Hello, all, I was just wondering if others here have shared a similar experience to mine last night. What's with thinking there has to be a "one size fits all" dinner option for anyone with any dietary restriction? I attended an organizational "Annual Dinner" last night at a nice conference center. When first seated, one of my table companions asked how I was able to be there, and I explained that I'd been talking with the kitchen staff for a week in advance. The organization had been kind enough to request that there be no cheese served at the buffet line (an original plan for dusty Parmesan in the room--destined to become airborne--would have kept me from attending at all). I told my acquaintance that I was actually looking forward to the dinner, because I'd spoken in detail with tonight's chef. Laughing, I explained that, all too often, convention-style meals like this led to the kitchen staff wanting to send out the same exact plate: plain grilled chicken breasts often so dry they were almost jerky, plain green beans, a plain potato with nothing on it, and out-of-season fruit for "dessert." Looking at a plate like that when others nearby are enjoying a luscious buffet can make be hard. Fortunately, though, tonight I was looking forward to a nice eggplant entrée and the tasty sides we'd planned in advance. Apparently, having this conversation right before the food appeared jinxed that plan, though. My plate arrived ... with a stack of plain leathery chicken breast "tenders", plain green beans, and a plain baked potato that looked like it came straight out of the ground. My table companions looked at it for a second, as stunned as I was, and then we all had to laugh. (continued next post)