Vegetarian Restaurant by Hakin

Reviews

Name: Sean Conway 
Occupation: Lawyer
Lives In: Hollywood
Restaurant Pick: Vegetarian Restaurant By Hakin
Reviewed: Vegetarian Restaurant By Hakin

I have been to this place with the not so unique name (“Vegetarian Restaurant by Hakin”) many times. It is impossible to not locate it as you get off of I-95. The parking lot is safe and alongside busy 826. His place is always bright and spacious. I was greeted by Hakin and a server who sat me right down with a menu. Instead of ordering what I always get, Hakin suggested I try this ginger chicken dish – and I’m glad I did. As noted above, it was SO good! I wish I had taken photos just of that dish – I think anyone seeing it would say “hey, that looks good!” Then, that awful juicer went off a few minutes after I got there, and it was almost funny how loud it was. So, I didn’t order any fresh juice! I got a great smoothie instead. On the way out I had to get a piece of this 3-layered lemon-looking cake. They don’t make the cakes or cupcakes themselves (probably too busy focusing on cooking excellent food). The place isn’t great on the A/C factor and it can warm up pretty fast in there – but that alone should not deter anyone from treating themselves with a visit to Hakin’s. Also, it is not a place that is going to win any awards for décor – just a few plants and books around, and the ceiling tiles have seen better days. But I haven’t eaten animals for over twenty years. During that time I have been to a fair number of vegetarian places – from sidewalk stands to extravagantly decorated NY places. Some places look great, but the food isn’t – while others may have ok food, but too expensive. I have to conclude that Hakin’s is the best overall in terms of quality, price and cleanliness. I wasn’t on a date when I went, so the décor wasn’t an important thing.

Name: Lindsay Scherr 
Occupation: Business Development for an Organic Buying Club
Lives In: Miami
Restaurant Pick: Choices Miami
Reviewed: Vegetarian Restaurant By Hakin

Vegetarian Restaurant by Hakin is a unique, fun organic vegan restaurant with a great organic, vegetarian market. It’s an unexpected gem in North Miami Beach, where you can get juices, incredible coffee, vegan and vegetarian entrees and amazing pastries and cupcakes. It’s worth the trip to meet the lovely Hakin, who is a kind and genuine person. My favorite part of the meal was the cupcake and the ridiculously good coffee. During our meal you could see people coming in for pastries and coffee and I know why! My husband said it was so good, there was no way it was vegan! The wild burger was delicious, but a bit dry. I’m not crazy about soy cheese, but I loved the fresh toppings and the crust of the pizza. The sweet potato fries were delish! Décor .It’s really simple, kind of mix of a Thai restaurant, a diner and a store. The restaurant is also a market, so there are a lot of yummy organic and vegetarian options to choose from when you are done. It’s simple, but they have some carved pieces that bring kind of an eclectic charm. It’s a happy atmosphere there. They play calm music, and everyone is upbeat. It is noisy when they make fresh juices, but everything else is great! Totally recommended it.

Name: Mark Pollack 
Occupation: Teacher
Lives In: Lake Worth
Restaurant Pick: The Green Wave Café
Reviewed: Vegetarian Restaurant By Hakin

As based on being inundated upon entering with the gamut of raw, organic products scattered throughout the restaurant, an extensive juice bar, and various lines of superfoods, one could reasonably surmise that the menu at Vegetarian Restaurant by Hakin is one which specializes in or is dedicated to health-conscious food. However, such a conclusion would be antithetical to the reality of the situation, as would one which posits that the food is delectable or wholesome in taste.

The RV with the sides engrossed with the words “sugar cane juice,’ visible from down the street, to some extent, gave away, yet also obstructed the location of this restaurant. The pervasiveness of raw and organic products throughout the restaurant – on shelves, on the countertops, and on signage – gave an inundating, yet comforting impression of what was to be expected on the menu. The friendly wait staff further reinforced this by, upon inquiry, disseminating that the menu items are made fresh and that most of the ingredients are organic - those of which it wasn’t clear could easily be verified by inquiring within the kitchen. It was a good thing they did so since notable qualities of ingredients, such as being locally grown, organic, or non-GMO, were not indicated on the menu. As a matter of fact, other than for terse descriptions of the appetizers, there wasn’t much in the way of description of any of the items (e.g. ingredients or preparation of the food) indicated on the menu. If a patron would like to know anything more than the name of a dish and how frequent it is served (e.g. “served daily” or “special”), he/she must inquire. However, upon inquiry, it became evident that even the listing of frequency doesn’t help much as the “unavailable” lasagna dish was listed under “served daily.”

The imminent culmination of a combination of confusion and disappointment was however temporarily offset with a generous sample of their hearty Congo soup. This item was available as a cup or bowl – too bad not as a never-ending intravenous. This life-sustaining concoction of flavorful delights consisted of potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, beans, and roots smothered in a creamy, murky broth of cumin, ginger, and a wide variety of other stimulating herbs and spices. Too bad none of the four items which comprised the daily special entrée piqued the taste buds to a comparable extent – or to any extent for that matter. Although the “fish,” made with tofu, seaweed, and ackee, succeeded in its intended flavor deception it was not inviting in its composition of flavors, nor did it convey health or wholesomeness in its taste or ingredients. This main portion was accompanied by aesthetically pleasing, yet insipid cabbage, a generous portion of thick-sauced black beans, which tasted exactly as they would if a non-cook savvy patron made them and added the whole canister of salt, and quinoa, which could easily be mistaken for a salty quinoa pate based on its mashed potato-like texture. It is still unclear as to if the quinoa was overcooked or if mush is what the chef was going for.

However, one should not despair – there is always water to wash the food down, right? Well that is only if one asks, at which time he/she will be pointed to a somewhat hidden self-service stand. Maybe the hope is that people will purchase a bottle from one of the coolers scattered through the restaurant or that they will purchase a juice from the separate juice menu given upon sitting. Nevertheless, three of the five seated tables sat waiting for their food without anything to drink and without place settings. It is apparent that many people utilize the take-out service at this restaurant more than the dining as the line for to-go orders wrapped through the dining area at three different points during this approximately one hour experience – which made things a bit crammed to say the least. However, calling ahead for a soup to go and grabbing a couple healthy packaged items from the shelf may be the way to go with this place as neither the meal options/ingredients nor service are conducive for anyone who is seeking a healthy, flavorful dining experience.

Restaurant Information