As soon as we got there my husband got in line with the kids and I asked the first cast member I saw if I could speak to the manager about allergy safe choices. The manager came right out and went over the menu with me. Because we had the dining plan and our children with allergies are 3 and 4 we only had 3 items to discuss.

The children’s menu includes grilled cheese, pizza sandwich and turkey and cheese. The bread is all egg free there but the pizza sauce is the same as the sauce for the meatball sandwiches and the meatballs are cooked in peanut oil. The turkey and cheese sandwich is fine if you order it without mayonnaise.

By the time we reached the front of the line all 7 of us had figured out our order. The meals on the dining plan come with entrée, drink and dessert. All the desserts are made in-house and labeled with the ingredients. Unfortunately the ingredients list on some things were vague. The chocolate pudding listed ingredients as chocolate pudding, whipped cream and strawberry. Now Jell-O chocolate pudding is okay but I asked about theirs’ since it’s homemade. Good thing I asked, it had egg in it. The strawberry shortcakes ingredients were listed the same way but I knew their was no way the pound cake would be egg free. We settled on strawberry Jell-O with fruit on top. They basically ate the fruit off the top and wanted to go on to the Mr. Potato Head store.

Over all we were happy with the experience. The sandwiches were wrapped and bagged separately and we felt like our concerns were handled appropriately. Our first Disney dining experience with allergies: Success!

If you would like to review Earl of Sandwich or any Disney restaurant, submit a food allergy dining Quick Review.

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We were recently contacted by a guy named Gary, who was planning a Disney World trip with his granddaughter, who has genetic disorder. He needed Silk Soy Milk available for her on the trip. Since they were flying to Orlando and the quantity was above the TSA guideline for carry-on liquids, he wasn’t able to take it on the trip. Disney recommended Goodlings Grocery as one who will deliver. However, their minimum order was way above the quantity he needed. We checked with GardenGrocer.com and, while their minimums are lower, it was still too much to justify when his needs were only 2.5 gallons of soy milk. We even found the product on Amazon.com. However, the option there was for a large quantity of single-serve soy milk — again a bit much for what he needed.

We recommended that he call Special Diets again, requesting to speak with the head chef at the Caribbean Resort where he was staying, and ask for his or her assistance. When the need arrises, a Disney Cast Member will typically go above and beyond for you, if you simply ask and it’s not extravagant. He did just that, and the chef said he would arrange to have plenty of Silk Soy Milk available when arrived.

He even followed up just before leaving for the trip, and all was set.

Unfortunately, when Gary arrived with his family, no one at the Caribbean Resort was aware of the arrangement. They had no record of the request at Special Diets, either.

Out of desperation, Gary rented a car and purchased the Silk Soy Milk for his granddaughter.

We were heartbroken to hear this news. It was a real surprise to us, after all the wonderful stories we hear about Disney, and the experiences we have had while at Disney World and on our Disney Cruise. Had we been in this situation, we probably would have done the same thing, or possibly even paid the price to have a GardenGrocer.com delivery.

Just a few days ago, we learned of another option, Orlando Theme Park Shoppers, who provide a personal shopper service, including special dietary needs. They are a much more economical option. Unfortunately, we were not aware of this service until Gary already had his plan with Disney.

So what went wrong with the plan at Disney? No one will ever know. Disney often delivers magical moments, and are known for their protocol for doing so. They have systems in place that work within the logistics of a massive food service organization. And Joel Schaefer told us that he implemented a protocol for dealing with food allergies, within this giant food service organization, that makes a special dietary need a red alert priority. Everyone takes it very seriously and the operation adjusts accordingly to ensure extreme care is taken. We feel like Gary’s request fell outside of the protocol. It was essentially promised by someone, outside of the normal procedures, and the massive logistical operation at Disney possibly overlooked this promise, since it was not part of the normal process.

It’s a real shame that it happened, but Disney is a huge operation run by people. And people make mistakes and forget things. Therefore, it’s always a great idea to have a backup plan with food allergies. We still do it, but it’s much “lighter” than it used to be. Disney has never let us down, but we still have a plan for it. In fact, we’ve booked our next Disney Cruise, even after the Carnival Triumph. And while we don’t expect any issues like that, we’ve decided to take a week’s worth of dairy-free supplies, just in case. Nothing fancy, but enough for our daughter to have in case things don’t go quite as planned.

Has anyone else ever needed something and found a solution with or without Disney’s help? We’d love to hear about it in the comments section.

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Disney Cruise – Port Adventures with food allergies

Port Adventures bring a whole new challenge to the food allergy equation. You cannot take dairy, meat, or fruit to other countries. In fact, you may not take food that is not pre-packaged by the manufacturer. I wish I had known this. I was planning to take a lunch prepared by the kitchen, packing a lunch bag to go. But, that was not an option. And it is way too risky and dangerous to even entertain the thought of preparing food for her in unfamiliar restaurants.  She can only eat in a few restaurants near our home — there’s no way I would try something new in a foreign country. So, plan your port adventures and your meals on board, or take allergy free snacks or meals to get you through.

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As a mother of a child with many allergies it’s always scary eating out, any where you are. Disney REALLY takes most of that fear away. We were so pleasantly surprised at how accommodating the staff was and how knowledgeable the chef was of food allergies. The chef came to our table and took me and my son around the buffet and cautioned us against certain foods and assured us of allergy free foods. They even went the extra mile and brought over a custom allergy free dessert.

Love Disney and their exceptional service!

If you would like to review 1900 Park Fare or any Disney restaurant, submit a food allergy dining Quick Review.

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Suggestions for the Disney Cruise Line

Here are a few suggestions that we have for DCL after taking a Disney Cruise with a food allergy. Comment below with yours.

• AllergyFree Foods chicken tenders (actually, we spoke to AlleryFree Foods and they are available on all DCL ships now)
• Allergy-free Mickey waffles
• More options for the grilled chicken – sauces would be great, like teriyaki, BBQ, pesto, etc.
• Allergy-free rolls and bread
• Enjoy Life Foods cookies, and allergy-free snacks and candy.

We had a great trip, but adding options like these would have made it just as magical as Disney World for food allergies.

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More Disney Cruise Restaurant Tips

Palo

Call DCL and find out which night is Pirate night, formal night and semi-formal night. Make reservations at Palo after the 3rd night. You will want to eat at the 1st rotation at each restaurant and you probably don’t want to miss Pirate night away from the kids, while at Palo. You can only book one dinner and one brunch at Palo. Once you board the ship, you may add another reservation.

Wait staff

Make good friends with your waiters. Explain your food allergy in a warm and kind manner. They will be your servers for dinner on the entire cruise. Get to know the head waiter, or maitre d’ — he’s your link to the chefs!  Kindness and appreciation for all they do for us with food allergies should never be taken for granted.

Extra Desserts and Food Snacks

Remember, your food is included in your fare. If your food allergic child finds a dessert or food item they really like, ask for another serving or two to go. The same menu items aren’t served every night and different chefs may prepare something a little different. Having something on-hand will help if you find your child doesn’t care for the options at another meal. Plus, food allergic kids can’t snack all over the boat like other kids can. So having a little treat in the fridge helps with this, too.

Room Service

I would order this through the head waiter ahead of time and, when it’s delivered to your room, clean and keep the silverware in case your need it for later, for leftovers you may have in the fridge. Don’t leave it out in the open, as the housekeeping staff will take it, only doing what others would expect.

Drinks

Free iced tea (pre-made by Lipton ) and soft drinks, are available on deck 9 near the pool. If you order them at a bar, they will cost you $1.75 each.

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Special Order a Food Allergy Free Cake

As we mentioned here, you can pre-purchase a dairy-free, gluten-free, nut-free or sugar-free cake for your Disney Cruise.  Call for more information after visiting this page: http://disneycruise.disney.go.com/planning-center/gifts-and-amenities/

We ordered a dairy-free cake. It wasn’t great at first, but it was better after a day in the fridge! The cake was a dry, chocolate cake with diary-free whipped cream as the frosting. This was absorbed by the cake, making it more moist. Go figure!

Even thought we ordered the “Bon Voyage” cake, but instead we received the Happy Birthday cake, complete with a huge birthday banner draped across our stateroom, plus two birthday cascades and a huge door magnet. We noticed on our Fish Extender list, that a little boy was celebrating his birthday, so we decorated his door with the birthday decorations. He came out as we were finishing up — we must have been loud with laughter — and was so thrilled by the site. It was a great memory.

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Disney Cruise menus from the Disney Magic

We hope these menus will help you plan your food allergy free meals. Click for a full menu.

Day 1 - Let the Magic Begin

Animator's Palate

Disney Cruise Line

Captain's Gala

Prince & Princess Dinner

Lumiere's

Pirates in the Caribbean

Pirates in the Caribbean Dessert

Room Service

Breakfast

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We ate here for lunch with our 2 allergic children. Spoke to a manager who was FANTASTIC! He prepared the kid’s meals. They were not so healthy (hah!) but they were safe

I was also very happy to find he swapped out some of the sides for “Enjoy Life” brand cookies and grapes. SO GREAT they have these packaged items because most of the Disney packaged items are not safe.

If you would like to review ABC Commissary or any Disney restaurant, submit a food allergy dining Quick Review.

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The chef came out and went over everything at the buffet that had nuts or peanuts in it, so my husband or I did not take anything with nuts. Then asked my son what his favorite foods were and told him that he would make him anything he wanted. They brought him chicken fingers, mac and cheese, fries and veggies. All prepared safe and separate. It was so great that they gave him a variety of things and made him feel like he was eating at the “buffet”, too! Then they made him a safe very special dessert!!

If you would like to review Boma or any Disney restaurant, submit a food allergy dining Quick Review.

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