If you were to ask me my number 1 restaurant spot in Geneva (purely on the basis of food), I would say Le Saïgonais Restaurant. The reason I like it so much is because it addresses a very niche area of gastronomy: a. exclusively plant-based, and b. Asian/Vietnamese cuisine. Their version of duck meat closely resembles real meat and my friend has confirmed it.

I spoke to Pearl, who runs the restaurant, and she agrees that a reason they started this restaurant was because of the previous lack of a plant-based, Asian fine dining restaurant in town – what a culinary delight it was when I tasted Mi Xao Don (noodles main course) followed by Banh Chuoi (vegan banana cake with coconut milk).

I also noticed that they had a separate menu for the winter/summer season in addition to the usual menu; make sure that you go through all the options before ordering, though I can assure you, the fear of missing out will still be there, for there are so many dishes I am tempted to taste but have to stick to one.

Oh, and they do have a stock of nice Vietnamese beers too – please ask for a Saigon beer. It’s quite delicious, and goes well with the food (I am sure it’s a placebo effect, but ride it!)

A way to support them would be to book directly using the number provided or message on Instagram so that they don’t have to share revenue with TripAdvisor.