ENTERTAINMENT

THE EPIC HIGHS AND LOWS OF STARBUCKS’ VEGETARIAN MENU

Being a vegetarian is difficult in Arkansas, and even more so if you want something fast. Anyone who knows me knows I am borderline addicted to Starbucks, and while you go there for the coffee, they also have some of the best fast food for vegetarians out there; and yes, it is fast food.

I have tried every single vegetarian item on the Starbucks menu, and here I am with the ultimate guide to each item in no particular order.

Let us begin with the hot breakfast menu, starting with the classic Impossible Breakfast Sandwich, the feat of nature that has made vegetarians and nonvegetarians alike sell out Starbucks: the sandwich that made even the most meat-eatery of meat eaters try the impossible sausage.

I don’t like it.

You are seriously better off getting an Egg McMuffin with no canadian bacon from McDonald’s then this sandwich, and for much cheaper at that. While I am delighted we vegetarians are turning people onto our side to eat less meat, I urge anyone who wants to try fake meat to eat something actually seasoned and not spongelike.

Moving along to the Spinach, Feta & Egg White Wrap, this is a classic 6/10 for me. It’s better than a lot, but the taste leave more to be desired. If you like the taste of eggs in particular, this is for you.

The famous, or infamous, Sous Vide Egg Bites, two of which are vegetarian: the Kale & Mushroom Egg Bites and the Egg White and Roasted Red Pepper Egg Bites.

The red pepper bites by far outstretch the kale and mushroom in taste and in texture. I’ll add that I personally dislike eggs, so these are not my favorite, but I can understand the appeal. Despite my understanding, the name of this food in general offends me, “Sous Vide” is trying much too hard, and since this is my opinion, eggs are gross, so these fall short for me.

My favorite breakfast item is the Rolled & Steel-Cut Oatmeal, which comes with brown sugar, almonds, blueberries and honey. This way you can control every aspect of your oatmeal, so my fellow control freaks will also enjoy this breakfast item.

Overall, Starbucks breakfast does not hit it out of the park for me. A note to Starbucks: vegetarians can eat things other than eggs. Moving on to the lunch menu, this is a much better selection in my opinion.

The Grilled Cheese is my favorite food on the Starbucks menu. The cheese is rich, and they add a crusty layer of cheese on top of the bread that is so good. My only complaint is that it is sometimes a little greasy because there is so much cheese, but I’d rather have too much cheese than not enough, so it gets a pass. 9/10.

The other lunch sandwich, the Tomato & Mozzarella on Focaccia is also quite good, if not a little basic.

Also on the Starbucks lunch menu are their protein boxes, which are really delicious and a great little snack. I can highly recommend the vegetarian ones, as the ingredients feel high quality for a snack box and are pretty delicious.

The last vegetarian item on the lunch menu is the avocado spread, which tastes more like the onion spread. Barf.

Going over every bakery item at Starbucks would take way too much time, so here’s a highlight reel: the good, the bad and the ugly. Their bagels are frankly not the best and on par with Walmart bagged bagels. Some highlights for me are the cake pops, as they pair perfectly with Starbucks’ coffee flavors.

Their chocolate croissant is great heated up, but their regular croissant is not the best.

The red velvet loaf is also a highlight for me, despite not liking the icing on it, but the glazed doughnut is ugly and gross.

Everytime I have had a Starbucks scone, it has been stale and stuck to my mouth, definitely the ugly.

But many other bakery items are nice to have with your coffee, the banana nut loaf, lemon loaf and their selection of sweet granola bars are all good in particular.

I may have been a little harsh to some of these bakery items, but all in all, Starbucks is the best fast food option for vegetarians, and they have some real shining moments.

BY CHLOE MCGEHEE