When one of your favourite carnivore pizza chefs recommends a vegan eatery to try, it's probably worth a punt. Plantopia was recommended to us by Adam from Mozzarella Fellas as one of his favourite burgers in St Albans, so last week we gave it a go; and we're so chuffed that we did!
Plantopia was another lockdown baby set up by partners Alessandro and Nabil after their respective livelihoods became tested during COVID. They decided to join forces to bring "dirty" vegan food to St Albans after going vegan themselves. They were inspired by the liked of Temple of Seitan and the rise in American burgers and diner-esque eateries in London and wanted to bring a taste of that to Hertfordshire. There honestly is nothing like this around so it's great to see exciting vegan food as an option if you are in the area and even better to see that it's doing so well after only about a year! Nabil told us that they are already outgrowing their home-cooking set up and since registering on the delivery platforms have seen such a growth that they are looking for premises. That's pretty darn good news!
So now, on to the food. Which is why you're really here, innit? We ordered the Miami Burger which uses a 'Beyond Meat' Burger patty, served with lettuce, beef tomato, red onion, gherkins and burger sauce. I also added vegan cheese, facon and onion rings to mine because when you wanna be dirty, do it right bae! J ordered a Southern Fried Chick'N burger which included slaw, lettuce, beef tomato, gherkin and mayo. Both burgers came with fries and we also ordered a side of salt & pepper banana blossom as we were intrigued.
After picking up our order from their hub in St Albans, I drove (within the speed limit) to get everything home while it was piping hot!
When decanting onto plates (we are not savages!) a generous portion of fries tumbled out the bag- all perfect, crisp and super tasty. The banana blossom was also golden, crisp and crunchy. There was about 8 pieces in a portion and felt really generous too. The texture of them was like pulled pork -which is to be expected as banana blossom is touted as a great vegan meat alternative. The flavour was spicy without much depth of back-up flavour. They were certainly fiery; so much so that we didn't even touch the spicy dip that they came with. Woahzaaaa!
Now, lets get on to the main event...the burgers. I have to start with an answer to the question you are all wondering: YES the meat alternatives stood up to quality tests! The Beyond Burger "beef" burger was juicy, tender and tasty too! IT didn't taste too vegetal or too heavy on the pulses. It was delectably savoury and the entire burger -with the onion rings and vegan cheese- was mouthwateringly tasty with a perfect medley of textures and creamy versus tangy flavours. Top notch. J's Chick'N burger was delicious. The herby slaw gave excellent crunch and a fresh aroma. The Chick'N itself was slightly more dense than the Beyond Burger, however still tender with a juicy texture. It was still a really good meat alternative, fried and crisp to perfection.
We did note that we could have bought Beyond Meat patties or Chick'N burgers and made the whole meal ourselves. But the same can be said for any burger place or even pizza place. That's not the point. With burgers, the joy is that they are fast food =minimal faff. Just turn up and eat. But there is also a skill to composing the burger in the right way with just the right amount of sauces, fillings and ratios. Plantopia nail this!
Service:
Wonderful. Clear website and easy picking/delivery options.
Price & Value:
£13-15 per burger + fries seems a little high, but it is worth it. Meat alternatives aren't cheap, and the way these guys dress them up and serve them really does use them well and create a delicious dish taht is really value for money we think.
Quality:
The branded meat alternatives are probably the best on the market; salad ingredients are fresh and crisp; fries are simple and delish......whats not to like?!
Overall:
EXCELLENT- We have reviewed a lot of burgers over the past few months running this blog, and quite a few of them have been phenomenal. We can confidently say that Plantopia's are up there with the very best carnivore options and you don't even notice this is a vegan product. It's not just "good for a vegan burger". This is "good full stop!".
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