Working in the CBD area can be boon or a bane. On one hand, you have to jostle among the morning rush-hour crowd. But on the other hand, the working crowd is spoilt for choice when it comes to food. There are plenty of food options to choose from, especially healthier eateries that serve real food. Another eatery that recently entered the CBD-area food scene is Heybo. It is situated at level one of Republic Plaza which is just a few minutes away from Raffles Place MRT.
Are you into grain bowls?
It seems like grain bowls are currently the latest healthy food fad with the growing number of eateries serving grain bowls. However, they are generally quite expensive and some tasted pretty average. But Heybo’s grain bowls are unlike any other. They stood out for me in terms of their affordable pricing and quality offerings. Thus if you are into healthy eating, make sure you add HeyBo to your list of places to check out.
So what does Heybo has to offer?
1. They made everything quicker and easier with cashless payments.
With their self-order and payment kiosks, it is so much more convenient to order and pay for your meals. For anyone working in the CBD area, time is precious and every minute counts.
If you happen to dislike dealing with tech stuff, then you can just head over to their counter with your order form. You can either build your own grain bowl for only $10.90 or order from their signature grain bowls (from $9.90 onwards).
What’s on their menu?
When you are customising your very own grain bowl, you will be spoilt for choices when it comes to the number of ingredients you can choose from. They have also included low-carb options like cauliflower rice with lentils as well as vegan proteins like crispy tempeh, plant protein patties and the IMPOSSIBLETM patties. In my opinion, this eatery is definitely one of the most vegan-friendly places in Singapore.
There also have a selection of other food items like oatmeal porridge, Heybaos (both savoury and sweet buns), soft serve as well as chips.
2.They offer food at an affordable and ‘healthy’ price.
You can enjoy a decent sumptuous grain bowl for slightly under $10. I am glad that they have made healthy and nutritious meals more accessible and affordable for all to enjoy. Healthy food can come at pocket-friendly prices.
3.They’ve got a KOMBUCHA FOUNTAIN! (I kid you not.)
I know that there are several salad and grain bowl eateries out there that offer sweet canned and syrup drinks which is not quite aligned with what they are preaching. But over here at Heybo, they care about your sugar intake level in drinks. For less than $5, you can either enjoy a refreshing cup of unsweetened sparkling tea or organic kombucha drinks.
It’s my first time seeing organic kombucha dispensing from a tap as I always thought they can be only stored in large tinted glass bottles. Who knew that they have a Kombucha fountain here? And there are two organic kombucha flavours to choose from – Honey Lemon or Concorde Grape. This fermented drink is a source of probiotics which is great for maintaining your gut health.
We tried their Concorde Grape Kombucha and Summer Grapefruit Sparkling tea which are rather gassy by nature but super refreshing to drink on a warm day. I do sort of which they have brought in some less gassy drinks like fruit vinegar.
4.They’ve got the chips AND the DIPS.
Who says it is unhealthy to snack? It all depends on what you are snacking on. At
We particularly enjoy the lotus chips that goes along well with the tangy red pepper dip. You can enjoy these chips as a side with your grain bowls or Heybaos. It’s definitely a better alternative to french fries.
5.They’ve got it all portioned out neatly for you.
They’ve got the serving size right. It is not too little or too much. Because they portioned all the ingredients out neatly on your plate, you are given a good balance of carbohydrates, proteins and fats. It is actually rather filling for me and thankfully, they did not serve more than that. Otherwise, they will contribute to food waste as well. It’s all about mindful eating here, guys. Eat only what your body requires.
Customising our own grain bowl
We tried to build our own Heybo with some tempeh, char-grilled steak and falafels.
Heybo Signature Grain bowl: Shibuya Nights
We also tried one of their popular grain bowls, Shibuya nights which features baked salmon, onsen egg and grilled mushrooms. I love how fresh and delicious each ingredient taste on its own.
This grain bowl comes with beetroot miso sauce and avocado edamame dip. I wasn’t too keen about mixing the pinkish beetroot miso sauce with the green soba and avocado edamame initially. Because I had no idea what happens when pink and green comes together. But it tasted alright.
Nevertheless, given a choice, I would have probably paired this with another sauce and dip to bring out the flavours of the salmon and mushrooms.
6.They have ‘healthified’ everything on their menu for YOU.
If we were to be back here again, we would definitely order their Heybao with IMPOSSIBLETM Patty. Sandwiched between the soft buns are the IMPOSSIBLETM Patty, grilled cheese skirt and egg. It is just a simple and plain-looking burger but it tasted incredibly good. I love how simple and clean it tasted. This would definitely go well with the chips and dips they offer.
And of all the IMPOSSIBLETM burgers I’ve tried, this is one of the best. If you are not up for their grain bowls, you can snack on their Heybaos. They even have this Peanut Cacao Heybao that looks absolutely decadent too.
7. They ‘SAUCED’ it with up their vibrant-looking sauces and dips.
I like that they put in effort to offer an exotic combination of sauces and dips that probably could not be found anywhere else but here. With the sauces and dips available, you can be sure that your grain bowl would not end up looking too dry.
7. They serve this sexy vegan soft serve which tasted so good!
If you have some room for desserts after a meal, don’t forget to try their Black Hawaiian soft-serve which is a vegan Coconut Charcoal soft serve. To me, it tasted just like a super-dense dark chocolate soft serve and I love it to bits. I actually wish that they filled the cup with soft-serve all the way to the top.
But remember to rinse your mouth after eating their Black Hawaiian
You wouldn’t be looking sexy with a set of black-stained teeth either.
Healthy grain bowls for lunch with pals at 12pm tomorrow? Leave some room for the Black Hawaiian soft serve too!