Work trip restaurants have no vegetarian options and I hate fuss

[Clockinginat2pm]

Away abroad with work.
We have clients with us, there’s a few of us flown over.
Activities all organised by head office, lovely, it’s really well organised day & evening.
Restaurants booked for each evening… Smash burger place and steak & fish place x2. Checked out menus and there is zero, and I mean zero vegetarian option on any of the menus at all. Starters/mains ALL meat or fish pf some form. There’s not even any sides (which would usually be more go to)

I do not want to draw ANY attention to myself at all as I am excruciatingly dreading these events as I am introvert, socially extremely anxious and feeling very very out of my depth with it all.

Fade into the background is my main aim..

So, do I order something with meat/fish & just pretend to eat it and be hungry for a few days?

I don’t speak the language, the waiter from last night spoke no English so ringing them to order something else is not an option here at all. (I ended up with an appetiser of grilled asparagus which I couldn’t eat so pushed it around my plate for 40 minutes.

Ive used my emergency pack of biscuits as I was starving.
What would you do in my shoes???

"I'm not hungry. I'll have water/soda/wine/orange juice/tea...."

I had similar when we met some Japanese clients in Paris and they wanted to go to a Japanese restaurant which was mainly noodles and fish. I apologised and said I didn’t eat either of those, so they pointed out a rice and beef dish that they said I would love. I did. Nobody was offended, if anyone thought badly of me, they didn’t show it, and I wouldn’t have cared anyway. I’m an adult in a professional job, if I can’t speak up for myself, I shouldn’t be in the job.

I grew up eating a lot of middle eastern meze type meals and it's my go-to. Loads of amazing veggie meals at Indian, Japanese, any sort of middle eastern, Italian (depending on your feeling on parmesan), etc.

My parents and brother are pescatarian as they keep kosher and when I first moved to the UK, loads of pubs would have meat/meat/meat and macaroni cheese. We quickly learned to check the menu first! It's very different nowadays of course - this is 20 years ago.

I know I will never eat the meat on planes so I tick veggie but am just ready to only have some bread or whatever and travel with loads of snacks. Some of the options are really, really awful.

yes and cheese!

I'm in Scotland and agree. I took a friend's veggie kid to a beach chippie place a couple years ago and he could eat... ice cream. So he did with enthusiasm!

Last time I flew Air France, the very nice cabin crew ended up putting together a meal for me out of their own food as my vegetarian meal, despite being preordered, failed to materialise. I think I had yoghurt, an apple, half a baguette and some cheese for dinner.

If you really don’t want to say anything then you will need to go to a shop and buy food that you can eat in your room and big snacks that you can eat during the day. If anyone questions it then just say you feel faint if you don’t eat often. Then order a small dish or something that sounds easy to pick bits out of if that is possible.

The next time there is a trip I would send an email to whoever books it along the lines of “just wanted to double check that there will definitely be vegetarian options on this trip”

The reason why there is one uninteresting option for veggies is not because a restaurant doesn’t know what vegetarians eat, it’s because it’s cheaper to have one type of special meal that covers several sets of requirements eg vegan, lactose intolerant etc.

why on earth couldn't you eat the asparagus

As the OP stated...it was tightly wrapped in ham which she couldn't remove. I presume she ate the ends not touched by the meat.
As for chips some are cooked in meat fat, some aren't. You'd think most restaurants could do an omelette or a salad, boring as that might be.
What isn't clear is where the OP draws the line as regards vegetarianism or which country she is in so people can't help effectively.

Can you email restaurants?

It isn't common practice in other countries though unless it's a very traditional, old school type place that you might find in the mountains of Romania for example. But that wouldn't stack up with it being a smash burger joint. Burger restaurants both in the UK and overseas are extremely unlikely to use beef dripping for their fries.

Can you link restaurants. Someone on here might be able to help especially with language issue

Vegan here. Always arm yourself with some phrases in the local language. “I’m vegetarian”. “I don’t eat meat or fish” etc. Speak to the staff. Use Google translate. It’s very rare to find a chef who doesn’t want to ‘show off’ what he can do with a carrot.

Isn't that more a Yorkshire thing? I would hazard a guess that they would be more likely to be cooked in oil on the continent.

That isn't entirely true - the actual Smash Brothers chain uses beef drippings for chips. Loads of chippies here in Scotland do too. And a few other chains as well as per Google.

Google translate a statement about what you can and can't eat. Honestly, this isn't a huge deal. I suspect the restaurant will try to find you something to eat.

I've travelled widely as a vegetarian, and even in countries where vegetarianism is uncommon in the locals, it's not an unheard of concept for tourists most of the time.

Apologies if this has been said, I've just read OP's posts

OP surely at the burger place you order a cheese burger and chips, without the burger ie a cheese sandwich and chips. Use Google translate to place your order with an additional sentence to say you are veggie to be clear it's not a mistake in translation.

Then look carefully at the fish menu or just have a pudding and sides.

Maybe you could turn this around and think about it differently?

If you communicate with the waiting staff, via google translate, or whatever, there will, in all likelihood be a little bit of fuss. At a minimum people will notice that your meal is different.

But that’s a topic of conversation you can anticipate and prepare for. It’s actually a ready made ice breaker. Run through it a few times in your head so you’re ready for it.

It can actually be very useful, if you’re socially awkward, to have a little quirk or handle.

Use google translate to communicate with waiting staff. Put on the message that you are ordering dish X but can they bring it with just the carbs/veg, and no meat.

Fish isn't vegetarian though.

Why do people make life so difficult for themselves? Why keep making rules about diets and other preferences?
There has been no mention of allergies or medical need.

Agree you need to sort this with a senior person on your trip. I have some dietary issues (not veggie), which means eating out can be a pain and in a situation like this I would have to speak to someone. Even if you eat chips and vegetables and buy food to eat in your hotel room you’ll be ok.

I had this in rural Spain years ago. Just asked for a plain or cheese omelette.

Call head office and tell them. They need to find food for you. I am surprised they did not ask for dietary requirements. Please make fuss, do not worry about it and do not go hungry. Big hug.

Exactly, that's why I said look carefully at it. Fish with potatoes and veg, without the fish wouldn't be ideal, but better than no meal. Fish pie, less adaptable. Harder to predict as an observer than a burger menu.