Section 5: Dining With Food Allergies
Whether at a 5 star restaurant or an all you can eat buffet, food allergies will pose risks that you probably never thought about before your diagnosis. Each kind of restaurant can pose a different threat and it is important to understand the risks associated and how to minimize them.
If you have a dairy/milk allergy, be sure to always refer to it as a "milk" allergy when speaking to food handlers. It may sound counter intuitive since you aren't just allergic to milk - but all dairy products. Milk is an ingredient in sour cream, yogurt, cheese, ice cream and butter. On food labels for those or any other milk containing food the label will say "contains milk". No label ever says "contains dairy". So, if your food handlers and preparers are looking at labels to check to see if a food is safe for you - you want them to be looking for "milk". Also, some people mistakenly think eggs are dairy because they are commonly found in that section of the grocery store, even though eggs come from chickens.
You may never have considered bringing your own food to a restaurant meal with other people who are eating at the restaurant. If your food allergies are complicated, the restaurant will usually appreciate that and go out of their way to make you comfortable. And, it removes all of the stress around ordering, explaining an allergy and hoping that your meal has been prepared safely. In 5 years of bringing food into restaurants, we have only have one that objected (and a vegetarian restaurant that want to make sure that we didn't bring in meat - which we didn't.) Our personal rule is that we tip as if the person who brought their own food ate something of the same value as everyone else. This is especially important if you are dining with just one other person.
Fast Food Chains
Fast food restaurants prepare foods in large quantities every day. Because some of the food is pre-prepared - often shipped frozen, they can't remove an ingredient that was put in the food during pre-preparation - such as fries soaked in milk, frozen and then shipped to the outlet that cooks them. It is also difficult to ensure that no cross-contamination happens in their kitchen since some steps of the final cooking and assembly process may take place before a customer even orders. Also remember that ingredients can change at fast food restaurants - just as they can at a fresh food restaurant. So, if you think that something is always safe to eat at a specific restaurant, always double check by asking if it contains your allergens. Lastly, consider the trustworthiness of the employees at the restaurant. We know a college student who can't eat a top 8 allergen. She goes to a college that has food courts of fast food restaurants instead of dining halls. She says she would never eat at one because the workers are young, part-time employees (mostly students) and she doesn't trust them to thoroughly check for ingredients added during the manufacturing process that took place before the food reached the restaurant.
Made to Order - Semi-Fast Food Restaurants
These restaurants use assembly line style of food production. With open bins of condiments for sandwiches, pizza and salad ingredients there is a high risk of cross contamination. If you are allergic to one ingredient in the bins, there is a risk that ingredient was dropped into the other bins. The risk is similar to a salad bar. Furthermore, if the employees don't change gloves between each order prep, the gloves could be contaminated. If they put sandwiches into panini presses or a pre-made thin crust pizza into a warmer, there is a risk your food would be exposed to the ingredients from someone else's food. Pizza parlors that sell gluten free pizzas put the gluten free pizzas into ovens where non-gluten free pizzas are made.
Buffets
Buffets have the same issue as fast food chains. The food is not made to order and therefore it is hard to get them to adapt a recipe to fit your needs. An added challenge of buffet restaurants is that all the food is out in the open. It is not uncommon people use one spoon to serve themselves one thing and then put the same spoon in something else or one food drips into the bin of a different food. Cross contamination runs rampant in buffet restaurants and it can be difficult to avoid. If you do decide to eat a a buffet restaurant, talk to the chef about what is safe for you to eat. You can even request that they give you your meal from a bin that has yet to go out on the buffet and therefore has not been cross contaminated with anything else. Some buffet restaurants also prepare made to order meals and might be able to make you something that is not being served on the buffet.
Sit Down Restaurants
Sit down restaurants are your best option as food is typically specially made. As soon as you are seated, notify the waitress of your food allergies and ask to talk to the chef. Explain to the chef your food allergies and about how you can't eat your allergens but you also can't have food prepared on the same surface as your allergens. You can even give the chef a chef card. Chef cards are cards that explain your food allergies and cross contamination. The idea is to list all of the ingredients you can not eat. For example, if you were allergic to milk, you would list cheese, butter, milk, cream, etc... that way they would have your allergies written down and it avoids the issue of the chef putting something in your food you are allergic to. If you would like a chef card, you can download one here. Another thing to keep in mind is the cuisine. It makes it easier to find safe foods if you go to a cuisine that does not favor your allergens. In other words, if you are allergic to peanuts, it is much easier to eat at an Italian restaurant than a Chinese restaurant. For more tips on allergy friendly restaurants, visit EZeatings and Allergy Eats, two websites that can help take the guesswork out of finding a safe place to eat. Lastly, if you have a great experience, show your gratitude by leaving a tip. It is nice to show appreciation for people who go out of their way to keep you safe.
If you have a dairy/milk allergy, be sure to always refer to it as a "milk" allergy when speaking to food handlers. It may sound counter intuitive since you aren't just allergic to milk - but all dairy products. Milk is an ingredient in sour cream, yogurt, cheese, ice cream and butter. On food labels for those or any other milk containing food the label will say "contains milk". No label ever says "contains dairy". So, if your food handlers and preparers are looking at labels to check to see if a food is safe for you - you want them to be looking for "milk". Also, some people mistakenly think eggs are dairy because they are commonly found in that section of the grocery store, even though eggs come from chickens.
You may never have considered bringing your own food to a restaurant meal with other people who are eating at the restaurant. If your food allergies are complicated, the restaurant will usually appreciate that and go out of their way to make you comfortable. And, it removes all of the stress around ordering, explaining an allergy and hoping that your meal has been prepared safely. In 5 years of bringing food into restaurants, we have only have one that objected (and a vegetarian restaurant that want to make sure that we didn't bring in meat - which we didn't.) Our personal rule is that we tip as if the person who brought their own food ate something of the same value as everyone else. This is especially important if you are dining with just one other person.
Fast Food Chains
Fast food restaurants prepare foods in large quantities every day. Because some of the food is pre-prepared - often shipped frozen, they can't remove an ingredient that was put in the food during pre-preparation - such as fries soaked in milk, frozen and then shipped to the outlet that cooks them. It is also difficult to ensure that no cross-contamination happens in their kitchen since some steps of the final cooking and assembly process may take place before a customer even orders. Also remember that ingredients can change at fast food restaurants - just as they can at a fresh food restaurant. So, if you think that something is always safe to eat at a specific restaurant, always double check by asking if it contains your allergens. Lastly, consider the trustworthiness of the employees at the restaurant. We know a college student who can't eat a top 8 allergen. She goes to a college that has food courts of fast food restaurants instead of dining halls. She says she would never eat at one because the workers are young, part-time employees (mostly students) and she doesn't trust them to thoroughly check for ingredients added during the manufacturing process that took place before the food reached the restaurant.
Made to Order - Semi-Fast Food Restaurants
These restaurants use assembly line style of food production. With open bins of condiments for sandwiches, pizza and salad ingredients there is a high risk of cross contamination. If you are allergic to one ingredient in the bins, there is a risk that ingredient was dropped into the other bins. The risk is similar to a salad bar. Furthermore, if the employees don't change gloves between each order prep, the gloves could be contaminated. If they put sandwiches into panini presses or a pre-made thin crust pizza into a warmer, there is a risk your food would be exposed to the ingredients from someone else's food. Pizza parlors that sell gluten free pizzas put the gluten free pizzas into ovens where non-gluten free pizzas are made.
Buffets
Buffets have the same issue as fast food chains. The food is not made to order and therefore it is hard to get them to adapt a recipe to fit your needs. An added challenge of buffet restaurants is that all the food is out in the open. It is not uncommon people use one spoon to serve themselves one thing and then put the same spoon in something else or one food drips into the bin of a different food. Cross contamination runs rampant in buffet restaurants and it can be difficult to avoid. If you do decide to eat a a buffet restaurant, talk to the chef about what is safe for you to eat. You can even request that they give you your meal from a bin that has yet to go out on the buffet and therefore has not been cross contaminated with anything else. Some buffet restaurants also prepare made to order meals and might be able to make you something that is not being served on the buffet.
Sit Down Restaurants
Sit down restaurants are your best option as food is typically specially made. As soon as you are seated, notify the waitress of your food allergies and ask to talk to the chef. Explain to the chef your food allergies and about how you can't eat your allergens but you also can't have food prepared on the same surface as your allergens. You can even give the chef a chef card. Chef cards are cards that explain your food allergies and cross contamination. The idea is to list all of the ingredients you can not eat. For example, if you were allergic to milk, you would list cheese, butter, milk, cream, etc... that way they would have your allergies written down and it avoids the issue of the chef putting something in your food you are allergic to. If you would like a chef card, you can download one here. Another thing to keep in mind is the cuisine. It makes it easier to find safe foods if you go to a cuisine that does not favor your allergens. In other words, if you are allergic to peanuts, it is much easier to eat at an Italian restaurant than a Chinese restaurant. For more tips on allergy friendly restaurants, visit EZeatings and Allergy Eats, two websites that can help take the guesswork out of finding a safe place to eat. Lastly, if you have a great experience, show your gratitude by leaving a tip. It is nice to show appreciation for people who go out of their way to keep you safe.