0 The Jewish Museum: “Repetition And Difference”, March 2015

I had an opportunity to visit the upcoming exhibit "Repetition And Difference" opening March 13, 2015 at The Jewish Museum. In my discussion with one of the curators, Susan L. Braunstein, Henry J. Leir Curator, she said: 

“Repetition in art can often be seen as mundane and static, even cookie cutter. This exhibit is trying to show that there is difference if you know where to look.”

And look we did, walking through four rooms of variations, deviations, conformity and repetitions.

Tyrian shekels

Yarmulkes through the ages

Ancient feminine figures

Havdalah silver spice containers

All of these objects were created by artisans to be the same - menorahs, mezuzahs, yarmulkes, havdalah containers - items every Jewish family needed in the ancient world (and observant Jews still need today). Human nature has an urge to create perfection and also, to have the exact same thing that the proverbial Jones's have. But of course there are deviations, imperfections - we could never clone perfectly. (Think Multiplicity with Michael Keaton.) 

Broadly speaking, automation, starting in the 1800s, strove to eliminate those human variations and create identical products for the masses - think Model T. Automation had a similar effect on art - think Bauhaus and later, Andy Warhol.

But, as we all know, imperfections in our automated world are everywhere: sometimes celebrated (“Look at the mistake on my Warhol lithograph! It’s ten times more valuable now!”); sometimes super annoying (“My iPad is a lemon out of the box! Can't they make these things right?”). 

As a culture, we seem to flip flop on celebrating uniqueness and, in equal measure, striving for a conformity to a norm or for non-existent perfection. 

I'm in the celebrate what is unique camp. I'm in the there is no norm camp. I'm in let your freak flag fly camp.

As a life coach and food allergy counselor, both of which I regard as my art, part of my job is helping my clients come to terms with uniqueness and sameness as people who happen to be diagnosed with severe life threatening food allergies. 

Another example: as a public speaker about lifestyle and managing severe life-threatening food allergies, I may be giving the “same” presentation but it’s never the “same”. Even if it’s a power point deck I’ve used before, there is always deviation in how my core message (see below) is delivered based on a myriad of variables both concrete and abstract: what’s the weather, what did I have for breakfast, how am I feeling that day; do I have new, compelling client-derived anecdotes that will shed new light on an example or a new experiential exercise to drive home a poignant point; what does this particular audience need on this day and what are their reactions in the moment? 

As a social worker, counselor, writer and speaker, my messaging is always consistent around creating food allergy confidence: 

• Understand your food allergy diagnosis, 
• Communicate your food allergy diagnosis, 
• Form positive and supportive relationships around your food allergy diagnosis.

But the delivery -- that is the art. In my art, there is repetition and there is deviation; and they are both valuable and beautiful.

***

You can check out the upcoming exhibit 
"Repetition And Difference" 
Opening March 13, 2015 
The Jewish Museum
1109 5th Ave at 92nd St

New York, NY 10128

Detail: The Jewish Museum: “Repetition And Difference”, March 2015

0 Food Allergy Counseling: Your Middle School Aged Child and Talking to the Allergist

If you’re child was diagnosed with severe life threatening food allergies as an infant, most likely they’ve been going to allergist appointments for years. Also most likely, they haven’t been that involved with the appointment beyond saying yes or no when the allergist asks them a question. And that’s fairly regular.  How often do you proactively ask questions of doctors, e.g. what will these test tell us, what are the next steps, what do my symptoms mean, how can I proactively protect myself, etc.? And more to the point, how often do your children ask questions of their allergist or their medical professional? I’d hazard a guess that it’s not often.

As a food allergy counselor, I believe strongly in giving children information in an age appropriate way so they can integrate their food allergy diagnosis into their sense of self and become independent, self-aware adults with full, fun lives. An important part of that process is having them be involved in and take ownership over their food allergy diagnosis. Children need the medical facts to begin that process.

I cover the doctor patient relationship in a chapter in my book, Allergic Girl: Adventures in Living Well with Food Allergies (Wiley, 2011) and how to create a TEAM YOU with your medical team, as an adult. I’m suggesting you go a step further and encourage your middle school aged child* to engage their medical health professional team directly. 

It’s a game changer for you, your child, your family’s understanding food allergy and mainly, your understanding of how your child understands food allergy. 

An anxious child, one that is fearful of food allergy monsters, needs clarification of their food allergy diagnosis; how to identify food allergy symptoms and what they mean; to explore their anaphylaxis action plan and how and when to enact it; and to go deeper into risk management strategies. All with an eye to help them understand the real risks and the irrational fears and to learn how to separate those thoughts in their minds and in their behaviors.

Some ways to start this process will be encouraging your middle school aged child to ask questions of their board certified medical healthcare provider to get the real facts about food allergy as it relates to their diagnosis. My suggestions for how this process might look are: 

1. Make an appointment with your trusted board certified medical provider. Ask for a “consultation”. Tell them that your child has some questions about their food allergy diagnosis. Ask them if they would like these questions emailed ahead of the appointment. If they say yes, send them.

2. Ideally, the whole family would attend this consultation so everyone can hear the same messaging at the same time and underscore a consistent message to your child after the appointment.

3. Prepare for this appointment by having a conversation, or series of conversations, at home before your appointment. Ask your child about their food allergy fears. Write down a list together. While creating this list do your best to *just listen*. Many of your child’s fears will be implausible, irrational and make no logical sense and that’s why they’re fears, not truths. Do your best just listen. Without judgment. And be their scribe. These are their fears and they need to be heard.

4. My hope is they feel empowered to ask the scary questions, the ones that may be keeping them up at night, stopping them from engaging with friends or in sports or trusting your cooking. If they feel shy or uncertain, make sure those get questions asked in some form.

5. Help your child organize their fear list as many questions will be repeats. Refine the list to the must ask questions, the ones that are really troubling them. Bring this list with you to your allergist appointment. 

6. Encourage your child to ask the questions directly. Pediatric allergists (and pediatricians, in general) usually love when kids get involved and ask questions. 

7. Either have your child write down the answers or you record the answers. Ask the allergist how you may follow up with additional concerns or questions (via phone, email or appointment).

8. When you get home, make a copy of the Q&A. Keep one for your records. Keep a copy for your child’s special use. Ask them where you should put it so they can read it when they feel nervous or forget the answers. Many times I’ll suggest that food allergy counseling clients paste a copy in their child’s room, a reminder of the answers to their questions. It can become a fear versus reality cheat sheet. 

9. Let the information sink in. It will sink in over hours, days, weeks. Let it. 

The point of this whole process is to empower your child with real food allergy information so they can begin to separate their fears from reality. 

And that’s my next blog topic, the final in this series: helping your child separate food allergy worry from healthy food allergy vigilance.

***

Here are parts one and two of this blog series on middle school aged children and anxiety around food allergies.

Here's an excellent post about anxiety, generally speaking, in children, by Karen Young.

***

*I'm using Middle School aged children to represent the middle school years 8-12.

NB: When fears are not managed, children can suffer or withdraw. If you witness troubling behaviors in your child, please have them evaluated by a local child psychologist, social worker or psychiatrist as well as your allergist and your pediatrician.

Detail: Food Allergy Counseling: Your Middle School Aged Child and Talking to the Allergist

0 Food Allergy Counseling: Bullies, Friends & Food Allergies

At last Sunday’s FARE event in Westchester, I was talking about the challenges of independence and food allergies with the teen group, ages 12 and up.

(Talking with teens, FARE Westchester event, 2015. Used with permission)

A seventh grader told us a story about being bullied by some eighth graders about the epinephrine autoinjector pack he used to wear around his waist (now he carries his autoinjectors in his backpack).

“So,” I asked. “Were these eight graders targeting you because of food allergies or because they were just mean eighth graders?”

“Just mean eighth graders. And my best friend stepped up and told them to back off and they did.”

It’s an excellent story that illustrates two very important points that I explored with the teens.

Mean kids exist. And it doesn’t change when you get older. My exact quote was: “I wish I could tell you that when you get older, everyone is nicey nice. But I can’t; mean adults exist, too. Bullies are everywhere, at school, at work, at college – everywhere. And we all have to learn how to stand up and advocate for ourselves. This isn’t simply about food allergies; it’s about navigating the larger world. And the sooner you and your family talk through ways to do this that work for you right now, the better.”

Point two: best friends exist in the world, too. They are your allies, your safety nets; they stick up for you when you feel you can’t, they protect you when you feel down. And you protect them in turn. The sooner you and your family identify those friends who are non-judgmental, kind, open and have your backs and partner with them, also the better.

Every teen in the room identified that they had safe besties who had their backs, some who even advocated on their behalf.

And this seventh grader's story illustrated perfectly how to frame the conversation: when we talk about bullies, we must talk about not merely who is trying to kick you down but who is there to lift you up. 

What I as a food allergy counselor suggest you can do: help your children identify the hallmark behavioral characteristics of the meanies and the benchmarks of the safeties. It will be a skill they will use for the rest of their lives.

Detail: Food Allergy Counseling: Bullies, Friends & Food Allergies

0 Food Allergy Counseling: Food Allergy Resources in Spanish

Here are two excellent, reliable resources in Spanish. Please spread them far and wide!

Food Allergy Research & Education has their anaphylaxis action plans in Spanish and English. You can download these free here.

AllergyHome.org has their Living Confidently With Food Allergy handbook in Spanish as well. Here’s the link and here more information about their guide from the AllergyHome.org website:

"Living Confidently With Food Allergy is a handbook created to get needed information to all that are managing a food allergy. It was designed to give parents the tools they need to keep kids safe while addressing their emotional needs. The handbook was the result of a two year North American collaboration lead by Anaphylaxis Canada. This free, easy to understand resource was written by Dr. Michael Pistiner, Dr. Jennifer LeBovidge and the Anaphylaxis Canada team (Laura Bantock RN, Lauren James, Laurie Harada).  It was reviewed by over two dozen American and Canadian experts."

Detail: Food Allergy Counseling: Food Allergy Resources in Spanish

0 Food Allergy Counseling: Your Middle School Child and Writing Down their Food Allergy Fears

As I discussed in this earlier post, the Middle School* years are a pivotal age range for kids. It’s the time that they start becoming more independent in many aspects of their lives. It’s a great phase – full of exploration, fun, special skills, deeper friendships and an understanding of their place in the larger world. 

For parents of kids with severe, life threatening food allergies, helping your child become more independent and responsible can have some added challenges. 

One of which is that your Middle School aged child frequently has new and deep concerns, fears and questions about food allergies and their medical diagnosis. A lot of them. These questions are different than a few years ago and they are different than they will be a few years from now; but these questions, if they go unanswered or are answered with half answers, can grow into massive, irrational fears. 

For example, *if* your Middle School aged child has:

--heard and processed half conversations (or even arguments) between you and your spouse about food allergies or their seriousness or their management; 

--picked up pieces from allergist and pediatrician visits but not the full story as they weren’t engaged in the conversation or even really a part of the office visit; 

--if they have been told misinformation by a well-meaning school teacher, who has no clue what they are talking about; 

--if they have read something online from an untrusted source (the definition of a Doctor Google); 

--or perhaps they have done what all kids do: heard one thing and then thought it meant something else because they didn’t have the knowledge or context to process it, they can end up with a lot of myths about food allergies and food allergy risk that they believe are true. And usually they really aren’t.

Your Middle School aged child needs answers to their food allergy fears and questions now in a new and different way. They are able to process complex information in a more dynamic way. So let’s let them get that new information so they can start to identify and separate real food allergy risk from food allergy fear.

Frequently with my Middle School aged food allergy counseling clients, I will ask them to tell me what their fears are and their questions about their food allergies and we write them down together. The general themes I’ve heard concern death, casual contact, how epinephrine works, needles and how to protect themselves. 

Let’s jump into the scariest one for everyone who manages food allergy risk: the possibility of death from an accidental exposure to one’s food allergen. 

A Middle School aged child understands death in a new and deeply profound way, perhaps even existential. The deaths they may have experienced like the death of a loved one, a beloved pet or even a friend or the parent of a friend has a different effect on their lives as a middle schooler than, say, a pre-schooler. Additionally, it is developmentally appropriate for Middle School aged children to start to ask and experience themselves as a human being in the world; even that there is even a larger world that they need to concern themselves with! 

This is an elemental question that Middle School aged children are grappling with and it’s our job to help them grapple.

Of course, as a parent (or a adult loved one), it can be deeply upsetting, difficult and heartbreaking to hear a child talk about their fears about death.

But parents, I urge you to first examine * your * thoughts, fears and understanding of food allergy risk. Children, as you know, are little sponges watching and listening to everything you do and they will mirror your feelings, whether you have expressed them directly or indirectly. If you believe deeply that your little one will grow into a self-sufficient adult with food allergies, they most likely will. If you have deep worries, fears about risk and allergens and managing them (and/or a history of anxiety), and believe there is danger and risk around every corner, your child cannot help but pick up this attitude, too, and mirror your worries and fears. 

Parents, maybe you still have questions about food allergy risk, diagnosis, definition or your anaphylaxis action plan? Get medical clarity, work with a therapist, talk to your partner about your concerns so you can help your child navigate this next developmental phase which is the beginning of how to be in the world and of the world (my favorite quote from the movie Sabrina.)

By the Middle School years, it is time for honest age-appropriate talk about real food allergy risk versus food allergy fear. And, as a family, this needs to happen together, ideally. 

Allow your child the space to express their fears about food allergies in words, drawing and in play.

Have them write down their questions about food allergies or help form their fears into actionable questions.

The next step is to take those questions to your trusted local allergist to get real answers which will help them learn how identify and separate real food allergy risk from food allergy fear.

My next post will cover this topic.

***
Here are parts one and three of this blog series on middle school aged children and anxiety around food allergies.
   
Here's an excellent post about anxiety, generally speaking, in children, by Karen Young.

*I'm using Middle School aged children to represent the middle school years 8-12.

NB: When fears are not managed, children can suffer or withdraw. If you witness troubling behaviors in your child, please have them evaluated by a local child psychologist, social worker or psychiatrist as well as your allergist and your pediatrician.

Detail: Food Allergy Counseling: Your Middle School Child and Writing Down their Food Allergy Fears

0 Food Allergy Counseling: Westchester FARE Walk for Food Allergy, Taking Charge of Food Allergies Event, March 1, 2015

*UPDATE: Pictures of the event are on the Facebook Westchester FARE Walk for Food Allergy site.*

I’m excited to announce that I will speaking to parents and middle school aged children during this every special FREE event hosted by Westchester FARE Walk for Food Allergy and underwritten by FARE. 

If you are in the tri-state area, consider joining us. 

And do make sure to come say “Hi” to me or buy a copy of Allergic Girl: Adventures in Living Well with Food Allergies (Wiley, 2011) and have it signed!

INFORMATION FROM THE INVITATION

"Join us for a very special discussion about the social and emotional issues facing parents and children who are living with food allergies. Top mental health professionals will lead an informative discussion with the group, followed by breakout sessions for parents and children. This event is funded by the Westchester FARE Walk for Food Allergy."

REGISTER

For more information and to register for FREE visit: http://westchesterfoodallergy.eventbrite.com

SPEAKERS

Dr. Brett Greenberger  

Dr. Eyal Shemesh 

Sloane Miller, MFA, MSW, LMSW

Kristen Kauke, LCSW, MSW 

Maggie Brier, LMSW 

WHERE:

Hommocks Middle School

130 Hommocks Road
Larchmont, NY 10538

Directions

WHEN:

Sunday 
March 1, 2015

2:00pm – 4:00pm

Hope to see you there!

Detail: Food Allergy Counseling: Westchester FARE Walk for Food Allergy, Taking Charge of Food Allergies Event, March 1, 2015

0 Food Allergy Counseling: Your Middle School Child’s Food Allergy Fears

Being in Middle School* is a really interesting age for kids. It’s the time that they start becoming more independent in many aspects of their life. Physically they are growing and able to use their bodies in new, powerful ways; think group sports and competitions. Cognitively they are able to handle more complex information, more logic and reasoning; as well as more mature aspects of moral reasoning. Emotionally there are changes, too. In a deeply profound way, ten year old children start noticing and thinking about their place, their role in the larger, outside world.

For children with severe life threatening food allergies, many who have been told their entire lives they could die from a food allergic reaction, the prospect of a fatality takes on a whole new meaning at this age. “Like, I could die, die?”

While five year old children don’t need a more specific context (death doesn’t have the same meaning at that age), a Middle School aged child, who is more aware of the world and their place in it, needs a context for this information and fast. And at this age, they are able to cognitively and emotionally handle more information; in fact, they crave it.

As a food allergy counselor, I believe strongly in giving children information in an age appropriate way so they can integrate their food allergy diagnosis into their sense of self and become independent, self-aware teens with full lives and to continue that integration into adulthood.

One major issue Middle School aged children have is the separation of irrational fears about food allergies and the facts of food allergies. In my food allergy counseling practice, I help Middle School aged children learn how to separate irrational fears from real food allergy risks, a skill set they will need for the rest of their lives.

Firstly, we talk about the fears through drawings or writing stories. If I see them in my office (versus through video chat session), we may play a game to help them process and describe these fears. Fears can take metaphoric forms like fearing the family house might burn down, someone might break into their house or even feeling like there is a ghost following them. I have worked with children with all of those fears. These are essentially fears of the unknown and a profound feeling of a loss of control, which needs to be examined and managed.

I validate Middle School aged children's feelings and fears all along this process: food allergies are real, serious and our feelings around them can be scary. They (the feelings and the food allergies) are also manageable with information, facts and a plan.

Secondly, we explore how a Middle School aged child understands their food allergy diagnosis: what are the facts, as they understand them, what is their plan, as they understand it? Very often children at this age have only pieces of the picture of food allergies, usually the death piece, but not the fuller picture of what food allergies are, how they work in the body (or don’t work) and what a food allergic reaction and its progression looks like.

Many Middle School aged children don’t remember earlier infant reactions or have never had a reaction and were diagnosed through testing as an infant. Without memories they have overblown ideas of what can happen; and with memories they can have even more overblown ideas of food allergic reactions.

Grounding Middle School aged children in the reality of disease management in an age appropriate way can help them learn how to separate reality from fantasy; fact from fiction. Once we are able to introduce this concept to children, I work with them, giving them more tools to calm themselves when they feel anxious and ways to ground themselves in the facts of food allergies.

This is beginning: airing the fears and getting to the facts.

***
Here are parts two and three of this blog series on middle school aged children and anxiety around food allergies.

Here's an excellent post about anxiety, generally speaking, in children, by Karen Young.

*I'm using Middle School aged children to represent the middle school years 8-12.

NB: When fears are not managed, children can suffer or withdraw. If you witness troubling behaviors in your child, please have them evaluated by a local child psychologist, social worker or psychiatrist as well as your allergist and your pediatrician.

Detail: Food Allergy Counseling: Your Middle School Child’s Food Allergy Fears

0 Food Allergy Counseling: Food Allergy Chef Cards

Every chef I’ve spoken to, without exception, loves receiving a chef card (or restaurant card as they are sometimes called) from their restaurant patrons. It cuts out the game of telephone and gets the information in a clear way directly to where it needs to go: the chef. 

In the past few years, more companies have started to offer cards, many more than when I started this blog back in 2006. Here’s a list of a few options. If you know of more, put a link in the comments below

Chef cards in multiple languages:
Allergy Translation - http://allergytranslation.com/
Allergic Traveler - http://www.allergictraveler.net/
Select Wisely - http://www.selectwisely.com/

Free downloadable chef cards:
Allergy Free table - http://www.allergyfreetable.com/chef-card.php
Food Allergy Buddy –  http://www.supermarketguru.com/food-allergy-buddy.html
SafeFARE card - http://www.foodallergy.org/document.doc?id=219

My client made her own wonderful card on printed stationary: http://anallergicgirl.blogspot.com/2014/06/food-allergy-counseling-custom-chef.html

Detail: Food Allergy Counseling: Food Allergy Chef Cards

0 Food Allergy Counseling: Study from Northwestern Medicine: Risk Taking Behavior Among Adolescents with Food Allergy

My colleague, Dr Ruchi Gupta sent me the following information about a study she is conducting for teens ages 14-22.  

"The goal of this study is to learn more about the risk taking behaviors of food allergic adolescents – both in regard to general risk taking and risk taking as it relates to food allergy."  

*Nota Bene: I am in no way involved in any aspect this study.*

More information is below from Dr Ruchi Gupta at Northwestern Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University:

Study Overview: Researchers at Northwestern Medicine are conducting a research study entitled “Risk Taking Behavior among Adolescents with Food Allergy," which is currently enrolling participants.  The goal of this study is to learn more about the risk taking behaviors of food allergic adolescents – both in regard to general risk taking and risk taking as it relates to food allergy.  In order to participate in the study, adolescents between the ages of 14 and 22 years who currently have a food allergy are being asked to complete an entirely anonymous and confidential electronic survey. 

No protected health or identifying information is being collected.  No compensation is being offered in exchange for study participation. All aspects of this research study have been approved by the Northwestern Institutional Review Board, IRB STU00097291.

If you are between the ages of 18 and 22 and are interested in participating in this study, please click on this secure link to access the anonymous and confidential survey [https://redcap.nubic.northwestern.edu/redcap/surveys/?s=TcT8XLeZeA].

If you are a parent with a food allergic child between the ages of 14 and 17 and have no objections to your adolescent child participating in this study, please forward him/her this link [https://redcap.nubic.northwestern.edu/redcap/surveys/?s=TcT8XLeZeA].  The link will take him/her to the completely anonymous and confidential survey.

If you have any questions prior to making your decision, please feel free to contact Jacquie, jacqueline.pence@northwestern.edu, or Dr. Gupta, r-gupta@northwestern.edu.

Detail: Food Allergy Counseling: Study from Northwestern Medicine: Risk Taking Behavior Among Adolescents with Food Allergy

0 Food Allergy Counseling: Family, Holidays and Food Allergies

I read this New York Times opinion piece by Frank Bruni about his Italian American family - On Thanksgiving, an Abundance That's About Much More Than Food - and his Thanksgiving which he likens to “…. a forced march, only a catered one, with prosciutto” and thought, even though my family is not Italian American, anyone with food allergies can relate to the sentiment, especially on Thanksgiving. 

Bruni goes on to say: “We Italian-Americans exalt food because we Italian-Americans exalt family. They’re intertwined. Indistinguishable.”

Many cultures express their love through feeding each other. Ahem, I’m looking at you my Jewish brethren. And when you have severe food allergies and cannot indulge in beloved family recipes, sometimes feathers get ruffled. Or worse, rifts can form.

So how do you initiate a loving conversation with extended family about the holiday season? 

Here’s a handy solution for only $1.50, the family e-chapter from my book Allergic Girl: Adventures in Living Well with Food Allergies.

You can download this chapter, Allergic Girl Family Guide to Food Allergies from Barnes & Noble or Amazon.com’s Kindle Store. 

If you want a more personalized approach, contact me about a short term counseling program today.

Detail: Food Allergy Counseling: Family, Holidays and Food Allergies

0 Interview: Chef Matt Abdoo, Del Posto

November centerpiece

Cool, marble floors. Low, romantic lighting. A dark wooden bar. A sweeping staircase headed to parts unknown. Even at 9:00am, Del Posto is stately; a Tuscan Castle dropped onto Tenth Avenue. Which is exactly what happened ten years ago when the B&B grouptransformed a former Nabisco factory into their New York Times four star rated restaurant Del Posto. (Read the glowing review here, written by Sam Sifton’s deft and poetic hand.) Against the cool floors and steep prices, there is a ton of warmth to be had. It’s emanating from the kitchen, in part from Chef De Cuisine, Matt Abdoo. 

Picture of Chef Matt Abdoo copyright Matt Abdoo

I interviewed Chef Matt for an Allergic Living Magazine article about the third annual Allergy Eats Conference. (You can read that interview in the Winter 2015 issue.) I was particularly struck by Chef Matt’s passion for food, for his guests, his attention to food allergy details and that he kept using the word love over and over again in his presentation: he loves food, he loves his job, he just wants his patrons to leave happy and feeling the love.

Recently, I had a chance to have a deeper conversation with Chef Matt about Del Posto’s food allergen and gluten-free programs, created with Executive Chef Mark Ladner. (Please note, I have not yet dined at Del Posto.)

***

Allergic Girl: In the last few years, Del Posto made a splash by creating the first high-end (that I know of) fresh gluten-free pasta menu/options in New York City. How did the gluten-free program start?

Chef Matt Abdoo: About four years ago, we were noticing that more and more guests with dietary restrictions or allergies, whether it was to wheat or gluten. As we encourage our guests to order the price fixed menu with the taste of two pastas, we always felt badly if a guest couldn’t partake in the most courses.

We had always dried, commercially made gluten-free pasta available, we used rusticella d’albruzzo rice penne and corn fusilli, and if someone came in, we’d put on a separate pot of water and we’d use the same sauce so they could have something similar to other diners. 

But we wanted to go a step further so these diners could have the same exact thing like the other diners. And that has been the driving force for a lot of our work to create a gluten-free pasta program: to mirror our Del Posto entire experience but gluten-free. 

(AG: Del Posto uses Cup4Cup as the basis for their gluten-free pasta. It involves egg and dairy. Here’s more about Cup4Cup.) 

AG: Were the chefs and staff always so aware of dietary restrictions? Or has something changed since Del Posto opened ten years ago?

MA: What’s changed, more so than anything, is that dietary restrictions and allergies have risen. More and more people are discovering they have some kind of restriction and we need to be able to accommodate those guests in one way or another.

What hasn’t changed at Del Posto is that whether a guest doesn’t have a single dietary restriction and they are just blown away by the food or if they are a guest who says ‘I’m really hard to accommodate”, we at Del Posto always find a way to accommodate them and give them an experience that is memorable and that blows them away. 

That’s what’s important to us. We want to be able to make our guests happy. We want to be able to fulfill an experience that is above and beyond anything that they thought was possible.

So, accommodating our guests with allergies and dietary restrictions is no different than how we have been and would accommodate any other guest.

AG: What is the procedure, generally, when a food allergy or gluten-free order comes into the kitchen at Del Posto? (NB: The process is more extensive and detailed than what is below, this is just a sample of some of the steps they stated that they take.)

MA: When guests make a reservation at Del Posto, our reservationists are trained to ask if there are any dietary restrictions in the party, and so the very first point of contact with guests is an attempt to get any pertinent information regarding allergies. 

The reservationist will then note the restriction on the reservation for the main dining room staff and the kitchen to be aware of from the get-go.

During dinner service, all tickets that include orders for food allergic guests or dietary restrictions of any kind include that guest’s seat number, as well as a special notation each time a ticket comes in.

Once the tickets are in the kitchen, they are marked with red dot stickers, which serve as a visual cue for everyone involved that there is a dietary restriction at the table.

Chef Matt and the red dot sticker for allergy plates 

Each plate for a food allergic guest is marked with a red dot sticker, and then hand delivered by a manager when the food walks for that table.

Finally, and most importantly, we do our very best to keep cross contamination at a minimum. Food is cooked in separate vessels that are free from the specific allergy in question- pans, pots, water, and special spoons are all used.

AG: That’s extensive. What about raw products?

MA: The food allergy process at Del Posto begins, in fact, with receiving products and inspecting products. An employee goes through all deliveries to ensure that the correct items have been delivered, and that those items have not been subjected to potential contaminants, for example: we don’t want to see a bag of almonds on top of a bag of wheat flour. 

To this end, our receiver also makes sure that all the ordered goods are in the appropriate condition. We do not accept dented items, or anything that looks tampered with. It’s a lot of work-- training your staff what to look for-- but it’s necessary.

The next step is processing ingredients. We make sure that all team members are aware of the top 8 allergens: shellfish, soy, milk, eggs, tree nuts, peanuts, fish and wheat.  When we are producing allergy friendly dishes they are prepared in a work environment free from the top 8 allergens, and all ingredients are treated with extra care and concern. 

For service and the service team, we provide extensive staff training, from meeting to pop quizzes, to testing, and a huge number training documents available to study from.

And then we wait for the reservation and enact those procedures I mentioned before.

AG: Incredibly extensive! So, in your opinion, generally speaking, what mistakes should a diner with food allergies watch out for when any restaurant is handling a food allergy or special diet order?

MA: There should be clear and continuous communication throughout the entirety of the meal with managerial staff. If there isn’t, that is a red flag.

Additionally, guests should watch out when the food is not delivered by either the manager or the person that took the order.

Make certain that the person you have been interacting with about your food allergies or their superior is the one that is looking out for you and understanding that your plate has a special request on it.

For example, at Del Posto, we require that a manager is the one point person who has contact with a guest with a food allergy request and sees it all the way through to delivery.

If when a manager delivers your meal to the table, if a discreet announcement is not made with eye contact about your special requests, it may not be your meal. Don’t eat if you are unsure.

AG: What are the top three things you need to hear from a guest to accommodate them when dining at Del Posto?

MA: 

1. What a guest can not have. 

2. What a guest can have. 

3. What they had last visit, if there was a last visit. 

If they have chef or restaurant card, use it. We love the card.

As chefs during a busy meal service, we’re processing a thousand things at once. When an allergy order comes in, we stop. And then our brains have to reprocess and go through every ingredient to every dish according to your needs, and we check and double check, because we get nervous and get scared. So, if you use a chef card or something like Sloane's word document and tell us what you can have, as well as what you can’t, it’s great!

AG: I know many people with severe dietary restrictions feel like chef cards or giving lists of can/cannot haves flags them as a difficult or undesirable guest. Do you agree? Basically, what’s the perception of special requests?

MA: Here at Del Posto every guest is welcomed like your Italian grandmother would; with a warm, welcoming hug. We love getting the information about you that will help us serve you better and safe and make you comfortable. 

AG: What’s the best way a diner should get in touch with Del Posto to start a dialog about dining with you, especially if they have severe food allergies or special dietary requests?

MA: Call (212.497.8090) or email us through opentable.com. The most important thing is that you reach someone and get a confirmation of your needs.

***

Thank you, Chef Matt and the Del Posto team for all that you do for guests with severe food allergies and dietary restrictions!

Del Posto
85 10th Avenue 
New York, NY 10011
(212) 497-8090

Detail: Interview: Chef Matt Abdoo, Del Posto