Vegan Guide to Phu Quoc

OCTOBER 2022: Due to COVID we were unable to travel for nearly two years, which means it’s been impossible to update our vegan travel guides. Therefore we cannot be sure if the below restaurants are still open, so please contact them directly to check. As travel has now restarted we will be updating guides accordingly, but in the meantime please check out the excellent HappyCow, which you can find via the link at the bottom of this vegan guide.

Published November 2018

Here is our Vegan Guide to Phu Quoc which is a Vietnamese island off the coast of Cambodia. Intrigued? This article discusses in depth the claims that in fact, Phu Quoc was once part of Cambodia. Whatever the history, this palm fringed island is fast becoming a huge tourist destination with new developments and resorts under construction everywhere you look. However, don’t let that put you off as more than half of the island is a National Park and with little effort you can find deserted beaches and tropical jungle providing that escape you may be craving…and there is plenty of vegan food in Phu Quoc too which certainly made us happy!

Vegan Restaurants in Phu Quoc

Tinh Tam Trai

Tinh Tam Trai
Nguyen Trung Truc
Phu Quoc
Vietnam

Opening Times: 6am-2pm and 4pm-9pm every day

Right next door to the temple this place is easy to find. but patience is required, especially if you’re hungry! We visited and it was closed and were told it was due to open at 4pm. We returned at 4pm and it was still closed but there was a guy making battered sweet potatoes (see vegan street food listing below) which looked amazing and with the help of a customer we are pretty sure they are vegan but not 100%. We were then told the restaurant would open at 4.15pm so waited a little longer for them to open, they finally opened kind of reluctantly at 4.20pm. We ordered from the buffet which looked like to had been sat there since closing for lunhc at 2pm and the food which cost 25 VND each was very average indeed. We would not rush back for the buffet but would check out the battered sweet potatoes if we were nearby…

Loving Hut Thai Duong

Loving Hut Thai Duong
10 Lê Lợ
Dương Đông
Phu Quoc

Opening Times: 6am-2pm and 4.30pm-10pm every day

The restaurant is in the night market area and is clean, bright and welcoming, the friendly staff were helpful in explaining the serve yourself buffet and a la carte options. One of us had the buffet and the other ordered ‘Ram Rim Ribs’ which was kind of like a burger chopped up on rice noodles and vegetables, this might sound a little strange but was pretty tasty and far better than the buffet where everything was cold and the mock meat was very oily indeed. We would return and try other items from the extensive menu but probably avoid the buffet. We would certainly return for the rich and creamy vegan coconut ice cream which was divine!

Khanh Ly

Khanh Ly
35 Nguyen Trai
Duong Dong Hamlet
Phu Quoc

Opening Times: 7am-8pm every day

Khanh Ly, like many Buddhist ‘chay’ restaurants seem to close between 2pm-4pm and this place was no different when we visited around 3pm. However, the sign outside says open all day and the (friendly) staff with help of an English speaking customer also assured us they are open all day which is confusing as they certainly were not open when we first visited! Anyway, they were friendly and the buffet was the most extensive of all of the ones we visited, lots of mock meat but very few vegetables which is a shame. We ordered fresh spring rolls and vegan banh mi, both were delicious and the total cost was 50,000 VND. Actually, there was one ingredient in the spring roll that needed to be removed for them to be delicious and that was a green leaf that locals call ’fish mint’ which sadly does not taste of mint but boiled fish, wrong, oh so very wrong…beware!

Hien Duc

Hien Duc
181 Nguyen Trung Truc
Duong Dong
Phu Quoc

Opening Times: 7am-2pm and 4pm-8pm every day

Located opposite the stadium this local Buddhist vegan restaurant has a buffet and with mock meats and vegan banh mi available. The buffet was pretty meagre and the staff were not very friendly but the banh mi were ok with mock meat, herbs and a vegan pate. At 20,000 VND each they were good value for money but we preferred the banh mi at Khanh Li.

Quang HD

Quang HD
189 Ba Muoi Thang Tu
Duong Dong
Phu Quoc
Vietnam

Opening Times: 10.30am-2pm and 5pm-9pm every day

This is a ‘serve yourself’ buffet restaurant which was clean and tidy just away from the centre of Duong Dong. We had already eaten so didn’t eat at Quang HD but friends of ours did and said it was very good. As with all buffets the earlier you arrive the more selection there will be so by the time we arrived there were not so many options. Looked good though and we would return next time we are in Phu Quoc.

Vegan Friendly Restaurants in Phu Quoc

Nhat Lan Restaurant

Nhat Lan Restaurant
Nhat Lan Resort
118 Trần Hưng Đạo
Dương Tơ
Phu Quoc

Opening Times: 9am-9pm every day

Situated right on Long Beach this is an OK option if you’re staying nearby, it’s part of Nhat Lan Resort and on the beach just behind the unmissable Long Beach Centre. We ordered tofu sate (never had that before in Vietnam) and tofu sweet and sour, both were served with rice and cost just 70,000 VND each. Would we rush back? No. Was it OK? Yes. The portions were pretty good but the sweet and sour was very oily and the sate was not like any sate we’ve had before, both dishes also had too much MSG. It was cheap, we were full after leaving and we got to eat sat right on the beach. As we said, if you’re staying nearby it’s an OK option as has a vegetarian section on the menu that is mainly vegan.

Mai Jo Fusion

Mai Jo Fusion
Kien Giang
Phu Quoc
Vietnam

Opening Times: 10am-10pm every day

Friendly and inviting family run restaurant offering a selection of vegetarian dishes and also clearly marked vegan dishes. They understand veganism, speak English and are happy to adapt dishes as required. We ordered the Vegan Yellow Noodles and a local style vegetarian dish made with dried tofu that had been rehydrated and fried, we can’t remember the name but it was very tasty! Most dishes are served with a choice of steamed rice, garlic fried rice or papaya salad.

Bird of Paradise

Birds of Paradise
Kien Giang
Phu Quoc
Vietnam

Opening Times: 10am-10pm every day

Whilst waiting for our food in Mai Jo Fusion we spotted this restaurant next door with signs advertising vegan and vegetarian options. The menu was clearly marked with many vegan options that sounded delicious, if we were staying in the area we would have eaten here for sure as the owner was also very friendly. Luckily, a friend of ours, Michelle did manage to check it out and reported that the food was not only very tasty but decent portions and well priced, it was so good she returned every day for 3 days!

Vegan Street Food in Phu Quoc

We mentioned the fried potatoes above and heres a picture of them along with other vegan street food we found in Phu Quoc, Vietnam. The steamed cakes topped with grated coconut are delicious and very similar to something we often eat in Cambodia and we talk about in our Vegan Guide to Cambodian Street Food. Also, you can’t go wrong with grileld corn (make sure they don’t add butter) and grilled bananas are a great vegan snack too.