Life Café is an established, award-winning organic vegetarian café/bar in Hong Kong’s SoHo district. But when do you need it most? Samantha Carr became a regular this week to find out.
It’s Monday. All hopes of your ‘new diet’, ‘new week’ and ‘new start’ are shattered by the end of your real-life working day. Comfort food – out of the question in the new life plan last night – is back on the menu. Life Café understands.
Organic Egg Frittata
Waiting behind the counter is a variety of generously portioned sweet and savoury goods. My Monday breakdown featured the Organic Egg Frittata (warmed up) and a slice of Flourless Chocolate Cake.
The frittata had the texture, depth, and crusty crust I was craving. The flavours worked too; the hints of basil and rocket were greatly appreciated.
To follow this with an equally whopping slice of cake, however, was unnecessary. Aside from the guilt and discomfort of being so full – you could easily split these courses with a friendly stranger. But, alas, you won’t.
Although the sweet lacked the richness that a truly indulgent flourless chocolate cake should bring, texturally speaking it was on form. It just needed to be smaller and more intense. Yet with this complaint, maybe it was just a bad-mood-wrong-place scenario.
Bring a book, leave your headphones alone (because their music is better than yours), pick yourself up and get on with your week. After all, you were still kind of healthy.
Organic Egg Frittata, Flourless Chocolate Cake and Espresso Coconut Milk HKD125
Today is a good day. Today is the day Monday was supposed to be. Maybe you really do just fancy a salad. You might actually love salad, well done.
Enter Life Café in all of these circumstances, because their salads appeal even on the dreariest of days. I chose the Beetnik Salad and Wild Berry Smoothie.
Wild Berry Smoothie and Beetnik Salad
The salad was a hit for various reasons; firstly, the greens were crunchy and fresh; secondly, the concoction of ingredients – fried tofu, wine poached beets, roasted pumpkin and chilli agave almonds – was as delicious as it sounds and a textural delight. The dressing, roasted garlic, was also gorgeous and worth the inevitable guess-what-I-had-to-eat afternoon breath.
Finally, to all of you non-believers out there, this salad was actually very filling. It is not a poser’s salad, it’s a real meal.
The Wild Berry Smoothie proved satisfying and complemented this happy belly, happy life event. We shall meet again on another healthy optimistic day, Life Café.
Beetnik Salad, Wild Berry Smoothie HKD160
Eat in or eat out, this is when Life Café shines its golden-review smile. Time in general is a precious commodity in this city, and lunchtime even more so. Rest assured, these fleeting minutes will be spent wisely in this part of SoHo.
In a rush? Make a beeline for the fridge and grab a ready-made wrap. As bashful as these packages seem in their humble, no-frills cling film, they are very, very, tasty. They are also reasonably priced. my Satay Tofu Wrap was HKD30 well spent.
Satay Tofu Wrap
Feeling the winter blues? Treat yourself to a cup of soul-warming organic lentil dhal for HKD40; it will not fail you.
Organic Red Lentil Dhal, Tofu Sandwich HKD70
Ultimately, there is room for everyone to live their lives at this deli. Find your comfort zone on a Monday, a sprightly healthy salad on your optimistic healthy day, or pop in and out for a quick wrap or snack. Life as you know it will never be the same.
Life Café, 10 Shelley Street, SoHo, Central, Reservations: (+852) 2810-9777, Deli: (+852) 2810-9043.
