apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

First it was a turkey sandwich. I had been craving a good turkey sandwich for ages. Then I said no red meat. I was at a party a few months later, and people were grilling hamburgers. I just had to have one, so that went out the window too.

It was a pepperoni pizza, but it probably should have been bacon. I think it's safe to say that bacon weakened me, and an inconveniently placed pizza did me in.

Not me (never been veg), but my roommate's first meal after being vegetarian for a few years was a sourdough bacon cheeseburger from Jack in the Box! Talk about jumping off the wagon!

A roasted chicken. It was planned. Simple and delicious.

I tried some chicken sausage after not having any meat for several years and was severely disappointed. I couldn't even finish one link. I actually didn't really want to eat it, but I decided to try it at my parents' urging. Since then I have tried chicken and fish on rare occasions, but meat rarely appeals to me anymore. I've just lost the taste for it.

I went the whole way the first time: A hamburger.

I had been vegetarian all through junior high, high school and the first year of college. And then I started dating a guy who loved to make and grill hamburgers in the summer. He'd mix up ground beef and ground turkey or venison, add a bunch of spices and mold the patties himself. I resisted probably four or five times. And then I reached a point where I just couldn't take it anymore and I had to have one.

God, I love hamburgers.

A cheesesteak at Hoagie Haven in Princeton, New Jersey. AKA the best cheesesteak in the world. I have never looked back, although I'm now married to a vegetarian and eat mostly vegetarian food. I'll eat meet maybe twice a week. But, like the original post, I never lost my craving for it.

Bacon. Glorious bacon.

Actually, it was a bacon wrapped hotdog from the grill. I caved and ate it like I was starving. Most delicious thing ever.

Of all things, mine was beef jerky! Growing up, my sister and I always got beef jerky during long car vacations. Two years ago, while on my way to Vegas from SF, I just couldn't help myself. The next day, bacon, and I haven't looked back since.

I am currently a vegetarian but if I decided to go back to meat my first meal would be a hot spicy chicken wings. Yummm. Although, I can't imagine going back to eating meat. It would feel weird and I've never been a huge fan of steak. Either way all vegetarians can't deny random cravings for meat.

The most amazing buffalo chicken burger. Mmmm.

Bacon cheese burger. The Guy is vegetarian, though, so I only eat meat/fish that's delivery-food or at a restaurant. All the cooking at home is no-meat. So I rarely have beef more than once a month. Each one is like that first off-the-wagon bacon cheeseburger. So.Yummy.

As a vegetarian beginning peace corps service in september, I've pretty much accepted that I need to start eating meat before I leave, lest my early encounters with squat toilets be particularly memorable. I've lost the taste for meat and am not enthusiastic about eating it again, but I think....it'll have to be bacon for my first time back.

After bring veg for 5 years I finally caved with a big plate of my dad's fried catfish. I'd been craving it for ages & it was definitely worth it!

Mmm, sushi! I went to a sushi restaurant with my friends and ordered veggie tempura. They brought me mixed tempura, and at first, I ate just the veggies and avoided the delicious marlin. My non-vegetarian friend took a bite of the marlin, declared it delicious, and "traded me" for some sushi "she just wanted me to try." I ate the sushi and the rest of the marlin.

In my defense, I had just moved to a country where there are very few non-soy meat substitutes (I can't eat soy) and I was sick of eating beans & eggs. Ugh, I hate eggs.

i decided to start eating meat again because i was living on a farm with a ready supply of meat that was raised in ways that i could see with my own eyes as humane, ethical, and sustainable. but i was also really afraid that after 10 years my body would react badly, so i started taking little nibbles, and tiny pieces of the homegrown beef and chicken at dinner until i was sure i could tolerate it. Doesn't make for much of a dramatic story, but it was sure tasty.

A prosciutto and brie baguette with an Orangina at a park in Paris. I still think it was the most perfect meal I have ever eaten, although the amazing roasted chicken I had later that week is a close second.

My story is actually embarassing.

A guy I worked with came over to hang out one night, and he was super cute. He decided to surprise me with a homecooked dinner, but he didn't know I was a vegetarian. He made a chicken dish, that wasn't that great, but I ate it happily anyhow, never once mentioning my vegetarianism. And I never looked back.

I was veggie for about ten years, but working at an amazing french restaurant did me in. I think my first back-to-meat meal was foie gras on toast with bitter orange marmalade, followed by pappardelle with rabbit bolognese.
My boss was so pleased he took me out for steak that week.

Oddly enough, my body didn't react AT ALL to the abrupt switch in foodstuffs. I'd been craving meat for weeks, and when I jumped off the veg wagon, I ate meat for dinner every night for weeks without any noticeable change in the way my body digested things.

After almost 10 years of being a vegetarian, I caved for a cheeseburger. Still quite possibly my favorite food ever (when done right).

I got super sick in the fall of 2007. You know those cartoons of the two guys on the deserted island? And one of the guys looks over at his buddy and all he can see is a chicken drumstick? Well, all I fantasized about all week was ground beef. It was a craving to end all cravings--literally every two to three seconds I would imagine how tasty a big skillet of ground beef would be. Mouth watering.

This was pretty disturbing to me, as I had been a vegetarian for over a decade.

After several days the meat monkeys in my brain broke my will (I figured my body must have needed something--maybe the iron) and I gave in. I ended up eating 3 Lb of ground beef in as many days and then figured I was totally off the wagon at that point. An extended bacon/pastrami/smoked-everything orgy followed.

Honestly, a year on, I feel a lot healthier and stronger on a diet that includes animal protein than I did on a strict veg/fruit/grain. I get sick less, my husband skin says my moods are more stable, and weirdly, my skin has cleared up. I was eating a meticulously balanced diet B.M. (Before Meat) so I wonder if there really is something to the argument that we were built to eat meat.

After five years of being a vegetarian I realized my night time dreams about ham and fried chicken were telling me something. First it was a turkey sandwich on royal egg bread. And then to the place that had my favorite pre-vegetarian steak and had a huge steak!

Except for ephraim_oakes it is highly disappointing to see your responses. As a vegetarian, I still do believe that people are met to be omnivores.

It is not your choice to stop being a vegetarian but to eat inhumanely treated meat such as fast food burgers, etc. I would think you all had your various reasons to be veg, how can you go back so quickly without even thinking about where your food is coming from.

I was vegetarian for about three years, and I made the choice because I figured it would be a challenge, but ultimately healthier. I was working in a health food co-op at the time so it was easy to fall in line: most of my friends and acquaintances and co-workers were also vegetarian, and I was surrounded by fresh vegetables and alternatives to meat every day. It was actually easy for me, all things considered. However, it was a platter of fried chicken that did me in. I was at a Fourth of July party, and there it was. It was there, I was hungry, and I ate fried chicken. Delicious. No guilt, and no big deal.

i am currently a vegetarian, but i have often dreamt of making a roasted chicken or sitting with a bowl of spicy chicken wings. i've come close..but have resisted thus far

First non-vegan moment: Apple Cheddar loaf. Later, blue cheese.

First non-vegetarian moment: Alaskan caught salmon that my boyfriend cooked up. There is nothing like BC salmon.

First non-pescetarian moment: Hasn't happened yet. I don't know if I will raise veg/pesc children, so I will someday have to eat occasional meat. Most likely will be something wild or at least organic. I only liked wild game when I ate meat anyways!

After 10 years as a vegetarian, my first meat encounter was fairly bizarre. I had finally decided to start eating fish again and went deep sea fishing (for the first time). As I pulled a 30 lb. tuna onto the boat the crew (knowing it was my first catch ever) cut out and fed me the heart. I of course also later grilled and ate the fish I caugh, and then it was a slippery slope from there. Fish, poultry, pork, lamb, beef. Although I will admit, I am considering going back to being a vegetarian again, or at least limiting to organic local meat once a month or so. It's amazing how much tastier the good stuff is.

I was vegetarian for eight years or so and vegan for six when I just got fed up with having to order off the menu and ask for special treatment when out with people. We went out for Japanese for my brother's birthday and I ordered a plate of sashimi. It was tasty, but I was a little creeped out by the texture. It wasn't until a couple of years later in Greece when I tried red meat again.

My boyfriend was a lifelong vegetarian for over twenty years when he moved to Boulder and got way too fed up with some of people's attitudes there about vegetarianism/meat/etc. So he had his brother make him steak with bacon and has been a happy carnivore ever since.

We still eat a lot of tofu, seitan, etc, though, but it's a lot easier to eat out and try new things.

Mine was bratwurst. It is a sin not to eat brats in the summertime in WI. I finally caved after several backyard bbq's at my brothers and haven't looked back. I'm dating a vegetarian now and I'm considering going back for him because it makes it easier for cooking and eating out, plus I can't stand the looks he gives me when I order meat, like I just killed Bambi or something. Why fight it anymore?

In N Out cheeseburger with grilled onions. The temptation took over and there went my strictly veggie ways. It was worth. It's still worth it. MEAT!

I was vegan for 3 years.

Eggs Benedict with shaved ham. After that I had a tuna sandwich craze. So good. Haven't looked back.

I was vegetarian for 12 years. Then I got pregnant. 6 weeks in, the fetus was craving bacon and I was powerless to resist. I had a BLTA that was absolutely MAGICAL. It's been about 2 years since then and we eat meat/poultry/fish a few nights a week, but we keep the portions small and only eat organic/ethical meat.

a pork chop. It was yummy. My tummy was sore for days afterwards.

I had been vegetarian for eight years, but was going to study abroad in Brazil, so I knew meat-eating was inevitable. I decided to start slowly and carefully - with roast turkey at my mom's Thanksgiving table. One bite and I never looked back. So delicious! I expected stomach trouble from the transition but had none at all.

I went all out and had a steak. Best decision I've ever made.

Coq au vin, followed the next day by awesome lamb kebabs. It's been only a few weeks since that decision, and despite the occasional stomach pang, I haven't looked back once!

I am a pescetarian, and have been so for a year now. I only order seafood when I'm dining out. However, I've been DYING for a taylor ham, egg and cheese sandwich lately. I guess it's the New Jersey in me. I haven't given in yet but I think about it often.

I was veg for about 5 years. Towards the end the cravings started kicking in and i finally gave in for an order of sukiyaki - beef, eggs, and some veggies. It totally hit the spot.

After 7 years meatless (I did eat fish) I had a ham sandwich and then some smoked bacon. I was in denial for several months while secretly eating this, feeling very guilty. Finally I 'came out' and had a stew, not wanting my first meaty meal be a big lump of meat. Next day I had a great big juicy steak. Now 20 years later I am still making up for the 7 years without meat and can't imagine how I lasted that long!

A CHEESEBURGER!!! Jesus, that was an amazing day! I was standing in line at a barbecue (there were boca burgers for us veggies) but when the guy cooking just habitually put a hamburger on my plate, i didnt say anything and my friend next to me started freaking out and was like oh my gosh i cant believe he put that on your plate! he must not have known, let me get you another plate. I just said, "it's all good" and that was the day I went back to eating meat. (Not so) oddly enough I stopped experiencing all of my anemic symptoms shortly after that. I guess my body just likes meat.

I was a vegetarian for almost 10 years. I had to travel a lot for work and eat in restaurants with co-workers. There were not very many veggie options at the type of restaurants we were going to and I finally caved one day for a BBQ turkey sandwich while on a trip in Dallas.

A ballpark hotdog w/ yellow mustard at the old Busch Stadium on a cold May Cards v. Cubs game day. Heaven.

After that, it went downhill fast - hamburgers, 1/2 a brat, bacon - all in the first week. Never looked back. 8 years of no-meat.

Korean style beef!

I lived with a woman whose mom used to send her back to our college apt with bags of marinating beef. For months I'd dream about the deliciousness waiting in our freezer.

After 8 years of no meat, I gave in. There was no transition period. I started with korean beef, and was eating sausage and bacon within days.

Turkey at Christmas dinner. It was a spontaneous decision. My husband, who always cooks the entire feast, had made me the usual tofu-y holiday substitute, but while sitting at the dinner table I had a sudden powerful urge to go for the turkey. He still gives me grief about the needless extra work I put him through that day. ;)

A Whopper from Burger King!!!

>>Either way all vegetarians can't deny random cravings for meat.

I disagree! I have been a vegetarian for 8 years. I do crave fish sometimes, but I never crave any other type of meat. And considering how many vegetarians eat fish, I wouldn't consider that a "meat" craving.

boneless honey buffalo wings!! I gave into temptation and boy were those wings good!! :) I'm more of a flexitarian now.

I've been vegan for 5 years and vegetarian for about 10 but I couldn't ever imagine going back to meat. I NEVER crave meat, dairy or eggs despite remembering steak, ribs, etc being tasty. I think I'd feel so guilt stricken that I wouldn't even be able to enjoy my meal. It's been so long, I find I crave crap like fried tofu and seitan sausages in place of their meat counterparts.

maybe we can also have a thread where you guys all recount your first heart attacks!

as a nearly 20 year vegan i am disappointed in both this thread and some of the ridiculous comments within it. have the reasons you adopted a vegetarian diet changed? no. then don't celebrate your own weakness.

I agree with eightdouble. I don't understand how anyone who was ever a vegetarian (and especially a vegan!) could happily go back to meat after knowing what you know. Obviously, you didn't become veg for the right reasons. Guess what? It STILL comes from tortured animals. How can you look at a strip of bacon and not see the animal dying? Screaming? Crying for her babies? I am completely disgusted with ex-vegetarians. Always was, always will be.

Bacon and biscuits, closely followed by hot wings.

I had never had hot wings before--I had been vegetarian for so long that I hadn't tried them.

it makes me sick to my stomach to read these comments

For those of you complaining - Could you please explain to me what you get out of judging other people for their food choices? Does it make you feel good about yourself?

confusednazgul, I'm sure none of the "complainers" feel any better or worse about their criticism than everyone that is apparently very much ok with forgetting what was presumably a very important part of their lives, and also "forgetting" (ignoring) the reasons why they chose to not eat animals in the first place.

Instead of asking WHAT you ate, why not ask WHY you ate it. Would I be right in assuming it was a case of convenience? It's just sad, that's all. How is it that someone can pretend to care, and then eventually prove that it never meant sh*t.

It doesn't make me feel good. I would just like to know what disconnect would cause you to go back on your ethics.

First non-vegan: Birthday cake that I had made for a close friend. It was funfetti and very delicious.

First non-vegi: Shrimp at a party. It took me a few years to add poultry back to the mix. A few more years to add red meat (an amazing restaurant in Florence where I had visited many times). I do not eat red meat regularly.

Being a vegetarian for me was an issue with taste and texture. I don't think that it is fair to judge the reasons that someone has made a life choice. I commend individuals for making their own decisions despite the condemnation of others.

I have nothing to say to people who have always been meat-eaters. Just help me understand why you made this compassionate choice, and then went back on it? Simple as that.

I started eating meat again after a long and stressful period of being very anemic. I was eating plenty of iron-rich vegetables, and taking vitamins with iron, but I was still quite anemic... Which has some incredibly unpleasant side effects for females, aside from the usual fatigue. (I had been "donating" plasma, which supposedly doesn't affect your iron levels since they put your red cells back, but I still think that's what did me in).

I had a turkey burger. Actually, I had two. It was incredible. When your body craves something, it tends to taste very, very good! I had to restrain myself from eating a third one.

And in the end, I was able to get my red blood cell count up rapidly by eating meat just a couple of times a week, which I continue to do.

First off, I was a vegetarian for 10 years and the last 6 as a pescetarian. I don't eat meat because of the texture of it. Chicken on the bone just grosses me out. Having said that, I don't think people should judge others on what they eat. It's not fair to them and you just look ridiculous.

I have been contemplating going back to eating meat, but I can't do it just yet. One, is the guilt factor -- which I think is ridiculous, but I can't help it. The other factor is that I don't know if my body can handle the switch. I wonder if pork is better to start out with? Because if it is, I want prosciutto, soprasatta and a large antipasti plate!

Why would feeling guilty be ridiculous?

And yes, I'm judging. Judgy judgy judge.

My horrible ex ate a huge plate of ribs after not eating meat for twelve years. Of course, he was violently ill. I get a small sense of satisfaction from this.

My parents tricked me into eating corned beef in a casserole after not eating meat for about a year. I was pretty upset, but I got over it and went back to my glorious chicken tenders of love.

I was a vegetarian for about 7 years, of those a vegan for one. And I also never quite lost the craving for meat or fish.

My first dish was calamari while on holiday by the sea. At first I felt really guilty, and still do, even almost 4 years later, but I've made the choice to eat meat and fish every now and then.

Well it's not that i feel guily all the time, but i know that eating meat comes at a price and I guess i just will always be aware of it.

I was veggie for close to 15 years before I jumped off that wagon, and it took me several years of craving the texture and density of meat (which had previously grossed me out) before I finally let myself do it.

It was just a piece of cooked salmon from Whole Foods, because like I said, I was very ambivalent about doing it. But as soon as I tasted it I knew it was fully the right decision for me.

Now, 5 years later, fish and poultry have regular places in my diet, and I've recently even discovered steak and pork again (to my complete amazement). All delicious, though I still have what I'd consider a vegetarian sensibility, and vegetable-based foods still form the bulk of my diet. I eat some animal flesh probaby 2x/week, and feel much better physically for doing it.

I believe that people have unique dietary needs which are best met by listening to what your body's asking you for and how you feel afterward. No judgments here...I've learned what works for me...:)

Let's not assume that everyone who goes back to eating meat is a traitor to their own beliefs. Not everyone goes vegetarian for ethical reasons. Some people do it because its a good diet, the people around them are, because they don't like meat, or because they don't have access to responsibly raised meat. Many people who are ethical eaters consume meat. It comes down to whether or not you think the act of eating meat is wrong, or just the act of mistreating animals before they are killed. For alot of people it's not cut and dried.
I would never become vegetarian, because I like meat, and I've never found eating it guilt inducing. However, I would like to become more mindful about my meat eating- where it came from, how it was treated, whether the amount I'm eating is environmentally irresponsible, etc.

I was vegetarian for several years in middle school and high school. I never learned to do it correctly, to eat a health vegetarian diet, and I did it all wrong - mostly carbs, very little protein, certainly not enough fresh veggies and fruits. I actually don't remember specifically why I chose to switch back to eating meat (Thanksgiving was the decided day) but I have definitely had a healthier, more balanced diet since. I don't cook a lot of meat, but I like having the flexibility, and I try to buy sustainable. I try to be conscious about what I eat and where it comes from - but no one is perfect and given my resources, it's hard for me to imagine living a fully sustainable lifestyle (while happy).

I have also struggled with anemia over the years, and for those of you out there who have trouble with iron pills - try liquid iron (available at health food stores). It tastes fine and is way easier to digest than pills, and it absorbs much better than pills do. More expensive, but more bang for your buck.

How can you be an "ethical eater" and eat meat? And as for "how the animal was treated"? It's STILL DEAD. The majority of them are tortured and mistreated, but if it makes you feel better to eat an animal that DID NOT WANT TO DIE simply because it got to walk around a little before it was slaughtered, then try not to pat yourself on the back too much.

Congratulations to all for getting over your orthorexia. It's a very serious eating disorder that can become fatal.