Great Nature Vegetarian

We visited this vegan restaurant many months ago. The pictures were sitting in my hard drive, together with those of several other restaurants, waiting for my story to be written. Most of these "archived" makan places are not worth writing on. I reviewed them recently and decided that I could do a feature on this restaurant after all.

The Great Nature Vegertarian Restaurant is in Klang - Jalan Sungai Putus. I haven't the faintest idea where in Klang this is. But with present day GPS, Waze and other apps, getting there should not be such a big deal.

The restaurant was quite ordinary. There was nothing fanciful. They tried to - like installing this ghastly "chandelier". But it did not work.

The thing I liked about this place was the spaciousness. They did not try to squeeze in too many tables into the 2 shop lots. There was ample room. As the result, it wasn't unpleasantly noisy.

And business was not bad. Most of the tables were taken up. Somehow, Chinese vegetarian food is popular. People think it is healthy. But it may not necessarily be so. Some, cooked and fried in abundant oil, can be just as sinful.

Tucked in a corner were shelves selling vegan products. Not an uncommon feature in vegetarian places.

And some "bak chang" (肉粽 - glutinous rice dumplings). Was it during last year's bak chang festival? I really cannot remember.

What I can remember was that we were there for a simple meal of rice and dishes. Edwin brought us there.

We started with some honey roast pork ribs. How could I remember it was honey roast? - you may ask. Simple. Each time I take pictures of the food, I also shoot the names of the dishes in the menu. Anyway, the ribs were good. They even had bones on them - pieces of sugar cane. Clever wasn't it? At least they feel a bit like the real thing. And you can even chew on the "bones", if you like.

The crispy tofu was "home made". It was simply deep fried. The skin was crispy and the tofu inside was of course soft. The chilli sauce wasn't bad either.

I remember the curry fish as pretty authentic. The curry was tasty with a nice santan (coconut milk) flavour. The "fish" even had some fishy flavour on it - from the seaweed wrap that was the fish skin. The vegetables were plenty. It was served piping hot in a clay pot.

This was braised mixed fungi in a pumpkin. Unfortunately I do not have much impression of the dish. I did not even remember that it was a fungus dish until I referred back to my menu pics. But it looked good, didn't it?

This was a mix vege dish - the loh hon chai (羅漢斋). This was a popular Chinese vegetarian dish comprising simple vegetables, mushrooms, dried tofu and fu chuk.

Our final dish was this rather messy yam pot. In the deep fried yam basket was a stir-fried mixture of diced vegetables and mushrooms. Ordinary but not bad.

This "archived" restaurant was not a bad place at all. I wonder how it got lost in my many blog fodders. There may one or two more of such "hidden" places. When I find them, I will definitely tell you about them.

Kechara "New Age" Vegetarian

Kechara is a Tsem Tulku Buddhist organization. I know very little about this religious group. You can read about it from the links that I have provided. Their network appears to be very extensive and impressive - running soup kitchen, animal sanctuary, shops, publications, travel agency, peace centers, care centers, shops, restaurants, etc... The Kechara Oasis New Age Vegetarian Cuisine is part of their very large operations.

They have 2 outlets of this restaurant. One is in Jalan Loke Yew in KL. The place we visited is in Jaya One, Jalan Universiti, PJ. Jaya One is an odd shopping centre. There are hardly any shops. Most of them are makan places. Even then, there are not many. We walked around the  complex and it was mostly dark and deserted. They did not even switch on the lights in the common areas. How to attract people? Kechara Oasis is located in the lower ground car park of the shopping centre. It's main entrance is from the car park. So are a number of other eating outlets. Kind of strange - having restaurants in the car park.

The restaurant is quite small. But it is very nicely furnished. The decor is contemporary. And it has the soft ambiance for a quiet relaxing meal.

They have a cozy corner with a sofa set surrounded by some nice artifacts and Buddhist publications. There were more artifacts around the entrance. I found them very intriguing. I think they were brought in from Tibet or somewhere around that part of the world.

We were attended to by a grumpy man who apparently was the honcho there. He was barking at his staff. He did not sound too friendly initially, but as the evening went on, he turned out to be quite helpful. We asked him for recommendations from the menu. But he wasn't much of a help. In the end, I don't think we made very good choices.

Our first dish was the butter mushroom. It was deep fried mushrooms cooked in a butter sauce. It was very delicious. I liked it. The mushrooms were crispy and the butter flavor was distinct and very pleasant.

This was the Momos - the Tibetan version of the gyoza. It was pan fried and served with a chili sauce. It did not taste very different from the normal gyoza. I guess gyozas around the world are all the same - whatever names they call it.

And the Kechara Treasure Pot. It was a potpourri of round momos (gyoza), mushrooms, carrot, baby corns, lettuce and other stuffs in a Tibetan miso soup. It came out piping hot in a clay pot. The taste was so-so. We shouldn't had ordered 2 momo dishes. Like I mentioned, our selection could had been better.

The curry fish was not nice. It was actually a vegetable curry, with a few slices of white pseudo fish on top. The curry flavor was quite crude. It was like curry powder stirred into a soup. We should had ordered something else.

This plate of vegetarian char siew was also a lousy choice. It was an added-on. The previous few dishes were not quite enough. We were at a loss on what to further order. Mr Grumpy was again not much of a help. So we hastily asked for the char siew. It was served with some fresh zucchini. The dish was very ordinary. I have tasted better char siew in some coffee-shop vegetarian stalls.

We shared 2 desserts. The first was the banana red bean roll. The 2 ingredients were rolled in small crepes and over them were caramel and pistachios. They were not nice. The combinations were rather odd. Biting onto the banana with red beans was a strange sensation.

The second dessert was more conventional and tasted much better. It was cold longan and sea coconut.

While we were having the desserts, they served the Tibetan butter tea. I ordered it totally out of curiosity. I have seen this on television but this was my first time. There are some food or drinks that do not taste good at first try but we acquire the taste and start to enjoy them; like beer or other alcohols to some people. To me, this was the total opposite. At the first few sips, I liked it. The tea was smooth and had a strong and distinct butter taste. It was not sweet. Instead, salt was used for flavor. After one small cup, the strong butter flavor started to get on me. It began to taste surfeiting. I could not finish my second cup. My wife too did not like it. Neither did Crystal. The tea was served in a small thermos. In the end, I think we drank less than half of it.

Dinner at the Kechara was not a great experience. I wonder if it would had made a difference if Mr Grumpy was more helpful on our menu selection. The service was also not great. The dishes arrived too far apart. They served us the first 2 dishes and then time stood still. We waited and waited, nibbling at and conserving our rice for the other dishes. But we did not have to complain. Mr Grumpy saw our unease and barked at his staff to check on the kitchen. That and the not so modest bill make it hard for us to want to return.

Ren Ci Vegetarian

I want to write about this vegetarian place - not so much of their food but the whole concept of it. Ren Ci Global Village is found in Sungei Petani (SP). It is one of 3 vegetarian outlets managed by Ren Ci Holdings Sdn. Bhd. (仁慈之家) - a NGO in northern Peninsular promoting peace and (apparently) vegetarianism. Their other two outlets are in Alor Star and Butterworth.

Their SP branch is located on Jalan Mutiara 1 in Taman Mutiara Indah. On first look it is like any other restaurant. But its concept is refreshingly different.

The place provides simple vegetarian food. There is no service in this place. You serve yourself. The food is available in a food counter. You scoop your own rice and serve yourself to the various vegetable dishes. You take as much as you can eat. But the golden rule is that there should be no wastage.

The food is simple, yet delicious. The dishes are all unpretentious. There are no pseudo meat and no wannabees - all simple vegetables cooked in various manners. There are not much choices, but whatever they have look very fresh and appetizing. I enjoyed the simple yet delicious cooking.

They also have a beverage counter where you can help yourself to water, tea and coffee.

They even have dessert. On the day we were there, it was pumpkin bubur cha-cha.

After your meal, you are expected to wash your own cutlery. They have a long wash basin complete with washing liquid.

And you have to wipe clean your plates, cups, etc, and return them to the proper places. You are also expected to wipe your table before you leave.

All these expectations are really not unreasonable, considering that you do not need to pay for your food. Yes, indeed you can eat for free in this makan place. You need not pay a single sen. However if you want to, you can make a donation. There is a collection box, and it is entirely up to you whether or not or how much  you want to give. I saw people walking off after their meal without paying. I also saw people inserting red notes into the box.

Is this place a soup kitchen of sort? That was my initial impression. But as we stayed there longer, I realized it was not. The people who patronized here certainly did not look like they needed to go to a soup kitchen for a meal. Some came in nice cars. Some dropped in more money into the donation box than the value of their meal. I believe most came there just for the simple vegetarian food.

Ren Ci Global is a very nice and amiable place. It is very clean and obviously very well kept and maintained. Apparently the workers there are all volunteers and they are cordial and friendly. And as far as I could see, the patrons co-operate very well too. They do not waste food, and they clean up after their meals in a orderly manner to keep the place neat and tidy. The whole concept is so very refreshing. Why can't meat eaters do the same? I can't wait for Ren Ci to come to KL or PJ.

Yishensu Vegetarian

Our first encounter with Yishensu vegetarian restaurant was when we went there to tar pau (打包 or take away) lunch for Crystal's grandma who was on a vegetarian diet during the Chinese 9th Emperor God (九皇爺) festival. We packed the vegetarian claypot chicken rice for her and apparently it was very good. So we went back for a meal.

 

Yishensu (一心素 - I think it is translated to mean "vegetarian at heart") is located on the ground floor (Lot G207) of the old wing of 1-Utama shopping complex. Besides 1-U, they have outlets in Klang, Ipoh and Kampar. 

The outlet at 1-U is very nicely and tastefully furnished. It appears bright and friendly. There is a very comfortable sitting lounge at the entrance - for patrons waiting for their tables. 

On display were some works or art that were up for sale.

Our lunch started with a nice pot of "tei guanyin" (铁觀音). This is our favorite tea. 

The first dish on our table was the curry mutton. It was very nice. The curry was rich with a full curry flavor. The vege mutton, apparently made from stumps of dried Chinese mushrooms, tasted authentic with the flavor and texture of real mutton. There were potato and some veges in the curry. It complemented our rice very well.

This was the potato salad with mayo sauce. It was not fantastic but I had no complaint.

And this was the clay chicken rice that granny ate. Having heard how good it was, we naturally had to try. And it did not disappoint. Grandma was right. It was delicious. It was the sauce in the piping hot rice that made it so very good. The chicken, being vegetarian, was nothing much to shout about.

I have never tried egg plant (brinjal) fried with salted fish - vegetarian or otherwise. The pseudo salted fish were in big chunks. Had it been the real thing, the whole dish would had been too salty. The so-called salted fish was like any vegetarian fish. It was actually quite pleasant.

Finally we had a plate of black pepper udon. This noodle dish was Crystal's picking. It had some minced meat (vege of course) and mushroom over it. The sauce was light and had a nice black peppery flavor. But I wasn't crazy about it. I found it just so-so.

The prices at Yishensu were rather high. These wannabes are actually more expensive than the real stuffs. Still, the lunch was very pleasant. It was the subsequent shopping and walking that was not.