Vegetarian Festival 2017?

[Katia]

Does anyone know when the Vegetarian Festival will be this year?  I googled and found dates for Phuket's celebration Oct 20-28-- will this be the same in Bangkok?  (I wasn't sure because I thought VF usually falls in September or early October, so was not sure if late October was a different date chosen for Phuket.)  (I'm trying to plan a vacation but am hoping not to miss VF.)

 

However, how might those dates be affected by the dates for the cremation of King Bhumibhol?

 

Thanks!

[Oxx]

This Chinese religious festival is based upon the lunar calendar, so Bangkok's dates are the same as Phuket.  The dates certainly won't be affect by the royal cremation.

 

I trust that you're aware that in Bangok the festival is really only marked in Bangkok's Chinatown.

[uli65]

thanks for information. Now I know when I have to avoid to go to Phuket.

[Limetradax]

Wow never knew there's an event like this :D 

[seajae]

I dont mind it actually, we always buy our passes and eat vegetarian for the week, its a nice change.

 

[tonray]

2 hours ago, Oxx said:

This Chinese religious festival is based upon the lunar calendar, so Bangkok's dates are the same as Phuket.  The dates certainly won't be affect by the royal cremation.

 

I trust that you're aware that in Bangok the festival is really only marked in Bangkok's Chinatown.

Although as in Christian Lent, many Thai Buddhists abstain from eating meat for the duration, so there are more all veg choices available in the street too, just about all the Malls have special Food Events highlighting the festival all over BKK

[keeniau96]

The Vegetarian festival in 2017 is 20-28 Oct. The festival originated in Phuket and is really the place to be if you have a major interest in such. Not really much extra tourism or hassle during that time, per my 14 years here in Phuket, living close to one of the major shrines for it.

[Oxx]

1 hour ago, keeniau96 said:

The festival originated in Phuket

 

Uh, you missed the part above where I wrote this is a Chinese religious festival.  It did not originate in Phuket, but in China where it's known as the Nine Emperor Gods Festival.  More on Wikipedia:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nine_Emperor_Gods_Festival [English]

https://th.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%97%E0%B8%A8%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A5%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%99%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%88 [Thai]

Edited April 27, 2017 by Oxx

[bubba]

8 hours ago, Oxx said:

This Chinese religious festival is based upon the lunar calendar, so Bangkok's dates are the same as Phuket.  The dates certainly won't be affect by the royal cremation.

 

I trust that you're aware that in Bangok the festival is really only marked in Bangkok's Chinatown.

I have found that the vegetarian aspect of the festival is celebrated all over Bangkok. Just look for the yellow flags. Even 7-11 and supermarkets like Villa lay on loads of frozen vegetarian microwave meals.

[Patanawet]

9 hours ago, Oxx said:

 

I trust that you're aware that in Bangok the festival is really only marked in Bangkok's Chinatown.

Vegetarian food is WIDELY available in Bangkok at this time with all supermarkets having displays

Edit -- sorry just noticed the post above with the same information

Edited April 27, 2017 by Patanawet
Double information

[Skeptic7]

My favorite time of year!  Almost always October, but dates vary as mentioned by previous posters. This year 20-28 October. Look for the yellow "jey"  (vegetarian) signs & flags throughout the Kingdom...even on street food carts! 7-11, Family Mart and most/all supermarkets participate too...usually stocking "jey" selections before the official start date. 

 

Edited April 27, 2017 by Skeptic7

[Katia]

Yes, I'm aware it's mostly in Chinatown-- that's where I spent both weekends of it last year.  :)  This year I figure I might see what it's all about in Phuket, since I hear so much about it.

 

Helpful to know it'll be the same everywhere.  The things I found when I googled *only* mentioned Phuket, and since most things I've read say it's usually in Sept. or early Oct., late October seemed strange and I thought perhaps Phuket had moved their goings-on for some reason (I've not tried the conversions for the lunar calendar).  That works out very well for me in scheduling my other travel around it, then.

[abab]

Any food here can be vegetarian, just put tofu instead of chicken.

 

[Oxx]

9 minutes ago, abab said:

Any food here can be vegetarian, just put tofu instead of chicken.

 

 

That really is one of the more ill-informed posts I've read here for a long time.

 

Thai food makes extensive use of fish sauce, oyster sauce, shrimp paste, meat stock, and other animal-based products.

 

And the so-called "vegetarian festival" isn't about vegetarian food.  The food is vegan and eschews anything with strong flavours such as onion, garlic, herbs, spices.

[Dumbastheycome]

When ?  Perhaps  when the   Vegetables  are  prepared  and  ready !

[bubba]

2 hours ago, Oxx said:

 

That really is one of the more ill-informed posts I've read here for a long time.

 

Thai food makes extensive use of fish sauce, oyster sauce, shrimp paste, meat stock, and other animal-based products.

 

And the so-called "vegetarian festival" isn't about vegetarian food.  The food is vegan and eschews anything with strong flavours such as onion, garlic, herbs, spices.

And don't forget the pork oil that many vendors use for stir fries.

[abab]

6 hours ago, Oxx said:

 

That really is one of the more ill-informed posts I've read here for a long time.

 

Thai food makes extensive use of fish sauce, oyster sauce, shrimp paste, meat stock, and other animal-based products.

 

And the so-called "vegetarian festival" isn't about vegetarian food.  The food is vegan and eschews anything with strong flavours such as onion, garlic, herbs, spices.

 

 

What a drama ! fish sauce in your dish ! And if you believe that Thai respect the vegan rule strictly even when it's veg festival, the one who knows nothing and seem proud of being retarded is you.

 

The only real vegan food is the one you cook yourself, anybody with a brain usually knows this.

 

 

 

 

[swissie]

Clearly, If anyone of the above posters would ever have lived in an agricultural area in Thailand for an extended period of time, would be aware of the fact that the liberal and uncontrolled application of pesticides, herbicides, fungicides has reached a stage, where imported vegetables from Thailand (sold in Thai-Food Stores in Europe) after standart laboratory analysis, are often times not considered "fit for human consumption" due to massive "Chemical Contamination".

- So, after having flown halfway accross the globe: Enjoy your veggie-orgie in Thailand ! Bon appetit !
Cheers.

Edited April 27, 2017 by swissie

[bubba]

3 hours ago, abab said:

 

 

What a drama ! fish sauce in your dish ! And if you believe that Thai respect the vegan rule strictly even when it's veg festival, the one who knows nothing and seem proud of being retarded is you.

 

The only real vegan food is the one you cook yourself, anybody with a brain usually knows this.

 

 

 

 

 

To the contrary, Thai people are very conscientious about preparing food that is truly vegan during the vegetarian festival. Even when it is not vegetarian festival, if you buy food from a vegetarian restaurant, you can be sure it is vegan. For many Thais, this is a religious issue to them.

 

[Oxx]

5 hours ago, abab said:

What a drama ! fish sauce in your dish ! And if you believe that Thai respect the vegan rule strictly even when it's veg festival, the one who knows nothing and seem proud of being retarded is you.

 

The only real vegan food is the one you cook yourself, anybody with a brain usually knows this.

 

I suggest you refrain from commenting on subjects you know nothing about in case others think you're "being retarded".

 

Jae is taken so seriously that even the vessels used for cooking such food must not have ever been used for regular food.

[questionsreplies]

1 hour ago, bubba said:

 

To the contrary, Thai people are very conscientious about preparing food that is truly vegan during the vegetarian festival. Even when it is not vegetarian festival, if you buy food from a vegetarian restaurant, you can be sure it is vegan. For many Thais, this is a religious issue to them.

 

I agree that you are totally wrong.

[questionsreplies]

8 minutes ago, Oxx said:

 

I suggest you refrain from commenting on subjects you know nothing about in case others think you're "being retarded".

 

Jae is taken so seriously that even the vessels used for cooking such food must not have ever been used for regular food.

 

 

I also think that you canmot know Thai very well to say this...

 

 

[bubba]

7 minutes ago, questionsreplies said:

7 minutes ago, questionsreplies said:

I agree that you are totally wrong.

 

 

Well, given that you must "know Thai very well" and you also must have considerable experience with eating and preparing vegan food (jae) in Thailand, then we would all be happy to hear your revelations to back up  your accusation. Please do elaborate.

[JimmyJ]

I've been meaning to start a thread about vegetarian/vegan eating in Thailand and SE Asia, but since there are obviously some vegetarians/vegans here -

I imagine that it's not too hard to get jae food on the street and restaurants in Thailand.

But reading some tour guidebooks on Cambodia/Laos/Vietnam, it seems it would be quite hard.

Correct?

Would be interested in your experiences.

And I agree based on a Thai restaurant I've gone to in the USA, Thai people are very aware of jae food and take it seriously. 

 

(I would also specify no MSG - how to request that in Thailand?).

 

I've previously made notes about the Vegetarian Week, and look forward to it when I'm there.

Edited April 28, 2017 by JimmyJ

[Oxx]

20 minutes ago, JimmyJ said:

I've been meaning to start a thread about vegetarian/vegan eating in Thailand and SE Asia, but since there are obviously some vegetarians/vegans here -

I imagine that it's not too hard to get jae food on the street and restaurants in Thailand.

But reading some tour guidebooks on Cambodia/Laos/Vietnam, it seems it would be quite hard.

Correct?

Would be interested in your experiences.

And I agree based on a Thai restaurant I've gone to in the USA, Thai people are very aware of jae food and take it seriously. 

 

(I would also specify no MSG - how to request that in Thailand?).

 

I've previously made notes about the Vegetarian Week, and look forward to it when I'm there.

 

Actually, there are very few vegetarians in Thailand - it's really not a concept that Thai people understand.  There are "jae" restaurants, but not many of them, and the stuff they serve is really unappetising (probably thanks to the lack of onions/garlic, herbs and spices).  Personally I can't recall ever having seen "jae" street food (but then I'm not a street food foodie), though there is a well known chain of restaurants serving "jae" food backed by a religious institution.  For most Thai people "jae" is a once a year novelty.

 

Note that normal restaurants to not serve "jae" food as an option.  In tourist areas they will serve variants of Thai dishes without animal protein (usually substituting with tofu), but the sauces will probably not be free of animal products, and the dishes will be tainted by whatever has previously been cooked in the same wok.

 

As for "no MSG", mây sày phǒŋ chuuˑrót.

[bubba]

Actually, it really isn't all that easy to get vegan food on the street here. Every now and then you will see a "jae" vendor with a yellow flag out. You might want to learn the two Thai characters for "jae", and it's only two, in red on a yellow background:

 

 

 

To ask for no MSG, that might be a bit difficult unless you can do Thai tones, but here it is:

 

Mai sai pong choo roat 

 

Or here's an idea...you could print this out and keep it with you...just show it to the vendor:

 

ไม่ใส่ผงชูรส

 

[bubba]

Sorry about the repetition, Oxx. I think we were both typing at the same time. lol

[JimmyJ]

1 minute ago, Oxx said:

 

Actually, there are very few vegetarians in Thailand - it's really not a concept that Thai people understand.  There are "jae" restaurants, but not many of them, and the stuff they serve is really unappetising (probably thanks to the lack of onions/garlic, herbs and spices).  Personally I can't recall ever having seen "jae" street food (but then I'm not a street food foodie), though there is a well known chain of restaurants serving "jae" food backed by a religious institution.  For most Thai people "jae" is a once a year novelty.

 

Note that normal restaurants to not serve "jae" food as an option.  In tourist areas they will serve variants of Thai dishes without animal protein (usually substituting with tofu), but the sauces will probably not be free of animal products, and the dishes will be tainted by whatever has previously been cooked in the same wok.

 

As for "no MSG", mây sày phǒŋ chuuˑrót.

 

Thanks.

 

I've misused the term then - my Thai restaurant for the last 10 years or so will cook on request "variants of Thai dishes without animal protein (usually substituting with tofu)" and will also make it without animal products. So it's the deliciously spiced Thai food but vegan.

On the order ticket they write "J" but I didn't realize that classicly that means something else.

[JimmyJ]

9 minutes ago, bubba said:

Actually, it really isn't all that easy to get vegan food on the street here. Every now and then you will see a "jae" vendor with a yellow flag out. You might want to learn the two Thai characters for "jae", and it's only two, in red on a yellow background:

 

 

 

To ask for no MSG, that might be a bit difficult unless you can do Thai tones, but here it is:

 

Mai sai pong choo roat 

 

Or here's an idea...you could print this out and keep it with you...just show it to the vendor:

 

ไม่ใส่ผงชูรส

 

Thanks.

 

I'd already copied the "Jae" into Paint from where it appeared earlier in this thread and will print it and scan it into my phone -- just put your  "MSG" into Word and will do the same.

 

 

Edited April 28, 2017 by JimmyJ

[Oxx]

1 hour ago, bubba said:

Or here's an idea...you could print this out and keep it with you...just show it to the vendor:

 

ไม่ใส่ผงชูรส

 

Have you noticed how many food workers here are Burmese, don't speak Thai very well, and certainly don't read it? Definitely at the lower end of the market written Thai isn't going to get you far.  Still, worth a try.