Green pit stop on expressway a hit

First vegetarian eatery along the way gets non-vegetarian customers too

PETALING JAYA: The country’s first vegetarian eatery along a highway is not only offering a convenient option to vegetarians but filling the stomachs of non-vegetarians too as travellers embrace the concept.

The outlet, located at the Rawang rest stop along the North-South Expressway, was only opened middle of last year but it has already received overwhelming response from vegetarians and non-vegetarians.

Malaysian Vegetarian Society president Raj Kumar Sheth said it had been collaborating with the Food Safety and Quality Division of the Health Ministry to open vegetarian restaurants along highways.

“We have been talking to the ministry about the difficulty of getting vegetarian food when we travel along highways.

“There are about 2,000 vegetarian restaurants nationwide but on all the highways in Malaysia, there is no dedicated vegetarian food store,” he said.

Raj Kumar estimated there were about 500,000 to a million vegetarians in the country, including those who would go vegetarian on certain days.

The plan to set up a vegetarian food outlet along Malaysian highways took about a year to come to fruition as the society and ministry officials met with highway operators.

As the northbound Rawang rest stop was being renovated, Plus Malaysia Bhd, which operates the expressway, offered space for a vegetarian outlet, he added.

Raj Kumar approached Veggie Express founder Melvin Teo to set up new premises there.

Teo, a vegetarian for 31 years, said as there were no vegetarian restaurants along highways, vegetarians usually had to buy only fruits and bread to fill their stomachs.

“I immediately jumped at the chance to do it. My vision and mission is to make it convenient for vegetarians to have their meals,” he said.

Teo was surprised to find that he had an enthusiastic reception from non-vegetarians too.

“The outlet not only serves Hindu or Buddhist vegetarians but about 70% of the customers are Malay.

“Vegetarianism is no longer adopted just for religious reasons; it can also be for health and environmental reasons or a love of animals,” he said.

On average the outlet sees about 200 patrons daily, with the peak periods being on Friday and Saturday.

“The response has been overwhelming. The sales from this outlet even beat the few stores that we have in Kuala Lumpur malls,” said Teo.