Would meat eaters be content with a meatless lunch?

[TinkerBelled]

I'd be fine with it, especially since you are providing cheese. I'd be more disappointed if you had meat but no cheese . I'd be thinking to myself, "I wish we'd volunteered to bring the grated cheddar." I always think the same thing when we go to a cookout and there's no cheese for the burgers.

We have some friends who make a really good vegetarian enchilada dish with so much stuff in them that it's hard to tell that there's no meat in it. It's delicious, and I need to get that recipe from them. It may have cheese in it; I can't remember.

I totally agree. I could be a vegetarian, at least for a while, but there's no way I could be a vegan. I'm the woman who gets a cheese plate instead of dessert.

 

[Gigi22]

OP, the only thing I would worry about is making sure you have all food allergies and dietary restrictions taken care of. Never forget the dinner party where I had lactose-intollerant, nut free, and low protein dietary requirements to meet--interesting times!

 

[NoSoup4U]

If they are guests in your home they should be gracious & grateful for whatever is put out for them.

If they know you are veg/vegan/meatless I can't imagine they would expect you to do anything else.

Yes exactly. Btw I love meat but id be in heaven with what youre serving! Yummy!

 

[luvmy3]

That lunch sounds great. Meat eaters don't always need a meal that includes meat.

 

[Disney Doll]

wouldn't faze me in the least. Just because I eat meat doesn't mean I need to have it at every meal.

 

[mombrontrent]

Your meal sounds FABULOUS! Yummy! In fact I have served meals almost identical to the meal you are serving and it went over very well. As a vegan I may be partial however

Last night for Easter I made a Chinese vegan feast! I served it to 15 people, 5 who are vegetarians and me being the only vegan. People know what to expect when coming to my house and they must like something because they keep coming back time and time again

Since it was my Dh's birthday I did make his favourite cheesecake, but my vegan cupcakes also got gobbled up.

 

[disykat]

Have you ever read the Dis after a holiday or birthday party? Two threads really stick out to me. The cake versus pie at a birthday and how many people would be ticked if they didn't get their cake. Or the one where the mom was going to serve turkey sandwiches and people were flat out telling her their kids would have to go hungry because they will only eat ham. On top of that, there are countless threads after the holiday on how horrible the dinner was because Aunt Mabel didn't serve homemade mac n cheese or grandma used canned beans instead of fresh. Pages and pages and pages of complaints about foods served at different events has caused me to become a bit anal on this topic. I want my guests to be happy. I know a taco without meat is a big thing for some people. I just wanted to make sure that most wouldn't care for one meal.

I was thinking of all the BBQ threads when I read your post. If you had meat, you'd have to have several KINDS of meat and it'd turn into a kind of "if you give a mouse a cookie..." thing.

And don't even get me started on all the "but my child ONLY eats peanut butter, he'll starve" threads! Half the population of the DIS couldn't bring their kids to lunch at my house!

I think your menu sounds lovely.

 

[Bluestars]

The meal sounds great to me. I'm a meat eater, but i don't eat meat at every meal. I see nothing wrong with the menu.

 

[gate_pourri]

The menu sounds great to me, but I know a few people who don't eat beans, and would be a bit stuck on what to eat. Perhaps you could add another (meat free) option.

 

[kwelch10377]

While I would be ok without meat in a meal, for the meal you are serving I would think it would be strange to not have some type of chicken/beef/fish for tacos . I think most people associate tacos with having one of those 3 proteins. I would never say anything to the host, but in my mind (especially if I didn't know if the host was a vegetarian) I would be thinking it is odd not to have a meat/fish for tacos.

 

[Planogirl]

I would be OK with a meatless meal as long as there was refried beans. You can make some really good burritos with refries.

 

[Wendy31]

I think your menu sounds absolutely wonderful!!

I would enjoy it for either lunch or dinner! I'd make myself a yummy taco salad & then have some soup as well!

DH & I have recently discussed having some meatless meals - like having a weekly Meatless Monday or something like that, & your menu has given me some encouragement that it's doable!

I would love to have your recipe for your Mexican soup. (I have some chicken tortilla soup recipes, but one w/o meat would be great!)

Oh, & I would never assume that a vegetarian or a vegan would cook a meal for me that included meat. In fact, I would be kind of hoping that a vegetarian friend would make me an amazing dish to showcase how tasty vegetarian meals can be. (As long as I can pick around any mushrooms - that's the one problem I have w/ most vegetarian or vegan dishes - there's usually mushrooms in the dish, & I don't like mushrooms! LOL!)

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

I have some company coming for lunch. We are plant based eaters and they aren't.

I plan on making Mexican. There will be DIY tacos, burritos, and nachos. I bought cheese and sour cream for them. I will have Spanish rice, black beans, roasted corn, olives, lettuce, guacamole, sauteed mushrooms, onions, and peppers, homemade chunky tomato salsa plus jarred salsa. In addition, I will have Gazpacho soup and either chili or another Mexican soup.

So if you are a meat eater, are you going to be really disappointed if you have Mexican without meat or will you be content for the one meal? As a plant based eater, I couldn't have "just one meal" with meat so I don't want to assume they would be fine with a meatless meal. If I ask, they will say "whatever" because nobody ever wants to tell the host the truth in situations like this. While I wouldn't be thrilled cooking ground beef, I'd do it if most felt it would be a disappointing meal without it.

You should make what you think your guests will enjoy. If I were in your situation, I'd make some meat for the guests to put in their tacos. And regarding do it yourself tacos, isn't it the point of doing that so they can make their tacos their way and you can make yours your way?

Originally Posted by MinnieGirl33
If they are guests in your home they should be gracious & grateful for whatever is put out for them.
If they know you are veg/vegan/meatless I can't imagine they would expect you to do anything else.

Most people will be gracious and grateful regardless of what is put in front of them. But they'd probably just pick at and not really eat much of if any of something they don't like. So whether they should be grateful isn't really the point. When one is having guests over and it is not impromptu, one should make what they believe their guests will like. That is the mark of a good host.

 

[LisaR]

You should make what you think your guests will enjoy. If I were in your situation, I'd make some meat for the guests to put in their tacos. And regarding do it yourself tacos, isn't it the point of doing that so they can make their tacos their way and you can make yours your way?




Most people will be gracious and grateful regardless of what is put in front of them. But they'd probably just pick at and not really eat much of if any of something they don't like. So whether they should be grateful isn't really the point. When one is having guests over and it is not impromptu, one should make what they believe their guests will like. That is the mark of a good host.

Out of curiosity, how far would you go? Where do you draw the line?

There will be eight extra people coming.
I haven't seen four of the guests in probably ten years. I don't have a clue if they eat red meat or fish, hate chicken, etc. Two of the guests are people I only see about once every 18 - 24 months. Aside from knowing that one has a severe allergy to something, I don't know what they eat normally. The other two I see all the time. One is my brother who would kill to have shrimp. Since I have a severe allergy to hard and soft shell fish, he won't be getting any! That same brother does not eat any red meat so that leaves only chicken for him. What if the other six hate chicken? So now I should make chicken for my brother and beef for the rest just in case they hate chicken? Should it be ground beef or does it need to be steak? I know plenty of meat eaters who hate ground beef. At some point one has to recognize that they will never be able to satisfy everyone.

I think enough people have said they would enjoy the meal (or at least live with it and hit McD on the way home ) so I am going to stick with the menu. Most of them are going to O'Hana that evening for dinner so they can fill up on meat.

They do know that we have eaten this way for years. I did give them the option of going to a restaurant or having a Mexican bar at my place. They all agreed that they would rather eat here. Honestly, I want to make my guests happy, but I am not overly worried about it. I just thought it was funny that I immediately thought of the Dis when I was planning the menu.

 

[MainStreetMomma]

I think that sounds like a fabulous meal. I feel like people overemphasize the importance of meat in a meal. To me, that sounds awesome. I was a vegetarian for 5 years of my life, but even DH who was never a vegetarian would love that meal. In fact, I'm hard pressed to think of someone who would pitch a fit over that meal. I wish I was coming!

 

[LisaR]

I think your menu sounds absolutely wonderful!!

I would enjoy it for either lunch or dinner! I'd make myself a yummy taco salad & then have some soup as well!

DH & I have recently discussed having some meatless meals - like having a weekly Meatless Monday or something like that, & your menu has given me some encouragement that it's doable!

I would love to have your recipe for your Mexican soup. (I have some chicken tortilla soup recipes, but one w/o meat would be great!)

Oh, & I would never assume that a vegetarian or a vegan would cook a meal for me that included meat. In fact, I would be kind of hoping that a vegetarian friend would make me an amazing dish to showcase how tasty vegetarian meals can be. (As long as I can pick around any mushrooms - that's the one problem I have w/ most vegetarian or vegan dishes - there's usually mushrooms in the dish, & I don't like mushrooms! LOL!)

Wendy,
I've noticed mushrooms are a thing for some people. It seems to be something people love or hate. I am going to use big slices of portabellas so people can easily pick around them if they want.

My absolute favorite website is http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/ I've yet to make a bad recipe from there.

This refried bean soup recipe is SO GOOD and quick.
http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2008/03/smoky-refried-bean-soup.html

The tortilla soup is another one I am considering, but we just had it a few nights ago!
http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2010/02/tortilla-soup-with-pinto-beans.html

Look around the website. Use the search engine and put in an ingredient you like and something will likely pop up.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

I would love to have a meatless meal served to me.

Now my dh, not so much, but he would just need to get over it.

Oh and I will give you my cherry margarita recipe.

1 shot Patron
2 shots Margarita Mix
2 shots 7UP
shake/stir in crushed ice
generous squirt of lime in glass
strain into glass (add a little bit of ice in it)
maraschino cherry with a big spoonful of cherry juice

So good.

 

[mhsjax]

Have you ever read the Dis after a holiday or birthday party? Two threads really stick out to me. The cake versus pie at a birthday and how many people would be ticked if they didn't get their cake. Or the one where the mom was going to serve turkey sandwiches and people were flat out telling her their kids would have to go hungry because they will only eat ham. On top of that, there are countless threads after the holiday on how horrible the dinner was because Aunt Mabel didn't serve homemade mac n cheese or grandma used canned beans instead of fresh. Pages and pages and pages of complaints about foods served at different events has caused me to become a bit anal on this topic. I want my guests to be happy. I know a taco without meat is a big thing for some people. I just wanted to make sure that most wouldn't care for one meal.

Awe, you sound like a very nice person. I know I would leave your house way stuffed and miserable, and I Love meat. I also love most food, unfortunately.

I know that a few, like my son, are allergic to cheese and dairy, so sour cream would be out as well as all the yummy cheese and he hates beans. However, knowing this I would bring something for him or give him food before, and he would pig out on rice chips and salsa.

I think you are very kind to worry, and I think almost everyone would be very happy with your menu and I wouldn't change a thing

 

[DawnM]

I wouldn't need meat but with all those beans you may not want to be around me after an hour or so! I would need to be forewarned so I could take something before going.

 

[donaldlovesdaisy]

Nope this sounds great and I can't imagine that anyone would not be OK with this and grateful for your hospitality!