Review: Mooshies London Vegan Burger Bar

Reviewed by Zohra
The problem with being vegan is that you’ll never experience a good burger, right? FAKE NEWS!! It turns out you really can have a good burger and save the planet at the same time. Heres the truth behind the headline.
Mooshies is the definition of a hipster joint, with decor that fits the hipster title perfectly. It can be found on Brick Lane, the nostalgic home for foodies in London. Its a far cry from the rest of the street though, with no curry in sight. Mooshies is a fully vegan burger bar.

To start off the meal we ordered Guacamole. The guac was fresh and light, absolutely delicious. The consistency and the fact that it browned towards the end of our meal is testament to how fresh it was. The only gripe I’d have is that I couldn’t enjoy it to its fullest because I wasn’t a fan of the plantain chips that came with it. They introduced a sweet taste to the dish, which I didn’t appreciate. Regular corn tortillas would have made this dish a winner for me.

During my quest to experience Veganuary, Ruman was a little sceptical of all the non animal product meals I was eating. The following burger turned her into a believer.
Behold the ‘Fillet-Om-Phish’, made of battered aubergine, Mooshies tartar sauce, nori seaweed, vegan cheese and lettuce. The home made ‘tartar sauce’ in this burger made it something special. Combined with the nori and battered aubergine, I found myself wondering whether fillet-o-fish burgers really need fish in them. This was absolutely the highlight of the meal, and is a must try for anyone wanting to prove that vegan burgers can be amazing too.

Here is where I stop defending vegan food as a substitute to ‘real’ burgers. The ‘Whats Ur Beef?’ from Mooshies is the perfect example of a burger that isn’t trying to be meat, and stands on its own two buns with its own unique flavour and consistency. The burger is made up of an organic quinoa & black bean patty, mooshies burger sauce, caramelised onions, vegan cheese, gherkins and lettuce. The vegan cheese perfectly complimented the burger, and although the burger became slightly soggy at the bottom over time, the taste was so good I used a knife and fork to finish off the soggy leftovers. As with the burger above, the sauce deserves a special mention. A tangy and unique flavour, it really gave the burger a kick.

Who doesn’t like a bit on the side? Me. Let me explain.
The cheesy french fries were probably doomed for me from the start when the fries weren’t available, and I had to order sweet potato fries instead. I’m not a fan of sweetness in my main meal, so after a few sweet potato fries I was done with the dish. Most vegan cheese doesn’t melt very well, as was true in this dish. Consistency of non melting cheese aside, I wonder whether I need to go back and try the cheesy french fries with potato made fries instead.

For dessert we ordered the Oreo Brownie. It was served with non dairy cream, which was a welcome addition to the dish. As I discovered during Veganuary, Oreos are vegan, and can often save you from hunger when you need a snack. Combined with a brownie, you’d expect dessert to be phenomenal. The only thing is, I didn’t feel the brownie was great. It was a little too dry for my liking. The taste was good though, with chocolate flavours coming through. If the consistency and dryness had some more attention this could be improved.

The biggest title came last. The Colossal is a hot chocolate with a peanut brownie and vegan cream on top. It was too sweet for my liking, but I appreciated the peanut brownie.

In summary, this is a burger bar worth visiting, and the best things there are (perhaps not surprisingly) their burgers!
RATINGS
Food: 7/10
Service: 7/10
Atmosphere/Decor: 7/10
Value for money: 7/10 (£33 total bill excluding service charge // £16.50pp – we received a complimentary meal)
Overall: 7/10
Halal Status: Vegan restaurant – no meat or animal products are served. Alcohol is served.
Address: 104 Brick Lane, London E1 6RL
Nearest stations: Aldgate East (Hammersmith & City and District lines)
Discover great halal restaurants near you using the Halal Gems Restaurant Finder App. Download it for free on the App or Play Store here.
About Zohra

Zohra runs Halal Gems, the curated guide to halal dining. Their interactive magazine has reached the Top 10 on Apple’s App Store in 18 countries. She produces and presents her own TV show in the UK, The Curious Foodie , on BMTV (Sky Channel 845).
Zohra’s passion is transparency in the food chain, and she encourages people to ask ‘Whats in my food?’. Her background is in strategy and innovation, across the telecoms, media, technology, entertainment and non profit sectors.
Zohra holds an MBA from Cambridge University, and lives in London, England.
Twitter: @zkhaku