Managing a Nut Allergy in Prague
Having a Nut allergy is a serious business. On this post I’ll explain the EU Allergen system, suggest things to avoid here in Prague, suggest specific instances to look out for, where to get a replacement Epipen and a full “Allergy Warning” text for you to print.
Allergen List
Here is the European Union standard allergen list where specific numbers appear at the end of the meal name like 1,3,7 or 1,8,11 etc. You’ll know your own allergy intolerance so check below to see what to avoid but to be safe, anybody with a Nut/Seed allergy should definitely be avoiding anything marked 1, 5, 8, or 13. Specifically for sesame and rough mustard avoid 10 and 11.
- Cereals containing gluten
- Crustaceans and derived products
- Eggs and derived products
- Fish and derived products
- Peanuts and derived products
- Soybeans and derived products
- Milk and derived products (including lactose)
- Nuts: almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, cashews, pecans, Brazilian nuts, pistachios, macadamia nuts and derived products.
- Celery and derived products
- Mustard and derived products
- Sesame seeds and derived products
- Sulfur dioxide and sulphites
- Lupin and derived products
- Shellfish and derived products
General Nut/Seed Allergy Advice
Bring your Epipens with you but in Czech they’re known under the trade name Emerade. If you need to replace one in a hurry go to the chemist at Palackeho 5.
Invest in a medical ID bracelet which identifies this issue. Doctors here speak English and that bracelet can save valuable time.
Avoid Vietnamese, Chinese, Indian and Thai restaurants as the danger of cross-contamination is unusually high.
In my experience if you find menus with allergens 8, 12 or 13 then this is a restaurant that really has gone to some lengths to identify all of the ingredients used in each meal and are aware of the nut allergy issues.
In a regular restaurant the “salt and pepper” is standard granulated or ground. A problem exists for people with a Cashew intolerance in places where they use pepper grinders on the table. Specifically look to see if they have “Pink” peppercorns which will cause the same reaction as Cashew. Same if you are having a pepper-sauce with a steak.
Double-check your salad, especially a Cesar Salad which may have a sprinkling of sesame seeds.
Czechs are not spicy-food people but meals are often accompanied by a chilli pepper or bell-pepper where the seeds may be an issue.
Specifically if you have an Almond intolerance don’t eat what’s called “Trdlo” or “Trdelník”.
Tour Tips: If you are worried about allergies then here are a few organised food tour options in the city and these guys know exactly what’s in the food.
Desserts
As far as the EU Allergen charts are concerned then the “dessert section” of a menu will be the least accurate. I’d love to recommend some desserts but quite frankly it’s a minefield out there for Nut Allergy sufferers. Avoid the dessert called “Jablecný Zavin” (Apple Strudel) as it is likely to contain walnuts or hazelnuts. Avoid most cakes as they’ll have Hazelnut, Walnut, Almonds, Marzipan and/or Nougat in the mix. Avoid Czech Christmas sweets. Basically, avoid cake desserts.
Words and Phrases
Nut/s (noun) – orech/y, oríšek/oríšky
Nut (adjective) – orechový/á/é or oríškový/á/é
Walnut – vlašský orech
Hazelnut – lískový orech/oríšek
Peanuts – buráky, arašídy
Nut oil – orechový olej / olej z orech?
Contains nuts – obsahuje orechy
I’m allergic to nuts – Jsem alergický na orechy.
Are there any nuts in this meal? – Obsahuje toto jídlo orechy?
Prague Nut Allergy Card to Show Waiters
Ultimately it’s your first line of defence to get the waiter on your side so the card below is going to give them pause for thought in the nicest way possible. What a shock it was when I first started looking online to see what “Czech Text” options were out there with many specific nut types having gone through Google Translate and come out the other side as “nut”. So below are two sections of text. Note that the English version is just so you know what the Czech version is saying.
Hello,
I have a life-threatening allergy to nuts, nut oils, peanuts, and peanut oil. If I eat this food or any dish that has been cooked with it, I will stop breathing and need immediate medical attention. If any sauce, oil, dressing, or food item I am ordering contains nuts, nut oils, peanuts or peanut oil, please inform me immediately. After I order, I kindly ask that you ensure my food is free of nuts and has not come into contact with them through preparation. Even ingesting trace amounts can cause a severe reaction. Please avoid cross contamination by using separate and clean utensils, pans, cooking surfaces, and cutting boards. Please verify safe cooking oils, marinades, sauces, seasonings, and ingredients are used in my meal. I appreciate any measures taken for my safety and am very grateful for your understanding.
No: Nuts, Peanuts, Almonds, Pine nuts, Pecans, Chestnuts, Brazil nuts, Macadamia nuts, Walnuts, Pistachios, Cashews, Pink Peppercorn, Hazelnuts/Filberts, Praline, Chinquapin, Shea nuts, Pili Nuts, Nangai nuts, Litchi/lichee/lychee nut, Nut oil, Peanut oil, Nut paste (marzipan/almond paste, etc) Nut milk (cashew, almond, etc) Nut butter, Pesto (made with nuts).
Dobrý den,
Mám život ohrožující alergii na ořechy, ořechové oleje, arašídy a arašídový olej/máslo. Pokud bych jedl cokoliv toto obsahující, přestanu dýchat a potřebuji okamžitou lékařskou pomoc. Pokud nějaká omáčka, olej, dresink nebo jiná potravina, kterou objednávám, obsahuje ořechy, ořechové oleje, arašídy nebo arašídový olej, okamžitě mě prosím informujte. Po objednávce vás laskavě požádám, aby jste zajistila, že mé jídlo je zcela bez ořechů a při jeho přípravě nepřišlo s výše zmíněným (ořechy) do kontaktu. Dokonce i požití stopového množství může způsobit vážnou reakci. Vyhněte se prosím možné kontaminaci pomocí samostatného a čistého nádobí, pánví, varných ploch a prkének. Ověřte prosím, že v mém jídle se používají bezpečné oleje, marinády, omáčky, koření a jiné přísady. Oceňuji všechna opatření přijatá pro mou bezpečnost a jsem opravdu velmi vděčný/á za vaše pochopení.
Ne!: Žádné ořechy, arašídy, mandle, kaštany, piniové, pekanové, para, makadamové, vlašské, pistáciové, lískové a kešu ořechy, růžový pepř, pralinky, Chinquapin, shea ořechy, pili ořechy, Nangai ořechy, liči ořechy, ořechový olej, arašídový olej, pasta z ořechů (marcipánová mandlová pasta atd.), ořechové mléko (kešu, mandle atd.), ořechové máslo, pesto (vyrobené s ořechy).