To be sick of people thinking vegetarian eat fish

I am a pescatarian but I think it’s a silly sounding word, so I just say I don’t eat meat 😄

I have no moral basis for eating fish and not meat except that I don’t feel able to cut it out right now. I don’t eat that much of it though as my dd is veggie so I mostly eat what she eats.

And the stereotyping continues

My mum was technically pescatarian - no meat, but happy with fish, eggs and dairy. She was no meat, but would usually like the fish option, or happily have a dairy option or a vegan option (she liked most veg too)

What she'd often find though is that at a set menu place or wedding or something, if she said she was pescatarian, people would think she NEEDED fish! They'd panic they had no fish option! If she said she was vegetarian, it there was a nice fish option she could chose it, but she could equally chose a dairy based option if there was no fish option, or even a vegan option if she wanted.

More than 2/3 of 'vegetarians' I've known eat fish, so actually they are picseatarian. Most of these are probably too stupid to know that word - so stick to the (wrong) one they do know.
And so, so many eat chicken as well. I guess claiming your Vegetarian and actually being one are two different things these days? 🤷

Of my friends/workmates only a single one is actually a proper vegetarian and zero are vegan. Guess it's the area I live in and type of people in our tech office?
I personally cannot stand those sanctimonious and self-righteous militant veggies and vegans - who often seem to be the most miserable and depressed/depressing people I've ever encountered! 🙄

Pescetarians don't need fish at every meal, so for the purposes of 2/3 categories classification, they can be grouped with vegetarians, they kind of become vegetarians (member of the vegetarian meal eaters group) for the time being.

You can serve a vege meal to a pescetarian or a meat eater.
You should not assume vegetarians eat fish (or meat).

I'd think also there are quite a few of us omnivores who go for the veggie option if we're somewhere with lower quality meat. We all know the reputation of airline food, so probably something quite common on planes.

It's annoying not to get what you've ordered, but in a situation where they've fucked up, it makes sense to ask. I'd feel guilty if someone else went hungry for 9 hours when I could suck it up and have the rubbery chicken.

My mother in law still tries to get me to eat fish despite the fact I gave it up 25 years ago when I was ten years old! I swear the woman doesn't give up!

I've been vegan for over a year now and honestly really don't want her to ever find out because god knows what she'd make of that if she can't even accept no fish as a thing. I will keep it from her forevermore!

Pescetarians don't need fish at every meal, so for the purposes of 2/3 categories classification, they can be grouped with vegetarians, they kind of become vegetarians (member of the vegetarian meal eaters group) for the time being.

^ That’s the thing.

I’m pescatarian on the whole. (There are a couple I won’t eat on ethical grounds)

However, most of my extended family regard me as a vegetarian because they themselves don’t like fish so never cook it. To them it’s meat or not meat (vegetarian).

A good 80% of the time my meals are vegetarian. It’s easy to say I am vegetarian when visiting family because that way I won’t get served a pork pie. (Literally. It’s their go to lunch option).

If I say pescatarian all bets are off. I know that from experience.

I appreciate that’s frustrating for actual vegetarians; I was one myself for 15 years. However, I don’t care enough about that nor enforcing correct definitions. I just want to visit my Auntie for lunch and not cause a problem.

(It’s a cheese sandwich for me when the rest have the pork pies they buy from the butcher on a Saturday morning)

No, what I meant was that even though you booked a vege meal, it might have been because you preferred it but were omnivorous.
As I said, I book Asian vege, but if there was some problem and they offered me a meat or fish dish, I'd be fine with that (and an apology).
So they gave your meal to someone who just asked for it but hadn't booked it?

I wonder why they went out of business!

This is the first thing that came into my mind too 😂

A vegetarian does not eat meat, poultry, or fish. I would expect someone in hospitality to know that. It was on the now defunct Air 2000 to the USA. They also ran out of tea bags! The vegetarian meals were served to others. I didn't even get a refund!

It is no difference for the meals. However it leads to seeing people from group labeled "vegetarians" (by their choice of meals) happily eating bacon at breakfast.
And noone is doing anything wrong, just the label is shifting between describing "being a proper vegetarian" and "people eating vegetarian meals".

It demonstrates that when it comes to general public (including our chef) the word isn't used for strict vegetarian identity, but for observed behaviour (not eating meat in typical volume & width).

My point is that the word vegetarian have became "the goto word" - so it is often used to make communication about food easier, even if less precise.

Pescetarians don't need fish at every meal, so for the purposes of 2/3 categories classification, they can be grouped with vegetarians, they kind of become vegetarians (member of the vegetarian meal eaters group) for the time being.

My sister eats only poultry, she often goes "as a vegetarian" because it is easier to communicate and sounds less fussy. If it matters, she will explain, but not for one-off 3 categories classification.

I'd be more concerned if someone wasn't, considering cats are obligate carnivores!

Not happening, because the only time I'd really need that information is if I'm in charge of catering or restaurant choosing. If a person eats fish, that expands the available options. That, coupled with the realistic chance that a person claiming to be veggie is using the word wrongly, means it's always going to be in my interests to check.

I eat meat, fish, vegetables, dairy - pretty much anything. I don't care what people choose to call their dietary choices, I only am concerned that if I am catering for them, they will eat what I provide. I have no idea which cheese is considered vegetarian and I don't think I should be expected to work it out. It's easier to just ask what people will and won't eat, because the same label means different things to different people, whatever the official definition of that label is.

But that makes no difference in those circumstances: if they've requested vegetarian meals and you serve them with meals that are suitable for vegetarians (i.e. no meat or meat products), everybody knows where they stand.

Just like if I order a beef dish in a restaurant: it makes no difference to the restaurant whether I sometimes happily eat chicken, fish or anything that isn't in that dish, because it's irrelevant to the case in hand.

On the other hand, if I asked if a fish dish that they offer was suitable for a vegetarian, they would (I hope) tell me that it wasn't as it contains fish, which is obviously meat. I can still order it if that's what I choose, but I am then knowingly and clearly choosing a non-vegetarian dish.

I often eat vegetarian, but I am not a vegetarian, as I also often eat meat and animal products.

Just as long as people know the correct accepted meaning of words and communicate clearly, we're all good.

I don't know any vegetarians that talk about their vegetarianism unless someone asks about their food preferences for a function or a set meal.

I get rather tired of the narrative that all vegetarians and vegans need to tell people all about their dietary preferences because it simply isn't true. Maybe it is because I don't judge people for being vegan or vegetarian. I am more likely to swap recipes with them as we do eat a lot of vegetarian food anyway.

FML, I'm sick of it too. I've been asked by virtually everyone if I eat fish. In fact the only people who don't ask me or other veggies or vegans.

And don't get me started at other people's comments about what I eat. I've started stating 'It's rude to comment on others food choices.'

I honestly cannot understand why you are asking me that question, @Greyish2025. It has no connection whatsoever to the point that I made. 🤔🤔🤔

My point refers to the factual definition of vegetarian, and the fact that someone who eats fish cannot be defined as a vegetarian, because a fish is not a sort of vegetable.

@Oreyt - as above, your ‘vegetarian’ friends who eat fish, are NOT vegetarian - unless they believe fish are vegetables (hint for them- they are not).

Been vegetarian 20 years,at my brothers wedding my meal was salmon, the mil argued with me that this was vegetarian 🤣 erm no
Her reasoning was the vegetarian she knew ate fish,well they'd be pescaterian like my son was, the venue were mortified when I queried it and cobbled together some tortellini 😐

But this thread isn't vegetarians going around waffling about how superior they are. It's about OP being offered food that doesn't fit the criteria for vegetarian food, because a load of non vegetarians want to call themselves vegetarian without being vegetarian, thereby muddying the understanding of what vegetarian means. Which impacts vegetarians and not the people who call themselves what they're not.

I don't think a single veggie on this thread has said they're superior, or waffled about their reason for being a veggie, or any of that. We just want to be able to trust that when we are offered veggie food, it's actually veggie.

If an eating establishment marks anything as vegetarian that clearly isn't, it's a good one to avoid.

I’d give it a go but DP would leave me!

If I thought dog tasted nice I might try it

I can well understand how vegetarians might find the argument boring but do you understand how boring it is for non vegetarians to listen to vegetarians waffle on in a superior attitude about vegetarianism?

The vegetarians I know eat fish.