I was on holiday in Greece and we went to a restaurant and I ordered a veggie plate which came with veggie gyros (the waiter even pulled out his phone to translate what it was made of, chickpeas). Meal came, tasted pretty realistic but my non-veggie friend was pretty sure it was veggie. Went back to the same restaurant two days later, ordered the same thing and it tasted completely different, much less realistic, and also looked different. So basically, I had meat and did not realise because I had never had gyros before I went vegan anyway and I just believed they had got the order right. I couldn’t keep anything down that night (although my meal was obvs vegan that time) and I still feel really stupid and gross and can’t really cope. For context, I’ve been vegan for 6 years.
Someone served me meat at a restaurant
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David3
Forum Legend
It was an accident. Don't worry about it. Many of us have experienced a similar occurrence.
I am so sorry that this happened to you and agree with @David3 that you can't let it throw you off. It is a good lesson though to try to be more careful and not to order anything that you can't verify. Most vegan gyros have easily identifiable chick peas or portabello mushroom strips.
You are still vegan!
Emma JC
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You are still vegan!
Emma JC
Find your vegan soulmate or just a friend. www.spiritualmatchmaking.com
If you're upset about it, you could complain... either in person or in a review of the restaurant.
I would suggest being diplomatic in the way you go about doing it though. You don't want to be like one of those cringey people who yells at the waiter when they get the order wrong.
I would suggest being diplomatic in the way you go about doing it though. You don't want to be like one of those cringey people who yells at the waiter when they get the order wrong.
As David has stated, this has happened to most of us at one point or another. It has happened to me as well, but in a different way than you. I was fairly regular at this restaurant. The staff all knew that I was vegan. I had ordered a falafel wrap, my usual, and then proceeded back to my place of work with my wrap to eat with my co-workers. Anyhow, first bite into the wrap I clearly knew they had served me chicken shawarma instead of falafels. I took it back, got a refund, and never returned to that restaurant ever again.
I definitely feel for you, as I read your story I can totally relate to it. I didn't even swallow a bite and I still had that same sick to my stomach feeling. I lost my appetite completely and skipped lunch that day. It is upsetting, no doubt, but don't be too hard on yourself. You know you are true to yourself and that's what matters the most.
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I definitely feel for you, as I read your story I can totally relate to it. I didn't even swallow a bite and I still had that same sick to my stomach feeling. I lost my appetite completely and skipped lunch that day. It is upsetting, no doubt, but don't be too hard on yourself. You know you are true to yourself and that's what matters the most.
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Lou
Forum Legend
I'm thinking they just made a mistake. If you had liked the restaurant in the past I would keep going there. Mistakes happen. we are all imperfect.
The guy handed it to me knowing I was vegan. I used to eat there fairly regularly, so I knew the guy well enough. I'm not saying he did it on purpose, but he should have been more careful with the orders he was handing customers, especially knowing they don't eat meat. It's not like it was crazy busy. I might have been more forgiving in that case.
So my thinking is if they make a mistake like that once, can I trust them to not make it again? I'd rather not risk it, as I do find it upsetting sinking my teeth into anything not plant-based. That's just me. I can't speak for everyone.
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VeganRob
Newcomer
I'm glad you're "just" a vegan and not one of those religious fanatics who would've burned the restaurant down for serving him pork or a meat he didn't eat.
Lou
Forum Legend
Not to feed a fed horse, but I'm going to go back to the honest mistake theory.
People make mistakes. Heck, in baseball they have a statistic for mistakes, it's called errors. and it happens so often in MLB they keep track of them. I couldn't find the number committed last year - but I bet it was in the thousands. And the guys who committed these mistakes were highly paid highly trained and well prepared. Not like a guy working in a restaurant who serves hundreds of meals a day.
Just last year I was looking at the dairy free ice creams in the market and once I decided I accidentally picked up the wrong container.
It happens and its just something that we all live with. Not just vegans vegans have to deal with mistakes.
People make mistakes. Heck, in baseball they have a statistic for mistakes, it's called errors. and it happens so often in MLB they keep track of them. I couldn't find the number committed last year - but I bet it was in the thousands. And the guys who committed these mistakes were highly paid highly trained and well prepared. Not like a guy working in a restaurant who serves hundreds of meals a day.
Just last year I was looking at the dairy free ice creams in the market and once I decided I accidentally picked up the wrong container.
It happens and its just something that we all live with. Not just vegans vegans have to deal with mistakes.
Yes, it does happen, but it won't happen again to me at that restaurant. I shouldn't have to open my sealed wrap to ensure I got the right thing. If I ever ordered from there again I would be forced to do just that, as I would not trust them to make another mistake. Furthermore, I simply have too many other options to go back to a place that served me meat...mistakenly or not. And while it does happen, I do not have to live with the chance of them serving me the wrong meal again. I have a choice!
Lou, I know what you're trying to say though. Sure people make mistakes all the time. It's not like I haven't made a few of my own in my life. However, each circumstance deserves its own individual action. Some mistakes might easily be forgiven. I've been served animal products before at barbecues, and large events, etc. Would I attend one of those events again? Maybe, but maybe not. These are personal decisions that each person makes based on their own experiences. I guess because I worked as a chef for so long, I'm less forgiving of kitchen mistakes. Kinda like the Gordon Ramsay attitude.
I really don't agree with comparing any old mistake with a baseball game error. That truly is like comparing proverbial apples to oranges. Some mistakes/errors cost people and/or animals their lives. What if that chef gave me something I told him I was deathly allergic to, accidentally? It happens, but I might not be able to live with it. All I'm trying to say is not all mistakes can be dealt with. Some food mistakes are serious.
As for the restaurant. There's an old saying that comes to mind, "fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me". I'm sure you've heard that one
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Grinning Hippos
Forum Senior
It is infuriating. This is why I avoid non vegan restaurants but sometimes you cannot help it. It happened to me as well and probably to a lot of vegans... I am sorry about the situation, you need to try and move passed it. Take care.
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