Green Dot; A Meat-Free Fast Casual Concept
I first came across Greendot when I was still a student in Temasek Polytechnic. They had a food stall at the design school. Back then, I was not Vegan yet but I was into 'Clean Eating', and Greendot was always my go-to choice for a hearty meal.
The menu at my school, however, is different than the menu at their other outlets.
On this particular day, I was at the West side of Singapore and being unfamiliar with the area, Greendot was the only place I could think of to have my lunch. Because it was the weekend, my friend and I had to wait around 10-15 minutes before we could be seated.
It is a rather small area, with tables placed closely beside one another.
I ordered a bowl of Laksa - even had to double check with the staff twice to make sure my bowl did not contain any dairy or egg products. I do love how the Laksa at Greendot tastes like the authentic Laksa which contains shrimp etc. I even got my non-vegan friend hooked!
However, this trip to Greendot would be my last trip there. I used to be a huge fan of Greendot, up until recently when they change their menu and hardly give their vegan customers any options to choose from. On the menu, any food items which contain dairy would be marked with a milk carton. Now, it seems like the only item the vegans can eat is their mushroom noodles.
The whole hoo-ha with the mock meats and 'fishballs' at Greendot containing dairy, led to a huge disappointment among the vegan society. Not only that, but I realise the staff at Greendot do not even have basic knowledge of what 'vegan' means... This is not only frustrating, but really tiring.
As mentioned above, I had to check twice with the staff if my Laksa contained any dairy because I asked 2 different employees and they both told me a different story. In the end, they had to get the chef out to confirm with me that my Laksa is vegan-friendly.
However, I do have to admit that their mushroom noodles are still a must-try (at least once), but if you don't take oil then you'd like to skip that. Sad to say, I would not be going back to Greendot anymore unless they decide to impart some general knowledge on Veganism to their staff, and ensure that they have the CONFIDENCE to answer any Vegan's query to avoid miscommunication and disappointment.
If you wish to bring your non-vegan friends to a good vegan cafe, Loving Hut and Brownice always does the trick - You can read my reviews here: http://jaslyngoh.com/category/all/what-a-vegan-eats/
Currently, Greendot has 4 outlets around the nation - Westgate, Bedok Mall, Paya Lebar Square and Raffles City.
