comment: >
  
  While the general take is wrong, i agree on the fact that why would a guy allergic to the main ingredient of tea go to a fucking tea shop, like wtf do you expect?
context: Heard a story about a woman wanted a dish made a certain way i think for allergen reasons, the chef did his best to accommodate while keeping the dish as true as he could. Her partner ordered same dish without changes.
  Meals were served, she promptly starts picking at her partners plate to see how different they were. >
  
  I worked at a brewery and we regularly had clients come in that were "gluten free" and then proceeded to drink copious amounts of beer that was full of gluten >
  
  Coeliacs hate these people just as much as you. >
  
  Okay, forgive my ignorance here, but why? Doesn't more people asking for gluten free mean more places offer more options and, hopefully, start getting cheaper? My wife has gluten intolerance, not full blown celiac, but it causes me to order gluten free frequently because we share. >
  
  It's because when people continually lie about being celiac, common perception starts to become: when someone says they're celiac, it's just a dietary preference. So while you wouldn't serve them regularly bread, you might make their sandwich with gf bread on the same chopping board. And for someone who it's just a preference it won't cause an issue. So you'll get used to doing that. 
  But when you do that with someone who actually is severely allergic, you'll end up poisoning them. When all it took was getting a fresh chopping board to avoid the problem. >
  
  Fair enough.
  I do think that people with severe celiac should not rely on restaurants to be lacking in cross-contamination. If the kitchen staff isn't properly trained, there's no way they're grabbing:
  
  A clean cutting board
  A clean knife
  A clean set of tongs
  A clean spatula
  A clean section of the grill
  A clean towel to wipe the rim
  Washing their hands after touching just about anything else
  
  And a few other items that will likely have some gluten from other sources. I know there at least a couple of restaurants in our area that specialize in gluten free, but I definitely feel bad for people that don't live in cities or have the ability to find truly GF places. >
  
  Yeah it's a bit of a risk but some places are amazing, I tend to let my aunt tell me about the careful restaurants and cafes before I go anywhere. >
  
  more like "people with severe allergies should KNOW WHICH REPLACEMENTS THEY CAN USE AND HOW TO ORDER THEM" as well as "should do research to make sure their replacements are feasible at this establishment" 
  ​
  When I was a manager at a burger joint before they had Gluten free buns available- we had a regular come in who was a Celiacs (not an allergy but can't eat gluten without wrecking her system) she asked me "can my burger go straight from the grill- to my tray, don't even put it next to the bread. I said sure, we can do that. Once she confirmed we could do that, she came all the time, with HER OWN gluten free buns and packets of sauces. got her burger handled that 1 second special way...and never had any issues or held up any lines. >
  
  Yeah, I used to be the bar manager at a beer/burger joint in semi rural Iowa, we pulled a similar strategy to great effect. While out drinking one night with the chef he had the idea to set up a separate set of tools for gluten free prep (we had a mini frier, a smaller flattop, and a seperate set of pans and 2 separate pans of each size) and we started advertising it. We even offered for people asking about it to come back into the kitchen if it was slow enough to see our set up. We rapidly developed a surprisingly large, extremely dedicated group of celiac customers (this was in 2017, so while some people were starting to offer gluten free options, it wasnt nearly as common as it is now, and there were a lot more mistakes at those places as other places that did learned how seriously they would need to take it.), who all tipped phenominally well. We were also a specialized beer place with 75 tapelines, so I ordered some new glasses, some bottled gluten free beer options, a new mini fridge to chill both and keep them seperate. I also had 4 of our lines deep cleaned and swapped to be dedicated cider lines. Between the kitchen and the bar, those might have been some of the most significantly effective business decisions that we ever made, they had already payed for themselves in under a couple of months. >
  
  You sir, are amazing. I would be one of these customers. I will drive many miles to find a good GF place. I LOVE eating out and trying new foods but I cannot due to my celiac. >
  
  Same here. I love fries and can’t ever eat them. >
  
  Red Robin has dedicated fryers for their fries.  And my husband said their gluten-free bun was actually good! >
  
  It's not that people with severe allergies shouldn't eat out, but rather, they shouldn't try to order something that has the ingredient they're allergic to and doesn't have an easy or obvious substitution. >
  
  Then they go to bakeries and ask for something gluten free >
  
  A lot of bakeries also make gluten free things >
  
  They don't. Most bakeries don't have a dedicated room, oven, clothes, staff, cooking equipment...  for only gluten free baked goods. >
  
  As a celiac I can say this is complete bullshit, at least in the bakeries I’ve been in Norway, the Netherlands, Italy and the UK. There is often plenty of gluten free baked options. Celiacs is more common than people think and I rarely have a hard time finding bread and pastries to eat >
  
  I feel like when people say things happen in 1% of the population, they're just giving a random number and its probablyreally less than 1%. I mean, otherwise, being transgender is as common as having celiac disease, which is as common as having schizophrenia. >
  
  Ask your “celiac” friend if they had it diagnosed via blood or biopsy. The vast majority have never had a diagnostic test. They decided they were celiac because of lethargy or other such nonsense. >
  
  The only person I've ever known who's claimed to be celiac was diagnosed as a baby, so I assume it was a blood test. I haven't seen her in over 10 years, though >
  
  My friend is one. It was diagnosed via biopsy. He gets extremely sick with violent gastrointestinal distress and a rash. It’s ugly. 
  The two other self-diagnosed celiacs say dumb symptoms like “makes them tired” or “bloated”. >
  
  There’s a difference between celiac disease and gluten sensitivity. 
  Gluten makes me have a stomach ache and butt ache and have to evacuate my bowels quickly, similar to lactose intolerance. It’s only certain gluten-not oats or barley. Many people have this. >
  
  I really read this the first couple times as “people with allergies shouldn’t eat people out” 
  and I was really confused and dying to see the comments. >
  
  Nut allergy is serious business man >
  
  Allergic to shellfish 🤷🏻‍♀️ >
  
  No bearded clams for you! >
  
  People with severe allergies are fine it’s the fucking bozos that don’t tell you they have a severe allergy, like what the actual fuck is wrong with you if you wait until the last minute to say something. >
  
  There was a reddit post a couple years ago from a dude who made a big dinner for a bunch of family and friends. One of his friends girlfriends was severely allergic to seafood of some sort (I think) and ate it and ended up having a reaction so severe she was in a coma and was facing lifelong effects. Apparently she knew about the allergy but never said anything so as not to be rude or something. I can't remember exactly but yeah ..always wondered how that turned out. If it was indeed true. >
  
  It’s even more rude to not say anything, what the hell lol >
  
  It wasn't even rude, it was stupid, very much so. I mean, was she for fucking real? She must've had a death wish >
  
  Shit, i don't want to be rude, i better just die.
  
  that woman apparently >
  
  Having allergies is fine. The problem is with people who have allergies, and don't take any steps to prepare for the world. The guy with the tea allergy(lolwut?) should have alternate choices in mind before reaching the register. If he had the decency to prepare, this wouldn't have been an issue. >
  
  While some allergies might be obvious to find, some allergies aren't as obvious just by looking at the menu and not every restaurant has allergens listed. Soy is such a widely used ingredient in the least obvious places. And sometimes you try to contact the restaurant in advance and they don't respond for several days, if at all. >
  
  If a restaurant can't be bothered to return an email about allergens would you trust them to make your food in an allergen free environment? >
  
  Sometimes, it's not an option. Just last weekend my family went out to eat for my grandma's birthday and I had to ask the waitress right there. The servers and the chefs aren't the ones checking email. It would honestly depend on the restaurant. If it's simply checking the ingredient on the bun, it's fine. Other times, it can get more complicated. If it seems sketchy, I order a salad with no croutons, tomatoes, or cucumber. >
  
  Idk I guess I'm lucky to not have any food allergies. But if I had a major one I wouldn't chance it at all. All the food is prepared in the same kitchen, risk would be too much for me for cross contamination >
  
  I'm not super sensitive to cross contamination, so I am lucky in that regard. But when you're allergic to 8 things and counting, it doesn't leave you much choice. >
  
  I am allergic to poultry and it sucks, but dine out all of the time. I carry Benadryl and an epipen for any accidents or severe reactions. I know where I can and cannot eat and don’t burden others. I’ve learned the hard way that my allergy is tricky, no pepperoni pizza for example. Never eat a hot dog on the 4th of July again unless I bought it and know for sure it’s all beef. I’m still a good dude and I’m not gonna live in a cave just because I can’t go to KFC or eat wings at Hooters. Thanksgiving is the worst holiday of the year and has been lonely before I started my own family. >
  
  Why no pepperoni pizza? Where’s the poultry? >
  
  Most of the time pepperoni is processed with chicken. The hidden ingredients part of my allergy is the hardest part. Condensed soups typically use chicken broth, that’s another one that has gotten me before. >
  
  No shit? Never knew that. Thanks. >
  
  He was allergic to tea leaves but wanted tea? >
  
  She was allergic to the black tea ingredient and yeah still wanted a tea, we substituted for an iced tea that wasn’t actually tea and is just yummy fruit syrup >
  
  The single ingredient in black tea is tea leaves..? Like, black tea is just oxidized plant. Unless you have a specific tea with added aroma/flavour >
  
  They could have an allergy to a component of tea leaves, such as to tannins >
  
  If someone is allergic to a something found in the single ingredient of what they want to order, maybe they shouldn't order it. >
  
  If it was only found in tea leaves I’d agree, however tannins are pretty widespread throughout many fruits, vegetables, and nuts >
  
  Sorry if I was a bit unclear. What I meant was that seeing as tea is only one ingredient, if you are allergic to a compound found in tea, you should just not order tea >
  
  Or you could say that people with severe allergies should research their allergies and come prepared so they don’t hold up the line. I think that’s sufficient >
  
  True, but restaurants should also make it possible to do that research, by putting a menu online with the mist important allergies
  It's such a struggle to eat out when you don't know what you will get >
  
  As someone who comes with a list of food allergies there's only a handful of places I can eat and I know it. Going to a tea shop knowing you can't have anything though is a grade a douch move though.
  Eating out is a nightmare so I've always got snacks and I know the best place to get something I'm in the mood for. Going somewhere new research is always something done but tbh it's easier to just not bother going in. 
  Having people make it seem like not a big deal though drives me nuts (which is on my list) as you don't have to deal with the after effects. >
  
  Fellow food allergy person, 
  I'll happily sit and drink a black coffee or a diet coke for my lunch while out to eat with my coworkers b/c it's always better for me to leave a table a little hungry than very sickened. >
  
  I always check menues and ingredients before I go anywhere, so when I arrive I know exactly what I can eat. >
  
  On the flip side, if someone with severe allergies finds a place that they can safely eat at they'll become a loyal guest/customer. >
  
  I have celiac disease (basically cant have gluten) and I eat out all the time. I order things without the gluten ingredients and hope I don't get sick. I know there's a risk, and I also don't expect to eat anything at restaurants that are outings that I didn't plan. Because I might not be able to eat at the restaurant. I know Red Robin has a specific fryer for gluten free fries and has gluten free buns and they let you know what has what so I know I'm not gonna get sick. I'm not gonna go to a bakery and be like "prepare something gluten free" I'll go to the gluten free bakery that's nearby. Basically, they should eat out, but find places that can accommodate your allergies. >
  
  Thank you.  I’m allergic to dairy.  It’s not as severe as other ailments.  But when I go somewhere I just use common sense as to if the product contains dairy.  I don’t ask them. If I get something that might have dairy I just take some medication when I get home just in case. But asking for people to do more because of my condition seems annoying. >
  
  Exactly. I will look up people's menus online and that usually helps, but a lot of places have an allergy menu that I'll ask for. I don't feel like it's that much if an inconvenience. I'm also paying for their service so I don't feel too bad about asking for an allergy menu or an ingredients list >
  
  I have a severe mushroom allergy. Generally speaking I don't eat places that serve them. If they do I pay attention to everything on the menu and order accordingly. I also let my waitress know. That being said if the kitchen messed up and they brought something out with mushrooms I'd point is out and ask for something else but I also understand habits in a restaurant. If you're used to smothering a steak and suddenly get one without you may mess up, it's ok. It's up to me to make sure I'm ok not you. I have gone to places looked at the menu and realized it's not a safe place for me to eat and just not ate, hung out with my friends while they did but I don't. Allergies shouldn't ban people from activities but people really need to start understanding it's not up to strangers to look out for your health. >
  
  Cause duck doughnuts, bacon doughnuts are worth it. I think the guy ordering tea is more like a person who should know what they want before getting into a line. >
  
  Which one do you prefer,the maple bacon or bacon in the sun? >
  
  Maple. What a question. >
  
  As someone who has a severe allergy, i dont agree with this. At least for me, there are plenty of restaurants that can accommodate my allergy and lots of restaurants dont serve it (for me its all seafood minus salmon). If i choose to go to a restaurant that serves it, I let them know but if I do have an attack, i knew it was a risk I choose to have. I know people claim to have an allergy to get made dishes with an ingredient they dont like and if they fight people I personally dont believe its a true allergy (or just very mild) >
  
  i kinda agree. 
  if you have a "serious" allergy or simply dislike an ingredient, then well... order something else or eat somewhere else. 
  the dish is the dish. if you are allergic to peanuts then you cannot expect an asian restaurant to substitute peanuts in a dish with oeanut sauce. 
  if you are allergic to gluten.. maybe not order pasta / pizza ? 
  I think its kinda whack that its gotten "normal" to  expect restaurants to change their dishes and cater to any specific preference or need. >
  
  I have anaphylaxis to dairy and guess where I eat out?
  Sushi places/steakhouses where the meat and dairy rarely even go near each other.
  Otherwise I eat nothing or just get fries/a salad. Maybe a burger(I take off the bun)
  I’d never go to a place like an Italian restaurant and expect no butter/cheese lol >
  
  Try kosher stuff. They never mix meet with dairy. >
  
  Oh yeah, I forgot to mention Kosher places.
  Also: Kosher burgers are basically Krabby Patties in taste >
  
  Wouldn't kosher burgers just taste like regular non-cheese burgers? >
  
  Its a higher quality of meat, Kosher means more than just 'did not touch dairy' >
  
  I don't agree that they shouldn't go out to eat, but they absolutely are responsible for knowing what they're allergic to and what alternatives they can consume. >
  
  But if there is no information available (whether the restaurant puts milk in their meat or in sauces), is not easy to know what alternatives we can have >
  
  There are options for people with allergies and they pretty much go out trying to find them. Also, they may take the risk if that means they can have a relatively normal social life. >
  
  My daughter has a severe food allergy and we still eat out. Your person is just an asshole. I would also never order something that had to e allergy in it. I don’t care if it can be made a different way >
  
  As someone who has a gluten allergy, I do my due diligence before I go out. I research the restaurant menus and make calls about gluten-free accommodations. Then I make my choice based on what restaurant suits my needs. >
  
  My mum is Anaphylactic to seafood. So we don’t go to seafood restaurants, sushi places or even Asian style restaurants. We’ve never had a problem. A little common sense is what’s needed. >
  
  As someone with anaphylactic allergies, I can eat out, I just know to order things I can eat and ask the kitchen to keep my food separate from the things I’m allergic to. If the kitchen doesn’t feel comfortable serving me, I don’t take it personally and just eat elsewhere. I think your situation is about people who try to ask for substitutions where it isn’t really possible. That’s unreasonable. Im allergic to peanuts, so I would never go to Five Guys or somewhere that peanuts are so prevalent >
  
  I have an auto-immune disease which makes anything social with friends (because most social things are to do with food) really annoying. I hate being the burden at a restaurant.
  I get it's frustrating for you as a server, but you have two options, tell me you can't serve me and I'll go elsewhere, or help me experience a normal social outing without being judged and condemned for something I was born with. >
  
  Yeah exactly - I'm in a similar boat. I'll order something appropriate for me off the menu, with substitute if appropriate or more commonly just removing ingredients I don't eat. Obviously I don't ask someone to remove an essential element, make something special just for me, or go through every item on the menu with the server.
  Taking ages and being indecisive or annoying is also done by plenty of people without dietary restrictions. Most places are happy to accommodate if you work with them.
  But yeah food is a huge part of life and socialisation and "just don't eat food you didn't make" means you'd miss out on a lot of life. >
  
  As someone who’s anaphylactic to peanuts I understand that there are some restaurants where it’s dangerous to eat so I just don’t go there. It’s not that people with allergies shouldn’t go out to eat, it’s that as someone with food allergies you need to prepare in advance (which can involve many different options) and understand that sometimes you may not be able to safely eat some places. >
  
  On the flip side: People should be able to go to a restaurant and ask about their menu and ingredients to find something that they can eat if they have food sensitivities, allergies, or are on a restricted diet.  My daughter has Galactosemia and can't eat anything with dairy. We know what she can and cannot have at a lot of chain restaurants and our local places.  Sometime we venture out to a new place and we have to ask questions.  It is really disheartening when we are met with sighs and annoyed looks.  "Listen dude.  She has to deal with this everyday of her life.  Is it that hard to check if the hamburger bun has milk?" >
  
  Ostracized for having an allergy, no. Holding up a line due to the fact - yes that person should just make like a tree and leaf. I have kids, they are picky sometimes. We have gotten to the front of a line and they had not made up their minds. We step aside, let people continue on their day until we are 100% ready. It’s not an allergy issue, it’s an entitlement issue with the person in question. >
  
  Yeah exactly this is just inconsiderate/entitled behaviour not really related to the allergy. Plenty of people with allergies are easy to deal with and people without who cause issues. >
  
  They were allergic to the main ingredient in tea? So a water allergy then? >
  
  As someone who has a ton of food allergies that developed or got worse the older I got and for the really dangerous ones to be not your typical I could die food allergies, I can safely say that it’s hard enough having friends and family not believe us or make fun of us, but sucks even more when we’re told we’re just being dramatic. I make sure to look over every menu throughly, I ask questions, and if I know something can’t be prepared safely, I would never think of trying to force it to be. >
  
  Meh I think they should still be able to enjoy eating out just like we do, but I think, like other commenters have said, that they should do some research on what replacement ingredients they could get or something. >
  
  Classic gatekeeping mentality. 
  If you are severely allergic, please, love yourself and live your life. But also: make your allergen-free choice before ordering and don’t make it a hassle for everyone else. >
  
  Used to work at red lobster and people with shellfish allergies were there all the time. Not sure how fuckin stupid you can be, the place is literally named after something that will kill you >
  
  What am I supposed to do? Just never leave the house? If I am always at risk of illness because of my severe allergy to nuts, you can expand this to anything where any trace of nuts can be found. I tell everyone about my allergy, that's enough safety for me. >
  
  i agree its annoying to have to accommodate people sometimes in hospitality, but you will probably forget about the inconvenience of helping them after like a day, human kindness and helping another should always come in front of "but i dont want to".
  you shouldnt eat in places that are full of ur allergy, but if ur in that situation regardless, last thing you want is probably also the server being in a pissy with you for an allergy you cannot help. >
  
  As someone with several food allergies, people with this kind of attitude make us not want to eat certain places. I'm allergic to mustard, if I ask of there's mustard on a sandwich and you roll your eyes at me I'm liable to get pissy. I always double check because I've been too many places where it's not kisted on the description and I have to send my food back because I can't eat it. >
  
  I've noticed reddit has a weird hatred of people with allergies. Heaven forbid anyone be inconvienced to accomodate a person's safety. Obviously the example in the post is beyond the norm of allergen inconvience and simply has to do with the person not being prepared to order an alternative and not being willing to let others order first. >
  
  I wonder if those people realize many allergies don’t develop until later in life..it’s super common..they might get humbled reeeaaal quick. >
  
  Haha that's what happened to me! But I grew up around people with severe allergies and always knew it was not fun and no one was doing it for attention or to be inconvenient. >
  
  I’m only allergic to red wasps so it rarely inconveniences anyone else..but it’s always floored me how intolerant people are of others’ allergies. I mean that could be you..or your kid..but I guess most people don’t look outside of themselves that often.
  Side note: I just LOLd bc my brain tried to equate a peanut allergy to a wasp allergy - can you imagine being allergic to peanuts & every time the temp got about 65/70 peanuts started randomly flying thru the air 😂😂 oh Lort help me >
  
  Haha flying peanuts could be real! Ever been to a Five Guys... imagine the swarm >
  
  Ack!! I just replaced the peanuts with wasps in my mind and got a full body cold shiver. But I dooooo love some 5 Dudes - their fries are my favorite. >
  
  Forgot for a minute you're allergic to wasps not peanuts and I was like Oh No! Don't eat those! >
  
  Refractory celiac here. I agree and I don’t eat out ever! But celiac isn’t an allergy, it’s just easier to call it that. Auto immune disease, and yes it is killer. One mistake could give me an intestinal aneurysm. >
  
  Just research heavily before you go out. Works for me. I'd rather take the risk and being sick then live my life hiding away. Also I love Mexican. >
  
  I think going out with allergies is fine but don’t order something with said allergy and ask them to make it different. Order something you know is good or can do minimal subs >
  
  I think you're all mistaking people with allergies with completely needy people. You all know the types everything is about them. They want restaurants to make them food not on the menu or at least make them cook it differently. They suck the life out of every conversation and make it about them. This has nothing to do with allergies, normal people with allergies don't do this. >
  
  I disagree. My daughter is allergic to tree nuts. BUT I go places that don't have nuts or we don't order something that may be modified because that's a hassle for both sides. Entitled ridiculous people should stay home. >
  
  Coming from someone that was a server, it's not really don't go out to eat, but don't go out to a new restaurant, with a new server during rush.    That's when things get screwed up.
  I had a family of regulars, I could set a clock by them at 8:15 on Sunday nights.  She was horribly allergic to shellfish, and white potatoes, something in the starch.  Once we got a solid few things that worked and knew how to avoid cross contamination it was smooth sailing, but there was solid a level of familiarity that made it easy.
  They also consistently tipped well >
  
  Yeah, if tomato can't be omitted then I don't even bother to order it.  No point in being difficult. >
  
  I agree. I have allergies. I try to order things that don’t contain certain ingredients but I’ve had restaurants that were happy to accommodate if it was something simple. If it’s qnot possible,I know it’s not their fault. I try to choose places that serve food that work for me. Not a big deal. >
  
  reminds me of the time when a dad ordered "Peanut smoothie without peanuts" for his son and then he had an allergic reaction and he went insane at the barista.