Veggie Burgers At WDW-- we miss Boca!

[krishouse]

Hey everyone,
I am just trying to get opinions on the "NEW" veggie burgers at WDW. I do realize that these burgers are not brand new but they were new to our family on this trip. Our family did not like the brand at all, even after topping the new burgers they ended up in the garbage.

I was just wondering if everyone else misses the Boca burgers as much as my family of 5 did on this trip? We also were very sad to see the Veg Chili taken off of the menu at Columbia Harbour House..... I wrote an email to Disney giving a heads up that as a family of vegetarians we are feeling weeded out and received a reply quickly which was nice. I was invited to call and discuss the matter but thought I would gather other opinions from the boards ....

I was happy to have wonderful meals on this trip including San Angel Inn at Epcot, Tusker House at Animal Kingdom and of course Boma at AKL. When planning our trips I look at menus often and we look forward to eating out while on vacation...
Our family was so sad to lose our beloved veggie burgers, at Counter Service Restaurants we have very little options. Tofu dogs would be an amazing option but I realize that they may be too costly..... any ideas of what you would like to see offered to vegetarians/vegans?
Thanks everyone!
Kristin

 

[minniebride]

They actually used to sell tofu dogs at a CS restaurant in the old Wonders of Life pavilion. This was several years ago. The tofu dog was really tasty there!

 

[krishouse]

They actually used to sell tofu dogs at a CS restaurant in the old Wonders of Life pavilion. This was several years ago. The tofu dog was really tasty there!

Really??? I never knew that!!! Oh if only they would bring them back!!

 

[sean14]

My sister is a strict vegetarian. I am sad to hear this as it is always hard for her to find food she ENJOYS on vacation

 

[juliebean]

I had the veggie burger at Liberty Inn last week, I liked it.

 

[seetheworld]

I had the veggie burger at Liberty Inn last week, I liked it.

Was it flaming green like the one like the other veggie burgers around WDW?

 

[seetheworld]

Hey everyone,
I am just trying to get opinions on the "NEW" veggie burgers at WDW. I do realize that these burgers are not brand new but they were new to our family on this trip. Our family did not like the brand at all, even after topping the new burgers they ended up in the garbage.

I was just wondering if everyone else misses the Boca burgers as much as my family of 5 did on this trip? We also were very sad to see the Veg Chili taken off of the menu at Columbia Harbour House..... I wrote an email to Disney giving a heads up that as a family of vegetarians we are feeling weeded out and received a reply quickly which was nice. I was invited to call and discuss the matter but thought I would gather other opinions from the boards ....

I was happy to have wonderful meals on this trip including San Angel Inn at Epcot, Tusker House at Animal Kingdom and of course Boma at AKL. When planning our trips I look at menus often and we look forward to eating out while on vacation...
Our family was so sad to lose our beloved veggie burgers, at Counter Service Restaurants we have very little options. Tofu dogs would be an amazing option but I realize that they may be too costly..... any ideas of what you would like to see offered to vegetarians/vegans?
Thanks everyone!
Kristin

I couldn't agree with you more. The veggie burgers we had at WDW these last two weeks were terrible! Those gross green things are awful! I miss the great burgers at Cosmic Rays and Sci-fi! We just returned from a 2 weeks visit this week and all I could find are those gross new veggie burgers. I was so sad!

 

[HunnyJar]

I totally agree with you! I miss the Boca burgers.. I do not like the newer ones at all. I will eat them, but I seriously smother the burger with toppings. The veggie wrap at Cosmic Ray's will probably be my new go-to item since the switch over. We usually eat there twice each trip so I might order the veggie burger, but like I said I'll be hitting that toppings bar. Luckily, Cosmic Ray's has a super toppings bar.

If you like veggie sloppy joes, I read that The Fountain at the Swan serves them. If we get a chance this up coming trip I'll be trying that out! I'm really sad to hear that they took away the vegetarian chili from Columbia Harbor House! If we headed back there in September that was the item I was planning on ordering. I don't know if it is the combination of the broccoli slaw and hummus or too much of the broccoli slaw, but I was not a fan of the veggie sandwich there. There was so much slaw on my sandwich I couldn't even really see the hummus.

I would love to see a vegetarian option at Yakitori House! I love the setting there and the food for my family is great - but I don't want to order just rice and a side salad for my meal. A nice vegetarian udon or veggie tempura would be great! I feel like a lot of the CS available in the World Showcase is lacking vegetarian and vegan options. We know on one of our Epcot days we will be going to Sunshine Seasons - great tofu noodle bowl there! But we don't necessarily want to eat their twice in one trip again. Which is why we might be checking out the Fountain.

 

[krishouse]

thanks everyone for replying!!
I am going to call this week and plea the case of the veggie burgers!!

 

[Kitten<3Duck]

I don't agree. I really dislike Boca. I hate anything made of that squelchy, chewy textured vegetable protein. It's fake meat! I'm a vegetarian because I find meat disgusting, and I certainly don't want to eat anything that reminds me of it. Fake meat anything makes me gag, especially if it has that awful firm meaty texture.

I love veggie and bean burgers because it's just a cake shaped mass of veggies. I'm really happy with their choice to switch. And I'm pretty sure the bright green is from the large amount of broccoli in it.

 

[HunnyJar]

I don't agree. I really dislike Boca. I hate anything made of that squelchy, chewy textured vegetable protein. It's fake meat! I'm a vegetarian because I find meat disgusting, and I certainly don't want to eat anything that reminds me of it. Fake meat anything makes me gag, especially if it has that awful firm meaty texture.

I love veggie and bean burgers because it's just a cake shaped mass of veggies. I'm really happy with their choice to switch. And I'm pretty sure the bright green is from the large amount of broccoli in it.

Well, the main reason I dislike this newer burger is the flavor. I'm all for having vegetables and grains in a veggie burger, but the flavor was off for me. It reminded me of almost burnt garlic taste. I just don't care for that.

I will say that Denny's Amy's veggie burger is very good and nope, it's not a Boca style burger. And honestly, one of the big draws for Boca for me is that it seems like it's a lot harder to screw up when cooking than other patties. So many times I will go to a place that has a Gardenburger and it's just not cooked properly. The texture from the Boca seems to lend itself to easier cooking for NON-vegetarian/vegan cooks.

Just my opinion.

 

[krishouse]

Well, the main reason I dislike this newer burger is the flavor. I'm all for having vegetables and grains in a veggie burger, but the flavor was off for me. It reminded me of almost burnt garlic taste. I just don't care for that.

I will say that Denny's Amy's veggie burger is very good and nope, it's not a Boca style burger. And honestly, one of the big draws for Boca for me is that it seems like it's a lot harder to screw up when cooking than other patties. So many times I will go to a place that has a Gardenburger and it's just not cooked properly. The texture from the Boca seems to lend itself to easier cooking for NON-vegetarian/vegan cooks.

Just my opinion.

I totally agree!!! I am not looking for a "fake meat" texture, heck I would rather have a portobella mushroom on a bun... the problem with the new burgers I personally found was the taste. I had a hard time disguising the taste..... I am all for having options for vegetarians!!!! I did not have a feeling that the new veggie burgers were filled with a vegetable goodness, in fact they had a chemical taste IMHO...and I agree with the cooking of different patties, either cold or soggy.
To each their own, I am glad that you enjoyed them!
Kristin

 

[Kitten<3Duck]

I totally agree!!! I am not looking for a "fake meat" texture, heck I would rather have a portobella mushroom on a bun... the problem with the new burgers I personally found was the taste. I had a hard time disguising the taste..... I am all for having options for vegetarians!!!! I did not have a feeling that the new veggie burgers were filled with a vegetable goodness, in fact they had a chemical taste IMHO...and I agree with the cooking of different patties, either cold or soggy.
To each their own, I am glad that you enjoyed them!
Kristin

Portobellos would be an AWESOME choice. I'm really surprised it isn't offered! Grilling mushrooms isn't too difficult or time consuming, and I know I'd be willing to pay a little extra for something so tasty.

And yes, veggie/grain based patties are often not cooked correctly. I've gotten my fair share of soggy patties at restaurants... that's what you get when they just microwave them.

I haven't had the new Disney veggie burgers within the park yet, but I've bought them at the grocery store. They're the vegan Gardenburger veggie medley, if I recall, or at least extremely similar... I do know Gardenburger makes them, though.

All I want to know is how Disney prepares them - are they grilled or microwaved?

 

[HunnyJar]

Portobellos would be an AWESOME choice. I'm really surprised it isn't offered! Grilling mushrooms isn't too difficult or time consuming, and I know I'd be willing to pay a little extra for something so tasty.

And yes, veggie/grain based patties are often not cooked correctly. I've gotten my fair share of soggy patties at restaurants... that's what you get when they just microwave them.

I haven't had the new Disney veggie burgers within the park yet, but I've bought them at the grocery store. They're the vegan Gardenburger veggie medley, if I recall, or at least extremely similar... I do know Gardenburger makes them, though.

All I want to know is how Disney prepares them - are they grilled or microwaved?

The ones from Cosmic Ray's, Liberty Inn and Restaurantosaurus were cooked on a flat top. They had that crust on them - two places (Restaurantosaurus and Liberty Inn) had the outside almost burnt but somehow the inside was mushy and gross. Hence that burnt garlic taste. I'm almost positive it must have been thrown in a microwave to warm it up before putting in on the flat top. Just gross. The one at Cosmic Ray's wasn't as bad, but in all honesty I used that toppings bar like crazy to try to make it taste somewhat better.

Now whether or not the TS restaurants do a better job cooking them, I don't know. But I gotta tell you, I'm not looking forward to the burgers. A portobella burger would be fantastic - I know you can get them at Rainforest Cafe, but then it's a Landry's restaurant and not a Disney restaurant.

 

[HunnyJar]

I totally agree!!! I am not looking for a "fake meat" texture, heck I would rather have a portobella mushroom on a bun... the problem with the new burgers I personally found was the taste. I had a hard time disguising the taste..... I am all for having options for vegetarians!!!! I did not have a feeling that the new veggie burgers were filled with a vegetable goodness, in fact they had a chemical taste IMHO...and I agree with the cooking of different patties, either cold or soggy.
To each their own, I am glad that you enjoyed them!
Kristin

Yeah, it did have somewhat of a chemical taste to it.. I have no idea what it was. I just know, I didn't like it at all. Mushroom burgers or eggplant sandwiches would be a wonderful addition to any of the menus!

 

[krishouse]

I know that the veggie burgers are "Malibu" garden burgers..... just not done well; I hope that they bring back the veggie chili atleast... it stinks that the options are disappearing for vegetarians especially when there are kids and adults who would like options!

 

[Kitten<3Duck]

I know that the veggie burgers are "Malibu" garden burgers..... just not done well; I hope that they bring back the veggie chili atleast... it stinks that the options are disappearing for vegetarians especially when there are kids and adults who would like options!

I looked at the ingredients and they look to be pretty identical to the veggie medley available in the grocery store... but more calories. It's not available for retail purchase anymore, though, so I'm guessing the veggie medley is a reworked Malibu and Disney still uses the Malibu exclusively? But who knows.

Well, if you're calling this week to speak to a rep, please toss in the ideas of mushrooms and eggplants as sandwich fillings... and more beans and grains for entrees!

It would be nice to think these sort of suggestions are taken seriously. I know they can't do much just because of how massive an undertaking it must be to add items to a menu, but who knows... it's not just vegetarians who eat like this, many people are taking the steps to maintain a healthier lifestyle.

 

[bumbershoot]

I'm assuming these are the ones we had in December (and also at Disneyland even back in '09 as they were serving the Malibu then). We LOVED them!

OK so the first time DS saw them in Disneyland he pitched a serious fit (it was awful) because of the visible broccoli (even though he loves broccoli). But he had them at Cosmic Rays and enjoyed them almost as much as we did.


I like Boca *at home*. I don't like them while out b/c I get spooked that they are "real". DH thinks it's funny, but I haven't had a meat-burger in SO long that I just don't know what they are like anymore! DH is also vegetarian but not quite as long as I've been (10+ years vs 20 years), so he always get the of of inspecting my boca patty to make SURE it's boca, not meat.

 

[sociologygirl]

I also did not like the Boca burgers because they were too "meat-y". 15 years or so ago, they did have portabello mushroom sandwiches at the rotating restaurant in the Land pavillion (Garden...Grill? Grove? The name is slipping my mind). It was great - very simple, served on an english muffin. Very yummy, as I still remember it today! My kids would be thrilled to be able to get some tofu dogs, too!

 

[Willa]

My kids would be thrilled to be able to get some tofu dogs, too!

Wouldn't it be fantastic to get a tofu dog at Casey's!