Ah meat, glorious meat! Like many lapsed vegetarians, since my fall from grace I have become a card-carrying carnivore. Well, a carnivore of the poultry and cured pork products variety (bacon, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways…)

The same transformation has occurred for my friend R., although being 8 months pregnant, she has an excuse. Last night R. had a big, pregnant craving for a burger. So we went to Utopia.

Let me admit my biases up front. I love Utopia, I always have. Not just because of the great fries, good beer, and lovely patio (not that we were enjoying the patio on this frigid February evening), but also because it is an oasis of whatever the opposite of pretension is, in a strip full of attitude.

So, R. was craving meat, in a really big way. Utopia has a number of burgers — one whole menu page — and all of its burgers can be beef, veggie or chicken. Even more exciting for R., though, was the new bison burger. In response to her questions about hormones and the like, our very friendly server told us that the bison is free range, as is the chicken. He couldn’t vouch for the beef, though.

So, R. had the bison burger, with many toppings, with fries and wasabi mayo for dipping. I had the swiss cheese and mushroom chicken burger, also with fries and wasabi mayo. I have to say the wasabi mayo kicks ass. I could eat that stuff forever. My burger was very good: big (almost too big to get in my mouth), juicy, and flavourful, with rosemary and other stuff in there. The fries were typical Utopia — crispy, not greasy and plentiful.

Once we had gorged ourselves, we inquired about dessert. Our friendly and oh-so-capable waiter told us that apple pie, cherry pie, and cheesecake with a variety of sauces were available. However, he also told us that the desserts are not homemade, and not their strong suit. Points for honesty. As a result, we decided to stop before the “I’m so full I could puke” stage and take our bursting bellies (in R.’s case, almost literally) out into the cold, dark night.