Candle Cafe

This was a belated birthday present from my awesome Dad, who gave me a gift card to Candle Café back in April when I was too busy working on a film shoot to eat any veggie burgers. And then I’ve just been working too much (or camping, or going to the beach…) since then, and the upper east side is not exactly a neighborhood I find myself in very often. So it took me a few months to finally redeem the giftcard…



Someone told my dad that this restaurant was supposed to have one of the best veggie burgers in the city, and I had already had it on my to-try list too. But because it was also a birthday dinner, my friend and I had to treat ourselves to an appetizer too…


These seitan chimichurri skewers were AMAZING. If you go to Candle Café, you absolutely MUST order them!

But on to the veggie burger…



Completely vegan (like everything at Candle Café), the burger is described as a “seitan burger on seeded bun”, I splurged and paid an extra $2 for tapioca cheese… because, well, tapioca cheese! I’ve never seen or heard of tapioca cheese, and I’m always interested in trying new vegan cheeses.

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all stacked up with the toppings


This is why I normally do not have photos taken of myself eating, haha.

The bun was hearty and very seedy, slightly sweet – it tasted very good although it was a bit chewier than I expected in a burger bun. It was closer to the consistency of a chewy french baguette.

The patty itself was heavily flavored with herbs – rosemary in particular stood out to me. It was delicious, and the taste kind of reminded me of Thanksgiving stuffing. But unlike our juicy seitan appetizer, the burger was a little bit drier and breadier. It didn’t really detract from my enjoyment of it too much though, because my toppings compensated for it…



The tomatoes were perfectly ripe and juicy (it appeared that the chef had even cut out the center of one of the slices, something I myself do at home to avoid tough or green centers, but something I rarely see in a restaurant! How awesome!), the lettuce was fresh and crispy, and the onions added a nice crunch. But the tapioca cheese stole the show. Simply amazing! Perfectly melty and gooey, it tasted similar to daiya, which I have since learned (through google) also contains tapioca. Is daiya what Candle Café uses, or do they make their own tapioca cheese? Does anyone know? Either way, delicious. I normally hate paying extra for additional toppings, but in this case I would say it is definitely worth it, because including the cheese balances out the textures and moisture and elevates the burger to a much higher level.


And of course I had to order the vegan cheesecake for dessert ;)



Cost: $13 (+$2 for tapioca cheese)
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
Burger patty: 4      Bun: 4      Toppings: 5

Candle Café
1307 3rd Avenue
between 74th and 75th street
New York, NY 10021
212.472.0970

YumVeggieBurger review #67

New Bare Burger location coming to Astoria

As I mentioned in my last post, there's a second Bare Burger location opening up in our neighborhood, on the corner of 23rd Avenue and 31st Street.

We Heart Astoria has also posted about this new Bare Burger - no word yet on when it will officially open. It will be nice to have such delicious veggie burgers closer to my apartment, although given that 31st Street is right under the elevated train tracks I doubt the outdoor seating (if they offer any) at this spot will be as pleasant as the outdoor seating on 31st Avenue.

Read my review of the original Bare Burger location HERE

The Best Veggie Burgers in Astoria

This post is part of the Astoria Blog Carnival, hosted by We Heart Astoria

I have a lot of Astoria pride.
Sure, the first thing most people think of when they hear "Astoria" is "The Beer Garden!" (and I don't even drink beer)... and we may not have as many vegan/vegetarian restaurants here as Manhattan and Brooklyn do (I'd die happy if Vinnie's would open a location here)...

But I love my neighborhood. I love the people, the restaurants, the bars, the shops, the park, the bridges, my lovely apartment and front patio where I grill a ton of food in the summer...

And guess what? We have some restaurants serving delicious veggie burgers right here in Astoria:

Astor Bake Shop

This is #2 in my Top Ten list of the best veggie burgers I've ever eaten. Seriously. It's an amazing lentil patty with pickled onions and horseradish sauce on a deliciously sweet bun. Everything else from this bakery is brilliant as well, so if you've been putting off visiting because it's a bit of a walk from the more central areas of Astoria, let me assure you it is worth the trip.
[click for full review and more info]

5 Napkin Burger

Yes, 5 Napkin has locations in Manhattan as well... but it's become a pretty popular Astoria spot since it opened last year. And it's rare and awesome to find a burger place that gets tons of praise for its meat burgers but ALSO has a veggie burger equally worthy of such high praise! This one is #3 on my Top Ten list.
[click for full review and more info]

Sparrow Tavern

Don't let the pita fool you - despite the unorthodox bun, Sparrow's veggie burger is #7 on the Top Ten list. Richly-flavored and spicy, it's a delicious brunch... or dinner... or drunkfood (I think I've eaten it for all three occasions at various times).
[click for full review and more info]

Bare Burger

Of course I couldn't leave out Bare Burger, could I? This place has been such a hit in Astoria that it has now opened two (or more?) locations in Manhattan, and is opening a second Astoria location near Ditmars in the near future. Their veggie burger is hearty and satisfying - and with their extensive menu, you can choose from a variety of toppings so you'd never get bored if you wanted to come back and eat the veggie burger again and again... Which is why it's #8 on my Top Ten list too.
[click for full review and more info]

Just Burgers

A very recent addition to the Ditmars area, Just Burgers is another one of those burger joints that lets you choose from a long list of toppings to customize your burger. What makes them stand out though is their veggie burgers which are made from quinoa and fresh vegetables. I'm surprised I don't see quinoa in burgers more often, because it's great!
[click for full review and more info]

Petey's Burger

I'm always pleasantly surprised when fast-food-esque burger joints have good veggie burgers. Petey's is fast, inexpensive, tasty, and I hear they have now added a third variety of veggie burger to their menu! (I have only tried the Southwestern so far).
[click for full review and more info]

Café Bar

I came here for brunch one day and was pleasantly surprised to see a veggie burger on the menu - and a house-made one at that! Full of grains and delicious vegetables.
[click for full review and more info]

I know there are still more veggie burgers in the neighborhood that I haven't reviewed yet... Blackbirds comes to mind (I have actually eaten their burger, and remember it being quite good, but that was back before I started the blog), and I hear the newly-opened EcoTable has one on their menu as well.
What's your favorite veggie burger in Astoria?

Thanks to We Heart Astoria for the invitation to participate in this blog carnival!
Click HERE to return to the main page of the Astoria Blog Carnival.

Veggie SLIDERS!

I reviewed the veggie burger at Enid's last August, back in my early days of veggie-burger-reviewing, but recently I returned to the restaurant for drinks one evening with a friend. And after a couple whiskeys, we started to think we might be hungry for some bar snacks...

That's when I noticed this item on the menu: "Slider Trio: burger, veggie burger, pulled pork"

I eagerly asked our bartender if I could order the trio with just three veggie burgers, instead of the meat ones. Sometimes restaurants are needlessly grumpy about substitutions like that, but Enid's was happy to accomodate my vegetarian request (this is also the restaurant which says that many of their items, including veggie burgers, "can be made vegan upon request", so I should have known they would be nice like that!).



Look how cute they are! This was my first time ever eating sliders. Even before I became a vegetarian, I was not a big fan of hamburgers. And I've only heard of restaurants serving veggie sliders a couple times. So I was really excited to finally be able to order them!


In my hand, so you can see just how adorably miniature they are!

And they were just as delicious as I remember Enid's full-seized veggie burger being. I shared one with my friend and he, a meat-eater, found it incredibly enjoyable as well. Spicy, mixed vegetable patty topped with a pickle and dijon mayo, all held together with a cute little sweet-tasting bun. Perfect bar food, really! So I'd encourage everyone to request the all-veggie sliders if you happen to find yourself at Enid's

You can read my original review of Enid's HERE.



Cost: $8
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
Burger patty: 4      Bun: 5      Toppings: 3

Enid’s
560 Manhattan Avenue
between Driggs & Nassau Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11222
718.349.3859

YumVeggieBurger review #66

Does anyone know of any other restaurants that serve veggie burgers in slider form?

Happy Birthday to Carlea!

Today is the birthday of my amazing friend Carlea, and I wish her the happiest day and the best celebration possible!



Not has Carlea accompanied me to not one but two restaurants so I could gather more veggie burger data while visiting her in Maryland last summer...

But she even humored me enough to indulge my obsession when she visited NYC and we went to Thistle Hill Tavern for dinner. And she ordered the veggie burger too! What an awesome friend :)

She also bakes more delicious desserts than I can dream of, has an ice cream maker which I am insanely envious of, is one of the best writers I have ever met, and somehow manages to blog every single day, without fail which kind of blows my mind.

Happy Birthday, Carlea!

MorningStar Farms Asian Veggie Patties

So our July 4th Barbecue was a lot of fun – we had enough food to feed an army, and stuffed ourselves so full we could barely fit watermelon and pie in our bellies after all of the grilled foods were eaten.



I wanted to save room for veggie kebabs (should have taken a photo of those, but I was pretty distracted at the time) so I only ate one veggie burger (full disclosure: sometimes I will stuff my face with two when I’m barbecuing them at home!). I picked the Asian Veggie Patties, since MorningStar’s frozen veggie burgers had been on sale when I was at the grocery store that morning.



There are way more varieties and flavors of veggie burgers now than I remember when I became a vegetarian back in high school...


Frozen patty heating up on the grill

These ones are pretty tasty, I bet I would have eaten them on a regular basis as a teenager if they had existed then. The sweet-and-sour flavor is a pleasant surprise in a veggie burger. The patty consists mainly of a light-colored soy faux-meat texture, with carrots, peppers, and other bits of veggies mixed in. Oddly enough, the ingredient list says it contains not only eggs but dairy as well. Not sure why, since some of MorningStar’s other products are definitely vegan.



I loaded it up with lettuce, tomato, red onions, and pickled jalapenos on a whole wheat bun. I’m really into jalapenos on burgers these days. The result: a very tasty Fourth of July burger! I probably wouldn't want to have the sweet and sour flavor every time I eat a burger, but once in awhile to mix things up, these are a great option to have in the freezer.


I was too busy having fun to really take photos of anything other than burgers, but this accidental kinda-panorama pretty much sums up the wonderful evening we had out on the patio.

Oh, and the fireworks later were awesome too. No, not the big Macy’s ones, but the (illegal) display our own neighborhood put on which we could see over the rooftops. Really, just the perfect Fourth of July.

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
MorningStar Farms Asian Veggie Patties
purchased at Key Food in Astoria
price: on sale, 2 boxes (4 patties per box) for $7.00

YumVeggieBurger review #65

Independence Day

In case you hadn't noticed, I live in the U.S.
So in true July 4th spirit, I am having some friends over for a barbecue this evening. Most of them are meat-eaters, but I'm still stocking the grill with veggie kebabs and veggie burgers!

Ironically, though, the two types of burgers I picked up at the grocery store are probably the least patriotic I could have chosen...


Morning Star's "Asian veggie patties" and "Tomato & basil pizza burger (Italian style)"
haha, I hope they are delicious - will report back later!

Happy Independence Day, everyone!
(and a belated Happy Canada Day, too!)

Happy Birthday, Blog!

My little veggie burger blog is officially one year old now!

Yup, it's been a year since I posted my first review [of Sparrow Tavern's veggie burger].
64 veggie burgers later... I'm still blogging (and, apparently, tweeting as well). And I haven't even tried half of the veggie burgers on my to-try list (and that's in NYC alone!).

I owe a huge thanks to everyone who reads my posts (and especially those of you who leave comments - I love you dearly for it)

Here's to the next year of veggie burgers, may it be even more delicious than the last!

Red Bamboo

I love Red Bamboo – but it didn’t even occur to me to review their veggie burger (honestly, they have so much stuff on their menu I didn’t even realize they had one) until I was nearby one afternoon and wanted to grab a bite to eat before seeing Werner Herzog’s Cave of Forgotten Dreams at the IFC Center.



I’ve eaten quite a few of the numerous vegan and vegetarian dishes from Red Bamboo’s menu over the years – my favorite is the almond coconut chicken appetizer. In fact, this may have been my first trip to the restaurant where I did not order that delicious dish (if I had been hungrier, I would have!) They also have vegetarian versions of things like steak and shrimp that I didn’t even eat before I became a vegetarian, and I will admit I am still scared to try even the faux-meat versions of these things.

Their veggie burger is called the “Bamburger” – the menu notes that the soy protein in the patty contains whey, although the mayo the burger is served with is vegan… are there some vegans who don’t mind eating whey? I was a bit confused by this. Adding vegan cheese is an option as well, so it sounds like the burger could be ordered completely vegan, except for that little note about the whey... Strange.



The patty consisted of very dark-colored faux meat. It was thin and rather tough, I had to really tear into it with my teeth to take a bite, it was so dense and chewy. Not what I normally expect from a burger, but it was much tastier than most faux meat products – something I’ve noticed about nearly all of the dishes I've tried at Red Bamboo, which is why I keep going back to the restaurant even though normally I am not a huge fan of faux meat. The whole burger was very drippy, perhaps because of the sauce/marinade on the patty? It was quite flavorful, kind of sweet and sour – I liked it, but it made eating very messy.



Eating was further complicated by the bun, which was pretty average, studded with sesame seeds – but far too squishy and crumbley, and it fell apart in my hands. It wasn’t nearly strong enough to support its contents. The toppings themselves were pretty good – vegan mayo, pickles, carmelized onions, tomato, lettuce, and a serving of ketchup on the side which I didn’t touch because I personally feel that ketchup overwhelms the other flavors of a good burger, most of the time.

A tasty burger, overall – although I have to say it didn’t blow my mind the way some of the other dishes at Red Bamboo have. I will definitely stick to my favorite almond coconut chicken next time I come back!

And a side note – has anyone else noticed a surprising number of rather attractive men eating lunch or dinner by themselves, often reading a book, at Red Bamboo? Or is it just me?
I would blame its proximity to NYU, except the one time I actually got up the courage to speak to one of these attractive men, he was not a student, but was visiting from out of town.

Cost: $4.95
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆
Burger patty: 4      Bun: 2      Toppings: 3

Red Bamboo
140 West 4th Street
between 6th Ave and MacDougal Street
New York, NY 10012
212.260.7049

Oh, and Cave of Forgotten Dreams was outstanding. You should really go see it in the theater in all it’s 3D glory, if you can!



YumVeggieBurger review #64

Energy Kitchen

I’ve had Energy Kitchen on my list of veggie-burgers-to-try for awhile, so when I heard that they were doing a special promotion where all their burgers are only $5 for the month of June, I decided to move it up to the top of the list.



When I arrived at the 23rd Street location, I placed my order and was given this buzzer that would let me know when my burger was ready – I’ve seen these before at big sit-down franchise restaurants, but never at fast food places until now. There was a line of people all holding buzzers waiting for their food to be ready. I was here on a weekday at lunchtime, so this “line” was actually more like a crowded cluster of very hungry people!


This was how my burger was served – all wrapped up (doesn’t it look so round, kind of like an apple?)



The patty is a Dr. Praeger’s veggie burger – the girl who took my order said she did not know if it was vegan or not (I know some Dr. Praeger’s burgers are, but I’m not 100% sure which one this was). It was a mix of peppers, carrots, soy beans, and other vegetables. Crispy on the outside, and soft and mushy on the inside. It tasted seasoned, but nothing terribly special. Sort of like a vegetable soup. Half of it fell out of the bun as I was eating it, too.



The bun was a soft, flakey wheat roll. Pretty tasty, but once again, the girl at the counter couldn’t verify if it was vegan or not (she said she couldn’t even check… which sounded rather odd). Seems strange that such a health-conscious restaurant (Energy Kitchen boasts “nothing over 500 calories” and “everything grilled, steamed, or baked”) can’t even tell its customers what ingredients (hello, allergies???) its food contains.

The tomatoes were green in the center, but the lettuce and the avocado were good. Honestly, what saved this burger was the hot sauce packets that came with it. They gave the otherwise kind of boring flavors a much-needed kick.



Worth checking out during the $5 burger promotion this month, but I doubt I would go back and pay full price. I can buy a box of Dr. Praeger’s burgers at the grocery store and make my own, better burger at home. They had a vegetarian chili on the menu, which could be promising, and a full smoothie bar – so maybe if I came back I’d just try out a smoothie instead of a burger.

Cost: $5.00 + 99 cents for avocado (month of June only – regularly $6.99 + 99 cents)
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆
Burger patty: 3      Bun: 3      Toppings: 3

Energy Kitchen
18 West 23rd Street
between 5th and 6th Ave
New York, NY 10010
212.989.2323
Various locations in Manhattan- check website for addresses

YumVeggieBurger review #63

Wall Street Burgers food truck

I must be a magnet for veggie burgers, I swear… or maybe my decision to join twitter has bought about some good luck… Because I was just walking home from the library (because I'm a book nerd) last night when I saw a new bright reddish-orange food truck parked on the side of the street.

“A new food truck?” I thought, “In Astoria? How cool! Hmm, burgers… I bet they don’t have a veggie burger though…”
But, they did!



Frankie, the guy working in the truck, was very friendly and told me that Wall Street Burgers had just started serving food, and that they are normally in Manhattan during the day, but come back to Astoria in the evenings – and have plans to be here by the Ditmars train station quite often.

It started raining after I placed my order, so once the burger was ready I tucked it safely into my bag and hurried home – so the subsequent photos were all taken at my dining table, but the burger was still warm and fresh, I promise!


It came in a little paper tray – they covered it with foil [not pictured] so I could safely transport it home in the rain though!


On a plate now, because I like to pretend I am civilized sometimes.

Wall Street Burgers does not make their own veggie patties (I asked), but Frankie told me they are definitely vegan – although he said he would have to check on whether the bun was vegan or not. The patty was soft and juicy – packed full of veggies like peas, carrots, peppers, potatoes, and soy beans. It had a slightly spicy flavor to it, and I think it was a type of pre-made patty I have had before (it had that familiar taste to it). Not so bad, as far as pre-made patties go. Nothing beats homemade, but the excitement of getting a veggie burger from a food truck definitely enhanced the flavor for me...



The toppings you can get for free are lettuce, tomato, onion, and this tangy mayo-ketchup (definitely not vegan) dressing that Wall Street Burgers mixes themselves. Cheese is optional, for an additional dollar (right now they only have American, but Frankie said they are hoping to include more types of cheese soon). The potato roll that it was served on was soft and fresh. It’s been awhile since I had a burger on a potato roll, but they never disappoint. I’ve had potato rolls before which were vegan, so hopefully the food truck will check on the status of these and inform their customers appropriately.



It’s quite exciting to see a new food truck already including a vegetarian option. There are a lot of food trucks in this city that serve burgers, but few of them include veggie burgers. And this is the first one that I’ve spotted in Astoria.

Cost: $6
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ☆
Burger patty: 2      Bun: 3      Toppings: 3

Wall Street Burgers
spotted on the corner of Ditmars Blvd and 31st Street in Astoria, Queens
Parking in Manhattan and Astoria so far, check their twitter feed for current location

Note: the menu on their website does not list the veggie burger – but Frankie said that for now at least they are trying to offer it every day, hopefully making it part of the permanent menu!

YumVeggieBurger review #62



Do you know of any other food trucks in NYC that serve veggie burgers?
I reviewed GO Burger last summer, as well as Green Truck (but the later was only here from LA temporarily).

So, I joined Twitter...

This blog's one-year-birthday is coming up (end of the month!), so blog... consider this your early birthday present. haha.
I think the real motivation is that I finally got an iPhone and I just want an excuse to download another app for it, but either way...

I have a YumVeggieBurger twitter account now!

So follow me if you feel so inclined!
and/or post a comment with a link to your twitter so I can follow you - I'm really still figuring this whole "tweeting" thing out (and I'm still uncomfortable using that verb, but we'll see how that goes) so please give me any tips or hints you think a twitter newbie could use!