Invited to a Dinner Party?

What do you do if you go to someone's house for dinner or a cookout? Or if you are attending a business event?

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Hi, and thanks for the question!

There are several ways to handle these kinds of situations. The easiest thing to do when you are invited to dinner or a cookout, is to bring a vegan dish, like a salad, a soup, or even a main course. This way, there will be something there that you can eat, and you will be able to abide by the golden rule for guests: Never show up empty-handed!

The other benefit of bringing your own dish is that you have a handy conversation starter - an easy way to let people know about your lifestyle choice so that perhaps in the future they will take it into consideration.

For a business event, it's a bit trickier - In a professional environment, you may need to be more understated about your diet. Generally, there will be a salad, which always works as a fallback, but if you want to go the extra mile, find out ahead of time where the event is being held, or who is catering it. You can then call the venue or caterer and ask about having a special dish prepared for you. More and more these days, I'm finding that caterers and restaurants are willing to accommodate diets that are outside the mainstream.

Finally - and this is not the most fun option, but works in a pinch - you can eat ahead of time, or sneak in a nice filling smoothie in a thermos. This approach basically runs counter to the whole idea of a social gathering around a meal, but it can be managed if you're desperate.

Learning how to deal with "eating out" as a vegan can be tricky at first, but you'll see as you go that you gradually develop a set of responses to new situations. Eventually you will find that you are rarely caught off guard.