Is White Castle’s Veggie Slider Vegan?

Who would have ever thought that White Castle, purveyor of sacks of itty bitty beef sliders, would offer its customers a Veggie Slider, an old school veggie burger from Dr. Praeger, king of the visible veggies veggie burger? Now, I have never really loved a Dr. Praeger’s patty, but I appreciated its availability in “normal” supermarkets. I appreciated knowing for sure it was totally vegan, at least prior to their egg-made gluten-free patty. I appreciated when caring folks would pick me up a box at barbecues. And I guess I appreciate the Dr.’s partnership with White Castle. 

After confirming from White Castle’s allergy/nutritional information that the Veggie Slider and its steamed bun was free of egg, dairy, fish or the almost-exclusively-animal-derived saturated fat, I decided to throw caution to the wind and support this veg-friendly effort. They are made, after all, with a designated veggie grill, though it was hard to get a glance of it, and have their own green Crave boxes. 

We dined inside to get the full effect of the White Castle experience: dated formica booths, harsh light and a crowd of waiting guests similar to the OTB crowd. No one but we were there kind of ironically. I got the plain Veggie Slider, not fully trusting the “Sweet Thai Sauce” for some reason. And the fancy ketchup dispenser was empty. I ate ’em plain, most trepidatious about the soft, heavily conditioned bun. Dough conditioners are the creepiest of ingredients. 

There is Dr. Praeger’s California Veggie Burger patty, in all its bean-y glory. It was good to see the patty dryish. If it had been cooked on the hamburger grill I would know visually and olfactorily. 

After news of this vegetarian option hit the interwebs, there have been reports of that suspicious bun being non-vegan. And I verified this after eating the bun unfortunately. Oh well, it’s not like I’d ever return to eat it again even if it were 100% vegan. I still thought it worth it to post. As far as my veganhood, it’s unfazed by an unintentional slip. You live then learn more often than you learn then live. If it were an intentional slip, that’d be troubling.