Cpelk

I'm allergic to shellfish. I know this has been discussed, and I'm not really paranoid about it, but in case I end up somewhere that no one speaks English but me, I wanted to make up a card. I had to adapt what I had read on other discussions, since my allergy is ONLY to shellfish, I can, thank goodness, eat mollusks; clams, mussels, oysters, and all other seafood, just not shell fish. The online cards that can be ordered always seem to include ALL seafood, or shellfish and mollusks.

So here's what I came up with.

INFORMAZIONE IMPORTANTE PER IL RISTORANTE

Io sono gravemente allergica ai crostacei-
-aragosta,gambero, granchio.

Si tratta di una condizione medica molto seria.

Se mangio crostacei, avrò bisogno
dell'attenzione immediata medica.


I want to make sure that this will get the message through loud and clear.

Thanks for your help.

CindyP

basingstoke2

Draw pictures of each banned item with the international sign of a circle with a diagonal line through it and the word NO!under each picture as well. That should get the idea accross.

janisj

I can't help w/ the translation -- but I am curious. I've always thought clams, mussels and oysters were shellfish. My local fish market displays them along w/ crab, lobster, etc. under a sign "Shellfish"

So what does 'shellfish' mean in your context?

StCirq

Same question here, sort of. Is it only crustaceans you're allergic to? I wonder if it's reasonable to assume that a knowledgeable person in an Italian restaurant would understand the fine distinctions among molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms. Probably more likely than in an Olive Garden, but still....

I think it would be useful to make a comprehensive list of all the shellfish you cannot eat.

Cpelk

My allergic reactions have only been when eating shrimp and crab. My allergy tests only came back positive for shrimp, crab and lobster. My tests were negative for clams, mussels, oysters and I've never had any issues with any fish.

I agree that it could be confusing for a waiter or chef. It's frustrating for me because this only occurred in the past year, after a lifetime of eating whatever I wanted.

The idea of the picture with the universal symbol is a good one.

And yes, I guess shellfish is not the correct term to use, since it is more generic.

Thanks for helping me to clarify this.

CindyP.

zeppole

Adding "frutti di mare" would go a long way toward covering the waterfront, but you should get a native Italian speaker to help you. I think there are some who post on Slow Travel, and certainly some do on Tripadvisor.

I would actually stick to the most generic names rather than get into specifics like "aragosta" or "gambieri" because this things can be known by different names in different parts of Italy (lobsters are "astice" in Liguria, and there must be six different names for different types of shrimp.)

Do you have a problem if you eat a non-shrimp dish that has been stirred with the same spoon that was used to stir a dish with shrimp in it? Because this would be quite a common occurrence in many restaurants along Italy's coasts.

But most important:

Where are you going in Italy? In about 70 percent of Italy, you can sit back and relax. A crustacean has never seen the inside of most restaurants in the interior of Italy, which encompasses quite a bit of touristic territory. Even Roman restaurants rarely have seafood on the menu. But restaurants in Venice, the Riviera and the Amalfi coast almost exclusively focus on seafood and fish.

(PS: I like basingstoke's idea, but if you are not artistic, just find small clear pictures of shrimp, crabs and lobsters on the web, paste them on a card and draw a circle and slash on them for the international symbol for "forbidden", and add the warning about the severity of your allergy, with exclamation points).

zeppole

PS: I should have added in my post that while I get it you are not allergic to all fruits of the sea, I am suggesting that you not risk making the fine distinction to waiters if your allergy is life-threatening. Waiters may not know all the ingredients of a recipe (like a sauce base being made from shrimp shells), or consider the possibility of cross-contaminaton, and since you don't speak Italian, the chances for misunderstanding are there.

zeppole

Hi again, cpelk,

I just clicked on your name and saw previous posts that indicate you are going to Rome, Florence and Venice.

Venice is basically your only problem, and on the Chowhound website, there is a regular poster who knows Venetian restaurants like the back of her hand. She can not only tell you the precise Venetian names for the local shrimp (it is different there), but she can recommend restaurants where you can either have a meat menu solely, or where the staff is totally top-notch and will understand your English and your allergy.

While you are over there, there are fluent Italian speakers plus food specialists for Rome. I just don't know about Florence.

But you could really put all worry behind you if you also invested in a copy of Fred Plotkin's Italy for the Gourmet Traveler and read what are the classic dishes for Rome and Florence. You will see what the ingredients are. If you go the restaurants he recommends, those restaurants will make that dish in the classic way -- meaning, if there was never shrimp in the original recipe, the restaurant won't add it. So you will know in advance where to go and what to order, no guesswork -- and you will eat deliciously and affordably.

zeppole

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/791756

ellenem

A few years ago I traveled to Venice with a friend who had a similar allergy. A native Italian (lives in Torino, born in Sardegna) made this translation for us:

Sono allergica a molluschi e ai crostacei—i molluschi o crustacei che hanno il guscio o stanno dentro le conchiglie.
Crostacei: gamberi, mazzancolle, astici, aragoste, granchi, granceole, moleche
Molluschi: cozze, vongole, fasolari, coquilles Saint-Jacques, capesante
Se li mangio, devo andare all’ospedale.

-----

I am allergic to mollusks and crustaceans—the mollusks or crustaceans that have a shell or are within shells.
Crustaceans: large shrimp, very large shrimp, lobster with big front claws, lobster without small front claws, crab, spider crab, miniature soft-shelled crabs
Mollusks: mussels, small clams, medium clams, sea scallops, other type of sea scallops
If I eat them, I must go to the hospital.

cls2paris

Cpelk - I had an allergy to shellfish as well and carried a card to alert the waiters in Italy. Cross-contamination is a concern for people with a shellfish allergy (which is a big hassle, IMO).

I also had a menu translation book (I like Eating and Drinking in Italy) and looked up the menu items and tried to make a good choice. Before ordering, I handed the waiter my card and waited for him to read it, then said or pointed to what I wanted to order, and asked "bene?". I often saw shrimp or prawns on menus in Rome, Tuscany and Umbria - especially in places that had a "seafood misti" plate. Also, in the Umbrian town we stayed they served whole lobsters (which made me very sad because love lobster!) at one of the better restaurants in town.

The card I had read something like I am allergic to shellfish - shrimp, prawns, lobster, crab.... I cannot eat shellfish or food that is prepared in the same pan as shellfish. If I eat shellfish I will need medical attention and I may die in restaurant. The second part just says to call an ambulance and say I am in analphalactic (sp) shock.

INFORMAZIONE IMPORTANTE PER IL RISTORANTE

Sono gravemente allergica ai crostacei (aragosta, gambero, molluschi, mitili, granchio, ostriche, ecc.).

Si tratta di una condizione medica molto seria. Potrei morire dopo aver ingerito questo tipo di cibo, cibo preparato con utensili che hanno toccato crostacei, cibo con olio di crostacei, estratti, brodi, ecc. E’ importante ricordare che questo ingrediente potrebbe essere presente anche nei cibi comprati gia’ fatti.

Se mangio crostacei o qualunque cibo che è stato cucinato con crostacei o che ha toccato crostacei, avrò bisogno dell'attenzione immediata medica.

La prego gentilmente di non darmi cibo che potrebbe contenere o che ha toccato crostacei.

If you have an attack:
AIUTO! Sto avendo una crisa di shock anafilattico. Per favore, chiamate subito un’ambulanza

Have fun in Italy, I'll be visiting Florence and Venice in 2 weeks and can't wait!

Peter_S_Aus

A suggestion for Venice (noting that fish and seafood are big in Vernice).

The restaurant La Bitta in Calle Lunga San Barnaba proudly displays “No fish” on their menu. They don’t do seafood either. We ate there with a friend who has a seafood allergy.

http://www.fodors.com/world/europe/i...ew-155340.html

zeppole

cis2paris,

There are many, many restaurants in Rome and Umbria where you would not have seen crustaceans anywhere in the restaurant. In particular, Rome's Jewish restaurants wouldn't have them, and they cook up some of the best food there is in Rome. In Umbria, it is simply not native to the cuisine. There are, of course, many Michelin-starred restaurants, creative or nouvelle restaurants in Rome and Umbria, and these are often precisely the restaurants one sees recommended in guidebooks, because many travelers want lots of food choices when they travel, not the traditional limited menus of Italy's regional restaurants.

I think cpelk needs to carry a card, but if he or she is interested, the problem could be vastly simplified by only going to restaurants that don't offer seafood, which is very easy to do away from the coasts. Peter has even offered one suggestion for Venice. The Chowhound message board for Italy has several posters who live in Venice and in Rome who know many excellent restaurants that don't have seafood on the menu. Reading a guidebook like Fred Plotkin's Italy for the Gourmet Traveler would mean understanding the huge array of delicious local food you can order they don't have creative sauces and hidden ingredients.

Hopefully cpelk is traveling with others who will be willing to dine in places where seafood isn't served. If they understand Italian regional cuisine, they won't balk.

Cpelk

Lot's of great information and responses here.

I don't "think" my allergy is so severe that I need to worry about cross contamination. But am I willing to chance that so far away from home? Probably not. I will be traveling with epi-pens, which I have never had to use, yet, and I'd be happy to not have to use them, ever.

My husband will be willing to dine wherever I want, no concern there. He really doesn't want to be the one who has to stab me in the thigh with an epi pen. And we are renting an apartment so will be preparing some of our own meals.

I do have the Eating & Drinking in Italy book with the long list of menu translations. I would of course never order any mixed seafood dishes, and if there are whole shrimp, crab, lobster in a dish I think that would be able to figure that out from the menu or at least I'd see them if they were on my plate. My concern is mainly for "hidden" shrimp & crab, such as in sauces, soups, stuffings.

Here in the US it isn't usually an issue because if a restaurant is using any of these items as ingredients they make sure it's included on the menu. In the days when I could still eat these things I ordered so called shrimp bisque that I believe may have had one shrimp used like a tea bag in a 20 gallon pot of a cream base soup.

Thank you all for helping with this. I will carry a card and my menu translation book and be VERY careful if eating out in Venice. I would love to get a plate of pasta vongole of some type and I'm hoping that's possible. If not, well, I think I will still manage to have an incredible time in Italy.

There's always Gelato!

CindyP.

cls2paris

Zeppole - well, I guess I was unlucky and ventured into the handful of restaurants in Rome and Umbria that did offer crustaceans! Fortunately,it turned out well for me.

caroline_edinburgh

Your translation is fine. (I'd also call lobster, prawns & crab shellfish, but that's by the by.) Since you know the most usual Italian names for each of those 3, I think that's clearer than trying to draw pictures. I know there are different names in different parts of the country, but any waiter would understand what you meant by those 3 words. You don't want to use "frutti di mare" if you are happy to eat other types of shellfish like mussels and clams. (Not a native Italian speaker but a keen eater who has studied Italian for 20 years !)