食物アレルギーを伝える — Communicating Food Allergies

Literal Into this soup, are eggs entering?

The standard polite phrase for asking whether a specific ingredient is in a dish. Widely used in Japanese restaurants and understood immediately by staff.

• この + noun: 'this [noun]'
• 〜には: topic + location particle combination, meaning 'into/in this'
• 入っています: 〜ている form of 入る (to enter/be included), describing a current state of containment
• 〜か: sentence-final question particle

Literal Because I have a nut allergy, can you confirm whether it is not entered?

Uses ので to state the reason for a request naturally. The embedded negative question 入っていないか is a concise way to ask staff to verify absence of an allergen.

• 〜があるので: 'because I have ~', ので is a soft causal conjunction
• 入っていないか: embedded negative question, 'whether [it] is not included'
• 確認できますか: potential form of 確認する + polite question, 'can you confirm?'

Literal As for dishes that are not using shrimp, do they exist?

Uses a relative clause to modify 料理 (dish). A practical scanning question when looking at a menu, asking broadly about options rather than a single item.

• 〜を使っていない: negative 〜ている form of 使う (to use), modifying a noun, 'not using ~'
• 〜はありますか: 'do/are there ~ ?', existential question

Literal On this menu, is allergen information written and remaining?

書いてあります uses the resultant-state construction 〜てある to ask whether information has been written down and is currently available to read — a subtly different nuance from simply asking if it was written.

• 〜に書いてあります: 'is written on ~', 〜てある expresses a state resulting from a deliberate action
• アレルゲン情報: 'allergen information', a compound noun common on Japanese menus and packaging

Literal If wheat were entering [the dish], I cannot do the thing of eating.

Uses the conditional 〜たら with もし to signal a genuine constraint. The nominalised form 食べること + できません makes the inability clear and definitive.

• もし〜たら: 'if ~', conditional structure; もし adds emphasis that the condition is hypothetical but possible
• 入っていたら: conditional of 〜ている, 'if [it] is contained'
• 食べることができません: nominalised verb + potential negative, 'cannot eat'

Literal I have sesame allergy. Please teach [me] dishes that do not use sesame.

Two clean sentences — stating the allergy first, then making the request. This two-part structure is natural in Japanese and makes the need and the ask easy to understand.

• 〜アレルギーがあります: 'I have a ~ allergy', standard self-disclosure pattern
• 〜を使わない: plain negative form of 使う modifying 料理 as a relative clause
• 教えてください: 'please tell/show me', polite request using 〜てください

Literal During cooking, does the possibility of cross-contaminating with other ingredients exist?

A more detailed safety question for severe allergies. 交差汚染 is the standard Japanese term for cross-contamination. 調理中に clearly specifies the moment of concern.

• 調理中に: 'during cooking', 〜中に means 'during/in the middle of ~'
• 〜する可能性はありますか: 'is there a possibility of ~?', formal risk-checking phrasing

Literal Is it okay if I look at the raw materials of this product?

A polite permission request using 〜てもいいですか, suitable when checking product packaging at a shop or market. 原材料 is the exact label term on Japanese packaging.

• 〜てもいいですか: 'may I ~?', polite permission request
• 原材料: 'ingredients / raw materials', the official label term in Japan — look for 原材料名 on packaging

Literal As for dairy products and soybeans, I cannot eat either.

どちらも with a negative verb means 'neither / not either', covering both items at once. A concise way to communicate multiple restrictions.

• どちらも〜ません: 'cannot do either', the negative of どちらも (both/either)
• 食べられません: potential negative of 食べる (ichidan verb), 'cannot eat'

Literal Could I receive the favour of conveying the matter of my allergy to the chef?

〜ていただけますか is the most polite way to make a request of someone, asking them to act on your behalf. 〜のこと nominalises the topic (allergy) naturally.

• 〜のこと: 'the matter of ~', nominalises a topic for polite reference
• 〜に伝える: 'to convey / inform ~', 〜に marks the recipient
• 〜ていただけますか: 'could you please ~?', the highest-register polite request form