Venture to sell fast food — with a twist

Burger Plant founder and chef Thomas White shows some of his vegan sauces. PHOTO: SUPPLIED

The young chef is launching his new vegan burger venture in February on the former site of Golden Sun takeaways, in North Dunedin.

It is a step up for the 21-year-old vegan food enthusiast, who has a loyal following for his legume-based burgers through his Otago Farmers Market stand Straight Up Vegan.

The burgers are gaining in popularity, 75 to 100 selling on an average weekend.

Mr White said although the patty was the same, each burger was different depending on personal preference.

"I don’t want to make burgers that mimic meat ... rather it is plant-based food that tastes great."

When he is not working at the Long Dog Cafe in St Clair, he spends time prepping his burgers and producing his sauces at Artisan Pantry, a shared space for budding food producers.

Unlike other ethical and vegetarian food outlets such as Lord of the Fries, the focus is purely vegan for traditional fast food staples such as shakes, doughnuts and fries, he said.

"Food tastes are changing. People are taking a much more active interest in plant-based foods ... so we are definitely filling a need in the market."

He said his present customer base also included a healthy number of university students, an age group with a growing number of vegans and with more adventurous tastes.

The move to vegan was an interesting one for Mr White, who grew up on a sheep and beef farm near Tapanui, in West Otago.

He said his parents had been highly supportive, although he appreciated the risk of moving into relatively uncharted food territory.

"I don’t really like working for other people so starting my own business was always on the cards. I’ve made mistakes and I’ll likely make more, but it’s a learning curve."

Learning is also at the heart of his move into part-time teaching at John McGlashan College, supporting his former mentor Duncan McLean, the school’s new food teacher.

"I’m looking forward to that, to helping instil some passion for food with the next generation of potential chefs."