Skyline has been way out ahead in its culinary choices – beating out not just Canlis but also Burger King and MacDonald’s. We have the Mr. Caplow Burger on request in the dining room. Give it a try to have a meatless choice.
From the Washington Post: “Burger King, whose quarter-pound Whopper pushed its competitors a half-century ago to create their own two-fisted hamburgers, now plans to roll out a vegetarian version of its signature sandwich, relying on plant-based patties developed by San Francisco Bay area start-up Impossible Foods. The Impossible Whopper will be introduced this week at Burger King restaurants in the St. Louis area — in the very state that last year banned the use of the term “meat” for any vegetarian or cell-based substitutes for animal-raised meats.
No, this is not an April Fools’ Day joke. In fact, Burger King’s plan could be the impetus that motivates the highly competitive fast-food burger industry to push for more meat alternatives at a time when beef production has raised countless alarm bells for its contributions to methane production and climate change.
A Burger King spokesman told the New York Times that if the Impossible Whopper succeeds in the Show Me State, the company will expand distribution to all 7,200 restaurants nationwide. Such a move would make the chain the undisputed king of the fake-meat burger. White Castle sells an Impossible Slider at its 370-plus locations. Red Robin has just introduced an Impossible Cheeseburger at its 570 locations, and this year Carl’s Jr. rolled out the Beyond Famous Star, a vegetarian version of its signature burger featuring a plant-based patty from Beyond Meat, at more than 1,000 locations.
But Burger King will have a few difficult tests to pass before deciding to expand the Impossible Whopper to locations across the country. For starters, the veg version will cost nearly a dollar more than the original Whopper, a significant increase in the price-sensitive fast-food market. The Impossible Whopper will also have to deal with consumer skepticism as larger companies move into the meat alternatives market. What’s more, Impossible Foods took heat last year from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals for the start-up’s seemingly contradictory stance on animals: Impossible Foods wants to save the lives of countless livestock, but the company simultaneously tests the heme molecule — which is responsible for the “beefy” taste of the vegetarian patty — on laboratory rats.