My Top 4 Most Difficult Veggie Experiences While Traveling
Every year, the world gets easier and easier to navigate as a vegetarian. But sometimes, it’s still pretty hard. Here is a short list of places I’ve really struggled to eat… and keep in mind, I do eat fish and seafood. Vegetarians, beware. Vegans, I’m very sorry.
4. Douro Valley, Portugal
Europe is usually a great place to be vegetarian, so I don’t even usually do a ton of research into the food before I go. Portugal took me by surprise, especially the country’s interior. With the exception of either very high end restaurants or pizza restaurants (yes, this is a 100% literal dichotomy), restaurants serve exclusively meat menus. Dishes are often a hunk of meat and … some boiled potatoes. They really do NOT like vegetables in this region! When fish is served, which is exceedingly rare in this part of the country, it’s rehydrated salted cod, called Bachalau. I did try and enjoy the Bachalau in Portugal, but there are only so many times you can eat it in a row. Suffice it to say, we had more than one pizza meal in the Douro Valley. This entry is written in the present tense because I went a month ago (Nov 2022).
3. Cuba
Cuba makes the list because despite being an island nation, they don’t eat a lot of fish. Or vegetables. I was never strictly unable to eat - but most of my lunches and dinners were pasta with cheese and tomato sauce. I definitely did not feel like I got to sample local cuisine, and I honestly avoid Cuban restaurants most of the time after this experience. I do think they’re a bit more vegetarian friendly in the states than in Cuba though.
2. Gatlinburg, Tennessee
Right here in the good ole US of A, Gatlinburg Tennessee was absolutely horrific for obtaining vegetarian food. If I didn’t eat fish, I’m not sure I would have been able to eat anything besides granola bars or cooking my own food. Also, you know #1 was REALLY bad, because I love to give Gatlinburg awards for being the worst, in general.
The Worst: Medellin, Colombia
I want to start out by saying that I had a wonderful trip overall to Medellin. And, at the time that I went, I really spoke virtually zero Spanish, so I couldn’t easily vet menus in advance. That being said, eating as a pescatarian was A STRUGGLE. A randomly chosen restaurant would have nothing I could eat on the menu, except perhaps fried cheese, or a cheese empanada. Surprisingly, I did find a bunch of smoked salmon in Colombia, and though it wasn’t regularly served with cream cheese, I ate a lot of that. By the end of the trip, I felt extremely ill. Whether it was due to my very odd diet or a failure to sufficiently avoid tap water, I’ll never know - but I came home and ate nothing but miso soup for a week while I recovered.
Where were your toughest veggie experiences while traveling?
An honorable mention goes to some places I’m hesitant to visit at all due to dietary restrictions:
The Faroe Islands: These guys hang their meat in the wind until it turns green and think it’s delicious. Their only fish dish is served with boiled sheep intestine as a sauce. They still murder whales for fun every year. I’m out.
The Philippines: I asked my friend what I should try of Filipino cuisine, and he just laughed and said “oh you won’t be able to eat anything.”
Uganda: Has turned at least one committed vegetarian I know back to being non-vegetarian.
Have you had success eating in any of these destinations as a pescatarian, vegetarian, or vegan? Write me! I would love to visit them all one day.
