CLOSED - Restaurant review: Home Eat To Live in Central – vegetarian restaurant with a message
Two-storey healthy eating spot has a diverse menu of sandwiches, burgers, salads, noodles, coffee, juices and desserts
With its green decor and dishes named after endangered or extinct animals, new Central restaurant Home Eat To Live clearly has a message: environmental protection is important.
Vegetarian restaurants generally have limited menus, but here the choices are so dazzlingly varied that it took some time for us to figure it out. There are open-faced toasts, flatbreads, burgers, salads, noodles, dessert and many different types of drinks. And most of the ingredients are sourced locally to reduce carbon footprint.
The two-storey restaurant feels cosy, with the first floor offering colourful desserts and salads for takeaway, and the dining room on the second floor.
We liked the polar bear burger (HK$98), with a patty made of beetroot, mushrooms and oats. To mimic the texture of meat, three types kinds of mushrooms are used.The roasted bell peppers, smoked aubergine caviar and aioli added flavour.
Also enjoyable was the manta ray salad (small, HK$78) with spinach, beets, broccoli, quinoa, pumpkin, sprouts, sunflower seeds and tahini dressing. The high-fibre salad tasted healthy and fresh.
Of the open-faced toasts, we liked the golden snub-nosed monkey (HK$60 for short). The sourdough bread was piled high with candied nuts, mashed avocado, radish and wholegrain with a lemon juice and olive oil dressing.
Flatbreads come with a choice of fillings and sauces; four toppings is HK$50. We ordered the kale and romaine, olives, beets and tofu with chipotle sauce. The marinated tofu and olives had a strong tang that went well with the bread. But we advise against the option to substitute the whole wheat bread with a wrap of leafy greens, as it doesn’t really work with the fillings.
They also offer a long list of cold-pressed juices, coffees and shakes. We tried a smoothie with thyme, ginger, apple cider vinegar, cilantro, cayenne and lemon, which soothed our dry throats.
Home Eat To Live, Nexxus Building, 77 Des Voeux Road Central, tel: 2777 4777. Open: Monday to Saturday 10am-10pm
