A Vegan Surprise For Lunch.

 A weekend of wine tastings.

It was the annual spring wine festival again, although we can't call it that anymore due to those two lost corona years in between. Strange how we have all developed this two year gap in our life-line. Suddenly friends and people last seen before the ' gap-years ' look that much more grown up and fuller of experience. Yes, we have aged unseen similar to the Blaufränkish in many a local cellar.

Thankfully normality is back again and with that we had a lovely weekend of wine tastings with old and new friends. As per usual, less is more but we are still learning that idiom with each passing year. These wine festivals could also be used as an experiment for psychologists who need to determine our collective and individual will powers!

So there we were on Saturday, in the lovely hills of Rechnitz looking forward to a nice lunch. Bob and I had remembered from previous excursions that there was a place that sold a warm vegan meal. Well, not a meal but a langos, deep-fried flatbread, that would do us fine. Everywhere else the plates of schnitzel, Schweinsbraten and co ruled. Fair enough, it is our choice to be vegan after all.

So both of us ordered a langos and had saliva dripping out of the corners of our mouths in anticipation for this hot meal. The others were already tucking into their Schweinsbraten when eventually ours came. It looked delicicous as only a deep-fried something can.

Bob started to eat his first and as he cut a little piece off he let out a shout; 

          " Babes, don't eat this. There is ham and cheese inside it. "

Can you believe it? There they had changed the menu and not made special mention of it. No more vegan fare here! Drat how annoying. We were hungry and disappointed at the same time. Despite being cross I tried to calm down Bob ( he was blazing mad! ) and direct his attention to a bowl of sliced bread and the plate of cabbage salad his friends had given up for him. Look, we didn't starve. Bread is just fine but the disappointment vast.

During the two days of wine festival I got talking to a few vintners ( checking to see if their bread on offer was just that ) and they told me that quite a lot of vegans had been at tasting. So, there is hope for us and as I said, we had plenty of bits of bread to eat at the various stations and that was just dandy as it didn't divert from the nice taste of the wines...

Biggi