I have my doubts about this selling at all...

[Archae]

Burger King and a "veggie burger?"

CLEVELAND, OH (WOIO) - A burger chain wants to win over vegetarians.
Yes, Burger King is testing out a spin on its famous Whopper.
The “Impossible Burger” is plant-based and will be tested out at 59 locations in and around St. Louis.
If all goes well, the veggie burger could be rolled out nationwide.
The chain said the burger-less burger has less calories than the original beef-based burger, it’s low in cholesterol and has zero trans fat.
No meat will cost you a dollar more than the famed Whopper.

https://www.wbay.com/content/news/Burger-King-tests-out-Impossible-Whopper-508012581.html

[msongs]

1. the rest of their dreadful consumables sell ok, why not? nt

[True Dough]

2. A&W has a "Beyond Meat Burger" that is plant-based

It actually tastes pretty good and seems to be selling well. Burger King is probably wanting to cash in on that market.

[applegrove]

29. A&W also have a new plant based sausage too.

[True Dough]

38. That's right. I've just noticed those ads over the past week or so

If they're expanding that line then there must be money in it.

[Maru Kitteh]

44. I'll have to give them a try!

[smirkymonkey]

3. I'm not sure the St. Louis area is the best test market for that.

I would try somewhere on the west coast or the northeast first. Midwesterners love their meat.

[MuseRider]

16. Those of who do not love our meat

will be grateful enough to try it, even if we loathe Burger King. You might be surprised, it is one thing to be ostracized by our peers simply because of food choices but being able to join our meat eating friends would be nice.

We will see. I wonder what it tastes like or feels like. At this point I need it to be different in both taste and feel that meat.

Burger King, blech. All the rest of them blech. Still, I would go and try it.

[UniteFightBack]

28. Bare Burger has them both and you can really hook it up with toppings. nt

[Kurt V.]

19. that idea would skew the test toward a false positive

[unblock]

22. if there's one thing the fast food chains know how to do well, it's test market their food.

of course, they're not trying to convince meat eaters to switch to a veggie burger. how would that help them, anyway.

they're trying to get vegetarians to come, or make the restaurant a viable option for mixed parties that usually avoid such places because there aren't good alternatives for the one vegetarian in the group.


as a pescatarian for about a decade, i don't have great interest in trying to simulate meat, but we have tried the "beyond meat" alternative and the business of faking meat has actually come a long way since the first icky soybean patty.

i'll definitely give the impossible burger a try at some point. i don't expect burger king to be the only place you can get it.

[smirkymonkey]

30. I just thought there would be a much higher percentage of vegetarians on the

coasts, I didn't think they were going to get meat eaters to switch. I have traveled to the midwest for business and it has always been extremely difficult to arrange meals for people in our party who are vegetarians or vegans. Sure they can accommodate them, but very uncreatively and blandly. It doesn't seem to be a priority to cater to that demographic out there yet.

[unblock]

34. But that's just it, they're a national chain.

They're not primarily looking to rollout menu items only in select regions. They're primarily looking to see if somethin can be rolled out nationwide.

That's why they test market mostly in places like St. Louis, Phoenix, and Columbus.

[customerserviceguy]

42. Nope

That would give them skewed results for bringing it to the rest of the country.

Test markets ideally are in a metropolitan area that is isolated hours away from the next major metro market. With St. Louis, the closest other metro area is Kansas City, clear across the other side of Missouri. Chicago is even further away.

If this won't sell in a place famous for its barbecue, surrounded by pork, chicken, and cattle country, then it won't sell anywhere besides the bluest part of blue state markets. BK doesn't want to make that mistake. Clearly, they're not willing to subsidize it by eating the extra dollar that the plant-based burger costs.

Here's my question: Will there be a separate broiler for the new burger? Would vegetarians and/or vegans want a plant-based burger that has picked up some animal fat from the previous meat on the broiler?

[hlthe2b]

4. This isn't the usual veggie burger though. I've seen a couple of reported "spots" on it...

and its development was crowd-funded I'm pretty sure, based on initial good results. It supposedly is very similar to meat in that it has "juices".

I've not tried it, but I would... Red Robin and some other restaurants apparently already serve it.

Here's a website that tells more:
https://impossiblefoods.com/

I think the extra $1 they intend to charge may be the "deal-breaker" though, even if it is good.

[Quixote1818]

9. Interesting. I would be interested in trying it even though I am not a vegetarian.

I like most veggie burgers.

[Zoonart]

11. Here's the thing though...

Vegetarians do not want it to taste like meat or mimic meat or have meat like juices.

[hlthe2b]

13. But a lot of meat-eaters trying to cut down on red meat, will...

and I doubt all vegetarians will have an issue with juice that clearly is not from actual flesh. I've eaten my share of dry, dry, dry, dry, sawdust-like veggie burgers. I think a lot of us have and found them "wanting".

[Zoonart]

14. You have a great point.

I've had my share of sawdust burgers too.
.

[MuseRider]

18. Over the years

I have adjusted to that. I think I would be a little sick if they were juicy and chewy.

[Zoonart]

5. Been a vehetarian for 45vyears and I hate to break the news

but Burger King has sold a vege burgers for many years. While I would not seek it out, it practically saved my life over the years I had to travel for hours on the highways to visit my parents in nursing care.

[hlthe2b]

6. This is really different. See my post above...

[Quixote1818]

8. Yes, they have it at most Burger Kings. I am not a vegetarian but I really like it and order it

from time to time for something different and healthy.

[CentralMass]

37. Their standard veggie burger is pretty good.. I am rying to increase my plant based food consumption

and grab one once in awhile.

I've also tried Carl's Jr's Beyond Famous Star Burger that has a Beyond burger instead of beef. Again, it's not bad.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

7. I think it's a great idea and have to say the Beyond Burger is pretty damn good.

[ProfessorGAC]

10. The "Impossible" Comes From The Pattie Maker

A company called Impossible Foods makes them from wheat, soy and been.
The been is some sort of plant root that is really juicy, "bleeds" red, and has a taste that really resembles beef.
Found by this company around 4 years ago, but Impossible has been around 8 years.
I know I'll try one, just to see!

[UniteFightBack]

31. I believe the 'blood' is beets. nt

[ProfessorGAC]

35. Heard A Chef Today On TV

Right after I posted.
It's the been.
It's a root vegetable so it might be related to beets.
But, he said he uses it in a lot of vegetarian dishes.
He encouraged people to try it because it has the density of meat and tastes like beef.
Check out Impossible Foods website.
Pretty interesting.

[UniteFightBack]

36. Thank you I will !!! nt

[ProfessorGAC]

39. Should Have Said Heem, Not Been

The veggie used is heem!

[doc03]

12. McDonalds tried that and it was a big flop. I think they

called it the McLean.

[unblock]

24. that was quite a while ago, and it wasn't vegetarian anyway.

[doc03]

41. It was like eating cardboard. nt

[lunatica]

15. I would love to go vegetarian if I could still get the taste of meat

Even as a kid I wished there was meat flavored gum. I’d chew it all the time.

[blm]

17. MLB, well, the Mets, now have their first vegan burger vendor.

I hear the burger is the only vegan burger that ranked in the country’s top ten burgers.

[UniteFightBack]

33. This is GREAT TO HEAR !! I'm even more exited to go to Citifield. nt

[DFW]

20. I know what would hook me, but it probably wouldn't play west of Karachi

A burger with a thick slice of fresh eggplant that had been lightly soaked in olive oil, and then grilled with a big generous spoonful of Brinjal Pickle in it.

Moist, spicy, I would probably order three per visit, and not leave a crumb even if I weren't hungry. Fortunately, my wife makes them here, so I don't go wanting. Probably no one in the west would go within ten feet of one, but I could survive on them.

[Celerity]

21. BK has had veggie burgers for years, just not the Impossible Burger

https://www.bk.com/menu-item/veggie-burger

[customerserviceguy]

43. I'm not familiar with the product

Is the "burger" in that picture cooked or raw? It looks raw.

[Celerity]

45. cooked

[Wounded Bear]

23. Meh...I don't eat fast food...

Haven't in years, except maybe a couple of times when I had no choice.

Even if I do end up in a fast food joint, I tend to avoid the burgers.

[dawg day]

25. I had one of those burgers at another chain-

It did "feel" like a burger. It tasted like worcestershire sauce-- reminded me of how my mum would put that into ground beef with oats soaked in milk-- to stretch it to make it fit the family. That is, the impossible burger tastes like its seasoning. But it does really "bite" like ground beef. Impressive.

[UniteFightBack]

27. There is also the beyond burger and they both have pros and cons. Even if it sucks......

the fixins will save it.

[UniteFightBack]

26. Funny I said the exact opposite today when I read this. Vegan and Vegetarian is becoming more and

more mainstream every day....have you not noticed? Just go look in your dairy aisle at all the "milks"...ANYWAY.....Impossible Burger is supposed to be pretty damn good and with all the fixin's it's going to be great. Once in awhile I crave a fast food burger so I'm really looking forward to trying this.

[Kablooie]

32. I've had Impossible burgers before.

The chain Fatburger has them. It was charred on the outside, moist and slightly pink on the inside. I couldn't tell it wasn't a real hamburger except it was slightly dryer than regular fatburger patties. (They use high quality fresh beef) I would order it again if it was cheaper. It's almost twice a expensive as the regular burger.

[3catwoman3]

40. We get an organic chipotle...

...black bean burger from Costco. I find them delicious - add the usual burger toppings of ketchup, stone ground mustard, purple onion and dill pickle slices, and I don't miss "real" burgers one bit.