Where to Eat Vegan: Corner Tree Cafe, Philippines

It felt like hitting the jackpot when I discovered a Filipino vegetarian restaurant that also has a “San Francisco Bay Area vibe”.  During my trip to the Philippines last month, I enjoyed the best of both worlds at a quaint restaurant called, Corner Tree Cafe in Makati City, Metro Manila.

Corner Tree Cafe echoes a similar ambiance such as warm lights and artsy decor that you would usually find in cities like Berkeley, Oakland, or San Francisco. It is literally a cafe located on a street corner that has a big tree, so it’s almost impossible to forget its landmarks as its cafe name describes them.

I noticed that its customers were predominantly tourists, at least when I was there. The menu offers vegan and vegetarian versions of international favorites like Lasagna, Banh mi sandwiches, and Biryanis as well as Filipino signature dishes like Lugaw, Kare-kare, and Sinigang.

Inside Corner Tree Cafe.

  “Vegan arroz a la cubana”. Yes it does exist. It was good too.

Who says you have to always include mock meats to veganize Filipino dishes? This vegan “Sinigang” soup didn’t have to.

“Sinigang” served with red rice on the side.

Vegan congee soup or “Lugaw “with tofu on top. A must try when you’re here.

Half eaten “Kare-kare”. Obviously, I got too excited before I was able to snap a photo-and yes, obviously, I thoroughly enjoyed this dish.Vegan shrimp paste or “bagoong” as condiment for the Kare-kare. I’m still baffled on how they were able to veganize shrimp paste especially because their vegan version tastes so close to it. I’m on a mission to achieve the same result.We also ordered international favorites like their Vietnamese sandwich,  vegan Banh mi. I’m very particular when it comes to vegan sandwiches and burgers and I have yet to try a vegan one that I absolutely love. This one wasn’t bad but I wasn’t blown away either.My favorite junk food, french fries, served with ketchup and vegan mayo.   

Believe it or not, we still had room for desserts. We ordered vegan carrot cake, mostly devoured by my group except me as I was too full from all the vegan goodness we just had.

The usual suspects.

Corner Tree Cafe

• 150 Jupiter, Makati City, Philippines
• +63 2 897 0295
• cornertreecafe@gmail.com
• Open Daily (11:00am – 10:00pm)
  (Kitchen closes at 9:30pm. Please come before then)
• Takes major credit cards, food is quite pricey but worth it!

 

See also: Part V: Vegan Finds: Wabi-Sabi Ramen House, Makati City Philippines

Part III: Vegan Finds: The Vegetarian Kitchen, Quezon City Philippines

Part II: Vegan Finds: Agico Japanese Vegetarian Cafe, San Juan Philippines

Part I: Vegan Finds: Greens Restaurant, Quezon City Philippines