The Cost of Caution: When 'Safety First' Means 'No Service'""
In the 22 years that my wife and I have been together, we have dined at a good many restaurants, both here in the UK and abroad. We have always been upfront when entering these establishments, informing them of my wife's unique allergy, called silver birch allergy. While we've sometimes required special accommodations, we've never been turned away until today.
I fully appreciate a restaurant's need to avoid serious allergic reactions, but as a hospitality business, a reasonable effort should be made to accommodate guests. We were politely turned away due to a fear of cross-contamination, which was disappointing. Most kitchens are capable of taking standard precautions to prevent this, such as using separate utensils and preparation surfaces.
For future reference, I would highly recommend that your team explores solutions to safely accommodate guests with allergies. This could include training your staff to properly handle special requests, as well as providing a waiver for guests to sign, acknowledging that they are comfortable dining at your restaurant after you have made every effort to ensure their safety.
We hope you will consider these suggestions so that others with allergies can enjoy your restaurant in the future. *The restaurant in question was the at the Gloucester Food Dock