C. A. Lee

I always leave here feeling deeply nourished. Even the microwaved leftovers from yesterday taste like love! How is that? I imagine there's a devout alchemist in this kitchen who follows the honored traditions of bygone days in the 70s, where flower children fought for peace on earth, and "organic" and "wholesome" were prescriptions rather than marketing tools. Food here bears the marks of primordial flavors, not bland things that crumble out of plastic bags. They taste alive. Eat at Souen! ☮️🌻

Bridget Reutter

I embarked on my evening in search of a hearty soup, a cozy space, a sense of solace, nothing pompous or loud or overpriced, just a bowl of hot soup. I found that and even more at Souen. The waiter emanated a gentleness that soothed me right away, the rose lemonade delighted my palate with its delicate floral notes, and the soup was SO nourishing. I especially delighted in watching the passersby outside the little round window. I still don’t know what macrobiotic food is but I’m never going back to microbiotic thank you Souen ❤️

Valeria Manent

I love Souen! I went here with my friends and it was a great place to talk over dinner. The atmosphere was really relaxing and the restaurant is so cute inside. Our waiter was so kind and helpful when we were deciding what to order. They have a variety of vegetarian options to choose from and everything that we ordered was so delicious! My favorite dishes are the summer rolls and peanut lime tofu.

Lauren

Souen is an awesome and unique restaurant! They have been serving up healthy “macrobiotic” food since the 1970s. The majority of the menu is vegan with the exception of various items that contain fish. If you’re looking for a wholesome meal made of unprocessed, high-quality plant-based foods, there are surprisingly few options in New York City, and Souen is not one to miss. Their signature item is the macro plate that comes with the grain, legume, and vegetable of the day. Their menu has several categories of Japanese-inspired items including sushi, ramen, noodle dishes, and stir fries. They also have a number of special entrees and appetizers each day. We were hoping they’d be seed oil free (since that is definitely the vibe) but they do use sunflower oil in some dishes. We tried the pesto noodles, the squash tofu, the broccoli tofu, and the summer roll and loved all of the above. Squash sauce is a brilliant innovation. We tried the corn chocolate chip muffin that was less impressive than the other things we tried. Overall, we appreciated the great wholesome good, the reasonable prices for generous portions, and the good service. I wish there were more places like Souen. We will definitely be back for more.

Janie Cooper

Meal was phenomenal. Pad Thai was truly incredible, I don’t know how the broccoli tasted so good and the sauce and mushrooms like wow. The almond pb brownie was it. It was so good, wild that it is vegan and gf, I would have ordered nonetheless. Come for no bs service, don’t expect chipper or small talk—loved it for me. Music was perf too

+1

Mandy Kuo

Wish we had discovered this place sooner! So many great Asian/Japanese dishes that are refined sugar free which is nearly impossible to find! Due to my husband's dietary restriction of no refined sugar, he hasn't had dumplings for years because it's just part of the recipe to flavor dumplings with sugar. But Souen is free of processed sugar for everything!! We enjoyed all the dishes and will definitely come back. The burdock root salad was refreshing and sweetened with maple syrup. The tofu skin dish was also yummy. Also had the berry Kanten (like jelly) for dessert which was light and perfect. Edit: since the first visit, we've ordered on seamless from Souen countless of Friday nights. Their garbanzo broth soup ramen is our go to or sometimes the tahini miso ramen. The black sesame mousse is great too, not too sweet.

+3

Zoe Stephens

My favorite restaurant!!! I’ve been going to souen for 15 years and it remains the best. If you like clean, flavorful, veggie packed food, you’ll love this place. Pesto veg with maze rice is my favorite (pictured). Macro plate is a staple (comes w a great sauce). Pad Thai is amazing. As are the sweet potato fries (baked white sweet potato with a delish sauce). Could not recommend more! It’s a small spot, maybe ~10 tables, but they turn over petty quick - I’ve never had to wait long. Also love for takeout.

Alessandro Fadini

EDIT 6 years later, Souen is still awesome. On every level. Hope this place stays open forever. Just the healthiest restaurant ever. Service can be a bit weird, but it’s true Japanese people, so slightly different culture. Delicious and nourishing to the body and the soul

Cameron

Souen is such a cool, historic NYC restaurant with really down to earth food that makes you feel good after eating it. I ordered the macro platter, edamame guacamole, tempeh fritters, the coconut mousse along with the blueberry mousse. All of the food is super well cooked, well balanced, and non-pretentious. I particularly like the tahini-miso dressing that came with the macro platter, along with the refreshing blueberry mousse. It can be a bit busy and cramped inside, since the space is small, but there’s a small covered seating area outside that’s available to eat at too. Overall, I’d return to Souen, whenever I need a meal that’s satisfying and wholesome.

Amy F

The best vegan curry shoyu ramen I’ve ever had in my life. The vegetable dumplings and summer rolls are to die for! Everything tastes so fresh, healthy, and delicious. This is one of my all time favorite restaurants. Every time we are in NYC we come here at least twice. Highly recommend this place!

Julien Keshishian

Easily the best vegan oriented spot I've ever dined at. I generally despise vegan cuisine but this spot stood out from the crowd. Extremely healthy and delicious fare. The sweet potato fry sauce was insane. I hIghly recommend the pesto and the cashew alfredo pasta.

+1

Rory Corrigan

I loved the food here. Space was tight, but it is Manhattan, right? My friend got the macro plate which looked super filling and healthy, we got some yuba wrapped in tofu skin to share, and I got the curry ramen with soba noodles. Everything was delicious, the curry had a reasonable level of spice and was filling. The staff were very engaging and helpful. Totally looking forward to going back.

Lily E W

I normally go to the Soho location where the food is excellent. This was my first time at this location. The place is a bit smaller but clean and cozy. The service is better because I assume that it's easier to see the smaller numbers of tables. The Soho place has many tables and the lighting is dimmer and I usually have to vigorously wave down someone before anyone notices me. Otherwise, the quality in the food for either place is worth the wait.

Ricardo Camacho

I've been to this restaurant twice now, and both times I've received great food and great service. I think the miso soup is great. The squash that comes will have you wanting to eat squash on a regular basis. The miso soup is officially #thebomb.comApproved. Both times I've had their vegetable dumplings and they are good but the way they are plated is purely beautiful. Usually they come plain in a wooden steamer box, but Souen adds a bed of kale along with other colorful vegetables to make them look great. Unfortunately, I forgot to take pictures. I wasn't a big fan of their avocado cucumber sushi. But you would have to try it for yourself, I'm not a big fan of seaweed so I may have a biased opinion. My wife had the curry dish and she said she enjoyed it. Great spot, definitely will come back. I haven't had any miso soup better than Souen's yet.

It’s ironically called big bar even though spaces are very limited in here - it’s definitely a vibe though with its cash only and overall divey atmosphere. Lots of disclaimers all around but if you know what you want and can be expedient about it, you’ll be well served here.

Super cozy and cute. No wait despite NYE weekend but still busy/lively. Love the red lights. Bartender was alright / weird vibes. Maybe they were tired / had cruddy customers before me. Just had a glass of a house red

Well... I don't know how I never came here before but what a vibe. Soaked in red light, cash only, a very chill, eclectic crew, all of that made it for me a perfect later night after dinner spot, even if the back bar is unsurprisingly thin and I low-key hate carrying cash on me these days unless I'm a regular somewhere. As an old head with a kid, I'm not sure when I'll be back but when the opportunity presents itself, I'm down.

chana korn

I had a delicious meal here (and ended with a bad dessert) I ordered the pad Thai and ginger salmon. The pad Thai was creamy and deeply flavorful. The veggies had the perfect bite while being soft and blending well with the pasta and the peanut sauce was very balanced. I’d give this dish an 8.3. The salmon was great as well but did have a slightly fishy flavor and I felt like the sauce was just put on top after rather than cooked in - 6.8. For dessert I ordered the chocolate mousse and I just did not enjoy it. There was no depth in flavor and the texture was weird. 5.1. I still desired a sweet treat so I got the blueberry chocolate chip muffin (I thought it sounded like an interesting combination) and it was the worst muffin I have ever had. Truly. It was gluten free like all their desserts and it fell apart immediately, was just so crumbly in the worst way - 3.2. The service was amazing (they even took the mousse off my bill) and it was a very nice atmosphere with great vibes! Even though I had a mixed experience, I will definitely be back!

judy

Simple and fresh! I got the large steamed vegetables and this is exactly what I'm craving on a day when I want some simple veggies. My friends got the curry ramen and highly recommend however could use some less veggies in their ramen as it overpowered the noodles.

Juanita Metzger

The food is tasty but appearance and plating could be improved. Many of the meal plates are very brown/green and could be improved with fresh garnish. Sliced scallions or green onion would add a lot.

+2

Ruben van der Velde

1) our belly's were hurting after the pad thai (a pad thai that didn't even taste like lad thai. Way too much peanut sauce) 2) we didn't even have 5min with our appetizer before our main dish dropped in front of us (it felt a bit rushed) 3) the employees didn't feel very professional 4) country music in an Asian restaurant?

Qathuhrehn J

I like the place, but the guy/server in the red t-shirt working at 8pm today was so unwelcoming. Started asking if I was ready to order every 2 mins after I sat down for not even 10 mins. Bad attitude bad service but nice vibes. Owner was very nice tho

At the end of the day it's a bar.... The bartender and bouncer are the singular most offensive and pretensous people I have ever met in my life. Full of self importance and a vibe like they are keepers of all. They essence of the place has great bones and a good vibe overall... Just hope you catch the bartender on a night she isn't feeling like being rude and stuck up.Its far away from a premium bar and has an attitude problem equal to the snobbiest bars in all of Manhattan.... It's a hard Miss.

I stopped by Big Bar while visiting New York, and it was one of the most disappointing experiences I’ve ever had. The bartender was incredibly rude from the very beginning — no greeting, no smile, just an attitude like I was bothering her by even being there. She clearly had no idea what she was doing and couldn’t answer the simplest questions about the place. I didn’t even end up ordering a drink because the atmosphere was so unpleasant and unprofessional. I left after a few minutes, completely unimpressed. For a city like New York, where good service is everywhere, this was a huge letdown. I definitely wouldn’t recommend this place to anyone.

I had a very disappointing experience at Bog Bar in New York. We asked about the recipe for a Whiskey Sour, and were told it’s just whiskey and lemon juice. When we mentioned that a classic Whiskey Sour usually includes egg white, the staff became rude, told us not to “teach the bartender how to do their job,” and we were basically kicked out shortly after. Instead of a friendly conversation or a simple explanation, we were met with disrespect and attitude. Customer service matters, and no one deserves to be treated like that. Would not recommend this place.

I would leave zero stars if I could— I work service too and never leave reviews, this case was extremely bad and deserves to be shared. Absolutely horrible experience with the femme presenting bartender on a pretty empty Saturday. Extremely rude, condescending, unbearable and had to leave pretty immediately, it was ageist and very unpleasant to be around. The two lonely men sitting there were also questionable and she seemed way kinder to them, than to us fellow non-men with a kind demeanor. Will not come back, thank you for making us feel horrible. Thank you!

Looks like some bartenders take tips for granted, expecting tips while being so rude to customers with the excuse of “being busy”. Wow, what a good reason for being disrespectful of customers. Reminder of the principle of a tip (which unfortunately has been forgotten): tips are here to reward good services for bartenders who deserve them, they should not be taken for granted. So just one thing busy bartender: if you want some tips, just do your job properly by being just slightly nicer, and not just demand “give me tips “. For your pride at least!

Big Bar is hard to miss with its bright red interior lights shining onto the sidewalk, but when you walk inside you’ll have wished you did miss it. I recently had the displeasure of stopping by this ‘dive bar’ and it was an experience I won’t soon forget; unfortunately. This bar harbors a particularly rancid vibe. Everything from the bar tender’s hall monitor attitude, to the Gen X clientele sitting at the bar top, to the bald man in a bright blue sweater standing outside holding the door looking to start arguments. It all meshed into a miserable, spoilt, and rank experience. This self touted ‘dive bar’ is a total disaster from start to finish. The atmosphere is dreadful. The space is cramped and awkward. The decor is tacky and lacking grace. It is all too evident that they tried too hard to come off as this trendy, relaxed, dingy dive bar but you can feel how incredibly gauche and trite the ambience really is. The supposed "dive bar" charm was nowhere to be found. Instead, it felt more like a sterile and sanitized version, where an older crowd can live out their dreams cosplaying being a patron at a dive bar. Without actually having to step foot in one. The raw authenticity of a dive bar is nowhere to be found here. Instead what you will encounter is a travesty of such magnitude that it defies the very essence of what it seeks to embody. Stripped of any genuine character, it is a desolate void. Big Bar’s ambiance is a facade. A cheap costume masking a soul devoid of grit or character. Stepping inside, the sterility of the place struck me immediately. But it was the customer service that truly revealed the rot at the core. At the helm of this charade was a bartender whose demeanor is a chilling specter of authoritarianism. Her presence fills the room and adds to the festering of a putrid environment. We did not get her name, but she is a heavy set brunette woman with glasses and nose piercings. She made comments that were teetering on discriminatory and seemed to convey a covert racism. She was abrasive with a patron over a seemingly arbitrary qualm. I wouldn’t be surprised to hear other patrons share a similar experience. The libations, one might hope, would salvage some semblance of a good experience, but they were as soulless as the decor. The drinks are underwhelming and bereft of any skill or care in their making. They didn’t seem to have any thing of substance worth drinking. All the bartender had was well liquor and flat beer. And in a location filled with other options that have better drinks and a more refined atmosphere, we did not stay long. In sum, this Gen X haven is truly a pit of despair and disappointment. This establishment is a blight upon the landscape of nightlife. A soulless simulacrum devoid of the grit, grime, and charm that define a dive bar. It feels more of a sterile tomb and I would implore seekers of a genuine experience to look elsewhere.

Bouncer dressed like where’s Waldo for Halloween tonight is a problem for a small business like this. I walked in with a few girls and he was hitting on the customers inside I did not see anyone in the front of the door so I walked inside. I thought he was just some big goofy Halloween dressed older over weight guy talking to younger girls. As I got though the door he started getting aggressive super weird because he’s a lot shorter than me and I’m not an aggressive person. He asked for ids I thought he was being funny but still reached in my back pocket to accommodate him. That’s when things got really weird he started acting aggressive so I turned around to leave because I don’t want to hurt this bully so I said I’m gonna just leave.. That’s when I asked the girls I was with to come he decided to follow me out screaming have a good day just so we are clear it’s night time! This place should really watch who they hire because clearly they don’t! You have been warned stay away from this place!

I really regret to change my review here. I really liked the place and used to go there. There is a specific bartender working there that is absolutely rude. She made a whole scene because some people tipped only $5 for 5 cans of beer. She was ringing some bells and her friends were shouting 'you should tip your bartender and blah blah..' and pointing to those people (that had actually tipped). Let alone that she earlier did lift me from my seat for her those friends of her to sit... When we told her that we understand that you are busy but this doesnt justify you being rude she took our drinks from us (had just bought them and i had personally tipped $3 for a jin) and asked us to leave the place. She just ruins that great bar and the nice vibe.