An article this past week caught my eye because the words "Burger," "King," and "Whopper" were in the title, though I'm not sure they were in exactly that order. My memories floated back to the final year of college when Kathy and I were engaged. Since there were certain meals from the cafeteria that weren't our favorite—and we were never brave enough to actually put the "mystery meat" into our mouth—we often made a quick run to Burger King to each get a Whopper. We could get two of them for ninety-nine cents, or a dollar and five cents with tax. Now that was a cheap date. And it wouldn't be just a regular Whopper. Oh no, we ordered it up as "heavy everything" which meant they added a double helping of mayonnaise, lettuce, tomato, pickles, ketchup, and sliced onion. All of that extra goodness, at no extra charge! Since the burger patty was flame-broiled it tasted as though you just pulled it off your back yard grill. Forty years later we are still ordering up Whoppers, though the modern version is an anemic take on the ones we were served back then. And don't even try asking for "heavy everything" as the youngsters serving you will have absolutely no idea what you're talking about.
Enjoying a hamburger hot off the grill on a perfect day
(sometimes called Carol burgers)
Photo by David Andreasen
Photo by David Andreasen
While it is completely true that my mind took this stroll down memory lane, as it does rather often, it is not the focus of this article. What is up for discussion are the actions of a particular Burger King location in Brooklyn, New York, that accidentally advertised Burger King's new meatless Impossible Whopper but actually served customers their regular beef Whopper. Those who had ordered the meatless option because of religion or health or ethics were understandably upset at the deception. The switch was only found out when others requested the new meatless Whopper and were told they were not yet available. Oops indeed.
Which got me to thinking about the "why" of such a product in the first place. I mean, this is fast food we're talking about and not all that healthy by any means. Was this replacement a chance to make fast food healthier? As it turns out, not so much. The plant-based patty has many ingredients and additives that sound like a chemistry experiment gone rogue. Rather, the main purpose for a vegetable-based burger turns out to be mitigating supposed animal cruelty or climate change. Impossible Foods, the company responsible for producing this meatless option, has discovered a niche that caters to those whose concerns include the environment. Now, lest you think I am leading you astray, I would encourage you to read up on this in much greater detail and come to your own conclusions. These are my personal thoughts and not a scientific discussion of either meatless-meat or animal cruelty or climate change, though I have rather strong personal thoughts. But I will say that there was nothing offered in the articles I read to back up any of their statements, and there are still two sides that offer explanations to the present state of climate today. Such products offer something more than a menu item, namely giving people an option as to how they wish to view their world.
If you keep reading, you will eventually discover that many other companies are scrambling to get in on this present phenomenon. McDonald's has been experimenting with the McVegan in Europe with the intention of bringing it to the U.S. White Castle is also selling a small slider version of this burger. Carl's Jr. is offering a veggie burger from another company, Beyond Meat. Even Del Taco, Wendy's, and everyone's beloved Chick-fil-A is looking for ways to meet the demand. It seems nobody wishes to be left out of this alternative meat market.
Now, this is only one person's opinion on the matter, but from a practical standpoint I would have a difficult time justifying paying a couple bucks extra for a burger that's not really a burger. Just the other day I cooked up a few burgers on the grill that came out perfectly done and tasted amazing. Even Kathy gave her approval. While I have no illusions that it is the healthiest of food options, we can choose to buy better grades of ground beef to trim the fat on a food staple that's been around for generations. At this point in time we really don't know the long-term effects of all the ingredients and additives that are part and parcel of the Impossible Burger. But as they always say, "your mileage may vary."
The somewhat expensive Vegan Burger
Photo by David Andreasen
Okay, so some of you are wondering if I even know what I'm talking about, or if I've tasted one of these burgers. I'm glad you asked, and the answer is yes, I had a Vegan Burger last year. You may have read my Facebook post about it as a thanks for delivering some items to this particular food truck location. This would have cost about $13 if I was buying it. Was it horrible? No, but it was very spicy and that masked the fake burger for me. Would I buy one? No, I only ate it because I was hungry and it was free. Could I tell it wasn't real meat? Probably not a fair question as I already knew it wasn't, but this one didn't have any beef taste at all to my taste buds. It was more of the veggie-type burger. Do some of these taste more like burgers? The Impossible Burger is said to have the texture and even taste of a burger, and even bleeds red like a real burger. Might I like it better? Perhaps, but what's the point? I like real hamburgers and they're less expensive than the imitation ones. Have you ever heard me say that I'm an Andreasen and I'm cheap?
What I really think this all comes down to is personal preference. People are free to eat all the Impossible Burgers they care to eat for whatever reason they wish to eat them. But I'll stick to the tried-and-true beef version.
Arktander
(aka David Andreasen)
