For our winter holidays, waiting for 2026, we decided to take a culinary train journey to Vienna and Munich. However, we planned a bit too late and missed out on reservations at the famous vegan spots — the few that are actually open during the holidays. Nevertheless, we found some lesser-known places serving thoughtful and tasty dishes.

Veggiez: a decent first stop, even if it’s fast food

The least interesting option when considering the menus is the fast-food chain Swing Kitchen. We enter one specifically for the cheesecake I loved on my last trip through Vienna, but since they are out of it, we are leaving the place without buying anything. We end up at another fast-food restaurant, called Veggiez. 

We are having the steak and the schnitzel. The steak has an interesting texture and aspect, but the taste isn’t extraordinary. The schnitzel is much tastier but soaked in oil. The sides and sauces are a bit bland. 

The quinoa would have worked better mixed with some cranberries and toasted seeds, and the potatoes could have used a sprinkle of vegan parmesan on top. 

The sauces are a bit greasy, even though we have chosen the right pairings: a herb dip for the schnitzel and a mustard-orange sauce for the steak. Overall, it isn’t bad, but I wouldn’t repeat the experience.

I would say Veggiez deserves 4 out of 5 stars for this experience, as the food could have been better.

Tau Vegan: impressive variety, mind-blowing textures, intense flavors

I am much more impressed by Tau Vegan. Located in a less popular area of Vienna, the restaurant initially stands out for its overly flashy exterior decor — I’d even say tasteless. The interior follows suit. But that doesn’t discourage us. 

The super generous menu makes it difficult for us as we want to try everything. In the end, we opt for a portion of vegan shrimps, a dumpling soup, and two main courses. 

Tau’s appetizers whet our appetite with unusual aromas and textures

The soup is decent, featuring three dumplings filled with vegetables and tofu. Their quite intense flavour is what really lifts the dish. 

As for the fake shrimps — I could eat those all day, having tried them wherever I have the chance. Their texture is quite chewy, slightly reminiscent of real shrimp, but flavor-wise, they need more seaweed aroma to truly mimic the taste they’re aiming for.

Anyway, the real stars are the main courses: seitan “turkey” with fried rice, and seitan “beef” with plain rice. When they arrive, I can hardly believe my eyes. These aren’t on plates, but on platters, filled to the brim. My immediate thought is that we’d end up wasting food. But that thought is quickly replaced by a thorough analysis of the star dish: the roasted duck. 

Vegan Duck: a culinary masterpiece by Tau Vegan

Slices of faux meat wrapped in a crispy batter. Arranged over the fried rice, you can clearly see the well-defined strips of pale cream color. Texture and taste-wise, I am instantly won over: the “meat” is extremely tender, full of flavors from the marinade it had rested in for an extended time. The exterior crunch intensifies the flavors and adds some variety to the sensations. The fried rice with vegetables is also quite aromatic, as I requested the - as authentic as possible - version (not the moderated, European style one).

It leaves me speechless, so I ask what it is made of. The gentleman serving us, who seems to be the owner, unexpectedly shares all the secrets with us. 

You have to think of seitan as a pastry product, not a chef’s dish. You need to knead it, let it rest, then knead it again. Only then do you roll out the sheets like puff pastry, and that’s how you get this tender texture.

Apparently, in the beginning, they made the duck themselves. But as they grew and needed large quantities, they shared the recipe with some business partners who now sell it as a ready-to-cook product.

But I talked so much about the duck that I almost neglected the other main course—the beef. 

The fake beef with vegetables completes the Tau Vegan experience

To mimic beef chunks, the seitan is rolled into small pieces, surely marinated for flavor, then coated in batter and probably deep-fried. These small bits of faux beef accompany a generous portion of stir-fried vegetables: zucchini, cauliflower, broccoli, bell peppers, mushrooms, carrots, and sprouts. All of them in a sweet, umami, intense sauce typical of Asian cuisine. 

The plain rice on the side was cooked correctly, but we are rather ignoring it, struggling to finish the fried rice we ordered with the duck.

Overall, at Tau Vegan you’ll find innovative dishes, intense flavors, spectacular textures, a warm attitude, and really accessible pricing. I can’t say the plating or the interior design blew me away, but I understand that’s their specific style. I would say Tau Vegan deserves 4.5 starts out of 5 for this experience (due to the decoration). I will definitely drop by when I return to Vienna.