Food Allergy Resources

Speak to the Restaurant Manager About Food Allergies Before Your Visit

December, 2005

By Linda Marienhoff Coss

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Before visiting a restaurant, call first and talk to the manager or the chef. Explain your child's food allergies. Emphasize that the problem can be fatal. Ask what menu items, if any, may be safe. Discuss the risk of cross-contamination between the theoretically "safe" menu items and the unsafe menu items. Only take your child to the restaurant if you feel confident that his needs will be met. Then, once you arrive at the restaurant, speak to the manager and/or chef and review all of the ingredients and procedures again. Do not hold this discussion with the wait person, as the wait staff is probably not qualified to answer your questions.

Copyright (c) 2004, Linda Marienhoff Coss, all rights reserved.

Excerpted with permission from "How to Manage Your Child's Life-Threatening Food Allergies: Practical Tips for Everyday Life" by Linda Marienhoff Coss.
More information about this book can be found in the KFA Allergy Book Shop.

Reviewed by KFA Medical Advisory Team August 2005

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Page last updated 7/29/2012

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