Allergy Protocols

[dctravel]

I have read through pages of posts on food allergies and still have a few questions as to how to ensure that the MDR "gets it right" for my son who is allergic to dairy, but NOT anaphylactic (in fact, thankfully cross contamination (i.e., made in a factory that also process milk) is not a problem).

 

First, my experience. We have cruised before on Carnival, but my first RCI experience was on Harmony of the Seas for one of the preview cruises. Once we got our booking number, I followed the allergy protocol and sent an email to the special needs department. I got the auto generated email back saying to contact staff on board and never heard anything again. When we got to the MDR the first night, they had no idea I was coming and had limited options available for me to avoid my allergy (in this case soy flour). The staff could not have been friendlier, but I felt restricted and was left with a lack of variety, especially for dessert (I was told no on all desserts and was given a flour less chocolate cake both nights. While good, it was not much variety). Needless to say, this was "okay" for me, but would not work for my 5 yo.

 

So, fast forward. We are considering Adventure of the Seas for a cruise next summer. I called the post-cruise customer service line today to try and figure out what happened. They had no real idea why the ship didn't get the information and this is what concerns me.

 

Questions:

 

1. How can I be sure, once we book, that the ship will get information about my son's (and mine for that matter) allergies. I guess I send the email and then call to make sure they are all hooked up properly?

 

2. What should I expect in terms of variety of choices. Since my son needs to avoid dairy that is baked into items as well as "raw" dairy (milk cheese, etc...), should I expect the chef to make him special desserts/muffins, etc... or would he be expected to eat jello and fruit for dessert? I know that we would be ordering things the night before, and that is fine with us.

 

3. Our previous experience on Carnival (for me, as my son had not been diagnosed yet), was that they were able and more than willing to remake items that would otherwise contain an allergen, so long as they knew in advance and we ordered in advance. Has that been others experience too?

 

Thank you for reading my long post. Just trying to figure out what we want to do. I enjoyed the Harmony of the Seas so much that we would love to take the kids on RCI, but I can't do it if my son is going to have a "bad" eating week with limited choices.

 

dctravel

[Ourusualbeach]

I have read through pages of posts on food allergies and still have a few questions as to how to ensure that the MDR "gets it right" for my son who is allergic to dairy, but NOT anaphylactic (in fact, thankfully cross contamination (i.e., made in a factory that also process milk) is not a problem).

 

First, my experience. We have cruised before on Carnival, but my first RCI experience was on Harmony of the Seas for one of the preview cruises. Once we got our booking number, I followed the allergy protocol and sent an email to the special needs department. I got the auto generated email back saying to contact staff on board and never heard anything again. When we got to the MDR the first night, they had no idea I was coming and had limited options available for me to avoid my allergy (in this case soy flour). The staff could not have been friendlier, but I felt restricted and was left with a lack of variety, especially for dessert (I was told no on all desserts and was given a flour less chocolate cake both nights. While good, it was not much variety). Needless to say, this was "okay" for me, but would not work for my 5 yo.

 

So, fast forward. We are considering Adventure of the Seas for a cruise next summer. I called the post-cruise customer service line today to try and figure out what happened. They had no real idea why the ship didn't get the information and this is what concerns me.

 

Questions:

 

1. How can I be sure, once we book, that the ship will get information about my son's (and mine for that matter) allergies. I guess I send the email and then call to make sure they are all hooked up properly?

 

2. What should I expect in terms of variety of choices. Since my son needs to avoid dairy that is baked into items as well as "raw" dairy (milk cheese, etc...), should I expect the chef to make him special desserts/muffins, etc... or would he be expected to eat jello and fruit for dessert? I know that we would be ordering things the night before, and that is fine with us.

 

3. Our previous experience on Carnival (for me, as my son had not been diagnosed yet), was that they were able and more than willing to remake items that would otherwise contain an allergen, so long as they knew in advance and we ordered in advance. Has that been others experience too?

 

Thank you for reading my long post. Just trying to figure out what we want to do. I enjoyed the Harmony of the Seas so much that we would love to take the kids on RCI, but I can't do it if my son is going to have a "bad" eating week with limited choices.

 

dctravel

 

My wife has the exact same allergy as your son. She is allergic to the proteins in the dairy. As you know it is one of the more difficult allergies as their can be dairy in many processed foods.

 

Our experiences have been hit or miss. Despite letting special needs know for the first night it really does not matter and they don't seem to have a clue on board.

 

Once they know they do go out of their way to make sure that you have safe food to eat but it can be pretty bland especially the first night as they have not prepared anything.

 

We have found that your headwaiter can make or break the cruise in terms of dining options. You need to make sure that you place your order the day ahead for the next evenings meals. By doing this they can be somewhat creative and modify the dishes. Too often we have found that their idea of dairy free is just to omit the sauces and give you a plain piece of protein and a dry baked potato. Make sure that you specify a dairy free sauce if you want one. We have found that if you let them know what you want and give as many details as possible it turns out better. Some chefs are not as creative as others.

 

Desserts are a bigger issue. Definitely don't expect anything other than jello or fruit for the first night but they can get creative and there are a few desserts that can be modified. My wife likes the pavlova so she lets them know that the first day and they make up enough so that she can have one every night.

 

Breakfast and lunches she is now able to navigate her way around the buffet and finds lots to choose from.

 

With all that being said we now have been dining pretty much exclusively in the specialty restaurants where we feel the chefs do a much better job of not only providing her with safe food to eat but also interesting and enjoyable food. We still talk to each restaurant the day before though. No matter where it is they are limited as to what they can do with little or no notice.

[dctravel]

This is great information and what I thought might be true based on my limited experience on the Harmony.

 

Since we are dealing with a then 6 year old, palette is limited to begin with. I'm much less worried about entrees, as hamburger and plain chicken are his favorite (well French fries too).

 

Desserts and snacks are big. He loves things like muffins, cupcakes, and Italian ice. Any thoughts (even if not night one), that they can do those baked goods and have a non-dairy frozen alternative for him?

 

I understand that know one is likely to know the definitive answer. Just trying to make the best (and fairest for him) choice we can.

 

 

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[BeachLove999]

My son has the same allergy. However he can eat dairy protein if it has been cooked enough to help break it down such as in a pancake, cookie, cake, etc where the item is somewhat "dry". It is usually the frosting or milk chocolate chips or similar that are a problem. Obviously he can't have ice cream, cheese, or sauces. Fortunately he is able to test foods before committing to eating it. He can roll a small bit around in his mouth. If his mouth gets itchy he spits it out and all is good. If it doesn't itch he can eat it.

 

On the last cruse he had the problem of limited options. He ate a lot of chicken fingers for lunch.

[dctravel]

We are unique in that allergy actually causes a build up of a encephalitis in his esophagus over time. If left untreated it was cause hardening and inability to swallow. In the short term, it causes him discomfort if eaten. Sucks!

 

 

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[BeachLove999]

I never heard of that type of reaction. I agree that it sucks. Does the build up diminish over time if no dairy is consumed?

[Ourusualbeach]

This is great information and what I thought might be true based on my limited experience on the Harmony.

 

Since we are dealing with a then 6 year old, palette is limited to begin with. I'm much less worried about entrees, as hamburger and plain chicken are his favorite (well French fries too).

 

Desserts and snacks are big. He loves things like muffins, cupcakes, and Italian ice. Any thoughts (even if not night one), that they can do those baked goods and have a non-dairy frozen alternative for him?

 

I understand that know one is likely to know the definitive answer. Just trying to make the best (and fairest for him) choice we can.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

 

We are unique in that allergy actually causes a build up of a encephalitis in his esophagus over time. If left untreated it was cause hardening and inability to swallow. In the short term, it causes him discomfort if eaten. Sucks!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

 

They should be able to modify recipes so that muffins and cake could be made without dairy. I would ask your headwaiter on night 1 to have the chef come out and speak with you.

 

Any kind of reaction that causes difficulty in swallowing has to be scary. In my wife's case it causes severe joint pain. Minor amounts of dairy consumed I.e. The amount in some bread can be overcome with Benadryl, larger amounts inadvertently consumed are large doses of Benadryl, Celebrex and the day in bed.

 

You are your own best advocate on board. I'm glad that your son is not a picky eater as it will certainly make things easier.

[BeachLove999]

Does anyone know if you can talk to someone right after you board to let them know? Would that help the first night?

[Clarea]

Does anyone know if you can talk to someone right after you board to let them know? Would that help the first night?

I'd try speaking to the people at the entrance to the dining room and asking for your headwaiter.

[Ourusualbeach]

Does anyone know if you can talk to someone right after you board to let them know? Would that help the first night?

 

We have been able to talk to our headwaiter and a chef however they need a days notice to do anything other than remove the offending dairy items from the meal.

[dctravel]

I never heard of that type of reaction. I agree that it sucks. Does the build up diminish over time if no dairy is consumed?

 

 

So far, we think so. His latest tests since going dairy free were normal, so we are hopeful.

 

He actually is diagnosed with a condition called EoE (eosinophilic esophagitis). The dairy causes a build up of the eosinophils, which over time would cause major problems.

 

We don't know about cooked dairy yet. We can reintroduce that, but then more testing would be needed.

 

 

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[Essence08]

We are sailing next month with our 17 month old son who has dairy, egg and wheat allergies - anaphalaxtic to dairy.

 

I have been in regular contact with the special needs department trying to clarify what is and isn't availble and what can and can't be modified (for example most GF bread still has egg, can it be made without, etc, is their a dairy free butter/margarine alternative available on board, do thye have soy yoghurt, etc)

For the most part I get generic answers but the more I push the better the responses to the point they are forwarding the responses from the executive chef. Still very unclear on a lot of things but I'm hoping that through lots of correspondence things will be properly recorded on our reservations. Of course on the first day we will head to the MDR to speak with the dining room manager and head waiter, then cross our fingers and hope for the best.

 

I will also be bringing along printed copies of the email correspondence, cant hurt.

 

I'm not expecting increadibly fancy dinners for my little one but Id like him to have something more interesting then steamed vegetables and a grilled piece of meat each meal..

[easyboy]

Does anyone know if you can talk to someone right after you board to let them know? Would that help the first night?

My grandsons have peanut allergy and we always look for the Maitre D', or a Headwaiter, as soon as we board to discuss our situation.

[andrew2346]

You have done what you can. You are like me in that you really hope that others follow-thru with their job also but you can't guarantee that they will have any clue when you get on board. My son has a peanut allergy so it is a bit easier for us to avoid our problem than it might be for you.

 

I would follow the suggestions in the previous posts but don't stress over if they will know or not...prepare that they have no idea.

 

Maybe bring some of your child's favorite foods with you? Desserts are usually a problem for us with a peanut allergy so I brought a bag of his favorite candy.

 

My experience in the WJ left me unable to try desserts with my son. The attendants had no idea what I was asking and for some English is rusty. They brought out the pastry chef after about 25 mins of waiting and I still felt uneasy with the response.

[jlstwinmommy]

I agree that the head waiter can make or break your experience.

 

We were just on Adventurer in June. My mom has a ton of allergies, although not dairy (seriously, she has a full sheet of paper with a list of things she cannot eat). We found our head waiter on AOS was fantastic dealing with her allergies. The first night was a little difficult as they didn't have anything prepared and had to go with what was available. After that, they offered to make her anything she wanted. They would show her the dinner menu each night and she would select what she wanted and how it should be modified. For the WJ, they special made her a meal every day. She just showed up and let one of the waiters know she was there and they would deliver a meal she had ordered at the previous dinner. Our waiters and head waiter went out of their way to ensure she enjoyed every meal she ate on that ship. She had such a great experience, we currently have 2 more RCL cruises booked. Hopefully, they go as well as our AOS cruse did. :D

[Member123]

I am allergic to soy, in all its forms. This is one of the most difficult allergies for the ship simply because they use soy oil for all their frying and grilling. Plus, if the food is processed, they aren't label readers so they won't give it to me. It makes for some very bland, very tasteless food choices. I've learned a great deal in how I need to communicate so that I thoroughly enjoy my meals.

 

But, as far as procedure goes, let me outline some facts that may help you.

 

1. Contact the special needs department. Don't expect that they will be able to tell you anything specific but what they will do is make sure that the ship has been alerted so that the person who purchases supplies for the ship will be able to purchase specific supplies for you. In my case, it's to make sure that there is real olive oil and real butter on board. Also, with that contact to the special needs department, you will receive an email that gives you permission to bring food onboard, for you. They inform you that you will not be able to have any galley space; i.e., no ability to use their refrigerator in the galley, etc.

 

2. Getting in touch with the HeadWaiter on the day of boarding. Impossible. I have stood in many, many lines along with all the people who are anxious about their table mates or table positions to try to make changes to their dinner reservations. The only person in place in the dining room is a person who will deal with those questions. Obviously, this is my individual experience. Someone may have had better luck. The most help I have ever received is getting a business card with a HeadWaiter's name on it and a telephone number. But, since your meal is going to be within a few hours of boarding, there isn't enough time on the embarkation day for the galley to prepare a special meal for you. You will have limited options on that first day. For some reason, they've never been able to tell me my HeadWaiter's name, even if I give them the assigned table number. I can only speak to a HeadWaiter, but not necessarily my assigned, specific HeadWaiter.

 

3. It's important that you NOT think you have the information to browse through the buffet. You can contact a HeadWaiter in the buffet as well as a Chef that oversees buffet operations. On any given day, your options may become very limited if you haven't alerted the galley in advance. When I say don't browse the buffet, let me explain: I am a decent hobbyist cook. I know how to make pesto. Traditionally, pesto is olive oil, parmesan cheese, basil, pine nuts. One day in the buffet I located some pesto and flavored my plate and had a terrible, terrible reaction. My own fault; they used soy oil instead of olive oil for their recipe. A significant learning experience.

 

4. The MDR is open for breakfast and dinner on all days. It is open for lunch on Sea Days. You need to place your meal orders for the next day with your HeadWaiter in the dining room. For all your meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner. When you arrive in the MDR, you ask for a HeadWaiter. When they arrive at your table, they will ask for your stateroom number as well as the name of the HeadWaiter who placed your order. They will contact the galley and let them know you've arrived and you will get a meal that is safe for you to eat. If you are visiting a port like Labadee, they will prepare your meal on board ship and deliver it to the island, if you let them know. It's really important that you take appropriate time and action to insure that you alert them to what you want to do. Just winging it will leave you a bit unhappy, with very limited choices.

 

5. Desserts are the biggest problem, if you have a sweet tooth or enjoy desserts. Because so few desserts are made on the ship and they are NOT label readers, they will exclude desserts for your consumption, on the principle of safety first. For your son, I would advise that you bring along something you really know he would enjoy and find special.

 

I hope I've helped in some small way. If there's any specific questions you have, I might be able to answer and will do my best to inform you of anything I've found to be helpful to me that might assist you.

[Snit13]

I have read all of the responses to your post OP as I have allergy issues too, but mine are mainly to medications.

 

Would it be possible to type some recipies of your son's favortie desserts and print them and ask them if they could please make at least one for him? I believe I read a post where they made a special dessert for someone and served it to her on multiple days. What would you make for your son at home? You may luck out and get a caring chef.

 

Good Luck

[Casey2]

I have a number of food allergies. I found that contacting the special needs department prior to the cruise generally does not help. On the first night, I present the head waiter with a list of my food allergies. I get the dinner menu for the next day on the day before and place my order then so they can make substitutions. Usually it all works out but sometimes I am more limited than other times and wind up eating either grilled chicken or sirloin (which is always available) almost every night. A lot depends on the actual menu.

Make sure you have fixed seating in the MDR for dinner so you have the same waiters each night and can get the menu the night before.

Edited November 16, 2016 by Casey2

[dctravel]

Thank you everyone for the good suggestions. I talked with the Access Department again today to try and ask more specific questions. From what they told me, once I book they will enter us in the allergy protocol and we would identify ourselves on day one (just as everyone said). Before we sail, so long as it is at least 45 days (when departing from the US) or 90 (when departing from San Juan), the ship should be able to coordinate special requests.

 

I asked specifically about making baked items with a dairy substitute (for example brownies with rice or almond milk) and getting Italian ice or sorbet on board. The Access Department suggested that making brownies (for example) dairy free would be possible based on the chef and enough advanced notice. Non-dairy frozen desserts (i.e., Italian ice or sorbet), however, would be more problematic as the ships generally do not carry (or order these items).

 

We would absolutely eat in the MDR on fixed seating (our preference anyway). Thankfully, my son's allergy allows him to eat hamburgers, fries, plain chicken, cheese less pizza (we get that all the time for him from Papa Johns), etc... anywhere because cross-contamination is not an issue.

 

In this case, I am mostly making myself nuts about baked goods and dessert. I just want to place him in a position where he is having fun and not stressed out about food, not where he remembers only that he couldn't have dessert all week.

[Ourusualbeach]

Thank you everyone for the good suggestions. I talked with the Access Department again today to try and ask more specific questions. From what they told me, once I book they will enter us in the allergy protocol and we would identify ourselves on day one (just as everyone said). Before we sail, so long as it is at least 45 days (when departing from the US) or 90 (when departing from San Juan), the ship should be able to coordinate special requests.

 

I asked specifically about making baked items with a dairy substitute (for example brownies with rice or almond milk) and getting Italian ice or sorbet on board. The Access Department suggested that making brownies (for example) dairy free would be possible based on the chef and enough advanced notice. Non-dairy frozen desserts (i.e., Italian ice or sorbet), however, would be more problematic as the ships generally do not carry (or order these items).

 

We would absolutely eat in the MDR on fixed seating (our preference anyway). Thankfully, my son's allergy allows him to eat hamburgers, fries, plain chicken, cheese less pizza (we get that all the time for him from Papa Johns), etc... anywhere because cross-contamination is not an issue.

 

In this case, I am mostly making myself nuts about baked goods and dessert. I just want to place him in a position where he is having fun and not stressed out about food, not where he remembers only that he couldn't have dessert all week.

 

 

My wife gets cheese less pizzas made for her at Sorrentos and quite enjoys them. Sometimes when she hasn't given them notice and would like toppings that they don't have she will get her own toppings from the WJ and bring them down.

 

We talked with one of the Chefs in Chops who did a fantastic job with my wife's allergy and we asked him about sorbet. The kind that they carry does have dairy and he explained that even though it is easy to make the kitchens on board are missing many small appliances that get used in preparing dishes for small amounts of guests. If you need something for 1000, sure no problem but it's hard to do for 10.