Vegetarians never despair when they dine out in Milwaukee. The well-known vegetarian restaurants in the city continue to please, and the growing number of restaurants and bars with vegetarian – and sometimes even vegan – options makes getting alternatives to the basic burger easier all the time.
There's a certain comfort-food component to burgers and fries, as if this food is the staple of a mythic American experience, one we don't really all share and yet remains somehow in our consciousness. And simply, Milwaukee has several great burger joints that demand to be experienced.
With all that in mind, and the idea that occasionally vegetarians might just want to eat out with their beef-loving friends, we've taken a look at the alternatives three popular Milwaukee burger joints are offering up.
The ubiquitous "veggie patty" is probably what most vegetarians have come to know as the beef and turkey patty alternative. Often little more than the "garden burger" in the frozen food section of groceries (if not that exact patty), vegetarians have traditionally been given the "flavor eff off," neglected and mistreated in the flavor department when they went out for burgers.
Replacing the veggie patty with a more interesting option, we find the black bean burger is now the main alternative to beef at Sobelman's Tallgrass Grill, AJ Bombers and Stack'd, with Bombers and Stack'd also offering a portabella mushroom sandwich.
Sobelman's Tallgrass Grill, 1952 N. Farwell Ave., offers a one-third pound black bean patty, same size as its beef patties. The veggie option, which is pre-programmed into the register, is extremely popular at the East Side burger joint.
"But not so much at the Pub; we don't get a lot of vegetarians there," says Dave Sobelman, speaking of Sobelman's Pub and Grill, 1900 W. St. Paul Ave. The patty for any of Sobelman's burgers can be replaced with the black bean.
Sobelman says that the Fresco is by far the most popular vegetarian choice at Tallgrass. The Fresco is served with chipotle jack cheese, avocado, tomato and raw onions. Sobelman jokes that it's popularity might have something to do with its color, it being a beautiful sandwich to behold, but adds that really, it has the most produce, its name is "fresh" and that he can't really explain it any other way.
"Guys are often into the jalapeno bacon cheese, gals are into the mushroom and Swiss burger and the Fresco crosses every age, gender and ethnic group in popularity," Sobelman says.
Sobelman adds that meat-eaters will order one of his signature beef burgers at Tallgrass and add the black bean patty to it, creating a double-decker sandwich of mammoth proportions.
All of the beef patties at Sobelman's come from grass-fed cows (hence the "Tallgrass" title). The grass-fed cows, a healthier mode of beef production, often goes hand-in-hand with fresher, locally-produced ingredients of all kinds, and tends to accompany vegetarian options. In addition to vegetarianism, there are lots of reasons diners would vary from traditionally prepared burger fare, including needs for gluten-free foods for celiacs and others with important dietary concerns. And sometimes, people just need to get some good-tasting variety in their diets.
People seem to equate vegetarianism with "health food" or simply a healthier diet, but that isn't always the case. It is far more complicated than that and really comes down to choice, but it is interesting to note the growth of vegetarian foods alongside healthier, more sustainable beef products.
"It might be odd to have the co-creator of a burger joint who's a vegetarian, but it produces a varied menu," says Joe Sorge, co-owner of AJ Bombers, 1241 N. Water St.
The vegetarian is Sorge's wife and business partner, Angie, who takes care of all the vegetarians at their group of restaurants, which include Swig, 217 N. Broadway St., Water Buffalo, 249 N. Water St. and the Smoke Shack, which is scheduled to open on Milwaukee Street in November 2011. Joe says that Angie also brought in the grass-fed option on their menu.
AJ Bombers' black bean burger started as the black bean cakes that are served at Swig, which became a burger at Water Buffalo, a main vegetarian staple and one of the most popular items there. At Bombers, the black bean burger is served with lettuce, tomato and the restaurant's own Bomber sauce.
Bombers' black bean can be made vegan, as well. The buns they use are already vegan, and the egg in the black bean patty can be switched out for arrowroot, which has long been a popular vegetarian cooking ingredient.
Portabella mushroom sandwiches have become increasingly popular, even among meat-eaters. The tasty fungi are thick and dense, like many a beef or turkey patty, and are often grilled with different cheeses and served on any bread a beef patty would be.
AJ Bombers' portabella sandwich, called the Stuffed 'Shroom, doesn't actually come from the grill but is offered baked or fried, with cheddar and muenster cheeses. It's compactness is misleading, because the mushroom is so dense, but it will fill you up like a beef patty twice its size.
Stack'd Burger Bar, 170 S. 1st St., also offers a mushroom sandwich, called the Portabella Stack, which is prepared in what has come to be somewhat a traditional way for a portabella, with goat cheese, balsamic tomato and red onion.
The Black Stack is the name for the black bean burger at Stack'd. It is handmade and comes with the avocado that seems to complement all the black bean burgers so well, but also with pico de gallo and cheddar cheese.
The massive-and-mushy black bean patties at Stack'd are made with (in addition to black beans) corn, jalapeno, red and green peppers, red onion, garlic and other spices.
"Secret spices. We can't give away the secret to the great taste," says Stack'd manager Trevor Danielsen. "My 11-month-old absolutely loves the black bean patty."
Sounds like another alternative burger eater in the making.
Royal has taught courses in critical pedagogy, writing, rhetoric and cultural studies at several schools in Wisconsin and Minnesota. He is currently Adjunct Associate Professor of Humanities at Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design.
Royal lives in Walker’s Point with his family and uses the light of the Polish Moon to illuminate his way home.
