Restaurant Allergen Matrix Template (EU 14, US 9)

Dish by allergen grid for the 14 EU and UK allergens and 9 US major allergens, cross-contact controls, change control, front of house procedure, training record

Hotellerie & GastronomieStandardRegulation (EU) 1169/2011 Annex II; FALCPA and FASTER Act; FDA Food Code 2026allergen matrixAktualisiert 29.10.2026

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Anleitung: Use it for any menu served to the public, from a café to a banquet. Fill the matrix from recipe cards and supplier labels first, then the cross-contact controls. The main pitfall is a matrix that goes stale when a supplier or recipe changes.

Vorschau

Allergen Matrix: [Venue or menu name]

A dish by allergen grid for a restaurant, café, hotel kitchen or event menu, with the cross-contact controls behind it and the way staff answer guests. It covers the 14 allergens that EU Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 Annex II requires food businesses to declare (also used in the UK) and the 9 major food allergens defined in US law and in the FDA Food Code 2026. Replace every [bracketed] value and every row marked Example. This is a documentation format, not legal or medical advice: check the current official text where you trade and a qualified professional.

Document control

Field	Value
Document ID	[HOS-ALG-001]
Version	[1.0]
Menu	[Example: Autumn dinner menu, Brasserie Okkenden (fictional)]
Owner	[@head-chef]
Checked by	[@general-manager]
Effective from	YYYY-MM-DD
Next review	[On every menu, recipe or supplier change, and at least every 3 months]

Revision history

Version	Date	Author	Change
1.0 (Example)	2026-10-30	Head chef	First issue for autumn menu

1. Allergen lists and legal context

EU and UK: 14 allergens (Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011, Annex II). Cereals containing gluten, crustaceans, eggs, fish, peanuts, soybeans, milk, nuts (named tree nuts), celery, mustard, sesame seeds, sulphur dioxide and sulphites (above 10 mg/kg or 10 mg/litre as SO2), lupin and molluscs. Article 9 makes allergen information mandatory and Article 44 applies it to food that is not prepacked, such as restaurant dishes; member states set how it is given. The Regulation has applied since 13 December 2014 (European Commission page, checked 2026-10-30). In the UK the same list applies through assimilated law, and prepacked for direct sale food has needed a full ingredients list with allergens emphasised since 1 October 2021. Check the consolidated text and the Food Standards Agency guidance.

US: 9 major food allergens. Milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, soybeans and sesame. The first 8 come from FALCPA (2004); the FASTER Act added sesame, with labelling effective 1 January 2023 (FDA food allergies page, checked 2026-10-30). The FDA Food Code 2026 uses the same list in its definition of "major food allergen", asks the person in charge to make sure staff are trained in food allergy awareness (§ 2-103.11(O)), and asks the permit holder to give written notice of major food allergens in unpackaged food served to consumers (§ 3-602.12(C)). The Food Code is a model: it binds only where a state or local authority adopts it, so check which edition your regulator uses.

Highly refined oils from an allergen source are excluded from the US definition and from parts of the EU list. Check the exact exemptions before relying on them.

2. Matrix

Columns follow the 14 EU and UK allergens. US guests: the gluten column covers wheat, and the fish and crustacean columns cover the US fish and crustacean shellfish groups. Name any US tree nut outside the EU list (for example pine nuts) in the cross-contact note column.

Dish	Gluten	Egg	Fish	Soy	Milk	Nuts	Celery	Sesame	Sulphites	Mollusc	Cross-contact note
Braised short rib, mash (Example)					Y		Y		Y		Shared fryer not used
Sesame-crusted salmon (Example)	Y		Y	Y				Y			Soy sauce contains wheat
Mussels in white wine (Example)	Y				Y		Y		Y	Y	Bread served on the side
Pistachio tart (Example)	Y	Y			Y	Y					C: pastry section handles peanuts, see CC-02
Fries (Example)											C: shared fryer with battered fish, see CC-01
[Dish]											[Note]

3. Cross-contact controls

ID	Where	Allergens	Control	Residual risk told to guests
CC-01 (Example)	Fryer 1 shared by fries and battered fish	Gluten, fish	Fries for allergen orders cooked in fryer 2 (dedicated) on request	No, when fryer 2 is used
CC-02 (Example)	Pastry section	Peanuts, nuts	Separate boards and colour-coded utensils, peanut products stored on lowest shelf, sealed	Yes, small risk stated on menu
CC-03 (Example)	Buffet service at events	All	Labels per dish, separate serving spoons, allergen meals plated in kitchen and named	Yes for buffet items
CC-[NN]	[Where]	[Allergens]	[Control]	[Yes / no]

4. Change control

Every delivery: if the product or brand differs from the specification, receiving staff stop it from use until the chef checks the label and updates the matrix.
Every recipe change: the chef updates the recipe card, the matrix and the version number before the dish is served.
Every specials board: allergens are written next to the dish, checked by a second person.
Record substitutions here:

Date	Dish	Change	Allergen impact	Matrix version	Checked by
2026-11-04 (Example)	Fries	Seasoning salt brand changed	Mustard now present, added	1.1	[@sous-chef]
YYYY-MM-DD	[Dish]	[Change]	[Impact]	[Version]	[@name]

5. Front of house procedure

Ask every table about allergies when taking the order, and mark the allergy on the order ticket.
Check the matrix for each dish ordered. If anything is unclear, ask the chef before the order is accepted.
Tell the guest about any cross-contact risk in section 3. Let the guest decide.
The kitchen prepares allergy orders with clean equipment and the person who plates the dish confirms the allergy on the ticket.
Deliver allergy orders separately, naming the dish and the allergy.
If a guest reacts: call emergency services, follow first aid training, keep the dish and ticket, and complete a guest incident report (hospitality/guest-incident-report).

6. Training record

Name	Role	Training	Date	Next due
[Name] (Example)	Server	Allergen awareness, matrix walk-through	2026-10-28	2027-10-28
[Name]	[Role]	[Course]	YYYY-MM-DD	YYYY-MM-DD

Standard and licence note

Based on Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 (Annex II, Articles 9 and 44), the US major food allergen list (FALCPA 2004 and the FASTER Act 2021) and the FDA Food Code 2026 (§§ 2-103.11(O) and 3-602.12(C)), as checked on 2026-10-30. Official texts: EUR-Lex (https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2011/1169/oj), FDA (https://www.fda.gov/food/nutrition-food-labeling-and-critical-foods/food-allergies and https://www.fda.gov/food/retail-food-protection/fda-food-code), UK Food Standards Agency guidance (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/allergen-guidance-for-food-businesses). The text is original, not a copy of any law or guidance. Check the current official version before use. Template licence: MIT.