Non meat eater served meat again!

[Hellon]

i stopped eating meat 2 years ago and have been served meat now twice whilst eating out, and both times I have accidentally eaten some meat as I ordered vegetarian food. On both occasions the staff just don’t seem that’s it’s a big deal and just apologised. On the first occasion I had ordered a vegetarian burger and took a big bite only to realise it was a beef burger, I complained to the waitress and they said sorry and brought me a veggie burger which then couldn’t eat as I felt sick. They refunded me the money but it seemed like an inconvenience to them.
the second occasion I was at a wedding and got served a meat and mushroom pie when I had asked for the vegetarian option and the waitress serving the pie said yes it’s vegetarian. Again the staff just say oh sorry I’ll change it for you. Again I had eaten a small piece of meat so felt sick and couldn’t eat the new soggy tart they brought me. I didn’t make a fuss on the day as it’s someone’s wedding and I didn’t want to cause a scene, but they staff just brush it off.
i worked in hospitality for years and when we got something wrong we went above and beyond to make sure the customer left happy. I hate to think what happens when people have allergies, how do they trust a venue will
not kill them.
It is a big deal serving meat to a non meat eater and hospitality staff should start being more sympathetic to their guests! It really does put me off eating out.
Im interested to hear other people’s experiences as I don’t know many vegetarians /vegans

Aren't they flexitarians?

I knew a woman who swore blind she was vegetarian as she only ate chicken and fish. 😀

@Diomi that just doesn't follow though. Just because one person gives up being vegetarian because it's too hard or they can't be bothered why would they then think that other people who are actually vegetarian would then want to eat meat, or not care if they accidentally did? It's a bizarre train of thought and there's absolutely no evidence for it as far as I can see.

I know someone who calls himself a vegetarian but will eat meat if it is part of a roast dinner!

I actually admire him hugely for trying. He mostly stays on the wagon despite really liking meat.

It was only a theory of mine based on people seeming to be quite flexible and less hardline than they used to be. Obviously a negative if they work in the catering industry.

I don't admire people who call themselves vegetarian who aren't, as it seems to cause people with critical thinking deficits to get confused about the definition of the word.

Agree.

On these threads there are always a lot of people who claim they know vegans/vegetarians who can't resist a bacon sandwich though. I'm sure some people do change their diet but not half as often as the vegan/vege haters/wind up merchants on here would try to make you believe.

On one thread, a poster said that her vegan friend came over and 'devoured' 2 whole roast chickens that were for her families dinner...as if. 🙄

Don't do that! Utterly unethical. This kind of piss-take is exactly why actual allergy sufferers sometimes dint get taken seriously, with potentially deadly consequences.

If someone does or doesn’t take allergy sufferers seriously a couple of extra people saying they have an allergy won’t change that.

I think @Diomi has hit the nail on the head. My comment was going to be similar as I find most vegetarians these days to not take it as seriously as people did before. So maybe it’s to do with age group and choice.

there was a “vegan” on here once who revelled in telling us they ate steak once a year despite expecting everyone to jump to accommodate her diet the rest of the time.

One of my nieces for years had a vegetarian diet with an exemption for chicken nuggets. She's now decided that, actually, they aren't all that tasty.

I often wonder what all these 'vege ' meals are.
Sounds vaguely rude.

Weird.

I've been a vegetarian for 28 years and this does happen. You'll learn to inspect everything before eating. If its something 'closed' like a burrito I'll open it up first. When ordering I'll also ask '
"it is vegetarian isn't it?" even if it very clearly is. If I'm suspicious I get DH to have a bite.
I don't eat 'fake meat' at all though so it is obvious as first glance usually if something has meat in it.

Most places are really apologetic but of course you get the odd ones that don't get it.

I think with the rapid rise of veganism in the last couple of years people are not taking it as seriously as they used to. You're more likely to be seen as just another fussy eater.

It's annoying but it happens and it's something you'll learn to deal with over time

And red onion tartlette, with a bit of frilly lettuce but no additional veg! Just what you want to eat with gusto and relish when your colleagues are tucking into a full Christmas dinner - for the same price.

I am a meat eater and in the seriousness spectrum of mistakes I’d say serving the wrong side dish (peas instead of carrots) is at one end and serving an allergen to an allergic person is at the other end. Serving meat to a vegetarian or vegan is somewhere in the middle and definitely deserves a sincere apology and lessons learned to avoid it happening again.

@OurSong

Apologies. It was a poor attempt at a joke. I need to keep my spirits up in these over-earnest times.

@viques that's awful to be charged the same price!

I like a nice onion tartelette as much as the next person - for lunch maybe- but it's in no way comparable to a decent roast and side dishes.

As for veggie ( sorry vege/ veej) risotto that can never work really well without a good meat stock.

What would you ideally like to eat as a decent substitute for a Christmas dinner ?

I've been given some great idea for veej dishes to tickle my tastebuds and (occasionally) tempt me away from flesh eating on another thread; and am always interested in more ideas !

Yes! I was saying the other day how
much prices have gone up in restaurants now and I do begrudge paying almost the same for a meal that has no meat in. I mean £20 for a cauliflower steak! And does anyone even actually like a slice of cauliflower at the best of times, let alone for £20 😂

TBF about 1/3 of revenue is food cost. Rents, staffing etc. take up a lot. A slice of cauli takes as much to serve as a steak.

DD turned veggie this year because she really doesn't like the flavour or texture of meat or fish.

I once cooked 2 pukka pies for dinner, hers was vegetarian and mine had meat in it. After serving she cut into her pie and I saw I'd given her the meat pie!

Many apologies later, we switched plates and it was forgotten.

When out and about we haven't come across any mistakes yet but I'm sure that day will come.

You think a server is going to overthink to that level? Honestly?
It is possible to have an allergy to say lactose so you can’t eat the full dish, but might eat a mouthful and be fine. (I know people like this and I’ve been with them when they’ve suffered the consequences).

Use religion then, or will that make servers take God less seriously….

Tbh until recently I found a lot of places to be base about allergies. There seems to (thankfully) have been a shift in last couple years.

I'd probably say allergy to ensure they are more competent.

And examine your food more I have some food issues and examine food I haven't made extremely carefully.

Someone should setup a bingo card for these threads, predictable posts we’ve had so far:

1. i knew this vegetarian who accidentally ate meat and didn’t notice and they wouldn’t stop saying how tasty it was.
2. your lying when you say meat makes you feel nauseous
3. I know a vegetarian who eats chicken
4. vegetarian food is shit/tasteless anyway

just waiting on:

1. vegetarians are pale and unhealthy

I’m sure there’s more that aren’t coming to mind….

ive not had your issue op but I’ve had 3 different takeaways serve me meat. The rubbish bit is they’ve never agreed to a refund they just offer to bring out a replacement dish, so you end up with your curry coming 40 minutes after everyone else’s whilst the rice and other sides get cold!

I once ordered a vegetarian pizza and they didn’t have feta so they replaced it with lamb!

i don’t go out for dinner much, price has shot up and quality is dropped.

It's the same with most 'don't ear' foods. I can't eat raw tomato but it's almost always on the meal. I send it back, it comes back with slices removed but seeds/juice still present.

They don't care & look at me like I'm difficult. Sometimes say it's been remade when it obviously hasn't.

I then quietly tell them if raw tomato is present I'll vomit it allllll over their establishment. It's anaz6how quickly it's whisked away & replaced!!

I agree. You get people saying they have a wheat allergy and then they order a beer. It makes hospitality staff take allergies less seriously. My son has a peanut allergy and him getting served a peanut is far far worse than you taking a bite (and presumably spitting out) of a beef burger.