The bride refused to label the vegan cake claiming it was not “propaganda” and that it was not meant to make a statement or trick any of the guests who attended
A bride has been widely praised for refusing to label her vegan wedding cake after a guest told her she was ‘pushing a lifestyle’ on everyone.
Weddings are meant to be a time where friends and family can come together to celebrate a special union but the goodwill can turn sour hours later when guests tuck into the wedding meal. Reddit user kingbuggulug shared her experience of how she handled a disgruntled guest who took offense to there only being vegan options at the reception.
The viral post shared in the AmIThe***hole page, which can be seen here, has attracted more than 12,000 upvotes and some 2,400 comments since it was uploaded on Tuesday. The 30-year-old explained she and her husband, 32, are both vegan and had “made it clear in advance” that the food and cake would be plant based.
“The cake was gorgeous: three-tiers decorated with edible flowers,” she said. “Toward the end of the night, one of my husband’s aunts, Linda, came up to me looking visibly upset. She said it was ‘disrespectful’ to have a vegan cake on display because it felt like I was ‘pushing my lifestyle’ on everyone.
“I told her the cake wasn’t meant to make a statement, it was just the dessert we chose for our wedding. She insisted I either move the cake off the main table or add a sign saying it was vegan so people weren’t “tricked” into eating it.
The bride refused said she refused for three reasons: It was her wedding, it was a cake “not propaganda,” and that no one else seemed to care. Wedding expert and Hitched.co.uk editor Zoe Burke it was up to guests to let the host know if they have any dietary requirements.
“Couples are entitled to offer their guests whatever food and drink they like – it’s their wedding after all,” she told The Mirror. “As a wedding guest, you are given the chance to let your hosts know of any dietary requirements that you might have via your invitation so they can make everyone’s experience at their wedding as inclusive as possible.
“This is usually how guests will be advised of the meal options as well, so they can have an idea of what food will be served ahead of time – rarely are guests not informed of what food and drink they can expect at a wedding, especially if the options are aligned to a certain type of dietary lifestyle – like veganism.
“While they don’t *have to* do this, it’s the most considerate way to let your guests know what food to expect. Vegan cakes are just as tasty as non-vegan cakes, so letting guests know ahead of time is certainly a nice thing to do, but unless someone has an allergy to one of the vegan alternatives (and if they did, they should have said so on their RSVP) it’s ultimately not a big deal.”
According to YouGov, the number of vegans and vegetarians in the UK remains small. A 2022 post said the UK population was made up of between 2 to 3 per cent vegans and between five to seven per cent vegetarians.
Many of those who commented on the post praised the bride. The majority also stated that it was her decision about what to serve due to it being her wedding while some also noted it would be good to label food so people with allergens could be made aware.
Reddit account blueeyedwolff said: “NTA (not the ***hole). The while thing was vegan. It was your wedding, your choice. I wouldn’t feel tricked by eating a vegan cake at all. She has some issues. Let her seethe and be upset.”
LeaveInteresting3290 added: “They told everyone the wedding was going to be vegan how stupid does she have to be to be surprised that the cake was vegan.” DJMixwell posted: “What a silly thing to get mad about, too. Vegan food is just food. I get being annoyed if a militant vegan is actively shaming you for eating meat or something. But simply serving vegan food at her own wedding isn’t “pushing her lifestyle.”
Partofbreakfast commented: “I think labelling the cake for allergens would be good. Almond and soy are common ingredients for vegan cakes, and they are also common allergens. But labelling a cake as ‘vegan’ is silly if the whole wedding is vegan.”
