I'm not vegetarian, and grew up with a general dislike of Chinese vegetarian cuisine. I had the impression it was mostly full of starchy sauces and mock meats, aka balls of gluten. So, visiting Ling Zhi Vegetarian, a restaurant that also doesn't add garlic, Allium chinense, asafoetida, shallot and mountain leek (a consideration for Buddhist vegetarians) had me skeptical.
This post, however, isn't about my very first visit anymore. Since my first time at Ling Zhi, I've been back countless times.
As far as a non-vegetarian can say, one of the first major considerations for a vegetarian restaurant, is that the food doesn't make you miss meat. Ling Zhi succeeds in this regard, and particularly impressive because the restaurant doesn't make use of mock meats. Instead the chef cleverly uses whole vegetable and mushroom produce in a way that leaves diners satisfied.
Here's a ultra-fast walk through of what the restaurant looks like at Novena. At this location, Ling Zhi has vegetarian hot pot buffet, as well as vegetarian dim sum! For a more traditional a la carte menu, Ling Zhi at Orchard would be your best bet.
Greetings from me, Gareth Fernandez, and Kym!
Satay. One of the favorites amongst my friends, the delectable satay is cleverly made of monkeyhead mushroom.
The hotpot comes with a huge range of options.
Including a plethora of vegetarian sauces.
Hot pot time!
Another one of our top picks, the LingZhi version of Hakka Thunder Tea Rice. This dish uses premium ingredients and rice. It's hands down one of our new favorite lei cha spots in Singapore.
There's also a popiah station! We were getting full, but ultimately couldn't resist getting one.
We ate so much good food, and also felt great about not having had a bite of actual meat. Yay sustainability!
All in all, a great experience.
This location is at LingZhi Novena
238 Thomson Rd, #03-09/10,Velocity@Novena Square, 307683
Other locations: LingZhi Orchard
541 Orchard Rd, #05-01 Liat Towers, Singapore 238881