Marty’s V Burger Review – Closed NYC Vegetarian Restaurant

Marty’s V Burger has closed. We visited the former vegetarian restaurant at 134 E 27th St in New York City in 2023.

Marty V was a vegetarian restaurant located at 134 E 27th St, New York, NY 10016. The owner, Marty, had an interesting background as he used to be a fisherman in Sheepshead Bay and was also the son of a butcher. It’s quite a journey to go from fishing for your dinner to opening a vegetarian restaurant, but that’s what Marty did.

Marty’s V Burger Review

Marty V was a great fit for families looking for the quintessential burgers, fries, and shakes in vegetarian form. What impressed us about the milkshakes was that they somehow tasted like milkshakes without any milk. During our 2023 visit, Marty V was looking to expand and potentially grow into a chain. The restaurant was also packaging its burger patties for local grocery sales, another way it hoped to introduce more people to the food.

Another standout was that Marty V was nut-free, which made it appealing for people with nut allergies who were looking for a restaurant that catered to their dietary needs. The original world-famous burger was a convincing vegan take on a Big Mac. They made their own patties, which added to the quality of the food.

What made Marty V stand out was Marty himself. He was passionate about his restaurant and the food he served. The restaurant was affordable during our visit, and new specials were being added monthly at the time. Marty V really hit that need for vegetarian replicas of familiar comfort foods. The cheese fries were among the best cheese substitutes we had tried, and the buffalo chicken wings were an impressively close replica of real chicken wings. Between the cheese fries and the buffalo wings, the restaurant did an excellent job recreating the kinds of foods meat eaters already knew.

Marty was passionate about getting vegetarian food out to the masses in a form that made sense to the average consumer. His goal was to make vegetarian food that appealed to everybody. It was not about forcing people to become vegetarians, but rather making the option more accessible to everyone. That approach made the restaurant especially approachable for non-vegetarians who wanted to try plant-based food.

Marty’s story was intertwined with the restaurant, but it also reflected a broader journey toward making vegetarian food feel familiar and accessible. That was what made Marty V special — it was not just about the food, but also about the journey.

Marty V was a sweet and memorable restaurant with a good heart. The food made a strong impression on us during our 2023 visit and showed what the restaurant was trying to accomplish.

For related Famadillo coverage, see our Sweetbriar NYC restaurant review.