Sacramento vegan burger business boasts mushroom menu: ‘I’m here to help people’
Carlton Brown is in the business of converting skeptics. He once snuck his agenda right under his best friend’s nose, earning an approval from the unwittingly initiated man.
“I just told him, ‘Welcome to the club,’ and walked away,” Brown said.
He wasn’t talking about a religion, a belief system or even an actual club. Brown managed to convinced his staunchly opposed friend, and many questioning Sacramentans, that mushrooms and vegan food can taste good.
Since the summer, Brown has been spreading the vegan gospel throughout the region with his all-vegan burger business, Elevated Eats 916. Oyster mushrooms take center stage, replacing grilled beef and even vegan meat patties, while sauces, side dishes and the oil each meal is cooked in focus on healthy fats and grains.
“(The mushrooms are) fried in one of the healthiest flours out there,” Brown said. “Acorn flour is very expensive, but I want everybody to be healthy, so I fry it in that. The oil we use is 100% avocado oil.”
Brown’s Instagram page, which has gained more than 6,000 followers in half a year, features videos of people trying the mushroom burgers for the first time and appearing impressed with their flavor and texture.
“I didn’t expect anything to go like this,” he said. “I’m prepared for it, and I’m educated enough on the things that I do, and I’m here to help people.”
Journey to the ‘shrooms
Just a year ago, Brown weighed 473 pounds and had a slew of health issues related to his weight.
“I ate my way onto a hospital bed,” Brown said.
Brown’s partner introduced him to the vegan diet in November 2024. He went on a strict 37-day raw “detox,” eating exclusively raw fruits and vegetables for more than a month. Since then, he has kept to the animal product-free diet and introduced healthy exercising habits into his life.
In the year since, Brown has lost more than 100 pounds and has improved the related health problems.
“I feel like a lot of people would eat healthy if they knew how to cook, but a lot of people don’t know how,” Brown said. “I want to offer a transitional way (of trying vegan food) ... and maybe people will choose healthier options when they eat out.”
During the isolating 37-day diet, Brown consumed hours of videos on vegan cooking and experimented with seasonings, frying techniques and recipes for his oyster mushroom dishes. The California native soft launched his business in August, serving his signature vegan burgers and sides out of a small unit in downtown Sacramento.
Brown’s main goal with Elevated Eats 916 is encouraging people to try a different, healthier form of eating. He said he hopes that by providing vegan options that taste similar to animal-based meals, healthier eating will feel less intimidating.
“If people are motivated and inspired by me, I’m doing God’s job,” Brown said. “I’m doing the work that I’m supposed to be doing.”
Elevated Eats 916’s most popular offering is the slider sampler ($14.50), a bite-sized trio of Brown’s signature burger flavors — jerk, mushroom bacon-guacamole and agave-garlic.
The avocado oil-fried batter gives a crispy opening to the main oyster mushroom “patty,” followed by the mushroom’s emblematic chewiness and umami. Agave-garlic sauce adds a sweet fragrance to the burger, and jerk seasoning packs a smoky flavor punch.
Brown replaced the classic macaroni and cheese and french fry sides that often accompany burger or barbecue meals with rich vegan alternatives. Macaroni ($10) is still on the menu, but it is smothered in a thick, sweet butternut squash-cashew cheese sauce. Potato fries are switched out for sliced avocado fries ($10) enveloped in a crispy fried batter.
“There’s no filler, there’s nothing but health and love,” Brown said.
Serving burgers in a wine bar
After stumbles with two prior kitchens — including issues with power usage and excessive customer traffic, according to Brown —Elevated Eats 916 recently landed a stable gig at TAP Wine Lounge, a refined, cozy tasting room in Old North Sacramento.
Brown connected with lounge owner Cynthia Dees Brooks through social media, and he said he fell in love with her lounge at 1011 Del Paso Blvd., immediately. Dim lighting, comfortable seating through two large rooms and original artwork from capital region-based artists set a warm and inviting mood.
“When I walked through the door, it just felt right,” Brown said. “Before I even talked to (Dees Brooks) it felt right. I always had this vision in my head, if I had a restaurant, what would it look like? My vision was exactly this.”
The pair work together to support each other’s businesses, with Brown and his business partner whipping up burgers in the lounge’s small back kitchen while Dees Brooks pours wine and welcomes customers hospitably.
TAP even has vegan wine options, according to Dees Brooks. Though wine itself is technically vegan, the filtering process can sometimes use an animal-based product for clarifying. The vegan wine Dees Brooks serves uses plant-based alternatives, she said.
“We’re mixing my food with this vibe, and we have vegan wine also, so it just sets the tone,” Brown said.
Elevated Eats 916 is open for business at the TAP Wine Lounge from 12 p.m.-7 p.m. on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.
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