Great Lakes: The Best Vegan Burgers in Tokyo

To hell with cutlery; sometimes a person just wants to grab hold of something chunky and tasty, and deliver it, posthaste, to their soon-to-be-satisfied face. Like kicking off your shoes to feel the ground beneath your feet, there’s catharsis to be found in casting aside the artificial barriers that stand between you and the things you need or desire. It’s nice, even necessary, once in a while, to get yourself in a bit of a mess.

The long and varied history of first, the veggie, and more recently, the vegan burger, shows that this urge towards a more tactile dining style, is far from being a carnivorous foible. But from the structurally-unsound bean-pulp pucks of the 1980s, to some of today’s unappetizingly over-processed protein-patties, not so many of these plant-based creations have been truly worth ditching the implements and getting sticky-fingered for.

In a quiet street of Tokyo’s Takadanobaba neighborhood, however, the agreeably hefty and satisfying vegan burgers of Great Lakes グレート レイクス, the creation of amiable Californian John Penny, have been delighting the digits, and thrilling the taste buds, of hungry Tokyoites and travelers alike, for just over half a decade. Painstakingly crafted to Penny’s own masterfully judged recipe, Great Lakes’ eminently comestible constructions are more than capable of satisfying this primal need for unmediated communion with robustly-built objects-of-culinary-desire.

A Welcoming Space

Named in tribute to the Lake Michigan origins of Penny’s mother’s family, and inspired by the small burger shacks that dot the highways of the Midwest, Great Lakes has a cheery and welcoming ambience that is both airy and vibrant, meaning that it isn’t just the great food that makes a visit enjoyable. Long-term vegan Penny hopes that the restaurant’s uncluttered, but laid-back aesthetic, helps to foster a community spirit, with the open-kitchen encouraging friendly communication and making customers feel part of the proceedings.

Reinforcing the inclusive atmosphere of the restaurant, is a dynamic mural by Tokyo-based American artist Ponzi, which covers one wall, and pays tribute to all those who helped Great Lakes get off the ground. The establishment’s logo and branding were created by a Michigan design agency with links to Penny’s family; a further sign of the community-minded owner’s open-hearted willingness to both celebrate, and share, his roots with his adoptive country and his hungry customers.

Not Just a Great Vegan Burger

Aiming to create a vegan patty that truly hit the spot, Penny tweaked a recipe that he had originally created in America with the help of his brother, modifying the formula to perfection with ingredients more readily available in Japan. Introducing shiitake, rather than standard button mushrooms, into the carefully balanced mix of brown rice, wheat gluten, onions, herbs, and spices, added a deep and satisfying hit of umami flavor that’s as comforting as it is stimulating. 

Keen to avoid what he calls the “textural malaise” of some commonly available vegan burgers, and the “rubbery fake-meat” feel of others, Penny spent time making sure the constituency of his creations was equal to their rich and savory flavor. Hundreds of glowing online reviews later, it seems clear that he has achieved, and keeps achieving, his stated goal of pleasing his patrons with what, by any standards, is a “great burger,” not just a “great vegan burger.”

What to Eat at Great Lakes

Choosing which of Great Lakes’ offerings to get yourself messy with, starts with its simple, but customizable, menu offering potential starting points in the form of three fantastic burgers, each named in honor of the supersized American bodies of water. Spurred on by delicious cooking aromas, hungry customers won’t want to pause too long to consider their choice. In any case, having taken an initial mouthful, they are certain to commit themselves to as many return visits as it takes to sample the range, and then, in all likelihood (location allowing), to becoming a regular.

Penny recommends the Superior Burger, named after the largest of the Great Lakes, for first time guests to his restaurant. With its homemade sweet and savory tomato jam and herb-infused onions, as well as baby greens and mayonnaise, the burger’s exquisitely well-balanced blend of complimentary flavors serves as a perfect introduction.

Equally tasty are the Michigan Burger, Great Lakes’ version of the simple-yet-satisfying burgers served at roadside stands and bars across the USA, which comes with tart homemade pickles and rich caramelized onions, and the Ontario Burger, which pairs crisp fresh vegetables with an addictive thousand island-style sauce, in tribute to a much-loved classic of Californian fast-food.

All the burgers, available in single or double sizes (triples, and even quadruples are also possible!), are served in delicious custom-made buns, and come with Great Lakes’ own sensational in-house-fermented soy-cheese sauce, adding a layer of cheerfully all-in authenticity that is so often missing from vegan treats.

Other Eats

Despite the delightful volume of the establishment’s burgers, especially in their double-pattied form, it would take a willpower of iron not to want to set them off with Great Lakes’ golden French fries made from Hokkaido potatoes, potato chips, or tater tots. Sweet-toothed diners will also hope, and no-doubt just-about manage, to save space for the store’s luxuriously indulgent milkshakes and ice creams (offered in seasonal flavors), that are, like so much else on the menu, made to Penny’s own exacting recipe. 

Believing that “Life is too short to eat something you don’t like,” Penny encourages customers to experiment with the Great Lakes menu, stating “anything we sell can be reassembled or combined into something new if the customer is feeling creative.” There are also secret menu items, such as loaded side dishes, root beer floats, and even boozy shakes.

A Feel-Good Fill-Up

For vegans in Tokyo, so often pushed into spending potentially enjoyable mealtimes, scrolling their phones for any vaguely promising pit-stop, it’s not always easy to fill-up in full-fat feel-good fashion. Those who, at least once in a while, feel the need to answer the call of comforting, calorific goodness, and get their hands on some pure plant-based pleasure, would be well advised to ditch the dead weight of knives, forks, and chopsticks, dive into Great Lakes and grab hold of a vegan lifesaver.