With some 50 vegetarian restaurants in town, you would think non-meat eaters would have enough variety. But the choice is basically limited.
There are the three Indian vegetarian places in Tsim Sha Tsui, many Western restaurants include a few items for those who have sworn off meat but most offer the standard Chinese menus built around chaai lo mei (soya-based imitation meat), taro 'fish', bean curd dishes and vegetables.
Still, things are looking up. A couple of unusual vegetarian eateries have opened, and more are in the pipeline. Among these is the Fortune Vegetarian Restaurant, which has made the subtle flavours of Japanese dining readily available to non-meat eaters.
Using seafood substitutes imported from Japan and Taiwan, its chef has created a full Japanese menu that includes grilled 'eel' rice, sushi, as well as deep-fried, grilled, or braised dishes.
'Hong Kong people who want to go on a vegetarian diet have become quite bored with the conventional Chinese dishes. They would like something new that can stimulate their appetite,' said Yeung Lai-fun, the director of the restaurant at Leighton Road.
The 'seafood' is made from plant sources such as wheat, soya bean and vegetable protein, which gives a chewy or meaty texture, and then shaped to look like the real thing - prawns, eels or squid balls.
