It's needless to say that at times being a vegetarian makes one feel like his or her options for food is quite limited. Despite only having vegetarian dishes on the menu, Bodhi Garden has garnered admiration from all. From its name you may expect the rest

Having gotten the opportunity to meet the owner of the restaurant I was able to uncover much about the dishes and their origin. He himself being a Malaysian, the dishes are all inspired by its cuisine and the cooking styles present there. Leading a vegetarian life, his goal for establishing the restaurant is to promote vegetarian lifestyle by using techniques to create dishes which give vegetarians a taste of the non-veg lifestyle. Already having a branch in Jhamsikhel, he aims to open more branches in the future in order to popularize vegetarian food in Nepal.

Keeping all that aside, we were welcomed with several happy faces which were all eager to give us a taste of their dishes. Among the six dishes we were offered, the first one I dove into was the Stir Fried Seow Pai Cai with Sausage. Made by crushing and compressing nutrela with various other ingredients, the sausage was presented with fresh green spinach. Like the name itself, the dish    although with a little twist    tasted nothing less than what a normal sausage would taste like. All in all the spinach and the sausage complemented each other very well, and although very simple, it was a dish to be remembered.

The dish which came next was the Vege Fish & Chips. As you can assume from the name itself, the dish consisted of fish made from nutrela, along with fries served with some salad and sauce on the side. Like most of the dishes, the fish was made by crushing nutrela    commonly known as soya chunks    and making it into the desired shape and texture. As nutrela is known to have the texture of meat, it is the key ingredient to most dishes at Bodhi garden. The fish dipped with the spicy red sauce again had a very unique taste, which made me doubt whether the dish was actually vegetarian. Overall the dish suited my taste and is something I wouldn't hesitate to order again.  

The Peanut Billy Rice and the Ma Poh Tofu were two other dishes which in fact complimented each other very well.. The Peanut billy Rice consisted of rice topped with very delicious mushroom gravy which for me personally was to die for along with peanuts and several other vegetables. It was a dish presented very beautifully, and would be adored by all rice lovers. Likewise the Ma Poh Tofu, a simple dish consisting of tofu enriched in delicious flavors is known to be one of the most popular dishes among the customers in Bodhi garden. Mixing this with the peanut billy rice made sure to enhance the taste of both the dishes even more.

Similarly the fifth dish is the Golden Crispy Luck Slou. Like its unique name its taste was quite distinct as well. Although I was aware the dish was solely made of soya chunks, the drumstick like golden crispy luck slou resembled the taste of actual meat once again. This dish being one of my favourites, I would definitely give this a ten out of ten from my side.

Last but not the least, the sixth dish on our table was two different kinds of dumplings, the Charsiew, and the Nutrela Tawa. Although the dumplings weren’t as much of my liking, the soft outer layer of it was indeed very delightful. Overall, despite the fact that the dumplings didn’t satisfy my taste buds, the case may be otherwise for you. 

All in all, Bodhi Garden without a doubt is a must visit restaurant for all vegetarians who are seeking to try new flavors and recipes. It offers some of the most delicious and unique range of vegetarian dishes which is sure to encourage non-vegetarians to lead a vegetarian lifestyle as well.