How hard do you find it, being a vegetarian?

whiteslice

Whether you are extremely shy or have a mother who believes in 'eat, shut up and be grateful', I don't see how politely asking for a vegetarian alternative is an issue. It is not only to educate the host for the future (although that is useful too), but it will put them in a position where they will have to rustle up something and so you will not go hungry. I suppose you can always make a silent point and bring your own food, if that is more convenient.


I agree to what has been said about the fact that the onus to provide something that the guest can eat is on the host. Hence the suggestion to indirectly bring to their attention the fact that you cannot eat what has been laid out in front of you. If this is mortifying, imagine that you're coeliac and have been served a wheat flour pizza. It will make you feel less like a fussy eater and more like you have a legitimate right to eat what you find edible. Which you do.


And if your host doesn't care? Well, I'd hit the wine and then go home to eat.

moneyistooshorttomention

I can sympathise with the "hit the wine and go home" way of thinking if the host isn't a very good one:rotfl:

Obviously catering appropriately is easier for smaller groups - as I personally cant recall a time where I've fed a friend or friends and they haven't responded to my "Anything you don't eat?" question with "I'll eat anything" as a response. There is always something they will request not to be served with (even if its just a "I don't like peppers - they don't agree with me" comment).

Mind you - I just wish I got asked the same - as my basic thing is "I don't want any unhealthy food please or meat". :rotfl: at the thought of just how many people would be hard put to provide a healthy meal (ie as they just don't eat healthily themselves). I have to do a lot of "grit teeth and eat junk food politely" when I'm out:(. Stuff with white flour, white rice, sugar, chemicals generally = "Ohgawd - do I have to?" and smile politely and eat it.

katkin

I'm glad you brought up the catering issue for vegetarians, as presented with a buffet at an event etc I usually like to try a bit of everything. Since vegetarian food is very yummy I have some of that too!

I'll make sure in future my gannet like enthusiasm is curbed and wait until everyone else has had a chance to tuck in

*zippy*

We went on a cruise in the summer, an American line, the vegetarian options started off great, but became repetitive, the portions though were tiny every single course, everyone else's would come looking lovely and then mine like a toddlers meal.

One night a lovely pie came out, everyone commented I'd finally had a decent sized meal, turned out they'd sent me a chicken one by mistake, soon swapped for a measly looking pie. I complained and was told I could have ordered two if the meals were too small, but no one else had to do that. Anyone else come across this? I wondered if there are fewer veggies in America so they think it's a health choice or something.

On meal prices, we had a works party at a chain restaurant, poor choice so I asked if they could replace the gammon with beans and have egg, chips and beans, they gave me one tbsn of beans and charged me the same price as Gammon, won't be going there again!

Anne_Marie_2

I certainly don't think it's a faux pas for meat eaters to order vegetarian food at a restaurant. I know quite a few people who do this, and I've never given it a thought, and have been a vegetarian for about 35 years now.

However, I have noticed at buffets in the past, that the veggie food can go down rather quickly, and it has miffed me, when there is nothing left for me. The problem here is obviously in the catering, where they obviously think that only vegetarians will eat the veggie options, and this is clearly not the case.

It's not a big deal for me any more, as I tend to avoid buffets like the plague, mostly due to cross contamination issues. Gives me the heebie-jeebies watching people using the same serving spoons for different items.
I have no idea why caterers don't have a separate table for vegetarian food to stop this happening. (Perhaps they do these days?)

jackyann

Completely different issue, ordering in a restaurant, and eating at a catered event.
I'd expect the restaurant to have a good supply - only a problem if a Vege convention descend unannounced to a small restaurant.

I'd also usually expect caterers to know how things usually go and plan accordingly, but it can be awkward, and I hope we'd all be forgiving nd helpful at family events.

I am still struggling with the sausage roll issue. I make vege sausage rolls that are hugely popular. However many I make, they disappear! However, the same goes for the "proper" ones! At least at a family do, I don't mind calling "veges have first offer"!

suki1964

When I got married I solved the problem of having to cater for vegetarians and Muslims by just doing a vegetarian buffet, with a separate table of cold cuts, salmon chicken etc. No one went hungry, the food was delish ( thanks waitrose) and only one person who wasn't even invited said the food wasn't to his liking


I'm not vegetarian but when I lived in London I would often choose to eat the veggie option as it would be something not cooked at home. Where I live now veggies have a very hard time, it's usually a frozen lasagne or a pasta with a gallon of sauce so I've now learned to cook a good few meat free reciepes for home, and take the fish when eating out

Goldiegirl

*zippy* wrote: »

We went on a cruise in the summer, an American line, the vegetarian options started off great, but became repetitive, the portions though were tiny every single course, everyone else's would come looking lovely and then mine like a toddlers meal.

One night a lovely pie came out, everyone commented I'd finally had a decent sized meal, turned out they'd sent me a chicken one by mistake, soon swapped for a measly looking pie. I complained and was told I could have ordered two if the meals were too small, but no one else had to do that. Anyone else come across this? I wondered if there are fewer veggies in America so they think it's a health choice or something.

The cruise lines tend to be good at catering for special diets ( and vegetarian and vegan are in the special diet category)


What should happen is that your head waiter comes round each evening with the next days lunch and dinner menus and you pre-select your choice so it can be prepared specially for you. There are always vegetarian options on every menu, and there is also a special vegetarian menu so you should have plenty of choice.


If it's not working, tell your head waiter, and they can make it better, by making sure you have larger portions, or seeing if they can provide something off menu.


If that doesn't work, you can always talk to the restaurant manager. By working with them, you can get fabulous food.


One person I know on my cruising forum is vegan, and on the first two nights all they could give her was plain steamed vegetables. But, after speaking to the head waiter, it turned out they didn't really understand what vegan is, so she gave them suggestions about what she could eat, and it ended up being the best cruise for food she'd ever been on.

LameWolf

Anne_Marie wrote: »

I certainly don't think it's a faux pas for meat eaters to order vegetarian food at a restaurant. I know quite a few people who do this, and I've never given it a thought, and have been a vegetarian for about 35 years now.

However, I have noticed at buffets in the past, that the veggie food can go down rather quickly, and it has miffed me, when there is nothing left for me. The problem here is obviously in the catering, where they obviously think that only vegetarians will eat the veggie options, and this is clearly not the case.

It's not a big deal for me any more, as I tend to avoid buffets like the plague, mostly due to cross contamination issues. Gives me the heebie-jeebies watching people using the same serving spoons for different items.
I have no idea why caterers don't have a separate table for vegetarian food to stop this happening. (Perhaps they do these days?)

I agree with this post, totally. Nowt wrong with ordering the veggie option in a restaurant, the problem is when it's a buffet and there is only a limited supply of veggie food, and the omnivores snaffle it ALL.

I've experienced this at a family do also; when I was married to the Ex, we visited his cousin's family one Xmas; the cousin's wife had made a vegetarian pie basically for my benefit to have instead of turkey, and she ended up having to tell the others "Oi, let Wolfy have first dibs on that!" otherwise I wouldn't have got a look in.

Talking of cruises - we went on one last year (our first ever) and we opted to eat in the bistro - it was a lot less formal (and therefore less scary to me) than the "posh" restaurant for a start, and was set out as a buffet; my DH was easily able to scare up a decent plateful for me. (To explain, I'm a wheelchair user, and it's just easier for me to sit at the table while my DH puts a plate of food together for me.)

Justamum

LameWolf wrote: »

I agree with this post, totally. Nowt wrong with ordering the veggie option in a restaurant, the problem is when it's a buffet and there is only a limited supply of veggie food, and the omnivores snaffle it ALL.

To be fair, nobody is criticising anyone ordering vegetarian from a menu in a restaurant, it is only when there's been a set amount of veggie food done at a buffet and it's eaten by meat-eaters. This happened at my own 30th birthday party! We were living in Swaziland and it was a braai, so I made a vegan potjie just for DH and me. It was all eaten by the meat eaters before I could get to it, so I had nothing to eat.