No, I won’t rejoin that pale-faced, snooty assembly of lettuce-nibblers

IT’S everyone’s worst nightmare. You invite a group of friends over for a bite to eat and just as you’re all about to tuck in to a delicious dinner of smoked salmon and lamb cutlets, your old college pal’s latest girlfriend announces she’s a vegan.

That’s precisely what happened to friends of ours a few weeks ago.

Thankfully, Geraldine, our hostess that evening, is a brilliant cook and was able to rustle something up for said veggie in next to no time. “I’m so sorry. I feel terrible. I should have asked if you had any dietary requirements.”