A virtuous veggie cycle
I rarely cook meat anymore, because I want to minimize my contribution to the climate crisis. But when I’m at a restaurant, I’m much more likely to choose a meat option than when I’m at home. I find that many restaurants don’t offer appetizing meatless dishes, or they don’t present them in a way that invites people to choose those dishes. Faced with the choice between a sad green salad and a melty chicken sandwich on a restaurant menu, I’m not proud to admit I’ll choose the chicken.
This is why encouraging a greater SUPPLY of inviting meatless foods in restaurants is as important as creating a DEMAND for them among restaurant-goers.
In fall 2025, Meat Me In The Middle will engage the residents of South Orange and Maplewood (SOMA), NJ with messages about meat reduction for environmental reasons. Our goal is for the people of SOMA to understand that minimizing meat is a way to have an impact on climate change. If we are successful, not only will community members prepare more vegetarian and vegan foods at home, but they will walk into local restaurants hungry for meat-free options. We want to give them those options.
Many cities host occasional an occasional “Restaurant Week” at which diners have a special, shared experience at various establishments. During the Restaurant Week that Meat Me In The Middle is planning for early 2026, participating SOMA restaurants will showcase their meatless options, and we’ll encourage them to add to their attractive vegetarian and vegan offerings. Our intent is a virtuous cycle: Customers will demand delicious meatless meals, and as restaurants demonstrate they can provide those, then customers will choose them more often. Customer purchases of meatless foods will show restaurant managers the value of putting more of them on the menu, and the cycle will continue.
We aim to facilitate customers’ changing consumption patterns, while simultaneously delivering eager customers to restaurants that can meet their evolving appetites.
Do you own or manage a restaurant in SOMA? We’d love your participation in Restaurant Week. Please reach out to us for more information at hello[at]mmitm.info.