I am a vegetarian but I worry about eating in resturants because?!
So is it illegal if the restaurant owner names the meal with cheese vegetarian but doesn't check if the cheese is vegetarian?
Answers: I am and have been a lacto vegetarian ( I eat no meat, fish or eggs ) since birth, but I have dairy ( which I am trying to cut out very soon, so I can be a vegan ) well the question I am asking is when I go to restaurants to eat out, I worry about if they really check that if the cheese is suitable for vegetarians, a lot of restaurants owners are not vegetarians and they must be busy they probaly order any cheese from the stores. Some meals in the menu for example pasta with tomato sauce and cheese will say suitable for vegetarians next to it but how do I no if the cheese does contain rennet which is an inside of an animals body, yes I no that some cheese's contain microbial enzymes which is suitable for vegetarians instead of rennet which do the same job. But most cheeses aren't vegetarian due to the use of rennet in the cheese-making process.
So is it illegal if the restaurant owner names the meal with cheese vegetarian but doesn't check if the cheese is vegetarian?
Right, i can answer this one with certainty.
The majority of resturants do not check the cheese is vegetarian.
Our local michelin starred resturant describe using vegetarian cheese as "going too far". They have no clue.
So, if a michelin starred resturant doesn't know or care, do you really think an average resturant will care ? What about the local diner, or the local pub / bar / club ?
No, not a chance,
We run a veggie place and so visit lots of food wholesalers. I can gurantee to you that wholesalers do not sell vegetarian cheeses. We go and buy ours veggie and vegan cheese at retail prices. Do you really think a mixed-food resturant does that ?
I've said this a few times on this site - "Its highly unlikely any food marked as being veggie in a general resturant is actually vegetarian".
You can ask the waiting staff or chef if you like. But many do not even know what a vegetarian is ( judging by those that offer "fish" ). They will likely says its veggie without actually even knowing that cheese can contain animal rennet.
cheese is obviously jsut the tip of the iceberg here. There are many slaughter products used in food.
It would take someone to challnge these resturants with the local trading standards and environmental health. I won't do that because the reaction will be for all resturants to stop offering any veggie options. And that will hurt those people who don't mind eating animal rennet.
Personally, i'd rather support places that support veggies because they want to, not those that put one item on the menu because they feel they have to. There are plenty of veggie resturants around, you just need to hunt them out.
some of the other answers claim there is no definition of vegetarian so it could not have a legal claim. Not true, the defintion is clear and has been so since 1847 - No meat, fish, poultry nor slaughter by-products.
not really illegal but they might get busted for false advertisement. also, as a long time vegan, just bring your own vegan cheese with you if u want it that badly. sad but true, most places will not have vegan foods.
Nope. It is not illegal. Since there is no legal definition of vegetarian or vegan.
This just came up in the current issue of Veg News magazine.
There have even been problems in specifically vegetarian places where a menu item is listed as vegan and people find egg shells in it.
So there you have it.
For myself, I try very hard not to stress about it. I often end up with a belly ache when some item, such as mashed potatoes, is listed as vegetarian turns out to be made with chicken broth.
sigh...
Not illegal but definitely funny!
Eat Greek,and just leave out the cheese,I love Greek food,they incorporate a lot of veggies and it's healthy.
You can always just stick to salad bars,and fruit plates,or just specify to the waiter,that you are allergic to dairy.. And marinara sauce contains just tomatoes and seasonings.
Don't hesitate to ask what's in a dish,they're there to help.
Look for Vegan Restaurants in your area, problem solved.
if u go to a restaurant then get a salad and cheese is dairy
Being truly vegan is really challenging. Short of eating at vegan resturaunts (I'm thinking, for example, of Millenium in San Francisco, which is fantastic BTW) it will be difficult to eat out and be confident that the food you are eating is completely animal free.
This is why a lot of vegans end up having to cook much of their food themselves. Safe bets are veggies and salads without cheeses, but you'll also have to foresake the butter since it came from a cow.
Bottom line is you'll have to ask a lot of questions of the waiter and the kitchen to find out what individual ingredients are in dishes. Be prepared that:
1.) They won't know and will have to make a bunch of trips back to the chef to find out
2.) They won't know and will just tell you what you want to hear, which means you'll probably end up eating some animal products and not even know it.
3.) They'll cater to you, but you'll have to deal with rolling eyes and the "high maintenance" label
4.) You'll just eat out less and cook in more often (not necessarily a bad thing.)
I guess my advice would be to consider this lifestyle/diet change (and yes, it requires a dramatic lifestyle change to be consistent and successful) carefully. It's a big commitment and it requires careful meal planning in order to ensure proper macro nutrition (protein, fat and carb mixes.) Most vegetable sources of protein do not contain complete amino acid profiles, so to meet your body's protein requirements means you have to match proteins carefully.
Also, understand that to be a true vegan also requires you to give up non-diet-related things like leather. So if you love shoes (and I don't know a ton of women who don't- maybe you are different), you'll have to pass up on the Manolos and opt instead for cheap, vegi-leather shoes from Payless. Not a pretty sight, but it certainly is admirable.
If you do choose this route, I admire you for your principle and discipline. Just be aware that it's very hard to be vegan. I tried it once and lasted about two weeks. I just like eggs (and leather) too much.
Best of luck!
I think it's ridiculous to expect a busy restaurant's staff to check where the rennet in their cheese came from. If you're that worried, you wouldn't eat it anyway. Supporting the dairy industry is much crueler than a by-product like rennet.
Well, they'll say it's false advertisement, and I do believe it's a possible, sueable claim. But my advice is to be persistent in checking to make sure it's suitable for you or not. Don't simply ask and accept the answer as it is. You can even get the manage if all else fails.
i dont know bout your question too much :( but i am also a vegetarian and i also am against polluting my body with oils and butter and fatty lards. i went to a restaurant the other week and i asked for a plain baked potato and if they could bake it in foil with no butter. they say "yes thats exactly how we make it". so when it comes i look at it, and it is greasy and i touched it and butter came off on my finger. i have never gotten mad at anyone whos prepared my food or done me a service but i am soo against butters and the fact that he lied made me sooo mad! i told him butter is clearly on it (i am an expert at recognizing it, been this way for 10 years now) and he tried to say well we only use a tiny bit. well i didnt want any and he told me there would be none! then he sends someone else back in to tell me now that it is really pam spray. wtf! no one sprays a potato with pam spray and he already confessed it was butter!
im just telling you because now i dont trust any restaurants!!
beware, they just say whatever so u will eat there!