UBC January 2024 - The Swiss Restaurant Experience

The other day, Kimberly's post was full of questions. She was wondering about her vegan and veg-curious readers' restaurant experience. After my comment she had more questions, which you will see below.

So here I am, trying to answer them. I have to say up front that I don't eat a 100% vegetarian diet myself, let alone a vegan one. I am currently in the process of losing a few pounds, and that alone makes my diet complicated enough. If I'm also no longer allowed to eat greek yogurt or cottage cheese, I'm going to run out of ideas on low calorie, low carb, low fat, high protein food. 

So, Swiss restaurants... As a rule of thumbs, they are expensive. 

I saw a Facebook post by Martha who joyfully announced that she and her husband got a nice shrimp meal  that would usually be around USD 38 for the both of them, to a heavily reduced price. Looking at this nicely plated lunch I was like "OK, 38, sounds not too bad, but in Switzerland that'd be per person!" 

Even at Swiss McD's or BK's you will pay about 10 bucks for a Whopper. That's only the burger. If you want fries and a beverage, that'll be 18, please. Oh, and ketchup is extra. It's a tiny package for 20 cents, I believe. Ridiculous. The good news is that they offer plant-based patties for those who are looking for a meatless option. 

Meaning, if you go out for a nice dinner, you want something you wouldn't usually make at home. For me that's a steak, and steakhouses as such won't focus on vegetarian or vegan options, and that's OK. If I know I'm going out with vegetarians, we'll choose a restaurant that has a more diverse menu, typically an Italian restaurant. 

Everybody loves pasta and pizza, right?

So you can't go wrong with a veggie pizza. Except, if you're vegan, you can't have the mozzarella. I have never witnessed it, but I would expect at least a frown from the waiter as you ask them to omit the cheese. What else can you order? Pasta marinara should be safe. Any other pasta sauce is very likely made with cream. Oh, wait. The pasta itself? It contains eggs. Darn. 

Maybe a Thai restaurant? They usually have curries with veggies and / or tofu. This might work! Except if you just don't like Thai food, because spicy.

Our go-to traditional restaurant in the area run its own butcher business. Needless to say their main menu offerings are beef and veal. They have a vegetarian/vegan section, let me check. So of the four items, only one is vegan. It's braised beetroot with parsnip puree, accompanied by Romanesco florets and sautéed porcini mushrooms. (What will they use to sauté the mushrooms in..? How can you be sure it's not butter? Just a thought.)

Another traditional restaurant in our town also has one single vegan dish: Homemade spinach gnocchi with sautéd bolets. 

Another one has a chapter called "meatless dishes", that's where they offer seafood. Well played ;-)

One of my favorite food booths at Freiruum, the multi-purpose facility I hang out at while Colin trains, is Paia Poké. You get to put together your base, protein, toppings and dressing. They have two vegan options: Tofu (Colin says it's dry and bland) and fake salmon, I think it's smoked carrots, which taste very salty. And of course veggies and fruit.

So, as I was saying, going out as a vegan in Switzerland can't be very fun. 

I still haven't answered Kimberly's question though. 

Do you ever choose the vegan option? No. Beet root and parsnip are among my least favorite veggies. Also not a fan of tofu. Vegetarian, gladly - vegan, no.

If not, what, if anything, do you think might make you consider it? If it's something yummy!!! I like many veggies and mushrooms. So if there's, let's say a polenta with porcini mushrooms, I'm game. However, as I was saying, I wouldn't guarantee that it wasn't cooked with cream and/or butter.

What is your approach on vegetarian or vegan alternatives?