‘Food porn at its finest’ – Frost Burgers, Wood Street, reviewed

RECORD numbers have signed up for Veganuary this year, thanks due in no small part to Piers Morgan getting his vegan-hating knickers in a twist over the new Greggs’ meat-free sausage roll which launched this month.

Loud-mouthed columnist Piers brought his half-baked ideology to social media, Tweeting: "Veganuary....what new special kind of Hell is this?" He later added: "Imagine combining Dry January with Veganuary? I’d rather die."

It was a golden opportunity, so I dropped him a message with a whopper he surely couldn’t refuse - a dinner date at Liverpool’s new vegan junk food joint with a dry bar.

A refreshing break from the festive blowout of turkey terrines, meat sweats and much ado about stuffing

Frost Burgers opened its doors on 1 November, World Vegan Day, to an international online frenzy. It’s the latest venture from Youtube and Instagram star Monami Frost, the Latvian-born tattoo model, food writer, fashion designer and vlogger. Monami’s new fast food pit stop on Wood Street boasts 100% plant-based street food and with a faithful following of 37.9K on Instagram after just two months looks set to catch up with her own 1.5 million strong tribe of online fans. 

Frost Burgers’ menu offers four different types of vegan burger - Beef Free, Chicken Free, Fish Free and Falafel - and flicking through their Insta feed is food porn at its finest.

I love big buns and I cannot lie. But having dabbled with vegetarianism in the past and chewed through a few flavourless meat substitutes - including a BBQ burger that actually bounced off Uncle Bob’s patio during the summer of ‘99 - I had some reservations. How would Frost Burgers’ bap chat measure up in the real world?

Alas, I had heard not a peep from Piers, so I persuaded a fellow carnivorous companion to join me for dinner with the promise of something new and a refreshing break from the festive blowout of turkey terrines, meat sweats and much ado about stuffing.

Tucked away down one of Ropewalks’ hippest avenues, Frost Burgers is a laid back eaterie with industrial decor, bold graffiti wall art and basic seating for about twenty people. We were lucky to grab an empty bench and after getting in our orders for the Scorpion Spicy Beef Free burger meal (£10.95 with fries and a drink) and a Chicken Free burger meal (£9.95 with fries and a drink), the place was packed with a big queue and a 25 minute wait for food.

I felt a bit fraudulent that I was taking up a table from a real vegan; I couldn’t imagine an angry mob of plant eaters but concentrated on not blowing my cover just in case. Eyeing up diners chomping into their juicy burgers fired up my appetite and when our order number was finally called, I jumped up like a bingo winner.

I unwrapped the ‘Scorpion’ like a kid at Christmas. With two burger patties and hot ‘cheese’ in between, this beast was packed with red onion, tomato, gherkins, lettuce, more ‘cheese’, jalapeños and a mighty fit chipotle sauce. It was too big to tackle with good manners so I closed my eyes and went in for the (vegan-friendly) kill.

I really should have kept the burger in its wrapping to protect my dignity, as the sauce shot out across my face and drizzled through my fingers. Somehow, I even managed to get some down my neck. I always thought that vegans were clean living folk, but this was the messiest and dirtiest food I’d ever eaten. And damn tasty too. Burger me, it really was food porn at its finest.

My dining partner was in a similar state with the chicken-free burger, although the gluten-free bun wasn’t up to the challenge and the top half had broken up into pieces. Man down. 

We polished off the last scraps of those perfectly seasoned fries with some kick-ass sriracha mayo dip and turned our attention to something sweet. The chocolate Frost Shake (£4.95) was rich and dreamy with the perfect thickness, while the Frosty ice cream (£3.95) was a convincing player for dairy vanilla, a soft and smooth scoop with a refreshing finish.

In addition to promoting the vegan diet, it’s great to see that Frost Burgers are trying to operate ethically in every way; most of the packaging with our meal was recyclable or compostable and the ‘Karma Cola’ soft drinks were fairtrade and organic, with a hand can crusher that provided an amusing challenge for daring diners.

Far from a fad, Frost Burgers is here to stay and a move into bigger premises would be great news for vegans and non-vegans hungry for a more ethical type of fast food. I can’t say that I’m ready to make a permanent change just yet, but if you think there’s no life without meat then think again.

And Piers - burger off and stick with McDonalds mate.

Frost Burgers, 58 Wood Street, Liverpool, L1 4AQ

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