People who are MSG-sensitive face quite a challenge when it comes to eating in restaurants, especially when traveling to strange places.

WHEN TRAVELING BY AIR:  Most airline food is laced with MSG, and the only way I know to avoid it is to order a "vegetarian meal", insisting that no MSG may be contained in it.  Ask what is in the special meal, since many will assume Jell-O is OK, when in fact, it contains MSG.  I've also received salad dressings where the label clearly indicates the presence of MSG or one of its 'hidden names'.

The following represents a list of those restaurants whose menus have been checked for the presence of MSG:   Keep in mind ingredients can change -- so periodically recheck with personnel, especially the manager, when you visit a restaurant.  Also, NEVER order any kind of soup in a restaurant -- "soup base" is usually utilized in every type of soup, and this almost always contains MSG.  Advise your restaurant manager that they CAN have MSG-free soups by ordering their soup bases from a company called SYSCO, a nationwide restaurant supplier (check yellow pages or www.sysco.com).

KENTUCKY FRIED CHICKEN:  There is nothing safe in this restaurant's menu!  When I wrote KFC asking what foods were MSG-free, I received a letter from the food chain's Legal Counsel, saying there was no product I could safely eat in this restaurant.

TACO BELL:  I am told by this chain that there is "no MSG in any of their food".  However, I've received many e-mails from MSG-sensitive people who report a return of symptoms after eating here.  Beware! 

BURGER KING:  You may eat the garden salad (check salad dressing labels carefully), and french fries.  There is unfortunately nothing else you can safely consume here, to the best of my knowledge. 

McDONALD'S:  The garden salad with lite Italian dressing is OK.  Iced tea is OK as of now; but I've been told they may begin using an iced tea mix or concentrate, which may contain MSG....check with the manager.  At this writing the Apple Pie is OK.  Nothing else seems to be MSG-free.  McDonald's at least posts in each restaurant a complete list of the ingredients in their products.  If you look carefully, you'll find that MSG -- under one 'hidden name' or another -- is listed for almost every food product.