The Ordeal Of A Vegetarian\'s Appetizer Dilemma !!!

[Ambhi]

You are a vegetarian and you decide to go out for a group lunch say with your team, co-workers, friends, family or even the mob … Just kidding about the mob !!!

Let’s say half of your group are vegetarians. After the initial paranoia and later due diligence about the place you are heading to, like looking up the menu online and narrowing down the vegetarian choices, making sure they cook vegetarian dishes separately, not use the same oil for frying shrimp and chicken and what not, with a sigh of relief you head out with the group. Heck in excitement you may even volunteer to drive half the people to the restaurant to celebrate your sense of achievement in being able to find and finalize your vegetarian choices well ahead of time.

You reach the restaurant, after settling down at a large table with the group, the waitress stops by taking orders for appetizers first. You and your other vegetarian buddies huddle around and decide to order say some vegetarian spring rolls — just for the few of you hoping to evenly split the six tiny pieces in a single plate.

The waitress moves on to the other meat lovers to take their orders and they in turn order say chicken or pork spring rolls. Now you have two sets of people and two sets of appetizers at stake.

After ten minutes … The waitress brings the vegetarian spring rolls first as the veggies are usually kept sliced and diced ready whereas chicken and meat take some mincing and mixing.

What does the waitress do ? She puts the vegetarian spring rolls smack in the middle of the table (Arrrgggh!) and guess what ? Every one in the group, not just you cow(s) and bull(s), is reaching out to grab a piece. If lucky you may get a leftover piece for yourself. Poof ! they are gone in a jiffy. Understood. Everyone is just darn hungry and not thinking at the moment about courtesy towards the fellow vegetarians.

Now past five minutes the waitress comes back with the meat ridden spring rolls (Karma Karma !!!). Unfortunately you cannot eat them and you can only watch the meat lovers gobble every single piece to leave a clean shiny plate a second time over. They now have two strikes in a row and you just went to the gutters.

Now you end up not satiating yourself with enough appetizers and you may either order another plate of the vegetarian appetizer in which case you will be inundated with appetizers when others have already moved on to their entr?or you will just mumble to yourself and rant all about it to your vegetarian buddies after the party. Once, twice, thrice … it happens every time.

How do you get rid of this dilemma each time ? How do you politely, subtly and with no offense set the expectation to the meat lovers to leave you, your vegetarian buddies and your vegetarian appetizers alone or order their own ?

Post your humorous thoughts and suggestions.

PS: This has nothing to do with me abstaining from having dinner at last week's Bay Area meeting ... honestly. :)

[sumachechi]

Ambhi
I sympathise.
Ask the waitress to get all the starters at the same time. THat will sort out the issue.
Or order more of the veg- so that veggies also get enough.

At buffet meals, Ive often felt that there was less variety for vegetarians compared to for non-veg, but not heard anyone complain before-may be there were being polite.

[dixit]

....How do you get rid of this dilemma each time ? How do you politely, subtly and with no offense set the expectation to the meat lovers to leave you, your vegetarian buddies and your vegetarian appetizers alone or order their own ?

...

No need to be polite or subtle. You gotta hold your ground, be aggressive, have that killer instinct to snatch the food out of these blood thirsty carnivores.

Only problem is, to have a killer instinct you need to be a non-vegetarian (according to a popular opinion).

So be a non-veg for a few years, develop that killer instinct, then turn vegetarian.

[Chakraan]

So be a non-veg for a few years, develop that killer instinct, then turn vegetarian.

Like "Ghar wpasi" by RSS ?

[Chakraan]

How do you get rid of this dilemma each time ? How do you politely, subtly and with no offense set the expectation to the meat lovers to leave you, your vegetarian buddies and your vegetarian appetizers alone or order their own ?

Post your humorous thoughts and suggestions.

PS: This has nothing to do with me abstaining from having dinner at last week's Bay Area meeting ... honestly. :)

Next time you carry your own appetizers from home, Alu Bonda, in a stainless steel tiffin box.

[Plan2010]

Next time pick Soup Plantation as your restaurant..should be punishment enough for the meat lovers for all the times they grabbed those veggie appetizers..or some other similar buffet places with lots of veg options and very limited non veg..then start a discussion on healthy living choices..:)

[gotskiz]

Revenge is the only option. Punish them by eating all the non-veg rolls (removing the chicken pieces) as soon as they arrive :p

[dixit]

I am getting sick and tired of these part-time vegetarians, these pseudo-veggies mocking us non-vegetarians belief system with their fancy salads and tasteless soups. Non-vegetarianism is not just a belief system but is actually a way of life and has been around for more than 50,000 years.

Just because non-vegetarians are passive and docile, our tolerance is taken as a sign of weakness. By nature vegetarians are aggressive; case in point --- Hitler was a vegetarian. Man responsible for decimating the biggest empire human civilization had ever seen --- Mahatama Gandhi was a vegetarian. I am sure even Saddam Hussein was a closet vegetarian and used to eat veggie falafal in secret.

I will urge all my non-vegetarian brethren to rise against this tyranny of vegetarians!!

May the Sauce Be With You *

* to eat with that last remaining vegetarian spring roll before Ambhi makes a move for it

[Veekay]

tell them you noticed that a spring roll accidentally fell on the floor and the waiter put it back on the plate, right after the waiter leaves placing the plate of spring rolls on the table. Continue saying that you knew which one fell on the ground. Now the mob will pass the plate over to you. Just as you grab the plate, pretend to accidentally sneeze on it. Voila, the whole plate is yours, even if you offer it others.

[rajradio]

Well just liken food and the food preparation methods to something obnoxious most folks will back out and u ll have things for yourself . If there is wadas just wonder aloud how the centre hole came about. If there is sambar start saying how sambar tastes better last nights left over daal, if it is dosa ask them if they know that the dosa maker uses a large broom to sweep the pan, you what to do with linear/cylindrical food. So you get the cue.


Rk