I am a picky eater. Ask any one of my friends or any person who has eaten a meal out with me and they will corroborate this fact. So when I decided to try O Green Café in Sheung Wan, I was skeptical that I’d actually find something on the menu where I wouldn’t have to ask them to hold an ingredient. I have walked past this restaurant every day on my way home from work since its inception in 2010 and the signs have always caught my eye, “Organic, Healthy, Tasty”. As I’m fussy about what goes in my stomach, I like to know that my food has as much nature and as little chemicals in it as possible. So despite my initial trepidation, I decided to give this café a try and find out if their tasty claim was true.
Upon first arrival, I found the restaurant quaint and comfortable. With seating for approximately 20 people and a staff member directly at hand to aid in your requests, the environment felt intimate and easy. Chalkboard signs line the wall touting the specials of the day and the desserts available, enticing the customers with claims of gluten-free, vegan, dairy-free, and organic.
The Special of the Day was Basil Vegetable Soup, Salmon on a bed of Boiled Rice, Fresh Vegetables, and a Tomato Sauce; ending with an Organic Green Tea. My friend ordered this, while I went for the Sole Fish on a bed of Boiled Rice and Fresh Veggies covered in a Cranberry Tomato sauce. Luckily for me, I could eat every ingredient listed in the description. Besides our choices, the menu included salads, sandwiches, hot meals, desserts, and plenty of tea selections.
Because the restaurant is quite small, we could hear our food sizzling as soon as we ordered it. Everything came out piping hot and presented to us with a flair of spices sprinkled on the top and layered just right so that you could see all of the ingredients you were about to savor. The bonus feature to the presentation was the fact that the chef personally brought out the meal to you. It felt comforting to see the person who had prepared her creation just for you.
I grew up in America where the more processed the food, the better it tasted. Seriously, who doesn’t love liquid cheese?! So the stereotype of organic food being bland, rustic, and boring all came to mind before my meal arrived. But once I put the first bite in my mouth, I was surprised by the burst of flavours. The vegetables were perfectly steamed, the sauce a blend of savory and sweet, and the freshly grilled sole fillet was moist and flaky. My mate’s special started with a large bowl of creamy vegetable soup, followed by the salmon. While the salmon wasn’t quite as moist and flaky as I like my fish to be, it was still flavorful and coated with a sweet and tangy tomato base.
Finishing off the meal, we had a cup of green tea and a slice of apple almond bread. Both were mildly sweet, though the bread lacked some in flavor at first bite. The processed American foodie in me faded with each bite of the dessert and the tangy apple chunks overrode the bread’s lack of sugar. The green tea was probably the best bit of the entire meal; perfectly heated and sweet, it had just the right subtle flavor.
We came away from the meal HK280 less (for two), but with a healthier heart and a happily full stomach. I would definitely go back, if not to simply sample another cup of tea, but to try another organic dessert to be served by the polite and friendly wait staff.
O Green Cafe Shop E, G/F, Fu Fai Commercial Centre, 27 Hillier Street, Sheung Wan
2850 6996
Open Monday – Saturday 8am – 10pm (Sunday Closed)
Free Home & Office Delivery
