Confessions of a Vegetarian at a Summer BBQ 

As someone who’s been vegetarian for years, I’ve become very familiar with one question that seems to pop up at every summer BBQ: “What are you going to eat?” 

If you’ve ever invited a vegetarian to your summer barbecue, there’s a good chance you’ve asked yourself that very same thing. It’s a fair question, and one that’s usually asked with the best intentions. Somewhere between marinating the ribs, setting up lawn chairs, and making sure there’s enough ice, the realization suddenly hits that one of your guests doesn’t eat meat. Panic quietly sets in, followed by a frantic search for a suitable alternative. Soon enough, someone is sent to the grocery store, a veggie burger appears in the shopping list, and a giant portobello mushroom is waiting patiently for its moment on the grill.

While I genuinely appreciate the effort, I’d like to offer one small confession: you don’t have to work quite so hard.

Contrary to popular belief, the smell of burgers sizzling on the grill doesn’t send me into an existential crisis. I notice it just as everyone else does. The smoky aroma of charcoal, toasted buns, grilled onions, and sweet corn is one of the defining scents of summer. Appreciating that smell doesn’t mean I’m secretly hoping someone will convince me to abandon vegetarianism before dessert. The two ideas have never been mutually exclusive.

What does tend to happen, however, is that every side dish suddenly becomes a small mystery. A beautiful salad might be hiding crispy bacon. The potato salad looks promising until someone casually mentions the pancetta. Even the grilled vegetables become a gamble. I’ve developed an impressive ability to scan a buffet table while subtly asking, “What’s in this?” several times before filling my plate.

That’s why it’s always refreshing to find dishes that don’t feel like an afterthought. A bowl of Spinach Salad with Pickled Radish, Candied Peanuts, and Feta is memorable not because it’s vegetarian, but because it’s genuinely delicious. The peppery spinach, crisp pickled radish, sweet candied peanuts, and salty feta create a salad with enough texture and flavor to hold its own beside anything coming off the grill. Pair it with a platter of Sweet and Spicy Corn Ribs or Grilled Vegetable Quesadillas, and suddenly you’ve got barbecue food that everyone wants to eat-not because it’s meat-free, but because it’s simply delicious.

Then there’s the matter of the portobello mushroom.

Somewhere along the way, it became the unofficial mascot of vegetarian barbecues. It’s offered with such sincerity that admitting I don’t actually like mushrooms feels strangely ungrateful. Yet, like everyone else, vegetarians have preferences too. Some love mushrooms. Some don’t. Some would happily choose grilled tofu, while others would rather fill their plate with vegetables and call it a day.

Perhaps that’s the biggest misconception about vegetarian cooking in the summer. Too often, the conversation revolves around what isn’t being eaten rather than everything that can be. The best vegetarian barbecue dishes don’t spend their time trying to imitate burgers or sausages. They celebrate ingredients that were already meant for the grill.

Making someone feel welcome rarely depends on preparing a separate meal. More often, it’s the small gestures that matter; setting aside a salad before adding bacon, grilling the vegetables first, or simply asking what someone enjoys eating. Those moments say far more than an elaborate menu ever could.

So, the next time you invite a vegetarian over for a summer barbecue, don’t overthink it. A few great sides and good company go a long way. And if all else fails, skip the giant mushroom and put another ear of corn on the grill—we’ll both be happier for it.