The importance of sustainability in Hong Kong’s food and beverage industry is clearly reflected in how local restaurants have changed their practices in various ways, notably in their sourcing of ingredients and use of a zero-waste approach in materials used to deliver sumptuous meals and premium services. Chefs and restaurateurs have begun to understand the scope of how the industry contributes to climate change and the rise of greenhouse gasses, and they are leading the change to promote more sustainable options to dining out. Here are some ways to eat sustainably:
Eat locally-sourced produce
Restaurants that source meat locally can play a major role to reduce carbon footprint and promote sustainability, but this is difficult to achieve completely since the majority of foodstuffs are imported. Despite the challenges, Michelin-starred contemporary British restaurant, Roganic, put an utmost importance on sourcing top-quality ingredients from local suppliers as much as possible. Offering sustainably sourced produce and top-notch dishes.
Highlight: Aulis Lunch Tasting menu
Price: Starts at HK$880 for lunch and HK$1,280 for dinner
roganic.com.hk
Support local farmers
It’s a well-known fact that vegetables are best eaten fresh. They lose their flavour and nutritional value quickly the longer they are off the ground. Because of this, Amber, the two-Michelin-starred modern French fine dining restaurant at the Landmark Mandarin Oriental hotel, takes an environmentally and culturally conscious approach to cuisine. It meticulously sources ingredients, including vegetables, from local farms in the New Territories, and it combines them with traditional French techniques to deliver guilt-free, stunning and richly flavoured food. The practice reduces carbon footprint, kinder to the environment, and ensures better flavour and quality.
Highlights: Vegetarian Amber Experience menu
Price: Starts at HK$788 for lunch and HK$1,548 for dinner
mandarinoriental.com
Eat vegetarian dishes
Diners opt for meatless meals for various reasons. Beyond religious, ethical and dietary considerations, eating vegetarian dishes also contribute to a more eco-friendly environment because the process of growing vegetables releases less greenhouse gases than producing meat. Michelin-starred, Arcane, in Central not only fashions beautiful lush greenery that surrounds the dining space, but it also maintains its own garden where fresh herbs, fruits and vegetables are grown and featured on the menu. They happily cater to diners’ requests to alter menu dishes into vegetarian and vegan options, a service that is rarely entertained by other restaurants.
Highlight: Sautéed potato gnocchi
Price: HK$328
arcane.hk
Eat plant-based meat
Production of plant-based meat is a growing industry around the world, and its popularity in the city is certainly picking up. A case in point is Sichuan restaurant, Chilli Fagara, on Old Bailey’s Street. A partner of Green Monday, a social venture group that pioneered in the city plant-based meat like, Impossible Foods and Omnipork, the ma la tang Chinese restaurant is the only Sichuan restaurant in the city that serves plant-based Chinese food.
Highlight: Impossible Dumplings
Price: HK$118
chillifagara.com