Food allergies and anytime dining

[joelheather]

I have some food allergies and i talked with the medical needs dept. yesterday.  They told me that anytime dining does not work with food allergies.

that its would be very tough on the waitstaff.  We have been on disney, royal, ncl, princess & MSC  no problem at all. I# this normal for Carnival. And just to be fair we recently did the adventure of the seas  no problem at all.

[iamsteph]

I have celiac disease and have to eat gluten free.  I find that it is tricker during anytime dining, especially if you end up with a different wait staff each night.  I prefer anytime dining, so I always ask to be seated in the same section as the night before (if possible).  The staff usually remembers me, that I'll have a special order, and it's not a problem. 

[Baxter1234]

We always do assigned dining with my husband having allergies.  The waitstaff are excellent and he is always brought the next nights menu after dessert so he can preorder any dish made without the allergens.

 

[sassytpotts]

I have celiacs and need 100% gluten free.  I have done anytime dining several times.  When I board I talk to the maitre d' and they take my order for the first night.  The hostess has my reservation flagged and lets the wait staff know of my "allergy".  The waitstaff which, at times, is different brings me a menu to order the next evenings meal.  If they forget, I just remind them and it is no big deal.

 

With that said, it is less of a hassle with the same waitstaff every night, so just ask to sit with the same server each night.  Carnival has been excellent with my food needs.  I have done Chef's Table 3xs as well.

[EngIceDave]

By knowing your allergy and your seating time, you ALLERGY SPECIFIC food may be prepared IN AN ALLERGY FREE ENVIRONMENT.

 

When you go into a restaurant and say "allergy," you better mean it, because everything stops and MUST be wiped down and cleared, even air in some instances (like peanut). It can be an entire process.

 

So unless you want your dinner to come from Chef Mic or to be dead in the pass forever, they need to know when you are eating.

 

If you don't care about the quality, don't go to MDR

 

Not trying to be mean, but my brother is in the restaurant business as well as my kids worked in service when they were younger, saying you have an allergy is a big, big, deal.

 

Even if you don't like something, like mayonnaise, do not say it's an allergy. This is a real issue in restaurants.

 

This is why you time needs to be known in advance, not waltzing in at anytime.

[Jasonsterling]

On 8/7/2021 at 8:52 AM, joelheather said:

I have some food allergies and i talked with the medical needs dept. yesterday.  They told me that anytime dining does not work with food allergies.

that its would be very tough on the waitstaff.  We have been on disney, royal, ncl, princess & MSC  no problem at all. I# this normal for Carnival. And just to be fair we recently did the adventure of the seas  no problem at all.

Would it be tough on the waitstaff? Yes, it would be tough, that said if you have a severe allergy to say nuts I see no reason why you can't still utilize anytime dining- do you have to schedule at your local restaurant to eat? Then I wouldn't worry here about that either. What you might find though, since often various dishes are made in advance for speed in serving is delayed food delivery, perhaps substantial for yourself and your dining mates. As well, there may be some exceptions on the menu that will not be available. I'm thinking desserts here because they are so universally made in advance. If that doesn't bother you then I see very little concern with anytime dining if that's your preference.

[florida eagle]

2 hours ago, EngIceDave said:

By knowing your allergy and your seating time, you ALLERGY SPECIFIC food may be prepared IN AN ALLERGY FREE ENVIRONMENT.

 

When you go into a restaurant and say "allergy," you better mean it, because everything stops and MUST be wiped down and cleared, even air in some instances (like peanut). It can be an entire process.

 

So unless you want your dinner to come from Chef Mic or to be dead in the pass forever, they need to know when you are eating.

 

If you don't care about the quality, don't go to MDR

 

Not trying to be mean, but my brother is in the restaurant business as well as my kids worked in service when they were younger, saying you have an allergy is a big, big, deal.

 

Even if you don't like something, like mayonnaise, do not say it's an allergy. This is a real issue in restaurants.

 

This is why you time needs to be known in advance, not waltzing in at anytime.

I was on a Royal cruise and a lady in the MDR suggested a seafood item. It may have been a premium like lobster. It did not bother me but I said I have allergies to different types of seafood. She got nervous like she would lose her job. Perhaps she was thinking if I had a sever reaction it would be bad for her. It would be interesting to know what the men and women that work on the ships have to follow in their employment rules.  

[EngIceDave]

Some people can die due to food allergies. Ship kitchens are more like assembly lines where everything is set to go. When you toss an allergy into the mix, it can grind things to a halt, because now you have a completely separate firing of a plate, in a location away from everywhere else, all alone.

 

 

[BlerkOne]

For allergies, generally you need to order your food the night before. With YTD, you may not have the same waitstaff each evening, and they don't know what time to have the food prepared for. You might be able to work something out with the YTD maitre d' once on the ship. Maybe.

[jjow]

18 hours ago, EngIceDave said:

When you go into a restaurant and say "allergy," you better mean it, because everything stops and MUST be wiped down and cleared, even air in some instances (like peanut). It can be an entire process.

 

This is just wildly untrue except in all but the most strict, well trained, allergy friendly restaurants. I have Celiac Disease and can tell you with complete confidence that 95% of the restaurants I've eaten at are not like this. Often they will wipe things down, change their gloves, or get new utensils, but even that is all pretty hit or miss. Most restaurants' allergy protocols are not going to stop the entire production in order to clean the whole kitchen. Instead, most just have a disclaimer on their menu saying they cannot guarantee an allergen free environment and that you are basically eating there at your own risk. That absolves them of any legal issues. I can say "allergy" till I'm red in the face but that won't stop the minimum wage line cook from putting croutons on my salad (which he then realizes is on an allergy ticket so he takes the croutons off, not knowing the crumbs left on the salad will make me very sick). I've even eaten at very high end restaurants, informed them I have a severe gluten allergy, and still been served gluten. Saying we have an allergy SHOULD be a big deal, but I'm sorry to say that it's just not for most restaurants. 

 

18 hours ago, EngIceDave said:

If you don't care about the quality, don't go to MDR

 

Well the MDR is honestly the safest food for people with allergies. The buffet is an absolute nightmare in terms of cross contact with multiple allergens, so the MDR is preferable.

 

18 hours ago, EngIceDave said:

By knowing your allergy and your seating time, you ALLERGY SPECIFIC food may be prepared IN AN ALLERGY FREE ENVIRONMENT.

 

As far as I know, this varies by cruise line and even by ship. I believe on Carnival some ships have a special area for allergens. I know on some ships when I order a gluten free pizza, they will make it in a different oven in a different part of the kitchen. Same with any of the deli sandwiches on gluten free breads. But on other ships (usually older, smaller ships), they'll just change their gloves and do a quick wipe down of the normal preparation area. As far as the MDR food goes, I believe certain things that are already naturally gluten free will not be specially prepared in a separate area. Say I order the shrimp cocktail, which is naturally gluten free. The shrimp cocktails were assembled in the normal kitchen, all at once, and then kept in a fridge until needed. They were probably assembled by someone with fresh gloves and without any gluten in the immediate area. So when I order the shrimp cocktail, they aren't rushing to prepare me a special fresh made one that's "gluten free". It's already gluten free, so that's the one I'm getting.

12 hours ago, EngIceDave said:

When you toss an allergy into the mix, it can grind things to a halt, because now you have a completely separate firing of a plate, in a location away from everywhere else, all alone.

 

Well if it's cooked in a separate area, it's not grinding anything to a halt, because it's not affecting the main prep area at all. If they have a separate area to prepare the allergen free food, they presumably also have staffing for that special area. It's not like you're going to order allergen free food and the entire kitchen of 50 cooks has to stop what they're doing to prepare your food. You are right that ship kitchens are incredibly efficient, but they deal with allergens on a DAILY BASIS. They know what they're doing so please leave it up to them. You sound like you don't have a food allergy yourself. Trust me, those of us with allergies don't need to be reminded what a huge pain in the ass we are. We know it's always a hassle everywhere we go, but cruises are actually one of the best places to have a normal experience because they're so accommodating, and they are GOOD at being accommodating.

On 8/7/2021 at 6:52 AM, joelheather said:

I have some food allergies and i talked with the medical needs dept. yesterday.  They told me that anytime dining does not work with food allergies.

 

To answer the OP's question.... I have done YTD on multiple Carnival cruises and have never had any issue with it. Having said that, I only have a gluten allergy, I don't have multiple allergies. I'm also pretty well versed in Carnival's menus and know what I can typically have and what has to be modified to be gluten free. I always order my food the night before, and even with a different server every night, I almost never have to remind the server to bring me the next night's menu. I'm sure requesting the same server every night as some people do would help as well, but I've never felt the need to do that. My food might take a little longer sometimes but honestly that's expected with special allergen food. Personally I think it would cause LESS of a delay to everyone else with YTD, since you're seated at your own table. With assigned dining times, your food might cause a delay to everyone else's since everyone is served at the same time. I almost never notice it taking very much longer at dinner, though. They will accommodate you at breakfast, brunch, and lunch too, you just need to order that stuff the night before as well.

 

With multiple allergies, the main issue you'll run into will be the waitstaff not knowing what allergens the menu items contain. They aren't marked on the menu and you'll have no idea what they'll make special for you or just leave off your plate. I know a few times I've ordered some sort of meat with a sauce, but when I actually get it they've just left the sauce off. Again, I'm very familiar with the menu and know what to avoid or look out for, but my allergy is pretty simple. If your allergies are extensive or severe enough, you may want to ask for the chef to consult with when ordering the next night's dinners. They will almost certainly be able to accommodate you (even if it's having to special order something) and will have more knowledge than the waitstaff.

 

Long story short: an assigned dining time might be more helpful if you have a lot of allergies or need to request special items. If you think you can make do with ordering mostly from the regular menu with only slight modifications, YTD works just fine. 

[EngIceDave]

Yeah, ok boss

[sanger727]

17 hours ago, EngIceDave said:

Some people can die due to food allergies. Ship kitchens are more like assembly lines where everything is set to go. When you toss an allergy into the mix, it can grind things to a halt, because now you have a completely separate firing of a plate, in a location away from everywhere else, all alone.

 

 

 

I've been on a handful of kitchen tours on several different cruise ships. They all have an "allergy" section of the kitchen for these orders. It doesn't grind the main dining process to a halt. They have to accommodate way too many allergies too often to not have a plan for this.

[EngIceDave]

That ticket does, because everything on that ticket stops for that meal to be prepared separately

 

If y'all can't understand someone speaking (writing) in a conversational manner and not a technical term paper and want to parse every word, have at it, I really don't care.