Dear Eric: I’m friends with a pair of sisters, but closer with one than the other. Recently I invited them to a weekend getaway, where we were to be treated to a private chef’s dinner. Less Close Sister immediately announced that she’s “avoiding gluten,” which obviously complicated our menu. On the drive up, she recounted her “cheat night” with plenty of gluten the evening before, and happily consumed a (gluten-containing) lunch. I know there’s no right way to say, “your dietary needs seem to only pop up when you can be an inconvenience/pain in the butt,” but I’m really soured on traveling with her again, although I like her. Suggestions?
– Gluten-tolerant
Dear Gluten-tolerant: The easiest solution is just not to have a private chef’s dinner, or, to let the chef figure out what to cook to meet everyone’s dietary needs. Isn’t that the chef’s job anyway?
It’s quite a leap to go from putting together a private dinner to swearing off traveling with this person again. Sometimes, when our opinions about people change, any little thing they do can become a point of annoyance. I wonder if that might be happening here. Something to consider.
Send questions to R. Eric Thomas at eric@askingeric.com or P.O. Box 22474, Philadelphia, PA 19110. Follow him on Instagram and sign up for his weekly newsletter at rericthomas.com.
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