The culture war slop being pumped out against Muslims of late is truly something and looks like Maajid Nawaz being back on the scene is the cherry on top lol

Hey guys, hope you’re all doing well!
I’m a bit confused about something and wanted to ask how other Muslims living in the UK go about this.
I moved to the UK around 10 months ago, and we’re still figuring out how to navigate halal food here. I also feel like I might have some underlying OCD tendencies, which tend to surface around things like this, and it’s honestly becoming quite stressful.
I understand that meat needs to be halal, and when buying packaged food from supermarkets, I usually check the ingredients to make sure there’s nothing unsuitable, like alcohol or anything else I should be avoiding. But where do you draw the line with everything else?
For example, what about coffee? Do you need to check whether your coffee is halal, or is regular coffee from coffee shops generally fine? I see my Muslim colleagues buying all sorts of coffees without seeming to worry about it, so I’m wondering if I’m overthinking things.
Then there are bakery items like croissants, doughnuts and muffins. Do you ask every time whether they’re suitable for vegetarians, or do you just buy them? We went to Greggs recently and wanted to get a doughnut. We asked if it was suitable for vegetarians, but the cashier said he didn’t know, so we ended up not buying anything. How are you supposed to verify every single bakery item you buy?
Another thing I get confused about is spirit vinegar. If I’m buying something like a vegetable lasagne or a sauce and there’s no ingredient list available, am I supposed to ask whether it contains spirit vinegar? What do you generally do in these situations?
The same thing happened with ice cream. We were at a fair and wanted to get ice cream from one of the stalls. I asked if it was suitable for vegetarians, but the guy seemed to confuse vegetarian and vegan. In the end, he gave us a vegan option that honestly tasted awful!
I see other Muslims buying these things without seeming to worry too much, and I’m not sure if I’m being unnecessarily cautious or if there are things I should actually be checking.
I don’t want to compromise on eating halal, obviously, but I also don’t want every trip out to turn into an investigation where I’m constantly checking ingredients and questioning people. It’s getting to the point where eating out feels stressful rather than enjoyable.
So, for Muslims living in the UK specifically, what’s your general rule of thumb? What do you check, what do you avoid, and what do you consider okay without needing to investigate further?
I’d really appreciate hearing how you approach this in everyday life!