Green Gourmet, Newtown

Today I decide that I’m going to take action and satisfy my craving for Chinese Green Beans with Pork Mince.

Lately I’ve been desperate for these tasty morsels but they never seem to be on offer when I go out for yum cha or dumplings.  Sad.

I’ve actually found a recipe off the internet and have considered making them for myself...but that’s not really how I roll (mainly as I’m lazy, but mostly as I’m serious when I say I really cannot cook).

                                 

I shoot a quick email off to Miss Chicken and confirm she is going to be my tummy’s partner in crime today.

We decide to head down to Asian King in Newtown as I’ve spied my crave-worthy dish on the menu.  Miss Chicken is happy with this as they do a $6.90 lunch time special. All sorted.

As I zoom down King Street I spy Miss Chicken loitering outside Green Gourmet. She informs me that Asian King don’t seem to have their lunch special on offer today. This is bad news as it’s the day before payday for both of us.

After a quick pow-wow we decide to give the vegan’s favourite, Green Gourmet, a whirl.

Vegan's Paradise

I’ve walked past this place a million times over the last 10 years and have always been curious about it, but haven’t really felt the need to give it a try. I tried to convince the boy to come here with me a few weeks ago but he refused to drive half way across Sydney for a meal that doesn’t involve meat. Fair enough.

Miss Chicken has done a little bit of re-con work before I arrive and points out to me that Green Gourmet does indeed have green beans…just not with pork mince.  They seem to like to do things that ‘taste like meat, but are not meat’, so perhaps my beans will have some sort of meat imposter. That’s enough to make me happy.  

Lunch is a self-serve buffet and the price is worked out by heavy your plate is. Love it!  This would be total devastation for my Dad’s wallet as he seems to think a buffet is an ‘all you can carry’ affair. Lucky for me I have a bit more restraint, a smaller stomach and less muscles to carry a bulging plate.

All you can carry

I grab my plate and start piling (with restraint of course) food on to my plate.  I  really have no idea what any of the dishes are as there’s no signs explaining things for a vegan newbie like me. 

The buffet has lots of vegies, rice, dumplings, things with tofu, things without tofu, and fried tempera things. I take a little bit of everything so I can have the true Green Gourmet experience.  

The lovely chappie at the register weighs my lunch and it comes to a modest $7.90. I’m chuffed with this as it means I’ve come in at under 700g limit for a medium meal (which is really a small meal).  I feel like I’m back at Weight Watchers after a good weigh in!

The weigh in

The food is tasty and I don’t notice the absence of meat at all.  

My loot from the buffet

There’s some sort of meat fake-out in the dumpling and if I wasn’t told I’d assume it was a meat filled dumpling (wish I’d gotten two of them actually).  Many of the dishes have meaty mushrooms or tofu and all have plenty of vegetables. There’s something spicy on my plate and I think it might be the Pad Thai look a like.  

Miss Chicken's buffet haul

My green beans without pork mince are really good! The beans have the dry fried texture I’m after and the little black beans accompanying them are tasty.  Wish I’d gotten more those too actually.

I do think the food could be a little hotter, but Miss Chicken thinks that perhaps the temperature of their food could be part of the Green Gourmet’s food philosophy, such as not cooking with garlic or onion and they aren’t good for our bodies.  Or perhaps their Bain-Marie is on the blink.

This food feels healthy and Miss Chicken and I congratulate ourselves on our expedition to vegan-ville.  Yes yes, I know deep- fried eggplant and tempura beans aren’t health food, but they are vegan food and that cannot be bad for you!

Green Gourmet is at 113-117 King Street, Newtown and is open 7 days for lunch and dinner.