How to use your Malay Chef Card:

In non-English speaking countries it may be difficult to tell a café or restaurant about your allergy and to ask a range of questions about the ingredients and preparation methods. The translated “Chef Card” may assist in communicating the foods you must avoid and how the food must be prepared.  

Download the PDF file:

A&AA Malay Chef Card template (editable)536.11 KB

Print the PDF file and physically cut and paste (or sticky tape) in the translated allergens to which you are allergic. Make sure that you copy the allergens in the same order on both the English and translated language cards. If you are allergic to tree nuts the common tree nuts have been translated into the local language.

Be sure that you copy the allergens fully.

Put a new allergen on each line of the card. If you have more than five allergies we suggest you leave two to three spaces between the allergens.

Trim and fold your card in half.

Tape it together and store in your wallet.

We strongly recommend that you laminate your Chef Card to make it last longer and to prevent the allergens which you have physically glued (or sticky taped) to the card from falling off or being damaged. If you do not laminate your card, you should regularly check whether any of the allergens have fallen off or been damaged. You should perform this check each time you use the card.

Be sure to make several copies of the card in case you forget to collect it from the café or restaurant or to store copies in multiple locations.

Allergy & Anaphylaxis Australia takes no responsibility for the assembly of the card by you and, to the maximum extent permitted by law, disclaims any liability for this.

Give the card to the wait staff, chef or manager.

Common phrases to use when travelling

Malay Phrases60.57 KB

Funding for the Chef Card Translations project has been provided by the Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy (ASCIA), the National Allergy Strategy and an unrestricted education grant from Abbott Nutrition.

Nuts for Life provided an education grant to translate the tree nuts into the various languages.

Content updated August 2022