Is this an Australian thing?

Question

I'm not technically a vegetarian (I eat fish) but to save time when ordering food I ask for vegetarian options. In restaurants I'll often be offered pumpkin soup, and I always ask if it was made on chicken stock. Sometimes the waiter/ess will say "yes" straight off and I like to time how long it takes for the look of comprehension to invade their face. Others will argue "but it's pumpkin soup, pumpkin's a vegetable" and then get really grumpy when I ask them to check with the chef. Takes the gloss off slightly if they come back with a negative answer, but that isn't usually the way it goes.

But the thing that really gets me is how many bakery workers seem to think bacon is a vegetable. "Does that quiche have any meat in it?" "Oh no, just a bit of bacon." Aaargh!

Absolutely RM, couldn't agree with you more that only questions should be posted. Seems like you're the only one who couldn't see the question in this one, however. Maybe you haven't quite got the hang of it as you've never posted a question yourself.

Answer 1

My wife's a vegetarian, and she's got a running joke with her mother about a 'turkey fish'. Don't ask me, it's Their joke. But it does sound funny...
I've eaten meat on and off, all my life, but I'm understanding about people who don't eat meat.
They can't metabolise (is digest a better word?) the protein, and it can make them really sick.
'Ignorant' meat eaters who can't see a pork chop length past their own noses really annoy me.
It's like, for them, if you don't eat meat, you're some kind of freak, and why should they make allowances? They are so arrogant / ignorant / rude.

Answer 2

LOL I'm sorry but I had to laugh. I am not a vegetarian, but have friends who are. I have been in Burger King where people have asked for a vegetarian BK which means it has everything but the burger and been asked - does that mean you don't want the burger?

People forget about soup stock probably being made of chicken or beef.

Was at a baby shower today where they served a fruit platter with minestrone soup (which undoubtedly was made from beef stock) and quiche with bacon. The girl sitting next to me was Jewish and keeps kosher. She asked if there was any meat in the soup and was told "no" and when asked if there was meat in the quiche told, "no, only bacon"!

This was in the USA so no, it is not an Australian thing...it is an uneducated thing.

Answer 3

No, it's not just Australian. A lot of people who haven't had much experience with vegetarianism/vegetarians make these mistakes.

Some people think that "does it have meat in it" means does it have large portions of some land animal in it, and so if it only has a little meat or only has seafood in it, they'll say it doesn't have "meat". It might be helpful for you to make a point of saying that you're vegetarian, and then they may be more sensitive to pointing out even small amounts of meat. Still risky sometimes, though, if the server is careless.

Answer 4

lol, It's all over. I don't even ask meat eaters anymore.
Really, people are so desensitized and separate from the concept of *food* I really don't trust them to understand *dead animal* and *not dead animal.* Enough years of being asked "Can't you just pick it off?" has given me the knowledge necessary to know I cannot trust these people with what goes in my body
:)

There are certain foods (such as soup) I exclude from my list of edible foods when going out unless there are obvious differences, like seeing the different labels "vegetable soup" and "vegetarian vegetable soup" next to each other.

And I cannot eat regular bakery because of the animal products, so I never got to experience the bacon one.
:)

Answer 5

i comprehend you reported that's somewhat geared in the route of MrJinx, yet i do not imagine any Australian on right here be it MrJinx, Bingalee, myself or the different member thinks Australia will truly win the Ashes. in reality i imagine they're going to probable lose the series, yet I do imagine they're going to play more suitable powerful than they did in India and could probable win a journey or 2. Who is conscious they'd have received very last time in England had it no longer been for the elements, so the same would perhaps happen this time also. in problem-free words time will tell.

Answer 6

It's definitely not just an Australian thing! Life is much easier for vegetarians in Australia than many places. I have travelled in Europe, Asia, Africa (both North and sub-Saharan), Central and South America and my experience is that vegetarians have a much easier time of it in English-speaking countries than just about anywhere else. I have lived in both the UK and Australia and think it's probably better for vegetarians (especially quasi-vegetarians who eat fish) in Australia than the UK.

Answer 7

couldn't you just scream at the ignorance of people? My mother in law thinks chicken is a vegetable and tries to feed it to my 12 year old veggie daughter. "But, its not meat, its just chicken" I want to smack her upside the head with a cactus! DUH?? Grow a brain, people. Hey, lets all get together and grill us up some chicken wrapped in bacon, shall we? Surely if we eat it with that pumpkin soup it will still be vegetarian, right? And no, my dear, its sadly a universal thing-I am in the US and its the same here

Answer 8

No it is not just in Australian this happens. Here in the U.S.A. the wait staff, cooks etc..really don't "think". I have even had a waitress argue that eggs were dairy..why because when she goes to the dairy case in the store eggs are there too...

Answer 9

No. I'm afraid it's universal LOL

Most Omnivores can't seem to grasp that broth comes from the same dead animal the meat came from.

Answer 10

Chefs are generally grumpy people and they also carry knives so forgive the staff for not wanting direct communication and also one gets less and less time to communicate with the customer. Everyone is under pressure so just try to be helpful and keep it short and simple. Thanks