A New Range Of Burgers -- No Longer Tasteless Hockey Pucks, Veggie Burgers Are Really Cooking These Days - Even In Beef-Oriented Restaurants

You expect to find them at those funky little health-food cafes frequented by fans of wheat germ and beet juice.

But something new is happening with veggie burgers: They're going mainstream. Look who's serving meatless burgers in and around Seattle:

-- The tony Garden Court Restaurant at the Four Seasons Olympic Hotel.

-- The 74th Street Ale House, a lively restaurant-pub in Greenwood.

-- And, yes, those monuments to beef-eating America, the Red Robin Burger & Spirits Emporiums, sprinkled throughout the region.

And that's just a sampling. There are many others - some with all-vegetarian menus, like the stylish Cafe Flora in Madison Park, others leaning mainly to meat.

The new crowd is catching up with a few early birds, such as Roosevelt Way's Sunlight Cafe, where patrons have munched on nut-based burgers for about 10 years.

By veggie burgers, we mean any meatless pattie that is served on a bun. It might be made with ground nuts, ground seeds, tofu, beans, lentils, mashed potatoes, rice, oats, millet, ground vegetables or any combination of these, plus seasonings and condiments.

At some spots, customers are taking to veggie burgers like cows to grass.

"Very popular," a staffer at the 74th Street Ale House says of that restaurant's nut burger, made from three kinds of ground nuts, ground vegetables and seasonings and served on a baguette with melted cheddar cheese, tomatoes and onions. One Seattle vegetarian who's tried many different veggie burgers rates this one her favorite.

Meatless burgers are "selling like hotcakes," says Hank Odland, owner of Hank's by the Lake in Madison Park. He uses a pre-made, frozen pattie called the Gardenburger, concocted of mushrooms, onions, oats, brown rice, low-fat mozzarella, cottage cheese, cheddar cheese, egg whites, bulgur wheat and seasonings. He's also put it on the menu at his brand-new north Seattle eatery, Hank's Beef and Leaf.

You couldn't call veggie patties a universal hit. For some burger lovers, nothing comes close to beef. At the Red Robin restaurants, which also carry the Gardenburger, sales are so-so. "We don't sell a whole lot of them," said regional kitchen manager Jeff Jacobsen. They do better, though, at sites such as the U District and Capitol Hill.

Why are meatless burgers turning up on more menus? For one thing, today's versions generally beat the tasteless hockey pucks of the past. For another, more people are thinking vegetarian, at least part of the time. Health experts' constant warnings about excess fat has probably contributed. And this year's E. coli scare also may have heightened the appeal of meatless burgers.

Whatever the reason, it's bumped up business for Believe Inc., based in Langley, Whidbey Island, and the maker of ECO-Burger veggie patties. The soy-and-vegetable-based patties are now in about 30 Seattle-area restaurants and some 50 supermarkets, said general manager Bruce Dearborn. Veggie burgers are still a "niche" item, but growing, he said.

"Bonanza" might better describe the growth at Portland-based Wholesome & Hearty Food Inc., makers of the Gardenburger. About 10,000 restaurants - locally including TGI Friday's, as well as Red Robin and Hank's - now serve them, said a spokesman. They're also at Safeway and health-food stores. Sales have doubled yearly since 1990.

Even though veggie burgers are better than they used to be, they still can't duplicate exactly beef's taste and texture, and some don't try. Instead of seeking a beef clone, some people enjoy the veggie versions' differences.

Cafe Flora celebrates the difference by putting its nut pattie in a whole-wheat bun and offering such options as melted Swiss cheese and sauteed mushrooms, with a fennel-tomato sauce.

Other restaurants aim for a more classic burger, with conventional buns and condiments.

You can do the same at home, either making your own meatless patties or buying them from a natural-foods store or the supermarket - many have them now. Most veggie burgers are found in the frozen-foods section, but some are in the produce department. Brands vary in taste, texture and ingredients; you'll need to try a few to learn which you like.

When we sampled four brands in The Times test kitchen, most tasters liked the Natural Touch Garden Pattie best; the Earthlings Tofu Vegetable Burger (teriyaki flavor) nearly as well; and the Grilled Burgers Wheat Meat patties and the Veggie Burgers brand the least. The first two were moist and flavorful, the latter two short on flavor.

The Gardenburger, not sampled, was liked by several people who tried it in restaurants (although the menu may not list it by that name).

If nutritional concerns, such as fat, lead you to meatless burgers, be sure to read the label. Some are very low in fat, others quite high. Grilled Burgers Wheat Meat has only 2 grams of fat in a 3 1/2-ounce pattie while the Veggie Burger brand has nearly 11 grams of fat in an 3-ounce pattie.

Here's how ground beef stacks up: A 3-ounce pattie of regular pan-fried ground beef has 16 grams of fat. A lean-beef pattie, otherwise the same, has about half that much.

To make your own veggie burgers, try some of today's recipes on page F 2.

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Here's a sampling of local restaurants that serve veggie burgers. Some make their own, using various recipes, while others buy pre-made, frozen patties.

-- Blacksheep Cafe, 18132 Bothell Way NE, Bothell; 485-1972.

-- Blue Planet Cafe, 2208 N. 45th St., Seattle; 632-0750.

-- Cafe Flora, 2901 E. Madison St., 325-9100, Seattle.

-- Chanterelle Specialty Foods, 316 Main Street, Edmonds; 774-0650.

-- Five Loaves Deli and Bakery, 2719 E. Madison St., Seattle; 726-7989.

-- Garden Court, Four Seasons Olympic Hotel, 411 University St., Seattle; 621-1700.

-- Hank's by the Lake, 4234 E. Madison St., Seattle; 328-1655.

-- Julia's Park Place, 5410 Ballard Ave. N., Seattle; 783-2033.

-- Mr. Ed's Cafe, 15101 Ambaum Boulevard S.W., Burien; 246-5568.

-- Red Robin Burger & Spirits Emporiums, many locations.

-- 74th Street Ale House, 7401 Greenwood Ave. N., Seattle; 784-2955.

-- Sunlight Cafe, 6403 Roosevelt Way N.E., Seattle; 522-9060.

-- Twelve Baskets Restaurant & Catering, 825 116th Ave. N.E., Bellevue; 455-3684.

-- Yonny Yonson's Yogurt and Sandwich Shop, 14725 N.E. 20th St., Bellevue; 641-6206.