*On second thought, I probably shouldn't have even brought this place up. Their suppliers seem to be inconsistent so there is little way to tell if their products are completely vegan. Read the comments for gross stories.*
Since we now live something like three miles from Orean, I thought it was time I give the old drive-thru another try. I reasoned that without the cross city trek building up my expectations maybe it wouldn't be such a disappointing experience.
This time around I knew enough not to order anything with the African salsa (I just don't like it. Others do. Please don't let me dissuade you.) Or cheese (it's soy-based, but not vegan). Or the breakfast sandwich (I can't remember when you're allowed to order it. Rules, man.)
On a beautiful Saturday evening when we weren't quite ready to be home or cook dinner, Paul and Desmond and I settled into a red picnic table nestled into the 70's era fast food hut just next to the drive-through lane. In between keeping a toddler from hopping into traffic, we took bites of sandwiches and fries.
Paul's chicken burger with all the fixings was pretty satisfying - a breaded chickeny sort of patty on a soft wheat bun with barbecue sauce and vegenaise and lettuce and tomato and pickles and onions. My filet-o-soul tofu burger was an inch-thick slab of mildly seasoned defrosted tofu with tartar sauce replacing the barbecue. I won't be ordering it again.
The air fries were mostly crisp, much better than the week before when they were thick and starchy and tasted like beef. Consistency is not Orean's strong suit.
And then there was the soft serve. We strolled away with perfect drippy, creamy cones, somehow diverted Desmond's attention from the McDonald's Playland across the street, and appreciated Orean for what it is: decent fast food for Pasadena vegetarians.
Also, where else in the city (let alone 3 miles from my house) can I get a vegan root beer float while my toddler, none the wiser, sleeps contentedly in the back seat? (That's not a rhetorical question. If you know, please tell me.)
Orean Health Express
817 N. Lake Blvd.
Pasadena, CA 91104
(626) 794 -0861
9:30 - 9:00
