I have been going and ordering from here since they opened and have always been more than satisfied both with food and service. Last week I ordered 3 slices of pies for Thanksgiving for a gluten free, dairy free guest at $6.00 a slice and was told to come in anytime on Wednesday (day before Thanksgiving) as they get their delivery on Tuesdays. I went in approximately 1:30 pm and had to wait almost half an hour for them to cut the slices which I found a little annoying, however when I saw the slices i was horrified they were extremely small pieces. When I questioned the size of the slices I was told that they cut 8 slices from a 9" pie ( the most you can get out of a pie that size is 6 slices). I mentioned that and was told it's the way they decided to cut them but I could get a refund which I would have taken if tomorrow wasn't a holiday and I need it for my guest which I am embarassed to serve but have no choice. Very disappointing that management decided to rip off customers because they used new baker and had to make a profit (which I was told by wife of owner ) and it being a holiday they could get away with it. Will not frequent this place again or will my guests will after they see portion size, just awful. read more

No stars. Worst dining experience in my life. I ordered the seitan steak. The "steak" was as big as my plate... About 12 inches? And looked like a huge slab of meat. The presentation was awful. The service wasn't great either. And when I sent the food back because it didn't taste good what so ever, the restaurant didn't have the decency to take it off the bill, mind you.. The food wasn't even eaten. Never again will I go here or recommend this place. I just threw $50 down the drain. read more

Service could have been a smidge better (but it wasn't terrible either) but as a vegetarian forever only being able to order from 2 or 3 selections on a menu when I go out to other restaurants, it was a treat to be able to choose from everything on the menu. I had the Thai Peanut Kabobs, boyfriend didn't like them (he's a carnivore) however I gobbled them up. Sauce was awesome and the charred tofu patties were delish. Then ordered the Lentil Loaf. Having been a vegetarian for so many years, I couldn't remember the last time I'd had comfort food. Lentil loaf was moist and the gravy was fantastic. Mashed potatoes were good and mixed veggies were a teeny soggy, but still overall good. I absolutely plan to be back. Really great vegetarian/vegan food. read more

Hit up Kaya's this weekend with my vegan friend--it seems kind of odd to me that they can survive in a shore town but we don't have a lot of vegan places around here (the Morristown area). Anyway, it was pretty good! The service definitely lagged a bit but they were all super pleasant and happy to assist us. We arrive around 8pm so we must have gotten there after the last of the fresh bread went out because we didn't get any. We started out with the Kaya's combo for an appetizer, came with buffalo "chicken", crispy nuggets, and "ribs", served with 3 sauces and potato salad. I am not vegan btw, this potato salad was excellent. The greenish sauce was gross, the honey mustard and bbq was pretty good. The nuggets were ok, they were a bit stringy but tasted good, the ribs were freakin awesome, crispy and tasty. The buffalo things we could have done without. For dinner I got the peanut tofu sandwich and she got the "taylor ham egg and cheese". We both opted for onion rings as our side. The sandwiches were huge. Mine was very tasty, but next time I would ask for no cucumber and it needed salt. I didn't try hers but it looked creepily like taylor ham egg and cheese and she seemed to enjoy. The onion rings were fresh and tasty. We decided to close out with a piece of double chocolate cake. It was very rich and filling, but again honestly it needed salt. A confessed salt fiend I am but I know a thing or two about baking and sweets and salt definitely offsets sweet. Anyway we left absolutely stuffed which didn't pair well with drinking afterwards for me, but I'm glad we got to try Kaya's. They are BYOB so bring your alcohol and prepare for a tasty meal! Oh and for all the people who preferred Blossom to to Kaya's I think you're cray. Blossom was good, don't get me wrong, but I think Kaya's served up a comparable meal and half the price and their food actually tasted like what it was supposed to taste like. read more

Im a pescatarian but I crave the buffalo wings here. They are very tasty and crispy like the real thing. I definitely enjoy the byob and jazz over the weekend. The staff is always pleasant and knowledgeable. Love it read more

We've only dined here once but once we did we were hooked. We went back a second time last summer but they were closing early for no good reason on the weekend. Then this past saturday we tried to stop by to get some dessert to go but there was absolutely no desserts to buy.Kaya, please don't skimp out! read more

I miss the days of Veggie Works. The food was great. The portions were more than plentiful. The waitress was absolutely awful! She had an attitude the entire time and it was like she was doing us a favor the entire time. This definitely dampered a great dinner and celebration! Although recently I went there and the girl doing the takeout orders was very nice! The pierogies were phenomenal, but I asked them to put in seitan strips which they did and it reminded me of the Veggie Works dish...Gyspy Fortune, Yum! The cheesesteak and the jersey devil were nothing to write home about...but the Nachos are absolutely awesome!! And you must have a whoopie pie! read more

Kaya's is the best Vegan/Vegetarian place I've ever eaten at, food wise. I'm no long a vegetarian, but every time I'm in the area, I go to eat there. Their food is so good. However, their service is terrible. Straight terrible. The servers are neglectful and airheaded. They forget your orders or just forget you're there and don't come back to your table for a long time. Last night, we ordered lemonades, the server totally forgot and we had to remind her. She took our drink orders then didn't come to see us again for about 25 minutes, and she only had two other tables. When she took our orders, I ordered the turkey club and she said to me, "we usually don't have the turkey, but I'll check" which is bull, because I always order that sandwich. But I said, "Alright, if you don't have the turkey, I'll take the Ruben, just let me know." She never came back. We got our food and the next time we saw her was when we asked for the check. Kaya's I love you, but stop hiring hippies as your service staff, they're just terrible. read more

Hands down, the best vegan/vegetarian restaurant NJ or NYC (in my opinion). I have never had anything that was not spectacular. Get their sampler platter to start- whether you are a meat eater or strictly vegan, it is sure to please. Major plus? It's BYOB! read more

I called Kaya's at 4pm on Sunday to double check their hours as apple and google maps had differing times. The woman who answered on the phone was very polite and informed me that closing time was at 9:00 PM but they stopped seating at 8:30. Later that night my friends and I drove 45 minutes to get to Kaya's by 8:00 but upon walking in were informed that they closed at 8:00 pm. We had to stop at wawa on the way home as I had made the mistake of not having a backup plan. I'm disappointed that the restaurant is run in this way and super bummed I had to eat mangos for dinner. read more

Very good, not amazing. Service is usually only OK. Menu is priced too high considering the service and food presentation are only mediocre. Not all items are equally good. Somewhat inconsistent in quality. read more

Very delicious high quality food. Our server was so sweet and her suggestion of the appetizer sampler didn't disappoint. I got the pesto sandwich which was delicious and I loved the mock ribs also. Down sides of this place are that it's quite expensive and the menu is extremely limited until 5pm. Also we ordered a brownies for each person in my party, so yummy, but when I got the bill I realized each brownie was $8?!?!? That seems absurd to me even if they are vegan. I would steer clear of the expensive desserts read more

My favorite vegan restaurant in the area! Flavorful, great service and the food is consistently good! read more

Kaya's Kitchen is heaven for vegetarians...and every carnivore I have taken there has loved it as well. The portions are huge, and the food is delicious. I crave the karma wings, and love the french onion soup. When I come here I am overwhelmed (in a good way) since there are so many choices on the menu. Also, Kayas Kitchen has moved to a new location, and the new site has room for more tables, and the decor is much improved. While I live a bit away from Kaya's, it is also worth the drive to have an amazing meal. I do suggest making a reservation on Friday and Saturday nights, because sometimes there is a wait. I highly recommend this restaurant for vegetarians and non-vegetarians looking for a good meal. read more

Kayas combo FTW! This is all you really need to know. I can't wait to try the mac n cheese. The buffet is great but they didn't have it the last couple of times I went. read more

This place is AWESOME!!! Had the peanut tofu sandwich and hubby had hummus avocado sandwich and a side o fries. Really great and Beatles on the box. What else is there. Check it out. read more

Amazing vegan menu! Staff are great. Food arrived very quickly and is delish! BYOB if you're interested in cocktails. Shared to combo appetizer and ordered the stroganoff for the main course. read more

To find a delicious vegan/vegetarian restaurant anywhere at or near the Jersey shore is like finding a diamond in the rough...and well Kaya's was our diamond. My boyfriend and I went there for dinner and were so overwhelmed with their menu and how many selections they had it was so hard to decide!! But as it turns anything you choose will be absolutely amazing. For my appetizer, I enjoyed a warm bowl of French Onion that was a hot vegetable broth, swimming with onions, topped with a toasted baguette and adorned with melted Daiya on top. I was ecstatic to actually eat French Onion soup in a restaurant knowing it wasn't beef broth. For dinner, I had the Rocky Mountain Stew which I HIGHLY recommend!! For anyone who is vegan/vegetarian and have actually tried making gravy at home without any culinary experience, you know its not easy. Which is why I was hesitant, but the server reassured me its one of the best on the menu, and boy was it! It was chunks of carrots, onions, mushrooms, tofu, seitan, and gluten smothered in a delicious brown gravy piled over a very generous portion of buttery, garlic mashed potatoes. The price tag was $18, but it was worth it for two reasons: 1. it was more than enough for two meals so to me it was like a $9 meal which is pretty average for a nice dinner. 2. when you're in "vacation mode" you're willing to pay anything (especially vegans/vegetarians who don't have many other options). So I say it was very worth it. The decor was pleasant to look at and the service was great. Its also BYOB so make sure you bring your best bottle of wine or beer and enjoy!! read more

Great vegan food and great menu variety. Food gets a 5! However, the SERVICE IS AWFUL. If you don't mind waiting to give your order or get your check, then it would be fine for you. The jersey devil sandwich is awesome, meat eaters love it too!! (The vegan mac and cheese, not so good-bland and mushy macaroni. I've tried a few times..) read more

Very disappointing A friend and I took a ride to specifically eat here Although she liked her choice a little better also would not return Specifically my veggie burger was burnt ( inedible) We were told that it has to be that way or it falls apart We both try veggie burgers everywhere and they don't have to be burnt. The soup was bland and the jasmine tea on the menu was not available. read more

This place is absolutely fabulous. Fresh, flavorful and delicious. Friendly staff and a great selection to choose from. Menu is limited at lunchtime, but order their small plates - they are not small! Sworn BBQ ribs were flavorful and great texture. Buffalo tofu was dripping with delicious hot wing sauce. We were looking forward to coming here and not disappointed!! read more

I ate here once with my at the time vegetarian date who was impressed. I was not vegan at the time but I am now, & I was also impressed. Friendly service, chill environment with live reggae music the night we went & byob. I'll be returning asap! read more

Love this place the vibe is great and the food is outstanding. Every time I come I try something new and I'm yet to be disappointed. Also Byob read more

I've come back a few times. Menu just changed. Looks great and there is a lot to choose from. In a way it Love the soy burger. Had the Kaya's combo appetizer. Oh and they've had desserts on all my visits after the first one. Great cupcake! I like the young lady working there - very pleasant. She's almost always the only one I see - which is probably a good thing considering the sad sacks I've seen in the past. read more

First of all - it's not on Main Street. It's around the corner on D Street, which would be nice to know when you're trying to find the place in the pouring rain. Long-time veg (me 2.5 years veg, she 15 years vegan) very excited by the long and varied menu, plus many of the write-ups here. Very disappointed to find not that long menu but a very small buffet "which we do every now and then." Would have been nice to have been told that when we called to find the place after standing in the rain outside the Italian place located at 1000 Main St. Very heavy sauce-laden bits of seitan and tofu of various forms, one side of veggies, a salad bowl, plus some mashed potatoes and gravy. Overall not too thrilling. Really don't know why they didn't have the full menu (no explanation) since the place was pretty full with good table turnover. Service was OK, although a bit slow for dessert service (considering the table across from us ordered their dessert after we did, were served, ate, paid, and left before we were served ours). Cheers for waving the veg flag on the Jersey shore, but there are better. read more

Came for lunch with 2 friends on Sunday. There were 6 trays of food on the table, buffet style. One of them empty, two trays with dumplings, one with kale, two with tofu and pasta. For a place with no food, they charge $16(!) for a plate or $22(!) for "All-You-Can-Eat." The place filthy, with dirty tablecloth end cracked glass. Toilet with no soap and no paper towels.The worst culinary experience and the worst food I've ever had. read more

Great vegan spot. French onion soup is my favorite starter. We also love the karma wings. Peppered tempeh is my meal of choice. I always enjoy my food here. I am a vegetarian and their menu fulfills a lot of items you may miss when you give up meat. Philly cheesesteak, chicken, bacon cheeseburgers.... Sometimes there is live music but it doesn't get in the way of being able to carry on a conversation. It's byob which I love! Only thing they need to work on is the service. It can be spotty. There are a few servers who are very awkward or just can't seem to smile. read more

Upside: I'll start by saying that the food is amazing! Been coming here and previous location for 15 years and it's absolutely a pleasure to put this food in your belly. Downside? The service is sometimes very slow so don't be in a rush. The wall decor is really bad . Lastly, the pricing is way too high. They recently raised the prices by a lot, so don't be surprised to pay $30-40 or more per person. read more

This place is only ok because it's like the only vegan place in Monmouth county. Otherwise it's pretty crappy and the food is bland and tasteless. Not to mention expensive read more

My boyfriend and I went here on a recommendation from a friend of his. My boyfriend isn't vegan or vegetarian, but I am a vegetarian. I ordered a burger with tempeh bacon and guacamole. The burger was ok but it was really bland and also a bit dry. I had to add tons of bbq sauce for it to have any flavor but once I did the burger was good. I liked the sprouted bun and the guacamole. The tempeh bacon tasted good, but I expected it to be thin sliced tempeh fried up to be a bacon substitute. It was good tempeh, I just don't see how it was supposed to resemble bacon. My boyfriend got the country nuggets and vegan French onion soup with cashew cheese. The nuggets were horrible and the soup was even worse. The cashew cheese tasted like puke and the broth was disgusting. If you want vegan food in the area I recommend Crust and Crumble in Asbury Park. They have very good vegan French onion soup and vegan pizzas. read more

My boyfriend and I went to Kaya's for date night a few weeks ago, and we are still talking about how amazing the food was. My boyfriend had the seitan ribs and I had the french onion soup for an appetizer. Its great that they offer cashew cheese for those of us who cannot eat soy. For my main course, I got the tempeh reuben sandwich, which was the best reuben i've had (meatless or not) to date. Neither of us are vegan or even vegetarian, but it didn't matter - I would recommend this place to anyone. The only reason I didn't give kaya's four stars was that the service was a bit slow (they were very busy, so I can kind of understand), the prices are a bit steep for appetizers (not for meals), and the dessert menu could use some sprucing up. All-in-all, we will definitely return. In fact, we are counting down the days! read more

This is one of my favorite vegan spots. The country nuggets are delicious. My only complaint is that the Mac n cheese usually isn't warm. I eat it anyway. Also they used to have awesome specials (like onion rings, etc) and now they only really offer a special soup. Also the fries are always soggy- so I just don't order them. I would love some more variety/specials! But I have brought omnivories and vegans alike here and they all enjoy it. The service is always great and friendly. And we never have to wait long for our food. The food used to be pretty hit or miss here, but over the last year they have improved with their quality and consistency. EDIT: they now have an in house baker. No more stale cupcakes from papa ganache! Also the live music on weekends is WAY TOO LOUD read more

This was overall a pretty good experience. Lovely food and great variety of options! LIVE LOVE VEGAN!

Delicious wholesome food. Sweet, well-mannered, attentive and informative staff. Makes you want to order more food and their yummy deserts! High vibrational space to eat some delightful vegan food! read more

First time at Kaya's was in 2009. Amazing great vibe staff. Extensive menu and live music after hours. I'd go back for sure if I lived closer! read more

This was our first experience at a vegetarian restaurant and we were very pleased with the variety the menu offered. The food was exceptional, presentation was phenomenal, and the service could have been better, hence the four stars. We will definitely be back for more. read more

I recently tried their vegan pizza - BEST. PIZZA. EVER. I have never been to Italy but I imagine the pizza in Italy tastes like this. Perfectly tasty just-thin-enough crust, healthy amount of sauce, and a light sprinkle of vegan cheese. Deeeelish! It was actually the best pizza I have ever had period, dairy or non-dairy, it was that good. read more

Any guilty pleasure that you may some times get a craving for, you will find here. The food is awesome! Awesome is actually an understatement. The dishes are creatively prepared and served with the freshest ingredients. The menu is very broad and offers something for everyone. We loved the choices and loved our selections. We were comfortable with the venue and decor. It's a very peaceful environment. The service was just okay. Our server was super nice and friendly, but she forgot our appetizers, and missed a few other requests. Perhaps she was stretched too thin? Either way, not enough for us to not go back. We will definitely visit again. read more

Delish! I came here for my birthday and had just about half the menu served to my family. They LOVED the food, and even the most carnivorous of my uncles was impressed with the veggie fare. read more

Love, love, love Kaya's! Food is so good, portions generous and staff always friendly and fast. Love the different specials nightly!!! I highly recommend them for delicious food and organic ingredients! read more