“Convenient Consciousness” with plant-based fast food
Sacramento’s newest addition to its vegan utopia is the 100% plant-based burger, fries and shake restaurant Burger Patch. Located on K and 23rd Street and open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays until 1 a.m. on weekends, Burger Patch is the new Sacramento hotspot. During busy hours, lines stream around the corner and two blocks down.
The menu at Burger Patch offers three different kinds of burgers: the single patch, double patch and barbeque “bacon” patch, all of them using the famous Beyond Meat patty. They rework the Beyond Meat into a 2.5 ounce patty for the single and double patch, while the barbeque patch is molded into a 4 ounce patty. The Burger Patch crew hand press their large patties in-house, which offers Beyond Meat fans a larger portion option than what is traditionally offered at other vegan restaurants.
The menu also offers a chick’n sandwich: The Ranch. It uses Gardein vegan “chicken” and Sweet Earth hickory-smoked “bacon.” Both the burgers and sandwiches use Daiya vegan cheese and are topped with homemade barbeque, ranch and Patch sauce (similar to a Thousand Island dressing, but with a chili-garlic kick to it).
Also offered on the menu are a few “milk” shake options: vanilla bean and chocolate — I highly recommend adding their grilled and salted chocolate chip cookie into the mix too. With their minimalistic yet diverse menu, Burger Patches makes for the perfect, guilt-free lunch and dessert stop.
The owners of Burger Patch Danea and Phillip Horn spoke about their experiences being vegan and how it transcended into owning a restaurant.
“Phillip and I have followed a majority plant-based diet for more than a decade with being 100% plant-based for the past seven years, Danea said. “I love experimenting in the kitchen to recreate recipes that are free from meat, dairy and eggs but taste exactly how I remembered them growing up. One of the meals, especially for Phillip, was a burger, fries and shake. Over time as we toyed with what a restaurant could look like, food scientists were discovering ways to create burgers based on pea protein, coconut oil and beet juice that look and taste just how we remembered.”
Burger Patch started as a pop-up location at Sacramento’s Golden One Center and quickly became one of the most popular food stops in the stadium. Safe to say, they’re meeting the same success at their brick-and-mortar location as they did at their pop-up.
“In 2017, these two ideas intersected, and Burger Patch was the first restaurant to serve the Beyond Burger in Sacramento,” Danea said. “When the line stretched to four hours, we knew that this was something people were craving. We always enjoy showing our friends and community that you can follow a plant-based diet and still indulge with a comforting meal. Burger Patch is modern ingredients with a nostalgic taste.”
The Burger Patch mission statement illustrates their dedication to the theme of their restaurant.
“When you come into the restaurant, you will see the phrase ‘convenient consciousness,’” Danea said. “We know that people are busy, and often finding a quick plant-based meal can be challenging. We want to make it easy for people to eat in alignment with their values in a conscious way that is kind to our bodies, animals and the planet. Oh, and we made it really delicious.”
With the success so far with their Sacramento location, the Horns have fielded several inquiries about potential additional locations and are open to exploring those possibilities in the not-too-distant future.
Burger Patch also plans on adding new menu items during special events, such as the “Pulled Patch.” This burger will make its debut at the BottleRock Music Festival in Napa before it joins the menu at the Sacramento location.
With plant-based foods on the rise, Burger Patch is making great waves in providing a conscious choice for the masses with their gourmet burgers, modern ingredients and nostalgic taste.
Written By: Clay Allen Rogers — arts@theaggie.org
