Recently, Beyond Burger, Inc. became a publicly traded company and made headlines with a record-setting first day on the market. It’s the company behind Burger King’s new “Beyond Burger,” a plant-based alternative to its original Whopper. The plant-based movement is gathering steam nationwide, but here in Central Texas it’s been chugging along for more than a decade thanks to San Antonio Chef Mike Behrend.
Behrend has become known as “The Veg King." This converted carnivore has been pioneering the plant-based restaurant movement in San Antonio since 2007 when he founded the first Green Vegetarian Cuisine. Today, he has two locations of his original concept, as well as Bok Choy, and Earth Burger, the first vegetarian fast food concept in San Antonio that boasts two locations in the Alamo City, and one in San Marcos, and even one in the Mall of the Americas with plans for additional expansion in the near future.
“Commerce moves the industry, not politics,” Behrend said. “As opposed to protesting in front of a slaughterhouse, we are out here giving people a positive alternative and, San Antonio was ready for it. We have a more sophisticated population than we get credit for food-wise.”
While the plant-based movement might be trending, it is more than just a trend. Australia and Europe have embraced a plant-based diet for a long time, and now with celebrities like Beyonce and Jay- Z along with professional athletes like San Antonio Spur Davis Bertans touting the benefits, it’s finally catching on in the U.S. — and you don’t have to necessarily be a vegetarian to enjoy it. In fact, Behrend says that many of his customers are meat eaters looking for something a little lighter that tastes good.
“When you eat meat, it takes a long time and a lot of energy for your body to digest it,” he said. “When you are eating plant-based food, and giving your body what it needs, it’s easier on your digestive system and your energy can go to other things.”
Behrend holds a degree in culinary arts from St. Philips’s College in San Antonio and he, along with his mother, are the former owners of Lulu’s Bakery and Cafe, where chicken fried steak was the starring attraction. But after learning more about the industry, Behrend gave up meat, closed Lulu’s and never looked back.
“I just didn’t want to take part in something I didn’t believe in anymore,” he said. “I wanted to do something that was better for the environment and myself.”
Behrend, a father of two, is serving an entire way of life that includes environmental awareness. Thanks to his efforts and research, Earth Burger is on track to becoming the first zero-waste fast food restaurant in the United States by the fall of 2020. Currently, there are only five certified zero waste restaurants in the U.S., none of which are fast food establishments.
“It’s about good vibes, good food and most importantly, good stewardship,” Behrend said. “Restaurants can have a devastating effect on the environment, and we want to change that and leave the world a better place.”
