Fork & Chopstick - Green Common

Highlighting off the beaten path, heritage, or just plain fun chomping grounds

by Jenni & Eric Lee

Green Common, VivoCity, 1 HarbourFront Walk, #01-170, 098585

“I have seen the future” as the quote goes, or more accurately, I have tasted the future. Just the latest food craze? Possibly, but given the current focus on the environment and healthy, sustainable eating, vegan cuisine seems to be gaining in popularity. Green Common is a Hong Kong-based concept store and eatery specializing in plant-based food — the idea being to showcase vegan food alternatives and how they can be served.

Interior of Green Common

Saturday lunch chomp:

The Szechuan "beef" appetizer emulated thin slices of beef stir-fried in a mala sauce, and it looked and tasted very authentic! Given our love of Spam, we tried something that used the OmniMeat luncheon meat served as part of a grain bowl called the Omni Charger ($18). This "power bowl" was appetizing, with a good array of vegetables along with the meat substitute and a balsamic dressing. The other dish that we tried was the laksa, which used Heura chicken ($13). Green Common demonstrates that the textures of these dishes do not get lost, even using a meat substitute. Hmm… would your favorite hawker be cooking laksa a few years from now with Heura chicken made from soy? In both Green Common dishes, the flavor and texture were pretty close to the real thing. We finished off the meal with a tasty & refreshing K-Pear Garden dessert of soft pear, melon and white fungus ($11).

Mala "beef" appetizer, Omni charger and Laksa

We couldn't help but wonder about the toddler who was enjoying his kid’s meal across the dining room with his parents. Will this be his new norm and will he know or even show preference for plant-based foods? We tasted the future and to be honest it wasn’t bad. Maybe that’s how we need to look at what the future holds for us!

Digest this: the Good the Bad and the Ugly

Clean eating of vegan dishes in a bright space, accented with colourful chairs and pillows. The service was friendly and efficient. The price point may be too expensive for the office crowd to enjoy lunch here on a regular basis. Some may find a few of the ingredients such as soybeans, grains, oats or nuts disagreeable to digestion.

What Others Are Saying

4.2 stars on Google & 4.5 on Happy Cow (out of 5). “My family was impressed and enjoyed the food despite them not being vegan,” “Price may be on the high side,” “Food very nice, and good atmosphere - staff so friendly,” “We ordered the burger and the army stew. Both didn’t disappoint at all!”

Honorable Mention, Further Afield

Some other popular meatless restaurants are Elemen (Millenia Walk, Harbourfront Centre, PLQ Mall, and Great World City), The Living Cafe in Upper Bukit Timah, Joie at Orchard Central and The Kind Bowl on Killiney Road (Vietnamese vegetarian). Happy Chomping!

Jenni & Eric Lee live to eat and explore local eateries and bars. Originally from New York, they have lived in Singapore since 2012.