That restaurants should know parmesan isn't vegetarian?

You’re not a vegetarian. 😅

You’re not vegetarian.

I don’t drink, so the wine isn’t an issue.

I don’t eat rennet cheeses, as it happens.

Maybe we aren’t all like the people you know? At the moment I’d choose to fast over choosing something with vegan cheese or Parmesan.

Plenty of top chefs have been ignorant of this in the past, though I'd hope for better now. https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2012/feb/27/no-parmesan-please-we-re-vegetarian

Some chefs just don't care and think that people with dietary requirements are just fussy and difficult. When I was at uni I did waitressing for big events (with guests like the Queen) and often a guest would ask if they could have something veggie, (vegan was still rare) halal or kosher. In particular the chef used to just tell them that whatever he was serving was halal or kosher and not be bothered and use non vegetarian cheese - it was a stressful service and they just wanted the questions to go away. Hopefully attitudes are better now.

Walkers cheese and onion were not veggie until a few years ago, but smoky bacon always has been.😀

Then there's those perverts that try to make roast potatoes non vegetarian. They're a menace.

Strict vegetarians should avoid the Parmesan then! If they're that strict they'll know about rennet. Most vegetarians avoid meat out of preference and dislike of the meat industry. If a bit of rennet is eaten, it's no big deal. It doesn't have to be black and white.

@Barleysugar86 , but eating those things is eating flesh, that's the point. Maybe your friend doesn't know.

When I became vegetarian most cheddar wasn't vegetarian and you had to go to the deli counter to get vegetarian cheddar, but maybe there was a bit more awareness then.

A lot of restaurants are clueless to things like this. They get confused with vegan and vegetarian also. I’m a veggie and am so fed up of getting a ‘plant based’ burger with no cheese when it would be perfectly ok for me to have cheese. Then you get stressed waitresses scratching their heads as they think vegetarian and vegan are the same, often the chef will get confused and will not bother putting the cheese on.

Why can’t they just do a vegan and vegetarian option separately?

another life-long veggie here who eats pesto and parmasan. I eat fish on the odd occasion too though so maybe I'm not a very good one 😁

Many caterers get their supplies from Brakes and their Parmesan is not veggie.

Sorry, this is a bit of a rant!

As a (ex) chef, this is something that really pisses me off and has done for years. I had 2 good friends at school who were veggie and they really struggled eating out.

Now I'm veggie myself and my Dp is vegan and even though things are changing it's not much better in a lot of places.

Dp had to go away for a work training course last year and the hotel he stayed in offered a 'vegan pizza'. You know what it was? A courgette cut in half lengthways with some tomato sauce on it 😡

It truly annoys me that some chefs make so little effort to be inclusive. It's not just about vegans/veggies either, eggs and dairy are some of the most common allergens.

It's really not that hard!! Surely as someone who enjoys cooking and has a passion for food, you would WANT the opportunity to be creative and put something actually tasty and appealing on your menu?!

Dp and I recently went on holiday to a decent sized town with several lovely pubs serving food - there wasn't a single one that had ANY vegan options apart from chips and only one veggie option. Even that was boring and lazy.

Do better chefs!

Most cheese in the US (and UK) is made using chymosin, the main protease enzyme found in rennet. It's made by a fermentation process.

The chef should indeed know!

Wonder if they cater for people with allergies, I wouldn’t trust them!

I honestly didn’t know that Parmesan wasn’t vegetarian and various other cheeses either. Feel so ignorant now!

An interesting thread, but does make me realise that my best friend who has been vegetarian (no meat or fish) for as long as I've known her (30+ years) does frequently have parmesan or pesto when we are out. I've never heard her ask if it is vegetarian or not, so I think being a vegetarian to her must just be about eating the flesh. I can't imagine she's the only one.

Is there any difference taste wise in the vegetarian parmesan? If not it sounds like a no-brainer to use the inclusive alternative. It's certainly worth asking the venue!

There is such a thing as plant based rennet. Animal based rennet is really expensive. Plant based rennet is made from thistle, artichokes, and nettles. In the US only about 5% - 7% of cheeses are made using animal rennet. Most of those have to be aged longer than 6 months. Soft cheeses don't need it.

Many puddings aren't vegetarian. Mousse often contains beef or pork gelatine.
Some jellies are ok. Check the label.

YANBU. Drives me crazy! I've known for decades that parmesan is never vegetarian, nor is Lea and Perrins or most pesto.

Sacla Organic pesto is vegetarian and has actual cheese in it. That's my top tip.

Someone that cooks for a living should really know this stuff.

If only vegetarian marshmallows weren't so hard to get. 😭

Even some sweets aren't suitable for vegetarians - haribo and turkish delight for instance contain beef gelatine.

The only reason I’m generally not happy with the vegan option is because it tends to be fake versions of the meat dishes.

chk’n fajitas with sheeze and vegan sour cream, quorn lasagne with sheeze, beyond meat burgers.

if the vegan option was decent, I would choose that every time. A lot of the time I have been known to stick to a couple of starters instead.

@SilverBirch99 while you cannot get veggie Parmigiano Reggiano, if it is called anything else than exactly that, eg Parmesan, it is possible to get veggie versions using veg rennet. Even Italian made ones (it is becoming easier to get hold of than used to be the case). Obviously doesn’t guarantee the restaurant has a clue though!

https://www.thefoodmarket.com/products/gran-kinara-vegetarian-parmesan-style-cheese-2x-400g

I've posted before about menus always offering goat's cheese and beetroot, goat's cheese and caramelised onions, and risotto. This one doesn't disappoint.

There's also a sweet potato burger with chips or a pasta bake style dish.

The only thing that's missing is the butternut squash or we'd have bingo

Starters / Main Courses
All Dishes can be served as a Starter or Main Course Portion - £8.95 Starter / £18.50 Main Course
Smoked Goats Cheese Cornetto
Rocket, Beetroot & Hazelnut Salad
Feuile de Brick Parcel
Filled with Goats Cheese & Caramelised Onion with Mediterranean Vegetables & Pesto Dressing (Vegan Upon Request)
Grilled Sweet Potato Burger
Topped with a choice of Mozzarella or Blue Cheese, Hand Cut Chips and Onion Rings
£18.50
Penne Pasta
With Pesto, Pea Shoots, Spinach, Sun-dried Tomato, Parmesan (Vegan Upon Request)
Roasted Root Vegetable Risotto
with Water Cress & Parmesan Shavings (Vegan Upon Request)

Vegans don’t eat anything that comes from animals. Including honey. They shouldn’t really eat mushrooms or avocados either

@FunZebra I know about vegans not eating animal products, but what is the issue with mushrooms or avocados?

So many wholesalers sell vegetarian Parmesan….thats called vegetarian Parmesan