Dietary & Allergies

1. Sò vegetarianu / vegetariana

   I am vegetarian

   Usage

   A first line to tell a restaurant or market stall that you do not eat meat or fish

   Grammar Note

   Choose vegetarianu if you are male and vegetariana if you are female. Note that "yes" is Iè in Corsican, while sì means "you are", so do not mix them up. Composed from known words and sentence patterns; native review recommended

2. Aghju un'allergia à l'ova

   I have an egg allergy

   Usage

   Tell the staff when you need to avoid dishes or pastries made with eggs

   Grammar Note

   "I have an allergy to X" is Aghju un'allergia à + noun, and the same frame works for any other ingredient. Ova is used as the plural of ovu (egg). The spelling allirgia also exists; allergia is used here. Composed from known words and sentence patterns; native review recommended

3. Aghju un'allergia à l'arachide

   I have a peanut allergy

   Usage

   Say this when you must avoid peanuts or dishes cooked with peanut oil

   Grammar Note

   Arachide means peanut (groundnut). Tree nuts such as walnuts are different words and are not covered here. Composed from known words and sentence patterns; native review recommended

4. Aghju un'allergia à i crustacei

   I have a shellfish (crustacean) allergy

   Usage

   Use it to avoid shrimp, crab and lobster. It does not cover bivalves such as mussels

   Grammar Note

   Crustacei is the plural of crustaceu (crustacean), with the plural article i after à. Composed from known words and sentence patterns; native review recommended

5. Sò musulmanu / musulmana è ùn manghju micca carne di porcu

   I am Muslim and I do not eat pork

   Usage

   States that you avoid pork for religious reasons; also a good opener before asking about sausages or ham

   Grammar Note

   Negation is ùn + verb + micca (ùn manghju micca); the accent on ùn separates it from the article un. Porcu can also mean wild boar, so adding carne (carne di porcu) keeps the meaning clear. Composed from known words and sentence patterns; native review recommended

6. Sò intullerante à u lattosiu

   I am lactose intolerant

   Usage

   Say this when you need to avoid milk, cream or fresh cheese

   Grammar Note

   Intullerante has the same form for men and women, so there is nothing to change. The spelling intollerante also exists. À + u means "to". Composed from known words and sentence patterns; native review recommended

7. Avete un menu senza glutinu?

   Do you have a gluten-free menu?

   Usage

   For guests with wheat allergy or coeliac disease to ask whether the restaurant has a dedicated menu

   Grammar Note

   The polite form uses voi (plural), so the verb is Avete. "Without" is senza. Glutinu is a masculine technical word that is widely understood, much like French gluten. Composed from known words and sentence patterns; native review recommended

8. Quali ingredienti ci sò in stu piattu?

   What ingredients are in this dish?

   Usage

   Check what is inside a dish before ordering if you have allergies or restrictions

   Grammar Note

   Because several things are asked about, it is quali + plural noun and the verb is plural ci sò (singular is ci hè). Piattu means "dish, plate"; a different word with the same spelling also means "hidden". Composed from known words and sentence patterns; native review recommended

9. Pudete cucinà stu piattu senza cipolla?

   Can you cook this dish without onion?

   Usage

   Ask the kitchen to leave an ingredient out; swap cipolla for another ingredient to reuse the sentence

   Grammar Note

   Pudete (the voi form) + infinitive makes a polite request. After senza the noun needs no article. The spelling of cipolla varies by region (for example cipodda). Composed from known words and sentence patterns; native review recommended

10. Ci hè oliu d'arachide?

    Is there peanut oil in it?

    Usage

    A peanut-allergic traveller checks whether frying oil or dressings contain peanut oil

    Grammar Note

    "Is there ...?" is Ci hè ...? (singular). Oil is also found as orghju. "Oil of X" is oliu di + noun, and di becomes d' before a vowel. Composed from known words and sentence patterns; native review recommended

11. Sta allergia pò esse murtale. Attenti assai, pè piacè

    This allergy can be deadly. Please be very careful

    Usage

    A firm way to ask kitchen staff for extra care when your allergy is severe

    Grammar Note

    Pò esse means "can be". Murtale is also spelled mortale. Pè piacè (the northern form) at the end makes it polite. Because this is serious, name the cause first with Aghju un'allergia à. Composed from known words and sentence patterns; native review recommended

12. a carne di porcu

    Pork

    Usage

    Point at this to check whether a dish contains pork

    Grammar Note

    Carne is feminine, so the article is a. Corsican cuisine uses a lot of cured pork, so checking this word on a menu is especially useful

13. a carne di boie

    Beef

    Usage

    Point at this to check whether a dish contains beef

    Grammar Note

    Boie refers to ox or beef, and the forms boiu and boi also exist. Carne + di + animal name gives "meat of ..."

14. u pullastru

    Chicken

    Usage

    Point at this to check whether a dish contains chicken

    Grammar Note

    Pullastru is a young chicken, also written pollastru. The word pollu exists too but means a chick, so it is not used for the meat

15. l'ova

    Eggs

    Usage

    Used to check for egg in a dish or pastry if you are allergic

    Grammar Note

    A single egg is ovu (masculine) and ova is used for the plural. The article becomes l' before a vowel

16. i latticini

    Dairy products

    Usage

    Covers milk, cheese, butter and other dairy as a group; useful for lactose intolerance or milk allergy

    Grammar Note

    Latticini is the plural of latticiniu, with the article i. A collective form latticime also exists. For individual items use latte (milk), casgiu (cheese) and butiru (butter)

17. l'arachide

    Peanut

    Usage

    Used to check for peanuts in a dish or sweet if you are allergic

    Grammar Note

    Arachide means peanut (groundnut) and is a different word from walnuts or hazelnuts. The article becomes l' before a vowel

18. i crustacei

    Crustaceans

    Usage

    Used to check for shrimp, crab and lobster

    Grammar Note

    Crustacei is the plural of crustaceu. It does not include bivalves such as mussels, so mention shellfish allergies separately

19. u granu

    Wheat

    Usage

    Used to check for wheat in bread, pasta and pastries if you are allergic

    Grammar Note

    Granu is a masculine noun for wheat or grain, and ranu is a variant form. Gluten itself is glutinu

20. a soia

    Soy

    Usage

    Used to check for soy in a dish or processed food if you are allergic

    Grammar Note

    Soia is feminine, so the article is a. An identical word soia also means "his/hers", but in a food context it is soy

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