By Connor Lutts
Academics Editor
As a Stevenson student with a severe nut allergy, it is somewhat difficult to find food that is safe to eat. There are some great places to get a nice meal, or a coffee, where the workers keep in mind that you have a nut allergy and take every precaution to avoid any contact with nuts.
There are many types of nut allergies, “…in addition to peanuts, a wide range of tree nuts can also cause allergic reactions in some people. These include, but are not limited to: almonds, brazil nuts, cashews, hazelnuts, hickory nuts, macadamia nuts, pecan nuts, pine nuts, pistachios, walnuts…” as reported by Better Health.
The first place I think of when I’m looking for something cheap, delicious, and close by would be Dunkin Donuts.
Dunkin Donuts is a budget and flavor friendly option for coffee that takes customer health seriously. One way they keep allergies in mind is by having a sign below the counter that says, “if you have an allergy, please inform your server.”
When you tell the server about your allergies, they will take various precautions to ensure consumer safety — for example, getting new gloves and making sure your coffee is in a separate area away from products that may contain nuts.
Personally, some of my favorites from Dunkin Donuts would be a medium caramel iced coffee with two sugars and two creams. My second favorite drink would be medium-sweetened iced tea. Another personal go-to would be a medium iced matcha latte with light ice. For those with a sweet tooth, these are all a personal 10/10
While I have not had everything on the menu yet since I have only been there once, I recommend Neo Pizza & Taphouse as another tasty, allergy-friendly establishment.
When I mentioned I had a nut allergy to the worker I talked to, she went to her manager and then the manager came out and made me feel comfortable by showing me the nutrition and ingredients label.
The nutrition label showed that there were no known nut allergies on the dough that was delivered. I ordered a meatball sub that was very filling and delicious – I rate it a ten out of ten as well, for two reasons. One of them is that they make their own tomato sauce instead of getting it packaged so, the taste of fresh tomatoes is very prominent. The combination of the cheese and meatballs is a burst of flavors that is very savory and sweet, so you get the best of both worlds.
As far as allergies go, if you are unsure about a drink or food at Dunkin Donuts, you can go to this link which gives a full list of all the allergens that exist on that certain food item.
When I lived on campus, Rockland Marketplace was an eatery that always made me feel safe to eat without concerns to my allergy.
Rockland Marketplace has a wide selection of options as far as food, and drinks go. It tells you Sunday through Monday what they are serving, and their allergens and diet key. Some of my favorites from there include their grilled chicken sandwich with fries by tasting the spices of the chicken along with the savory melted cheese, their scrambled eggs with bacon that are both cooked just right, and huevos rancheros which has a plethora of flavors including sweet, savory and splash of spiciness from the jalapenos.
