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b2baby5
01-20-2009, 07:49 PM
Anyone ever gone with children with food allergies. We are going in September and out 2 year old has some CRAZY allergies...just wondering if any of the dining places do anything special for someone like my daughter?

Figment!
01-20-2009, 08:43 PM
The dining locations at Disney World definatley cater to Guests Food Allergy needs. Chefs at each location can work with Guests to create custom dishes that meet their special dietary needs.

Although it is not required, it will certainly make meeting those needs easier if the locations you plan on dining at are given advance notice of your daughter's allergy needs prior to your arrival.

See the Special Dietary Needs (http://www.intercot.com/infocentral/dining/dietary/default.asp) section of INTERCOT info Central for further information.

MegPeg85
01-20-2009, 08:47 PM
Yes, they are VERY good about allergies. I once went with a friend who had a serious allergy with shellfish. We went to Japan and made them aware of the allergy. The manager came and got the details and made sure the chef knew. They were great!

merlinmagic4
01-20-2009, 08:47 PM
I just called today for my daughter's birthday dinner reservations at Chefs de France. She has an anaphylactic milk allergy. The CM noted it on the reservation, told me the chef would talk to me when we got there and gave me a phone number to call if I wanted to talk to them ahead of time. They definitely will help you out!

MomTo3Tiggers
01-20-2009, 09:28 PM
Call or e-mail in advance. The e-mail address I used in 2007 may be old, but I'm betting someone here has a current one. I sent a list of the allergies for my kids (as well as my own food intolerances related to Celiacs). They sent back a list of products that were available for purchase (stores or counter service restaurants) and a chart to fill out that they sent in advance to all the sit down restaurants.

When we got to the restaurants, I spoke to the chefs in charge each time. You also will want to double check they got the sheet, because they get a whole lot of them.

You can get a lot of information in advance. I highly recommend sending an e-mail!

Iluvpooh
01-20-2009, 09:43 PM
My youngest daughter is allergic to milk(mild), soy(serious), eggs(serious), yeast(serious), malt(mild), shellfish( VERY serious), pork(VERY serious) and corn(mid-range). Also my DH has a VERY serious allergy to fish.
We were able to eat at Chef Mickey's(dinner), Akershus(breakfast), Hollywood & Vine (lunch), Olivia's (dinner) & 1900 Park Fare(dinner) . Because of her allergies, we do not let her eat at counter service locations because they are not as well trained about allergies and cross-contamination as table service chefs.

The chefs and wait staff were GREAT!! We prefer buffets so that the chef can accomodate us easier and she has more choices. Make sure you call ahead and let them know what allergies your DD has.

Be prepard to bring some of your own food for snacks.

If you have any questions, feel free to PM me.

MomTo3Tiggers
01-21-2009, 10:58 AM
We prefer buffets so that the chef can accomodate us easier and she has more choices.

Good point! I'd heard advice to the contrary, but I found buffets to be the best option frequently too. The variety of foods made for more options.

The other thing I did was review the menus in advance. For non-buffet meals which it appeared my kids could mostly eat (or eat with modifications), we tried those too. I found the one "off the menu" restaurant couldn't work with us as well, but the family style preset menu restaurants did do well. The Garden Grill and Liberty Tree Tavern overwhelmed my kids and myself with plain versions of their regular foods which we could eat.

In addition, the Liberty Tree Tavern prepared my kids a birthday cake - something that never happens because of their allergies. The risks of a screw up are too high (esp. with the dairy allergy), but the chef handled it himself and was wonderful. As an allergy parent, I have "trust issues", but I got over them and was very impressed.

MyDisneyworld
02-08-2009, 09:50 PM
My daughter also is allergic to eggs so it is always our greatest fear going out to dinner so it's nice to see Disney is so accommodating. Do you just call the ADR to get the email address? We do not go on our trip until October but would like to have everything in place so when we make reservations we can make sure it all goes smooth. I was surprised to see the buffets have been very accommodating. We always avoid them at home but this is Disney and they seem to go out of their way to help. Has anyone been to Ohana,s breakfast with an egg allergy?

Tinkermom
02-09-2009, 10:23 AM
My daughter also is allergic to eggs so it is always our greatest fear going out to dinner so it's nice to see Disney is so accommodating. Do you just call the ADR to get the email address? We do not go on our trip until October but would like to have everything in place so when we make reservations we can make sure it all goes smooth. I was surprised to see the buffets have been very accommodating. We always avoid them at home but this is Disney and they seem to go out of their way to help. Has anyone been to Ohana,s breakfast with an egg allergy?

We have a son with a life-threatening peanut allergy and have been going to WDW since he was 3 (he is now 12). As others have said, WDW does an amazing job keeping everyone safe with their food allergies.

We have found the best way to deal with the food allergy is to tell the CM when you call to make your ADR's. They will make a note in the computer. I have never used e-mail and personally much prefer talking with someone. When you check in at the restaurant they will see that you have an allergy and will most likely say something to you before you even have a chance to tell them! :) If not mention the allergy and they will automatically send the chef to your table to discuss the allergies and what is safe and what is not. They have ALWAYS offered to make my son something special even if not on the menu (he tends to be picky because of his allergy).

Just a note about buffets. You do need to be careful about cross-contamination with the buffets. Again, the chef will walk WITH you through the buffet and tell you what is safe and what is not. They also have always offered to make a special dish for us if there was any concern with what DS chose from the buffet.

WDW is the one place where we know that they understand the severity of our DS's allergy and as long as we have given them all of the info we can relax and enjoy our meal knowing that all is safe.:thumbsup::number1:

Have an AWESOME vacation and ENJOY!:mickey:

kcrc
02-09-2009, 10:43 AM
I just wanted to echo the sentiments of the prior posters. My son has a peanut allergy. We note it when we make our dinner reservations. The chef always comes out to speak with us. In the case of a buffet, they walk us through the buffet and let us know everything that is ok. And, many are aware of the cross-contamination issue, and take that into account. For example, my son is only allergic to peanuts. However, at Crystal Palace, all of the rolls were in one basket. One type of roll in there had sesame seeds. The chef was uncomfortable having my son possibly get cross contamination from the seeds (although I know that he has never had an issue with them). He made us a plate of our own rolls - baked them in the back and brought them right to our table.
At counter services, they have a book with all of the ingredients right by the cash registers. I've also had the managers of the counter services come out and speak with us. In the counter service in the US in Epcot, the manager was uncomfortable giving us one of the "pre made" fruit cups just because she herself didn't see it made. So, she prepared one specially for my son. In the Edy's ice cream store on main street, they went into the back and opened a brand new container of vanilla ice cream for my son (and washed the scoop) so that they had no fear of cross contamination.
I really could not ask for more with their dining. We are able to eat in restaurants there that I would never DREAM of eating at at home (like Japan or China...). I think feeling safe with their food is one of the major reasons why we always vacation here.
One other thing to note - you should note the allergy on your room reservation also. I always ask them to give the room an "extra" cleaning, including changing the bedspread (which makes me :sick: anyway). I tell them I never know what the people in the room before me were eating. Whether or not they do anything differently I really can't tell. But, at least we are trying to cover all of our bases!