Jason and I headed to Walt Disney World on Friday, August 31 to stay at the Caribbean Beach Resort. The week was filled with visits with my best friend (Margaret) and her family, a trip to World of Beer - Dr. Phillips, a couple park visits, and lots of food.
About 2 weeks before we left for vacation, I was diagnosed with a wheat/gluten intolerance, along with six cross-reactants. I was already having enough trouble dealing with the changes to my diet, but adding the thought of vacation stressed me out! A couple of friends and a coworker reminded me that Disney is supposed to be the best about food allergies/intolerances, etc. After a little pre-work on my end, I was set to see if Disney could live up to the hype. They did - surpassed every expectation I had!
When Jason and I arrived at each restaurant, we let our server know about my food intolerances. The server would immediately say something along the lines of "....We're going to make this a great experience for you... I am going to get the chef to come talk to you..." A few moments later, the chef would arrive. Several times the chef already knew my intolerances and was prepared to review the menu with me. Other times, I would give them "the list", reframe the situation with the list of what I could have, then we would discuss meal options. Every single time, the chef would say something like this: "...What would you like? We have a lot to work with here and will create a delicious meal...." And they were always right!
Here's some of what I had:
Narcossee's - I had mussels for the first time (so yummy!). I had grilled halibut over roasted mixed vegetables. Until I got this, I had no idea there was purple cabbage!
Kona Cafe - Our chef at Kona was Katrina and our server was Rebecca. They were so great! Katrina made me a sauteed vegetable and quinoa medley. This was topped with grilled mahi, with a cucumber and cashew relish. Best meal of the entire trip - so good that I cleaned my plate (I never do this!).
California Grill - Halibut over chiorzo and vegetable salad, followed by fruit fondue for dessert!
Kona Cafe (visit 2) - Grilled Teriyaki Steak with Grilled Pineapple Salsa (salsa and sauce on side), with quinoa and a big bunch of yummy sauteed veggies.
Basically, if you have any food intolerances, I'll tell you that Disney is the place to go. It was so awesome to be able to go to restaurants and talk to someone about my needs versus trying to guess by the descriptions on the menu. Can a Disney chef just move in with me and cook for us all the time?
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