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Header image courtesy of @oliveleafhk (via Instagram)
Originally published by Inés Fung. Updated by Jen Paolini, Beverly Ngai, Celia Lee, and Ashley Siu.
If your diet omits eggs, meats, and dairy products, then you may be looking for solid vegan dining options in Hong Kong that cater to your plant-based needs. Or perhaps you’re an omnivore, simply looking for ways to eat cleaner and healthier. Whatever your reasons may be for seeking out a plant-based lifestyle, check out our top picks for vegan restaurants in Hong Kong.
Opened by the same crew behind vegetarian hotspot, Years—which has long been a popular dining destination in Sham Shui Po—this clean and minimalistic café takes on the same Asian-Western culinary influences as its mother establishment, but makes it fully vegan! You will likely have to wait in line before you can score a table here, but the wait is worth it for the tantalising double-deck cilantro Impossible burger, served with some of the crispiest sweet potato fries you’ll find anywhere—vegan restaurant or otherwise.
Other choice options for mains include the spicy Thai fried shrimp tom yum spaghetti and keto avocado mixed berry salmon salad. Expect the portions to be generous, but even so, it’s hard to pass up on the unique bevvies, like the immunity booster blend with banana, pitaya, and oat milk.
The Park by Years, 132 Yu Chau Street, Sham Shui Po | (+852) 5336 4000
Hong Kong’s vegan dining scene can be skewed towards the pricier side. But thanks to The Recipe, vegans can enjoy healthy, plant-based meals without it costing an arm and a leg. Based in Kwun Tong, this fast-casual spot dishes out a wide range of Chinese vegan options, such as homemade dumplings, sweet and sour monkey head mushrooms with rice, and mixed vegetable curry.
Its speciality is the vegan cart noodles with a nutritious miso soup base enriched with B12 vitamin, noodles, and three toppings of your choice. For those looking to sneak more vegetables into their diet, the spinach noodles or sweet potato noodles are the way to go!
The Recipe, Shop 57, Legend Tower, E Plaza, 7 Shing Yip Street, Kwun Tong
With a name perfectly befitting the refinement and sophistication of its food, Emerald offers a French-Chinese fine-dining experience like no other. Every dish is artfully presented and executed with a taste to match.
Its signature rose barbecue pork and vegan foie gras balls with truffle sauce give their traditional counterparts a good run for their money, but the creatively conceived dishes—the stuffed scallop taro with Thai hot and sour sauce and monkey head mushrooms with grapefruit osmanthus sauce—equally hold their own. In addition to their permanent à la carte menu, look out for seasonal specials!
Emerald, 6/F, M88, Wellington Place, 2–8 Wellington Street, Central | (+852) 2855 9555
LN Coffee is our top pick for the grazing freelancer on a vegan diet. Its floor-to-ceiling windows, cosy seats, and comforting selection of mostly Western fare and vegan spins on local favourites makes this the perfect spot to chip away at a busy afternoon. Its menu of food and coffee offers fantastic fuel for a long day of working on your laptop, and the roasted beans are of high quality, handpicked by the owner and sometimes picked up while they travel.
Instead of the commonly-used soy, creative ingredients like konjac and mushrooms take the place of meat in dishes like pasta with Bolognese sauce and fried konjac rings. We especially love the dairy- and egg-free cakes that LN Coffee often decorates with smiley faces, and the whole place just radiates with positive energy.
LN Coffee, Altro, 118 Second Street, Sai Ying Pun | (+852) 2858 3998
For a truly special experience, hit up home cook Ayelet for a vegan Mediterranean feast at her private kitchen and family home in the idyllic Pak Kok Village. Born and raised in Israel, Chef Ayelet learnt cooking from her grandparents. Everything served here is plant-based, fresh, and fragrant, and will transport you straight to the Middle East, all without mock meat! Book a meal at Olive Leaf with an empty stomach and open mind, and if you want to learn how to make plant-based Arabic food at home, Chef Ayelet also runs cooking classes.
Olive Leaf, Pak Kok Village, Lamma Island | (+852) 9723 0459
Veggie4Love, formerly Veggie SF, is a meat-free ode to 1950s American diners. If you love a good veggie burger, this is the place to go. Its Glamburger options are massive, each stacked so high you wonder how to tackle them (the answer is messily). Although styled eclectically after traditional Americana, Veggie4Love also offers Asian noodle bowls and other fusion dishes, too. Its I Am Fabulous burger combines beetroot cashew nut lentil mushroom pâté with sun-dried tomato mayo, and spice lovers will not want to pass up on The Drama Queen with a crispy soy patty with a Korean spicy sauce.
Veggie4Love, 10/F, 11 Stanley Street, Central | (+852) 2177 9477
2084 is a quaint bistro and tapas restaurant located in the back garden of Hong Kong. On its fully vegan menu is a range of some of the best dishes from South Asia reinvented in plant-based glory. Its meatball with rose harissa sauce comes with fried vegan meatballs that taste exactly like the real thing! Our keto friends have the option to swap out white rice for cauliflower rice, too. Enjoying seafood almost seems like a must when you’re in Sai Kung but our fellow vegans won’t feel left out of the experience with the Okonimi fish burger, made with a fishless fillet and paired with tamarind chutney and cheese and coleslaw for a rounded and meat-free experience of the sea!
2084, 5 Sha Tsui Path, Sai Kung | (+852) 6420 8456
If you’re on the hunt for a cosy corner hangout that satisfies your vegan food cravings, this under-the-radar restaurant is worth a visit! Ohms Café & Bar offers a meatless variety of Western dishes, including the gluten-free vegan truffle sauce organic black bean spaghetti, as well as the vegan all-day breakfast, each served with a naturally leavened artisan bagel. For sweet tooths, the restaurant also has a handful of pancakes and other desserts, such as a blueberry tofu cheesecake and vegan tarts. Doubling as a bar, Ohms also has a selection of bevvies available, not to mention fair-trade coffee that is, of course, made with your choice of soy or oat milk.
Ohms Cafe & Bar, Shop A, G/F, 192 Hollywood Road, Sheung Wan
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