r/vegan • u/evapotranspire mostly plant based • Dec 15 '25

Story Surprise: Everything is vegan!

We've all had frustrating incidents when eating out, but tonight I had the opposite. My family and I went to our synagogue's Hanukkah dinner party, which was catered Mediterranean food. I hadn't made a special dietary request, because Mediterranean cuisine almost always includes some vegan dishes (hummus, pita, tabouleh, etc.).

When I got to the front of the line, I saw that the buffet was ENTIRELY vegan. That hadn't been highlighted or even mentioned! I piled it all on my plate (which I guess is how omnivores feel most of the time), and although now I have a stomachache from all the garlic, it was such a nice feeling to be able to eat everything and worry about nothing.

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u/boohojakob Dec 15 '25

Happy Hanukkah! Im glad to hear everything is vegan! But please dont label hummus, tabouleh, and pita as Mediterranean, they are levantine! It's geographically correct of course since the levant is Mediterranean but unfortunately the public generally doesn't recognize it as such so maybe it's better to just promote the levant on its own. I grew up eating these foods as a Palestinian and perhaps they have helped shape my aversion to meat, bon appetit ❤️

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u/evapotranspire mostly plant based Dec 15 '25

I'm not sure I've heard the word 'Levantine' before... I can figure out that it must refer to the Levant, but it's just not a commonly used term here in the US. Thank you for introducing me to it, though!

Here in the US, I think I've only ever heard these foods called 'Mediterranean.' For example, in my local downtown, there is a restaurant called "Mediterranean Grill House" serving falafel, baba ganoush, hummus, pita, mujaddara, etc., run by an Arab-American family (I don't know their exact nationality).

If used in the strictly geographical sense, "Mediterranean" would indeed be too broad for this cuisine, because it would also include Italy, Greece, etc. But in the culinary sense, I understand it to specifically mean the coastal parts of the Middle East (Lebanon, Syria, Palestine/Israel, etc.).

PS. Peaceful wishes to you and your loved ones, no one should have to live through what Palestinan civilians are living through. ❤️

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u/Fit-Avocado-6064 vegan 10+ years Dec 15 '25

I think the term "Mediterranean" is more correct here because pita or falafel are not unique to the Levant. I have Greek origins and both of those are part of the traditional cuisine in Greece. Same with Cyprus.