Ahimsa

My friend and I are attempting to do a vegan tour of the north east and we heard good things about Ahimsa so we were excited to try it. I had the lasagna, which was delicious, but everything else was completely underwhelming.
First, I certainly don’t see why I should be expected to pay $ 4 for a drink just because the owner made a terrible mistake by choosing a location with ridiculous rent. Hmm, I wonder why the place is empty so often… If the location wasn’t prime real estate they would be able to charge half of what they do now and still have a following that would know where to find them.
Now for the food… I had the lasagna, which was DELICIOUS, but come on, it’s a sauce and layered raw vegetables. I don’t remember what I paid, but I remember being absolutely underwhelmed by the portion size.
Ultimately, I think the place is doomed. They’ve probably sunk so much money into the décor and atmosphere that they are hoping it will save them. I’m no Jack Welch, but I think the owner must not have a clue.

Only been once, and probably won’t go back. There was a good range of options for vegetarians and vegans, and the food was decent, but definitely not worth the exorbitant prices for the small quantities. Claire’s Corner Copia has lots more vegetarian and vegan options that are at least as good and cost half as much, and it’s just down the street. Ahimsa’s atmosphere was very nice (minus the electric guitarist playing musak versions of 80s pop hits when I was there).

I don’t know what the chick below is talking about: Ahimsa is the best of the best. Clean, lovely, calming atmosphere, really nice staff, and excellent, vegan food. I travel for work and have eaten at vegan restaurants all over the country, and this place is on tier with my favorite places in New York and San Francisco. Interesting and delicious dishes. The sexy tiramisu and classy vibe makes it a perfect date spot, too.

Was in CT this past weekend visiting friends, as we have done in the past. Last time we went to Claire’s and it was fabulous but we really wanted to try Ahimsa, so we decided to give it a shot this time on a Saturday for lunch. We walked in at 12:30 and the place was empty, which should have been our first clue there was an issue, but we sat down. The first table they tried to seat us at was DIRTY… dirty knife, crumbs, stains on the tablecloth… DIRTY. Then we opted for another table… food in the chairs, stuff floating in the water and something which could have been a rat turd on the floor… could have also been a Raisinet — hard to tell. Either way, all four of us got up, in unison and left. Based on the condition of the dining area, I can only imagine what the kitchen looked like. Double yuck gross!

I’ve only been once but the food was very good, as was the environment.

So, things have changed a bit. I don’t think they’re open on Sundays anymore. I tried going but some private function was going on, and the waitress said that they were no longer open on Sundays, but now open on Mondays. Anyway, I’ve been back quite a few more times, and I had a real disappointment of an entrée, the maple seitan. The under portion was COMPLETELY burnt, and the waitress didn’t even flinch. I should only stick to what I know is good: the raw lasagna. Can’t burn that!
I’m still a fan of the lunch buffet, the avocolada and the mango lassi. Though, I can easily make the two drinks at home…

I came here for a friends baby shower, she’s vegan. I have had some issues with some of the vegan stuff she’s fed me in the past but the food was great, the cake was also awesome. I would come back here voluntarily for sure.

I really liked Ahimsa, and we definitely would go back. Looking at what some other people have written about Ahimsa has given me some insight on this place and how it runs. overall the food was good consistenly but i was never blown away, the service was pretty good and stayed on top of things, the atmosphere was decent — nothing really negative to say. it was a little pricey, but not really that bad. if its your first time there try to make it to the buffet, try a few different things and see if you like it .
it was never crowded when we were there, but we were never there at peak meal times.

I travel nationwide for work 80% of the week and I am a huge fan of raw food. I had the raw soup of the day (cucumber and tomato — it was blended and tasted so fresh!) and for my entrée, I had the raw beet ravioli. Oh my. It was gooooood. But I had to take off one star because after I left (total bill w/​tip was $ 32! no drink!!!), I had a tummy ache. Not sure why, it could have been the nut «cheese» was too heavy for me. That said, I’ve eaten at numerous raw restaurants and never felt anything but light and happy. Hmmmm.

I am going to give Ahimsa only two stars for now. I hope to go back for dinner and maybe then I will change my review.
I went during lunch hours which is a buffet. The afternoon my friend and I ate here there were very few choices. Unfortunately many of the options were left to sit too long and needed to be replaced. I didn’t really get a chance to experience what Ahimsa is all about.
The good…
The lentil’s were very good. Spicy but not too spicy.
The Szechuan noodles had a good balance of sweet and spicy.
The one salad dressing I tried was awesome. It had such an intense flavor. I have no idea what it was except that is was thick and orange. It kind of tasted like a spicy grapefruit.
The bad…
The food needed to be replaced with fresher dishes. Everything seemed a little stale and empty.
The rice was overcooked (or is it undercooked?) so much that it was crunchy. You really shouldn’t serve it that way.
The okra was overcooked, dry, and crusty.
The couscous salad was almost empty.
The bread they brought us was completely burned. I am not a fan of carbon.
The drinks are expensive!!! All of the juices or teas run between $ 4 and $ 5. I am too cheap for this!
I wish that Ahimsa had more options for the lunch buffet. It would be great to try a few unique dishes that are on the dinner menu. My suggestion is to skip the buffet and try meal service instead.

I REALLY wanted to like this place. I used to spend a lot of time in New Haven and being vegan there were not a ton of options for dining. On a recent visit I was excited to see there was an all vegan restaurant. A group of 5 of us showed up right as they opened for dinner on a friday evening. It started out really great, we had a wonderfully sweet server, wine and delicious appetizers. Our entrees, however, did not make the grade. They were so boring, one friend just had a plate of sauteed mushrooms in wine sauce that were subpar on taste and cost $ 14! All of our entrees were bland and overpriced and mostly amounted to overcooked stir fried veggies in different sauces. Unless they vastly improve, I fear they are giving vegan cuisine in New Haven a bad name.

I used to work here, and I have absolutely no reservations about telling folks that it was altogether a comically horrible experience. I personally won’t support an establishment if I think the management is unkind. I realize this is something that may not matter to everyone, but I think poor management says a lot about a restaurant’s character.
I wasn’t given staff meals while I worked, and they wouldn’t let us bring in food (to eat on the breaks we didn’t get) because the restaurant is certified kosher. They show little respect for their employees and take money out of your tips if you make errors on someone’s tab (which, FYI, is against the law). You’ll probably get different servers every time you go in, because the turnover rate while I was there was about as high as McDonald’s!
Here’s the scoop from a food perspective:
–They tout being «fresh and organic». Far from it, sorry folks. I couldn’t believe the sorry state of some of the produce they use in their dishes.
–With the exception of maybe the buffet, it’s way too expensive! $ 3 for a coffee? It’s not even that much at Union League!
–While I think the food is inventive and tasty, the above information puts a bitter taste in my mouth.

I’ve only been to Ahimsa once, and it was for their lunch buffet, and I thought it was great. Then again, as a vegetarian, unless the food tasted like sawdust, I’d probably be doing cartwheels. I LOVE being able to go into a restaurant and order anything off the menu.
For $ 10, I had the chance to sample a variety of foods, from their pasta dish with a creamy sauce (I couldn’t believe it was vegan), a cous-​cous salad, bean salad, some relishes, a hot pumpkin dish, and more items that I can’t recall.
The décor was really nice. Overall, it’s a comfortable place with very good food. I’d like to go back and try some items off their dinner menu; however, their regular prices look a bit high.

I have been DYING to try Ahimsa since they opened up across the street from my apartment, but until my mom came to visit I couldn’t find anyone to come with me! Something about vegan restaurants just seems to scare most carnivores (I am an unafraid carnivore)…
Anyway, we went for the $ 10 Lunch Buffet. I was a little disappointed that they don’t serve their usual menu for lunch, but I was just there to try the place out. The buffet included a 3bean salad, garden salad served with vinegrette, lemon pickle, mango pickle, couscous, pasta, saffron rice, potato masala, a pea dish, carrot halavah, and rice pudding.
The first thing I noticed was that everything was pretty starchy. With the exception of the pea dish and the salads I was on carb overload. Not that I don’t like carbs, I just like a balanced meal, and from what I gathered in the literature on their tables, that’s what they were going for. The only item on the table that I didn’t try was the pasta. I just didn’t see a need for it and it was obviously there for the carnivores and picky children. That and it didn’t go with anything else.
The pickles were interesting, but the mango pickle had no mango flavor at all. Maybe I missed the point, but I was hoping for something a little sweet. The lemon pickle would have made a great salad dressing. The three bean salad was delicious and perfectly seasoned, the garden salad was leafy with lots of bite-​sized veggies and the vinigrette was delicious. The couscous was perfect– I could have gone back for more. The saffron rice was pretty plain and the masala and pea dish were good, but not incredible. The rice pudding was more like rice soup and not pudding-​like at all but the carrot halavah was delicious! Basically the food was hit and miss.
So why the four stars? It’s soooooooo much better than any other vegan place (ahem, Claire’s) in New Haven. And they served their coconut water in the coconut! they just chopped it open and served it with a straw and I felt like I was back in Puerto Rico. There’s so much potential for Ahimsa that I won’t discourage anyone from going there and I can’t wait to try the dinner menu.

I visited this when I visited New Haven in February, and I am looking forward to becoming a regular customer when I move to New Haven in July. The menu is completely vegan, but the non-​veg people I went with also enjoyed the meal (one of them had been to Ahimsa previously and suggested we go). There is a selection of raw dishes as well, but I concentrated on the fried and unhealthy parts of the menu (avoiding causing suffering in others does not mean I avoid abusing my own body!). Particularly interesting was the Chocolate Ravioli. Why have I never thought of frying chocolate pudding?