Dietary & Allergies

1. Jau sun vegetarian / vegetariana. Jau na mangel betg charn.

   I am vegetarian. I do not eat meat.

   Usage

   A first line to explain your diet at a restaurant or guesthouse. Men use vegetarian, women vegetariana. Traditional mountain dishes often contain meat or ham, so say it before ordering

   Grammar Note

   Negation is the double na … betg around the first-person verb mangel (from mangiar). Say only the form that matches your gender: vegetarian or vegetariana. Composed sentence; native review recommended

2. Jau sun allergic / allergica cunter nuschs.

   I am allergic to nuts.

   Usage

   Tells staff you are allergic to nuts. Baked goods and regional sweets often contain nuts, so it also helps when buying pastries

   Grammar Note

   "Allergic to X" is allergic cunter + noun. The adjective agrees with the speaker's gender (allergic / allergica). Composed sentence; native review recommended

3. Jau sun muslim / muslima e na mangel betg charn-portg.

   I am Muslim and I do not eat pork.

   Usage

   Explains that you avoid pork for religious reasons. Sausages and ham are very common, so it is wise to ask what a dish contains

   Grammar Note

   charn-portg is a hyphenated compound of "meat + pig". Negation is the double na … betg. Composed sentence; native review recommended

4. Jau hai ina intoleranza da lactosa.

   I am lactose intolerant.

   Usage

   Tells staff that dairy does not agree with you. Handy when cheese or yogurt is offered. The sentence has no gendered forms

   Grammar Note

   The pattern jau hai + noun states a condition. The noun intoleranza is feminine, so the indefinite article is ina. Composed sentence; native review recommended

5. Tge ingredienzas cuntegna quest plat?

   What ingredients are in this dish?

   Usage

   The basic question for finding out what is in a dish. If you have allergies or restrictions, start with this before ordering

   Grammar Note

   Word order is the question word tge + plural noun + verb, with the subject quest plat (this dish) at the end. Composed sentence; native review recommended

6. Pudais Vus preparar quai senza tschagula, per plaschair?

   Could you prepare this without onions, please?

   Usage

   A polite way to ask for an ingredient to be left out. Replace tschagula with another ingredient, such as ovs (eggs) or latg (milk), to reuse it

   Grammar Note

   The polite Vus is always capitalised. A noun after senza needs no article. Composed sentence; native review recommended

7. Jau hai ina allergia cunter ovs.

   I have an egg allergy.

   Usage

   States an egg allergy. Bread, pasta and cakes can also contain egg, so ask rather than judging by the dish name

   Grammar Note

   The plural of ov (egg) is ovs, used generically for the allergen. Unlike the allergic cunter pattern, this form has no gender variants. Composed sentence; native review recommended

8. Questa allergia po esser mortala. Far fitg attenziun, per plaschair.

   This allergy can be fatal. Please be very careful.

   Usage

   Two sentences for people with severe allergies to show kitchen staff how serious it is, for example to ask them to avoid cross-contamination

   Grammar Note

   far attenziun means "to pay attention"; the bare infinitive plus per plaschair works as a request. mortala is the feminine form agreeing with allergia. Composed sentence; native review recommended

9. Grazia fitg che Vus resguardais mia alimentaziun.

   Thank you very much for taking my dietary needs into account.

   Usage

   A thank-you for staff or hosts who accommodated your diet. A nice touch once the dish arrives

   Grammar Note

   che introduces the clause giving the reason. The polite Vus is capitalised, and resguardais is the Vus form of resguardar. Composed sentence; native review recommended

10. Per raschuns religiusas na mangel jau betg charn-bov.

    For religious reasons I do not eat beef.

    Usage

    Explains that you avoid beef for religious reasons. Swap charn-bov for another food to reuse the sentence

    Grammar Note

    When an adverbial phrase opens the sentence, the subject jau moves after the verb (na mangel jau betg). Composed sentence; native review recommended

11. la charn-portg

    Pork

    Usage

    The word for pork on menus and food labels. Sausages and ham products often contain it too

    Grammar Note

    charn (meat) is feminine. Hyphenated forms like charn-portg name the kind of meat

12. la charn-bov

    Beef

    Usage

    The word for beef, for anyone who avoids it for religious or health reasons and wants to check a menu

    Grammar Note

    A compound of the same type as charn-portg, treated as a feminine noun

13. la giaglina

    Chicken

    Usage

    The word for chicken. It is also used for the meat on a menu, although the word itself names the live bird (a hen). The plural is las giaglinas

    Grammar Note

    giaglina is feminine. To make clear that you mean the meat, add charn (meat) when explaining

14. il pesch

    Fish

    Usage

    The word for fish, useful both for pescatarians and for anyone who needs to avoid it

    Grammar Note

    pesch is masculine; the plural is ils peschs

15. ils ovs

    Eggs

    Usage

    The word for eggs, frequently needed for allergy checks and by vegans. The singular is in ov

    Grammar Note

    ov is masculine; the plural is ovs

16. ils products da latg

    Dairy products

    Usage

    A general term for milk, cheese, yogurt and similar items, used when checking for lactose intolerance or milk allergy

    Grammar Note

    "product + da + noun" means "products of …". latg is masculine

17. las nuschs

    Nuts

    Usage

    The word for walnut-type tree nuts. It does not specifically mean peanuts. Use it to check what is inside pastries and bread

    Grammar Note

    Nusch (nut) is feminine; the plural is nuschs and the definite article is las. This form was assembled from individual words, so native-speaker confirmation is recommended

18. il furment

    Wheat

    Usage

    The word for wheat, used to check bread and pasta for wheat allergy

    Grammar Note

    furment is masculine

19. la soja

    Soy

    Usage

    The word for soy, seen on labels of soy milk and processed foods

    Grammar Note

    soja is feminine

20. l'alcohol

    Alcohol

    Usage

    The word for alcohol, for when you need to avoid it, including asking whether a dish is cooked with wine. "Alcohol-free" is senza alcohol

    Grammar Note

    alcohol is masculine and starts with a vowel, hence l'alcohol, written with a plain ASCII apostrophe

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