Making Synapses · Bringing Knowledge to Mankind
CulinaryWhen you do not know if a dish is safe
A guest with a food allergy asks whether a dish contains the allergen and you do not know. The state rules expect every employee to have instructions for this moment: you never guess, you ask, and the guest gets real information to make an informed decision.
Free to startScenarios
- A guest asks whether a sauce contains tree nuts and the server does not know.
- A new employee does not know how to answer a guest's question about allergens.
The steps
- Say you are not sure instead of guessing whether the dish is safe.
- Ask the questions you need about the allergens in the dish, following the restaurant's procedure for point of service employees, kitchen staff and the person in charge.
- Check the written notice of major food allergens the restaurant keeps for its unpackaged food.
- Bring the answer back to the guest, so the guest makes an informed decision.
- Keep the same information flowing between the guest, the staff and the chefs.
Safety rules that stop the station
- An employee who is unsure never guesses: they ask.
To pass
- The employee poster directs employees to ask questions if they are unsure of the presence of allergens in food items, allowing the guest to make an informed decision.
- Approved allergen awareness training includes detailed instructions for a food employee who does not know how to handle a guest's question on food allergens.
Official source
Massachusetts · DPH, 105 CMR 590.011
Food Allergen Awareness FAQs
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health lists in its Food Allergen Awareness FAQs (Q3 and Q5) what the training and the poster must say when an employee is unsure.
Making Synapses is not affiliated with, sponsored by or endorsed by the FDA, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health or any certification provider. Agency names are named only to describe the content.