Food Allergies Help

[Cheerie04]

I have a ton of food allergies and I was wondering if Disney had any soy, vegan foods at their restaurants? Has anyone dined at the restaurants with food allergies? I normally don't eat when the family goes to dinner, but this time we were going to try to find a place where we could all eat. Any suggestions?

Thanks

[kcrc]

We have gone with our peanut allergic son, and they were amazingly helpful. I also have a vegetarian friend who has gone to Disney every year. She said they have been very accomodating to her as well. Just make sure you let them know when making your dinner reservations - or - when you first enter a counter service place. They have all the ingredients right there. :thumbsup:

[faline]

Disney is happy to work with folks who have special dining needs.

More information here (http://www.intercot.com/infocentral/dining/dietary/default.asp).

[Matt's Dad]

Tons of great posts already out there on the subject, but Disney does such a great job for my son, I guess I can write one more quick one.

Notify the staff when you are making the reservation .... your allergies will be in the system when you arrive. For Table Service, let the wait person know your concern, they will either help you ... or more than likely bring a Chef to your table to discuss your needs. Trust me, my son is allergic to Peanuts, Soy, Dairy, Wheet, Eggs ....and the list goes on. The Chef will either suggest things from the menu, or offer to prepare something special for you. It is really that good. Oh yeah, and just to prepare you .... when the check comes .... I have never been charged anything extra for the service. (I guess Disney feels everyone should be able to enjoy a family meal together at the happiest place on Earth).

As far as counter service goes ... ask to speak with a manager or a chef. They will have al list of all ingredients for each item. They will review with you, and they will allow substitutions to help you with your meals.

Allergies aren't easy ... but Disney does a better job than anyplace else I have ever been at, so enjoy.

(One drawback, sometimes it can take an extra 10 - 15 minutes to prepare the special meals ... but I have never minded).

[mook3y]

I don't know if it was because we listed food allergies on our reservations or not, but pretty much every restaurant that we have eaten at on WDW property has always asked us about food allergies before the meal.

People who have food allergies tend to have severe reactions and it is obviously important to them.

I think they even ask you if anyone in the dining group has food allergies when you make ADR's.

[SodaPopMGK]

I agree with the previous posters about making sure you mention your allergies when you make your reservations. I have one son who is allergic to soy and another allergic to nuts and sesame seeds, as well as some of the fruits. My family found the table service restaurants were far more informed about food allergies than most of the counter service. The one item that was difficult to get was bread since most of it is processed in a facility that works with nuts. Have a great time and I hope it all works out for you.

[kakn7294]

Depending on how severe your allergies and dietary need are, you can call the restaurant and talk to the chef before your trip and they will be sure to have any special ingredients on-hand for your meal. They may not always be able to accommodate you at the last minute if you wait until you arrive for your meal. Disney is really great about working with those with special dietary requirements.

[mermaidmarian]

We travel with two highly allergic children (1 peanut and 1 peanut and all treenuts). Disney has been, IMO, at the vanguard of working to meet the needs of its guests with special dietary considerations.

Whenever we make ADRs, we alert the dining cast member that our party will include guests with food allergies. They will give you the telephone number for the chef for that location, and really encourage you to call and speak to him/her about your needs. When we do not have an ADR, if we are at TS restaurants, we let our server know right away and usually the chef comes out to speak with you.

New (at least to my observation) for our most recent trip was a ingredients booklet at every food cart in the parks - cast members working the food carts have the books right on hand and are very pleasant and accomodating when you ask to check the ingredient lists. This was great!

I know you wanted to know specifically about vegan offerings, and I realize this response doesn't directly address your inquiry. However, based upon the accomodations that Disney seems to be working to make for its food allergic guests, they are likely prepared to accomodate your needs as well.

I REALLY APPRECIATE the education that Disney has undertaken to make sure that cast members understand the needs of their food allergic guests and that the needs are real and serious and not just nuisance. We routinely run into people who suggest that the safety measures we must take are just "attention seeking" or "much ado about nothing". I wish.