Disney World with a multiple food allergic child

[This AllergyEats Blog post written by Lisa Giuriceo, Facilitator of the Food Allergy and Asthma Support Group of North Jersey]

I have a 10 year old daughter with multiple food allergies to wheat, eggs, fish, peanuts, oats rye, barley, sesame seeds, peas, and green beans.  When our daughter was first diagnosed with potentially life threatening food allergies at 9 months old, our life was turned upside down but my husband I wanted to provide our baby girl with the chance to live a full life while we managed her food allergies.  We had learned that strict avoidance of the allergen was necessary and that we could never be without her epi-pen.  We love to vacation and we had no idea how we were going to that with our daughter’s food allergies; until we read an article in Living Without magazine that highlighted Disneyland in California as a place that catered to children with food allergies.  After reading the article, I called Disney World in Florida and was told that they did indeed accommodate children with food allergies.  My husband and I decided it was worth booking a trip to see if it could be done.  We booked a room at the Wilderness Lodge with a full kitchen just in case things did not work out and we needed to cook meals for our 20 month old daughter.

Prior to our arrival at Disney World, we made reservations for table service meals and listed our child’s dietary needs to the agent.  We were also given a special phone number to call at Disney.  At that number, we were able to speak with the chefs and they were able to tell us what brands they used of such staples as bread, so we could try them prior to arrival and be sure that our daughter was okay with them.  (Remember, nine years ago, food allergy friendly items were not as readily available in local supermarkets as they are today.)  We found many items that our daughter eats now, including Van’s wheat free waffles, Enjoy Life cookies, and Ener-G brand gluten free bread from speaking to the chefs at Disney World.

Our first trip to Disney was a wonderful experience; the chefs at each of the table service restaurants we attended were more than accommodating.  Each of the chefs came to our table when we arrived and allowed us to go through the list of our daughter’s allergens as we presented them on a chef’s card.  I cried tears of joy as my little princess was served a plate of delicious food the same as all the other children.  We took photos of our daughter with each chef at the restaurants we visited and Disney has become our vacation spot each year since that first visit nearly nine years ago.  It is the only week of the year that my husband and I do not cook.

After visiting Disney World so many times over the past nine years, my husband and I have come up with a formula that works best for us. Read the rest of this entry »

Tonight when I go home, I think I’ll announce at the kitchen table – in front of my wife and 5 kids – that we’re going out for ice cream and sorbet after dinner.  Later, when my kids start asking if it’s time to go, I’ll tell them “Yes it is… but I just meant mom and I.”  Why would I do such a thing?  I’d like to know how the management of Domino’s feels right now.

On Monday, Domino’s made headlines with a bold press release pronouncing “Domino’s Pizza Becomes First National Pizza Delivery Chain to Offer Gluten Free Crust.”  Buzz and excitement swirled around the online gluten free community faster than you could find the phone number for delivery.  However, the enthusiasm came to a crashing halt, with some members of the celiac community feeling like they were “slapped in the face,” upon recognition that Domino’s was saying the new gluten free crust pizza was only safe for those with a “mild gluten sensitivity.”  The new reaction: uproar.

As in much of life, there are two sides to every story.  On one hand, I give Domino’s, partnered with the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness, FULL credit for trying very hard NOT to mislead anyone.  They were very upfront and bold in stating this pizza was not safe for those with celiac disease or anything beyond a mild gluten sensitivity.  The press release said it.  The disclaimer on the bottom of the press release said it.  The video they released about this new product said it.  And apparently, their front-of-the-house staff is now trained to say it.

From their press release: “In an effort to remain open and informative about Domino’s Gluten Free Crust, Domino’s has created a video on YouTube that allows customers to decide whether this product is suitable for their diet.”  Here is the video:

The disclaimer on that sign in the video is also on the bottom of their press release.  It says: “Domino’s pizza made with a Gluten Free Crust is prepared in a common kitchen with the risk of gluten exposure.  The National Foundation for Celiac Awareness supports the availability of Domino’s Gluten Free Crust, but cannot recommend the pizza for customers with celiac disease.  Customers with gluten sensitivities should exercise judgment in consuming this pizza.”  As you can see, Domino’s went above and beyond what most companies would do to tell some people NOT to buy their product!

And let’s remember too Read the rest of this entry »

A little while ago, I received a request from Heather S. asking the following:

Hey Paul,
I’m doing a presentation in my sociology class about the social impact and quality of life of food allergies on children, teens, and young adults. I was wondering if you could put on the website a place where people could talk about the impact FA have on them and/or their children? I’m also looking for how it impacts the family members and close friends of the FA individual.
Thanks!

When I asked for more details, she gave me her story to share:

I was diagnosed with allergies of all kinds and asthma at the age of five months.  My food allergies then consisted of peanuts, fish, melons of all kinds, green peas, and strawberries.  Not a large list, but enough that my parents were diligent.  We lived in Florida at the time, so the fish allergy was especially frightening.  I was able to eat at most restaurants.  I thought it was easy, but my parents did not.  They were constantly protecting me, worrying what was in the packaged food, and what was in the food another child brought into class.

Then around seven years old, Read the rest of this entry »

Yesterday afternoon, FOX News hosted a PR consultant, Fraser Seitel, President of Emerald Partners, to talk about peanut-free seating areas at baseball stadiums.  As the 3-1/2 minute clip started, I of course assumed it would be a “feel good piece” about how baseball is slowing accommodating those afflicted with peanut allergies to a greater extent each year.  So how do I describe the shock that hit me when this guest used the phrases in the title of this blog - and so much more - in attacking baseball for catering to our community?  I won’t.  Watch for yourself:

I originally posted this on the AllergyEats Facebook page (www.facebook.com/allergyeats) and Twitter feed early this morning and, not surprisingly, our community is incensed.  I haven’t seen much coverage elsewhere in the food allergy blogosphere, so I decided to share the story here on the AllergyEats Blog as well.  (Please consider passing this along via the “Like” and “Tweet” links at the bottom of the post, on food allergy message boards, through email, etc.)

Here are a few selected comments from the Facebook page so far:  Read the rest of this entry »

THANK YOU to all who voted for AllergyEats and made this possible!

AllergyEats, The Most Comprehensive Source for Finding Allergy-Friendly Restaurants, Demonstrates Value, Provides Solution for Food Allergy Community

BOSTON, MA (April 2, 2012) – AllergyEats (www.allergyeats.com), the biggest and most comprehensive source for finding allergy-friendly restaurants, today announced that the AllergyEats smartphone app has been selected as the About.com 2012 Readers’ Choice Award winner for best Food Allergy App. Now in its fifth year, the About.com Readers’ Choice Awards honor the best products, features and services across more than a dozen categories, ranging from technology to hobbies to parenting and more, as selected by its readers.

Read the rest of this entry »

AllergyEats, The Most Comprehensive Source for Finding Allergy-Friendly Restaurants, Offers Free Peer-Based Ratings, Tips & Info-Sharing Forums

BOSTON, MA (March 19, 2012) – Millions of people will travel this season for spring break, school vacation and the Easter/Passover holidays, and for most of them, these trips mean fun, relaxation and wonderful adventures. But for the 15 million people with food allergies (and their families), traveling can be a source of tremendous anxiety. Dining in unfamiliar cities and restaurants – which may or may not be able to accommodate their special dietary requirements – can be extremely stressful. Worrying about a possible allergic reaction compounds the problem. But the food allergy community can depend on AllergyEats (www.allergyeats.com), the biggest and fastest growing source for finding allergy-friendly restaurants, to help them more comfortably dine out wherever they are – resulting in a more enjoyable, less stressful trip.

“I’ve traveled extensively with my children – who are allergic to peanuts, tree nuts, eggs, sesame and dairy – and have learned some key lessons from our experiences,” said Paul Antico, Founder of AllergyEats, food allergy advocate and parent of three food-allergic children. “There have been countless times that my family has spent up to an hour or more visiting many different restaurants, looking for places that could accommodate my children’s multiple food allergies. I’ve learned the importance of planning ahead, researching menus and gathering peer feedback to make more informed decisions about our restaurant choices.”

Antico offers the following tips for traveling with food allergies and intolerances: Read the rest of this entry »

AllergyEats, the Most Comprehensive Source for Finding Allergy-Friendly Restaurants, Celebrates Two Year Anniversary & Significant Milestones

 Free Resource Improves the Way Food-Allergic & Gluten-Intolerant Diners Eat Out

BOSTON, MA (February 27, 2012) – AllergyEats (www.allergyeats.com), the biggest and fastest growing source for finding allergy-friendly restaurants, is celebrating its second anniversary and an assortment of significant milestones.

In the past year, AllergyEats has:

• Launched its free AllergyEats app (available for iPhone and Android smartphones and tablets), which provides access to the same important information that’s featured on the core site – including peer-based allergy-friendliness restaurant ratings, diner feedback, menus and other information – while on-the-go.
• Launched the AllergyEats Disney World microsite (www.allergyeats.com/disney), which focuses on the allergy-friendliness of restaurants in and around the popular theme parks and greater Orlando area. This site was just introduced in December, and in only two months, users have already rated an impressive 47% of in-park restaurants.
• Grown the site substantially, with hundreds of thousands of users accessing AllergyEats in the past 12 months.
• Doubled the number of visits and unique visitors in year 2 vs. year 1.
• Increased viewership to more than half a million annual pageviews and continued to strengthen its geographic depth of ratings.
• Been named as a finalist in the About.com Readers’ Choice awards in two categories – Best Food Allergy App and Best Online Support Site. (Voting is currently underway at foodallergies.about.com/b/)
• Experienced a 150% increase in AllergyEats Blog followers, who are enjoying (and commenting on) a variety of food allergy-related topics. In the past year, more than 50 AllergyEats Blog entries have spotlighted dining in Disney World, restaurants’ menu changes and concerns, tips for dining out with food allergies, nut-free baseball games, food allergy-friendly play dates, interviews with chefs that cater to food allergies and, of course, restaurants that are more accommodating (like Not Your Average Joe’s and Legal Sea Foods) and less (such as Applebee’s and IHOP).
• Experienced a rapidly growing number of people sharing tips, information and ideas through the AllergyEats social media sites. There are now more than 4,000 Facebook “likes” and 1,800 Twitter followers.
• Secured a significant amount of media attention, including stories, features and mentions in Parents Magazine, About.com, MarketWatch (a division of the Wall Street Journal), Newsday, The Boston Globe, Nation’s Restaurant News, FAAN (Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network)’s newsletter and website and KFA (Kids With Food Allergies)’s newsletter and website – among many other outlets.
• Obtained new endorsements from high-profile individuals and organizations, including Chef Ming Tsai, Disney pioneer and food allergy advocate Chef Joel Schaefer, and MiniMunchers, the ultimate resource for children’s menus in New York City. AllergyEats has already been endorsed by well-respected food, health and allergy organizations, including the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, Gluten Intolerance Group and Massachusetts Restaurant Association.
• Launched an allergy-friendly bakery section, which lists bakeries nationwide that cater to the food allergy and gluten-intolerant community.
• Added more allergy-specific information and ratings, based on user feedback.
• Began new contests and giveaways, like the AllergyEats Great Gift Card Giveaway, which has awarded more than 80 restaurant gift cards (valued at $25-50/each) over the past 40 weeks, and given away free AllergyEats products, such as refrigerator magnets and t-shirts.
• Created a Special Deals program where AllergyEats users can receive exclusive deals and discounts on food allergy-related merchandise from vendor partners.

AllergyEats, a free website, provides valuable, peer-based ratings and feedback about how well (or poorly) restaurants accommodate food-allergic customers, so the food allergy community can make more informed decisions about where to dine (and which establishments to avoid.)

“AllergyEats helps families with food allergies reduce the guesswork – and the anxiety – surrounding dining out. We’ve created a peer-based ratings and review experience that lets people see at-a-glance which restaurants are willing and better able to accommodate special dietary requirements – and which are not,” said Paul Antico, founder of AllergyEats, food allergy advocate and father of three food-allergic children. “This resource is helpful whether you’re dining out across town or across the country, and whether you’re planning a meal in advance or grabbing something while on-the-go.”

As a former mutual fund manager at Fidelity Investments, Antico was frustrated with the inconsistencies in restaurants – some were willing to cook meals without dairy, nuts, eggs and his food-allergic kids’ other ‘trigger foods,’ and some were not. He wondered why there wasn’t a quick, easy online restaurant guide that indicated where food-allergic individuals could more comfortably eat. So he created one.

“Over the past two years, AllergyEats has become an extremely valuable resource – and supportive online network – for the food allergy community,” Antico added. “The outpouring of support and comments is really exciting to see, and it demonstrates a definite need for a site like this among the food allergy community,” Antico explained.

AllergyEats lists well over 625,000 restaurants nationwide, which food-allergic diners can rate. The site also offers information on restaurants’ menus (including gluten-free menus), allergen lists, nutrition information, certifications, web links, directions and more.

Most restaurant review sites include information about establishments’ food, ambiance or service, but AllergyEats is singularly focused on food allergies, with peer reviews spotlighting where people with food allergies or intolerances have more comfortably eaten and where they’ve encountered challenges.

For more information, please go to www.AllergyEats.com.

Respected Food Allergy Educator, Chef & Author Praises AllergyEats, the Most Comprehensive Source for Finding Allergy-Friendly Restaurants

BOSTON, MA (February 14, 2012) – Food allergy advocate Joel Schaefer, CCC, CHT, an author,
chef and educator with Allergy Chefs, Inc. has endorsed AllergyEats (www.allergyeats.com), the most
comprehensive source for finding food allergy-friendly restaurants. Schaefer knows first-hand how
important it is for restaurants to become more allergy-friendly. As the former Culinary Development
and Special Dietary Needs Manager at Walt Disney World, he spearheaded Disney World’s
groundbreaking food allergy initiatives, ensuring that all of their restaurants could better
accommodate food-allergic guests.
 
Schaefer specializes in culinary education and product development for food allergies and special
diets. Throughout his career, from Disney to his current position at Allergy Chefs
(www.allergychefs.com), Schaefer has made it his mission to educate the food service industry about
food allergies. AllergyEats is similarly focused on promoting food allergy education, training and food
handling protocols among restaurants, as well as helping food-allergic diners find the most
accommodating establishments.
 
“The great thing about AllergyEats is that it’s building more awareness about dining out with food
allergies on such a large scale. The site is a wonderful way for consumers to find accommodating
restaurants and share information, tips and ideas about food allergies and sensitivities. I highly
recommend AllergyEats to both consumers and colleagues in the restaurant business,” said
Schaefer.
 
Read the rest of this entry »

Readers of the AllergyEats Blog know that I recently finished a 3-day weekend with my 2 food-allergic boys (peanut and tree nut / peanut, tree nut, dairy, egg and sesame) and my father to Toronto and Montreal.  I wrote a piece in this blog on the “Big 8″ allergen-free restaurant, Zero8, in Montreal (Zero8 Resto-Bar, free of ALL “Big 8″ allergens… and then some!).

On this same trip, however, we had what many would consider a negative experience – though I saw it as a great training opportunity.

We were in a food court and my youngest son wanted a little food to hold him over until dinner.  He asked for french fries from Burger King.  We’ve never had problems with fries from BK before, so I agreed.  Of course, as always, I asked the question.  “Do you use peanut oil to cook the fries?”

Blankish look, before a hesitant side-to-side shake of the head.

“Are you sure?  My son has a severe food allergy?”

Affirmative nod of the head, but not very encouraging.

Finally, I asked the key question.  “What kind of oil do you use?”

He goes back to the cooking area for 15 seconds or so, then comes back shaking his head side-to-side.  I said “Peanut oil?” and he says “yeah.”

Wow.

On the one hand, you might think “bullet dodged”… that was my first reaction.  Though a close second was “I bet they don’t actually use peanut oil – they were just too lazy to check, or were scared, or just plain clueless.”  Either way, I’m glad we had that conversation in front of my boys and then of course walked away.

I used this simple encounter to point out a few important lessons to them.

Lesson 1:  Read the rest of this entry »

Close followers of the AllergyEats Blog and AllergyEats Facebook page have probably detected that I’m an intense hockey fanatic. Originally from the New York area, I have retained my allegiance to the New York Rangers, much to the chagrin of my friends here in Boston. I have also brainwashed my children into sharing my passion for all things hockey and Rangers.

Recently, during a 3-day holiday weekend, my two oldest sons (both of whom have food allergies – peanut/tree nut and peanut/tree nut/dairy/egg/sesame) embarked with my father and I on an exciting boys hockey weekend in Canada. Our first stop was to be Toronto, where we would visit the hockey Hall of Fame and Wayne Gretzky’s restaurant before watching our beloved Rangers take on the Maple Leafs. On the next day, we would follow the Rangers to Montreal where they would play the Candians.

I was a little extra enthusiastic about this trip because I knew I’d finally get a chance to try an exciting new allergy-friendly restaurant in Montreal that I’ve heard a lot about called Zero8. (I would’ve loved to have taken my kids to a Moxie’s in Toronto as well, but the day was full. See my prior AllergyEats Blog post about Moxie’s here.)

I have read a lot about Zero8. Situated in the heart of Montreal’s Latin Quarter, its name comes from the fact that NOTHING on the menu has ANY of the “Big 8″ allergens (or gluten, sesame, and sulfites either). They don’t even keep these products on the premises! Read the rest of this entry »