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Allergens
Allergen chart maker for restaurants
List your dishes, tap the major allergens in each, and print a clean allergen chart for your counter, your kitchen or the server binder. It covers the 9 major food allergens in the US, including sesame.
The 9 major food allergens: milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, soybeans and sesame.
It all runs on this page. Your list is remembered on this device only, and nothing you type is sent anywhere.
From the team behind this chart maker
Keep allergy info with the dish, not on a sheet of paper.
A printed chart is a snapshot. In Just a Menu, every dish carries its own allergy notes and dietary icons in Menu Workspace, so the information stays with the item. Change a recipe or mark a dish sold out once, and your TV menu boards, QR menu and print menus all follow. Snap a photo of your menu to start. Works with Square, Toast, Clover and Oracle.
Or email sales@justamenu.com or send us a message. A real person replies within one business day.
The 9 major food allergens
In the US, the FDA names nine major food allergens. They cause most serious allergic reactions to food. Sesame became the ninth on January 1, 2023.
- Milk
- Eggs
- Fish, such as bass, cod and flounder
- Crustacean shellfish, such as crab, lobster and shrimp
- Tree nuts, such as almonds, pecans and walnuts
- Peanuts
- Wheat
- Soybeans
- Sesame
Gluten isn’t on the list. Wheat is. If guests ask about gluten, remember barley and rye too, and say so in the note under your chart.
How to fill in your allergen chart
- Work from your recipes, not from memory. Go dish by dish.
- Check every sauce, dressing, marinade, breading and garnish. That’s where allergens hide.
- Read the labels on what you buy. Suppliers change recipes, so check again when a product changes.
- Think about shared fryers, grills and prep areas, and use the note under the chart to tell guests about them.
- Have a second person check the chart before you print it.
Where to put your allergen chart
- ✓At the counter or register, where guests order.
- ✓In the server binder or at the host stand, so staff answer the same way every time.
- ✓On the kitchen line, next to the tickets.
A chart helps guests ask the right questions. It doesn’t replace talking to them, and it can’t rule out cross-contact.
Do restaurants have to post allergens?
There’s no single US law that makes every restaurant post an allergen chart. The federal allergen labeling rules cover packaged foods. But some states and cities have their own restaurant allergen rules, such as a notice asking guests to tell staff about allergies, or allergen training for managers. Check with your local health department.
Keep your menu and your chart current
Every recipe change means a chart change. In Just a Menu, each item in Menu Workspace has optional allergy and nutrition lines, plus dietary icons, so that information lives with the dish. Change a price, a description or mark something sold out once, and your menu boards, QR menu and print menus all follow.
It starts with a photo of your menu. See how a photo becomes your menu boards
Questions
What are the 9 major food allergens?
Milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, soybeans and sesame. The FDA lists these as the major food allergens in the US.
Is sesame a major allergen?
Yes. Sesame became the ninth major food allergen in the US on January 1, 2023.
Do restaurants have to list allergens on the menu?
There’s no single nationwide rule for restaurant menus. Federal allergen labeling covers packaged foods, while some states and cities have their own restaurant allergen rules. Check with your local health department.
How do I make an allergen chart for my restaurant?
List each dish, then mark which of the 9 major allergens it contains, working from your recipes and ingredient labels. Add a note about cross-contact, have someone double-check it, and print it for the counter, the server binder and the kitchen. The chart maker on this page does the layout for you.
Print menus from the same menu
Your prices are already in the design. Download a fresh PDF whenever prices change.
See print menus →
POS integrations
On Square, Toast, Clover or Oracle? Change a price there and your boards follow on their own.
See POS integrations →
Restaurant profit calculator
See your food cost, labor, prime cost and how many guests a day you need to break even.
Try the calculator →
Chart printed? Let’s put your menu on your TVs.
Once you’re set up, snap a photo of your menu and Just a Menu builds custom menu boards for your TVs, plus a QR menu and print menus. Change a dish once, and every board, QR menu and print file follows.
Talk to a real person. We reply within one business day.
Illustration
Want menu boards that update themselves? Email sales@justamenu.com or call (202) 886-2442.