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As a vegetarian and former meat eater, I've had an "impossible taco" a couple of times. I don't want or crave meat, but they tasted very good. However, the text

As a vegetarian and former meat eater, I've had an "impossible taco" a couple of times. I don't want or crave meat, but they tasted very good. However, the texture totally weirded me out and both times I checked more than once to make sure they didn't accidentally serve me meat. I would wager a meat eater wouldn't know the difference if they were accidentally served these vegetarian tacos instead of beef.

odyssey7 8y ago
In a fast food environment, as a vegetarian, I don’t think I would order this unless there was an easy way for me to verify which burger I was eating.
- deleted 8y ago
  [deleted]
- docbrown 8y ago
  Also as a vegetarian, there is a clear difference in the earlier veggie patties that Burger King served—Morning Star possibly, not these—and that of a regular whopper meat patty.
- Forbo 8y ago
  I still would. It still signals to the restaurant that I want the non-meat option. If they slip up, oh well, and at that point it would be more wasteful for me to throw the "real" burger out.
patothon 8y ago
I eat meat and occasionally eat impossible burgers to reduce my meat consumption, and you can definitely tell. Just not as good.
- Schiphol 8y ago
  Another vegetarian here who cannot tell the difference. I guess not having had meat in a few years helps make the effect realistic.
- tialaramex 8y ago
  Yeah, the place in Brixton that sells these has made a big deal every time I've eaten there about how hey, this doesn't have meat in it, and I'm like "I know, believe me, if you made burgers with meat that were like this I would never eat here again". It's passable, but it is not good. Like you I'm conscious of the need to consume less meat, and these burgers are a step, but let's hope this isn't the destination. They've taken the "veggie burger" from "actually I've changed my mind, I'm not hungry after all" to reluctant acceptance.
  - Emma_Goldman 8y ago
    "They've taken the "veggie burger" from "actually I've changed my mind, I'm not hungry after all" to reluctant acceptance." This sounds like small-minded prejudice. Of all of the ingredients with which you can make veggie burgers, you would refuse all of them? Keep in mind that you can make burgers out of virtually anything.
    - macintux 8y ago
      Someone who repeatedly tries veggie burgers is prejudiced against the concept? Or simply hasn’t found one they like? Per the HN guidelines: > Please respond to the strongest plausible interpretation of what someone says, not a weaker one that's easier to criticize. Assume good faith.
      - Emma_Goldman 8y ago
        Note three things about the statement. It's not said in the first-person about their subjective preference but tout court. They are not speaking about particular veggie burgers, or the veggie burgers they happened to have tried, but about 'veggie burgers'. And their judgement is categorical, not one of degree. I simply doubt that any such statement is justified. In my experience vegetarianism evokes a great deal of cultural small-mindedness. That is simply an empirical observation. So it was my best guess - given that the statement was so absurd, for the three reasons above - for what was going on here. You'll notice I didn't say that they were small-minded, I said that their statement read as such. As for the guidelines. I think you should generally assume good faith. But if you see someone express a common prejudice it can also be helpful to call that out. I don't believe in the 'principle of charity' as its stated there. I think you should engage accurately with the arguments that your interlocutor presents, not with an alternative version of it.
- DennisP 8y ago
  Have you had the new 2.0 version? Reviews say it's much better. They're still rolling it out to retailers.
  - patothon 8y ago
    Unsure. Last time had one was a few weeks ago. So maybe?
imtringued 8y ago
>I would wager a meat eater wouldn't know the difference If this is true the processed food industry would no longer use real meat if the fake meat is cheaper.
- SmellyGeekBoy 8y ago
  At the moment the "fake meat" is much more expensive. But the price will come down as economies of scale kick in. Incidentally, as a meat eater I'd stop eating it tomorrow if this was the case (bring on the healthy and eco-friendly bacon, sausages and steak!). Substitutes like Quorn mince in a chili are already more than acceptable to me.
axaxs 8y ago
I ordered an Impossible burger without knowing about the brand, I thought it was just what the restaurant called it. I never suspected a thing until I later read somewhere about the brand Impossible. So, in my case, you're right.

odyssey7 8y ago

In a fast food environment, as a vegetarian, I don’t think I would order this unless there was an easy way for me to verify which burger I was eating.

deleted 8y ago
[deleted]
docbrown 8y ago
Also as a vegetarian, there is a clear difference in the earlier veggie patties that Burger King served—Morning Star possibly, not these—and that of a regular whopper meat patty.
Forbo 8y ago
I still would. It still signals to the restaurant that I want the non-meat option. If they slip up, oh well, and at that point it would be more wasteful for me to throw the "real" burger out.

patothon 8y ago

I eat meat and occasionally eat impossible burgers to reduce my meat consumption, and you can definitely tell. Just not as good.

Schiphol 8y ago
Another vegetarian here who cannot tell the difference. I guess not having had meat in a few years helps make the effect realistic.
tialaramex 8y ago
Yeah, the place in Brixton that sells these has made a big deal every time I've eaten there about how hey, this doesn't have meat in it, and I'm like "I know, believe me, if you made burgers with meat that were like this I would never eat here again". It's passable, but it is not good. Like you I'm conscious of the need to consume less meat, and these burgers are a step, but let's hope this isn't the destination. They've taken the "veggie burger" from "actually I've changed my mind, I'm not hungry after all" to reluctant acceptance.
- Emma_Goldman 8y ago
  "They've taken the "veggie burger" from "actually I've changed my mind, I'm not hungry after all" to reluctant acceptance." This sounds like small-minded prejudice. Of all of the ingredients with which you can make veggie burgers, you would refuse all of them? Keep in mind that you can make burgers out of virtually anything.
  - macintux 8y ago
    Someone who repeatedly tries veggie burgers is prejudiced against the concept? Or simply hasn’t found one they like? Per the HN guidelines: > Please respond to the strongest plausible interpretation of what someone says, not a weaker one that's easier to criticize. Assume good faith.
    - Emma_Goldman 8y ago
      Note three things about the statement. It's not said in the first-person about their subjective preference but tout court. They are not speaking about particular veggie burgers, or the veggie burgers they happened to have tried, but about 'veggie burgers'. And their judgement is categorical, not one of degree. I simply doubt that any such statement is justified. In my experience vegetarianism evokes a great deal of cultural small-mindedness. That is simply an empirical observation. So it was my best guess - given that the statement was so absurd, for the three reasons above - for what was going on here. You'll notice I didn't say that they were small-minded, I said that their statement read as such. As for the guidelines. I think you should generally assume good faith. But if you see someone express a common prejudice it can also be helpful to call that out. I don't believe in the 'principle of charity' as its stated there. I think you should engage accurately with the arguments that your interlocutor presents, not with an alternative version of it.
DennisP 8y ago
Have you had the new 2.0 version? Reviews say it's much better. They're still rolling it out to retailers.
- patothon 8y ago
  Unsure. Last time had one was a few weeks ago. So maybe?

imtringued 8y ago

>I would wager a meat eater wouldn't know the difference If this is true the processed food industry would no longer use real meat if the fake meat is cheaper.

SmellyGeekBoy 8y ago
At the moment the "fake meat" is much more expensive. But the price will come down as economies of scale kick in. Incidentally, as a meat eater I'd stop eating it tomorrow if this was the case (bring on the healthy and eco-friendly bacon, sausages and steak!). Substitutes like Quorn mince in a chili are already more than acceptable to me.

axaxs 8y ago

I ordered an Impossible burger without knowing about the brand, I thought it was just what the restaurant called it. I never suspected a thing until I later read somewhere about the brand Impossible. So, in my case, you're right.