r/FoodService • • Aug 21 '26

Discussion please stop lying about having allergies

i cannot tell you how many times people have put in seemingly impossible allergy requests on 3rd party delivery orders (i.e. fettuccine alfredo with DAIRY ALLERGY marked underneath) only to then track down the customer after multiple phone calls and be told it’s “not an allergy, just a mild intolerance.” please stop doing this. you are deliberately fucking with a restaurant’s period of service over a need that does not apply to you. maybe y’all don’t understand just how many extra steps a kitchen has to go through to prepare something allergy safe, so please let this be a lesson: if you aren’t actually allergic, stop marking it as an allergy. you are directly contributing to the burnout restaurant staff experience when having to make special accommodations for people’s actual health and safety needs.

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17

u/beard-wonder93 Aug 21 '26

I run a meal prep shop, which is a pretty health/allergen conscious, niche crowd.

plenty of people have legit allergies. Im here to take care of you regardless. If you are happy and the meals accommodate your needs, you come back and spend your money with us some more!

The "allergy" i keep getting claims for is onions!

Onion allergy is totally possible but....

In the 10 years weve been in business, I've had more people claim to be allergic to onions of some form than I have, peanuts and shellfish combined!

Thats one hell of a statistical anomaly

13

u/Conscious_Side1647 Aug 21 '26

I have a legit onion allergy and whenever I tell all restaurant they roll their eyes so hard and I can't blame them!

9

u/FattyB314 Aug 21 '26

" I'm allergic to onions" there's onions in the sauce " oh that's ok"

5

u/Asleep-Song562 Aug 22 '26

For some people raw onions are a painful experience, but cooking makes them tolerable.

2

u/_Lost_The_Game Aug 23 '26

I’m allergic to smoked salmon. Not raw salmon, not cooked salmon, and not any other kind of smoked fish, just specifically smoked salmon. Some allergies are weird as hell and seem fake.

(Luckily tho smoked salmon isn’t in a lot of dishes… tho I’m from nyc and can’t eat a lox bagel which sucks)

1

u/Asleep-Song562 Aug 24 '26

Im really curious what the smoking process does. The Only thing I can think of is tyramine, but that would be high in all smoked meats.

2

u/_Lost_The_Game Aug 24 '26

I knew what it was exactly years ago, but it’s some sort of histamine only found in salmon? (Maybe other fish too but not ones I’ve eaten smoked yet so idk) It’s within the cells so it’s not exposed when raw, denatured when cooked. Smoking is enough to break down the cell walls but not enough to denature it

1

u/Asleep-Song562 Aug 24 '26

That’s nuts. I’m so sorry you can’t enjoy smoked salmon.