Allergy Eating in Sydney

Establishment: Del Punto, Randwick Cuisine: Spanish Tapas  Allergy information: Their menu has a number of options that are dairy, egg, seafood and nut free Suggestions: Absolutely try the Tumbet which is dairy, egg and seafood free The Spot in Randwick is known for its variety of places to eat and drink as well as the added option of topping off your night with a movie at the Heritage listed Ritz Cinema, making it a brilliant place to find some good eats or knock together a great night out. What makes it even better is that there are some surprisingly allergy-friendly options hidden in among the restaurants, one place in particular being Del Punto , where they like to give people 'a little taste of Barcelona' with their dishes.  It had been years since I'd tried Spanish food and my workmates and I wanted to find a spot for a team lunch so someone suggested Del Punto. The others had been before but I'd been away at the time so I'd never tried the ...

Establishment: Yullis, Surry Hills Cuisine: Creative vegetarian, vegan and gluten free dishes Allergy information: They have separate menus for vegan and gluten free diets but  note they do make some vegetarian dishes with cheese and nuts so be sure to let them know if you have any allergies Suggestions: Without a doubt, the Sticky Date and Banana Pudding with Salted Caramel Sauce and Coconut Ice Cream is absolutely scrumptious while being dairy, egg, gluten and nut free.  Oh,  Yullis . For some time now, they have housed my favourite allergy-friendly desserts in Sydney. I admit that its sweet treats have recently seen some competition in the direction of Glebe, but overall, I've yet to come across another pudding that quite knocks their Sticky Date and Banana Pudding off of its ornate pedestal in my mind. Yullis sits unobtrusively on Crown Street, right across the road from the always alive and busy Clock Hotel, and might sometimes be easy to miss till ...

Wonderful surprise discoveries while travelling with allergies! Find #3 - Cinnamon Works, Pike Place, Seattle, US I was fortunate enough to get to visit Seattle in September of 2016 and I have to say, travelling along the west coast of the US was so much fun and full of amazing allergy-safe finds.  Living in Australia with allergies is certainly getting easier as each day passes. However, after visiting places like the US, Canada and the UK, you do get a real sense of how different it is in countries with genuinely larger populations and therefore larger populations dealing with dietary restrictions. Just walking through markets, supermarkets and stores presented me with so many more options than I'd ever seen back home and while some of those were clearly catered to specific diets, being 'vegan' or 'free from', often you'd find those allergens not getting included at all in regular items, which is great.  One of the places I did stumble upon whi...

Establishment: Salt Meats Cheese, Broadway Cuisine: Family owned Italian Restaurant Allergy information: Vegan Pizza Night has many dairy, egg, nut and seafood free options Suggestions: Potatoes Pizza! And the Truffle and Mushroom.  While there are now so many more options for allergy-friendly pizza, it can still often be a bit daunting considering the high possibility of cross-contamination with cheese, particularly at Italian restaurants filled with genuinely cheesy pizzas and parmesan shakers floating about everywhere (in the most non-literal sense of course). I've also had past experience at some places that used Notzarella which had sparked slight allergic reactions (nothing worse than some slightly swollen lips and throat itches, but still enough not to recommend at that stage) and that had rather dampened my wishes to try it again.  Then a couple of my friends brought the new All You Can Eat Vegan Pizza Tuesdays at  Salt Meats Cheese  in Bro...

Photo courtesy of my friend, Mench. Cheers for making us stick around Melbourne Central in order to stumble upon this place! Establishment: Cupcake Central, Melbourne Central Cuisine: Cupcake bakery Allergy information: they have vegan, gluten free and nut free flavours, however they warn of possibility of cross-contamination as products with allergens are also prepared on the premises Suggestions: flavours vary daily but if they're available, I would highly recommend the following vegan flavours - Birthday Cake, Chocolate, Snickers and Cookie Butter - amazing! I was unsure whether or not to include this as an Allergy-friendly Travel Eat because I don't live in Melbourne but seeing as it's still in the home country, I'll list it as a local spot while ignoring that it would take me a flight or an 8-10 hour drive to get there! Last September long weekend, my friend and I decided to have an easy few days away in Melbourne and one thing we can always count on w...

Saturday Brunching with my dearest Ma. Establishment: Caffe Cherry Beans Cuisine: Cafe, all day breakfast Allergy Information: Some dishes are dairy, egg, seafood and nut free or can be made vegan Suggestions: the BLAT, without aioli, with the herby fries or the garnish salad (it's simple, but the balsamic glaze is lovely) I don't generally eat at a lot of cafes. Perhaps on occasion, I'll grab a tea or a cold drink with a friend but for the most part, I don't usually find it that easy to find allergy-safe foods at cafes. Of course, that tends to mean that if you're in shopping centres or out and about, your main options are fast food or restaurants. Minus places like cafes, which tend to serve that bit more lightly and quickly than if you decide to sit down in a restaurant, you don't have much of a happy medium. Don't get me wrong, I can enjoy both quite easily, but it is also nice to have some quicker eats options for food, particularly in the mi...

Establishment: The Bulgogi, Strathfield Cuisine: Korean/KBBQ Allergy Information: There are many dishes that are dairy, egg, seafood and nut free. Some dishes have egg, but you can request they remove it. Most dishes will likely contain soy and/or sesame so double check with staff.  Suggestions: Stir Fried Bulgogi is delicious and dairy, egg, seafood and nut free, but be aware it contains soy and sesame.  When it comes to allergies, there is some wisdom in the notion that if you need something done right, you should do it yourself.  The idea of going to Korean BBQ was presented to me as an option by my friends because the ability to cook my own pork would mean I could ensure there were no allergens in my food and eat along with everyone else. We would then be able to order a range of meats and I would just be sure to get my meat cooked first to avoid any cross contamination with the marinated meats. Then I'd be able to dive right into my lovely pork belly....

Wonderful surprise discoveries while travelling with allergies! Find #2 - Green and Pleasant Tearooms , Bourton-on-the-Water, Cheltenham, UK   I originally posted about this last May, while I was on holiday in the UK, in a blog entitled, 'How living with food allergies can be a most wonderful thing...' and I really meant that title. For all the difficulties that food or any other allergies can cause, the experience teaches you a great deal and it's impossible not to develop an appreciation for so many things, and for all the people who have actively tried to open up different foods for people and allow them to experience something that so many others never have to think twice about. I'm absolutely not saying that people without allergies necessarily take food for granted, but when you're forced to watch out for everything, it gives you a unique opportunity to experience and really savour firsts that others will have long forgotten... and those moments ...