Why European Restaurants Are Much More Vigilant About Food Allergies
"During a visit to London last month, I was pretty excited to try the slow-cooked
curries at Masala Zone. Almost as soon as I sat down, however, the manager told me he didn't want my business."
"As is fairly routine in London restaurants, he asked if anyone at the table had any food allergies. As it happens, I'm allergic to peanuts. He explained that the Indian restaurant grinds peanuts into various sauces and can't guarantee that traces won't show up in any dish on the menu. He handed me a small card stating that it's Masala Zone's policy not to serve people with peanut allergies. "We do not operate in a surgical environment," the card states."
"It's unusual — but not unique — for a London restaurant to turn away diners who have food allergies. But almost every type of restaurant there asks patrons about allergies. Restaurants in the United Kingdom are generally far more vigilant, in this regard, than restaurants in the United States."
"'It doesn't cost you anything to ask about allergies,' says Joseph Johnson, a waiter at Kym's, a high-end Chinese restaurant in London's financial district."