People with allergies or dietary restrictions make sure to thoroughly check the menu or inform the staff about their situation; so do those with certain food preferences. However, the former are typically taken into consideration more than the latter, leaving some customers fuming.

The user Loveanavocado told the Mumsnet community about the time their family was served butter in a vegan dish. Despite them being regulars and reminding the employees about their dietary preferences, the staff didn’t seem to care much.

Not all restaurant employees care much about customers’ dietary preferences

Image credits: Sorin Gheorghita (not the actual photo)

This family was served butter in their dish after they said they were vegan

Image credits: Vanna Phon (not the actual photo)

Image credits: Loveanavocado

Millions of people worldwide suffer from allergies and food intolerance

The customer was furious not only because the family was served butter in what was supposed to be a vegan dish, but also because of the way the staff reacted to it. People in the kitchen seemingly hoped that the customer wouldn’t find out what exactly was in their food and the waitress—even though she informed the family about it—found it funny. That made the OP wonder whether the restaurant staff would act the same if it was allergies and not dietary preferences involved.

According to FARE, roughly 200,000 Americans require emergency medical care for allergic reactions to food every year. It is estimated that around 32 million people in the US are allergic to some sort of aliment, resulting in one-in-ten adults and one-in-thirteen children. FARE pointed out that based on 2018-2019 research, the most common allergen when it comes to food was shellfish, followed by milk and peanuts.

In addition to allergies, some people have to deal with food intolerance, as their digestive system faces difficulties breaking down certain aliments. Even though less risky than allergies, intolerance can lead to adverse reactions as well, such as bloating, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. An allergy, though, can be life-threatening, as it might result in anaphylaxis—a strong reaction when release of certain chemicals puts the person into shock.

Image credits: Tanja Nikolic (not the actual photo)

More and more people seem to opt for a vegan or a vegetarian diet

The OP pointed out they have severe allergies themselves, and so does one of their daughters. The other daughter was said to be vegan, while the rest of the family was vegetarian, which are both dietary preferences that seem to be gaining popularity worldwide. According to The Hill, the number of vegetarians, for instance, grew from one percent of the US population to six over the last couple of decades. The Hill also revealed that roughly 10-15% of households in the country nowadays opt for vegetarian dishes at least occasionally.

Deals On Health estimates that around 22% of the global population is vegetarian, adding up to roughly 1.7 billion people worldwide. Based on 2021 data, the total number of vegans was roughly 79 million. Deals On Health also pointed out that the younger generations are more keen on opting for a vegan diet than their older counterparts—it is believed that roughly 2.5% of Americans over the age of 50 follow such a diet, while when it comes to millennials, the number increases to 12%.

In one of the comments on their post, the OP provided more information, saying, “We have this same [veggie pasta] dish often too as it’s a go-to for us because it ticks all the boxes. It’s always vegan. Suddenly today it wasn’t, despite us saying [we’re] vegan.” They were furious to learn that the food wasn’t actually vegan, but eventually started wondering if they were being unreasonable in this situation. The online community seemed to be split into two camps about it.

Image credits: logan jeffrey (not the actual photo)

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Fellow community members shared their insight in the comments

Some people believed the OP shouldn’t make a fuss about the situation

Others sided with the upset customer

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