I recently tried the wonderful vegetarian options at Epic Burger, a local Chicago burger chain that is committed to natural ingredients and a more mindful eating experience. I had never been to Epic Burger before because I assumed that they didn’t have vegetarian options, but I was wrong! Thankfully, I was recently invited to try their vegetarian items and absolutely loved what they have to offer.

The Burgers

Epic Burger has had their Beyond Meat patty since July, 2017, which means that they were one of the first burger chains to adopt Beyond Meat as one of their regular burger options. You do have the ability to customize your Epic Burger with any type of patty, bread, and toppings. I tried their Beyond Meat burger as is – wheat bun, vegan mayo, lettuce, avocado, and tomato. The patty was crispy and savory – just the way I like it. I don’t love wheat buns but I appreciated the idea of having a healthier bun with a Beyond Meat burger. I thought the vegan mayo complemented the Beyond patty seamlessly. I usually don’t like plain mayo but their vegan mayo wasn’t overpowering and added a subtle touch to the burger.

The vegetarian patty did not end with Beyond Meat though! I am always excited to see when burger spots offer vegetarian patties that are actually made from vegetables! Don’t get me wrong, I love Beyond products but I prefer to eat more natural, plant-based products. I also had the pleasure of trying their Veggie Garden Ranch Burger, which is also served on a wheat bun. It would have been nice to have a different bun or just have another bun option for one of the vegetarian burgers, but it was still welcomed on this burger.

Their veggie patty is made from zucchini, spinach, carrots, peas, and onion making it a very healthy and flavorful plant-based burger. The texture wasn’t as crispy as the Beyond one but it still held up pretty well since vegan patties can sometimes be mushy. This one was far from mushy and had a great texture. Their Veggie Garden burger came with their spicy garlic ranch, which is made in house and while I usually don’t like ranch, I didn’t find it overpowering and it paired really nicely with the veggie patty.

The Beyond Chicken

The vegetarian option that I was the most excited about though was the Beyond Chicken tenders. I used to love eating chicken tenders when I was a kid and vegan chicken has been slow to follow its successful vegan burger sibling. The chicken tenders were super crispy and flavorful with a side of spicy buffalo sauce – though you can choose the dipping sauce. I love spice so I obviously chose the buffalo sauce.

Each burger came with a side of fries – one sweet potato and more traditional fries. Their sweet potato, waffle fries were crunchy and delicious, served with a side of their honey mustard. To be honest, I ended up dipping the sweet potato fries in the buffalo sauce for that spice! The regular fries were also good with sea salt and I appreciate that both are fried in canola oil, which makes it easier for anyone who has a peanut allergy to appreciate the fries too.

The Epic Shakes

My Epic Burger feast continued beyond the savory entrees into dessert! I tried their Nutella and vanilla milkshakes (not vegan) – they also have a vegan lemon sorbet one. I do hope they get a vegan milkshake in the near future. The milkshakes I did have were heavenly – especially the Nutella one – anything with Nutella is a dream to me and I found the hazelnut flavor to be so lovely after all of the salty treats I ate.

If you are in the mood for some healthy-ish and indulgent vegetarian treats, I highly recommend checking out Epic Burger for their plant-based chicken, veggie burgers, crispy fries, and indulgent milkshakes. You will not be disappointed.

• For more posts about excellent Chicago plant-based options, check them out here.