We are thrilled about our upcoming trip to Japan with our 18-month-old son. However, we are facing a significant challenge due to his severe food allergies. He is allergic to chicken eggs, sesame, and avocado, and we’re aware that these ingredients are commonly used in many Japanese dishes. We anticipate that finding suitable food options for him might be quite challenging, especially considering the potential for sesame cross-contamination in restaurants.
We would greatly appreciate your assistance and expertise in suggesting some snack and meal options for our toddler. We understand that 7/11 and Lawson’s stores are prevalent in Japan and might have some allergy-friendly choices. We are specifically looking for snacks and meals that do not contain eggs, sesame, or avocado.
So far, we have come up with a few ideas, but we would be incredibly grateful if you could share any additional suggestions or tips:
Yogurt
Fruit
Rice
Lunch meat (such as Subway)
McDonald’s (specifically edamame and corn)
String cheese
Cereal
Tomatoes
We genuinely value your knowledge and experiences. If you have any recommendations for specific snacks or meals available at 7/11 or Lawson’s, or if you know of any allergy-friendly restaurants or eateries in Tokyo, please share your insights with us.
Thank you all in advance for your incredible help and suggestions. We are excited about our upcoming adventure in Japan and eager to ensure our little one has a safe and enjoyable culinary experience!
13 comments
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Go AirBnB route with a proper kitchen and do proper groceries and cook for your kid, as much as it may inconvenience you.
And, yes I’m judging you for even thinking that konbini food and fast food is the way to go.
Sesame oil is used a lot and the kitchen staff might not even be aware of whether it’s in the food, so I would recommend buying foods that are labeled with ingredients or are so simple that you clearly know what’s in them i.e. just fruit or whatever. Lucky for you he’s young enough that you can take him to a restaurant and eat while providing him with something else. Rice balls covered with nori could contain sesame oil so maybe steer clear. Do consider printing up a card in Japanese that explains the allergies and their severity. Supermarket shopping and getting accommodation with a kitchen could make things easier for you, for sure.
AirBNB with a kitchen – that’s what I do with my wife who has plenty of sensitivities
Just stay home, stop being selfish.
You’ll definitely want to get an allergy translation card to show at restaurants and shops. Plan for a lodging that has a kitchen and shop at grocery stores where you can take your time to read labels. Avocado will be easy to avoid, eggs are an allergen that should be labeled, but sesame oil might be hard. I’d recommend a custom translation card from a site like Select Wisely. You can also get a custom translation card with info on what to do in a medical situation where your child does ingest an allergen.
– [Food Allergies in Japan](https://livejapan.com/en/article-a0001856/)
– [Quick Guide to Allergens in Japan](https://savvytokyo.com/quick-guide-know-and-understand-food-allergies-in-japan/)
– [SelectWisely Allergy/Medical Translation Cards](https://www.selectwisely.com)
– [Printable Allergy Cards Japanese (Free)](https://justhungry.com/japan-dining-out-cards)
Oof, both sesame and egg are everywhere. The problem is that both these ingredients are also processed into other products, like common sauces, dressings. A lot of restaurants are starting to labeling allergens, but not very trustworthy. When i order food labelled lactose free, sometimes the food still came with cream sauces, dairy sides/toppings.. Once we had a fruit bowl as part of a set menu, with crunchy bits. It was sesame crackers, was delicious, but nowhere was sesame mentioned. Like others already said, preparing your own food in your own kitchen is the safest way. No chance of cross comtamination. We ve seen sesame grinders on tables at ramen restaurants, sesame was also given at tonkotsu restaurant. Depend on how allergic your child is, those kind of restaurant miggt be a huge problem. There must be a lot of sesamedust/residues in the restaurant and kitchens.
Japan resident here.
It is almost impossible to avoid those.
BUT THERE IS THE WAY.
as soon as you land to Japan,
Find the “Akachan honpo”(You can get anything for babies)
Buy baby foods there. And let him eat them all the time.They have baby foods up to 2 year old baby.
https://stores.akachan.jp/index.html
use google map to find the nearest shop.
東京 Tokyo:13 of them
大阪 Osaka:12
京都 Kyoto:3
They have many kind of baby food with allergens listed.
many allergen free baby food.
I did quick research.
Consider allergen need to be listed are different in each country.
Seems Akachan hompo provide you all allergen below (must and better)
Use google lens for translation at store.
In Japan.
Must be listed.
＜日本語＞ ＜English＞
かに crab
えび shrimp
卵 egg
乳 dairy
落花生 peanut
小麦 wheat
そば buckwheat
..
..
Better to be listed
＜日本語＞ ＜English＞
あわび abalone
いか squid
いくら salmon roe
オレンジ orange
カシューナッツ cashew nut
キウイフルーツ kiwi fruit
牛肉 beef
くるみ walnut
ごま sesame
さけ salmon
さば mackerel
大豆 soybean
鶏肉 chicken
バナナ banana
豚肉 pork
まつたけ matsutake mushroom
もも peach
やまいも yam
りんご apple
ゼラチン gelatin
アーモンド almond
Honestly with a kid that young and multiple allergies, I might consider getting an Airbnb and doing most of the cooking “at home.”
While egg allergies are generally widely understood (and avocado is actually kind of rare to find), sesame will be an issue. Increasingly I see kid foods at the grocery store (and occasionally restaurants) with allergy information labeled, but this is normally for just egg, milk, etc. And no idea of how strict they are for manufacturing cross-contamination.
But the good thing is that grocery shopping can be lots of fun, and a neat way to “explore” Japan. And during COVID a lot more restaurants started offering takeout/delivery, so if the adults want something more interesting to eat at home there are options.
I second the AirBnB reco, but if you prefer hotels and can afford it, I would recommend staying at an upscale (Western) hotel like the Hyatt or Hilton.
I just returned from a 2 week trip yesterday. Three in our family have severe food allergies. Hotel staff at upscale hotels know how to deal with this.
I’m deathly allergic to sesame. Aside from epipens we went the air bnb route and I will prepare as much food as I can, 7-11s have prepackaged foods with ingredients listed also. I’m super bummed I won’t be able to experience delicious Japanese dishes but it is what it is.
Anyway to leave the kid at home with a sitter or family? An 18 month old isn’t going to remember anything anyway and it honestly sounds like they are going to make your trip more of a chore having to cook them meals the entire time.
Probably too late to cancel, but why put your child at risk just to travel to Japan. Wait a few years, you have lots of time, go when you don’t have to stress about such things.