AllergyEats, the leading guide to allergy-friendly restaurants nationwide, presents The 2nd Annual Food Allergy Conference for Restaurateurs: What Every Restaurant Should Know About Food Allergies To Ensure Safety & Maximize Customer Engagement, Loyalty, and Revenue. 

The event will feature notable speakers from the National Restaurant Association, P.F. Chang's China Bistro, Blue Ginger, Burton's Grill, MenuTrinfo, Kids With Food Allergies Foundation, and AllergyEats, as well as prominent allergists from Massachusetts General Hospital and Boston Children's Hospital, who will provide valuable information about accommodating food-allergic guests, reducing the fear around food allergies, building customer loyalty and profits, and other related food allergy issues.

"The event features notable restaurateurs that excel at accommodating food allergies, who will provide actionable tips to make restaurants safer for food-allergic guests,” says Paul Antico, founder and CEO of AllergyEats. “Our speakers will discuss protocols they've implemented to improve communication, avoid cross-contamination, identify special allergen-free meals, and better accommodate guests with dietary restrictions, as well as the benefits they’ve experienced by being allergy-friendly. 

"The conference also offers valuable advice from professional industry trainers, who discuss the importance—and process—of implementing effective food allergy protocols, procedures, and training in restaurants,” he adds. “Other speakers include physicians describing the basics of food allergies and a financial professional explaining how restaurants can significantly increase their profits, customers, and loyalty by becoming more allergy-friendly.”

The conference will be held on Tuesday, November 5, 2013, from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the Seaport Boston Hotel in Boston.

Speakers will include:

  • Ming Tsai, James Beard Award–Winning chef; owner of Blue Ginger and Blue Dragon; television host; cookbook author; and food allergy advocate
  • Mike Moomjian, director of quality assurance and food safety at P.F. Chang's China Bistro
  • Kevin Harron, founder, president, and CEO, Burtons Grill
  • William L. Weichelt, director of ServSafe for the National Restaurant Association
  • Betsy Craig, founder and CEO, MenuTrinfo
  • Lynda Mitchell, president, Kids With Food Allergies Foundation
  • Dr. Wayne Shreffler, head of the Food Allergy Center at Mass General Hospital
  • Dr. Michael Pistiner, pediatric allergist for Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates and voluntary instructor of pediatrics at Boston Children’s Hospital 

Topics will include:

  • Food Allergy Basics: This session will spotlight fundamentals, statistics, and the realities of accommodating food-allergic and food-intolerant guests. It will also showcase how food-allergic individuals deal with everyday life, and what they look for in a restaurant when dining out. 
  • Restaurants That Get it Right: Expert restaurateurs who excel at accommodating food-allergic guests will spotlight their restaurants' best practices, as well as their successful food allergy procedures and protocols. They'll explain why they're committed to being allergy-friendly and describe guests' reactions, including their increased loyalty.
  • Basic Training: Top restaurant trainers who specialize in food allergies and other special dietary requirements will speak about the process of becoming more allergy-friendly. This session will discuss how restaurants can become more accommodating; improve safety and minimize risks; implement and execute food allergy protocols; and become more confident in their food allergy procedures.
  • The Financials Around Food Allergies: This session will explore the economics of accommodating food-allergic diners, including the increased loyalty and profit opportunities, demonstrating how restaurants can make significantly more money by becoming allergy-friendly.  

Attendees will enjoy lunch with the experts and have ample time for Q&A during each session. They can also sample vendors' allergy-friendly products at the event.

Advanced registration is required. Registration is $199 per person. Early bird registration is $179 until September 15, 2013.  Group discounts are also available. 

"Attendees at last year's conference raved about the high caliber of speakers and the constructive information they learned from our experts," Antico says. "The feedback we received last year was overwhelmingly positive, and we're looking forward to another informative and successful conference this fall."

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