Recently tried an Impossible burger and nuggets and thought that if nobody told me it wasn’t meat, I’d have thought the patty was made out of a weird kind of meat, rather than make a connection with the taste and texture of plants. Honestly, I might not complain if that was the only kind of “meat” I could have for the rest of my life.
Well, maybe I’d miss bacon.
I’ve yet to find the opportunity to try lab-grown meat, but I for sure would like to try it out and don’t see much wrong with it as long as it’s sustainable, reasonably priced, and doesn’t have anything you wouldn’t expect in a normal piece of meat.
Also, with imitation and lab-grown options, I’d no longer have to deal with the disgust factor of handling raw meat (esp. the juices) or biting into gristle. I’ll happily devour a hot dog, but something about an unexpected bit of cartilage gives me a lingering sense of revulsion.
I think the texture thing with impossible burgers has to do with cooking them a certain way. I’ve had them at restaurants where the texture was great and others where it was abysmal. I don’t bother with them at home.
I’m delighted for more options, though I’m mostly past the point of wanting a substitute for a certain type of meat; I just want more vegetarian options. For decades, the only vegetarian options most restaurants had were salad or pasta tossed with whatever vegetables they had left over in the kitchen, both of which you knew were quick and cheap options for the restaurant and which you’d have to pay close to the same amount as the meat dishes. There were more options for ethnic vegetarian food, but a lot of them don’t have much texture (seriously, what is with so much Indian food) or are either bland or over-spiced. The over-spiced thing goes to some of the frozen foods as well - looking at you, Amy’s.
Regardless, it’s nice to be able to go to a restaurant and have actual options, or go to a grocery store and not being reduced to looking at the tofu and beans again.