Brilliant concept! People who can't offer to buy can have a meal, people a bit more wealthy pay extra. Which keeps the balance. Long tables so easy to meet people. Really welcoming place with great staff and cool customers

Really like the idea behind this place with the pay what you feel its worth payment system, The food is lovely & hopefully it doesn't get taken advantage of with people only paying very small amounts as I think its worth a average meal price that most cafes with similar food would charge

Lovely concept here at 'Lentil as anything' with pay-as-you-feel for your meal.
I ordered the corn fritters with tomato salsa and sour cream. Was so delicious! Service was friendly and helpful and they were dealing with a (sometimes difficult) big group of us.
Would definitely recommend to others :-)

A hidden gem in vibrant st Kilda, always bustling on the weekends because of their affordable vegetarian and vegan meal options with the admirable business ethics of "pay what you feel". A business that is kind to the community and eco conscious, you can't go wrong - especially with their chefs choice platters.

Approximate cost: $5-15

Five Stars all around!!! This place is just amazing. The establishment itself is a little squishy and very hot in summer with the food cooking in the same room (I felt sorry for the cooks). Staff are volunteers and the food prices stand on a foundation of 'pay what you feel'. This mean's you pay what you can either afford or what you feel the meal is worth. You can even add a little extra if you want to really help the cause. It steps outside the capitalist money hungry dining model and it made me feel warm and fuzzy just being in there knowing it was outside the 'norm'.

The food itself was the best part. An all vegetarian menu with great flavours. We shared a share platter and okinomiyake japanese pancake between two adults and three children (two of which are young toddlers). My son was grabbing handfuls with satisfaction. It was just beautiful.

We ended up paying $30. We calculated that we usually pay $5-7 for a japanese pancake and the veg platter was worth about 20-23 so $30 was reasonable. We will certainly be back. I still feel so warm from visiting and am just so thankful they've opened such a wonderful place in the community.

Approximate cost: $10-23

interesting concept. staff were friendly. food is really basic. had to wait for a table. lots of hippys. tiny cafe. probably won't go back but i like the idea of it.

Lentil as anything has an amazing story, the owner is a very wealth, humble individual who sleeps under the stars & is an advocate for the land belonging to the original owners many thousands of years ago. His restaurant runs on the "Pay what you think your meal is worth", this caters for all clientel of all walks of life. We first visited there with the expectation of a few lentils on a plate, costing only a couple of dollars, from the minute we walked in there, it gave a sense of honesty & homely feel. The staff are all volunteers, and there are no prices or suggestions of prices on menus for food or drinks (no alcohol). After the first 10 mins in this very basic humble establishment, we had decided to pay double what we had originally gone in there expecting to pay. By the time we left, we paid triple & still thought it wasn't enough, but were a little confused as to how much we should actually give, so we made the pact that we would indeed return & next time we would bring our friends. We had the delightful pleasure of meeting the cook at the end of the end of our dining experience as I asked to please send my thanks to the chef for the delicious vegetarian meal (Im not a huge fan of vegetarian food), however this was exceptional), she presented herself to our table & it turns out she was a 70 year old pakistani woman who had volunteered her services to cook soley for the evening of the busy establishment. We would highly recommend this place for a humble dining experience & appreciation for how the business is conducted with humility.

Approximate cost: $25

This place is cosy and offers something different to the other cafes in St Kilda. Unlike the other Lentil restaurants, it is a la carte not buffet.

I am not a vegetarian but loves the foods at this place. I feel like the foods are cooked with love and care. Loves the curries, next time I will have to try the cake. I wanted to try the cake but didn't want people to think I was being too greedy because I already had a big plate of curries. The concept of paying whatever amount is very interesting and I just hope that people are being honest and not taking advantage of this. I love the sign at the door that says something like "fairies live here"- so cute.

I just love Lentils! I usually eat there in the afternoon. They are super friendly and my food arrives pronto. I just love the lentil burger, the pattie, the sauce, everything combined....oh heaven! They operate solely on donation.... you then make a judgement call as to what you think your food was worth (what would you pay at another cafe).

Approximate cost: $Pay what you think it is worth