A Vegetarian in London

This spring break, I had the amazing opportunity to visit one of my friends who is doing a year-long internship in Parliament! So on my very long, 11 hours to be precise, flight from LAX to LHR, I thought a little bit about food (in addition to sleeping of course!)

Originally, I thought I would have to eat meat while spending time in London, as the Brits aren’t exactly known for their veggie dishes (Can anyone say ‘meat pies?’).   It’s basically fish ‘n chips ‘n meats – all sorts of meats…From sausage rolls, aka “bangers,” to steak and kidney pies, to beef this-and-that, and the list goes on…and on…

I was basically psyching myself up for a night of tummy-aches and lamenting the distance of lovely California fruits and veggies…Boy was I wrong.

Since I just sort of leapt into the food without doing any research, I was trying to keep my mind clear of any explicit expectations (except of course the worry of the meats).  I have never really had any true experience with “British” food in the past, except for this one British restaurant I went to a while back and got amazing potatoes at, but really, I was hoping not to subsist on potatoes all week.

Here is the lovely part! I had a FABULOUS time there, and the food was great!  In fact, I always had options when it came to the menu, and good options at that.  I had plenty-o-pies too, my favorite being the feta, pindnut, and roasted red pepper version.  In the mornings I usually had yogurt, or as some would say, “yoghurt.” For dinner a variety of pies…I even had a vegetation “toad in the hole,” which at first, I must admit, I was quite intimidated by (it ended up being quite yummy!).

One of the defining characteristics of the Big American Breakfast is Meat.  Think about it: on February 9^th, Denny’s gave away free “Grand Slams” to eager Americans, waiting in line all night to get in on this free deliciousness (and as a college student, I can tell you that free food always somehow tastes better).  Pancakes, eggs, bacon, sausage: a foursome that most Americans would be drooling over more than…Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, George Clooney, and Catherine Zeta-Jones?  Last year, more than 2 million cashed in on this deal, and that tells me that Americans love 1. free breakfast, and 2. free breakfast with meat.  Sausage, bacon, and ham are breakfast staples, and that list gets bigger if you include the ground beef “necessary” for breakfast burritos. 

So I was dying to have the English equivalent of the Big Breakfast Bash, because, let’s face it, the vegetarian version of the “grand slam” is the grand slam sans meat.  Yes, yes, you’re dying to know how it was: IT WAS GREAT.  Scrambled eggs, sautéed portabella mushrooms, toast with honey, roasted tomatoes, and white beans with the most delicious sauce ever. 

I never even thought vegetarian. All I was thinking was how to fit more of it in my stomach.  I almost went back to ancient Pompeian rituals for a moment (though I didn’t!).  My dietary restrictions (though self-imposed) were never a problem.  They neither hindered me in my tourista activities nor in my search for delicious eats.  Though this may be the most prevalent example, my unfounded fears of eating meat turned out to be completely wrong, much to the delight of my stomach and conscious.

Good food doesn’t mean meat, it means tasty deliciousness.  :D

Man Meat

True Life: How I became a vegetarian, and thus follows the inevitable questions…

“Soooo, Why are you a vegetarian anyhow? How did you even decide to be that? Don’t you miss the tasty, tasty meats? Mmm meat, wouldn’t you like some? Oh come on, I won’t tell anyone if you don’t…I’ll just put some on the side of your plate…”

The short story: I became a vegetarian because one of my good friends in high school was one and I thought she was cool.  I stayed as such because of the healthful, social, and environmental impact that my decision made. 

It was even pretty simple, I didn’t like beef that much and my family ate a lot of fish and veggies Side note: I consider myself a vegetarian rather than a pescetarian because I rarely eat fish, though then I would have been considered a pescetarian back then). 

If my parents were making meat for dinner it would be expressed to me beforehand and I would have to make my own food, and that it would have to be a legitimate substitute for meat (no hot pockets or just eating veggies) which wasn’t really that hard anyway, since I was expected to help with food, but it did force me to look up and find tasty recipes without meat.  My family was sort of intrigued by the whole thing, treating it as an experiment not only in the kitchen, but also in my own growing to adulthood (awww, she’s making her own decisions!). It was amazing how many dishes we were surprised to find did not have meat, spaghetti, curries, risottos, veggie dishes, etc, without having to get near tofu.  It was pretty awesome.

Except for one thing – my brother.  My brother and I get along well, we both like dumb movies, being outdoors, doing exciting things, etc, but in this case, when I first went veg, he took it upon himself to “make up for all the animals that weren’t going down my gullet.”

He is more subdued about the subject now, and certainly has stopped the IMMA EAT ALL MEAT RIGHT HERE RIGHT NOW phase, but it was interesting to see how much it affected him...

Which got me thinking – in American culture, meat is manly.  Think about a Carl’s Jr. add for a second – and it's easy to see how eating meat makes you manly. Barbequing makes you manly, the more types of meat in a meal equates to something like an increased factor in machoness, or something (*cough cough size cough*).  Its like, if you have a bacon wrapped, double beef triple burger smothered in cheese it automatically makes you not only more manly, but also more desirable.  "Bringing home the bacon," now has a new level of meaning..in fact, it seems like bacon, sirloin, tri-tip, chicken legs, sasuage, pork, and all sorts of meat producers are using the stereotype of manliness to market their package. 

Indeed, phrases like, "Beef, it's what's for dinner," have a sort of 1950s feel about them; the strong - manly - husband figure bringing home meat for his family.  On one hand, it is a stereotype that has permeated all layers of American society, making us feel both comfortable with the social hierarchy and disturbed by it all at once. 

And if you are a woman, it seems like meat makes you stronger, sometimes manlier, but usually in a good way...the ability to put large quantities of meat if your mouth is, let’s face it, an...admirable...trait in today's society.  So perhaps by not eating meat I am asserting my anti-chauvinistic femininity? Rebelling against the male-dominated society we live in?  Iunno, about the percentage of truth in those statements, but I'm sure they play some sort of role in my subconscious. 

Maybe my desire to be vegetarian is a desire to see the world from a different angle than my meat-eating counterparts, perhaps one that is not as clouded by cultural taboos or innuendos.  By choosing to not eat meat, I believe I certainly view it differently - by trying something different from the norm, I feel I see through a different lens. The prescription is only a slight difference, but one that has been important in my life.

So cheers, brother. N now let's eat some pasta, with tomato sauce. :)