When I was a kid, attending a wedding was both an exciting prospect for me and one that I kind of worried about.
Looking back, it’s pretty cute that I was so happy for whoever was getting married that I always forgot how bored I would actually be during the ceremony. But one thing I did worry about was whether I’d actually like any of the food that was being served.
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As it does with many people, this changed as I aged and my tastes became a little more adventurous. But even as a child, I wouldn’t have expected that I could just make the wedding party change what they were serving around me.
However, it seems that this didn’t stop one bride’s relative from doing just that, which is now leaving her a little unsure about how she handled the situation.
Since both the bride and groom are vegan, they wanted the food at their wedding to reflect that and hired a vegan caterer.
But as the bride explained in a Reddit post , this was made clear in the wedding invitations, as was the fact that guests who had specific dietary restrictions were encouraged to let the couple know so they could work something out with the caterer.
But when one of the bride’s aunts contacted her about her uncle’s refusal to eat a meal without meat, she soon learned that it wasn’t based on any medical reasons.
The aunt said that he must eat meat due to “cultural” reasons, but the bride was quick to remind her that there’s no cultural difference between them, which made it clear that he simply didn’t want to eat vegan food at the wedding.
Although the bride was quick to explain that she has no interest in judging non-vegans, her uncle’s reasoning didn’t justify the great expense of hiring a completely different caterer just so he wouldn’t have to eat a meal he didn’t want.
As the bridge said, “I understand that veganism is not possible or sustainable for many people in the long-term but come on – it’s ONE meal, that is FREE.”
But while the issue laid dormant for a few weeks, it arose again with a vengeance when the caterer was able to accommodate three cousins on low-carb diets.
After this became known, the aunt called again and asked why the uncle couldn’t receive a similar accommodation, to which the bride replied that the list of ingredients were composed of foods that she knows for a fact he is capable of eating.
In the bride’s words, “I told her that if he’s so adamant about the meat he can buy himself McDonalds and eat it at the kiddy table.”
Following this conversation, the aunt apparently stopped speaking to the bride and started badmouthing her to other members of the family.
And while the bride is worried that she looks like a “pushy vegan” to her family, she nonetheless sees little reason to pay for meat when she doesn’t have to.
And for a vast majority of those who replied, the bride got it exactly right that she didn’t have to pay for any meat in this case.
For one user , the bride would only be at fault if the uncle was a cat or some other obligate carnivore. But he’s since he’s a human and therefore an omnivore, he should be capable of eating a meal that doesn’t contain meat.
Others were simply in disbelief at the aunt and uncle’s gall of thinking they can tell a couple what to serve at their own wedding.
As one commenter put it , “Like you said, it is one meal and it’s FREE. And most importantly, it is YOUR wedding.”
In the words of another, “It’s your wedding and your choice. You’ve catered for those who have specific requirements so you’re already doing your best. Maybe he can bring a little Tupperware box of ham or something to keep him from wasting away after being forced to eat one plant based (free) meal…”
And if the aunt didn’t get similar responses from within the family, it would be interesting to see how she characterized the situation.
What do you think? Let us know in the comments section!
