Great Sacramento Vegan Burger Battle -- Crocker Cafe

On my to-do list for today was to visit one of the restaurants serving a Portobello burger for the Great Sacramento Vegan Burger Battle. The Crocker Café, inside the Crocker Art Museum, seemed like a good bet, especially since I'd really enjoyed the smoked Portobello mushroom slices on their tree-hugger BLT when I was there last week.

Lunch at the Crocker Café turned out to be a great choice, as I really, really liked their Vegan Crocker Burger. In addition to the wonderful smoked Portobello, there were lots of other good things on the bun -- roasted red pepper, watermelon rind pickle, arugula, chimichurri, Vegenaise, and shredded Daiya cheese. The Asian noodle slaw that came with it was flavorful, if spicy.

One caveat: it is not possible to eat this burger without making a gigantic mess, so be sure to load up on napkins when you order it. The two napkins I optimistically picked up weren't even close to enough.

You don't have to pay admission to the museum in order to visit the Crocker Café, but you'll have to pay if you want to see the art. I have an annual membership, so I could have stayed to look at the exhibitions after lunch, but I was running short on time. I did take a few minutes to admire the gorgeous Chihuly chandelier right above the entrance desk, though.

The Crocker Café is located at 216 O Street, and their phone number is 916-808-1865. The food is prepared by Supper Club Fine Catering, whose website address is http://supperclubcaterer.com/. The Facebook page for the Crocker Café can be found at https://www.facebook.com/CrockerCafeBySupperClub/. The Vegan Crocker Burger is available only when hot food is being served at the café, which is Tuesday through Sunday from 11:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.