Famous Death Row Last Meals
Food Fights: The Biggest Culinary Scandals Of 2011
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| Beware! Allergens abound at most eateries. Photo: Dan4th/ Flickr |
Hanna Raskin's first waitressing job was at a small Greek diner in Michigan. In the 15 years since, she's worked at a chop suey joint in Mississippi, an exclusive Arizonan country club, a vegetarian eatery and an Irish pub. She currently picks up odd shifts at a seafood eatery in the North Carolina mountains, where she cracks crab legs for helpless tourists. This is the second in a series of posts.
My mother, who has a severe shellfish allergy, hasn't tasted seafood since the Eisenhower administration. Since she hasn't a clue whether crustaceans are salty, sweet or sour, she suspects they're lurking everywhere on the menu: "Now, does this cheesecake have any shellfish?" she'll ask her very patient server.
As a kid, I cringed at my mom's fastidiousness. Because really, who would put shrimp in granola? But with chefs now fusing ingredients at a breakneck pace and food allergies multiplying at an unprecedented rate, my mother isn't the only one asking. Twelve million Americans suffer from food allergies, and they're demanding that restaurants accommodate them.
As a server at a seafood restaurant, it sometimes seems like every one of those unlucky eaters has sat at one of my tables. I still can't understand why someone who can't stomach wheat or fish would choose to dine at a place renowned for its lobster mac and cheese.
Yes, we can bring you carrots instead of the complimentary smoked trout dip and crackers. And, yes, we can make sure contaminated tongs don't touch your green salad. But according to the comprehensive Welcoming Guests with Food Allergies program issued by the Food Allergies and Anaphylaxis Network, servers should do still more to alleviate the risks of restaurant dining.
To be fair, FAAN recognizes that guests should take steps to protect themselves, citing stories of allergy sufferers who carry cards detailing their needs and carefully review a restaurant's menu before visiting. But with half of food allergy fatalities attributable to restaurants, the industry has taken on much of the burden of shielding their customers from potentially deadly soy, fish and nuts.
For servers, that means standing sentry at the food window to make sure no one inadvertently dusts their customer's plate with powdered peanuts, and then carrying the dish out on a freshly scrubbed tray to avoid any contact with allergens. It's a time-consuming task that can feel more like nursing than serving -- and one that often goes unacknowledged when it comes time to leave a tip.
Servers are naturally sympathetic to the plight of allergy sufferers: As professional foodies, they can well appreciate the hardship of having to strike an entire food group from their diets. But how many special requests should servers be expected to fulfill? Is there a point at which certain diners, cursed with gluten intolerance and difficult milk, egg and soy allergies, should consider staying home to eat?
| Yes | |
|---|---|
| No | |
| Depends (tell us more in comments) |
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7-01-2009 @4:18PM Sarah said... As someone with a host of food allergies that makes it almost impossible to dine out anywhere safely (exception being sushi places that serve soy sauce separate) it was a real joy to have last year's Mother's Day meal served to me with so much care and attention I almost cried. I wasn't even the mom there, but since I had phoned and emailed ahead and talked personally to the chef working that day previous everyone knew exactly what would and wouldn't be able to grace my plate. Since it was busy I didn't get to thank the chef personally but I did write and mail a thank you card for their efforts, as I'm sure that some diners with food "dislikes" and not allergies have also made exacting demands on their efforts - which can lead to lazy efforts.
The key is to be informed as a chef, a server AND a patron... if you know you have allergies or intolerances, phone ahead if possible or speak to the Maitre D or your waiter as soon as you can. Don't wait until the menus are cleared away to say "oh and by the way...".
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7-01-2009 @4:28PM Alisa said... This is a really hard one because folks with food allergies have to
be very careful and it seems like there are more and more folks with serious food allergies. I think it is of the utmost importance that chefs in
restaurants make sure that the wait staff is at least educated on the
major allergens - wheat, dairy, soy, shellfish & nuts. And to have a
variety of offerings so that people (including people who choose to
abstain from certain food groups - vegan, vegetarian, etc) can choose
something off the menu. I am making the assumption here that the chef knows all the ingredients in a certain dish so even when the less well known allergy questions come that chefs can answer the question "what is in this dish".
But i agree there has to be a line - like if someone with a shellfish
allergy goes to a seafood restaurant it's almost sort of that person's
fault. I know that sounds horrible and harsh but seriously, i am sure there are other restaurants with less ways to tempt an allergic response.
And i have tons of friends with interesting food allergies, including
wheat, gluten, dairy, shellfish and one who is allergic to all kinds
of peppers. And i love to eat out with them but we always make sure
we choose a restaurant that has lots of choices.... I wouldn't
take my friend with the gluten allergy to a pizza joint, etc etc.
I guess i think both sides need to educate themselves, be realistic
about choices and servers should be able to pop back and ask the chef
if they aren't sure whether a dish contains a certain allergen. Additionally I agree that patrons need to be up front about allergies and be well educated enough about the allergy to ask the right questions to the servers (sometimes 'sauce' ingredients are overlooked, etc)
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7-01-2009 @4:45PM FullGTilt said... Having researched the topic of food allergies for my own blog, I feel the responsibility is split ~ 65% patron, 35% establishment. Given the recent and significant increase in food allergies over the last decade, it seems to be a trend that is either going to continue or level off at a higher level than in the past. However, both sides need to ask themselves: What is a reasonable accommodation?
Any individual with food allergies needs to be prepared to advocate for themselves: ask the right questions, to numerous people, repeatedly if necessary. While vacationing in Portland earlier this year, I dined with a friend who has several severe food allergies. We called the restaurant ahead of time to ask the hostess a few questions. When she couldn't answer them to our satisfaction we were passed directly to the chef. We reminded our server when we arrived later that evening that a member of our party had food allergies to x,y and z. The process was more involved than making a simple reservation, but it assured piece of mind for all involved.
All hospitality folks, from hotel staff to servers, will experience instances where they may be inconvenienced at the expense of a guest request. That's part of the game. Play it, or leave. All a restaurant can do is be aware that they will at some point be asked to accommodate certain food allergies, and proactively think of ways to make that process easier for all concerned. It makes for good service, and repeat clientele.
By contrast, if a patron walks into a seafood restaurant with a shellfish allergy and demands to be accommodated, it's fair to say that they are being unreasonable.
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7-01-2009 @4:52PM FullGTilt said... @Alisa -- looks like we had the same train of thought! Didn't see your comment until mine had posted. :)
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7-01-2009 @5:12PM sacajawea610 said... Simply: I think we need easy access to entree ingredients...
and then leave it to the patron to decide what they want to eat.
No need to cater to all the allergies, tho, I must say, I have been to Pizzeria Uno a lot more often now that I know I have to be gluten free. they have a GF menu, so I suggest Unos when I'm with a group now, knowing I'm good and there's something for everyone.
I USED to _avoid_ Unos before I understood my food allergies... now I'm a regular.
There's a clam shack that I go to now that they (Woodmans of Essex) published that their batter is GF, I used to go to a diff clam shack (and paid the consequences). And I bring people with me when I go there.
Seems like good business to have easily accessible ingredient lists.
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7-01-2009 @5:37PM Nicole said... I can't digest gluten, and so far, I've found most places reasonably accommodating. I will always look at ingredient lists *first*, if they are available. If you're so sensitive to gluten that you can't handle *any* cross contamination, then you probably shouldn't eat out.
The only time I've been incapacitated from eating gluten (so far), I did it to myself by eating a veggie pot pie from the freezer that I failed to label as GF or not.
If you have food allergies, there's a certain risk in eating out. If you're intensely allergic, I hope you carry an epi pen.
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7-01-2009 @5:34PM christopher said... It is 100% the responsibility of the dinner to ensure the kitchen is aware of their allergy and be prepared for the worst (epi generally). Restaurants should do their very best to ensure diners safety but it is in no way the restaurants duty (short of recklessness, indifference, negligence...). That may seem a hard line but its my opinion. With a number of friends food allergies to back it up you should expect the worst if you go to a joint that specializes in your allergy. Most places are very accommodating but allergy or not your health is your responsibility.
I do think its interesting that the less you pay for your meal the more requests you can make. Really fancy places (read: expensive) will only consider food allergies for changing a dish.
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7-01-2009 @5:42PM Tracy said... I agree with Sarah. As someone with a severe peanut allergy, I am used to finding little to no accommodation at restaurants - and when I do receive even the smallest gesture, it nearly brings me to tears. I also agree that the best thing to do is to phone ahead of time, and then double-check once you get there (I often have experiences where I'm told over the phone, "We only use olive oil!" When I get there, however, it's "No, we've never used anything but peanut oil!"). I agree with sacajawea610 that readily available ingredient lists would help to solve this problem. I can eat dessert essentially nowhere, because of the fact that the desserts are brought in from places where they are processed with peanuts, whether the dessert itself contains peanuts or not. I'd like to avoid going to a restaurant only to have to get up and leave once I find things like this out - I don't want to waste the server's time, or mine.
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7-01-2009 @5:59PM Sarah said... Re: Shellfish allergic patrons dining at seafood restos - as much as those of us with specific allergies may wish it so, we are not always able to be the ones dictating where meals are being held out. I agree that if I was to ask my fellow diners if they wanted to go to a fondue house or a fast food joint when I know I have an oil and fat intolerance as well as a dairy allergy, then it's irresponsible of me. But what about wedding meals, birthdays, or business lunches? I'm not going to lose out on half my life because a meal is being held somewhere that's not 100% safe for me. That's where communication between restaurant/patron is important. Choosing not to put yourself in a dangerous position like that is a luxury those of us with allergies enjoy rarely!
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7-06-2009 @2:44PM AmandaonMaui said... I don't believe that all restaurants should accomodate to people with food allergies. I have celiac disease, so I don't eat gluten, and dining out is very difficult. However, I don't think restaurants should have to pay for the extra equipment, and training, necessary to make their restaurants more allergen friendly.
I do believe restaurants should list their ingredients on the menu, or on a special menu which they could easily bring to a customer if asked, to help someone make a decision about a particular meal on the menu.
I think it's all up to capitalism too. Restaurants who want to compete and supply a service to customers that not everyone offers. Restaurants in the chain along with Outback and Chilis are offering gluten free meals to customers, and so people who are gluten free go to those restaurants feeling a lot safer than if they went to another restaurant that isn't known for meeting their needs.
So, in summary, that's a "No, but put the ingredients where they are readily available to the customer, and let them duke it out for the money. It's capitalism baby!"
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7-02-2009 @10:37AM Anne Hjortshoj said... I think my issue with this post is that yes, many folks DO stay home instead of going to restaurants. And, you know, it's fine to not be able to eat at every restaurant out there. But surely, given the number of people (increasing all the time, btw) with food allergies in this country, there should be a means of making sure that people with allergies have more than a few restaurants available to them?
Staying home should not be the only or the "best" option for people with allergies. So much social and business interaction in our culture happens over a shared meal, after all. It seems a bit unfair (and a lost business opportunity for restaurants!) to assume that these people should "just stay home."
As a side note, people who make demands on servers should always tip outrageously well, in my opinion. I sure try to.
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7-02-2009 @12:20PM Gobo said... I think a lot of restaurants are lazy about it simply because a huge number of people claiming to have "allergies" are just very, very picky eaters, and chefs have picked up on that. I have many friends who'll claim to be allergic to seafood to make sure they aren't served any, but they'll privately admit that they just don't like fish very much, for example. Picky eaters spoil things for everyone.
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7-02-2009 @12:48PM dakiwiboid said... If something's a simple substitution, say in a topping, side item or add-in, and the restaurant makes each item one at a time, I think that customers should be accommodated. I've been to restaurants where I could not find anything on the menu that would not give me a migraine but a plain green salad. Do you folks have to put nuts and cheese in EVERYTHING?
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7-03-2009 @4:07PM Lesliepbg said... It's getting easier for my 17y.o. to order from certain restaurants now that chefs are getting better trained. Not being able to eat out at all is a real detriment to life--travel, relationships, just being able to go out without carrying "emergency" meals means a lot. We're big fans of Disney, b/c they really make efforts to accomodate his needs (he's Milk, Egg, Nut, Peanut allergic--anaphylaxis to all those items). The chef will come out and personally go over the menu with him and so far he's had amazing dinners with foods we never would have though he could order. Some of the real problems is often cross contamination--hamburgers cooked on grills that have had cheese or butter on them for example. It takes a lot to "get it right", but the mistakes can be very costly.
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7-03-2009 @1:31AM sue325 said... My thoughts are this. I think Anne Hjortshoj said that dining in for people with allergies shouldn't be the only option, but I would have to say that it is the safest. Even with restaurants that are the most accomodating - giving out ingredients lists, making sure to use sanitized tongs and pans, etc. - there's always a risk of cross contamination.
For example, the grill at my last job would only be thoroughly cleaned once, at night, after closing, because it would fill the kitchen with smoke, and took a half an hour. In a kitchen with similar equipment used a marinade with peanut oil, and then grilled it, even if you cooked a non-marinated piece of meat on the grill afterwards, it could still be contaminated, and NO kitchen is going to stop what they're doing for 1/2 an hour to ensure that no peanut product touched the meat.
There's only SO much a restaurant can and will do. There are NO guarantees that your food hasn't been contaminated. Your best bet as a patron with allergies would be to be prepared (carry your epi pen or other medications if you need them) ask well in advance if the food you are eating contains your allergens. If it's severe enough, for your own saftey, stay home.
I have a friend who basically can't even be within a few feet of a nut product because if he breathes the oils in, he suffers a severe allergic reaction. He doesn't eat out for his own safety. He feels that his home is the only place he can safely control everything that he eats.
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7-03-2009 @3:35PM ShrimpKills said... I have a moderate-severity allergy to crustaceans, defined as "I'm gonna be miserable at the least, my throat will swell and my breathing become labored if it's worse"; cross-contaminated frying oil is enough to make me sick, so, for example, if someplace serves fried shrimp, I don't eat the fries or the onion rings. (Even if they isolate shellfish in the fry vats, the filtration devices usually cross-contaminate the oil).
I'm responsible for what goes in my mouth, but restaurants need to disclose the "big five" allergens on request (wheat, eggs, dairy, nuts, shellfish).
My biggest pet peeve, which has landed me in the ER several times, is the use of flavor enhancers that have nothing to do with the menu description, but could kill me. An excellent example of this: I had a bowl of "roasted corn and sweet potato chowder" at a Phoenix-area restaurant. There was a fairly exhaustive list of ingredients in the description, and given that the restaurant was Southwestern-themed, not seafoody at all, I ordered the chowder without asking about hidden shellfish ingredients. Turns out, they used a commonly-available shrimp/crab/lobster-blend "base" to spike the flavor. The server didn't know about the ingredient had I asked, and the "chef's" comment was "All chowder has shellfish in it" (umm, really?). I've found this stuff, which is admittedly delicious, in sauces, soups and salad dressings where you utterly would not expect it. I think it's reasonable that if I order grilled chicken, and there's not grilled shrimp on the menu, that barring a description of the sauce as "rich seafood veloute", I should be safe eating it. Sadly, that's just not the case. I'll risk that someone has ordered grilled shrimp off-menu, but spiking "clean" dishes with unexpected crustacea is just kind of low, IMHO.
I've given up eating Thai food - the combination of language barrier and appallingly poor cross-contamination controls means that essentially every dish is a landmine. Even with cards written by a native speaker that say "please don't serve me anything with lobster, shrimp, crab or crayfish, or anything made from them", I've had shrimp paste and shrimp stock frequently enough that I just gave up.
Finally, I agree, picky eaters have made everything an "allergy" - like, say, onions, which, most of the time, are a dislike, not an IgE-mediated allergy that can kill you. I'd be sick to death of being asked to accommodate picky eaters, too.
So, here's what I propose:
1) Make sure there are reasonable menu cues that an item contains any of the "big 5" allergens;
2) Educate servers about where those 5 are found (sauce, side dish, main protein, etc) and what can be done to eliminate them (substitute, hold, suffer through);
3) Rigorously employ industry-standard HACCP practices to avoid cross-contamination;
4) Stop blaming the victim - if I order something that, by tradition, wouldn't contain shellfish and there's no menu notation, I shouldn't have to ask the server if there's shrimp in it (see also, the cheesecake) and it shouldn't be like playing Russian Roulette with a pistol.
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7-05-2009 @8:28AM Gobo said... ShrimpKills, that's exactly the kind of extremism that baffles me a bit. If your allergy is, as you say, something that causes a bit of discomfort and swelling at absolute worst, then a bit of seafood flavor enhancer as part of a large recipe is NOT going to "kill you". Yes, with the rise of allergies, it's important for chefs to let servers know what's in the food. But a dash of Thai fish sauce in a curry is not going to kill you. It's simply not.
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7-07-2009 @1:36PM Mel said... Always ask! Always tell your server (who then should tell the chef and make a note on your ticket) about any allergies, regardless of whether there seems to be allergens or not. Check the menu before ordering, every time.
I've had people order dishes (say, calamari) that were safe a year ago, changed entirely, and then complain that there were nuts in them. Yes, I know there are nuts in there; yes, it says so on the menu. Yes, you should not ordered it and/or ordered it without nuts. Yes, you should have told me there were allergies. Thank you.
At the restaurant I'm at, our kitchen is extremely accommodating for patrons with allergies. Our sous chef or exec. chef will go out and talk to tables with multiple allergies, or anyone who needs help figuring out what they can eat.
There are two allergy scenarios that stick with me now a days. One was when I convinced the chef to make a special batch of onion rings in the fryer that was only used for cheese. She said it had been years since she'd been able to have them, because most places (our other fryer included) fry seafood in their oil. The other was a gluten-free vegetarian couple who enjoyed a three-course meal topped off by cheesecake (in house, doesn't have a crust).
However, there is always the risk of cross contamination. Diners should acknowledge that, and be prepared just in case. Or ask questions like, 'is your grill also used for seafood.' Make your decisions accordingly.
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7-07-2009 @3:54PM Laura said... I, too, am allergic to shellfish. I don't think that every restaurant on earth should bend over backward to accommodate my allergy, but I am sad that I have to avoid many restaurants that don't practice good food safety (for example, using the same fryer oil for shrimp, fish, and french fries). If I order a dish with no shellfish in it, I expect to be able to eat it without going to the hospital. I already avoid seafood restaurants and Thai restaurants (shrimp paste is insidious!), but I've had bad reactions after eating chicken tempura and other seemingly 'safe' foods. At this point I look for restaurants that don't serve any shellfish at all (vegetarian Indian places are my friend), or just get a salad. But it's a bummer to have to stay home when a friend wants to have her birthday dinner at an unsafe eatery. An event planned for 20+ people shouldn't have to revolve around me and my dietary needs, but if restaurants had better practices about ingredients lists and cross-contamination, I wouldn't have to miss out on so many social events.
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9-17-2009 @6:55PM xxx said... wow, imagine that, another post including a comment about a TIP
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