Without going into too much detail, I had to stop eating certain foods for health issues. It's fairly limited and when I go to social events that are surrounded by food, it's pretty much impossible to avoid those foods. Especially if it's a situation where we are actually sitting down to a dinner.

I've already figured that if it's a situation where everyone is bringing a dish to something I could make a dish that I can eat, so that I know there is at least one thing there I can eat. Then hope someone will bring a veggie tray or something.

However, I'm not sure what I should do when I'm invited to dinner or a cookout where it's not requested to bring food. I think it would be rude to ask them to prepare a dish just for me, but at the same time I think it would be rude for me to bring my own food.
This situation is not like a normal diet, where a cheat day once in a while is ok, so I don't think I could just eat a little and it be ok.

3/23/2016 7:37:26 PM

When you accept the invitation to an event, just explain to the host that you have health issues and have to bring your own food. They'll either want to make something you can eat, or if they're not an asshole, be fine with you bringing your own.

3/23/2016 7:41:55 PM

Quote :

"ETTIQUETTE"

3/23/2016 7:43:06 PM

i heard they came out with VR headsets that allow people to eat gluten now, maybe look into that

3/23/2016 7:44:57 PM

If it's a cookout, just bring a package of veggie dogs, and hand then to the grill guy. He will serve them up, no problem.

If it's a dinner....well, then it gets a little trickier. We have a friend who has a very restrictive diet. I mean, extremely restricted. But he told us about this before having them over for dinner, so we were able to do some recipe research, and we accommodated.

[Edited on March 23, 2016 at 7:48 PM. Reason : I love Shawna]

3/23/2016 7:45:29 PM

lol

[Edited on March 23, 2016 at 7:47 PM. Reason : did not read at all ]

3/23/2016 7:46:56 PM

one cheat meal is not going to set you back very much. but I understand if it's a mental thing and you just want to stay on track.

Maybe eat your own food before you go?

3/23/2016 8:19:22 PM

agree with ^^^. reasonable people, especially friends and people that know/like you, won't mind accommodating you imo. in other situations you can bring your own thing to throw on a grill or whatever.

[Edited on March 23, 2016 at 8:20 PM. Reason : f]

3/23/2016 8:19:27 PM

What can't you eat?

[Edited on March 23, 2016 at 9:17 PM. Reason : I can't imagine it's gluten, cause that's easy to avoid.]

3/23/2016 9:15:23 PM

Quote :

"one cheat meal is not going to set you back very much. but I understand if it's a mental thing and you just want to stay on track."

What thread are you reading?

3/23/2016 9:57:42 PM

Any host that isn't a dick will accommodate your needs. Your presence is probably way more important to them than controlling their menu. If they offer to make something -- and you're comfortable with it, you can advise them; otherwise, just bring what you can eat. I'd bring enough to share because in my experience people are going to try to eat it anyway, and it comes off as less standoffish if there's plenty for everybody.

3/24/2016 8:06:54 AM

You don't eat.

3/24/2016 8:11:22 AM

protein allergy?

3/24/2016 8:17:23 AM

Just don't go.

3/24/2016 8:34:20 AM

Seriously.

3/24/2016 8:36:41 AM

I love how everyone starts either asking questions about what she can't eat or saying "have a cheat day."

Clearly:

She doesn't want to go into detail.

This is a health issue, not about "cheat days."

Carry on.

3/24/2016 8:44:43 AM

Type 2?

3/24/2016 8:55:24 AM

That, or she's on a drastic diet to lose weight for her wedding.

Either way, she'll learn to like lettuce and moving food around her plate.

[Edited on March 24, 2016 at 9:11 AM. Reason : Food!]

3/24/2016 9:08:56 AM

Although you were invited, I'm sure people don't really want you there anyways...especially if you're going to be difficult about your food.

3/24/2016 9:59:00 AM

There's obviously some sub text to the responses in this thread that I'm not getting.

3/24/2016 12:36:52 PM

colitis? crohn's?

3/24/2016 9:42:19 PM

^ In my experience, those diets aren't *that* restrictive.

3/24/2016 11:04:02 PM

eat before you go. then take token samples of the food available and spread them on your plate and not eat them. then stop worrying and have fun with your acquaintances. (because if they were your friends you would not worry about them questioning you.)

3/25/2016 11:21:36 AM

the obvious solution is to gorge yourself on whatever is in sight. the last thing anyone will suspect is that you're on a restrictive diet, so you'll have the last laugh in the battle of keeping up with appearances.

3/25/2016 1:36:49 PM

i just bring a bag of carrots and eat them

3/26/2016 12:13:08 PM

a bag of oats and a salt lick will also do in a pinch

3/26/2016 1:30:03 PM

I like the carrots and oats idea, but only if you wear a feed bag.

3/26/2016 2:18:43 PM

If anyone thinks you are rude for bringing your own food for health reasons, that person is a real dick. And most considerate people will at least somewhat try to accommodate your diet if you give them enough of a heads up.
At least I know I would...don't listen to these a-holes.

3/27/2016 1:52:27 AM

is it rude to change horseshoes in the middle of a BBQ?

3/27/2016 2:05:27 AM

brb, gotta go hit the hay before I eat it

3/27/2016 7:16:24 AM

I was hoping more people would contribute to this thread, but it looks like we're beating a dead horse.

3/28/2016 4:23:17 PM

Just tell everyone you're vegan 50 times

3/28/2016 4:27:54 PM

in that case, crossfit would work too

3/28/2016 5:07:11 PM

Almost every cookout / potluck I've been to recently has had vegan, vegetarian, GF, paleo, bleh bleh options. It's all these damn yuppies and their new age diets. With that being said if that isn't the case then ask them what they're serving and if it doesn't work bring your own food. That's not rude at all and anyone who says otherwise is just being a dick.

3/28/2016 5:57:29 PM

someone raised their voice at me because i brought a dish to a potluck and wasn't sure if my dish was vegetarian/vegan/kosher (store bought, not sure if they used any bacon) and apparently there was a system for where you were supposed to put your dish

this was just one small reason why raleigh > durham - fewer hipsters

3/28/2016 6:14:12 PM

OTB>ITB

3/28/2016 6:18:56 PM

this is why you become a loner like myself - then you don't have to deal with crap like that

fuck society and its bullshit standards

like seriously, quit taking yourselves so seriously

we're all fucking animals just the same, ya dig SHUN????

3/28/2016 11:12:50 PM

^^ my fave in Raleigh was my tiny ass Cameron Village condo. Could walk to just about everything, even work. Least favorite in Raleigh (and everywhere actually) was my big ass house in N. Raleigh that I didn't need. There were rooms that I literally did not open the door to for 6 months. A bathroom that I think I never used once in the two years I lived there. I got stupid/greedy and fucked up my priorities and was miserable. I would fight the traffic to get home from work, and then be too tired or burned out to turn around an hour later and drive downtown to hang out so I started seeing my friends less, ate at a bunch of shitty restaurants because that was all that was nearby

3/28/2016 11:21:07 PM

North Raleigh is no better than any other crappy small town anywhere

unless they've changed something in recent years

3/28/2016 11:25:39 PM

Quote :

"someone raised their voice at me because i brought a dish to a potluck and wasn't sure if my dish was vegetarian/vegan/kosher (store bought, not sure if they used any bacon) "

You brought a store bought dish to a pot luck?!?

jk. Usually the etiquette at friends and family potlucks is you label it if it's v, veg, or gf. At work even more so as we have some Indian coworkers and many of them are vegetarian. Our chilli cookoff awards have "best vegan" or "best vegetarian" dishes. It's just the polite thing to do so people don't have to feel uncomfortable asking everyone. A lot of my non-vegetarian coworkers have even started making vegetarian dishes so they can compete.

3/29/2016 9:55:10 AM

She never came back to her thread.

3/29/2016 11:52:56 AM

too much horsing around ITT

3/29/2016 12:08:28 PM

We really need to rein in these assholes who can't stay on topic

3/30/2016 3:21:39 PM

Quote :

"You brought a store bought dish to a pot luck?!? "

it was from fresh market though and I put it in a fancy williams-sonoma serving bowl

3/30/2016 3:29:39 PM

and pretended it was homemade I assume

3/30/2016 3:45:40 PM

no, told the guy i had no idea if it was kosher because i bought it

[Edited on March 30, 2016 at 3:46 PM. Reason : the fresh market tubs are too narrow to serve from and I had two of them]

3/30/2016 3:46:28 PM

fresh market does kosher stuff?

3/30/2016 3:52:53 PM

no idea

there was a table for meat, then there was another table and there was a complicated order to where to put vegetarian, vegan, and kosher and since all of these things kind of overlap none of it made any sense. i had no idea that there was a system (because that's ridiculous) and just set my dish on a free spot of the table. some guy was eating it and thought he tasted bacon and got mad at me and that's when i learned of the system. it was some kind of corn salad so i guess its possible that bacon was used but i didn't think so, and that's when i learned that there was a organization system that I guess I was supposed to figure out on my own.

[Edited on March 30, 2016 at 4:12 PM. Reason : .]

3/30/2016 4:12:09 PM

i always just eat beforehand and say im not hungry when its time to eat. people always ending up acting like im being a huge dick and get really offended. i try to avoid dinner parties all together now.

3/30/2016 4:32:23 PM

^^ sounds like a super-fun time

3/30/2016 4:41:54 PM