I’m a huge fan of Vietnamese food. Especially pho. Being vegetarian though, this presents a couple of problems. Although you can get vegetarian pho at “normal” Vietnamese restaurants (eg Thanh Nga Nine being one of my go to places along Victoria St), despite assurances/claims that it is indeed vegetarian, I’m always a bit uneasy about the vegetarian-ess of my meal. I know about Bo De Trai in Footscray, but I’m too lazy to make the trip out west (I know, my fault). I also know there’s a Loving Hut on Victoria St, but I’ve eaten at Loving Huts overseas and the whole supreme master/religious vibe always makes me feel uncomfortable.
So when I stumbled upon Fina’s Vegetarian Cafe on Victoria St a couple of weeks ago (I was on my way to its neighbour, I Love Pho), I was super duper excited. Vegetarian/vegan-friendly Vietnamese on Victoria St… oh, the potential of it all!
And thankfully, it did not disappoint. The 6 (!!) soup noodles on offer was enough to guarantee my repeat custom. They even serve 2 types of hot pot! (Definitely trying those come winter)
Of the soup noodles, we had the Spicy Noodle (pictured above), the Special Duang Noodle, and Crab Noodle – flavourful broth, generous servings, and tasted like they were meant to be different dishes - not the same ingredients masquerading as different dishes, but bona fide separately conceived dishes.
So happy. So am coming back often to try out the rest of the menu.
268 Victoria St, Richmond 3121
Great to see someone check Fina’s out! We tried to visit after Christmas but they were closed. Must try again soon.
Hi Cindy – thanks for your comment! I’d be interested to see what you think of Fina’s – hopefully you’ll like it as much as I do.