Question for vegetarians....

[dairymoo]

If invited to a friend's for supper, would you rather be served a fully vegetarian meal or something with a vegetarian option, IYSWIM? I am struggling to think of a suitable menu for a dinner party I've got coming up where there is one vegetarian but all others, incl her DH, are meat eaters (and I get the feeling he doesn't get served much meat at home)....just wondering what the etiquette is for things like this? FWIW, I don't eat a lot of meat but my DH is not a big fan of meat-free meals...

Also, any suggested menus much appreciated.

I am sure others might disagree with me but i really prefer everything to be vegetarian, i dont like the idea of options and special meal for the veggie guest.

My dh and dcs are meat eaters but i think everyboddy can survive one day with no meat.

There are many good threads here with ideas for veg dinners.

I dont know if it is formal dinner or casual but lasagne is always a good dish - with spinach and riccota or with lentil sauce. Also many rissotos ideas. Indian cuisine is good for entairtaining vegetarians, so many options for fab meat free curries. Or you can go Med with falafels, stuffed peppers and many salads.

To be honest, I don't care - I'm jsut very grateful that someone is cooking for me

But it's much less faff for you to do the same ofr everyone.

I second a veggie lasagne, lovely!

I don't mind either way - unless it's something fantastic for the meaties and a boiled egg for me. But, actually, even then I realise that it's not always easy to accomodate food preferences.

We sometimes do stuff like Mexican or Indian where you would expect a selection of main dishes and make one meaty with the rest veggie, which works well (DH eats meat, I don't). Or tapas of course, depending on how keen you are on cooking.

I dont mind either way. Id be grateful that someone had taken the time to make a veggie meal that wasnt just carrots and taters.

I knew i ll be the only fussy one but i cant help it

Same for everyone I would suggest but (sorry lilibet) I would not do veg lasagne because as a veggie myself I find that when I go out to eat nine times out of ten the vegetarian option is - you guessed - veg lasagne!

Thanks for your replies. I tend to agree that when invited out, I'm just thrilled not to be cooking so am happy to eat anything.

Mexican is a good idea though as it can def work (and be delish) for all involved. And can be washed down with a sneaky Corona with lime . Also, not too much work, as I have double booked myself and will also be cooking for 8 at lunchtime that day!! D'oh.

Hi. I was veggy for 10 years and my 13 yo DD is a lifetime veggy. Probably the best thing is to talk to the veggy and ask what her likes and dislikes are rather than cook something special that isn't to her taste. The Vegetarian Society is a good source www.vegsoc.org/nvw/2008/recipes/index.html as is the BBC www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/. I've served veggy food to meat eaters and not had any complaints. You could always do veggy food and have a bowl of ham, chicken, etc for people to help themselves to. For information, vegetarians eat food that comes from live animals or fish such as milk and vegans do not eat anything from an animal source. There are variations on this so it is best to check with the veggy involved. Lentils must be rinsed thoroughly and soya mince is wonderful stuff - cheap, quick and easy to prepare, lasts for months in the cupboard, low calorie, no bits of gristle or bone, etc. People working in health food shops are also very helpful.

I don't care either, agree with lilibet - I am just grateful that someone is cooking for me! Think it depends what you have planned for everyone else - if it is say roast chicken with roast potatoes and other veg, I would hate to miss out on the lovely roast potatoes and other veg by being given an all-in-one type of veggie meal.

OTOH, if you were thinking more lasagne and salad, it would be a lot easier for you to just do a veggie lasagne for everyone, eg roast vegetable lasagne or spinach ricotta and pinenuts.

If I have a mix coming, and I know certain ones are big meat fans, I do 2 options (especaially if there are at least 6 of us). But otherwise I do something everyone can eat.

Yes, I did think that about lasagne Bonneville, and last time we had them round I did a pasta dish, so would rather steer away from Italian on this occasion...

Def better if everyone can eat the same or you can make the veggie feel like they have put you out imo.

I think I've decided on Mexican, which incidentally DH loves so will not be too affronted at the lack of meat. Normally, if I push a big bowl of cheese his way he's pretty happy anyway.

Thanks for all your replies, now I must get me to the kitchen....

Can't go wrong with Mexican! You can get quorn fajita strips, DH didn't notice he wasn't eating meat when we had them recently...

Mexican sounds good. As a guest, any veggie that expected the whole meal to be meat, even if they were the only veggie there, would be rather selfish I think. I would be astonished if everyone had to eat veggie just because I was there, although I would expect people who were MY guests to be veggie most of the time, as I'd be the one cooking then.

So - burritos with a meat and veggie filling; salsa; salad; guacamole; nachos; corona; tequila; icecream and chocolate chilli cake for pud?

Can you tell I'm hungry?!