The most popular vegan burger offered by a chain restaurant is Burger King’s Impossible Whopper.
Although it is not vegan by default (you will need to request for no mayo and no cheese), it’s a pretty decent vegan fast food option that tastes pretty darn good.
But at $7-$9 per burger, it’s also not what I would consider “cheap” at a fast food chain restaurant. And the limited veggies that they typically add on there make it feel like you are primarily eating an Impossible patty with some bread–not a full on burger with all the vegetable fixings.
So when I crave a vegan burger, there’s only one chain restaurant that I go back to all the time–The Habit Burger Grill.
The Habit offers a vegan burger called the “Veggie Burger” and it beats out the Impossible Whopper by a lot.
You wouldn’t think it’s vegan, since most places that offer “Veggie Burgers” are really vegetarian (adding eggs, cheese, or something else to make it vegetarian). But The Habit’s burger checks out as a full vegan burger.
Their website states that their Veggie Burger has a vegan patty.
And when checking their nutrition menu online, I can confirm that their burger–from the wheat bun down to the sweet mustard dressing–is vegan as well.
Here, I’ll break down what I love about this vegan burger and what keeps me coming back for more.
The bun
Let’s start at the “top” with the bun.
The sesame seeded bun that is stereotypical to burgers is pretty good, but The Habit doesn’t bother with that on their Veggie Burgers. Instead, they enclose their burgers with a brown wheat bun.
The Habit’s wheat bun reminds me of the wheat buns that the Cheesecake Factory offers in their bread baskets. They are soft, fluffy, and sweet, and are sprinkled with wheat bran on top. Additionally, the bun comes toasted on the inside, giving the burger a toasted flavor and crunch.
So although it’s not typical to serve a burger on a brown wheat bun, The Habit makes it work on their Veggie Burger and it tastes so darn good.
The veggies
The Habit’s Veggie Burger comes with whole pieces of lettuce, cucumber, and tomato, which always look and taste fresh.
What’s great about The Habit is that you can add on and customize your order of these existing veggies at no additional charge.
So I always ask for extra lettuce, cucumber, and tomato, and they generously pile those extras on to make my burger bigger and more filling. Again, this is all at no additional charge.
You can also add raw onions to the veggies (their grilled onions are not vegetarian nor vegan), but I am not a fan of raw onions on my burgers, so I skip that. Mushrooms can be added at an additional cost, but I skip that also.
Overall, I give The Habit multiple thumbs up for not only providing huge, fresh pieces of vegetables in their Veggie Burger, but for also allowing their customers to add additional veggies for free for those of us who just love our vegetables.
The patty
Unlike Burger King, The Habit’s Veggie Burger does not use an Impossible patty. Instead, they have their own vegan patty made of vegetables, barley, and other vegan goodness.
Because their patties are loaded with vegetables, they definitely do not try to be like a piece of fake meat, which I can appreciate. I don’t necessarily miss the taste of meat, nor feel like I need to eat a burger that mimics ground beef, so I deeply enjoy a vegan burger that’s not trying to hide the fact that it’s vegan.
The patties themselves are seasoned well and have great flavor. They aren’t too salty, and also aren’t very greasy, and I enjoy them so much that I’ll usually eat it by itself (without the bun).
The sauce
The sweet mustard dressing that comes with The Habit’s Veggie Burger is very different from the typical mustard and ketchup that is usually served with burgers (the Veggie Burger actually doesn’t include ketchup at all).
The sauce actually (surprisingly) tastes more like a watery mayonnaise, which is why for the longest time, I questioned whether their burger was full vegan.
But their nutrition menu online confirms that this sauce is really vegan:
While the sauce is good, it does lean a bit more on the watery side, and that takes away from the crunchiness of the toasted brown wheat bun by making it all soggy. So I personally always custom order my burger without the sauce, and still, the burger tastes just fine.
The calories and macros
I’m not afraid to say that I do watch what I eat. I personally aim for 80-90 grams of protein per day and around 1400 calories (or about 450 calories and 30 grams of protein per meal, 3 times a day).
What I love about The Habit’s Veggie Burger is that it comes in at 470 calories with 28 grams of protein. This means I am able to get pretty much the exact amount of calories and protein that I typically aim for in a given meal with just their burger alone.
This I find rare, since most chain restaurant burgers are high in calories with not enough protein, so I can definitely appreciate their macro-friendly and health-conscious approach.
The price
The Habit’s Veggie Burger comes in at around $6-$7, which is cheaper than Burger King’s Impossible Whopper.
Yes, this bougie-ass Cheesecake Factory-like breaded burger with a sweet mustard dressing is cheaper than a drive-thru burger.
And with the option to double up on the already generous portion of veggies to create a tower of a burger, The Habit’s Veggie Burger is also more bang for your buck, compared to Burger King’s Impossible Whopper.
The takeaway
I’ve tried many vegan burgers–at chain restaurants and independent restaurants–but The Habit is where I always seem to go back to, not only for the taste, but also for the price.
Additionally, I never get that chain restaurant feeling of guilt after eating at The Habit. You know what feeling I’m talking about–that feeling like you ate way too much unhealthy food in one sitting.
The Habit’s Veggie Burger has proven itself to be a healthy vegan option without sacrificing portions, flavor, or your wallet.
I highly recommend trying this burger if you haven’t already, and joining me in saying that this is the best vegan burger at a chain restaurant in town.
