Bad Hacienda de San Angel Allergy Experience

[Calliaz]

We just returned from the World and I wanted to let people know about the negative experience we had at this restaurant with my milk-allergic son. I know this is not an official Disney restaurant, but I thought they would do better than they did. Overall, we had a really bad waiter, so that might have affected the experience.

We arrived and I told the waiter right away about the allergy. He said he'd check with the chef. No one came out. The waiter returned and told us DS could not order 2 things (I can't remember what). DH and DS wanted to share the platter they have and we were told it was safe. They brought the food and the beans had cheese. There was also some sort of sauce on the corn they assured us was safe. They brought new beans. DS was also told he could have the churros. All night we were unsure because the staff seemed unsure and no chef came to talk with us. During the meal, DS got sick and stayed that way for a day (normal milk reaction). I am not 100% sure that this meal was the cause, but it is highly likely.

From now on we'll stick to the 100% Disney restaurants.

 

[mistysue]

I'm sorry you had to go through that.
Be sure to write to Disney, at the least they will probably contact the restaurant and it may help people in the future.

 

[amykathleen2005]

I wise move going forward would be to refuse to order until speaking to the chef yourself

 

[MSSANDRA]

so sorry. Just as a side not however,the chief at RFC is better than many of the chiefs at WDW owned places. One trip she was the ONLY chief to go out of her way to make the meal special for DS. All kept him safe, but she did that in a special fun way.

 

[PinkBudgie]

Hmm, we are eating there in June with my fish/shellfish allergy. The problem I have is that people assume if I'm not ordering fish, then I'm fine. But they forget about all the sauces "seasoned" with anchovies. Thanks for the heads up.

 

[cynzilla]

I have milk allergy and I did ask to speak with the chef. I kid you not, he had NO IDEA what had milk and what didn't. Thought maybe was a language barrier and has the waitress translate in Spanish. I asked for just plain grilled chicken and rice, figuring how bad could it be? The chicken came covered in what looked like a queso sauce, I sent it back and it was brought out again by runner. When I sent it back, they had scraped the sauce off (as it was still visible when I flipped the piece over). I do not feel safe dining there again.

 

[sleepingbean]

I'm so sorry you had that experience. We avoid the restaurants owned by that group for the very reason. I hope you had enough positive experiences that this won't mar your experience~

 

[PinkBudgie]

Maybe I should bring some chef's cards in Spanish.

 

[wendow]

I'm sorry you had a bad experience and your ds got sick. I asked questions about this place a few years ago and learned they weren't very good with allergies so we stayed away. My ds has a milk allergy too. Not anaphylactic but he'd be sick for a few days. Not even worth dealing with at WDW.

 

[pampam]

We just returned from the World and I wanted to let people know about the negative experience we had at this restaurant with my milk-allergic son. I know this is not an official Disney restaurant, but I thought they would do better than they did. Overall, we had a really bad waiter, so that might have affected the experience.

We arrived and I told the waiter right away about the allergy. He said he'd check with the chef. No one came out. The waiter returned and told us DS could not order 2 things (I can't remember what). DH and DS wanted to share the platter they have and we were told it was safe. They brought the food and the beans had cheese. There was also some sort of sauce on the corn they assured us was safe. They brought new beans. DS was also told he could have the churros. All night we were unsure because the staff seemed unsure and no chef came to talk with us. During the meal, DS got sick and stayed that way for a day (normal milk reaction). I am not 100% sure that this meal was the cause, but it is highly likely.

From now on we'll stick to the 100% Disney restaurants.

I didn't know this. Does anyone have a list of restaurants that are 100% Disney or even a list of restaurants that are not Disney managed.

 

[Grace&Carolinesmom]

We also had a bad experience with the same restaurant group. They also run all the eateries at CSR. We will never stay at that resort again because of it. I don't know if it is a language barrier, a lack of urgency or a lack of knowledge It is a shame though because we loved CSR as a whole(although being a mod the rooms are a little small for the four of us) and we will not return because of the food allergy experience.

 

[WheeledTraveler]

We also had a bad experience with the same restaurant group. They also run all the eateries at CSR. We will never stay at that resort again because of it. I don't know if it is a language barrier, a lack of urgency or a lack of knowledge It is a shame though because we loved CSR as a whole(although being a mod the rooms are a little small for the four of us) and we will not return because of the food allergy experience.

I suspect it's a mix of all 3 problems. I haven't been to any of the EPCOT restaurants with someone with food allergies, but I have stayed at CSR with someone who is allergic to at least 5 of the top 8 (can have soy, wheat, and regular fish). We didn't have a choice as it was part of a larger event. This was years ago, now, so I'm sure all the staff has changed, but we mostly had a good experience. Most of our food came from Pepper Market and when we went the first night we did talk to a chef who, among other things, mentioned that while at that time the PM mashed potatoes were safe for my friend, the ones from Maya Grill would not be as they used butter. We were definitely able to find her food (luckily meat & potato/another safe starch is the sort of meal she likes). We had one dinner at Maya Grill and the chef did come out to talk to us. Again, that chef mentioned that she couldn't have MG's mashed potatoes (I think she was able to have fries). The last night we were there, however, she went to get dinner on her own (I had a migraine) and at PM they'd run out of their own mashed potatoes. The chef on duty that night tried to convince my friend that the mashed potatoes from Maya Grill would be safe for her. Luckily, my friend stuck to what she'd been told by everyone earlier in the week and got some other starch instead. While she doesn't get anaphylaxis from milk, it would have been very unfun to travel home with the sort of reaction she would have had. I don't want to think about what would have happened if that had been the first night we'd gone to PM. Since the guy she spoke to the last night apparently tried to argue with her about whether the mashed potatoes from MG were safe, it's clear that he really had no clue that they weren't safe. I don't know if she asked to speak to a manager or not. If I'd been there, I would have, but she was pretty worried about me so was trying to just get back to the room ASAP. I have no idea whether there was any language barrier with the chef who didn't know correct info, but the other chefs sounded like native English speakers. Because of the event we were at, those were the only places she ate (most of our time was spent at WWoS and she'd pack lunch or someone would run down to McDonald's because she didn't trust the ESPN Zone with the limited time she had for lunches). It wasn't until after the trip that I found out that PM and MG weren't Disney owned. I've heard enough questionable stories since that, in her place, I'd now avoid CSR if there's any choice (the event we were there for also had a block of rooms at Pop, but due to a demo she was part of, she had to be at CSR in case they needed to use the conference space for rehearsals).

 

[grafxgirl]

Did you make advanced dining reservations at the restaurant? Did you know that when you do make ADR's you can let them know at that point that you have someone with food allergies? When you do it this way, the note will be attached to all of your dining reservations so the wait staff and chef will be aware when you are seated. This is how we get the chef to come out and speak with us.

Unfortunately Disney does have a disclaimer on their website:

"Our restaurants will do their best to accommodate guest dietary requirements but cannot guarantee that they will be able to meet all requests.

Walt Disney Parks and Resorts will use reasonable efforts to prevent the introduction of the allergen of concern into the food through close attention during our sourcing, preparation and handling processes. However, it is ultimately up to the Guest to use his or her individual discretion to make an informed choice regarding whether to order any particular items. Walt Disney Parks and Resorts cannot guarantee that allergens may not have been introduced during another stage of the food-chain process or, even inadvertently, during preparation. We do not have separate kitchens to prepare allergen-free items or separate dining areas for Guests with allergies or intolerances."

 

[PinkBudgie]

It was my understanding that the reastuarants in the International section of Epcot were not Disney owned. But I don't know that for sure. We are only eating at two- this one and Via Napoli. I thought those sounded the safest for a fish allergy. This is why I'm not eating at Teppan Edo, I figured the chances of fish sauce were high and probably not a good idea to eat there with all the food flying around on the same cooking area.

I put my allergies on all my reservations when I made them, so we'll see.

 

[PinkBudgie]

Wait a minute! I just found out there are TWO Mexican table service restaurants in Epcot and they are both called San Angel??!! How confusing! On the good side, I realized I'm not eating at the Hacienda but at the other one- San Angel Inn. Any expirence with that one with a food allergy?

 

[Calliaz]

Did you make advanced dining reservations at the restaurant? Did you know that when you do make ADR's you can let them know at that point that you have someone with food allergies? When you do it this way, the note will be attached to all of your dining reservations so the wait staff and chef will be aware when you are seated. This is how we get the chef to come out and speak with us.

Unfortunately Disney does have a disclaimer on their website:

"Our restaurants will do their best to accommodate guest dietary requirements but cannot guarantee that they will be able to meet all requests.

Walt Disney Parks and Resorts will use reasonable efforts to prevent the introduction of the allergen of concern into the food through close attention during our sourcing, preparation and handling processes. However, it is ultimately up to the Guest to use his or her individual discretion to make an informed choice regarding whether to order any particular items. Walt Disney Parks and Resorts cannot guarantee that allergens may not have been introduced during another stage of the food-chain process or, even inadvertently, during preparation. We do not have separate kitchens to prepare allergen-free items or separate dining areas for Guests with allergies or intolerances."

We did make the note on all reservations. Everywhere that is Disney-operated we talked with a chef. We asked to see one at this visit and reminded both the hostess and the waiter of the allergy. I believe that because this is not a Disney-operated location, they are less strict about following policy.

I also understand the disclaimer; they aren't always able to provide the same things or meet all requests. But, they should be able to meet the minimal request of telling us what is unsafe. If they have nothing safe, fine. Denny's can tell us what's safe and what's not. Disney says I get an informed choice. I can't do that without a reasonable amount of information.

 

[Calliaz]

Wait a minute! I just found out there are TWO Mexican table service restaurants in Epcot and they are both called San Angel??!! How confusing! On the good side, I realized I'm not eating at the Hacienda but at the other one- San Angel Inn. Any expirence with that one with a food allergy?

My understanding is that they are both operated by the same company. When I did my research before making the ADR, people with allergies said positive things. Plus, Mexican food is often really easy to make dairy-free. Given our experience, we'll stay away in the future.

 

[Ladygoldenhair]

I have sever lactose allergy. I need to keep the chewy Dairy Ease pills on me and keep an eye to anything with cheese sauce. The other thing is hidden lactose, like hot dogs.

 

[crwinter]

At Epcot - the operating participants (Not Disney owned and managed) are any restaurants in Mexico, China, Italy, Japan, Morocco, and France.

My son is anaphylactically allergic to dairy, peanut, and shellfish. We go to Disney every year for our vacation specifically because they can handle his food allergies; otherwise, we simply don't eat out. When I was first researching this years ago, it seemed almost every bad reaction I was finding out about occurred at one of these operating participants, so despite some people having great experiences, our decision was they simply weren't worth the risk. To me, they didn't seem as consistent in their ability to handle severe allergies.

Everyone has their own threshhold for risk, so I'm certainly not passing judgement on anyone who eats at the operating participants. Just wanted to give the complete list for anyone who was looking to make the same choice we did. Disney does make it tough to find this out.