Soho House private members club chain will ban nuts from next week to ‘protect diners with allergies’
- Soho House chain has 14 restaurants and 10 private clubs across the globe
- It has already banned nuts from menu at central London location amid concerns
- Comes after Natasha Ednan-Laperouse, 15, died of allergic reaction to Pret
Soho House is banning nuts from all of its restaurants and private members clubs from next week to protect diners with allergies.
The exclusive chain boasts multiple sites across London, New York and Hong Kong and counts the Duke and Duchess of Sussex among its customers.
Its Dean Street location in central London has already banned nuts from the menu, with the brand’s nine other members clubs and 14 other restaurants following suit next week, reports The Times.
It comes after the death of the British teenager Natasha Ednan-Laperouse, who died after suffering an allergic reaction from a Pret A Manger with sesame seeds in 2016.
Pret and other High Street chains across Britain have since tightened their policies on food labelling as a result.
It now faces a trial over claims Natasha’s sandwich was ‘not correctly labelled’.
Soho House (London venue pictured) is banning nuts from all of its restaurants and private members clubs from next week to protect diners with allergies
The exclusive chain boasts multiple sites across London, New York and Hong Kong and counts the Duke and Duchess of Sussex (pictured) among its clients
Soho House is believed to be the first outlet in England to ban nuts entirely.
An Indian restaurant called The Dhabba in Glasgow was the first in Scotland after introducing a ban in April last year.
Figures from Allergy UK show 44 per cent of adults in Britain have at least one allergy.
Recently jars of Sacla pesto were removed from UK supermarkets after a shopper suffered an allergic reaction to traces of peanuts in the recipe.
It comes after the death of the British teenager Natasha Ednan-Laperouse, who died after suffering an allergic reaction from a Pret A Manger with sesame seeds in 2016
Soho House is renowned for its celebrity clientele. The Duchess of Sussex is believed to have thrown her hen party there in 2018 after being photographed at the Oxfordshire retreat with reality star Millie Mackintosh before she knew Prince Harry.
The club bans members from taking photos inside its venues and posting them on social media, adding to its exclusive feel.
Annual membership of a single Soho House location costs £1,130 and multi-club membership is £1,700.
Peter Chipchase, of Soho House, told The Times: ‘Nuts are not integral to our recipes and given the increasing number of people with nut allergies, it was a simple decision taken to protect our customers.’
Colin Firth and Livia Giuggioli are pictured at the opening of Soho House Berlin in 2010