Would you date a man who didn't eat any vegetables?

[Callcat]

Just that really!

I dated a man like this in my early 20's (for 3 years). He didn't eat any vegetables at all and would even sieve pasta sauces in case of any chunks of 'too big' vegetable in there. He also wouldn't eat fruit or any healthy cuts of meat, just processed. For people not understanding why this was a problem, I could never cook a 'normal' meal we could eat together, we could never eat at any restaurant that wasn't just pizza/steak/chips style. If we went to a dinner party or just casual food at a friends, he would pick at the food or not eat anything at all. The most ridiculous moment was when he came to my mums one year for Christmas and realising he would eat literally nothing of the traditional Christmas dinner, my mum cooked him sausages and chips!! It wasn't the reason i dumped him, but it definitely put me off dating another man with such weird and restrictive eating habits.

[quote loveinthe90s]@sadpapercourtesan how is it shallow though if you find it physically repellent? I would, the thought of his insides coated in all that beige and brown food (yuck).
Also it's just too babyish. Furthermore vegetables hardly taste of anything, certainly green ones don't. So what's to dislike?[/quote]
Wow, there's a lot in that post! If you're thinking about someone's insides coated in the foods they eat, that's quite extreme and suggests you might have some food issues of your own. Also not everything that isn't a vegetable is "beige and brown" - that's another large leap on your part.

Physically repellent? I could understand that if he was eating whole raw livers straight out of the pig in front of you, but the same meal as you, just without the peas and carrots? It doesn't make sense.

It's interesting that you say vegetables don't taste of anything. I'm autistic and a supertaster, and to me vegetables taste extremely strongly. Spinach is nothing at all like broccoli, for example. I happen to love all vegetables, but I have other sensory difficulties with things others find normal, so it's less of an imaginative leap for me to see how that might apply to foods for some people, I suppose.

@schnubbins

No way because most of my diet is vegetables even though Im not vegetarian .I just love veggies!

How would someone else not eating them affect that?

If I was single now it would bother me less, I've had my children and probably wouldn't want to live with someone again. So providing they could tolerate me eating vegetables then I think I'd be ok with it.

If I was childfree and wanted children it would put me off in the long term.

the thought of his insides coated in all that beige and brown food (yuck)

Eh?

the fussy person would cook their own veg-free meals wouldn't they? The reason someone else's food choices wouldn't affect me is because I wouldn't let it.

But every shared dining experience would be governed by it.

My life just doesn’t work on a ‘everyone always cooks individual meals’ basis. So someone like this is incompatible with my love of food.

No. The childishness of it alone would be enough to make me think he’d be a nightmare about other things.

Surely we need more context though?

I have textural issues with a lot of veg and so I don’t eat them on their own. I do use them in cooking though and love the crunchier veg such as stir-fried and raw carrots etc.

But to all intents and purposes I wouldn’t eat a plate of vegetables in isolation.

But that is different from someone who lives only on chicken nuggets and chips and has never gone near a vegetable ever. But people would still consider it as “not eating vegetables.”

I still cook with them though, put them in sauces, cook them for other people.

I wouldn’t go out with a vegetarian though, and I think that veganism is one of the most unhealthy diets out there regardless of what vegans tell you, so I wouldn’t even entertain that.

My mother did! And as a result we barely ate vegetables while growing up.

I had this last year - was seeing a new man who didn't eat or hardly ate vegetables - apart from the occasional sweetcorn or whatever. Mostly meat.

Funny because his culture is Cypriot so lots of Mediterranean vegetables, aubergine, courgettes, wrapped vine leaves etc.

He ate it more when mummy prepared it but less when he had to cook it.

It would be a big turn off for me. Does he eat fruit?

No. Any more than I would date someone who couldn't read.

@NoSquirrels

the fussy person would cook their own veg-free meals wouldn't they? The reason someone else's food choices wouldn't affect me is because I wouldn't let it.

But every shared dining experience would be governed by it.

My life just doesn’t work on a ‘everyone always cooks individual meals’ basis. So someone like this is incompatible with my love of food.

Ok but it's just strange we never ever seem to read about overweight MNetters 'spoiling' the shared dining experience because they're always dieting. I expect that affects a lot more people on a day to day basis than someone not liking a bit of veg.

@sadpapercourtesan I do understand what you mean and I probably do have sensory issues of my own, I see vegetables as colourful, a rainbow spectrum of green, orange, yellow etc and just associate them with glowing skin and hair. And beige foods the opposite. I suppose eating fruit would combat this to some extent but ultimately food is far too important as a shared experience for me so this would be a dealbreaker!

So, no I wouldn't date a man and reluctantly dated (if you could call it that) him for a short period.

I cant possibly think why 50% of people are single, or whatever the figure is.

I've never really thought about it as a prerequisite, but yes, I am married to a man who doesn't go near fruit or veg. I don't think it's a conscious decision, he's just lazy. He'll see me cooking dinner with all the veg and normal healthy stuff, and he'll get a ready meal out of the freezer and stick it in the microwave for himself. I'm past caring now.

I asked my husband if he wanted carrots, peas or broccoli with dinner. He said 'Ummm ... gravy please!'

No, because I wouldn’t date a meat or fish eater so it’s kind of a given they would need to eat vegetables

Dieters can choose a variety of healthy meals, though, that non-dieters can also enjoy a lot. In fact, as a healthy diet included loads of varied vegetables (eat the rainbow) it’s much easier to accommodate.

If I was catering for a dieter in the family I’d just cook everyone those meals and when out at restaurants eat what I liked.

If I have to think my way around veg-avoiding meals and/or different meals for different people it just cuts out so much choice and variety in a way that ‘healthy’ doesn’t.

No, be like dating a fussy toddler!

No but I love food and cooking. I also love, as does DH, the thrill of newly dug potatoes, freshly picked tomatoes, beans, peas, courgettes, purple sprouting, onions, etc.

Having said that there is nothing wrong with a white bread fish finger sandwich with salted butter, ketchup and a layer of salt and vinegar crisps. Just for those who have turned up their noses at white bread and ketchup.

However, we all like different types and that's a good thing. I couldn't have stuck an uneducated man who didn't read either. Nor would I have felt too close to an atheist or a socialist.

@ShavingTheBadger

No. It’s bad enough going out with one who doesn’t like cauliflower or eggs.

To be fair, they both taste of farts so it shouldn't be a surprise when someone doesn't like them

I married one. Now he eats most things.

If I was catering for a dieter in the family I’d just cook everyone those meals

See that really isn't fair to make one person dictate what everyone else in the family should eat. They'd be far more affected by that than someone not wanting some veg.