Man Thinks Stepdaughter Shouldn't Be 'Allowed' To Order Food When The Family Goes Out To Eat

There are some children who are picky eaters just because they choose to be picky. However, that's not always the case when it comes to food.

When children have mild to severe food allergies, ordering at restaurants can be complicated. Parents and kids want to be as safe as possible to keep their kids alive and well.

"My stepdaughter is an absolute pain in the neck when it comes to food. She has legitimate and not mild allergies, but most of them aren't common things, so every single meal at a restaurant, no matter what she would get, would need several modifications," he started.

"With so many special requests, something is always going to be wrong. I understand that, my wife understands that, and probably on some level she does too, but it is an entire event every time," he added.

"It makes the entire meal a nightmare for everyone including the restaurant workers. The younger kids end up having their food go cold because they can't eat with the drama going on and they don't know what to do," he said.

"I finally broke and told her and my wife, while we were all together as a family, that she would just have to stop getting food when we went out and that she needs to just wait until we get home," he said.

"Restaurants don't like having people bring outside food, I think it looks really rude anyway, and she just eats later at home anyway due to these episodes," he decided.

"Not only that, but it is expensive as hell for her to do this. Basic meals that would comply are already not cheap, and it creates so much food waste, which I absolutely hate," he stated.

"My wife says that I don't understand what it's like to have to navigate food when you can't 'just deal with it' like everyone else and a slight mistake can land you in the hospital, and that this makes her feel like she's less than and not part of the family. I just want to stop wasting money and food and have more quiet meals," he said.

People on Reddit totally agreed that this stepdad is acting like a huge asshole.

"Girl has legit food allergies which could kill her and rather than taking the time to review publicly available allergen information on restaurant websites, calling in advance or finding a restaurant that can accommodate her your solution is that she sit there and watch everyone eat? She didn’t choose to have food allergies or the resultant anxiety around it. You however are choosing to be a monumental asshole," one person commented.

"You act like she's doing this on purpose. Do you think she enjoys this? You kinda seem like you do. She probably feels horrible that she can't just order normal food and that she's holding her family back from having a good time. That plus the allergies is actually a lot of mental stress. Now you've told her that she can't eat meals in a restaurant anymore. That has basically solidified her feelings that she is a huge burden on her family because of her allergies. You really screwed this up," they said.

"Then save the restaurants for date nights with your wife or one-on-one outings with the other kids, and have the family meals at home. Or do the research in advance and find places that can accommodate her, instead of getting mad at her when it turns out they're not prepared to deal with something like this," they said.

"It's baffling that dragging his stepdaughter along to these restaurants and making her watch them eat is his only solution. He's stated that her allergies are wheat, tomatoes, fish, and lactose, and she's not vegan/vegetarian. Um...OP...ever heard of a steakhouse? Or any kind of restaurant that would serve a simple dish with (non-tomato) veggies and a piece of meat? These allergies aren't that hard to accommodate for. And if there really are no restaurants that can accommodate for them (doubtful), why is she being forced to come along anyway," one person asked.

"A quick note from a chef here:

"As soon as there [are] a lot of allergies, that needs to be communicated through a chain (from guest to waiter through a computer to a chef) complicated and unusual allergies [get] dangerous.

"A few people that I know of [have] made little cards detailing their allergies (ranked in severity) that they can hand to the waiter, and as a chef, the few times I’ve gotten one of these, I’ve been so happy!

"Minimal chance of things getting lost or misunderstood along the way and I know the list is exhaustive," they said.

"One guest I remember went in [anaphylactic] shock because he didn’t tell us about a squid/octopus allergy (we had no relevant seafood on the menu at that time) — but had some crisps on the menu [colored] with octopus ink. He didn’t think it was worth bothering us.

"So a little cardboard piece with all allergies is a wonderful thing — particularly if they are severe and/or unusual!

"And if your allergies are severe/unusual — book in advance. All the time. Sorry, but you can’t be spontaneous if you’re allergic to citrus and all cereals at the same time," they added.

What do you think? Should this stepdad listen to the suggestions of Reddit users online and find an alternative solution?