Monday, October 10, 2011

Would you like a side order of religion with that?


If you're vegan, you've probably heard of Loving Hut.If you're not, you probably haven't--or at least it doesn't ring a bell.
Loving Hut is a chain of restaurants affiliated with a group I can only conclude is a cult. I first run into this group in the food section of the Green Living Show in Toronto, alomst 4 years ago. The group had a booth and proudly advertised that their food was vegan. The name of their venue was hard to find--I think they were promoting a store in the suburbs--but I couldn't help noticing signs for the Supreme Master. Sketchy...
And then I heard more about Loving Hut restaurants. Apparently they are opened by Supreme Master's devotees, and they feature all-vegan food. What a conundrum--on the one hand: Food I can eat! I can anything there! ZOMG!! But on the other hand: is any of my money going to this woman who had the cojones to call herself Supreme Master? And if it does, does it matter, anymore than when I buy vegan food from giant international food companies, or from restaurants that also sell meat, or any of the thousand other food choices I make every day?
It's a tough call. The photo shown is from a restaurant called Green Earth Vegetarian Cuisine in Toront's east end. I kindof love it. The dish pictured is "Orange Chicken", and I think I've ordered it all three times I've been there. But there is a TV screen showing Supreme Master Television (seriously!) and the display area has some pamphlets and other materials as well. I don't think it really makes a difference whether I suport this business or not, but going there makes me uncomfortable. Until I get my Orange Chick'n, that is.

4 comments:

  1. Well said. I've heard of Loving Hut, but have never been to one. I believe there is one in Boston, about 40 miles from me.

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  2. I have the same issues with Loving Hut, I just don't want to give money to that crazy cult lady even if the food's vegan so I've never been to one. That might be different if I was in a country or city without many vegan options but I'd always rather seek out a small business that support any chain.

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  3. OMG, I get such a kick out of Supreme Master TV -- it is a real hoot! They have a vegan cooking show on there and I have learned so many world recipes.

    I don't know what the deal is with the Supreme Master-thing, but hey, she's vegan. That's good for something in my book. ;p

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  4. It's definitely creepy, but I guess at least their cult promotes delicious vegan food ;). There's that other chain of restaurants Soul Vegetarian that thumps religion with their collard greens as well.

    As an atheist myself, I get suspicious anytime I see someone talking about god or spirituality in a food blog. I've definitely unsubscribed from several RSS and twitter feeds. Lots of raw foodies seem to be into it for some reason.

    Given the choice of giving my money to the Supreme Master or the Pope, I'd choose the one that doesn't protect child molesters 100% of the time.

    Maybe I'm naive, but I feel that most people that have chosen vegetarian or vegan lifestyles should be smart enough to resist any religious brainwashing attempts :)

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