Plant-Based Restaurants Shake Up Asia’s 50 Best in 2025

Scott Mathias
Mar 27
2 min read

Four plant-based restaurants make waves in Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2025 list, including one in the top 5. Here’s who’s serving meat-free magic.

Move over wagyu, plant-based restaurants are taking over. From tofu with swagger in Beijing to jungle-foraged fine dining in Ubud, Bali, four standout meat-free establishments muscled their way into the 2025 Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants list. Yes, one even cracked the top five. No meat. No problem.

There’s a quiet rebellion unfolding in Asia’s finest kitchens and it’s not led by beef tartare. This year’s ranking finally handed the mic to chefs who treat vegetables like the stars they are. These plant-based restaurants are proving you don’t need a meat thermometer to cook something spectacular.

No. 93 – Feuille, Hong Kong

Feuille is what happens when leaves get loud. Chef Joris Rousseau isn’t interested in being delicate, he’s here to make vegetables roar with flavour. Working a root-to-seed ethos, his mostly vegetarian tasting menu makes humble plants look like supermodels. And yes, every part of the plant shows up to party.

Source: Feuille, Hong Kong

No. 92 – Locavore NXT, Ubud

If you’ve ever wanted to eat the jungle without getting arrested, this is your spot. Locavore NXT goes full hyper-local: every ingredient and piece of furniture is from the neighbourhood. The menu celebrates Indonesia’s edible biodiversity with foraged mushrooms, cashew fruit, coffee and caramel fusions that prove meat isn’t the main event anymore.

Source: Locavore NXT, Ubud

No. 50 – Lamdre, Beijing

Beijing’s Lamdre brings deep spiritual vibes and deeper flavour. Chef Dai Jun delivers unapologetically elegant plant-based dishes, grounded in Tibetan Buddhist philosophy. That tofu in matsutake and wakame broth? It’s not just food—it’s a meditative slap in the face to bland vegetarian clichés.

Source: Lamdre, Beijing

No. 5 – Mingles, Seoul

Top five and still making space for plant-based brilliance. While not 100% vegan, Mingles has played a quiet game-changer role by letting its vegan tasting menus sing. Korean fermentation - jang, baby - is the star here, turning soybeans into rich, layered sauces that steal the limelight from any meat dish in town.

Source: Mingles, Seoul

So what does it all mean? It means the fine dining world is finally admitting that plants can party—and it’s about time.

Oh, and who’s number one? Gaggan in Bangkok. Still wild, still loud, still progressive Indian. But this year? The quietest revolution came from the plants.

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