May, 1997

The Green’s Vegetarian Restaurant
128 Montague Street, corner of Henry and Montague, one flight up, Brooklyn, NY 11201. Hours: Mon-Thurs: 11 am to 10:30 pm; Friday: 11 am to 11 pm; Sat: 12 noon to 11 pm; Sunday: 1 pm to 10:30 pm. All major credit cards accepted.

The Green’s is a brand new vegetarian restaurant in Brooklyn Heights, occupying a spot which has seen three different retail businesses in less that a year. The Green’s features a wide variety of Asian foods, a fresh and innovative twist on Asian cuisine. I for one hope it succeeds where others have not.

Upon entering the restaurant, which is located above street level and overlooks Brooklyn Heights’ busiest intersection, it is clear that the place is spanking new. Attractive, albeit overly bright, lighting shows off the simple, tidy decor. As there were only two other tables occupied, we were seated immediately. Our smiling waitress brought us our menus, some tea, and a plate of delicious marinated peanuts.

The menu is huge, featuring well over 70 dishes to please both the vegetarian and carnivorous palate. Nearly all the dishes are vegan, although it’s better to ask when unsure, as a few contain eggs. And one aside — for those vegetarians and vegans who take mild offense when vegetarian dishes are named after animals (such as "chicken" with sweet and sour sauce made out of soy protein), you’ll be happy to know that the menu avoids such euphemisms.

For starters, I recommend the near-perfect vegetarian roll ($1.00). This roll, similar to the standard egg roll in intent, wins hands-down over that often-times sad and reheated sibling. It is neither oily nor dry, but a wonderfully crispy shell filled with a wide variety of tasty vegetables and soy protein. The pan fried vegi-dumplings ($3.75) came six to a plate, so I recommend sharing them to save room for the main course. They were a little too oily for my taste, and the dough, while fresh, was rather mushy. One of my dining partners, on the other hand, is more of a dumpling aficionado than I and declared them delicious. Another favorite starter is scallion pancakes ($3.00). These are crispy pancakes folded over to enclose lettuce, tomato and soy protein which tastes a bit like I remember turkey used to taste. Although the chef goes overboard on the lettuce, the overall flavor is unique and satisfying. Other recommended starters are the hot & sour soup ($1.50 for small, $2.90 for large) and the steamed spinach rolls ($3.50).

For any vegetarian or vegan used to selecting the one item on the menu that fits their dietary needs, prepare to be overwhelmed with the selection of available dishes at the Green’s. With 20 specialty dishes and over 30 house dishes, all vegetarian, settling on one takes some effort. And with the large portions served, one is plenty for all but the heartiest appetites.

The battered soy bean gluten with sesame sauce ($7.25) is among the best things I have tasted at the Green’s. Light, chewy and flavorful, and with a sweet sesame sauce, this dish is great for your meat-eating friend who would have rather gone to a "regular" Chinese restaurant. The battered wheat gluten with yams ($7.25) was too airy, but the batter itself was crisp and simple, and the yams were superb. On the other hand, the rainbow canyon, a specialty dish consisting of soy and potatoes wrapped in soy crepes and served with a spicy chili sauce ($9.50), was a disappointment. Gelatinous and bland, this reminded me of why so many people avoid tofu — when it’s poorly prepared, it can be truly awful. I was also disappointed with the festival in the roll ($7.50), which was flavorless, tough and tasted overwhelmingly of string beans.

I was appeased by the sautéed green peas, cashew nuts and fresh mushrooms ($7.25) — I don’t think I’ve had green peas this fresh since I worked on an organic farm in college. And the fresh portabello mushrooms with black pepper sauce ($9.25) were superb — substantial and chewy, with just the right amount of flavoring to offset the typically heavy taste of portabellos. The rice which accompanies the meals is my favorite sort — sticky brown rice with flecks of wild rice that give it an unusual, nutty flavor.
The Green’s also serves fresh squeezed orange, carrot, strawberry, honeydew, or grape juice, at prices ranging from $1.95 to $3.75. During weekday and weekend lunches, the Green’s dishes out a great bargain: for $5.25, you get a choice of hot & sour soup, seaweed bean curd miso soup, or vegetable roll, a choice of brown rice, white rice, or macaroni and one delicious main course. As we were preparing to leave, we ran into a vegan friend who declared the lunch specials to be one of the best bargains in Brooklyn.

Although lacking in consistency, I recommend the Green’s for its extremely fresh, innovative and adventurous approach to vegetarian cuisine. With the friendly staff, quick service and very reasonable prices, I think with a little time the kinks will work themselves out.

Hillary Morris is president of Vegan Standards and Certification Project, Inc., a non-profit organization dedicated to analyzing and certifying vegan products. For more information, contact: 718-246-0014 or http://www.veganstandards.org. E-mail: veganstandards@ibm.net

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