By Jaime Woo

Photo by ilkerender.

Happy Lunar New Year! Today is the start of the Year of the Ox in the Chinese zodiac, a sign associated with hard work and strength in leadership. (How funny that our Parliament returned today, eh?) Traditionally, the Chinese don’t eat meat on the first day of the new year, as anything associated with death and killing is considered bad luck. You’re also not supposed to do any work, so forget cooking at home—washing dishes is work!—and celebrate the holiday with some tasty vegetarian options.
For authentic Buddhist cuisine, try Buddha’s (666 Dundas Street), where you’ll find dishes plentiful in mushrooms, tofu, and mock meat that comes thisclose to tasting like the real thing. (We’ve also heard nearby King’s Café has the best mock duck in town.) For more modern fare, try Vegetarian Haven (17 Baldwin Street). The grilled seitan burger (seitan, according to Haven’s website, is the “vegetarian wheat meat”) measures at least four or five inches tall and is as satisfying as any burger made from a cow. If you’d rather have food not cooked at all, there’s always Live (264 Dupont Street), which serves organic raw food. If it’s your first time, go for the Raw Combo: four sample-sized portions of the restaurant’s most popular dishes. Make sure to also save room for their many desserts, such as their strawberry “cheese” cake made of walnut and cashew.
Not only is vegetarian cuisine healthy, but it tends to be affordable too. It’s considered bad luck to break anything on New Year’s Day and that should include your wallet.