French phrase help please

[richie_b]

Glad you survived OK, Gandalf!
Heading to countries where you don't speak the language & you have an atypical diet is always fun...
((@ Greenbank) which is one of the reasons I've never been to Serbia!)

[Eccentrica Gallumbits]

A friend of mine got married in France and really struggled to make the chateau understand that some of the guests did not want any flesh in their meal and that she would not accept a non-veggie meal for them - they were saying "this is our menu, take it or leave it, bof". In the end they did the most delicious huge plate of a variety of different mushrooms. I still dream about it sometimes.

[Gandalf]

Je suis végétalien

Je suis végétarien strict

both mean "I'm a vegan."

Whether the person you're talking to will understand what veganism is, I can't tell you.

Je ne mange ni la viande, ni du lait, ni le fromage, ni les oeufs

might suit better.

Might not really work unless you are in a large town!! 

Vegetarianism to most places which enjoy food and have a tradition of "the table" are a real challenge IME. Look at the latin countries in Europe as an example. Furthermore in many latin countries, with a Spanish/Portuguese connection in particular, meat = beef, and chicken and other hams may end up in one's plate if you say you do not eat "meat".

For what it's worth my grand mother, a great cook, used to say that vegetarians do not enjoy food (it might be better translated as cannot as it was said with such a surprise in her voice and ended with a sigh of disbelief). 

A chap at work, who is of Maltese extraction, often says to me 'don't you like food?'.

[Tourist Tony]

Two Austrian incidents for a veggie friend.
In the first, despite specifying vegetarian food, she was served liver. Which is OK as it isn't meat....
In the second, I had a lovely venison and wild mushroom ragout, with a nice blood-thickened gravy. Her suggested meal was the same, with the bigger bits of meat scooped out.
Spatzl is the answer. Unless you are vegan.....