{"id":3772,"date":"2007-06-26T11:26:39","date_gmt":"2007-06-26T10:26:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/?p=3772"},"modified":"2007-06-26T20:38:18","modified_gmt":"2007-06-26T19:38:18","slug":"govinda-makes-vegetarian-choice-easy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/?p=3772","title":{"rendered":"Govinda makes vegetarian choice easy"},"content":{"rendered":"

GEORGE F. LEE \/ GLEE at STARBULLETIN dot COM
\nGovinda server Jeanette Gailloux presents a full vegetarian plate of \u201cPrasad,\u201d cauliflower, potatoes and a green pea curry at the Fort Street Mall eatery.<\/em><\/font><\/p>\n

By Nadine Kam<\/strong><\/p>\n

Paris Hilton has never seemed particularly smart, but, not being acquainted with her, I\u2019ve always been willing to give her the benefit of the doubt. The air-headed heiress bit could truly be an act, in which case, she\u2019d also be a better actress than her role in \u201cHouse of Wax\u201d would suggest.<\/p>\n

But all this courtesy has come to an end in light of her recent driving travails. I mean, how stupid can she be to be driving at all? If I had her money, the first thing I\u2019d do is put a driver on the payroll, and my second hire would be a personal chef to cook delicious, healthful food morning, noon and night. The delicious part is easy enough for most home cooks to achieve on their own. It\u2019s the healthful element that always seems to take extra work just because we\u2019re so accustomed to fattening, salting and sweetening foods beyond recognition.<\/p>\n

With no trust fund in sight, however, it helps to have a Plan B, and Govinda\u2019s Vegetarian Cuisine \u2014 a Fort Street Mall satellite of the Hare Krishna-run Govinda\u2019s Vegetarian Buffet at 51 Coelho Way \u2014 is quite capable of keeping an entire mass of bootstrapping babies healthy and happy. It does so with a rotating repertoire of vegetarian and vegan dishes, a rarity in Honolulu.<\/p>\n

As much as national magazines seem to enjoy putting Honolulu on their lists of healthy cities, I don\u2019t believe it. A vegetarian friend recently asked where she could go to get vegetarian dishes that go beyond the typical salads or stir-fries. Alas, the last time we had a dressed-up, sit-down vegetarian restaurant was when Sherrie\u2019s Whiteflower Inn was in operation way back in the early \u201980s. We haven\u2019t progressed since then. Healthful eating has come to be relegated to the takeout arena or a select few dishes on a \u201cnormal\u201d menu, but I think this town is ready for a change.<\/p>\n

ON A BASIC level, Govinda\u2019s offers fresh and simple fare. Those weaned on aforementioned fat, salt and sugar will be struck by its purity. But don\u2019t mistake this for blandness. Red curry with coconut milk, zucchini and tofu is every bit as flavorful as its Thai counterpart, and even includes the bite of chili peppers. What isn\u2019t here is unnecessary salt and oil.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s the same with nongreasy potato-and-pea-filled samosas ($2.65) that are baked rather than fried, and spanakopita (Greek spinach pie, $2.65) that isn\u2019t weighed down by butter-saturated layers of phyllo.<\/p>\n

Food is made at the temple and brought in, with two entree choices available daily. It\u2019s possible to eat here for a month without repeating a dish. You will find a lot of curries, although the type of curry and ingredients will vary. Standard daily options include the samosas, spanakopita and a homemade brown-rice garden veggie burger ($3.75) with a nutty texture that\u2019s moist, rather than dry as with packaged versions.<\/p>\n

Prices are right, at $4.50 for a miniplate that includes an entree (it\u2019s $7.15 for two choices) with brown rice, green salad and dessert of hallavas (75 cents a la carte). The hallavas is so good, you\u2019d swear it\u2019s bad for you, but it\u2019s made of semolina flavored with different ingredients for variety\u2019s sake. One day it might be peanut butter. Another day it might be bananas or strawberries.<\/p>\n

Finish with a refreshing drink of Lemon-Mint Ginger Rush $1.45 for 12 ounces and $1.75 for 20 ounces.<\/p>\n

Dishes have so much flavor, that I never miss meat at all. And while I sometimes feel that I\u2019m sabotaging my health by dining out so often, I never get that feeling here due to the combination of healthful foods in proper portions. Those who show up for lunch will leave feeling awake and ready to take on the world, rather than lethargic due to consuming heavier foods.<\/p>\n

While much of what we do on a daily basis \u2014 from getting ready to go to work to making food choices \u2014 is rote, a simple thing like stepping in to Govinda\u2019s for a taste can open one\u2019s eyes to another way of nurturing one\u2019s body and elevating one\u2019s consciousness as to the purpose of eating. Once you\u2019ve had a vegetarian enchilada, you might not feel as compelled to order kau yuk or tonkatsu the next time you see them on a menu. A small change in diet can be the tipping point for making changes in other areas of life as well, which might explain why the Krishna are in the food business.<\/p>\n

\u201cGovinda,\u201d another name for the Hindu deity Krishna, translates as \u201cthe protector of the cows, the land and\/or one\u2019s senses.\u201d One of the aims of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness is \u201cto propagate spiritual knowledge \u2026 and to educate all peoples in the techniques of spiritual life in order to check the imbalance of values in life and to achieve real unity and peace in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

source<\/a> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\"HareBy Nadine Kam<\/strong><\/p>\n

With no trust fund in sight, however, it helps to have a Plan B, and Govinda\u2019s Vegetarian Cuisine is quite capable of keeping an entire mass of bootstrapping babies healthy and happy. It does so with a rotating repertoire of vegetarian and vegan dishes, a rarity in Honolulu.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3772","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-iskcon-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3772","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3772"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3772\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3772"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3772"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3772"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}