Beloved Canberra restaurant Monster Kitchen and Bar at Ovolo Nishi has announced it will go vegetarian for a year from November.  

The announcement forms part of Ovolo Hotel’s launch of the ‘Year of the Veg’, which has seen their restaurants and bars across Australia and Hong Kong go vegetarian for 365 days, from Thursday 1 October in line with World Vegetarian Day.

Monster’s menu will change to go vegetarian from November, however a number of ‘Year of the Veg’ menu items are available on the menu now.

Monster has also announced the appointment of a new executive chef, Paul Wilson, formerly of Geranium in Denmark and the Great Barrier Reef’s Orhpeus Island.

Ovolo says Wilson will incorporate techniques from previous experiences to “showcase vegetables through a refined menu offering”, with fermenting and pickling to be prominent across the menu, as well as produce from the in-house kitchen garden grown by Wilson and the team.

Founder and CEO of Ovolo Group, Girish Jhunjhnuwala, said the hotel chain’s decision to overhaul its menus has come from a place of concern for sustainability and the environment.

“Dining out and enjoying tasty food and wine with great company is one of life’s simplest pleasures,” Jhunjhnuwala said.

“Good times and good intentions is how we’re evolving.”

“We want to be conscious about what we are consuming and practise environmental sustainability as best as we can, as this leads to a larger impact on humanity, not just the environment.”

Ovolo has said ‘Year of the Veg’ does not include conferences or events across Ovolo Hotels.

Monster Kitchen and Bar is open for breakfast every day 7-11am and dinner Thursday-Saturday 6-10.30pm. The bar is open every day 2-10.30pm. For more information or to book a table, visit monsterkitchen.com.au

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