“That is our modern and healthy interpretation of this Hong Kong plant-based classic.”
Serving food that’s healthy for people and the planet is the philosophy behind Green Gourmet, which has been serving 100 per cent plant-based cuisine for 25 years, after Fung embraced veganism following a spiritual trip to Southeast Asia in 1997.
“The trip ignited my love for all sentient living creatures, so it was a natural progression to go from an omnivorous diet to a plant-based one,” he says.
“The tastes and textures of vegetarian cuisine in Taiwan and Malaysia excited me. It was something I had to share back in Australia.”
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Fung recalls his childhood as the youngest of five children born to a tailor and a cleaner.
“It was a bit crowded but my parents worked hard and provided for us all. My mother was a good cook and you could say she was a first in the ‘root-to-fruit’ or ‘nose-to-tail’ movement.
“Looking after a family of seven from my father’s tailoring income took creativity and ingenuity. Nothing was ever wasted, and nothing was ever added without purpose.”
Being naturally curious, Fung says it came as no surprise to his mother that he wanted to escape the confines of Hong Kong and explore the world.
“I grew up in a bustling Hong Kong in the late 1950s and ’60s, deeply absorbing the Chinese cultural roots yet eager to learn more about the Western influences,” he says.
Moving to Sydney at a time when there weren’t many Hong Kong migrants in Australia was both daunting and invigorating, he adds.
“I got a job as a waiter at the Orient Hotel restaurant above a pub,” he says. It was a great opportunity to practise his English and “immerse myself in Aussie culture and learn about the preferences of the locals”.
Fung would stay back after shifts to talk food with the head chef.
“At the time, there was a Chinese restaurant above the bar of the Orient Hotel, and I was surprised to see that the most popular dishes were sweet and sour pork, fried rice, and sizzling Mongolian lamb.
“These were not what I knew as Chinese dishes – more like an adaptation of something from Chinese culture.”
He soon learned that trends change and can be influenced with knowledge, experience and creativity.
Fung went on to manage a restaurant at the Manly Fisherman’s Club, sharing food experiences with diners and gradually removing items such as steak and chips and prawn cocktail from the menu.
“I loved talking to and learning from our customers. It was a two-way education, with each of us sharing stories about culture and food,” he says.
“Many times, I found myself sitting down at the table sampling an authentic home-cooked item they had brought in to show me.”
Realising there was a whole new world of Western food to explore, Fung went back to school to study commercial cookery.
“This helped me lay the foundations for the opening of my own restaurant. I wanted to introduce Anglo-Australians to Chinese culture through food. I did it the only way I knew how – combining familiar Western ingredients and textures with Cantonese or Chinese flavours.”
Little did he know these fusion experiences would become the foundations of modern Australian cuisine.
And while it might be a tad presumptuous to label Fung the “tofu king of Sydney”, he could quite easily wear that crown.
“Tofu was foreign to many Aussies when, in the ’80s, I opened my first restaurant, Mosman Gourmets Inn, in Sydney’s Northern Beaches, with two of my siblings and their families.” He sold the restaurant in 1997 to set up Green Gourmet in Sydney’s Newtown neighbourhood.
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“That is why I introduced a special menu back then that celebrated tofu – it became the best vehicle to introduce this plant-based, protein-rich food from Asia to a local, predominantly Anglo-Aussie customer base.”
Classic Chinese tofu dishes on the menu at the time included mapo tofu and salt and pepper tofu.
It goes without saying that Chinese cuisine in Australia has evolved in leaps and bounds. But what most excites Fung is the rise of the vegan movement, with items like dairy-free milks and plant-based meat going beyond just trends and now occupying spots on most menus.
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“Twenty-five years ago, when Green Gourmet first opened, my purpose was to show that vegetarian food is not just vegetables. I wanted to share my spiritual influences and create ‘true vegan food’ without the use of onions and garlic.
“The original Green Gourmet restaurant was in the heart and soul of the developing vegan scene. We were the first vegan Asian restaurant there and introduced the earth-preserving idea of a pay-by-weight buffet menu.”
Now in the municipality of St Leonards, Green Gourmet continues to grow its following of earth-conscious families, serving plant-based dishes including its popular Shantung Not Chicken, BBQ Not Pork Love Buns, salt and pepper “calamari”, and “duck” spring rolls.
The restaurant is also dishing up a taste of home for those with connections to Hong Kong.
“We often serve multi-generations of Hong Kong families – from those of my generation who find a sense of warmth and comfort in our food, to the second-generation Australian-born Chinese who ‘miss their grandma’s cooking’, to the youngest generations looking for new food and fusion experiences,” Fung says.
“It feels good when we have something to suit everyone.”
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Expansion plans are afoot, with the restaurant looking to launch ready-to-reheat food packs with independent retailers and Asian supermarkets in Sydney and interstate.
“Last year [2022] we successfully launched a line of retail buns under the brand Love Buns into retail outlets in Sydney and Brisbane, and anticipate an even larger reach with this product range,” he says.
“It’s about spreading the message of caring through quality, healthy food for our bodies and the planet.”
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