The art of food pairing is taking a new spin in Hong Kong where Invisible Kitchen is offering a new menu that offers two variants of dish: one classic and one plant-based. In light of this, we thought we’d you through a short list of our favourite places to get vegetarian dishes when you’re amongst hardcore carnivores.
Have you heard about Invisible Kitchen in Hong Kong yet? Whatever the answer, let us enlighten you further. Hong Kong’s most sustainable catering business has just launched a radical new food-pairing concept, one that embraces responsibly-sourced traditions and pairs them with their plant-based counterparts (think Beef Wellington vs Impossible Wellington). Beginning in May, Invisible Kitchen will be offering a ‘Vegan Versus’ menu that’s aimed at reinforcing an overall shift in how we consume food. It is food tech meets conscious consumption while offering a tantalizing solution for everyone regardless of their culinary persuasion.
“We are seeing a striking rise in the number of flexitarians (people who opt not to eat meat for every meal), so our ‘Vegan Versus’ menu is not just about giving our customers more choice, but about making meat-alternatives the norm,” says chef Tom Burney. “This menu is for our meat-loving customers who already enjoy our responsibly-sourced quality ingredients hand-picked for their traceability. Now we will throw into the melting pot an assortment of the most delicious and innovative protein-alternatives, temptingly prepared, to demonstrate that the future of food is here to stay!”
The diverse menu looks to minimize environmental impact but this isn’t a new initiative for Invisible Kitchen, who have long been proponents of ethical, environmentally-friendly and sustainable practices. Curious? Yep, so are we. These are the top three items from the menu making our mouth water.
1. ‘Impossible Beef’ Wellington Tart vs. Beef Wellington Tart
The ‘Impossible Beef’ Wellington Tart is made with….well, Impossible Beef….mushrooms, and black truffle in a filo pastry tart while the Beef Wellington is prepared using pasture-raised beef tenderloin with mushroom, and black truffle in shortcrust pastry.
2. Eggless Scotch Egg vs. Scotch Egg
The plant-based Scotch Egg is made with OmniPork and Just egg alternative while the more traditional Scotch Egg is made with free-range eggs wrapped with Wickes Farm Red Tractor British pork and panko breadcrumbs.
3. Not So Traditional Chocolate Cheesecake vs Chocolate Cheesecake
The Not So Traditional Cheesecake is made with JUST Eggs (the protein is actually made of mung beans) while the classic one opts for egg-cellent sustainable alternatives.
Ok, I love it, now where else can I go with my meat-loving friends?
For the record, we’re not all vegans or vegetarians at GITNB. We like to swing both ways. We’re more interested in making conscious choices than preaching veganism or all vegan establishments. Sometimes though, we have a hard time picking places that make us all happy when we’re going to eat. And so, here is our personal list of the restaurants that manage to make us all happy by offering a healthy number of vegetarians option alongside meat dishes for the carnivores in our group.
Little Birdy
Little Birdy in Sheung Wan may be Hong Kong’s go-to for rotisserie birds but they also serve a mean veggie spin on a fried chicken burger that’s made out of tofu. It’s called Yes, I’m a Vego and it can also be made vegan.
Chili Fagara
Fiery Sichuan food is the name of the game at Chili Fagara, which makes a regular appearance in Hong Kong’s Michelin guide. Thankfully the menu caters to vegetarians too with an entire menu dedicated to authentic plant-based dishes.
Old Bailey
Another restaurant that pays a delicious homage to authentic Chinese flavors, this time it’s to the culinary traditions of Jiangnan. Old Bailey also have a dedicated vegan menu that’s just as sweet, gingery and aromatic as the rest of its menu (maybe even more so).
Soho Fama
Modern Chinese comfort food can absolutely be vegetarian and best of all, the ingredients at Soho Fama are mostly locally produced and natural. We leave without trying to dumplings, they’re what we can’t stop thinking about.
Little Bao
Look no further than the Impossible Bao unless it’s to try their loaded fries (one of our team claims they are the best fries they ever had). Little Bao is easily the hippest haunt in Hong Kong for a good, tasty time.
Bedu
Drawing inspiration from the nomadic wanderings of the Bedouin tribes across the deserts of North Africa to the rocky sands of the Middle East, it only makes sense that Bedu would offer enough vegetarian dishes to quiet any strict vegetarian. A word of advice, go hungry/
Piqniq
Charcuteries may be Piqniq’s biggest culinary draw but they haven’t forgotten about vegetarians. We promise that vegetarians won’t go hungry at this ultra cool alfresco space because we were there and didn’t starve. Also, impress the staff with your knowledge of the word guinguette: Parisienne-inspired outdoor drinking, dining an dancing space.
Chachawan
You can never go wrong with Thai food if you’re a vegetarian and Chachawan is the place to go for Issan flavors on Hollywoods. There is no need for us to list dishes to look out for because vegetarians will have enough many options, all outstanding. But if we must