THE KING'S HOTTEST ITEM IS FULL OF BEANS

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, March 17, 1993                   TAG: 9303170216
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: B7   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WATKINS GLEN, N.Y.                                LENGTH: Short
THE KING'S HOTTEST ITEM IS FULL OF BEANS
Hold the pickles, hold the lettuce. And hold the beef.
The Watkins Glen Burger King has become the first of the fast-food chain's 5,800 U.S. outlets to serve meatless burgers.
"The demand is unbelievable," said franchise owner Dennis Kessler. "People are coming from all over. There's not a seat in the restaurant."
The Spicy Bean Burger has been on sale since late February in this town 75 miles southeast of Rochester.
The burger, a spicy mix of kidney beans, carrots, onions, potato flakes and peppers, is breaded and deep fried and comes in a bun with ketchup, cheese and tomato. It sells for $2.29.
Customers at the restaurant described it as tasting "taco-ey," spicy and crunchy.
"They say there are 12 million vegetarians in the United States. If we can kick into that market, it's well worth our while," said store manager Colin Jumper.
McDonald's, king of the fast-food market, sells vegetarian burgers in Holland, but hasn't introduced them in the United States.
Burger King sells bean burgers at its franchises in Britain, but in this country the only vegetarian offerings on the regular menu are salads and a "vegetarian Whopper" - all the trimmings but no beef patty, Kessler said.
Some smaller U.S. fast-food restaurants also offer veggie burgers.
Kessler said he was approached about offering a vegetarian burger by Farm Sanctuary, an animal-rights group.
If a six-month test in Watkins Glen is successful, the bean burger could be sold at other U.S. outlets, said a Burger King spokeswoman at its Miami headquarters.

by Archana Subramaniam by CNB