Food Allergies at WDW

[carlossanta]

I had a wonderful trip 2 weeks ago with my gluten allergy-ALL the disney chefs were very helpful. CSR gets special applause because the chefs there actually went to local grocery stores to get the things I needed-Breakstone sour cream and GF brownies. Chef Elvyn takes special pride in serving people with allergies successfully.

 

[Selket]

We also had a good experience with the chefs at CSR - they even got in some "light lemonade" for my son who is not only peanut/tree nut allergic but a type 1 diabetic. The Pepper Market worked well for us.

As for the birthday cake question - what about dining some place like Le Cellier and asking the chef there to prepare a cake/dessert for the party? I found them to be VERY willing to do whatever -even offering to buy something at the grocery they don't normally serve and make it for William. It is a bit harder to speak to the chefs there rather than just the main food service number for all of Epcot. Explain to Brenda at MK foods what you are thinking - I bet she can help you out - contact a chef directly for you and have them call you back.

 

[gigi1313]

We're here at WDW now - dining with DS who has peanut/tree nut allergies and is diabetic. I second the suggestion of contacting Barbara Bennett at the MK foods - she is great. We had wonderful service most everywhere - especially at Le Cellier. The chefs there are out of this world and very helpful about allergies. I'd suggest talking to the chefs directly rather than the main number they give you. Ask about doing this since your allergy is perhaps unusual.

hmmmmm... i have a ds w/severe peanut/tree nut allergies also... when we ate at lecellier we did the notation when making adr, did the call three days ahead, did the ask for a chef when we check in and again when we sat down... our waiter said seeing the chef was not necessary... he would note it on our order and all would be taken care of... ds wanted the cheese platter so i ordered it for him/i to share... came out w/a nice big shiny PECAN right on top! i nearly flipped! so much for all the advance notice! fortunately i saw it before he got his fork into the cheese... he skipped that course (due to cross contamination concerns) and ate his kids' meal, rather unhappily... also our waiter told us they were unable to offer him any dessert as they all contained peanut/tree nuts or manufactured in a facility that processes nuts... it was quite disappointing! (*every* other wdw restaurant was able to offer him *something!* and we were there for 11 days eating at least 1-2 ts/day! garden grill brought us all "itzakadoozie" ice pops!)

fast forward a few days to boma breakfast... met w/a chef, we walked the buffet together... i asked about baked goods 'cause they had been off-limits all week w/minimal exceptions... she plated what was safe for us and off we went... well, not long after that, ds had a reaction! and i am almost SURE it was the pastry (banana muffin)...suffice to say it was a lousy last day at wdw!

 

[gigi1313]

guess i should follow up that doom/gloom report w/a few notes of the places we ate safely and happily...

our first ts meal of the trip was at LTT... chef amber came out and was WONDERFUL! she even promised ds that she cleared the kitchen of nuts/acorns for chip/dale so no need to worry! she signed ds' autograph book and posed for a picture! she was great and really made us feel comfortable!

next we met the chef at CP in MK... he was wonderful walking us thru the buffet line... i knew the people at the next table were also waiting to meet w/him but he treated us as though we were the only people in the place... offering to cook ds' food special in the back for him... he, too signed the book and we got a photo...

the server at garden grill surprised us all by bringing out a big platter covered w/a napkin and had some of the characters come over and made a big hullaballoo about unveiling our surprise dessert... it was four artfully arranged "itzakadoozie" ice pops! LOL! we were all happy w/the care he took and the way he made ds feel special rather than deprived!

ds was given double servings of rice cream at princess lunch in norway...

chef allen at chef mickey's was also great (got the autograph and photo there as well)... he walked the buffet w/us... alerting us to things that we should avoid, offering to make items to ds' specifications, etc... and because desserts here were also off-limits, he surprised ds w/a HUGE banana split, again, served w/some fanfare... ds felt like a king that night (which was good 'cause it was the same day he had the bad reaction at boma) and has discovered a love for banana splits! LOL!

 

[spiceycat]

boy I have been silly all these years.

when I called dinning and told them I had allergies I was told to call the restuarant 24 hours before.

Sometimes it was past that time already.

I make last minutes reservations lots of time.

I think I will definitely have to call Brenda.

does the list she send you include all the items in the foods?

it would be great to eat at WDW and not have to worry if I could get sick later.

thank s!!!

 

[DVCDawn]

Spicey Cat:

Brenda Bennett will be able to send you ingredient listings for most foods served in MK. If you ask her about the other parks, she should be able to send you info about them as well. I call her before each trip and seem to get the same information each time (I keep calling, though, in case anything has changed since my last trip). It's a lot of info and you'll have to wade through it as some information is repeated many times, but it's really handy.

I've also gotten some great advice from Sharon Shiffren (?) in Epcot. She can be very specific about a lot of food sold in Epcot. In fact, I think she has a food allergy herself.

The park where I have gotten the least amount of info from was AK, where Disney is less in control of the food served. In general, we stick to the McDonald's that's in the park as that is a known entity.

Good Luck!
DVCDawn

 

[Selket]

Don't know what to say gigi about Le Cellier. All I can tell you is we ate there twice this summer (May and July) and both times had a fantastic experience. All in all they took the most care in making sure everything was safe. In fact the chef from LC called ME first - before I called them. They were willing to make him about anything for dessert. They had highlighted our ressie, sat us down as soon as we arrived, chef I had spoken to was there and talked to us. He even made William a special from scratch dessert that looked to pretty to eat - certainly a bit fancy for a 3 yr old but we all got a big kick out of it! He served William everything I asked for including some things not on the menu directly that day (like sliced tomatoes or asparagus or something). The LC chef even gave us his business card when we were there in May and told us he'd be happy to help us out with any food issues anywhere in the parks - contacting other chefs or whatever. Indeed he was very helpful in July when he was able to locate a CSR chef for me to talk to before our trip - I had kept leaving messages and getting transferred and getting no help. The CSR chefs were great once I got ahold of them (DS is also a type 1 diabetic so his meals are more complicated than just the allergies).

Conversely our most disappointing meal was at Chef Mickey's - the only dessert he could eat was the plain vanilla ice cream - and he doesn't like ice cream generally. What he REALLY wanted were the sprinkles but we were told those were all off limits (even fresh ones in the back). No offer to make anything else. I ended up walking around the restaurant - LITERALLY - with my other son who is 7 and was dying to eat off the ice cream bar - with his ice cream so he could get the dessert. DH and I grabbed some cookies and wrapped them up to take with us and we ate them later. Anyway - I hate sneaking desserts. I did find something for William to eat in one of the stores (like Oreos or something)

I've read enough wishy-washy things about Boma that I'm a bit afraid of trying it again - though I loved it when we ate there before DS had his allergy. Anyway I guess it goes to show that sometimes you hit the right chef on the right day - or sometimes the wrong chef!

 

[Kris & Steve]

Hi all!

How are the restaurants at dealing with special dietary need? My husband suffers from Celiac Sprue (he’s allergic to gluten, wheat, oats , barley, rye & a lot more) & I want to know how difficult it will be for him to eat well while we are there. Are the restaurants accommodating or do they give you a hard time? This is the part of the trip that is making me the most nervous, actually terrified. If he gets anything he's not suppose to eat it could ruin our whole vacation!

Is there a number I could call or person I could e-mail about getting a list of gluten free foods in the park, i.e. the snacks stands, etc.

Thanks so much to all who provide me with any help. I greatly appreciate it!

Thanks,
Kris & Steve
aw:

 

[gigi1313]

selket, thanks for sharing your experiences... i sent you a pm, hope you don't mind!

kris... wdw is amazing at catering to special dietary needs... the routine from what i have been told is to first have the allergy noted when you make the ADR, at which time you will be given a phone number for each individual restaurant to call anywhere from one week to 24 hours in advance (each has a diff't policy) (our TA made all these calls for us so we did not have to interrupt our vacation to tend to this detail); second make that call at the appropriate time; third inform the cm upon checking in at the restaurant, asking to meet with a chef; fourth alert the waiter/waittress immediately upon being seated, reiterating your desire to meet with a chef; fifth, go over safe and unsafe choices w/the chef, including walking a buffet (if applicable) going thru each item in depth as to the safety of it, asking for substitions to be made in the kitchen (i.e. for my nut allergic son, the toppings bar at the make your own sundae station is off-limits due to possible cross contamination ergo the chef went in the back and prepared a banana split with completely safe ingredients); sixth ENJOY!

 

[ducklite]

I have tree nut and peanut allergies. I'm also allergic to coconut and scallops. I don't eat pork. The one place that was TERRIBLE was Boma!

The chef was very rushed when walking me through the food line, told me none of the desserts were safe, and basically walked off, leaving me with pap as about the only safe food. I wanted to cry. After eating a serving of that, my DH and DS had a couple plates of food, and our server came by and asked why I wan't eating. I told him because there was nothing I could eat. We were ready for teh check, and he offered to bring me a chicken breast--you think that could ahve been done half an hour earlier? At any rate I said no, forget it, they are ready to leave. I was still charged for my meal. I should have spoken to a manager, the chef knew there was nothing I could eat. and should ahve been the one to offer something else.

Anne

 

[Talking Hands]

I have tree nut and peanut allergies. I'm also allergic to coconut and scallops. I don't eat pork. The one place that was TERRIBLE was Boma!

The chef was very rushed when walking me through the food line, told me none of the desserts were safe, and basically walked off, leaving me with pap as about the only safe food. I wanted to cry. After eating a serving of that, my DH and DS had a couple plates of food, and our server came by and asked why I wan't eating. I told him because there was nothing I could eat. We were ready for teh check, and he offered to bring me a chicken breast--you think that could ahve been done half an hour earlier? At any rate I said no, forget it, they are ready to leave. I was still charged for my meal. I should have spoken to a manager, the chef knew there was nothing I could eat. and should ahve been the one to offer something else.

Anne

We had the opposite experience with Boma. My daughter has peanut allergies as well as being a vegetarian. She was oveo-lacto at the time. The chef walked the line with her and showed her what she could eat. He then decided that it was insufficient and made her a seven layer vegetarain plate and a separate dessert.
I am diabetic and allergic to nutrasweet. The same chef told me to not even bother with the bufet except the salads that he showed me were safe. He made me a 3 course meal (soup, entree and dessert) sugar free made with Splenda. He even thanked me for giving them advanced notice as it gave him time to learn how to work with Splenda as they had had many requests for it to be used instead of Nutrasweet but always at the last minute. The chef both times was TJ. It probably depends on the chef.

 

[rjthkids]

Wow, what a great thread! My son has sixteen food allergies ranging from wheat, dairy, tree and ground nuts, soy, citric acid, seafood and on. Of his sixteen food allergies, he is anaphalactic to 10 of them. This is the reason I leapt at the chance to be a DVC member, it is just too dangerous if someone screws up and it's much less stress free to cook our own meals. His allergy to nuts and soy is so sensitive that we've been told he can have a reaction simply from breathing the air in a place that using nuts or soy to cook with. Now, we haven't experienced this, but obviously we don't put ourselves in a situation to find out for sure. Knowing I can cook all his food is so much less stress. But I am definitely going to call this woman and ask some questions for future reference! What a great resource to have for their guests!

 

[ducklite]

We had the opposite experience with Boma. My daughter has peanut allergies as well as being a vegetarian. She was oveo-lacto at the time. The chef walked the line with her and showed her what she could eat. He then decided that it was insufficient and made her a seven layer vegetarain plate and a separate dessert.
I am diabetic and allergic to nutrasweet. The same chef told me to not even bother with the bufet except the salads that he showed me were safe. He made me a 3 course meal (soup, entree and dessert) sugar free made with Splenda. He even thanked me for giving them advanced notice as it gave him time to learn how to work with Splenda as they had had many requests for it to be used instead of Nutrasweet but always at the last minute. The chef both times was TJ. It probably depends on the chef.

TJ is wonderful! He's the best friend of a friend of mine.

Too bad he wasn't there when I ate there, as he's always taken good care of me in the other WDW restaurants he's worked at.

Anne

 

[Selket]

Thanks for noting that Boma chef's name. We avoided Boma on our trips this summer because of the negative things I've read on the allergies but perhaps if TJ is still there next time we go I'll have to go back. My son is just 3 yrs old so not like we need a complicated meal (a hot dog, some rice, some veggies and a dessert - LOL!).

It is odd to me that the ONE thing you can't seem to get at any of the sit-down restaurants is a sugar-free drink other than diet coke that is appropriate for children (obviously no tea or coffee). We ended up bringing in our drinks from outside for him for the most part (he is type 1 diabetic as well as the allergies).

 

[carlossanta]

TJ is the only one to talk with at Boma, for allergies. The first chef I talked to about my gluten allergy was similar to the other poster-here's your stuff, limited as it is, there is no dessert, goodbye. TJ just happened to be nearby and he said, Yes we have a dessert! And he made me an entire meal, asking me what I liked for main entrees. No problem. It was one of my best allergy experiences at a Disney restaurant.

Make sure to stay at Coronodo Springs, the chefs there take delight in challenging allergies! I had a wonderful time eating at the Pepper Market-they even went to local stores to get the ingredients I needed!

Avoid Teppanyaki, they haven't got a clue. Avoid counter service in the World Showcase at Epcot, they haven't got a clue and don't want one. I had the hardest time in Morocco, they were even rude to me. They're not Disney in a big way.

 

[gigi1313]

even though my son is not diabetic, he often prefers diet drinks... i just carry those little tubes of crystal light iced tea or lemonade mix... just ask for a glass of water and you're good to go

 

[pampam]

Has anyone had good experiences with counter service? I've had excellent meals when I spoke to the chef at TS but we were not on the meal plan. If we get the meal plan, I'm afraid CS could be a problem. Anyone?

 

[Selket]

pampam

We did a few counter service meals (that huge CS place near Adventureland), Pizzafari at the AK and at our hotels (CR and CSR) and didn't have any problems. Supposedly you should ask for the manager when you arrive at the CS place and ask about the food. They are supposed to have a book that tells about allergens. Some places are just SO busy that it is hard to ask anyone before you get up to the counter - impossible really as you'd have to break through the que to get up there which wouldn't be very nice.

We tried to pick places that would likely have something he could eat that was safe - like a hot dog. William is highly allergic to peanut/tree nut, btw. What also might help is to call Brenda Bennett of the MK Foods (her number is on several threads on allergies here) and she can email you a list of places around the parks that serve food that would be a problem. So that way you'll know before you go - like I knew the Dole Whips are fine, Itskadoozies are fine off the carts but Mickey bars are not (for us). etc. She also told us to avoid completely the asian inspired restaurant near Tomorrowland, etc.

The biggest problems seem to be the breads. We didn't have problems with hotdog buns but if the person who has the allergy wants something more sophisticated (like a sandwich wrap, etc.) you will need to do some investigation. In any case just ASK when you get there for CS and likely they will be able to accommodate you.

I would think CS meals are quite doable but perhaps might not be your most memorable dining experience When are you going?

 

[DCDisney]

I'm allergic to all nuts and soy and for the most part the counter services were fine. They all have a binder at the register or counter with ingredients. I couldn't do any buns (sesame) except the sub rolls at POFQ and no chicken strips/nuggets but most of the pizza, rotiss. chicken, burger or hot dog no bun were fine. I also had one of those big turkey legs I was even able to have desserts at most CS places because they are very explicitly labelled. One we did avoid though is Tusker House because they have a fried peanut chicken that is not cooked separately and I didn't want to eat anything there. Other places that have nut stuff seems to be contained like prewrapped salads or unrustable sandwiches.

Yvonne

 

[BriNJ]

My 5yr old is allergic to tree nuts and most likely to peanuts, though its not confirmed yet. We were thrilled at how wonderful Disney was. Because of the severity of DS's allergy, DD is also considered allergic (she's 4). Going on vacation the first time was scary, but we felt comfortable immediately!

Last year, we went to:
-Ohana's- excellent! chef came out and walked us through what was safe and what may not be...offered to make us substitutes for the kids (not needed though!)
-Crystal Palace- excellent! chef walked the buffet with me and told me what was safe and what was not. Lots of things for the kiddos
-Chef Mickeys- AWFUL. The chef was angry because CRO didnt note allergies on our reservation. He treated us horribly and the kids were unable to eat anything for dessert. No substitutes were offered at all and we will NEVER go back there, we felt awful the entire time, like we were too much trouble for them
-All Star Sports Food Court- excellent! we had tons to eat, they offered substitutes, used clean utensils for serving etc
-Norway (Princess breakfast)- the chef came to our table and went through the menu with us. Only one item wasn't safe for DD and he made her a special sweet. She was thrilled- he presented it dramatically referring to her as princess and although she didn't eat it, she made me take it with her and carry it back to the hotel (I finally was able to throw it out onthe last day of vacation, lol)


There were a few more and were fine too. For us, at this age and allergy level, there is no place better than Disney. For the first time, the kids were treated well not badly because of thier allergies. I hope your expereince is as wonderful. I'd definatley, since its not a common allergy, contact the person in charge to make sure that they are prepared.

One funny: we need a special dessert for DS as he's turning 6 on our next vacation (we leave next Saturday, 6 days to go!). I called the Crystal Palace to talk about a nut-free dessert special for him. The woman on the other end couldn't understand the difference between NUT Free and NOT free (as in we have to pay for it). OMG, it was awful. We'll deal with it when we get there as they have more than a week. LOL

Bri