Afternoon tea difficulty

Cucumber? 🤢

Yeah, I'd be sitting in the car park with a flask and my own unadulterated sandwich waving at you through the window.

Can't you go somewhere else, I wouldn't give them my money,that's shocking!

Is there not a vegetarian afternoon tea option? If there's not, I can kind of see why she doesn't want to go/ thinks there's not much she can have.
So many afternoon teas out there that do have a vegetarian option, so if it's the case that she's vegetarian why not go to somewhere that caters to both omnivores and vegetarians/vegans?

Smoked salmon and cream cheese, mmm, delicious 😋

Well it is cream cheese 🤢

So there is a vegetarian sandwich on offer but your friend doesn't want to eat it. Life can be so unfair.

As a incredibly fussy eater, she needs to suck it up and just eat what she can. As an example I don't like chips- so if a meal comes with chips I ask if they can swap for a salad, if not I say don't worry about the chips or I share with others on the table. Some people share their food with me and some don't.

She can grab a sausage roll or have a cheese sandwhich if she is going to get hungry- but there is a limit on accomodation for differences and food preferences (not allergies) is it for a set menu.

If it was me I’d eat just the cake and lick the cucumber off the cream cheese butties (I’m not a fan of cucumber in a butty).
it does feel like they’re being rigid but your friend can adjust. They defo should have a veggie offering.

I think we'll leave the embarrassing fusspot at home and eat her share!

Yes this is what I think; I can remember walking around an area of Paris back in the 1970s whe veggies were not really catered for. One of the group announced she was a veggie and could not find anything she wanted to eat on any of the menus. Eventually I got tired to translating menus, and picked a restaurant I liked. I told the rest of the group that I was eating there and they could do as they liked,. We were all pissed off and hungry so the veggie and her friend were left to make their own arrangements.

vegetarians and vegans choose this lifestyle and shouldn't expect to be given special treatment just because of their chosen dietary requirements

Of course they should when they’re paying for their meal. Hotels cater for a wide variety of tastes. If they didn’t people would go elsewhere.

Will your friend eat an egg mayonnaise sandwich? I can't imagine just eating cheese sandwiches when there are so many delicious fillings. Sausage rolls are normally offered in an afternoon tea, something else your friend won't eat. Maybe your friend should pass on the occasion and join you on a meal out instead at a later date. I can't imagine living as a vegetarian, it's too limited for me. I feel sorry for coeliacs and those having to exclude gluten for medical reasons, but vegetarians and vegans choose this lifestyle and shouldn't expect to be given special treatment just because of their chosen dietary requirements

Cream cheese is, of course, totally unsuitable for vegetarians 🤨

This is a fussy vegetarian friend

The hotel said it would be OK, they have now changed their mind despite it obviously being within they power to deliver.

The rest of the discussion has no bearing.

YANBU to leave an accurate review

OP have you actually asked the hotel if they have a vegetarian menu? Or are you just relying on what is on the website?

Afternoon tea isn't a good choice if you have folk with dietary needs.
I once tried to find somewhere that could cater for a vegetarian diet, a vegan diet, a renal diet and a diet suitable for a Muslim gentleman!
We went for a bar meal in the end - much easier!

So much angst caused by the humble cheese sandwich..op hope your friend gets her sandwich😋

Yes, do. They surely accommodate vegetarians/vegans. If they don’t then most places will so maybe consider switching venues.

Im amazed. Usually hotels/restaurants that do afternoon teas are happy to swap out a filling if you give them notice. Here you could vote with your custom by not going. But if you insist I’m not sure what you can complain about as they’ve made their position clear.

But that’s the regular menu. Usually there’s an entirely separate vegetarian or vegan one. (Most standard desserts won’t suit vegans either.)

They should provide a vegetarian option - though unfortunately many only do vegan now, and whilst I do enjoy most vegan sandwiches I would like the option of a cheese or egg one as well as its usually vegan cheeze and then vegan margarine instead of clotted cream for the scones….. It’s then it stops feeling like an indulgent treat… do push back it will benefit many of us!

OP, why didn’t you just say at the start that your friend is vegetarian? You would have got some more supportive responses, I think.

Not eating everything and not eating ANY sandwich filling but cheese are worlds apart. You seem intelligent enough to know that. And also to know someone can be vegetarian and fussy.

A vegetarian is someone who doesn't eat meat, not someone who will only eat a cheese sandwich.

You shouldn't take her if she's going to be so dramatic.

They might not let you do that if they see you.

You could (for all they know) be bringing potential allergens into the restaurant

(M&S won't even let you bring sandwiches from their shop into their restaurants for that reason)