I’ve been hearing recent complaints from those with allergies that when contacting ‘Special Diets’ all they get is a “form response” giving a list of counter service restaurants that should be able to accommodate your needs. This generic response began in December and has continued through the present. It states that your allergies will be addressed when you arrive at the table or counter service restaurant. This has been leaving guests feeling uneasy. They can no longer make their food selections ahead of time, leaving them unsure if they’ll still receive the quality service that they were accustomed to from previous visits. In the past, after contacting Special Diets, you would receive Documents containing each location that could accommodate your allergy and what brand-name foods they regularly carried – many being pre-packaged. Without the availability of these Documents anymore, guests feel as though they’re being put on the back burner with their allergy concerns.
I’ll admit, I felt uneasy as well with such a generic response from Special Diets when I contacted them about my gluten-free diet (due to having celiac disease) and my son’s egg allergy. But we went to Disney World anyway (of course!) and to my surprise, I felt as though my dietary restrictions were treated with top priority – even better than before. The chefs still prepare meals with careful attention to your dietary restrictions, and they really seem to enjoy making a meal specifically just for you.
We ate at Olivia’s Cafe, and the Chef came out and said to me “Order anything you like off the menu, and I’ll make sure that it’s gluten free!” I was elated! I ordered a Club Sandwich, and the Chef personally brought out my plate, set it in front of me and assured me it was gluten-free. The same holds true for almost all Table Service restaurants. I’ve even had Chefs offer to make other delicious dishes that weren’t even listed on the menu!
As far as Quick Service restaurants go, you do need to specify that you have an allergy when ordering. A manager will be called out to speak with you and take your order. Cosmic Ray’s was able to prepare a Hot Dog for me on a gluten-free bun, AND give me french fries that were prepared in a dedicated fryer. It had been so long since I’ve had french fries! The Boardwalk Bakery always has gluten-free goodies on hand, although it is “luck of the draw” as to what they happen to have available that day. I was able to get a vanilla cupcake with Chocolate icing. The Chef there came out and prepared a new batch of icing right infront of me – they know what they’re doing! Making a new batch of icing, ensured that there was no cross-contamination of gluten on my cupcake! Talk about special treatment! I also went to the Beach Club Marketplace and asked if they could accommodate Gluten-free needs… Yes, they can! Any of their sandwiches could be made on a gluten-free bun. I ordered the Turkey sandwich. It would normally come on flatbread – making it a slightly larger than normal sandwich, although the gluten-free bun was of generous size, it was still smaller than the flat bread loaves. The Chef there made me TWO sandwiches (which together ended up being larger than a regular flatbread sandwich!) He only charged me the price of one sandwich. I ate one sandwich for dinner, and saved the 2nd for lunch the next day. I was able to get two meals for the price of one. It was gluten-free and glorious!
So, I believe the reason for such a “form response” from Special Diets is because the Chefs are customizing meals for everyone’s allergy needs, giving guests top notch service. I’d much rather enjoy a meal or treat specifically made for me, than be handed a pre-packaged cookie or brownie. Wouldn’t you?
I felt well taken care of, and my worries were quickly put to rest. So if you’ve got an allergy and are concerned that you can’t plan your food orders ahead of time… don’t worry! Disney is still going to take care of you (quite possibly even better than before!) If you want to get a better idea of where to find allergen-free meals, try helpful resources on the internet such as Allergy Free Mouse or AllergyEats!
Terri writes here and for her blog, Walt Disney World Hints. You can also follow her on Facebook at WDW Hints.
Related articles
- Disney trip planning with food allergies (chipandco.com)
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While I have heard similar comments from others on various food allergy sites around the Internet, I must say that my own recent experience at WDW (with 3 FA children) was once again fantastic. And judging by the ratings on AllergyEats Disney World (http://www.allergyeats.com/disney), others are also continuing to have great experiences. So while I can’t comment on the pre-trip communications, I am confident that WDW’s commitment to those with food allergies remains solid.
On the whole I had a very good experience on my last trip to WDW (November 2011) after going wheat-free. I had not made any advance notice as we’d already booked our meals but told the greeter at the restaurant and reminded the waiter. Each time, the chef would come out and talk about my allergies and what was suitable, or could be made gluten-free. The only problem I had was with the “gluten-free” rolls – they messed with me still so I just stayed away from them. But I had safe Pizza (mama melrose’s) and best of all, fish & chips at Raglan Road (I’m British living in the US) so that was a dream. So much so, I went twice in 2 weeks! Sanaa out at AK villas is also just amazing! The only place that I was very sorely disappointed with was Ohana’s at the Polynesian because the regular soy sauce contains wheat so nothing was suitable and therefore had to be special cooked. I got salad with my family, and then 3 pieces of plain chicken whilst my family feasted on the wonderful delights provided, just sadly everything is basted in a sauce containing that soy sauce. I did complain and they were very apologetic and “refunded” an adult meal credit back to our account (DDP).
I was quite interested to read this as, my cousin as Celiac also and was worried she wouldn’t be able to eat at Disney. Thank you
It is way easier to be gluten free than soy free.
sweet tater fries at Cosmic Ray’s
no salad dressing at Garden Grill and Cape May Buffet and Tomorrowland Terrace
I have not had one french fry in WDW except the baked chips at Raglan Road.
IT IS NOT EASY!!!
The problem lies in the corporate bozos who decide what can be bought. Instead of Enjoy Life that is free of the top 8 allergens they buy OMG cookies that have soy, dairy, and egg. Cascadian Farms and other companies make french fries without soy or top 8 allergens. There are numerous companies that make soy free salad dressing like Annie’s and Brianna’s. The chefs are only allowed to cook with bad foods that make people sick instead of food that vegans, vegetarians, and special diets can eat,
I regularly post on Passporter and regularly eat at WDW and DTD. Some like Raglan Road and Bongos are good with allergen requests. Because of my sensitivities I cannot eat 99% of all desserts other than Rice Dream frozen desserts, ice cream, fruit, and them gluten free brownies. I HATE BROWNIES as I feel like I am getting a Twinkie while everyone is eating pies, cakes, tortes, muffins, struedel etc. at a banquet.
At Biergarten they gave me a hot dog bun for a dinner roll. Downstairs at Sommerfest they gave me a bratwurt cut into thirds on tapioca dinner rolls. Not sure what is up there.
Flame Tree gave me dry ribs as they put worchestershire sauce in the beans. STUPID ALERT!!! That made the beans not vegan or vegetarian and added soy, wheat, citrus, fish, and corn allergens to the list of people not able to eat the salad.
Just came back from Universal Orlando. I was able to eat the turkey legs and fries from most of the cafe’s. One cafe actually had a gluten-free menu available. Also ate at Magaritaville at Universal City Side which also provided a gluten-free menu.
Just don’t expect anything at Tony’s Town Square if you’re allergic to garlic! (worst meal experience at Disney and, to be honest, worst experience in years at any restaurant) The chef did “try”, and made me some plain pasta with a plain chicken breast. Nothing else. Except for the fact that the chicken wasn’t cooked all the way through and pasta with absolutely nothing on it is nasty, he “tried”. I ended up squeezing my lemon from my glass of water over the pasta so that there would be a flavor beyond “overcooked spaghetti”. Was so disappointed that I cried. It was something we had looked forward to for months and was such a disaster.
Terri,
Thanks for the mention, and the great information. You are correct that it is now harder than before to plan ahead for Disney World, due to the limited information the Special Diets team now provides. The chefs and managers are the key to finding allergy-free options in restaurants, as they have always been. It was much more reassuring, though, to know that there were specific brands, you know and trust, available as options. It really helped to plan your trip and, for some, to make the decision to go to Disney.
Although we have a list on our site, it’s very difficult to maintain, since they sometimes change food items. So, we recommend it as a guide. We’ve also started a forum so that our readers, who have recently visited Disney, can leave tips about where to find specific allergen-free foods. And we really on our network of friends, who often tip us via social media and email.
Bottom line — Disney is still the greatest travel destination on Earth for those with food allergies.
This seems like a pretty good move on Disney’s part. When I was there in November, they had the chef come out and talk with me anyway instead of just telling the waiter my allergy and him taking care of it. This just takes out the middle man. Disney is also very familiar with how sensitive us “special diet” need folks are and don’t want any lawsuits on their hands. Personally, I’m very excited to see it first hand in January!
sounds like the service I get at Disneyland with all my allergies. I’ve always found the chefs to be quite accommodating. I even had one chef go above and beyond because she felt sorry for all the allergies/sensitivities I have!