How do you explain food allergies in Chengdu?

Write your allergies in English and Chinese, including the severity. For example: 'I am severely allergic to peanuts. Even a small amount can cause a reaction.' Use a translation app or ask your hotel to help. Laminate it or save it on your phone.

Include hidden sources: soy sauce (soy, wheat), oyster sauce (shellfish), sesame oil (sesame), peanut oil (peanut), and stock (shellfish or meat). Show the card before ordering, not after the food arrives.

A good card is short, specific, and visual. Example Chinese: '我对花生严重过敏。即使很少量也会引起严重反应。请告诉我哪些菜不含花生。' Pair it with a photo of the allergen and a red warning symbol. Include the words for cross-contact, '交叉污染' (jiāochā wūrǎn), and save an offline copy in your phone's notes in case the signal drops.

• English and Chinese allergy card
• List hidden sources
• Show it before ordering
• Add a photo of the allergen

Ask the server to confirm with the kitchen, not just read the menu. If they seem unsure, choose a different restaurant. Busy wok kitchens cannot guarantee no cross-contact, especially for peanuts, sesame, and shellfish.

For severe allergies, consider higher-end hotel restaurants that can accommodate requests, or self-catering. Do not rely on a translation app alone in an emergency.

Show the card before you sit down, not after ordering. Ask the server to repeat the dish back and confirm the oil, sauce, and garnish. 'Bù yào fàng huāshēng' means no peanuts, 'bù yào fàng zhīma' means no sesame, and 'bù yào fàng hǎixiān' means no seafood. If the server laughs or waves the card away, treat that as a sign they do not understand rather than a green light.

Carry any prescribed medication, such as an epinephrine auto-injector, and make sure it is accessible. Save the emergency number for an ambulance: 120. Your hotel front desk can help communicate in an emergency.

Learn the Chinese words for your allergen: peanut (huāshēng), sesame (zhīma), shellfish (xièlèi), soy (dàdòu), wheat (xiǎomài), egg (jīdàn), milk (niúnǎi). Show the characters if pronunciation is difficult.

Know where the nearest hospital is. West China Hospital is a major facility with an international clinic, and your hotel can point you to a closer one. Pharmacies (药店, yàodiàn) stock antihistamines but usually not epinephrine. Carry two auto-injectors if prescribed, plus a printed allergy action plan in Chinese.

• Carry prescribed medication
• Save 120 for ambulance
• Learn allergen characters
• Know the nearest hospital

Higher-end hotel restaurants and international chains are more likely to have staff who understand allergies, but they are not automatically safe. Local specialty restaurants with short menus are easier to question because there are fewer ingredients to check. Buffets are the worst option; serving spoons cross between dishes and staff cannot confirm what is in each tray.

If your allergy is severe, eat during quieter hours when the kitchen has time to answer. Avoid hotpot sauce stations, street stalls, and crowded noodle shops where the pace makes cross-contact likely. It is reasonable to bring your own food to a restaurant if you explain; some will allow it, but ask first. Never gamble on a dish because it looks plain.

• Short menus are easier to verify
• Avoid buffets and shared sauce stations