Health Food/Organic Grocery Stores Near WDW

[MUcrick]

We have a 1-yr old and have been really good at feeding her only organic food up to this point. I'm not too concerned about continuing this trend on our trip (it's only a week long trip) but if an organic option is available, I'd probalby stop in. Is there a health food/organic store near WDW?

Thanks in advance for any advice.

mucrick

[NotUrsula]

No, not really, I'm pretty sure that the closest one is in Ocoee, which is not really close at all.

At age one, I presume you are talking about table foods. Publix does carry a limited selection of organic food, and they carry the Earth's Best line of baby foods, too.

[princessmurdough]

THANKYOU for posting this thread - I, too have been looking for a store. Our one-year old eats like a horse, so I'd like to have some staples to take to the room, some organic english muffins, chicken, tofu, whatever they have. It sounds like Publix might be the best bet -how limited is the selection? Do they have fruits and veggies? Thanks again, and congrats on keeping your little one organic! I think it's great.

[MUcrick]

It's not easy, believe me, especially when I'm the only one in my family who thinks organic is the way to go. Quite a few giggles and eyebrows were raised last weekend when I wouldn't let Delaney have "real" birthday cake (Costco) cake for her 1st b-day party but instead, a homemade apple butter cake. I thought it tasted great and she did too. She doesn't know any different anyway so what's wrong with not getting her jacked-up on sugar? Ok, ok, off my soapbox!!! Congrats and best of luck to you as well on the organic plan. We'll likely wind up at Publix ourselves and settle for what they have. Its only a week, it shouldn't be much harm.

[princessmurdough]

I hear you - they all made fun of my pumpkin-apricot confection, but he loved it, and the cream cheese on top pretty much made his whole day. I'd love that apple butter recipe, tho. I had a heck of a time finding a good recipe for cake w/o sugar - you wouldn't think it'd be that hard, since everyone SAYS they are eating healthier. Sorry, can we say, soapbox?
Anyway, Happy Birthday to your little one!
Oh, and I'd love to hear your dining plans in the world, if you've planned that far.I'd be happy to share what I've found thus far if you are interested.

[kkcolton5]

I am stressed about feeding my kids at WDW, too!! The only grocery store I know of that stocks a huge supply of everything organic is Whole Foods. The closest one is in Winter Park. We're considering having a grocery delivery service bring us the organic milk, cookies, baby food, Annie's Mac & Cheese, etc. for the delivery fee of $15, since we feel it's worth it! If you click on wholefoods.com you can get the address & phone of the Winter Park store. They're open til 10 pm every night. I can't recall the name of the grocery delivery service, but I'll find it and post again! Congrats, OrganiMoms....it's hard but sooooo worth it!!

[kkcolton5]

www.wegoshop.com

I'm going to call them to find out if they'll go to Whole Foods for us organic-foodies....post tomorrow!!

[russtwinsmom]

You might try this book,
Vegetarian Walt Disney World and Greater Orlando. I know there are new and used copies at Amazon. We found it to be a great help when we traveled to WDW with our vegetarian kiddos.

[Oh, Kay!]

For our last 4 trips, we packed a carry-on bag with non-perishable organic food. Horizon makes small packs of milk that doesn't need to be refridgerated. Other organic essentials we pack are small packs of apple sauce, juice boxes, cheeses, crackers, cookies and granola cereal. We also end up tossing in some apples and bananas, space permitting.

Now that the boys are older (6 and 4) we don't keep them organic as strictly--my older one likes to buy lunch at school. However, I still will be making a trip to Whole Foods before we leave next week.

[jenjersnap]

I asked an online friend who lives in Orlando and this was her recommendation for organic food closest to the World:

Chamberlin's Market and Café
The Market Place Shopping Center
7600 Dr Phillips Blvd, southwest Orlando
407-352-2130

The website is pretty much the name you'd expect. ;)

However, we plan to to take advantage of the grocery delivery too, keep meaning to write them to ask if they would go to more than one store. We need diapers and wipes, that kind of stuff and I don't mind using Pampers or whatever is available. Food though, entirely another story, organic all the way!

ETA: we are also mailing some items to ourselves. I am sending non-perishables like cereal, juice boxes, apple sauce, oatmeal, soymilk, coffee (!), etc. In fact, I am not entirely sure we need delivery service since it's just milk, yogurt, fruit and bottled water that we need to buy there.

[Dchef]

SO glad to see this thread--I don't do 100%, but in our household we definetly watch it and try to up hold the Organic lifestyle as much as possible. I too have been worried about the excessive amount of processed foods we might be in danger of ingestiing.
So much so, that we booked an extra day at WDW and added to our food budget just so we can take time to eat "real" food in a restaurant.I know the extra time it takes to sit down will cost us some play time, so that is why I booked an extra day.

Does anyone know how far Whole foods is from the resort? I wouldn't mind making the one time trip since we will have a car the whole time.
We also plan on taking an extra bag to load up on "good" helathy treats and also alow ourselves a micky bar or something like that every now and then.
My concern is the trouble of actually being able to execute the plan and sticking with it when we are in the throws of caos.

Darlene :wave:

[buckler]

We also eat a lot of organic foods. Since we are driving I plan on bringing a lot of food myself. But, I still need to buy milk and a few other things locally. I checked with the Winn Dixie that is the closest store to our hotel and the manager told me they carry organic milk and some other organic food. When we get back from our trip in two weeks I'll let you all know what sort of things they carry. I don't expect it to be an extensive list!

I'm in Georgia and we have Publix stores here. They are a major chain in Florida so that might be a good option for everyone that doesn't want to make the trip to Whole Foods. They carry a limited but probably adequate selection of organic items. You should be able to get organic milk, yogurt, soy milk, cheese, apples, carrots, bagged lettuce/salad, cereals, peanut butter, jelly, frozen Amy's meals, frozen Cascadian Farms veggies etc. Usually they only carry one or two brands of an item. The area in my store is just one side of one aisle, a small refrigerated and freezer case and a small organic produce area. Most of the produce will be bagged type stuff. The prices aren't great unless you hit a sale, which are few and far between. However, they do have coupons in their free "Greenwise" magazine in the store that offer some savings. For example in this months Greenwise they have a coupon for 75c off a Stonyfield Farm multipack. This is a store coupon so you could combine it with a manufacturers coupon too. If I get to a Publix down there I'll report back on that too.

If you want me to check for a specific item at Winn Dixie and/or Publix let me know in the next day or so. We leave on our trip on the 11th but I might not check the boards or my email the day or two before we depart. I definitely will go to Winn Dixie but might not get to Publix. But, I can tell you if my local Publix in Georgia carries a certain item.

[Chuck S]

I know Publix carries either Westsoy or Silk unsweetened, if you can't find organic "real" milk, this soy milk is very good. Just be sure you buy the box labeled "unsweetened" and not "Plain", the "Plain" is sweet. While we aren't strictly organic, we do like to eat healthy, and Whole Foods in San Antonio is one of our favorite markets.

[JudyS]

I know Publix carries either Westsoy or Silk unsweetened, if you can't find organic "real" milk, this soy milk is very good. Just be sure you buy the box labeled "unsweetened" and not "Plain", the "Plain" is sweet. While we aren't strictly organic, we do like to eat healthy, and Whole Foods in San Antonio is one of our favorite markets.

I think Westsoy Unsweetened *is* organic. I usually have some on hand, but right now I'm drinking a tall, cold glass of Trader Joe's Organic Unsweetened Soymilk. That's what Kissimmee really needs -- a Trader Joe's! :flower1:

[princessmurdough]

Thanks, Buckler for the great reviews. I can't wait to hear your latest when you return.

Anyone else have any feedback on Chamberlins? I found them online also, but not too much info there.

And BTW, I couldn't agree more about Trader Joe's. That's what my box will be packed with when I ship it. Too bad two-buck-chuck is too heavy to send! I know that's one thing that would make dealing with the Christmas crowds a little easier! :wizard:

[Kermit]

I shop at Publix here in SC, and I'm able to get a decent amount of organic items there. They do carry organic milk (from a cow, as well as soy and rice "milks"). They have a small section in the produce aisle, and there is usually at least baby carrots and salad mixes there. They also have organic yogurt and kefir, cereals, a few snack foods, and a frozen case that has some fruits and veggies. As far as bread goes, I think it's mainly just breads that don't have wheat, like spelt bread. We do have to go to a health food store, but Publix is good for when I need something closer.

[Lesley]

Chamberlin's is a small store...equivalent to any local, independent natural foods store (kind of like Kimberton Whole Foods in southeast PA, or Rosewood Market here in Columbia SC). They have a small cafe, produce, groceries, and a good variety of herbals, homeopathics, etc... I don't know that I'd do all my shopping there, but its great if you need oscillococcinum in a hurry or something like that. Dr. Phillips Blvd. is right off Sand Lake Rd. near I4..in the direction heading away from International Dr. (west, I suppose). The store is in the Albertson's shopping center.

There is a Whole Foods in...umm...I think its Altamonte Springs? Its off I4 a ways north of Orlando. That's your typical Whole Foods Market chain store. We stopped om the way down once...I think it took us 45 min to an hour to get to WDW from there.

Also, there are several Publix in the area and they carry a fair variety of natural and organic foods. I generally go to the one on Vineland Rd. Honestly I don't believe there's hardly any organic selections at Winn Dixie...except perhaps milk, maybe some carrots. I don't really like Winn Dixie stores in general.

Oh, and I'd love those cake recipes! I'm a sugar addict and would really love alternatives. I have a yummy pumpkin muffin recipe that's sugar free I could share...even my sugar addicted 9yo loves them.

[justhat]

I stopped at a Publix on Friday to pick up some baby food for my daughter and they didn't have an real organic baby food. They had Tender Harvest, which I bought, but even though that says organic it doesn't have the USDA organic symbol on it. They didn't have any Earth's Best though, which is what awe usually buy. It wasn't the end of the world for me since I buy her non-organic brands sometimes too since Earth's Best has such limited varieties, but I would have preferred the Earth's Best. It could be that they were just out on Friday, or maybe that particular store didn't carry it, but they only had Beech-Nut, Gerber, and Gerber's Tender Harvest.

[jenjersnap]

I stopped at a Publix on Friday to pick up some baby food for my daughter and they didn't have an real organic baby food. They had Tender Harvest, which I bought, but even though that says organic it doesn't have the USDA organic symbol on it. They didn't have any Earth's Best though, which is what awe usually buy. It wasn't the end of the world for me since I buy her non-organic brands sometimes too since Earth's Best has such limited varieties, but I would have preferred the Earth's Best. It could be that they were just out on Friday, or maybe that particular store didn't carry it, but they only had Beech-Nut, Gerber, and Gerber's Tender Harvest.

Bummer about this! I finally decided to pack about 15 jars of organic food distributed between my carryon, DH's and our checked luggage (we put each one in a sock and then in a ziplock - been to Europe twice using this method and have had no probs). Adds weight but we feel strongly about the organic baby food, esp. since he'll be eating lots of other crapola while at the world, I'm sure. Gotta all balance out in the end! :earboy2:

How about the nearby Goodings? I hear it's terribly expensive but would they have organic milk, yogurt and fruit? Those items and bottled water are the only things we need to shop for; it's not worth getting delivery for such a small amount but we don't want to drive far either. Thanks!

[Lesley]

There is some variety in what one Publix or another carries. We don't use baby food so I don't really know about that. But I know the one on Vineland Rd. even carries a limited supply of homeopathic remedies...something the stores here at home don't carry. And I know it depends on the store what types of organic yogurt, etc...they have. I know one Publix near me only carries the YoBaby and O'Soy Stonyfield yogurts. I've been to so many Publix stores that I can't recall which one has what most of the time.

I don't recall Goodings having organics...but I could be wrong. Its close enough that it might be worth popping in.

[jenjersnap]

I answered my own question by calling Goodings. Organic milk only, no produce or other goods. She recommended Chamberlins.

[ahutton]

I would swear last time I was at Goodings they carried Earth's Best baby foods, but it was about 2 years ago that we would have bought any there, so they may not now. There is an Albertson's on 7524 Dr Phillips Blvd - that is about a 20 minute drive. The shopping area is very nice, clean, and not hard to find at all. I've gotten some good things from there here at home, and found the store to be well populated with locals when I was there. That is usually a really good sign.

[Lesley]

Chamberlins is in the same shopping center as Albertsons. You can see the shopping center from Sand Lake road.

[buckler]

We're in Lake Buena Vista! The hotel I'm at has free wireless internet access :cool1: so I'm checking in on the stuff online. We stopped by Winn Dixie tonight to pick up some organic milk. I went to the store on S. Apopka Vineland Rd. near downtown Disney.

They did not have any organic produce that I could find except for one type of Earthbound Organic salad blend (only a 5oz bag and expensive!). The organic dairy area was seperate from the conventional dairy area. It was in the lunch meat area of all places. They had Horizon Organic milk (reg. price $3.69 on sale for $3). Also, Stonyfield Farm yogurt (more than $1 per cup), organic cheese, organic butter, organic soy milk (Silk Soy brand).

I found a small frozen case with a few varieties of Amy's frozen meal (I recall some sort of mac 'n cheese), Seeds of Change frozen meals, Cascadian farm frozen veggies (definitely had broccoli can't recall other types) and fruit (strawberries, blueberries). They had Van's frozen waffles and some other stuff.

There was another small area in the far right hand back corner of the store past the produce area where they had some nonperishable natural and organic foods such as Arrowhead Mills mixes, Newmans Organics cookies, Garden of Eatin chips etc.

Sorry, I forgot to look at the baby food aisle!

They may have had some other things around the store but it was getting late and the kids were tired. All in all I have to say the pickings were slim at Winn Dixie. Given the choice of shopping there or at Publix I'd probably say to try Publix first based on my experience with them in Georgia. Of course Whole Foods would be by far the best choice if it weren't so far from the parks!

[jenjersnap]

We're just back from our 10 day trip to the World and I wanted to follow up. My kids ended up eating so much junk but it was their vacation too; we'll get back on track this week. I ended up ordering grocery delivery from wegoshop.com and, because Chamberlins and Albertsons were next door to each other, they agreed to charge us for only one stop. This way I was able to get the less expensive stuff that didn't need to be organic like bottled water with organic produce/dairy. Best $60 I ever spent! Worked out great for us and I thought Chamberlin's prices were very good compared to the prices we pay in Colorado. The only thing that was priced higher was Brown Cow yogurt (not organic, but antibiotic-/rgbh-free).

Anyway, hoped this might help someone down the line.

[MalcolmC]

There is a smaller Chamberlin's Market nearer. We have visited the one in Winter Park Village, but there is also one in Downtown Kissimmee. It is on 17/92 just south of 192 in a strip mall which also has an Albertsons supermarket. I can't remember the proper address but if I find it, I will post.