Plant-based and keto-friendly pasta dishes take center stage this February as The Westin Manila presents the sixth edition of its Green Mondays program at Seasonal Tastes.

Held every Monday from Feb. 2 to 23, 2026, the limited-time offering introduces a lineup of pasta dishes designed to balance comfort food appeal with more mindful eating choices. The dishes are served during the lunch buffet and prepared à la minute at the One Dish Wonders live station, with tasting-size portions allowing guests to sample multiple plates.

“As a wellness-forward hotel, we’ve been making our own plant-based recipes and refining them throughout the years,” Executive Chef Rej Casanova shares. “For this edition of Green Mondays, we’ve taken those plant-based signatures we created and incorporated them into comforting pasta dishes that guests can enjoy without worrying about straying away from the wellness goals they set for themselves this 2026.”

Launched in late 2024, Green Mondays is both a culinary feature and a sustainability initiative, aimed at reducing excessive food production in the buffet while spotlighting nutrient-dense ingredients. The program regularly partners with local brands, artisans, chefs and restaurants, presenting dishes cooked to order and served in smaller portions.

“When you think of pastas, which most of us really enjoy, they’re also usually high in carbohydrates,” Chef Rej says. “But it doesn’t have to be that way. So, we came up with plant-based alternatives that are just as flavorful and comforting, especially timely for anyone who wants to shift to a more mindful and intentional lifestyle this year.”

Among the highlights is the Squash-onara, a plant-based take on Italian carbonara. “One of the dishes I want to highlight is the Squash-onara, a plant-based iteration of the Italian carbonara,” he adds. “We chose to use the keto coconut spaghetti to pair with a squash-based sauce to give it a similar color, since squash and coconut blend really well together.”

The dish is finished with a mushroom “guanciale,” using smoked mushrooms to replicate the bite and depth of flavor typically associated with the pork-based original.

Also on the menu is a plant-based and keto-friendly take on alfredo. Using a low-carb pasta base, the dish features a creamy cashew alfredo sauce, adapted from techniques used in the earlier Green Mondays favorite Cashew e Pepe, and topped with roasted cauliflower for added texture.

Other dishes available at the One Dish Wonders live station include an aglio olio-inspired whole wheat malunggay spaghetti with garlic confit, extra virgin olive oil, cherry tomatoes and garden herbs; semolina penne squash with pumpkin seed and kale pesto; and semolina linguini tomatoes with pomodoro sauce and plant-based burrata.

All pasta used in the Green Mondays lineup comes from local brand The Ruby Pantry. “I crafted these recipes mainly to showcase the brand’s plant-based pastas, which I think are good quality alternatives to the traditional ones available in the market,” Rej shares. “Through this, we keep Green Mondays at Seasonal Tastes a great place to explore plant-based cuisine and discover local brands and artisans.”

Green Mondays is available during the Seasonal Tastes lunch buffet from noon to 2:30 p.m. throughout February, with a lunch buffet rate of P1,900 per person.