of them are not vegan, unfortunately. The ones we've been to are not typically French, but before someone veganizes the famous French dishes, we still need something to survive while traveling. Here are four options to your rescue.

Cafe Ginger

Cafe Ginger is a vegetarian restaurant near the Bastille. We went there on a late weekend morning hoping to catch the brunch they’re serving, and we were lucky!

The Cafe is small and cozy. Outside is painted in green so it’s easy to recognize. There are a few chairs and tables outside, although the weather wasn’t nice that day when we were there. However, I imagine it’d be super pleasant to sit outside to eat when weather is awesome.

The owner (or maybe chef?) introduced each dish served personally to us in English with strong French accent. I didn’t manage to remember all, unfortunately. Most dishes are variations of different salads, baked bread or crackers, then there are several baked tartes where you’re free to choose. The meals are all tasty and filling. I loved the tarte although I wish the crust could be a bit more crispy or flaky than packed and hard. I am not sure if it’s just “French” to make the crust that way. The fillings are lovely layered with onions, eggplants, mushrooms, tofu and other vegetables.

• Address: 9 Rue Jacques Cœur, 75004 Paris, France

Tien Hiang

When we spent a whole day walking around we were pretty tired in the evening. We decided to go to Tien Hiang, an Asian restaurant as we’re always fond of Asian food. It’s very close to the canal Saint Martin, so it was nice to take a walk there after the dinner.

Tien Hiang is a small restaurant, simple, clean and cozy, more like your ordinary Asian vegetarian restaurant around the corner to go to. The menu provides a range of Thai, Vietnamese and Chinese food, and has both English and Chinese translation plus some pictures, which makes the order easy. Most dishes are vegan except one dish called “marmitte Tien Hiang”. The staff are friendly and dishes are served quickly. The space can be a bit crowded when it’s full. Overall the taste is good and homey, although slightly too sweet to my taste in the dishes we’ve tried. I am not sure if was due to the specification of our choices or it was simply a characteristics of all dishes here. You’re welcome to share your experience if you happen to be there!

Thai Rice: sweet fried rice mixed with soy meats and vegetables, dyed red with tomato sauce. It’s actually not very spicy to our standard.

Papaya Salad: sweet and sour from fresh lime juice, one of my all-time favorite dishes!

Ho Moc: a Vietnamese soup featuring soy-based fish strips, together with tomato and bamboo shoots. The soup is slightly watery than creamy, and again, too sweet in our opinion.

Ginger Chicken : a soy-based mock meat dishes featuring sweetened sauce, although I would wish the ginger flavor could be stronger than it was.

• Address: 14 Rue Bichat, 75010 Paris, France
• Website: https://www.tien-hiang.fr/

Vegan Folie's (CLOSED)

Vegan Folie’s is located close to where we stayed in Paris , so we stopped here for a brief lunch one day.

It’s a rather small and cute cafe, basically serving simple salads, sandwiches and bakeries. Some narrow high table and benches are placed along the wall and window. Noticeable are some cute animal pictures hanging on the wall, reminding people that they can enjoy the delicious food without any animals harmed or abused. Although I love the message, I personally think it makes the whole place too much like a vegan outreach stand, rather than a cafe. Perhaps that’s exactly what the owner tries to do? French cuisine is famous for its cream and butter and their non-vegan bakeries are world-famous and competitive. All that makes it difficult for people to turn away from their well beloved tradition to vegan alternatives.

Sandwiches were also ok. It’s a bit dry all over. Perhaps some nice sauce would rescue it?

The rice salad was ok. The rice was a bit too stiff and clumped together, with a few faux chicken bits around. I wished the salad was more embellished with various vegetables, at least some green leaves and perhaps tomatoes.

Strawberry cake was nice, sweet and creamy. The bottom was a bit dry as well but with the creamy top it wasn’t too bad.

The cream on the cupcake was very delicious but the cake texture was a bit too dry and hard. I am not sure if it’s because it was not very fresh or it was just not well formulated. I would love to eat more fluffy and softer cupcake.

Hank Vegan Burger

Hank Vegan Burger is located in the beautiful Le Marais area, surrounded by charming little art galleries and stores in those quiet lanes. The restaurant is quite small and has two floors. The first floor is more like a bar counter, where you can order something quickly, sit down and chat with staff (if they’re free, heehee). Climbing along the narrow stairs, you get to the second floor, which is a small and cute space, with super cute sturdy white wooden stools and tables, cozy sofa, and retro-style wallpapers, or rustic raw walls around you.

The staff are friendly and speak English. The menu is straight forward. Note they have a special burger which changes from time to time, if you’re a curious eater do try that! We selected the set meal, which included the burgers, salads, French fries and drinks. Salads were mainly carrots and cabbages, I would wish there would be a bit more there, but I guess you can’t ask too much for a companion to the burgers. The burgers themselves were quite tasty, juicy and generous in portion, nicely packed and layered with fresh vegetables, together with fries and salads it was quite filling. The price is inexpensive judging from the location, so I would definitely recommend it if you’re strolling around in this area and long for a fast meal, Hank Vegan Burger would for sure satisfy!

• Address: 55 Rue des Archives, 75003 Paris, France
• Website: https://www.hankrestaurant.com/