Deliciously Messy Vegan Burgers

Tucked incongruously among the curry houses of Brick Lane lies the beacon of light that is Mooshies, a dazzling and colourful vegan burger restaurant. Fantastic street art that echoes the Shoreditch surroundings lines the walls, as people plop themselves down on benches and tuck into some vegan grub.

A post shared by Mooshies (@mooshieslondon) on Oct 28, 2017 at 5:01am PDT

Often the downfall of vegan or vegetarian burgers is their tameness compared to their beastly, meaty counterparts. Not at Mooshies; these burgers are overflowing monsters that might have you asking for a bib. There is simply no way to eat these things with class.

We try a few of the different burgers on offer, and conclude that the Fillet-Om-Phish and What's Your Beef? are the clear standouts. As aubergine devotees, we can't recommend the Fillet-Om-Phish highly enough; it has the crunchy taste of real fish with far more favour. Still tasty — and especially messy — is the Pulled Mooshie, but the jackfruit is just a tad too sweet to work in a burger.

There's a plethora of sides to enjoy too. The cheese sticks actually manage to taste like cheese, combining ideally with the sweet chilli sauce. That same vegan cheese is less successful when not melted, as demonstrated on the cheesy sweet potato fries;  just go for them without cheese and you'll be fine. The chickpea bites are also a nice addition, but they're not fooling us by not calling them falafel.

There's a nice selection of drinks to complement all the thick food you're scoffing — Mooshies is brave enough to stray away from the traditional craft beer formula and offer a tasty sour ale for the adventurous.

Then there's desert, with three brownies to choose from: peanut, matcha and Oreo flavours. The Oreo and peanut butter are neck and neck in terms of deliciousness, with the matcha lagging in a significant third place — let's leave this trend to green teas only. The vegan whipped cream is a slight let down too, but these are some of the occasional necessary tradeoffs, when going dairy and cruelty free.

Mooshies has so much to offer — and though it can be a little uneven — it goes big and bold with its flavours. It also goes big with its portion sizes, which we heartily applaud. You might end up a bit sticky at the end, but don't worry, Mooshies provides hand wipes on each table, so you'll leave both satisfied and presentable.