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I'm a meat eater but in my experience vegetarian or vegan good that merely tries to imitate meat dishes always sucks, but cuisine built around the ingredients available can be amazing. For example, i think south Indian vegetarian food is good enough that if I had it every day I wouldn't mind not eating meat.

If you use enough "umami bombs" in cooking then you can make very savory veg* dishes. My faves are soy sauce and yeast extract and I'm also not above using MSG.

Tbh I think meat is an addiction. Even if veg meals satisfy me and meet my caloric needs I still crave it!

I agree, Indian food is the one that doesn't make me miss meat.

> My faves are soy sauce and yeast extract and I'm also not above using MSG

If you're putting yeast extract in, you are absolutely not above using MSG, as that's pretty much what makes yeast extract so tasty (and used in many processed foods so they don't have to say that they added MSG to their product).

As an aside - I bought a big ole bag of MSG a while back, and it's great to toss into sautéed vegetables.

Ah yea, i said yeast extract instead of nutritional yeast: that stuff is amazing! Especially on popcorn

Even if veg meals satisfy me and meet my caloric needs I still crave it!

Meat has more than calories - you might be missing the other components in your vegetarian meals.

If you're ever in NYC, let me know. I'll take you on a tour of vegan cuisine that will knock your socks off.

I'm in Poland--otherwise I'd love to, but I'm not saying it's not good, just that I don't like it.

I can take you to some BBQ place that will take _your_ socks off, too. You know, to each his own :-)

If your only understanding of imitation meat is "those burgers you buy at the grocery store," then my point is that there is a whole world of imitation meat you haven't experienced. I think you're pre-maturely judging a whole genre of food.

I've been to good vegetarian restaurants around the world, they're fine but I still like meat better. Not every day, but I like to have a choice.

> If your only understanding of imitation meat is "those burgers you buy at the grocery store,"

If I was a vegetarian I would definitely end up buying stuff from the grocery store, not going to different really good restaurants every day.

Care to share a list of some recommended places?

I'd be happy to.

http://www.hangawirestaurant.com/

http://candle79.com/

http://www.motherofpearlnyc.com/

http://www.matthewkenneycuisine.com/double-zero

http://www.thepennsy.nyc/the-cinnamon-snail/

http://beyondsushinyc.com/

http://www.blossomnyc.com/

http://www.buddha-bodai.com/menu.html

https://www.erinmckennasbakery.com/

http://www.franchia.com/

we only eat meat because most of us haven't seen how animals are kept, what they're fed, and how they're slaughtered

This is often said, but I doubt it very much. I think it should be shown to everyone (including in school), and it would probably lead to some positive changes, but I doubt it would significantly reduce the number of meat eaters. We can look at the people working in the industry: are they all morally deficient or desperate for work? Not as far as I know.

Whenever I watch documentaries about the food industry, I find myself unable to eat meat for at least 10 days.

I bet that if we were reminded somehow (like for cigarettes), lots of people will eat a lot less meat.

>>> As for how I'd feel eating lab meat, we only eat meat because most of us haven't seen how animals are kept, what they're fed, and how they're slaughtered ...

Children in the developed world might not know but you only have to go as far as their grands parents to find out. They typically had a farm and had to kill the animals themselves.

Factory farming today is a pretty far cry from grandpa's small family farm.