introduction to Cam

Stress-free dining with Allergy Rate

Putting your life in someone else’s hands is not something to be taken lightly, but for those who suffer food allergies this is their reality on a regular basis.

It’s been said that at least 8% of our population have some form of food allergy and that rate is increasing. For many of those people, eating the wrong food can be fatal. Because of this, many allergy sufferers don’t dine out for fear they won’t survive their next meal.

We are on a mission to ensure those with allergies can enjoy the same dining experiences as everyone else, so we have created AllergyRate.

AllergyRate is an app that is free for anyone to download and is a platform for people to review restaurants cafés, takeaways and bakeries, so those with allergies can dine with peace of mind.

The story behind Allergy Rate

Cam’s story

Hi I’m Cam, I am anaphylactic to peanuts and all nuts.

I have lived with my allergy since I was 13-years- old. I used to eat nuts and peanuts all the time so having to change quickly and at that age was difficult to say the least. My parents in particular were extremely worried of me going into anaphylactic shock when we were eating out as a family.

After living with it for the past 18 years I have learned to deal with it. However, trying new restaurants is difficult for me, and for my long-suffering wife, because trying to explain to people the seriousness of my allergy and in turn have them take me seriously when I explain “I WILL die if your food contains nuts or peanuts”. I have been refused service, had people laugh and tell me I’d be fine, had food served to me with nuts in it, been served food unsure if I was going to live through it, and simply walked out of places because I didn’t trust them.

In my early twenties I started travelling through Europe and Asia. This was a real eye-opener for me trying to find restaurants to eat in or even eat takeaways. I ended up in hospital in Florence after I was told the sandwich I had ordered was nut free. I struggled to find restaurants which I felt confident enough to eat at.

I’m sure many other people with allergies know how scary it is to trust a person with your life, over and over again. That’s why I’ve started Allergy Rate – to highlight to others who can be trusted and to prevent others from repeating my mistake of inadvertently eating a nut sandwich.

How Allergy Rate works

The app is designed so you can easily find food outlets near you via GPS that have been reviewed by others with allergies. This will give you peace of mind knowing that your dining choice has systems and processes in place to ensure your needs are catered for.

AllergyRate covers all the bases:
  • Search places that have the best ranking and reviews, search by:
    • Type: restaurant, bakery, café or takeaways
    • Cuisine: Japanese, Italian, Greek etc.
    • Location: suburb, city or country.
  • Get directions to your chosen location
  • Personalise your account with your own specific needs
  • Follow reviewers with similar taste and requirements
  • Translate reviews worldwide
  • Review your own experiences and rate the service
  • Get the latest top tips and information.
Not just for diners

This app is a great opportunity for restaurant owners and the like, to expand their patronage. By improving the level of service offered to those with allergies you are opening your doors to an entire new community. Each review can be responded to, to avoid one-sided opinions as well as opening the opportunity to rectify any negative feedback. Included in the app is information for food providers to enhance their service to the allergy community, understand more about allergies and what sufferers focus on and care about. Our intent is to raise the bar across the whole industry, we will personally continue to provide the latest information on best practice and will send this to all restaurants that are members of this site.

Worldwide reach

It doesn’t matter if you’re dining at your ‘local’ or the other side of the world, with our translator functionality you can find a restaurant in a foreign country and understand what others have said before you. Start your search by country, city or suburb and find the best option closest to you, wherever you are on the globe.

So many people can benefit from your feedback, now it’s up to you, get out and start reviewing!

For more information, check out the rest of our site.