Nine Days Menu: A Simcha for Vegetarians
Question
I am a vegetarian. Where I draw the line is I don’t eat anything considered fleishig. I eat dairy, eggs, and fish, but no meat or poultry. My diet therefore has no changes during the nine days.
For the nine days, the kosher fleishig restaurants around here replace their regular menu with an extended fish and vegetarian menu offering tasty items not served any other time of year. Every year, I find myself taking advantage of this and ordering all these items. It seems to have become an unintended simcha for people like me, which apparently our community has lots of.
Does that defeat the purpose of the nine days, when the restrictions are not really a personal “restriction” but rather become a simcha for me?
Answers
What a fascinating question!
Halachically, there is nothing wrong with eating foods that are meat-less during the Nine Days even if they are a source of joy. The question really is if going out to eat during the Nine Days is the correct thing to do. My personal approach is not to eat out in restaurants during the Nine Days, as I feel that it detracts from the atmosphere that the Nine Days are supposed to create. However, if you live in an area where it seems to be the norm to eat out, it might be acceptable to do so. Perhaps the best thing is to make a compromise and to order take-out and eat it at home so that you can enjoy the “Nine Day Menu” without actually having the full “restaurant experience.”
Best wishes from the AskTheRabbi.org Team
At the present time, I do not eat in restaurants because of the covid risk. I only eat where there is outdoor seating or carry out. But this is only a temporary situation. Once I feel safe, I plan to eat in restaurants again. I don’t know whether that will be next year, in two years, or some time after that.