/Amanda Walker
How vegan cuisine in Lord of the Fries evolved
The brand’s ingredients ranged from making veg patties to using pea proteins.
QSR brand, Lord of the Fries (LOTF), served vegan menu items to bring high quality food for customers as well as help save animals and the environment.
Despite being one of the leaders of vegan cuisine, the brand’s alternative proteins menu catered to various customers.
Recently, it partnered with Harvest Gourmet to create a schnitzel menu. It will soon partner with other brands that are selling plant-based food.
In this Q&A, Amanda Walker, co-founder and head of operations, shared the journey of operating one of the popular vegan restaurants in the nation.
QSR Media: As a frontrunner in vegan cuisine, what are the changes in serving vegan food now, and who are your typical customers?
Being the leaders in French fries, we have a product that everyone loves. Our customers are varied in many ways. Typical are fry lovers but we have loyal fans.
These include those who have tried the food and have been coming back for more, people who want a cheat meal and know that our food is the highest quality fast food, discerning customers who want to spend their money on food that not only tastes great but is also making a positive impact on agriculture, animals, and the environment, fast food lovers looking for a quick fix before a game or after the bar and people with great taste who love hot chips!
In terms of changes in serving vegan food - options have increased greatly - there are a lot more choices for the customers and also for us, there are so many more vegan products available.
When we started our business, we were making our TVP veg patties. Now, the technology has improved so much we have recently switched to using pea protein in our patties – that’s one example of how vegan food is changing and evolving.
Home delivery has been on the rise but now we are seeing more people going out to celebrate their freedom and life in general so stores are becoming busier and people want to dine in.
How is the brand hopping on the alternative protein space?
We have been a creator and provider of alternative proteins since when we opened in 2004 and we continue to grow and expand our offering as the taste for plant-based food evolves and the products become more delicious.
We stay true to our roots and brand mission of making food inclusive, and accessible, making it look and taste so good it doesn’t need to be made with meat or dairy. We continue to win many awards with our products, the latest being LUX Most Ethical International Fast Food Chain - Asia Pacific.
What's new with LOTF and what are LOTF’s innovations?
We have many things on the go right as always, we are about to launch a grab-and-go concept that is 100% vegan and ethical as you would expect from us.
We recently released our boxes of Mac and Cheese, which are wildly successful, spurring us to create an expansion that will be available soon online, in supermarkets, and all LOTF stores.
We have been collaborating with some other food service providers in the space who are interested in launching their alternative meats.
At the moment, we are collaborating with Harvest Gourmet schnitzel, which has been popular selling thousands of schnitzels.
This month, we are featuring our Spicy Schnitzel Crunch burger. Next month, it’s the Schnitzel BLT, it wraps up at the end of October so come try it out.
