*BLT Burger at Veganerie Concept, photo credit: Elli & Faz
Ellie: So today we found out that Veganerie, the vegan bakery that we’ve reviewed earlier, has actually expanded into a whole restaurant called Veganerie Concept! The first thing we did? Got our butts over there and checked it out.
Faz: I was actually sitting in Veganerie a few weeks ago when I saw the owners taste-testing some savoury hash-browns. They mentioned expanding their menu, but I wasn’t expecting this! Their cafe, done up in a trendy modern industrial style, has a sweet and savoury all-day breakfast, as well as a number of delicious-looking Western and Thai dishes.
Ellie: The all-day breakfast is especially good news in my opinion, because you know what’s extremely hard to find? VEGAN BREAKFAST OPTIONS.
Faz: For real, and the menu includes pancakes & bacon, and waffles & fried chicken – two of my absolutely most favourite dishes in the world.
Elli: We didn’t find out about this place until after breakfast though, so we just finished having dinner. We each had a burger – a BLT burger and a pulled-pork burger. Both were delicious.
Faz: Delicious, and excellently put together. Like another one of my favourite cafes, Bonito Social Club, each part of my pulled-pork burger worked harmoniously with the whole. The vegan coleslaw worked beautifully with the jackfruit “pulled pork” in barbeque sauce, and the bun was soft and buttery with a slightly crispy top.
Elli: I have to say your burger slightly edged out mine, however I still loved it. I wish the bacon was a little crispier, but on the flip side it contained probably the best vegan mayo I’ve ever had in my life (also included as a dipping sauce for the fries). I also wished I would have copied you and gotten a chocolate-mint smoothie because that was crazy amazing.
Faz. Agreed on both counts. We should just stop making mayo with egg, because vegan mayo, aside from not harming animals, just tastes better. And my smoothie was perfect – deep chocolate flavour with a hint of mint, and some delicious whipped cream and chocolate sauce on top. I actually tried to lick the glass clean but that idea got messy real fast.
Elli: I like that Veganerie Concept moves a little beyond the idea of veganism as only a health choice, as the bakery mainly focused on clean/healthy eating. That aspect is still here, but there are signs all over the place saying things like “Animal Lovers” and “Vegan Revolution” (and posters of Cowspiracy on the door).
As someone who is vegan for political/ethical reasons, I appreciate some hints of that [vegan revolution] in my vegan restos.
Faz: It makes me think that the owners are actually hard-core animal lovers, and the health aspect of their store is just a ruse. But speaking of intersectionality, we do have to add the major caveat that this place is not cheap. The mains go from 200-300tbh, with the smoothies a little more affordable at 120-150tbh.
Elli: I was just about to say the same thing! It definitely doesn’t do much to move the vegan movement out of the realm of the upper-middle class, to which is has unfortunately been (falsely) assigned. There’s also not much (or any) explicit “queerness” to be found here.
Faz: On the other hand, I really appreciate the variety of space they have set up – including a place for solo diners to eat and plug in their laptops, to a huge middle-table that could seat 12 people. The wifi works perfectly and is incredibly fast, and the cafe is spacious and airy. I could totally see a university student splurging on a smoothie and studying in peace.
Elli: Yep. I think I’ve found my new “quiet-place-to-comfortably-eat-alone” space.
Faz: For real, it’s a huge improvement on their bakery in Mercury Ville. The chairs here are so comfortable. I could chill here all night. Actually, should we do just that?
Vegan-o-graphy: 9/10 | much greater variety than the bakery, and the vegan burgers were perfect.
Queer-o-meter: 2.5/5 | no explicit queerness, but there is a political edge now to their veganism and, as an openly queer couple, the service was beyond-courteous.
Where: Veganerie Concept, behind Benjasiri park right next to Emporium shopping mall
When: Open daily, 8am-10pm
Near: BTS Phrom Phong
More info on their page
