Rather than continue sparring with congressional staffers who keep clamoring for vegetarian-friendly dining options, Restaurant Associates is following the lead of crafty food lobbyists and is simply rebranding its output accordingly.

It’s that type of bold, outside-the-box thinking that enabled Restaurant Associates to brazenly slap an “I’m a vegetarian item” tag on a serving tray stacked with lemon baked cod.

Either that or everyone in the company has simply lost their minds.

Attempting to pawn off seafood as a vegetable might be a great way to one-up the hucksters at the frozen food lobby — Have you eaten your pizzegetables today? — but it does not inspire great confidence among diet-conscious clients.

Particularly when it’s part of a mind-blowing pattern.

The same HOH tipster who spotted the miscategorized cod in the Longworth cafeteria on Dec. 13 said the same wildly false advertising has previously been used to peddle chicken-based dishes and a mashed potato offering bolstered by bacon.

Members of the Congressional Vegetarian Staff Association have been battling it out with the lunch lines operator for quite some time now, originally locking horns with the corporate caterer about an incredibly short-lived “Meatless Monday” program. The group has since moved on to hosting its own semi-regular policy events and cooking demos around the Capitol.

Restaurant Associates did not respond to multiple email inquiries seeking guidance as to how a fish dish could possibly qualify as vegetarian fare. Perhaps the group is too busy contemplating whether to market roasted bone marrow-topped rib eyes as “vegan” or “macrobiotic.”