Hidden chicken stock at Mozelle’s
Julie and I had lunch at Mozelle’s last Friday (their tomato pie is to-die-for), when we discovered to our dismay that the side dish that comes with it, creamed succotash, contains chicken stock! The waiter offered this after I asked him to describe what was in it. He said it depends on the chef who’s making it—sometimes they use chicken stock, sometimes they use vegetable stock. I found this to be pretty upsetting, that the side dish that comes with a vegetarian entree isn’t reliably vegetarian. And the fact that it changes makes it even worse—someone might ask if it’s vegetarian on a day that vegetable stock was used, be told that it is, then assume that it’s always vegetarian and not ask again. (For the record, the spicy collard greens contain bacon.)
Moral of the story: ALWAYS ask if something is vegetarian, even if it seems like it should be. And maybe someday restaurant owners will wise up and learn to make this clear on the menu—and not think that chicken stock is OK for vegetarians.
