A healthy escape at Greens

Greens is almost always the first restaurant people recommend when they find out I'm vegetarian. It's got a big advantage in terms of seniority, having been around since 2001, right before healthy eating became cool. Also, the cozy restaurant has plenty of choices on its menu, from light appetizers to serious meat and potato lunches. Of course, when I say meat and potato, I don't really mean meat - everything in Greens is vegetarian-friendly. Although they serve dishes like embutido, sisig and relleno - they only use vegemeat. Even their soy "chicken" that actually looks and tastes like chicken is absolutely animal-free. Most of their dishes are also vegan-friendly, and diners can request no onion and garlic in their dishes. My friend and I decided to have lunch out, for a change of scenery, since we were getting tired of eating at the office canteen every day. At the time, the holiday feasting was still fresh in our minds (and considerably larger tummies), so we chose to eat at Greens.

My friend ordered the Primavera Pasta (80 pesos), which she said made her feel "really healthy." We shared a Three-For-All (150 pesos) appetizer, and sampled the chicharon (also not real meat, of course), fried mushrooms, and potato patties. The chicharon was interesting - it was crunchy and it looked like the real thing - but it certainly didn't taste like chicharon. It just wasn't unhealthy enough. The potato patties were rather bland, but the fried mushrooms proved to be a very tasty chewy treat. Since I'm not particularly keen on vegetables pretending to be meat, I tried the Asian Noodle soup (65 pesos) and the Roasted Veggies Wrap (95 pesos). The soup was served steaming hot, and the vegetables were nice and crunchy. It was the perfect soup for a nice rainy day, or maybe a midnight snack. The wrap was surprisingly large, and the subtle herbs really brought out the flavors of the vegetables. Some people who've been to Greens never return, because they say the food is tasteless. Of course, the flavors at Greens are a lot more subdued compared to, say, fast food. It takes a while to adjust to the way food is prepared at Greens. And, because it isn't fast food, expect to wait a few minutes before your meal is served. Fortunately, Greens is a relaxing place to wait in. Located in a residential area a few cartwheels from Tomas Morato, the restaurant is a house, complete with a garden. While Morato is lined with bright happening nightspots a few meters away, Greens transports visitors to a secluded spot where relaxing is not only easy but imperative. Yellow lamps light the restaurant, which has an outdoor dining area if you're not afraid of mosquitoes, and an air-conditioned indoor area as well. I like places with a lot of choices, because menus are always fun to look through while waiting for your food. Of course, you run the risk of spotting something you wish you'd chosen, but there's always next time. Greens has several kinds of pasta, sandwiches like the Split-pea Burger (95 pesos) and Mushroom Tofu Burger (95 pesos), entrees like the Sweet and Sour Supreme (150 pesos), Veggie "Beef" and Broccoli (205 pesos), and Greens Combo Platters like the Grilled Mushroom and Tofu Kebabs (115 pesos), Pastel de Vegetal (115 pesos) and Melanzane Parmigiana (115 pesos). If you can't wait until your next visit, you can take comfort in the fact that almost everything is affordable, with Escabeche (250 pesos) being the most expensive item on the menu. Two of my favorite things at Greens are their fresh Lassi (50 pesos) and Mango Custard (30 pesos) - both very refreshing ways to end a healthy meal. - YA, GMA News Greens is located at 92 Scout Castor Street, Quezon City, Philippines. It is open from Monday to Saturday at 11:00 am to 10:00 pm and on Sunday at 12:00 pm to 9:00 pm.