You know at this point after suffering too many aftermaths of unintentional dairy i ask “is this dish made with any butter, or dairy milk…?” Or whatever and then hopefully if they don’t know the answer they at least check with the kitchen.
Daily. Absolutely literally daily. For example today i was in the drug store in my neighborhood and watched another customer ask someone who clearly worked there which aisle was tylenol. He gave an apathetic shrug said I don’t know and turned back to stocking. I stepped over and told her which aisle it was in.
Because i am that pain in the ass lactose intolerant vegetarian i try very hard to go to restaurants where they label the menu for vegetarian or vegan, or to ethnic restaurants that i know offer dishes that just are unintentionally vegan. I’ve certainly been served dishes that had visible meat in them after reassurance from the server it was vegetarian or could be made as such (yes, that includes garnishes!)
Quite frankly i am pleasantly surprised when i do encounter actually helpful and knowledgeable staff- and i make a point to return.
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At least the guy said he doesn’t know and admitted that he doesn’t. What is worse is like you said, you ordered a dish (which promised to be vegan) and found out that it isn’t.
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Oh yes. I’ve learned to ask specifically if there is milk/cheese/cream in the dish.
It’s sometimes as easy as just asking them to leave the sauce off, and sometimes it’s lovely with less gilding. A local place left the cream out of the heavy sauce for me, and it was bright and delicious…and the chef is considering changing the prep for the menu!
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I’ve begun taking lactase pills before lunch all the time, because of the doubt factor.
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Is there any risk for taking extra lactase pills?
From WebMD: A very serious allergic reaction to this drug is rare. However, get medical help right away if you notice any symptoms of a serious allergic reaction, including: rash, itching/swelling (especially of the face/tongue/throat), severe dizziness, trouble breathing.
This is not a complete list of possible side effects. If you notice other effects not listed above, contact your doctor or pharmacist.
I’ve never experienced any side effects, in around 40 years of using them. But you do have to remember to take them before eating the dairy. Even taking them 15 minutes after an ice-cream cone
decreases their effect.
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unfortunately, the tablets don’t fix it all for me – Lactaid fixes some of the issues, A2 milk solves some, but the only sure way for me is to just not have dairy at all.
The curious thing is that milk and cheese from other animals has no effect on me at all – so I make my own goat-milk yogurt, and splurge on goat, sheep, and even buffalo cheeses.
THAT part I can’t expect anyone else to understand – it’s taken me a couple of years to sort out the nuances!
Same here! The pills don’t help me. And unfortunately after way too many tries i have come to terms with the fact i hate goatsmilk products of all kinds
I am so greatful that it is not an allergy or that i have a severe reaction, I have had so many instances in restaurants. (My favorite may have been the “special vegetarian” soondubu i ordered in Seoul at a work lunch. There were tiny clams in the bottom of the bowl!! 
I certainly could not send it back under the circumstances, so i left them hiding in the bottom and ate a bit of the tofu and veggies I rescued from the fishy broth with my rice! )
I’ve also seen “vegetarian” salads in Paris arrive with a huge layer of bacon on the top…
Well, if the pig only ate veggie, then the bacon is from a vegetarian pig. Just think about that for a second.
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!
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Yeaaahhhh… it’s been a number of years since i was in paris or spain but both were not so easy unless going to a dedicated vegetarian restaurant- which my omnis friends/family i was traveling with were not so enthusiastic about (can’t blame them).
I definitely remember removing the unmentioned on the menu sardines from the top of my salad in madrid 
Much like I had fruit salad for lunch.
Well, just grapes.
Okay. Fermented grapes.
Fine. I had wine for lunch.
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I call that “stealth bacon.” And I’ve received it in cream of broccoli soup (in Vienna) and noodles with cottage cheese (in Budapest). I’ve also fallen victim to the creatively translated English menu. Did you know that in Prague, “fried scallops” is actually veal scallopini? I didn’t. But I do now.
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Yes- I ask a server the best dishes of the restaurant/ what they/ the chef like most/ , and when I get an answer that every dish is great, then it usually means nothing stands out, and most likely everything is mediocre to average.
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With the recent stuff from the CDC about e.coli and romaine lettuce - and the fact that our critters go through 10+ heads of romaine a week - I asked one of the produce men at our local Vons about source of their romaine.
Once he took out his ear buds, and I repeated the question, he shrugged and said “Somewhere around here,” and the ear buds went back in.
I did not buy lettuce there.
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It usually means to me that the servers do not care to learn about his/her menu. It is the kind of answer you would expect a McDonald employee would do better.
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Glad you bought this up. This has lasted for sometime and still feel not being controlled.
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