Top chefs now cater to diners with allergies

Montpellier, France

WHEN French superchef Alain Ducasse stunned the world of haute cuisine last year by dropping meat, boosting veggies and lightening up his menus, he was less bucking convention than joining a trend of accommodating vegetarians and people with food allergies.

Fine dining at top-class restaurants run by uncompromising chefs might once have been unthinkable for such clients. But no more.

"Twenty years …