Peeves (what they mean when they say vegetarian) and Kudos (Mr. Chan's)

Don'tcha hate people that decide they need their own special diet and then expect others to kow-tow to their demands? I'm one of those people. And I know it's not reasonable so when restaurants go out of their way to have options on their menu I'll eat them. But when they don't have options on their menu, I wish they'd just be upfront about it. I call ahead so there aren't awkward table-side discussions. Sometimes, unfortunately, the calls go something like this:

Me: Do you have vegetarian options on your menu?
Them: Well, um, we can make something vegetarian for you.
Me: Really? That's nice. Like what?
Them: Oh, we can modify, er, um, some dishes and just leave ingredients out of how we usually make our items in order to meet your needs.
Me: Like...
Them: Well, um, maybe like the Chicken and Rice in Hearty Stock with Bacon Bits. We could leave off the chicken. And the stock. And the bacon bits.
Me: But the cook designed the dish to have these items... so if you take them out it's not really gonna taste all that great, right?
Them: Um... well... um...
Me: Um, thanks, just the same.

I'd rather they just say: Sorry, no.

Variation on a theme:
Me: Do you have vegetarian options on your menu?
Them: Well, we can get you a side salad.
Me: What does that consist of?
Them: A 2" bowl of iceberg lettuce with a thin slice of cucumber.
Me: ...
Them: You can order two.
Me: ...
Them: ...

I guess people try to be helpful even when they don't have much to offer.

Connected peeve: I've been to many restaurants these days that have huge menus but don't even have vegetarian salads. They have salads but they're all meatful.

Tangential peeve: Have you noticed how everything imaginable falls under the term "salad" these days?

Nopeevewhatsoever:
Met up with a pal from high school for dinner the other night. Had a wonderful meal at Mr. Chan's in Pikesville, Maryland. They have two pages of vegan dishes on their regular menu. WAY COOL! And very tasty. Didn't have to cut a thing!! Great flavors. Kudos to pal, Amy, for bringing us to this delight!