Does tzatziki contain milk?

Yes. Tzatziki is made with yoghurt.

Does baklava contain nuts?

Yes. Baklava usually contains walnuts, pistachios or both, plus butter and wheat filo.

Does taramasalata contain fish?

Yes. It is made from fish roe and often contains bread (gluten).

Is feta safe for a cow's milk allergy?

Feta is made from sheep's or goat's milk, which usually cross-reacts with cow's milk, so it is generally not suitable.

Does moussaka contain gluten?

Often, through flour in the béchamel and sometimes breadcrumbs. It also contains milk and egg.

Is halloumi a milk allergen?

Yes. Halloumi is made from sheep's, goat's and sometimes cow's milk.

Does spanakopita contain egg?

Many recipes contain egg as well as feta and wheat filo pastry.

Are Greek salads safe for allergies?

A traditional Greek salad contains feta (milk). Without feta it is usually free of the main allergens, but check the dressing.

Does Greek coffee contain allergens?

Plain Greek coffee contains none of the 14 allergens, but it is often served with sweets that may contain nuts, gluten or milk.

Greek Food Allergens: where allergens hide and how to order safely

By the Menulta editorial team · Facts checked 15 October 2026 · Updated 15 October 2026

The short answer

Greek food commonly contains milk (feta, halloumi, yoghurt, béchamel), gluten (filo pastry, pitta, bread, orzo), sesame (tahini, koulouri, halva), nuts (walnuts and pistachios in baklava and desserts), egg (avgolemono, moussaka, pastitsio), fish (taramasalata, anchovies) and molluscs (octopus, calamari). Celery appears in soups and stews, and wine in sauces adds sulphites.

Allergens in Greek cooking

Greek meze and taverna menus share many dishes across tables, which is part of the charm but complicates allergies. Dips such as tzatziki (yoghurt), taramasalata (fish roe, often with bread) and melitzanosalata are served with pitta, and cheese appears in salads, pies and grills.

Filo pastry is used for spanakopita, tiropita and baklava, bringing gluten and, in desserts, nuts and butter.

Common Greek dishes and their usual allergens

Recipes vary between kitchens, so treat this as a guide to where to look, not a substitute for each restaurant's own allergen record.

Typical allergens in common Greek dishes
Dish	Usual allergens	Watch for
Moussaka	Milk, egg, gluten, celery	Béchamel, sometimes breadcrumbs
Pastitsio	Gluten, egg, milk	Pasta, béchamel
Spanakopita, tiropita	Gluten, milk, egg	Filo, feta
Tzatziki	Milk	Yoghurt
Taramasalata	Fish, gluten, sometimes egg	Fish roe, bread or potato
Grilled octopus, calamari	Molluscs	Fried calamari: gluten, shared fryer
Avgolemono	Egg, celery	Egg-lemon sauce, chicken stock
Baklava	Nuts, gluten, milk	Walnuts or pistachios, butter
Halva, koulouri	Sesame, gluten	Tahini, sesame seeds

Greek allergen hot spots

Shared meze plates, bread baskets and grills are the main cross-contact points.

Pitta and bread brushed with oil on the same grill as other items.
Fried calamari, whitebait and courgette sharing fryer oil.
Nuts in desserts and sometimes in salads.
Tahini in dips and dressings.

Saying it in Greek

These phrases help in Greece and Cyprus:

'Eímai allergikós / allergikí se …' (Είμαι αλλεργικός/αλλεργική σε…) – I am allergic to…
gála (milk), avgá (eggs), alévri (flour), xirí karpí (nuts)
fistíkia (peanuts or pistachios: ask which), sousámi (sesame), psári (fish)
garídes (shrimp), thalassiná (seafood), moustárda (mustard), sélino (celery)

Greek desserts and pastries

Greek bakeries and dessert shops use nuts, butter, honey and filo heavily. Baklava, kataifi and karydopita (walnut cake) contain nuts. Galaktoboureko is a custard pie with milk, egg and filo. Loukoumades are fried dough balls with honey, often topped with walnuts or sesame. Koulourakia are butter cookies made with egg and sometimes sesame. For nut-allergic guests, plain Greek yoghurt with honey can be a safer dessert, but check toppings and serving spoons.

Fasting food and vegan options

During Orthodox fasting periods, many Greek restaurants and bakeries offer 'nistísima' dishes that avoid meat, dairy and eggs, and sometimes fish. These are a good starting point for milk- and egg-allergic guests, but they may contain shellfish and molluscs, which are allowed during many fasts, and tahini, which is common in fasting dishes. Check allergens rather than relying on the fasting label.

For the kitchen

Record dips, pastries and sauces as components. Name the nut in desserts. Mark fried items with the fryer's shared allergens. Offer individual portions of meze for allergic guests instead of shared plates.

Grills in Greek tavernas cook meat, fish, halloumi and bread side by side. For allergy orders, cook on a cleaned area of the grill or in a separate pan, and keep bread and cheese off the plate unless they have been checked. Desserts are often bought in from local bakeries, so keep their labels on file.

For guests with allergies

Ask what is in each dip, whether pies contain egg, which nuts are in desserts and whether fried items share oil. Ask for your own plates of meze to avoid cross-contact from shared dishes.

In Greece, restaurants must provide allergen information, and many tourist-area tavernas show it on menus or QR menus. If not, ask for the allergen list. Shared meze plates are part of the culture, so tell your companions about your allergy too.

Sources

This guide is general information, not medical or legal advice. Guests with an allergy should follow their doctor's advice. Operators should confirm their own setup with their food safety adviser or local authority.