Cambodian Dog-Meat Restaurant Goes Vegan

A restaurant in Cambodia—that previously served animal products, including dog meat—recently reopened as fully vegan eatery Sabay Vegalicious. Owners Kem Soksyna and Chom Dymong (known as ‘Mong”) explained that prior to the transition, they had earned $25 to $30 in daily sales on dog-meat based dishes for five years. Marc Ching, founder of animal-rights organization Animal Hope and Wellness Foundation, approached the couple in 2016 and offered his help to remove animal products from the restaurant menu. “He came to our place and offered to finance a restaurant—as long as dog meat isn’t on the menu,” Mong told local media outlet Khmer Times. “We wanted to put an end to the slaughter, while at the same time, make a decent living for our family. So, we decided to go ahead and open a plant-based restaurant.” Sabay Vegalicious now uses tempeh and mushrooms as plant-based replacements for meat and serves shiitake-based jerky, turmeric-spiced tofu scramble, and hearty soups topped with vegan shrimp.