Before moving to Florida (and living pretty close to Disney) I’d heard that Disney was really good about offering allergen-free and gluten-free options at Disney restaurants. Since moving here a year and a half ago, we’ve been to Disney many times and I can attest that Disney is the best vacation destination that not only offers gluten and allergen-free options, but actually caters to those with dietary restrictions.
In addition to Disney offering gluten and dairy-free options (which is the restrictions my kids and I have), they also have many non-gmo and organic food options at Disney restaurants! Here are a few of my favorite Disney dining places that offer gluten and dairy-free as well as non-gmo and even some organic options. The best part is, unlike most restaurants, Disney restaurants (other than non-Disney owned restaurants at Disney Springs) do not charge extra for gluten-free foods!
Gluten-free at Disneyworld in Orlando
Chef Mickey’s– Last year we opted for the character breakfast buffet at Disney’s Contemporary Resort Chef Mickey’s (no park admission required!). After informing the waitress of our dietary restrictions, the chef came out and took note of our restrictions, advising what foods we could have at the buffet. He also came out with a huge platter filled with gluten and dairy free Mickey waffles, donuts, muffins and cookies! The cookies were Enjoy Life cookies (which they carry at many Disney restaurants), so they were also non-gmo! The chef also brought out dairy-free scrambled eggs just for us. We were able to eat several dishes at the buffet as well including bacon, sausage, potatoes and more.
Pinocchio’s Village Haus– We’ve gone to Pinocchio’s Village Haus several times when visiting Disney’s Magic Kingdom and they always do a wonderful job of making sure there’s no cross contamination. Pinocchio’s is a quick service restaurant and our family of 4 can eat there for under $40. We order the gluten-free pizza with vegan cheese (they use Daiya brand, which is non-gmo). We also order the gluten-free chicken tenders which are amazing, you can’t even tell they are gluten-free. You can even order an Enjoy Life gluten-free cookie for dessert here.
Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Cafe- If you’re looking for a gluten-free burger, head to Cosmic Ray’s in Tomorrowland at Magic Kingdom. They offer gluten-free buns for their delicious burgers along with their endless topping bar. Best of all, no extra charge for the gluten-free bun!
Plaza Ice Cream Parlor– If you’re looking for actual dairy-free ice cream (not just a sorbet), the Plaza Ice Cream Parlor in Magic Kingdom is where you’ll find it at Disney. They offer Rice Dream’s certified organic rice milk dairy-free, vegan vanilla ice cream or Tofutti’s vegan chocolate or vanilla ice cream. My kids always love enjoying this vegan ice cream treat each time we’re at Magic Kingdom. Bonus tip: Get there a few minutes before they open at 11 to avoid the long line, as this ice cream parlor is popular!
Mama Melrose’s- If you are gluten-free, you have to check out Mama Melrose’s restaurant tucked in the back of Hollywood Studios! Enjoy gluten-free rolls free with a meal with a non-dairy oil-based dip (so good!). They have several gluten-free options. The gluten-free spaghetti with meat sauce is what I always order. My kids love to order the gluten-free pizza with Daiya vegan cheese.
Garden Grill Restaurant– We visited Epcot for the first time and chose to dine at the Garden Grill. Not only is the experience of this revolving restaurant, character dinner excellent, the gluten and dairy free options are plentiful! The Garden Grill is a family style restaurant that uses fresh (some organic) vegetables from the garden just outside the building. My husband has no dietary restrictions, so they ended up giving him the full regular family style portion and my kids and I got our own allergen-free platter. We were able to enjoy gluten and dairy free rolls, vegan butter, pot roast, turkey, rice, fries, green beans, corn and salad. My kids even got Enjoy Life non-gmo chocolate bars and cookies for dessert!
Intermission Food Court– There’s no food that kids want more than the Mickey waffles at Disney! According to Disney’s customer relations, if a Disney restaurant serves Mickey waffles, they will also serve gluten-free Mickey waffles. We were able to get Mickey gluten-free waffles at our All-Star Music Resort’s Intermission Food Court for our kids. They also made dairy-free eggs for me with my Mickey Waffle platter. We were able to feed our family of 4 for under $35 for breakfast, so this is a good option if you want gf Mickey waffles without paying the high price of a character breakfast.
Gluten-free at Disney Springs
We love to go to Disney Springs where you’ll find top restaurants, shops and entertainment, as there is no parking fee and no admission costs! We still get our Disney fix without the cost! There are several restaurants at Disney Springs that offers gluten and dairy free options. Here are my favorites:
Organic, dairy-free ice cream at Erin McKenna’s 
Gluten & Dairy Free Donut 
Erin McKenna’s Bakery– We can’t take a trip to Disney Springs without heading to Erin McKenna’s Bakery. The entire bakery is vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free and kosher. Most ingredients are organic. We love the gluten-free donuts, muffins and cookies and the vegan, dairy-free, organic ice cream. It’s so nice being able to go into a bakery and my kids can order whatever they want! They even use natural food colorings.
Blaze Fast Fire’d Pizza– Blaze pizza has the best gluten and dairy free pizza that we’ve tried, so I’m so happy Disney Springs has a Blaze Pizza. They’ll even do a glove change if you request it to ensure no cross contamination. Blaze Pizza’s gluten-free crust is thin and crispy. They use Daiya non-gmo shredded mozzarella. Blaze pizza uses no artificial flavors, dyes or preservatives. You can also grab organic milk singles or Honest Kids organic juice pouches for the kids.
T-Rex Restaurant and RainForest Cafe– Both restaurants (both owned by Landry’s) offer gluten-free hamburger buns for an upcharge. Rain Forest Cafe has a delicious gluten-free pasta chicken dish that I always order there.
In addition to many gluten-free and healthier, non-gmo options at restaurants, you can also find extras like large lollipops that are free of artificial dyes (some do contain dyes, so be sure you read the ingredients), Enjoy Life cookie snack packs at resort food courts and some stores, Odwalla all-natural lemonade at many restaurants and resorts and more!
We packed a lot of our own food as well, to save money. DisneyWorld is one of few amusement parks that allows you to bring coolers into the parks (just no glass).
I normally feel awful after going on vacation due to the foods offered, but I felt great on our last 5 day trip to Disney. I love that I can order gluten-free foods that are meticulously prepared to avoid cross contamination and that are really tasty! Disney does a wonderful job of making your visit magical whether or not you have food restrictions.
Which Disney restaurants are your favorite for ordering gluten free?
Wow, I was actually just looking at the WDW restaurant menus today on the Disney app to see which places would be allergy friendly! Thanks so much! This is really helpful. It’s been at least 5 years since our last trip and I wasn’t as strict then, but we’ve been to Disneyland and on a Disney cruise in the past few years and they’ve been amazing at how well they were able to accommodate me. Sounds like WDW is on par with the west coast, which is surprising to me since I live in TN and know how hard it can be to eat organic in the south. I also noticed at the bottom of some of their menus it says you can request to speak to a chef at WDW. I did that at Disneyland and had a really great experience. They really do listen to you and some chefs will even tell you exactly what they have on hand so there are no surprises. I wish all restaurants were like that!
You’re welcome! We’re considering a Disney cruise so I’m happy to hear they are just as accommodating for food requests!
Yes they were amazing! We were on the Disney Wonder to Alaska so they had lots of fresh fish too. It was such a treat because wild caught fish can be so expensive where I live. I checked beforehand and they told me they cook with olive oil so that was a huge relief. I actually called before our trip and asked a lot of questions, and also wrote out a list of things I not only can’t have but listed my preferred alternatives as well. I gave it to the head server when we got there and he said the list actually helped him a lot. Everything they brought me was perfect, and the rest of my family was a little jealous of my meals sometimes lol. I got more vegetables and lean protein than I would have just ordering the standard pasta heavy meals off the menu. For lunch I actually did fine just eating the freshest things I could find at the buffet, but the servers there are very helpful too if you tell them you have an allergy. I’ve heard from other people that they are the best in the industry when it comes to gluten and dairy allergies.