General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: I am a vegetarian. You've known me as a vegetarian for 20 years. Please do not invite me [View all]noamnety
(20,234 posts)I'm pretty sure Miss Manners would suggest you make more of an effort to appreciate their company and the fact that they shared their food with you. What they served sounds fine to me - I'm a meat eater, but Caprese Salad is wonderful, and seems to meet your dietary restrictions.
I've done some restricted diets myself, including a year of severe low carbing that left me not able to eat most things as a guest, but that was on me, not them. And I've been a guest at vegans' houses (my daughter is vegan), my sister has at various times been vegetarian, macrobiotic, raw foods, you name it she's done it - and I never expected to eat anything outside of their normal cooking routines, because as a guest I am stepping into their world. I'm used to thanksgiving turkey, but as a guest I've been served tofurkey - and it was fine. Heck, one year I visited my older sister for thanksgiving and she didn't realize she needed to buy a turkey days ahead of time to let it thaw. That year, thanksgiving dinner was dried peas and rice, and it was awesome. And the next day we had fake thanksgiving, which began with us sitting on the floor of her apartment holding our tiny frozen cornish game hens over the heat vent in her floor to thaw them. Great memories from that!
Not everyone is going to get all caught up in the study of the "nuances of scent and touch" to become a gourmet cook in cuisines they don't even personally care for just because you are coming to visit, and that's fine - it's not a requirement to being a good host. They provided something to you that was balanced and nourishing, and if you don't have a gourmet meal 365 days a year, you will be just fine. I promise. I think what you have is a case of First World Problems.