Victoria Beckham And Gordon Ramsay To Open Very Non-Vegetarian Restaurant

16
by Michael Parrish DuDell September 12, 2008
Categories: Eats
Tags: , .

I always think it’s rather strange when an outspoken vegetarian displays continuous non-vegetarian decision making skills. For example: the Green Quote from yesterday was from Diane Keaton who spoke about her wonderful choice to go veg. While I was pleased to report the news, what I didn’t include was that when Diane was asked if she had raised her children vegetarian she said: “No, no. I’m not doing that to them. I’m sure, once they grow up, they’ll be going, ‘What an eccentric human being, this mother of ours.” Eccentric? Really?

In another case of Veggie WTF, Victoria Beckham (who loves cooking mince meat for her family even though she’s meat-free) is planning on opening a new restaurant in LA with celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay.

Now of course you can automatically assume the restaurant will be far from veg since Gordon himself once said: “If my daughter ever grew up and married a vegetarian, I’d never forgive her.” Ramsay recently confirmed his and Victoria’s non-veg establishment, saying: “Yes, it is true that Victoria and I are setting up a restaurant in LA. together. I’m really excited. She’s really keen to focus on a traditional English-style menu, like bangers and mash, fish and chips and such like.”

Bangers and mash? Fish and chips? Part of being vegetarian is not only eating in a responsible way, but showing the world that it’s basically the most awesome thing ever! Normally my philosophy is that whatever small change a person can make in their diet to lead a more green, less cruel life is totally rad! HOWEVER, Victoria is a big star and it’s important she set a clear and positive example for the world to follow. What do you think? Is it cool that Veggie Vicky is opening a restaurant with a meat-infested menu? Speak now or forever hold your peace!


Categories: Eats
Tags: , .
  • http://www.hippyshopper.com Abi

    Tcha, what a bunch of hypocritical idiots. I have to say I’m not at all surprised at VB, but Diane Keaton’s attitude is just baffling.

    That’s almost as bad as the depressingly high number of veggie women to suddenly decide to start eating meat ‘for the sake of their unborn baby’. What absolute rubbish!

  • SG

    Veggie Vicky needs to find something more meaningful to do with all her free time.

  • http://runawayoctober.com Katie

    “Part of being vegetarian is not only eating in a responsible way, but showing the world that it’s basically the most awesome thing ever!”

    Uhm, that’s one of the lamest things I’ve read in awhile. You don’t choose to be a Veg*n to show people how much cooler you are, you do it for yourself. Your health, your environment, your kids, etc. Not so that you can go around brow-beating people about your choices.

    How would you feel if the statement read: Part of being [insert a something off the beaten path, such as Paganism] is not only [insert reason for typically choosing it], but showing the world that it’s basically the most awesome thing ever!

    Sounds like a bunch of crap now doesn’t it?

  • parrish

    Katie- Fair enough! Let me revise my statement.

    “Part of being a vegetarian IN THE SPOTLIGHT is not only eating in a responsible way, but showing the world that it’s basically the most awesome thing ever!”

    I agree that veganism is totally a personal choice and I’m certainly not in favor of brow-beating (see like every piece I’ve ever done on “radical” animal-rights). However, there’s something to be said about being a vegetarian in the public spotlight and advocating the lifestyle in a positive, responsible way. I believe that with great power and wealth comes an even greater obligation to lead a life consistent with the values you express in the media. I look to stars who use vegetarianism as a talking point (which Victoria does quite often) to lead by example and not just words. But hey…that’s just me.

  • Mel

    Interesting! My guess VB is vegetarian as part of her “diet” rather than any ethical/moral conviction, so this doesn’t surprise me.

    But as far as Diane’s comment, I do not take that all that seriously. Children are individual human beings and I believe each individual must make his/her own choices, and that includes what to eat! (I think that’s where she’s coming from).

    Obviously, their mother (Diane) is setting an example, which in my view is really the BEST way to encourage vegetarianism. Preaching, imposing, and so on only turn children — and adults for that matter — away for vegetarianism.

  • Allen

    Katie and Parrish, although I agree it can be counter-productive to “brow-beat” people the head with veganism/vegetarianism. However, choosing not to harm animals is about as “personal” a choice as choosing not to rape children or own slaves. When one’s “personal” choices (like eating animals) hurt others (the animals) it is not a “personal” choice anymore.

    It always sounds like a bunch of “crap” when I here people saying that you shouldn’t go around promoting veganism, or that you should keep your “opinions” about veganism to yourself, because it is a “personal” choice. That’s like saying people shouldn’t speak up when someone is beating their kid because that’s their “choice” and if they want to beat their kid then they should be allowed to do so.

    Sounds like a bunch of crap now doesn’t it?

  • jamie lynn

    look, no-one loves victoria beckham as much as i do (really. ask my husband.) but i agree with Mel on this one:
    “My guess VB is vegetarian as part of her “diet” rather than any ethical/moral conviction…”
    victoria has never taken a firm stance against people in general eating meat (if she had, she wouldn’t be cooking it for her family, would she?). i think a lot of people misconstrue her choice to not include it in her diet as being “vegetarian”, even though her position lacks any of the ideology usually associated with taking up the lifestyle. that being said, i don’t think she ought to be muckraked for her “hypocrisy” on a stance she never made to begin with!

  • http://veganworldwidenews.blogspot.com/2008/09/uk-86-veggie-at-least-once-week.html 86%GoVeggie-A-Week

    Maybe she’s planning on trapping the Vegaphobic Ramsay into a deal then stamping her posh spice feet and getting veggie sushi added to the menu.

    Perhaps not.

    She’s not vegetarian anyway she eats fish.

    Perhaps she means veggie sausages?

    Perhaps not.

  • Mel

    So ALLEN must be anti-abortion then following that line of thought?

    I have been vegetarian/veganish for many years but I disagree with Allen. Humans are animals as well and we are each at our own level of evolution. There are some very kind, wonderful people who eat meat and there are some real nasty vegans/vegetarians — just because a person doesn’t eat meat does NOT make that person a moral authority whatsoever (but it makes a person feel that way — superior that is.)

    I am pro-choice in every sense of the word. Do I advocate vegetarianism? Of course, but telling another human animal what s/he should do is just not my business, nor anyone else’s. That attitude truly does more to harm the animal rights cause.

    Factory farming is wrong – no ifs ands or buts about it. But there are people who are concerned with raising animals for food in a humane way.

    Moreover, Allen’s examples are highly insensitive and offensive. Remember: wild animals eat each other — are you going to stop them from killing?

    We all die, let’s only hope it’s humane.

    signed,
    pro-vegetarian, anti-bullying

  • parrish

    You know guys, without meaning to we’ve really kind of tapped into a major issue in the vegetarian movement.

    Allen, I understand what you’re saying. The way animals are treated in our society is unfair and cruel. That’s not really an opinion — it’s a fact — and I think most educated people would agree with you. So the issue becomes how we must handle the situation in a way that is most globally effective.

    Because we live in the kind of society we live in, it’s silly to debate if eating meat is a personal choice or not. Of course it is. You’re simply treading water by spending an abundance of time arguing it. You will never find a politician or government official who would attempt to take away a human’s right to eat meat. Even when Dennis Kucinich, a vegan presidential candidate, was asked how his veganism would affect the White House he said: “Vegan food would be on the menu, but there’d be a choice for people who weren’t vegans. There would be room at my table for everyone. It would be a friendly table. “

    The problem is that most people simply aren’t educated on the issue…or educated in a correct manner. When people understand the industry fully they’re apt to make the decision that’s not only best for themselves, but also for the planet and the animals.

    Loretta Swit said to me once, ” The big part of our job is education — getting that information out. The brightest thing I ever heard was: you only know what you know. Ok so now I have a lot of information so I get out there and say, ‘Listen up! These are the facts! Act on it!’ I count on the intelligence and compassion of people and they come through each time.”

    I agree with Loretta and believe our job is to educate in a diplomatic and tactful way for the sake of ourselves and the animals. Can we as a movement create a dialogue that’s productive, educational and well-rounded without turning people off? Absolutely! Why I sometimes give celebrities a hard time (especially vegetarian celebrities) is because our society has elected them as leaders. I don’t love that Victoria Beckham can establish trends simply by doing something (and she probably doesn’t either), but she can and it’s a reality we must recognize. And so I hold them at a higher level of scrutiny because they have the power to make REAL change.

    I firmly believe that goodness and compassion will triumph and we will one day see a society that embraces animal reform and vegetarianism. It just might take a while. There are more vegetarians and vegans today than anytime before in history. The world is learning, the world is growing and we have a million reasons to stay positive…and we must!

  • Mel

    How refreshing to read such a rational, balanced commentary! Bravo! Well said, parrish!

  • stephanie williams

    i <3 Parrish. You are awesome and address comments so well <33

    Few celbs are veg for moral reasons, and few clebs stick to it and advocate it cause where is the money in that.

    She proly wears fur :P

  • http://westerwoodgraphics.com theresa Southern

    she really does probably only go vegetarian because she thinks it helps her stay thin…

  • Allen

    Parrish, you are right. That’s why I agreed with you that it can be counter-productive to “brow-beat” people over the head with vegetarianism. There are effective and non-effective ways to convince people to change their eating habits. Deriding people for eating meat is not effective.

    My point is that choosing to eat meat is not a personal choice and vegans do not have to pretend that it is. We simply need to remind meat eaters that choosing to eat meat effects more than just themselves. It also effects animals and the environment.

    Mel, you completely lost me with your argument. I didn’t say vegans have any sort of moral authority nor did I say they are superior. I simply said that eating meat is not a personal choice because it hurts others. I’m sorry if you got your feelings hurt by this simple concept, but I imagine that animals who have their throats “humanely” sliced open just because someone wants to dine on their flesh hurt a lot more.

    Obviously you haven’t spent very much time thinking or reading about veganism or animal rights. If you had your silly question about if it okay for other animals to eat animals would have been answered long ago. Some animals eat other animals because they have to in order to survive. They are carnivores. Human animals, on the other hand, can choose not to eat other animals. In fact, we are much healthier when we stick to a plant based diet similar to the diets of other primates. But when people choose to eat meat, it isn’t so they can survive. It is it of habit, or ignorance or greed. But, in any case, it is not a personal choice and the animals who are hurt by people who choose to eat meat should be considered.

  • Allen

    Oh, and Mel, there are no such things as levels of evolution. This isn’t a video game. Humans and other animals have all been evolving on this planet for the same amount of time. Humans are not more evolved than other animals. We have evolved different characteristics that have helped our ancestors survive in particular ecological niches. Other animals have evolved other characteristics that have helped their ancestors survive in other ecological niches.

    Evolution is not a forward thinking, goal oriented mechanism. It simply weeds out the characteristics that are unsuccessful and keeps the characteristics that are successful. It doesn’t have a plan and humans are not at the pinnacle of evolution.

  • Alice

    I”m confused – 1)Aren’t there omnivores in nature? Don’t our teeth suggestin in an evolutionary capacity that’s what we are, though we’re certainly able to make a more informed choice? 2)I know several vegetarians who avoid meat because they dislike the taste, dislike handling it, etc…not because they think there is a moral certainty that eating meat is murder. Are you denying that anyone who eats vegetarian could be one of these people? I realize the point of this website, but you’re talking about a stranger, not someone you know subscribes to all of the same motivations/politics as you. 3)Not all primates are vegetarians.

    Seems like when a public figure chooses to eschew meat, everyone “knows” what their thoughts/intentions were. Just saying among the mistated facts above, is that not everyone is vegetarian for the same reasons folks.

« PREVIOUS POST
Robin Quivers
NEXT POST »