If you have Celiacs Disease, then you know going on vacation can be stressful having to plan around where and what you can eat. What you may not know is that Walt Disney World Resort is committed to offering a wide range of culinary and dietary options for all its Guests.
Many Disney restaurants now offer allergy-friendly menus to address various food intolerances including Celiacs, offering many gluten-free options — often with no advance arrangements!
In 2017 I was diagnosed with Celiac, I thought for sure my food adventure at Disney was coming to an end.
The first time I went to Disney after my diagnoses I was greeted by a very knowledgeable server at Cape May Café who knew exactly what accommodations needed to be made to allow to me enjoy a worry free meal. He walked me through the menu and then brought the chef out to chat with me about substitutions (what were the options?). This type of service encouraged me to write about conquering Disney with Celiac.
Some of my favorite gluten-free treats at Disney are the Mickey waffles (Found at quick service and table service restaurants), gluten-free beignets (found at Disney’s Port Orleans French Quarter) and the gluten-free Churro (found at the Nomad Lounge in Animal Kingdom)
With any allergy there are a few tricks you need to know before you go. If you have an allergy at this time you cannot pre-order your meal on My Disney Experience. If you are an adult sharing a plate with a child under 3 and that child has a food allergy, you will need to order your food to the child’s needs, without the allergen. Disney is extremely careful about cross contamination, so they will not serve a gluten-free waffle next to gluten containing items. When dining at a quick service location, I would suggest that you send one adult ahead of the party so they can start the order for the person with the food allergy. It takes additional time to prep and cook an allergen free meal, so keep this in mind while you are making FastPass+ reservations well. Your dining experience will be extended by at least 10 minutes in my experience.
Don’t be afraid to ask questions, the food and beverage cast members take a course on food allergy safety. If all else fails they have a great big ol’ book of cheat sheets! A chef will greet you at your table and either escort you through the buffet or guide you through the menu, even at the resort food courts that will walk you through the options and explain the process of food substitutions.
When a guest with food allergies makes a reservation through Enchanted Kingdom Vacations a note is added to your file notating the allergy. Then your allergy is noted on each dining reservation your knowledgeable agent books for you. This makes sure your vacation is just as delightful and delicious as the rest of your family (how?). There are even allergy free cleaning products that will be used for your resort room during your stay! Even the H2O bath products are soy and gluten-free (yes, gluten is a common ingredient in shampoo).
Contact me today to set up your next magical vacation! When Dining at Disney you are in extremely safe and knowledgeable hands!