Bride Backed in Fight With Brother's Vegan Girlfriend at Engagement Party

A bride-to-be has been praised online for standing up to her brother's new girlfriend after she argued with a waiter at her engagement party over the event's lack of vegan food options.

The Redditor revealed that she was unsure if she's in the wrong for supposedly making the vegan woman feel "alienated" at her engagement dinner. Of the 1,600 Reddit users who commented under the post, the vast majority showed support for the original poster and slammed the other woman.

"I recently got engaged and had an engagement party dinner this past weekend," the original poster wrote on Reddit.

"The dinner was held at a nice Italian restaurant in my city. Our invites gave our guests the option to choose between a meat option and a fish option for their mains. My younger brother contacted me about a week before the dinner to RSVP and ask if he can bring a plus one, his new girlfriend. He chose meat option," she added.

The woman continued that on the evening of the dinner, her brother's girlfriend pulled one of the waiters aside, and loudly and abruptly asked him if there were any vegan food options.

"The waiter looked confused and said 'we have a fish and a meat option for the mains,'" the Redditor wrote.

The post continues: "[She] started get mouthy with him and said 'well what if I don't want a salad huh? You just assume because I'm vegan I only eat salads? What if I want some pasta? What kind of restaurant is this, this is discrimination.'"

My brother started trying to calm her down, but she started going off on me. She started saying it's embarrassing on my part that I can't accommodate all my guests, and called me small-minded."

The Redditor explained that she reiterated to the woman that she had only learned about her attendance a week ago and hadn't had sufficient time to tailor a vegan meal option to the menu.

"She ended up leaving," the woman wrote. "My brother walked out with her, and has been messaging me that I should apologize to her."

Since the post was shared to the social media platform on February 23 by @NonVeganOptions, it has been upvoted by 94 percent of the users engaging with it. Of the 1,600 comments under the post, the vast majority took the side of the original poster and slammed her vegan dinner guest.

"Oh for the love of god, do not apologize to her. Who does she think she is to complain like that? The way she talked to the waiter proves that she has no manners and the way she talked to you tells me that she is rude, spoiled and brat," one Reddit user wrote.

Another commenter wrote: "Who speaks to waiters that way. Only entitled people. OP did fine."

How Accessible Are Vegan Dinner Options?

While veganism is becoming an increasingly mainstream lifestyle choice, vegans can still have a hard time tracking down suitable mealtime options while out and about.

Markus Maibaum is an expert in plant-based diets at Veganivore, and is himself a vegan.

He told Newsweek: "Regarding the accessibility of vegan food options at events like work functions or weddings, I can say that there has been a significant improvement in recent years. Many event planners and caterers are now offering vegan menu options due to increasing demand and awareness of veganism. This is especially true for bigger cities.

"However, there is still much work to be done to make vegan food more accessible, especially in regions where veganism is not yet mainstream. This includes educating event planners and caterers on veganism, clearly labeling food options at events, which is also important for allergies, and improving the quality of vegan options at events."

Maibaum confessed to Newsweek that in his own experience some people do still point a finger at vegans and label them "fussy." He believes this negative stereotyping to be rooted in misconceptions surrounding veganism.

"As more people adopt veganism for health, environmental and ethical reasons, these perceptions are gradually changing," he explained.

"There are also many who feel challenged and uncomfortable when confronted with the reality of animal agriculture and the ethical implications of consuming animal products," he concluded.

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