Summer Herald: Simple serenity at temple teahouse

A teahouse at a South Auckland Buddhist temple offers a peaceful and serene escape from the hustle and bustle of big city life.

Temple volunteer Melody Cai said sipping a cup of rose tea and having a bowl of pickled vegetable rice at the Water Drop Tea House at Fo Guang Shan Temple in Flat Bush "does wonders" for her soul.

"The food is so fresh just like the environment, and sitting here [at the tea house] gives me a very peaceful feeling," said Ms Cai, a vegetarian.

Fo Guang Shan is the largest Buddhist temple in the country, and the complex - designed after the buildings of the first Tang dynasty - was built over seven years at a cost of $20 million.

Opened in 2007, the mission of the temple is to promote "Humanistic Buddhism".

The vegetarian teahouse, located within the temple complex, is run mainly by volunteers and offers a range of Buddhist vegetarian dishes.

Buddhist cuisine, which is vegetarian or vegan, is usually based on the Dharmic concept of ahimsa, or non-violence.

A signature dish at Water Drop is the pickled vegetable rice, which according to the temple was used to nurse the founder of the order, Master Hsing Yun, back to health after he fell gravely ill at the age of 17 and could not eat.

Master Chi Kai, his teacher, then arranged for a bowl of pickled vegetables to be delivered to him. The pickled vegetable rice is now symbolic of kindness and how Buddhism has "nurtured countless lives".

Volunteer temple chef Leeyone Bong, a Malaysian, said many of the dishes on the menu, such as curry laksa or nasi lemak, had Southeast Asian influences.

"The flavours are just as good as non-vegetarian food, but just a more healthy option," Ms Bong said.

Creative vegetarian dishes on the menu also use mock meat, or imitation meat prepared using wheat gluten or soy.

Being vegetarian also makes people feel "healthier" and "more energetic" according to some diners.

Wendy Wong, a teahouse regular, said she has hardly fallen sick since she turned vegetarian seven years ago.

The cafe offers indoor seating among rustic wooden furniture, and outdoor tables among lush bamboo trees and camellias.

Being located off Stancombe Rd and away from the main Chapel Rd, it gives diners a sense of calmness and refuge.

Water Drop Vegetarian Cafe, Fo Guang Shan Temple
Where: 16 Stancombe Rd, Flat Bush, Manukau
When: Tuesday to Sunday, 9am to 4.30pm
Five things to try: Pickled vegetable rice, tomato noodle soup, nasi lemak (coconut cream rice), basil soy sausage and curry laska
More information: fgs.org.nz