Cutty's Hosts Wursthall and J. Kenji Lopez-Alt

Wursthall, the two-month old sausage and beer hall in San Mateo, CA, popped up at Cutty's this weekend. Bostonians got to taste Wursthall's vegan Doner Kebap sandwich: Impossible Burger (vegan meat substitute with the notable feature that it bleeds like a rare burger; so far five businesses in Boston use this product), Turkish spices, doner sauce, pickles, pickled chiles, arugula, red onions, and cilantro, and "Currywurst" potatoes: crispy fried potatoes, blackened ginger curry, blistered mustard seed, and vegan mustard aioli. J. Kenji Lopez-Alt, consultant and one of three partners at Wursthall, kissed babies, shook hands, and signed copies of his NY Times best-seller, The Food Lab. Holding this event at Cutty's made sense because Kenji is longtime friends with Rachel and Charles Kelsey, Cutty's owners, from their America's Test Kitchen days in Brookline Village. Wursthall partner, Adam Simpson, also made an appearance, circulating between kitchen and dining room. Third Wursthall partner, Tyson Mao, wasn't in Boston, but totally amazing fact: he's a Rubik's Cube speedsolver.

The meat-centric restaurant wanted to offer vegans and vegetarians a delicious sandwich they could eat with their carnivore friends. Their doner kebap sandwich is so addictively tasty that even the non-vegans are ordering it and not asking where's the beef. During the four hour event at Cutty's, customers were giving shout-outs to the kitchen exclaiming how tasty the food was (Cutty's is continuing the sandwich for a couple more days this week).

Modified Q&A with Kenji:

How he got involved with food as an MIT graduate: Kenji knew he didn't want an academic career and went in search of a restaurant server position during his sophomore year (he was a biology major). He lucked out at FiRE+iCE in Harvard Square when they had just lost a prep cook, so he jumped right into the kitchen. He eventually got promoted to "knight of the round grill" (FiRE+iCE has a round Mongolian-style grill).

Why work with the Impossible Burger product? He tried a lot of meat substitutes (he had been eating a vegan diet for one month a year, published as the Vegan Experience on the Serious Eats website, where he is Managing Culinary Director), and this stood out as the very best. Kenji emphasized the importance of vegan eating: food ethics, environmental sustainability, and overall health. Adam also noted that the vegan market is underserved, so Wursthall wanted to provide something deliciously addictive with the best possible meat substitute.

What does Kenji miss about Boston? The walkability and neighborhoods. Four seasons and snow. SNOW! And seafood. He marveled at the generations of small boats catching super local seafood.

Come back again soon! The sandwich was so good!