Is The Hungry Tapir 'Pink Bombshell' The Best Vegan Burger In KL?

The Hungry Tapir is a vegan / vegetarian bar and restaurant in the heart of Chinatown KL. We find ourselves here one Saturday night to continue my quest for the best vegan burger in KL. This is how it goes.

The Hungry Tapir, easily one of my favourite restaurants for vegan food in KL; the menu is a complete vegetarian and vegan menu, with a huge selection of local favourites, fusion delights, and western classics. PLUS, a fantastic cocktail list with a wide selection of unique twists on traditional cocktails and some bespoke specials. This list will satisfy even the fussiest of your cocktail connoisseur friends.

But let’s get serious, we are here to talk burgers.

First Impressions

The Hungry Tapir serves up their aptly named “pink bombshell burger” and you can’t help but notice the striking and eye-catching pink bun as the waiter made his way to our table. The pink bombshell burger, with ‘that’  bun that is infused with beetroot to give it that signature look. It is a popular choice as they are consistently seen dotted around The Hungry Tapir on numerous tables.

Once the burger hit the table, I immediately noticed the enticing smell of the generous portion of caramelised onions sitting atop the patty. That smell immediately reminded me of being served up homemade burgers back home as a kid. The onions combined with the freshest salad ingredients – so far this burger was off to a great start.

Initial Assessment

The burger is a decent size, it’s not a small burger but you get the impression the high top bun adds a lot to the size of the burger.

If you look past the flamboyant pink bun (which isn’t easy to do), this burger looks like a classic no nonsense burger. It follows the fundamentals of good burger craftsmanship – a good sized patty filled right to the edges of the bun (and slightly beyond), a slice of vegan cheese, caramelized onions, sliced tomato, crispy lettuce, with BBQ sauce and vegan Mayonnaise.

A simple yet classic construction for a burger that looks so well crafted; that spectacular pink bun encapsulating the classic ingredients, and plated up with a generous serving of sweet potato fries I thought The Hungry Tapir was onto a winner.

The Juicy Details

The Patty

The beetroot-based patty is beautifully made and has a great texture that is well held together without the need for any deep frying. The patty has great nutty taste and texture that comes through beautifully and adds some crunch. The patty is made to a great size, filling out the full bun and giving plenty of surface area to support those fragrant caramelized onions

The Toppings

The toppings are simple but effective; the delightful smelling caramelized onions cover the patty on top and below we have sliced tomato and some crispy iceberg lettuce

The Sauce

The Sauce (or should I say sauce”s”). The burger comes with two sauces – firstly a tangy and smoky homemade BBQ sauce that is so packed with flavour it would be welcomed at any BBQ; the BBQ sauce combined with the onions and the flavours in the patty create a tantalising trinity of flavour. Secondly there is a vegan mayonnaise, which for me is a little unnecessary when there are so many other great flavours going on. I personally found the vegan mayo somewhat overpowered the flavour of the patty. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great vegan mayonnaise, but I think if you dialled back that mayo a little bit the flavours of the patty could express themselves more clearly

The Wrap Up

Next time I order this burger (and of course there will be a next time) I’m going to order with no mayo and see how this plays out. This simple change could really enhance this classic burger for me 

Another opportunity for improvement…that fabulous pink bun! I love the colour and I love the flavour, but for me the bun is just too large and doughy. I found when I was getting towards the end of the burger I felt like I had eaten a lot of bun. Lowering that high top would still give the bun it’s signature look but make the overall burger a little lighter

This is overall a great burger; you could serve this up to any burger enthusiast and they would truly appreciate the classic flavours combined with The Hungry Tapir’s signature and playful spin on ‘that’ pink bun

4 / 5 Beetroots

Want to know more about The Burger Diaries? Check out my recent article here about Lisettes

Want to know more about The Burger Diaries? Check out my recent article here about Lisettes