Dining On Demand

It’s not unusual for a menu to cater to dietary requirements. But even the most accommodating chef has been challenged by requests that go beyond the typical demands for vegetarian, gluten-free and vegan dishes

- Lee Tran Lam

At Lennox Hastie’s Firedoor in Sydney, a guest once told the chef she was “allergic” to the orangewood used to smoke the salmon. After he switched to applewood instead, the diner confessed she just wasn’t a fan of salmon. “The most bizarre request was possibly one guest who claimed they can’t eat things that are purple,” says Hastie, “while another guest said they can’t eat swordfish as they mate for life and it is too tragic.”

Duncan Welgemoed of Adelaide’s Africola was once given advance notice about a diner with a nickel allergy. This meant he had to exclude most green vegetables, nightshades, any alliums, most fish, all shellfish, all red meat “and you can’t use any saucepans or frying pans to cook in”. So Welgemoed got creative and planned a menu that relied on a bamboo steamer and nimble work with a pair of wooden chopsticks. The diner didn’t show up.

These days, says Naomi Hart, co-owner of Sydney’s Hartsyard, it’s common to receive booking requests with extensive footnotes: “Three people attending are vegetarians, one of whom doesn’t consume fruit with the exception of lemon, capsicum and tomato. Apologies for the hassle!” But the willingness of some diners to compromise their health to try the food is a recurring theme, too.

One guest was prepared to go into anaphylactic shock to eat Hartsyard’s peanut butter and banana sundae with pretzel ice-cream. “‘I want it,’ he said. ‘I’m allergic to dairy, but don’t worry, I’ve got my EpiPen!’” says Hart. She laughed and said she really wasn’t comfortable with him taking that risk.

“We had another guy who ordered the sundae, but told me to hold off placing the order as he was running to the chemist to get lactose tablets.”