Vegan Restaurants in Melbourne - Midori by Taos, Balwyn
Melbourne Australia is a top tier location for vegan eateries, with an abundance of vegan friendly cafes and restaurant scattered throughout this foodie state - no matter where you’re travelling to in Melbourne, you’re bound to find an incredible vegan restaurant in Melbourne.
Situated in the eastern suburb of Balwyn (10km east of Melbourne) you can find the first 100% plant based sushi train concept in Melbourne, Midori by Taos. This new concept offers a mostly vegan menu, with some items on their menu also including egg or dairy.
So, if you are looking for a unique and new vegan foodie experience in Melbourne, Midori by Taos is a fantastic destination that heroes vegetables in this contemporary new setting for vegans in Melbourne.
Midori by Taos, Balwyn, Victoria:
Midori by Taos, Balwyn, Victoria
Vegan Sushi Train in Melbourne:
If you are unfamiliar with a sushi train restaurant, it is simply conveyor belt sushi (or also called rotation sushi). It is a common type of sushi restaurant in Japan, and it has a strong popularity in Australia.
Plates serving the sushi are placed on the conveyor belt that winds through the restaurant and moves past every table, allowing customers to select their own plates.
While most sushi train restaurants offers some vegan friendly options, having a completely plant based Sushi Train restaurant in Melbourne is a new concept.
Midori by Taos in Balwyn is a mostly vegan sushi train restaurant, with there being a handful of vegetarian options available also. The vegetarian options are clearly labelled with ‘egg’ or ‘dairy’, making it very easy to identify.
Each plate is coloured and prices vary.
Green = $4
Red = $5
Yellow = $6
Midori by Taos also have a separate 'hot menu' where you can order items such as laksa, oat milk ramen and crispy battered mushrooms, and a drinks menu.
Midori by Taos offers a sushi train experience, as well as a ‘hot menu’, which includes popular dishes such as ramen, laksa and more.
LOCATION:
The modern Midori by Taos restaurant is situated on the popular Doncaster Road in Balwyn.
The restaurant has a very contemporary design with a small seating area available for the sushi train experience, maybe 40 seats in total.
It is a mostly child friendly experience, with high chairs available if needed.
Also available upstairs is a large function area and their fining dining area.
FOOD:
The food at Midori by Taos is beautifully presented and the flavours are truly spot on - what they can make with plant based ingredients is amazing.
While plant based meat is used in some dishes, Midori by Taos focuses on making vegetables the heroes, and it’s truly a testament to the chefs with what they can create with vegetables.
Midori by Taos has a variety of sushi options that make their way around the conveyor belt, but on top of this you can enjoy some of their ‘hot menu’ items such as a oat milk ramen, laksa, edamame and even crispy oyster mushrooms (these come highly recommended by the way!)
Upstairs Vegan Fine Dining: The Kaiseki Experience
While the downstairs sushi train continues to impress with its rotating plates of mostly vegan creations, Midori by Taos also offers a refined Kaiseki-style fine dining experience upstairs. This six-course, mostly vegan set menu is a celebration of vegetables in their most elevated form – artistic, flavour-packed, and beautifully plated. Priced at $78 per person, the Kaiseki experience showcases seasonal produce with dishes like savoury rice pudding topped with a mushroom medley, grilled miso eggplant, and vegan eel crafted with tofu skin. It’s a more intimate and slower-paced dining option, perfect for those looking to explore plant-based cuisine in a new and elevated way.
The experience also includes a starter trio, an entrée with bold capsicum-peanut purée, a rotating soup course served in a teapot, and a delicate vegan pannacotta dessert with chewy pearls and vegan fairy floss. A large drinks menu is also available, and there are non-Kaiseki hot food options upstairs too for those after something a little more casual.
Whether you’re after an unforgettable vegan fine dining moment in Melbourne or just curious about how far vegetables can go, the Kaiseki experience at Midori by Taos is a must-try for Melbourne vegans looking for something truly special.
If you are looking for a new and unique dining experience, then Midori by Taos is something that vegans in Melbourne should definitely consider adding to their list.
Having access to a mostly vegan sushi train and Kaiseki experience is something that is long overdue in Melbourne, and it’s truly great to see vegetables and plant based meats used in some truly innovative ways.
Other Melbourne Vegan Restaurants worth visiting: