Allergy-Friendly Buffets Give Kids Fun Choices Without Needing to Worry About Ingredients

By Taichi Kitase / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

12:30 JST, September 28, 2025

MATSUE — Buffet events for children with food allergies have been held in various locations in recent years. At such events, ingredients containing major allergens cannot be used for the buffet items and all food ingredients must be cooked with great care. Menus catering to the needs of vegans and others with dietary restrictions are becoming increasingly popular, and chefs and other specialists are striving to help children have fun choosing what they want to eat for themselves.

Choosing food with starry eyes

A total of 26 different dishes were served at the first “Food Barrier-Free Buffet” event held at the lakeside restaurant Racine in Matsue in late June, including bouillabaisse made with red sea bream and aromatic vegetables instead of shrimp and crab, as well as chocolate cake made with rice flour instead of wheat flour.

“Everything is okay to eat?” asked a seven-year-old first-grade student from the same city who is allergic to eggs and dairy products. She spoke with starry eyes. She ate three small dishes of omurice (omelette rice), made with pumpkin paste cooked like a crepe instead of using eggs.

“There are always restrictions when we eat out. It was like a dream, telling her, ‘You can eat whatever you want!’” her 35-year-old mother said with delight.

The event was organized by Ryohei Koyasu, 39, who runs the restaurant and has a five-year-old son with severe food allergies.

Buffets use a variety of ingredients, easily allowing allergens to mix. Koyasu received guidance from Mariko Ueda, 43, a culinary expert in the city, and implemented thorough measures for examining ingredients, cleaning the kitchen and washing cooking utensils and tableware. The 45 available spots for the buffet event filled up about 10 days after he began accepting applications.

Ueda herself is raising three children with food allergies and has been developing menu items for about 20 years. “Meals should be enjoyable, but parents of children with food allergies can’t let their guard down even for a moment. I want to deliver the happiness of being able to eat freely,” she said.

530,000 children with allergies

According to a survey by the Tokyo-based Japan Society of School Health, about 530,000 students in elementary, junior high and high schools, as well as schools for special education nationwide, had food allergies in fiscal 2022, up more than 100,000 from the previous survey in fiscal 2013. Various factors are cited for the cause, such as “changes in dietary habits” and “improvements in allergy testing technology,” but the exact reason remains unclear.

In recent years, more and more restaurants are offering vegan and halal options to meet growing demand from inbound foreign tourists, and allergy-friendly buffets are also gaining traction.

The Hotel Granvia Hiroshima held 12 buffet events supervised by Ueda between December 2022 and late August this year.

Mana Hosokawa, 40, president of “Eat is,” a Tokyo-based PR company specializing in allergy-friendly products, launched an event titled “Allergy-Friendly Buffet” in Tokyo in 2024. The first installment of the event was fully booked within minutes, and all four installments held so far have been popular, according to the company. Hosokawa is allergic to dairy products and other items. “The event has become a place where people with the same challenges can connect and share information,” Hosokawa said.

Takashi Kusunoki, professor at Ryukoku University and board member of the Japanese Society of Pediatric Allergy and Clinical Immunology, said, “Providing a place where children with allergies can eat without worry is invaluable for families with such children. I hope to see further expansion of such initiatives.”