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Red Robin is not the worst place for vegetarians to eat. They have the veggie burger and a few other things.
We know some college girls who work there and don't eat meat. It's a typical chain restaurant that actually does offer something for vegetarians. Not so much for vegans but vegetarians can do OK there.
I too never heard anything about this until recently - here actually, by people who eat meat actually. Strange.
Red Robin is not the worst place for vegetarians to eat. They have the veggie burger and a few other things.
We know some college girls who work there and don't eat meat. It's a typical chain restaurant that actually does offer something for vegetarians. Not so much for vegans but vegetarians can do OK there.
I too never heard anything about this until recently - here actually, by people who eat meat actually. Strange.
I didn't know about it til I saw the thread here either. And I've never been to a Red Robin's, because I don't think there is one anywhere near where I live. I don't know of anyone who's ever been to one either, other than the anonymous members of city-data. I'd never even heard that it existed til I read a post from someone saying that they liked it.
I wouldn't eat garden burgers no matter where they're made, because I don't like veggie burgers. If there was a Red Robin around here, I wouldn't go there for any vegetarian food, because we have one of the best vegetarian restaurants one town away from my house, and there's a syrian place in the same town that has the best falafels and hummus I've ever had in my life, so there's no need for me to go anywhere else for vegeterian fare. If I was to go to a burger joint, it'd be to eat a burger.
As an omnivore, I enjoy both meat and non-meat foods. But if I want something specifically non-meat, I wouldn't go to a place that specializes in meat to get it. I think this advertisement is a whole lot to do about nothing. Red Robin doesn't apologize for it, and has already stated that it was one ad in a series, and the entire series is on rotation, and that particular commercial is scheduled to only run a couple of weeks. So there's hundreds of posts all over the internet, in social media and here and other forums, and in comments in news articles and blogs, all railing against something that's only going to last a couple of weeks, and isn't even intended to target vegetarians. It's intended to target families with picky teenagers. If it was a new chicken sandwich being promoted, and they said "for the teenage daughter going through a phase" you wouldn't expect the beef producers of the country to get upset about it. That'd be just crazy talk.
I mean sheesh - it's a place that exists to sell beef - to customers who come to buy beef, offering a non-beef product just in case someone in that party of 4 doesn't want beef. They're not trying to win over vegetarians. They don't have to. Vegetarianism - and especially veganism - is a niche market. And at only around 5% of the population, not a market anyone would -need- to capture.
That isn't a "reasonable analogy", instead its one that completely ignores why most people are veg*n.
Rather than just throwing around unsupported assertions like yours, I like to get down to facts wherever possible. As this study at Oregon State University showed (emphasis mine):
Quote:
For some people, their decision to quit consuming meat – or animal products of any kind – stems from their opposition to killing or using animals for food. Others are seeking a healthier lifestyle and say they are concerned about chemical or hormonal additives. And still others associate red meat with heart disease, cancer and “mad cow” disease, among other concerns.
So the example I gave of a bar inadvertently seeming to diss non-drinkers is exactly parallel to this case. Avoiding eating meat and avoiding drinking alcohol both have moral overtones, both have religious proscriptions associated with them, both have to do with voluntary choices, and both are primarily motivated by health concerns.
Quote:
People don't get killed for being vegetarian, but animals do suffer when they are raise in fed lots for human consumption. Equating vegetarianism with a "non-drinker" trivializes the serious moral issues that underline most vegetarians vegetarianism.
Again, see the survey above. It's absolutely not the primary reason why people stop eating meat, and in exact parallel with avoiding alcohol consumption, some people make the change in their eating habits because of cost. Both meat and alcohol are relatively expensive for people without much money. Just ask college students...
Quote:
The primary difference between animal rights issues and civil rights issues is that in the former case the animals in question have no voice...
And that statement is the logical fallacy of reduction to absurdity.
Worse, it hurts the veg'an cause with the general public, who just shake their heads in disbelief at such woeful and exaggerated comparisons. That way is guaranteed to turn people off to your message.
Another way is to turn people off to your message is to gin up outsized outrage at inadvertent and inconsequential slights. Late night comics are already making meat (sorry, that's an Elizabethan expression) of "those crazy vegetarians." You think the mainstream is out of touch with veg'ans? Clearly the reverse is at least as true... veg'ans are out of touch with mainstream realities and attitudes, and how they are perceived by the general public. When this controversy hit the news, all over the country there was a huge, collective reaction in suburbia that went "Oh, puhleeeze!!" Is that really the image you want to build?
Funny thing is, nobody in these debates ever seems to mention my own personal reason for embracing veg'anism for decades... for the reputed spiritual benefits. Among other things veg'anism is supposed to make one more accepting, more peaceful. In my view, militant vegan'ism is an oxymoron.
Rather than just throwing around unsupported assertions like yours, I like to get down to facts wherever possible. As this study at Oregon State University showed (emphasis mine):
So the example I gave of a bar inadvertently seeming to diss non-drinkers is exactly parallel to this case. Avoiding eating meat and avoiding drinking alcohol both have moral overtones, both have religious proscriptions associated with them, both have to do with voluntary choices, and both are primarily motivated by health concerns.
Again, see the survey above. It's absolutely not the primary reason why people stop eating meat, and in exact parallel with avoiding alcohol consumption, some people make the change in their eating habits because of cost. Both meat and alcohol are relatively expensive for people without much money. Just ask college students...
And that statement is the logical fallacy of reduction to absurdity.
Worse, it hurts the veg'an cause with the general public, who just shake their heads in disbelief at such woeful and exaggerated comparisons. That way is guaranteed to turn people off to your message.
Another way is to turn people off to your message is to gin up outsized outrage at inadvertent and inconsequential slights. Late night comics are already making meat (sorry, that's an Elizabethan expression) of "those crazy vegetarians." You think the mainstream is out of touch with veg'ans? Clearly the reverse is at least as true... veg'ans are out of touch with mainstream realities and attitudes, and how they are perceived by the general public. When this controversy hit the news, all over the country there was a huge, collective reaction in suburbia that went "Oh, puhleeeze!!" Is that really the image you want to build?
Funny thing is, nobody in these debates ever seems to mention my own personal reason for embracing veg'anism for decades... for the reputed spiritual benefits. Among other things veg'anism is supposed to make one more accepting, more peaceful. In my view, militant vegan'ism is an oxymoron.
Peace!
I for one have no illusions about how the mainstream views vegetarian/vegan issues. I don't really expect them to "get it". Most see no problem in the way that "food" animals are raised or that cows have to be repeatedly impregnated and their young taken from them so they can "give" milk to humans. If they cannot see how this is a problem, why would I expect them to understand why an ad essentially calling vegetarianism a "phase" might offend vegetarians? The fact is, I don't really care what soccer moms have to say about veganism. I don't have a particularly high opionion of people in the aggregate. What these people think about veganism doesn't impact my life much. I just ask that you shut up when you see me eating my "weird" food otherwise we're going to have a problem.
There is no problem and never was, I am not offended by the commercial. Actually, it just acknowledges that many younger people tend to be vegetarian or vegan. Ran it by my teenagers. One vegan one vegetarian. Neither offended.
I understand the poster who said that it trivializes vegetarianism as a "teen age fad", however, if the truth be told, most people do become vegetarians in their teens or 20s.
"This commercial had absolutely nothing to do with vegetarianism. It had to do with a veggie burger for young girls who think they have an eating disorder. Nothing more." (Quote from Liquid Reigns)
I think it absolutely has something to do with vegetarianism and only possibly eating disorders. The teenage daughter may want to have a veggie burger because she just became a vegetarian, either for health reasons or for ethical reasons, such as a protest against factory farming. To say she has an eating disorder is really reading into it.
I feel it is somewhat offensive, because many adults, such as myself, are vegetarians and it is not just a "passing fad." I've been a vegetarian for about 30 years now. To become a vegetarian is a serious choice and should not be treated lightly. I don't put down meat-eaters for eating meat.
This ad would not prevent me from eating again at Red Robin. (I've eaten there about 3 times.) I applaud any restaurant that features any vegetarian items. I wish there were more of them. McDonalds tried a veggie burger in NYC and other places, but, for some reason does not feature it on its regular menu, although I think they still do in NYC. It's great that Burger King still does.
Last edited by SoulJourn; 06-27-2013 at 03:44 PM..
This commercial is a perfect example of why people don't take business seriously anymore; Red Robin basically pulled a Chick-Fil-A stunt here by pissing off a part of their customer base. I won't even consider Red Robin after seeing this commercial because it is very condescending to me personally. I've dumped a lot of businesses for pissing me off or pulling **** on me and this is just one example. If Red Robin is hostile to herbivorous people then just ****. As a customer I am merciless and don't care that you had to consult an ad agency or some back office drama caused your company to drop the ball, if you screw up, you screwed up. No more chances. Game over.
And for those of you who say 'get over it', sure, I'll get over it. I just won't deal with the place. **** them.
I really don't like this commercial. I don't eat @ RR and I am not a vegeterian. If I were in charge I would fire the marketing team who came up with this for their lack of originality and for not following the basic rules of marketing. The woman talks about vegeterianism like if it was an unnaceptable "phase". Why bother promoting a product for an unnaceptabe phase or lifestyle? Wouldn't that your new product unnaceptable by default?
Hurt feelings or not, I think the mkt team did its job. 5 pgs about it here........talk'n bout RR...... good or bad talk, it's still talk.
Ate there for the first time this past weekend, was an ok place. Ate with a vegetarian, too.
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Red Robin is a dumbass company
