Vegetarian Lunar Days in Saigon: When to Book, What to Order

Many Vietnamese people eat vegetarian on the 1st (mùng một) and 15th (rằm) of the lunar month. Bếp Rơm has nine vegetarian dishes, eight of them vegan, and a vegan set for four at VND 570,000. On those days, book earlier than our minimum, and tell us about any allergy when you do.

Why rằm and Vu Lan fill up

The two news pieces we opened cover two specific occasions. Tiền Phong on 17 February 2026 reports vegetarian restaurants in Ho Chi Minh City sitting full on the first day of Tết, many holding prices at VND 35,000 to 40,000 a portion. Tiền Phong on 5 September 2025 covers Vu Lan, the seventh-month festival: one vegetarian buffet reported about 50% more guests than the year before, many places paused new customers because advance bookings exceeded capacity, and diners often had to book days ahead.

Neither piece is about the ordinary monthly rằm, and we have no figures for those. So plan for crowds anyway.

How far ahead to book

These are our minimums by party size, not a promise that a table is free:

For a big table on rằm, we suggest booking several days ahead. That advice follows the Vu Lan article above; it is not a number our kitchen has measured. We are closed on Mondays and for Tết from 4 to 9 February 2027 (provisional, pending the official holiday notice), so you cannot book us for the first day of Tết next year.

The nine vegetarian dishes

Chay here means vegetarian: no meat, no fish or seafood, no fish sauce, no fermented fish or shrimp, no lard. It may contain egg or milk, and then those are listed as allergens. Vegan (thuần chay) is chay with no egg, milk or honey.

Rau muống xào tỏi (morning glory with garlic) has a vegan version with soy sauce instead of fish sauce, VND 68,000, soy listed. The standard one contains fish, so say so when you order. The filtered list is on the vegetarian menu page.

The vegan set for four: VND 570,000

Single prices add up to VND 604,000. Less 5%, rounded down to VND 10,000, the set is VND 570,000, or VND 142,500 a head. It has two mushroom and vegetable fresh rolls, grilled straw mushrooms, grilled aubergine, silken tofu in tomato, sour soup with mushroom and tofu, four bowls of rice and two sweet corn puddings. Every dish is vegan, but four of them (the rolls, the aubergine, the tofu, the soup) carry peanut or soy. With either allergy, order from the menu with the allergen filter instead of taking the set whole. Other sets are on the set menus page.

An example: Mrs Sen’s table

Mrs Ngô Thị Sen (an illustrative example, with made-up figures) eats vegetarian on rằm and books for 6 people across three generations. A 5-year-old grandchild is allergic to peanut. She says so when booking, and the confirmation page repeats the word “peanut”. Under 8 guests, so no deposit.

Filtering for vegetarian and excluding peanut leaves exactly five dishes: grilled straw mushrooms, sour soup with mushroom and tofu, silken tofu in tomato, rice and sweet corn pudding. She adds the vegan morning glory.

About VND 197,000 a head. Vân phones Mrs Sen to repeat that the kitchen is shared, and asks whether the family has talked to the child’s doctor about how severe the allergy is.

How we do it at Bếp Rơm

We are not a vegetarian restaurant. The kitchen cooks meat and fish, in one shared space. We cook the vegetarian dishes in a separate pan and on a separate grill rack where we can, but we do not promise there are no traces. Our table tracks nine allergen groups only; tree nuts, celery and anything else are not tracked. If you keep a strict religious fast and need a kitchen with no meat or fish at all, call 0963 929 241 before booking. For a serious allergy, your doctor is the person to ask; we can only tell you what is in each dish. The full guide is in reading a menu when vegetarian, avoiding heat or allergic. The person who keeps the allergen table is Mai Thanh Vân.

Updated 5 October 2026.

Sources

• Tiền Phong, 17 February 2026, read 5 October 2026.
• Tiền Phong, 5 September 2025, read 5 October 2026.