Multiple food allergies - is there life beyond Nandos?

[Teapig]

Help - I need to eat somewhere other than Nandos! I know it's trivial but DH and I enjoy eating out and we want it to be something we can enjoy together as a family.

Our 8 month DD has multiple food allergies (dairy, egg, nut, wheat and soy) and we avoid all those allergens. So far Nandos is the only place we've found with a comprehensive allergy menu AND food we can eat.

Gourmet Burger Kitchen, Giraffe, Pizza Express and Weatherspoon's all have food allergy menus but nothing we can actually eat as DD is allergic to so much.

Has anyone found anywhere that caters for so many allergies other than Nandos? We take our own food for DD but DH and I avoid anything she's allergic to for fear of accidentally exposing her plus it doesn't seem fair on her, even though she's blissfully unaware of the wonders of cheese etc [mouth watering emoticon].

Do you gave a Loungers cafe near you - www.thelounges.co.uk? They have separate vegan and gluten free menus, and dishes containing nuts are identified. We recently discovered them and the menu meets our needs (a committed carnivore, a gluten free vegan and omnivorous DD who is gluten and dairy free and on a soft diet!)

Teapig - I can't advise on locations to eat (we're in NZ and DD2 'only' has dairy and egg allergies). But two things occur to me - first of all, we find cafe-style/casual restaurants great for throwing together something for DD. Sometimes it's a bit of a mix and match, and other times I have to fall back on whatever I've brought with me, but it makes her feel a bit more included.

Secondly, at 8 months old, she has no clue that she is eating differently to you. DD1 adores icecream, cheese, scrambled egg and I'm certainly not going to exclude healthy fats and proteins from her diet due to DD2's allergies.

This is how we manage it ( which might give you some more freedom)

• I don't allow eggs in the house at all (DD reacts strongly to even a small amount and they are messy to clean up)
• dairy is quarantined, and kept separate in the fridge
• DD2 has her own biscuit box to avoid mix ups
• I am in charge of all the food and shopping, I pack DD2's snack before we go out. It's so that DH and I don't ever get caught out with "I thought you checked" etc
• we all eat DD2's allergens when we're out and about, we're just careful about it. We wash hands carefully. We make sure she is away from the allergen. When we're out we always have a pack of baby wipes on the table for wiping our hands etc.
• DH has a beard so is extra careful to wash well after eating egg etc ( we were caught out there a few times)
• there are times when I will eat allergen free when I'm out. Either because I want to share with DD, or if she has had a reaction recently and I want to be extra careful.

Your DD will have to get used to eating differently and being aware of other people having different food to her. I honestly wouldn't limit your diet so significantly unless you really have to (I breast fed DD for nearly 2 years and was dairy and egg free for most of that, but that was from necessity)

Good luck! I hope other posters have ideas about where to eat that will help you.

Try wholefood, veggie or vegan places. They are usually really good at knowing the ingredients of everything, and at having GF options.

Where are you in the country? People might be able to give you some specific non chain recommendations.

Have you tired Wagamamas? They are really good at keeping food separate, removing ingredients and staff are usually very helpful and knowledgable.

At that age, jacket potatoes with beans or tuna mayonnaise were our fall back option in National Trust tea rooms, pubs and cafes.

Penguin, we don't have a Lounges near us but they look good. I'll keep a note so we can track one down when we're off on our travels.
We're in Essex, close to London and we regularly go to Manchester but it's useful to know of anywhere good with allergies as we often take short breaks.

Misty, I hadn't thought of Wagamama. I'd read that Asian food can be tricky because nut oil tends to be used but I'll look into Wagamama.

Arkady, that's a good to tip I'll look up some vegan places.

vvviola, thanks for your advice it's really helpful. I know at some point we'll have to stop our policy of total avoidance. Although DD is completely unaware of the allergy thing we want to sort of live the life she will as much as poss IYKWIM so that we learn lessons we can pass on. It's early days and I'm sure our views will change in time, at the moment I still find it hard to accept that missing out on things will be a fact of life for her.
The other thing is her allergies are severe, she went into anaphylatic shock after an ounce of formula milk so we're pretty paranoid. I really appreciate the advice on how to have a bit more freedom, it helps to understand the logistics for when we're ready for a bit more freedom.

I would second Wagamama, in my experience they have been very helpful 're: allergies.

DS1 is nut and egg allergic too but is fine with Wagamama rice noodles.

We have befriended our local "gastro" pub who can do our DS2 a special fish with chips. And happy to let me take in his desserts. Might be worth finding somewhere like that with a helpful manager/ chef.

That helps as otherwise it was looking like Pizza Express and their spag bol forever for us. Or a cone of chips at the park cafe.

Pizza Hut do a gluten free base and if you have no cheese they will generally let you increase the toppings

Wagamama is great - they take allergies seriously. Bill's is good, Pret for a quick bite. We also find Strada helpful. We're wheat, milk, egg, soya and nut free. Sigh. I log on line, check menu, phone and ask about what alternations they can make etc before going.

I think pizza hut use soya in the base. I remember walking out of there when ds and I couldn't eat there when I was bfing and he reacted if I ate dairy and soy although it may that threy did nothing that was dairy, soy and meat free... ( I don't eat meat)

Apologies, Pizza Hut do have soy protein in the base

I'll try out Wagamama, thanks ladies it's good to have another possibilty.

where, what do you find to eat in Pret? You have the same allergens we have but I associate Pret with bread and mayo, have you found things that are ok?

pancake, I would love to befriend a local place that will do something allergy-free like that. We haven't found anywhere as helpful as that yet.

That's a shame about Pizza Hut. Maybe she will grow out of soy one day.

Pizza express will cook gluten free pasta if you take it in with you.
Beefeater have huge menus that you can look at online.
Debenhams cafe has an allergy book at the entrance which is helpful.
Ask have always been accommodating.... See if you can look at online menu.

we're in hackney with a 2 year old with multiple allergies
And there's lots of places we have found to be allergy friendly-
Lardo pizza on Richmond road
Railroad cafe on morning lane
Russet cafe in hackney downs

Thanks Jammy, I will check the Ask and Beafeater menus out.

Mummy, we used to live in Hackney I do miss it. It's good to know the names of places for when we're there next.

Beefeater, Table Table and Bella Italia all have allergen info on their websites. DS (6) has life threatening allergies to milk, wheat, eggs and nuts plus DD (12) is coeliac but DH & I don't avoid any foods as we believe they have to get used to the fact they can't have certain foods and learn how to manage the risks (this is a personal choice though, I'm not saying this is the right thing for everyone). We are extremely careful about cross-contamination though and always wash hands and face after eating before touching the kids.

I'm pretty sure the gluten free pasta with pomodoro sauce on the kids menu (without cheese obviously) would be ok for your little one in Bella Italia when she's a bit older.

Thanks freefrommum, I'll check those menus out. It would be amazing if DD could have that dish at Bella Italia when she's older, fingers crossed.

I think in time DH and I will eat things she can't, I'd rather she learnt how to handle situations where there are allergens present when I'm there. At the moment DH is up for total avoidance and I can't even convince him to have chocolate in the house that we can eat when she's in bed!