9 Mins Read
Two weeks ago today, my dream came true. I attended an artisanal food market in Hong Kong where I filled my (reusable) shopping bags with an array of homemade, locally produced, artisan goodies. I woke up the next morning and realized I didn’t need to cook anything! I had a fridge stuffed with healthy, delicious food. Finally takeaway that was organic, freshly made and yummy. This is what I have always missed in Hong Kong and finally, all these great vendors were united in one place by Green Queen. We will be doing it again. And again. Turns out I was not dreaming alone.
The response was nothing short of incredible! Over 1,200 hungry Hong Kongers came down to Hollywood Road to support the event. The draw? Local vendors, homemade food, handmade products, artisanal production, sourced/grown/produced right here in Hong Kong, small batch, toxin and preservative free and in many cases, organic. Most of the vendors were sold out by 4PM! Thank you to everyone who attended, we are so excited for more of this to happen in Hong Kong. We are planning the next one and we will announce the date soon so stay tuned…
The whole day had a sense of joy and community- it sounds hippy dippy but everyone was smiling and happy and time just flew by. The picnic tables we had organized were full all day- it was so touching to see old and young, foreign and local, eco warriors and foodies all sitting together sharing food, laughter and chatter. It was a proud moment for a Hong Kong born girl like me who want day decided that I need more green, more healthy and more local in my life.
I am going to do my best to describe all the vendors so that those of you who missed it can get an idea of how amazing it was. Remember, every single vendor is a local Hong Kong artisan. Just thinking about that gets me so excited! There is so much happening in this town at the moment and at Green Queen we just want to help harness this zeitgeist so the movement can grow bigger.
On the ground floor, we had some great personal care brands such as Bathe to Basics and So..Soap– both companies make liquid and bar soaps in heavenly scents such as Bergamot and Rose and Tea Tree! We are NO Expert joined us too with their bottled baking mixes, handmade aloe vera gel, lavender hydrosol sprays and charcoal soaps. There was also Native Essentials, a fabulous skincare & body care aromatherapy-based line born right here in Hong Kong: owner Daniela has everything from jetlag remedies and anti-oxidant serums and de-puffing eye creams. If you were thirsty, you could get a refreshing iced tea from Yisheng Organic or just grab a few packs of their fair trade organic locally produced tea leaves. They have a wonderful selection of teas from black to white to puer to green to yellow, all are elegant and well blended. Everyone who walked in got a look at the Ecotropolis display where founder Jay was showcasing his hanging wall gardens, delightful herb pots and handmade bamboo bowls, plates and cups in an assortment of bright colors.
Climbing up the stairs, you were welcome by our very own organic coffee shop! Marc and Tamara, the awesome folks at LA NAO were making excellent lattes all day with their organic Kante coffee beans and agave syrup. They used organic milk and coconut milk for the dairy free among us! Coconut milk is by far my favorite non-dairy milk option and it is pretty much impossible to find so I was thrilled. In the first room, we had some pretty exciting health food vendors. One on side were green duo Chef Mia and Martina of Eat Fresh (the local organic produce delivery service) and Graciously Green (raw food catering and consulting) with raw veggie dippers, raw cacao balls and a stunning display of local organic produce. Next to them we had Stephen James Organic with their awesome Carazuc coconut sugar (used by Happy Cow and The Genie Concept in their ice cream and juices), Pink Himalayan Salt, raw beauty snack/energy bars and my favorite savoury snack, the Pilli Pill nuts.
Across the way we had Chef Shima of Sesame Kitchen who introduced her homemade fermented chickpea miso and miso hummus (I have so many miso marinade recipes in mind). Next to her was Culture Organics who were promoting their prepared raw snacks, made by hand by Chef Callie of Anything But Salads: Hong Kong finally has its very own packaged kale chips, raw crackers, granola, spiced nuts, raw chocolate, raw brownies- all delicious, have been munching on them all week. We also had the uber friendly Shawn of Something Fresh, introducing his 100% blended fruit smoothies for the very first time and selling his very convenient pre-prepped vegetarian meal boxes for those among us who need some help in the kitchen sometimes but want to stay healthy. We also had Rad’s Kitchen selling fabulous salad boxes (curried couscous, tuscan bean, wild rice pilaf, cubed roasted ratatouille- these were not your average salads) and homemade almond cake and carrot cake with cream cheese frosting. The carrot cake was the sleeper hit of the day- people were lining up for more and are still writing to us about it. Finally we had charming Rebecka of Swedish’s Handmade Bodycare who makes home made candles, body and hand creams and a luxurious body scrub.
Around the corner was the largest hall and it was filled with food goodness. Where to start? Raw food cleanse and cold pressed juice heroes The Genie Concept were a hit as was Happy Cow, the best gluten free, dairy free ice cream in Asia, if not the world. The original local organic vegetable pioneers Homegrown Foods‘s table was overflowing with their their colourful produce. Artisanal chocolate brand Forbidden Beans wowed with their cacao delights- their tiramisu pots were exquisite. Wholesome vegetarian soup and salad takeaway stall The Herbivores were also selling their famous pesto jars. The always popular Tai Tai Pie Pies and their homemade sweet and savory pies were one of the first to sell out as was Niche Food with their mini cupcakes and special flavors like pandan leaf which they developed specially for the day. Deli foods expert Claire of Not Only Olives- her pistou olive mix is frankly the best tasting olive in town- wowed with her handmade chutneys and freshly brined olives and cheeses, the friendly folks at Sourtimes Dairy with their creamy artisan yoghurts (the lime onion sour cream is addictive), founder Punam of Spicebox Organics was very popular with her multigrain baked samosas and iced tamarind health drink across from which Chef Gregoire of Bread Elements was causing a frenzy with his panoply of artisan breads and pastries- his made-for-the-market-with-local-organic-passion-fruit muffins were a sensation. We were so lucky to have Allison of the 8 Estate Winery showcasing their locally made wine- that’s right! Hong Kong has its own wines and they are absolutely worth trying. Keeping things healthy and green we also had Green Vitamin with their raw kale chips samplers (the flavor mixes were prepared by Chef Shima, isn’t all this collaboration exciting?) and wheatgrass shots; they were also selling their 3 varieties of locally grown organic kale (Tuscan, Curly and Dinosaur)- the only ones in town to offer this. We also had Hong Kong detox favorites i-Detox with their creamy dairy-free dandy lattes and homemade raw dishes (cooked by Chef Lakshmi).
We also have a very special story to share about Mark the Banana Man. A few days before the event, Mark contacted Green Queen about his overflowing organic banana trees. Could he possibly sell them at the event? Made in HK had been full for weeks and there were no more tables available but Green Queen was so touched by this man’s story that we insisted he just show up on the day and we would find him a space. Mark lives far way by the Chinese border. He humbly grows bananas and papayas and tries to sell them to the hikers in the area but doesn’t get much traction. In order to come to the Central, he has to travel 4 hours from his isolated valley by bicycle, boat, bus and foot. He transports the fruits by himself so he can only bring what he can carry. He arrived around noon, we set him up with a chair on the ground floor between two stalls and he sold out by 5PM. He couldn’t believe it and we couldn’t be happier- local organic fruits are almost impossible to find.
We have received such encouraging feedback from so many different people. Vegans who had never been to an event where there were so many options for them. Foodies who had no idea what a bounty of artisanal producers Hong Kong was hiding. Moms with gluten free kids who could get them some ice cream or a brownie. Locals who want to support homegrown businesses but didn’t know where to find them. Beauty addicts who were searching for toxin-free products that deliver. Oh and lots and lots of people who were looking for kale. Kale juice, kale chips, raw kale, local kale: you name it, one of our vendors had it. We had so many different forms of it. Many of you commented on the variety of foods and vendors at the market too, which was great to hear.
We are working on the next one so don’t worry if you missed it. Watch this space and make sure to Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to get all our latest news and updates. You can also send us your thoughts, comments and suggestions using the event’s hashtag: #madeinhkgq.
Before I sign off, I wanted to make a few shout-outs. Thank you to extra talented designer Laura owner of The {little} Flying Studio design house for all the graphics. We got so many compliments on the flyer. We want to thank Shal of Ruhani Home for providing the awesome lucky draw gift.
We also want to say a massive thank you to the editors and journalists who helped to promote the event and make it a success (listed in no particular order): Stephanie at Foodie, Mawgan at The HK Hub, Kannan of HK YantoYan, Maura and Sheena of Sassy Media Group, Kate of Expat Living, Janice, Samuel and James of Time Out, Andrea of Asia City, Susan Jung of the SCMP, Shea of Little Steps Asia, Jessica of Tatler Online, Erica of Lifestyle Asia and Healthy HK, Crystal of Localiiz, Kelly and Neveen at Dim Sum and Then Some and Kinzie of Heartbeat HK– we are so grateful to you all!
The biggest thank you of the day goes to the lovely Emma, manager of The Space @ Hollywood who took a chance on us and is the main reason this event happened- we are so appreciative of the opportunity to host our first Green Queen event in such a beautiful venue! Also grateful to Holly and Georgie from The Cat Street Gallery for their help on the day.
All photos courtesy of Green Queen.
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