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Original poster

Who is in the wrong - vegan or manager?

649 replies

iloverobbrydon · 28/09/2023 18:05

A group of friends go into a pub that do food. One of them is vegan. She looks at the menu and sees that there are no V or VE signs on the menu at all. Even for items that clearly veggie and vegan, the pub don't use the signs. However, they do list the ingredients and a description of the meal under the meal title.

There are 2 or 3 vegan options. One of them is a pasta where the ingredients are listed as pasta, tomato, basil etc. And have a little description of the taste. No animal products listed at all so the vegan orders this.

The meal comes out and it has a fried egg on top of it. The egg was not listed in the ingredients so she sent it back explaining why.

The manager who took the order is not happy because she never actually said she was vegan and they arent mind readers. They come out and say if you can't eat certain foods then you need to tell the staff to make sure that those things are actually 100% ok for you to eat.

It does escalate into a bit of an argument because the vegan is saying well if you list your ingredients then how am I to know that you only list some ingredients and not others? Where on your menu does it say how your menu works and that you won't list everything? That's just confusing. Either list everything or nothing. The manager is saying if you need a meal to not have an ingredient you need to tell us.

You can probably work out which one I am but I didn't want to write it one sided, just wanted to explain the situation and ask who you think is in the wrong here?

OP posts:
Thread gallery
6
OnAFrolicOfMyOwn · 28/09/2023 18:14

It's not a normal accompaniment to pasta.

Wakeywake · 28/09/2023 18:16

Both are wrong. An egg is a significant ingredient and should be listed. The customer is also wrong to assume a meal is vegan if it's not labeled as such. What if it's something cooked in butter or animal fat, or has gelatine in one of the ingredients? You can't expect a menu to list absolutely everything.

Finteq · 28/09/2023 18:19

Hummingbird89 · 28/09/2023 18:09

There’s blame on both sides here. The pub is barny for not putting a V next to veggie menu items. However, if I were veggie or vegan, I’d mention it to the waitress and as if a particular dish was suitable-surely it’s common sense to make sure?

Agree.

If I was vegan I would definitely mention it to make sure. I wouldn't just assume something was vegan.

And if I was the type of vegan to assume something is vegan without checking then I wouldn't expect to be too annoyed to find out some ingredients arents.

So definitely blame on the vegan side.

But as said above an egg is an allergen and something pretty big not to mention on a menu.

Motnight · 28/09/2023 18:20

What sort of place puts a fried egg on pasta? I would have sent it back and I am not a vegan.

5foot5 · 28/09/2023 18:20

SisterMichaelsHabit · 28/09/2023 18:09

Do you not know what a vegan is? In 2023??

Show quote history

Of course I do. But I am genuinely baffled. The OP doesn't say she has an egg allergy so, providing the yolk hadn't split, if she put it to one side that would be just the same as it not being there surely?

Finteq · 28/09/2023 18:21

mynameiscalypso · 28/09/2023 18:10

Who in their right mind puts an egg on top of a pasta dish like that?!

That said, my dad is a coeliac and always flags this at the start even when ordering things that are clearly GF. If I were vegan, I'd probably do the same but mainly to make sure, eg, there's no cheese or butter used.

There's lots of thing that could have been added that aren't vegan,that might not necessarily have been detailed.

E.g. fried in butter. Or a cheese sauce or any other type of contaminant.

I think if you are a strict vegan and it isn't labelled as such you should definitely check.

QueenCarrot · 28/09/2023 18:22

Vegan should have checked or mentioned it. Pasta dough is often made with eggs. However a fried egg is a bizarre addition to a tomato pasta dish and I would have sent it back too. I would expect the description to include such an addition, so both in the wrong

IncompleteSenten · 28/09/2023 18:22

The pub is wrong for not listing all ingredients of course but if it was me and I was looking at something that seemed vegan but didn't have the symbol then I would ask, just to be on the safe side

NoGNoDNoClue · 28/09/2023 18:22

I think it's a bit of both.

The manager handled it badly, but if the menu didn't explicitly state that anything was vegan, then I would be asking the person serving just to be sure.

handyandie · 28/09/2023 18:23

Egg is an allergen of course it's not ok to list ingredients but miss out a allergen. It's lucky that this was an extremely visible egg and not something mixed in with a sauce that could have caused an allergic reaction in someone. It's good practice for waiting staff to ask "do you have any dietary requirements or allergies?", because why would someone mention this without being asked when ingredients are all listed.

Also who the hell puts a fried egg on the top of a pasta dish?

PinkiOcelot · 28/09/2023 18:24

I’m not vegan but wouldn’t put fried egg on top of pasta. Just why?!

ChocolateCakeOverspill · 28/09/2023 18:25

Vegan should have checked because of butter etc but who in their right mind expects to have an egg on a pasta dish?!

Thats not normal

ChocolateCakeOverspill · 28/09/2023 18:27

To be fair, without checking you don’t actually know if there’s egg in the pasta either.

I just wouldn’t go back and would write a review to warn people that the menu isn’t clearly labelled.

OnAFrolicOfMyOwn · 28/09/2023 18:27

PinkiOcelot · 28/09/2023 18:24

I’m not vegan but wouldn’t put fried egg on top of pasta. Just why?!

I actually quite fancy it so might try it thanks to this thread 😃

Pumpkinspicelattetime · 28/09/2023 18:28

Fresh pasta is made with egg so even without the addition of an egg on top wouldn't be vegan. The pub should make clear allergens and, if they are listing out the main parts of a meal, it's bizarre to miss out an entire egg. However, the vegan shouldn't just assume something is vegan when it isn't stated as such on the menu.

DinnaeFashYersel · 28/09/2023 18:29

5foot5 · 28/09/2023 18:08

Could you not just push the egg to one side and eat the rest?

Is that a serious question?

The answer is of course no

Manager is completely in the wrong but the Vegan should have checked the menu with staff member

ReviewingTheSituation · 28/09/2023 18:29

If you are following a strict vegan diet, then surely you would have asked if the dish was suitable (given that there was no labelling on the menu). Whilst most dried pasta doesn't have egg in it, lots of fresh pasta does. And there could definitely have been butter in the sauce, or on the pasta.

The fried egg is bonkers. But I'm very surprised you didn't actually ask/check if it was vegan suitable in the absence of any indicators at all.

OR - would you have eaten it if it didn't have the fried egg on it...?

Atticustheaardvark · 28/09/2023 18:29

"The manager is saying if you need a meal to not have an ingredient you need to tell us"

Can you imagine?

"Hello yes, can I have the spotted dick and custard please? Oh and please make sure it doesn't come with a fried egg"

Ridiculous - I'm surprised they haven't landed themselves in hot water by now, being that spurious with their ingredients listings.

Oysterbabe · 28/09/2023 18:31

Vegan should have asked. Isn't pasta made of egg?

bigdecisionstomake · 28/09/2023 18:32

This is an 80/20 one for me - 80% the restaurant's fault for not clearly labelling the menu with the Vegan options and for putting an item on a dish that is is an allergen without it being specified on the menu. Plus - egg on pasta - 😵

I think it is 20% the customer's fault for not clarifying the dish was vegan before ordering. Even with the main ingredients listed you couldn't know for sure that part of the process wasn't sautéing in butter or a little cream was used in the sauce etc...

Grumpyold · 28/09/2023 18:32

I don't think you can assume that tomato and basil pasta will be vegan and I don't think when they describe the ingredients it's intended to be a full list of ingredients (pasta isn't an ingredients and might not be vegan?).

It is seriously odd to put an egg on top of that meal without mentioning it, but I do think if she needed the meal to be vegan she should have said so/checked.

Littleblackdress1 · 28/09/2023 18:32

I agree with both of them but veering to the pubs side - if she wasn’t 100% that it was vegan then she should have said.

Pasta can have egg in it so she probably would have needed to check that anyway? Plus you would usually assume pasta comes with some sort of cheese.

TruffleShuffles · 28/09/2023 18:32

If I was a vegan I would never just assume something on the menu was vegan. I use butter in my tomato sauce and as others have said it may be fresh pasta made with egg. The menu should clearly state V/VG options and all allergens though and even if the manager thought the vegan was in the wrong he should have apologised that the egg was not listed and remade the dish minus the egg without fuss.

ConnieTucker · 28/09/2023 18:34

If have sent it back saying egg wasnt a listed ingredient and you cannot eat egg. Egg is an allergen. Surely egg should have been listed!

titchy · 28/09/2023 18:34

Manager wrong definitely!

Though pasta isn't vegan so vegan was wrong in that respect.