My wife and I are taking a trip to Paris this Spring, and I’m a little concerned about eating out because she’s got several food allergies. She is allergic to:
[ul]
[li]Dairy products (milk, cheese, butter, etc.) - this is a full-on allergy, not lactose intolerance[/li][li]Nuts[/li][li]Soy[/li][li]Shellfish[/li][/ul]
These allergies make eating out somewhat challenging here in the states (though it’s gotten a lot better). Given that French cuisine is noted for butter, sauces, and cheese, I’m wondering if any Parisians (or others) might have advice for us. Restaurants that are good with allergies? General advice about Parisian attitudes toward food allergies? Best way to deal with it with servers at restaurants?
If it makes a difference, we’re staying in the Marais, though of course we’ll be traveling all over the city. Thanks in advance!
That sounds really tough. The allergens you mention are mostly the things I think of when I think of French food.
How well do you speak French? You will want to make sure you can communicate accurately with the servers. If you don’t speak the language, or are unsure about your fluency, I would have a native French speaker write out something in advance that you could show people in restaurants to make sure that your wife’s needs are met.
Here is a website with cards for people with food allergies that people can use while traveling. http://www.selectwisely.com/
I am sensitive to shellfish (I don’t think it’s an actual allergy, I just get really sick when I eat it) so when I went to China, I had a native speaker make a list for me of foods I could not have. It worked, I had no issues.
I happened to hear something about this on a Rick Steves program a few weeks back. He also recommended someone who speaks the local language write something out so there is no question and the restaurant staff can understand fully.
The Marais is at least somewhat still a Jewish neighborhood, so if you go to meat Kosher restaurants, it should be a piece of cake to avoid dairy and shellfish.
Good in theory, but my guess is many in the staff might not know every single ingredient and forget that the asparagus was indeed heated up in butter or the potatoes have a dash of cream, etc.
This doesn’t sound like an easy task to eat at normal French restaurants.
The Jewish/Kosher alternative sounds like your best bet.
Yeah, but that’s a possibility any time you eat something you didn’t personally prepare with your own hands. I’m not sure she’s at any greater risk than trying to eat out here in the States–soy lecithin hides in a LOT of processed foods like you get at most chain restaurants.
I don’t know how severe your wife’s nut allergy is, but bakeries here almost all also make cakes and macarons and the like - these will almost invariably contain almonds or other nuts.
The French for nuts (in general) is “fruits de cocque” - as I have found through experimentation, asking about “noix” just refers to walnuts. Hazelnuts and almonds seem to be in damn near everything even vaguely sweet, even if you can’t see them, in bakeries, so be careful.
There are vegan restaurants in town, which will take care of the dairy and shellfish bit - I’ll try to remember to dig out a list I’ve seen recently for you. They may use soy (soja, in French) but it might be worth looking at their menus in case they’re useful - avoiding dairy will be hard, probably the hardest of the things you need to avoid.
As far as attitudes go, I’ve found people usually want to help, once they understand that there’s a chance you might die on them if they don’t. (Actually, everyone’s been good about it - it’s just that people without allergies aren’t nearly as paranoid as I’d like them to be about what they put in food!) I would explain to the waiter at the outset that it’s an allergy (phrases like reaction allergique fatale might get the right amount of attention) on the basis that if they understand you’re not just being difficult, you’re more likely to get a sympathetic hearing. It still doesn’t guarantee anything, of course, but they’re more likely to ask the chef to remember not to add butter to the steak…
I’ll ask around tomorrow to see if anyone knows anywhere particularly good at catering for people with particular dietary requirements. France is still not brilliant at labelling products and there’s definitely scope for improvement in not chucking nuts and/or dairy and/or wheat into every.single.thing.you.cook, but if there is anywhere in France where you might find a restaurant that can handle multiple allergies, it’s likely to be Paris.
Thank you. I’d definitely be interested in any specific recommendations that you could dig up for places that are accommodating to this. Much appreciated!
Luckily steak avec frites and a salade should have none of the ingredients your wife is allergic to, and it’s one of the meals France does best. There are also many varieties of goat’s milk cheeses (chevres) if that is okay.
To reply to a few other comments, I don’t speak a lick of French but my wife does a little (she took it in high school and has been brushing up). We’re definitely planning on doing the index card thing.
The kosher idea sounds great. We’ll do some research on places in the neighborhood with that in mind.
Vegan places are a less attractive option, both because soy tends to be frequent in vegan food (tofu), but also because I’m a major carnivore It might work for a meal or two, though, at the right place.
Very good to know about “hidden” nuts. Of all the allergies, that’s the one most likely to kill her on the spot, epipen or no epipen.
Thanks to all who have chimed in so far with advice. It’s going to be an interesting trip, to say the least!
The problem with steak frites and salad (and it’s something I’ve eaten a lot of, when I was going through a period of wheat intolerance) is that steaks here often come with a herb butter on them, and salads often - though not always, by any means - come with a creamy dressing. They might remember not to do it, and restaurants that specialise in southern food are less likely to include dairy and use olive oil instead, but it’s worth bearing in mind as a possibility. (It’s not something they do usually in the UK, so I wasn’t really expecting it the first time…)
I don’t know whether you’ve already booked your hotel, but if not, you might want to consider whether it might be an idea to look at one of the self-catering flats that are available for holiday lets - cooking isn’t as much fun as eating out on holiday, but it will help you be sure of what you’re eating. (And eating out might be stressful, given the restrictions.)
Yes, it’s a good idea and we did just that. We have a little apartment with a kitchen. But we’re not going to cook in every night. It’s Paris - we’ve got to get out there and try stuff! I just want to do that safely
I can’t speak for Paris, but I have a friend here in Québec with major allergies similar to those of your wife, and he’s pretty good about calling ahead to a restaurant - even just an hour or two beforehand - explaining his allergies and perhaps making a particular request (“steak cooked in oil, not butter” or whatever) so that the kitchen has time to prepare any ingredients and clean any cooking services that might otherwise be shared.
I once waitressed at a private golf club (so not a regular restaurant with high turnover or lots of food on hand) where a group of 10 people came in unannounced and two of the group had a long list of severe allergies. While we were willing and able to accommodate them, we had to warn them that it would take a little more time for their food to be prepared (and did they want the whole table to wait and eat at once, or should we serve the others and get to them when it was ready?). Apparently these delays were unacceptable and a major hissy fit ensued (with yours truly getting yelled at). I was never happier to dump that table on my manager to let him deal with these assholes The chef (French, as it happens) prepared a fantastic meal for them, but bitched about wanting to have had at least 30-60 minutes of warning because he could have prepared something even better!
So, all that to say that if you can call ahead or drop into a restaurant in person to request accommodation on the part of the chef and then go have a walk/drink somewhere else before the meal so that they can prepare… the chef and wait staff, at least, might appreciate it!
That’s a really good idea, thanks. Hopefully my wife’s French will be up to snuff for those conversations
(As a side note, we are always very appreciative of waitstaff who take her allergies seriously and we tip high for having to deal with it. We know it’s an imposition on the kitchen to have to make things specially and we strive to be pleasant about it.)
It might work for a meal or two, though, at the right place.
