The world is currently flush with diets and strict adherents. Vegetarian, carnivore, ketogenic, and many more kinds of diets have placed limits on the kinds of food people can eat. Additionally, many people are also allergic to different kinds of food. Lactose intolerance, for example, is theorized to afflict 65% of the world.
With all these dietary restrictions in place, planning events may feel like walking on a slack rope. However, there are still ways to manage the planning process. Here’s a guide to accommodating those restrictions.
Ask for Preferences
Asking for dietary preferences can help reduce the amount of leg work involved in accommodating said preferences. There are various ways to acquire peoples’ preferences. For example, you could conduct a quick google survey or ask people to mention their preferences and allergies when they respond to the invite.
Simplify the Menu and Add Labels
Manually asking for preferences probably isn’t feasible for larger events, like weddings. In these instances, your guests are in charge of eating responsibly, and you’re responsible for making it easier to do that.
Simplify your event’s menu by picking commonly eaten food that most people should be able to eat. Alternatively, you could also mention the ingredients included in the dishes or divide them according to dietary preferences.
For example, you could create a vegetarian and carnivore section or mention which foods and drinks contain milk. This makes it easier for each person to enjoy the buffet according to their preferences.
Common Allergies
In case you can’t get your guests’ preferences nor simplify the menu, you can plan for the worst-case scenario. Here are the most common ingredients to which people are allergic:
- Milk: Many people can’t easily digest lactose, a sugar found exclusively in milk, after infancy.
- Eggs: People are typically allergic to albumin, a protein found in eggs, or other proteins in the egg yolk.
- Nuts:People are most commonly allergic to peanuts and tree nuts, as they contain similar proteins.
- Gluten: Celiac disease is common and refers to a condition where people react negatively to gluten.
If you’re planning an event and are pulling your hair out trying to accommodate peoples’ diets, contact us at Pappy’s Devil Crabs. We provide catering services in the Tampa Bay Area, and we can help you accommodate peoples’ allergies and diets for your event.
