4 ms·

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.
      - scott_s 8y ago
        Nothing they said indicated prejudice against vegetarians, but rather expressed a personal dislike for a kind of food.
        Emma_Goldman 8y ago
        Given the three things I noted, I take it that it meets the definition of prejudice, per Google:'a preconceived opinion that is not based on reason or actual experience'. I don't mean prejudice in the sense of being prejudiced against minority groups. I mean it in the literal sense of the word, i.e. an unfounded prejudgement.
  - SmellyGeekBoy 8y ago
    You're attacking someone who has openly stated that they're conscious of the need to eat less meat and are actively seeking out a veggie burger that they actually like (and have finally found one that's tolerable to them). I honestly think you're fighting the wrong battle here.
  - dang 8y ago
    Please don't take HN threads into flamewars, especially not on classic flamewar topics. This is also in the site guidelines: https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html. Would you please review and follow them? We ban accounts that won't.
- Symmetry 8y ago
  For me I wouldn't say they're as good as the burgers I would normally have on rare occasion but the ones I've had were better than the sort of burger I'd expect to get at Burger King, where they're being introduced. As a heathen who likes to have things like jalapenos on my burger I think I'm quicker to embrace it than I would be if I liked my burgers straight.
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?

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.
    - scott_s 8y ago
      Nothing they said indicated prejudice against vegetarians, but rather expressed a personal dislike for a kind of food.
      - Emma_Goldman 8y ago
        Given the three things I noted, I take it that it meets the definition of prejudice, per Google:'a preconceived opinion that is not based on reason or actual experience'. I don't mean prejudice in the sense of being prejudiced against minority groups. I mean it in the literal sense of the word, i.e. an unfounded prejudgement.
- SmellyGeekBoy 8y ago
  You're attacking someone who has openly stated that they're conscious of the need to eat less meat and are actively seeking out a veggie burger that they actually like (and have finally found one that's tolerable to them). I honestly think you're fighting the wrong battle here.
- dang 8y ago
  Please don't take HN threads into flamewars, especially not on classic flamewar topics. This is also in the site guidelines: https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html. Would you please review and follow them? We ban accounts that won't.
Symmetry 8y ago
For me I wouldn't say they're as good as the burgers I would normally have on rare occasion but the ones I've had were better than the sort of burger I'd expect to get at Burger King, where they're being introduced. As a heathen who likes to have things like jalapenos on my burger I think I'm quicker to embrace it than I would be if I liked my burgers straight.

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?