Karaván adds a vegan food truck to its culinary convoy

More and more people are choosing a vegan lifestyle, and many individuals must follow a gluten- or lactose-free diet because of some kind of food intolerance. Karaván already favored vegetarians with its cheese-focused unit Paneer, but from now on, visitors can also eat foods made with no ingredients of animal origin at the pavilion of Green Paradise. We tasted a few of their vegan dishes, and found them so delicious that even meat lovers could be tempted to try them.

We love Karaván, because with its wide variety of food trucks permanently parked here, we can drop by with several friends or colleagues and be sure that everyone will find a place to get something they like: burgers for the carnivores, lángos and sausages for Hungarian-food fanatics, Asian noodles for those craving exotic flavors, and cheesy treats from Paneer for vegetarians. However, up until recently, hungry vegans could only munch on some salad here, which – knowing that there is a great variety of vegan dishes out there – was a rather poor selection. However, with the recent arrival of Green Paradise, Karaván now has its healthiest and most eco-conscious food truck. The idea and the implementation are by Dávid Tikos, who considered offering a vegetarian menu at first, but then decided to also cut out eggs and dairy products from the selection.

Photo: Norbert Juhász - We Love Budapest

All of this was not just the result of ideological reasons, but because he saw an opportunity in the diversity of the plant-based diet. Frankly, most “omnivores” cannot even imagine how varied and flavorful dishes can be when they are made without dairy products, meat, and eggs – but Green Paradise provides extraordinary street-food examples of how tasty vegan food can be.

They always offer smoothies (1,200 HUF); we tried a beetroot version and a green smoothie, both of which were spicy enough (with ginger and herbs), had a nice texture, and were rather filling, as well – perfect for an afternoon snack or post-workout treat. (Unfortunately, Green Paradise is not open in the early morning, or else one of these smoothies would make a fine liquid breakfast, too.)

Otherwise, the daily offer is always different: the selection depends on seasonal fruits and vegetables, although the wraps (1,450 HUF) and daily pastas (1,200 HUF) are always available. Our absolute favorite is the pasta made with coconut milk, sesame seeds, and pesto. It easily surpassed most other pasta dishes made with heavy cream and meat, with plenty of flavors mixed together, while still remaining in harmony.

The wraps are huge; we would even recommend one for two people to share. The egg-free flatbread is stuffed with vegetables and sprouts. Do not miss the desserts, either – Green Paradise also offers puddings in addition to smoothies. We ate a chocolate-and-cherry oat pudding (600 HUF) in a cup. The texture was perfect, just like the flavor. Anyone who has ever made anything with oat milk before knows that it can have a slightly bitter flavor – however, this pudding was smooth and sweet, without any aftertaste.

We highly recommend Green Paradise for vegans, vegetarians, those who follow a healthy lifestyle, or anyone who is curious to try a fresh vegetable-based dish instead of a huge Wiener schnitzel. It is important to note that apart from the puddings, everything is made fresh on the spot, so we obviously have to wait a little longer for a serving of ragout pasta than for French fries at another Karaván food truck... but it’s worth it!