Fat Choy

"Fat Choy, a popular vegan spot on the Lower East Side, will close after two years on December 23. (Owners Justin and Katie Lee announced the news over Instagram this weekend without further details.) In its two-year run, the restaurant propelled vegan Chinese food “into a delicious new era,” serving mushroom “sloppy joes” and other fare that doesn’t rely on Impossible Beef and other manufactured meat substitutes." - Luke Fortney

"Adams was supposed to visit this Chinese vegan restaurant on the Lower East Side late summer of 2022 — but the Department of Transportation beat him to it. The city agency handed the restaurant a cease-and-desist order over its outdoor setup, Lee told Eater, and Adams never showed. “The DOT guys did say how would it look if he ate at our outdoor tables if they weren’t up to code?” says owner Justin Lee, who now has to bring in a contractor “and pay at least $1000” to address the violations. It’s one of the least expensive and only vegan restaurant on the list — that Adams never visited." - Melissa McCart

"Updated November 23rd, 2021 Several seconds after biting into Fat Choy’s toasted sesame bun sandwich filled with hearty mushroom ragu and crisp slaw, you’ll forget about all of the upsetting sloppy joes of your past. This Chinese-inspired restaurant on Broome Street just so happens to be vegan. Even if you normally eat meat and fish, you won’t be thinking about their absence at Fat Choy. When vegetables - like slippery baby bok choy, perfectly-fried salt and pepper cauliflower bites, or charred scallions - taste this cared for, cuisine categories become the last thing on your mind. Fat Choy’s pastel-green-tiled dining room can fit roughly 12 people, with a view of the kitchen counter and the sneaking feeling like you could be friends with everyone eating or working in the restaurant. There’s a lot more space to sit under their covered streetside area, though. Wherever you sit, treat Fat Choy like a reliable place to disown the memories of sweet ground beef on stale potato buns. photo credit: Emily Schindler Between the vegan menu and casual set-up, Fat Choy has some distinct Superiority-Burger-punk-rock-but-make-it-produce energy. Don’t take yourself too seriously here, it’s not that kind of place (on the beverage side of the menu, for example, you’ll see “red wine” and “white wine” respectively described as simply “fancy” and “crisp.”) If we’re drinking at Fat Choy, we pretty much always order a frosty, light beer. photo credit: Emily Schindler You could come to Fat Choy with a friend or two, and order most of the menu for around $50. It’s a charming place where you can be accidentally or purposefully vegan, which is precisely the kind of restaurant that we need more of in this city. Go as often as you can, and follow the food rundown below for ordering advice. Food Rundown photo credit: Emily Schindler Rice Rolls This is a mandatory order at Fat Choy, especially if you like the idea of eating delicate rice rolls that taste like a jug full of olive oil grew up and became something you could chew. They have a distinct grilled taste, and come topped with charred scallion and whatever other vegetable the Fat Choy team is currently excited about. Then the whole thing gets coated in a splash of black vinegar for a buttery-acidic bite. photo credit: Emily Schindler Salt & Pepper Cauliflower Bites When we eventually run for office, we will put together a platform that includes the mandate that all New York City bars must serve a tub of Fat Choy’s fried cauliflower bites. Instead of being served in big bunches, these babies are separated into tiny florets, meaning every angle of them gets crispy. Each is seasoned with jalapeño and garlic, and you should liberally dip yours into the accompanying vat of shallot cream. Smashed Cucumber Crunchy, cold, and doused in sesame dressing, these are an ideal sidekick to something like the mushroom sloppy or the rice rolls. photo credit: Emily Schindler Mushroom Sloppy Fat Choy doesn’t fck with fake meat. When trying to understand this sandwich, it’s more useful to think of it as its own independent thing from the sloppy joes of your past. Fat Choy’s mushroom ragu (made with a mix of shiitake and tofu) tastes better, for one thing. And it’s served in the middle of two chewy sesame buns with slaw for crunch and brightness. Lil’ Bok Choy “Wow, what a healthy decision I’ve made at a restaurant that also fries things. Go me,” you’ll think while eating this paper boat full of garlicky-sauteed baby bok choy. There’s something to be said about the simplicity of these vegetables topped with a brown glaze that tastes a little like oyster sauce. But, even still, we always want these to have a little more bracing acidity or salt. If you feel the same way, dip them into the incredible tofu-shallot sauce that comes with the cauliflower bites. Sticky Rice Dumplings These rectangular pockets are exceptionally fried, and come lathered in a tart red vinegar. The crunchy rice inside gives them a textural pop. Specials Fat Choy runs on seasonal vegetables, so you’ll often see rotating specials like longevity noodles or a watermelon salad. Follow them on Instagram to keep up with what’s new." - Hannah Albertine

"When vegetables taste as cared for as they do at Fat Choy, their vegan status becomes the last thing on your mind. This casual, walk-up-and-order spot highlights vegetables and rice as if they possess main character energy (which they do). Come here for slippery baby bok choy, perfectly plump rice rolls, charred scallions, and fried salt and pepper cauliflower bites that crunch and squeak in your mouth. At Fat Choy, you can either be accidentally or purposefully vegan, which is precisely the kind of restaurant that we need more of in this city." - Hannah Albertine, Nikko Duren, Carlo Mantuano

"It’s one thing to offer a $335 meat-free menu for the one percent (see Eleven Madison Park 2.0). It’s another to charge $10 and under for veggie-centric Chinese food for everyone: the curious carnivores, the certified vegans, and the dedicated superfans like Deborah from the Upper West Side, who loves the food and the vibe so much she literally hiked down the West Side Highway from 88th Street to Broome and Orchard one recent Saturday afternoon just to tuck in to paper-boatloads of chewy rice rolls topped with gai lan and juicy bok choy showered with crispy fried garlic. We know she did this because Fat Choy is the kind of place where diners who have navigated the scrum of Lower East Side streeteries — bars, vegan-cupcake shops, more bars — start conversations with strangers to recommend dishes, offer bites, and generally share communal moments of vibrantly flavored, inventively conceived culinary bliss. —Rob Patronite and Robin Raisfeld" - Eater Staff, NYMag Staff