[Meat Free January] Veggie Burger from Tommi's Burger Joint

Tommi's Burger Joint on Thayer Street, just a hop, skip, and a jump from Oxford Street, is normally a place of banging rock tunes, smoking grilled beef patty frenzies, and crazy/smiley Icelandic chefs.

Tommi's Burger Joint Veggie Burger

This visit is altogether more muted, it's like my senses have been dulled from the lack of meat over the last three weeks (I'm under a week away from the end of my self-imposed burger-free wilderness of meat free January), and the familiar, comforting steak and bearnaise steam that usually fills the restaurant is thinner, somehow less welcoming.

Right, man up. It's veggie burger time, and I'm going in.

Price: £5.90

For your dollar, you get a spiced veggie bean burger, wrapped in breadcrumbs, which is then deep-fried. It's accessorised with the same slice of tomato, strips of iceburg lettuce, and bun that you get with the carnivorous version of Tommi's burger, but with an additional slathering of sweet chilli dressing on the bun.

Q: What three letters don't you want to see on your burger wrapper?
A: VEG!

I opted for a slice of american cheese as well (and nearly a slice of bacon, my server *almost* convincing me that bacon doesn't count...!)

A veggie burger at Tommi's Burger joint, yesterday.

It's my first spicy bean burger that I've had in the London, and I'll say this straight up - it doesn't look massively appetizing - like it's been thrown together rather than constructed...

Biting through the burger is more satisfying, the exterior of deep-fried breadcrumbs is nice and crunchy yielding to a soft interior, but the taste is one dimensional, generic 'spicy mush'. The sweet chilli dressing is thin and sharp, the cheese can barely be tasted. In short, it's not great.

I followed up with my server on how they make it and her confession was it was from the a well known supermarket - not made fresh on site.

I'm not surprised.

You don't come to Tommi's for a veggie burger - nor should you, in my view.