A customer in a queue at a market asks whether the sauce contains nuts. There are six people behind them, the grill is full, and the honest answer requires checking a label in a box under the counter.
That moment is why allergen information needs to exist somewhere a customer can read it before they join the queue.
What customers ask
Customers usually ask which dishes contain specific allergens, whether anything can be made without an ingredient, whether dishes are vegetarian or vegan, whether cooking oil is shared, whether gluten-free options are genuinely gluten-free, what is in a sauce or marinade and whether ingredients change between events.
Publish it, do not improvise it
Allergen information should come from documented ingredient records, not memory. A page listing each dish against the main allergens, kept current when recipes change, is the foundation, and it is what any assistant should answer from.
Example conversations
These scripts use information a trader might publish. Your answers should come from your own records.
Customer: Does the chilli sauce contain nuts? Assistant: The allergen page lists the ingredients and allergens for each item, including the sauces. Because the kitchen is small and ingredients are prepared close together, please also confirm with the team at the hatch before ordering if you have an allergy.
Customer: Can you do the burrito without cheese? Assistant: The menu page shows which items can be made without dairy. The team can confirm at the hatch, and it is worth mentioning any allergy when you order.
Customer: Are the fries cooked in the same oil as the chicken? Assistant: The allergen page explains what shares equipment and oil, which matters for some allergies and for anyone eating vegetarian or vegan.
Be honest about cross-contamination
A mobile kitchen is a few square metres. Claiming that cross-contact can be eliminated is rarely true and carries real consequences. Saying plainly what can and cannot be guaranteed is both safer and more respected by customers managing allergies.
Never say safe
A website must never tell someone a dish is safe for their allergy. It shares what is documented and directs them to confirm in person, which is the discipline described in allergy and ingredient questions for food and beauty stores.
Staff training matters more than the page
A published allergen page only works if the people at the hatch answer consistently with it. Briefing every person who serves, including casual staff at busy events, on where the information lives and what they must never say keeps the answer the same whether a customer asks online or in the queue.
Menus change by event
Traders often run a reduced menu at festivals or a different one for private hire. Keeping the allergen page aligned with what is actually being served matters more than a tidy website.
Mobile-first by definition
These customers are on phones, often standing outside. The information has to work on a small screen, as described in how to add a chatbot to your mobile site.
Alongside location questions
The daily location question never stops either, as covered in where is the truck today and other questions traders answer, and private events raise their own dietary requirements, described in private hire enquiries for food trucks at weddings and parties.
Getting started
Publish allergen information per dish, be honest about shared equipment and keep it current. SpideyChat for food businesses answers from your published records. Try SpideyChat on your own site, or read about answers on the features page.