Lactose Intolerance - best restaurants

[MrsHappyB]

I am new to world of lactose intolerance. I've been to Disney with a gluten allergy guest and Disney did an amazing job so I hope they are as great about lactose issues as well. So what restaurants have you eaten in with lactose issues?

 

[Lilsia]

You can pretty much find something at every restaurant. I do pretty well if I take a lactaid, but can not do cheese, milk, or ice cream. It something was baked with a bit of dairy, I am fine. It is pretty easy to just stick to meat and veg. I can't think of anyplace that I could not find food. Dole whips are dairy free. Maybe avoid Italy, they love their cheese. Asian restaurants do not use a lot of dairy either.

 

[tbholc81]

You can ask at any restaurant for dairy free and they'll let you know what they have. Some QS places will prepare it like it's an allergy and it may come packaged differently because they prepare it completely away from anything else that was dairy.

The key is to know what bothers you and what doesn't and to know that not all dairy has lactose in it. Many cheeses are lactose free and some things might just not bother you. For me anything with a cheese sauce (something like very cheesy mac and cheese) I have to avoid not matter what, even if I take a lactaid. The other thing to know is that a lot of food is cooked in butter, so even if you think, "Oh it's just steak," know the steak may be cooked in butter, or there's butter in the sauce.

 

[rainyvegandisney]

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[MrsHappyB]

You can pretty much find something at every restaurant. I do pretty well if I take a lactaid, but can not do cheese, milk, or ice cream. It something was baked with a bit of dairy, I am fine. It is pretty easy to just stick to meat and veg. I can't think of anyplace that I could not find food. Dole whips are dairy free. Maybe avoid Italy, they love their cheese. Asian restaurants do not use a lot of dairy either.

The Dole Whip info may be the best thing I've read yet!!! Thank you!!!

 

[MrsHappyB]

Thanks everyone. I figured I would be able to find things but this is all so new to me I wanted to ask.

 

[lorimay]

I don't know how severe your intolerance is, but I also started suffering with lactose issues about 7 yrs ago.
I buy the Kirkland lactose pills from Costco and take two tablets before eating diary and I am ok.
If it is a very rich item (heavy cream) I do three tablets.

 

[TwoMisfits]

So, I have a dairy allergy, but I agree on avoiding Italian, French and Comfort food dining (like Homecomin, since buttermilk and butter are gonna be fails, too) and the "normal, non-vegan" bakeries - so many places for lactose heavy products to make an appearance.

If you want to spend money, Morimoto's is spectacular and spectacular with the dairy allergy (although I think there's only like 2 items on the whole menu that get excluded)...any Asian place (save Indian, which will be a little iffier b/c they also thrive on yogurts and creams, but can be done on the allergy menu) will be good. Dole Whips are awesome - just avoid vanilla.

And while you don't have an allergy, you probably don't want to have to overdo pills...or maybe your intolerance can't be handled with pills. And I find "dairy replacement" cheeses to be not worth the calories (although that could be b/c I can't have the tree-nut made cheeses, either)...so if you get burgers, skip the cheese and get the vegan buns and avoid the pills entirely...if you wanna splurge, add bacon and avocado to those burgers and enjoy some great tasting fats that will make you forget the cheese...

 

[CynBeth]

My DH has some allergies including dairy and certain spices and Disney does a great job. We have to stay away from some of the exotic restaurants but we pretty much eat all meals at TS and they do a great job. Here are our favorites:

MK -Tony’s and BOG.
Epcot - Tutto Italia, Le Cellier, Chefs de France, and Coral Reef.
DHS - Hollywood Brown Derby and 50’s PTC.
AK - Rainforest Cafe. Also not sure if open but Pizzafari a CS had dairy free cheese pizza a few years ago.
Whispering Canyon Cafe - breakfast

Not sure when you are going so some of these next might not open up by then or if they are open are not doing buffet the way they used to at this time:

Boma - breakfast and dinner.
Trail’s End - breakfast
Crystal Palace - breakfast
Cape May - breakfast

Last trip we stayed at POR and in the food court for breakfast they made things for him in the back.

Please feel free to ask if you have any questions.

 

[mistysue]

This might sound weird - but I found that if I ask for Vegan food, I frequently get more choices than if I ask for dairy free. I know it's strange, but we had a trip 2 years ago where I was avoiding ONLY dairy, and my son had a list of allergies including dairy and he often was given multiple choices and I had 1 or 2 from the menu. They've really been building up vegan options, so it is worth checking if you get somewhere and the one thing they offer isn't exciting.

 

[TwoMisfits]

This might sound weird - but I found that if I ask for Vegan food, I frequently get more choices than if I ask for dairy free. I know it's strange, but we had a trip 2 years ago where I was avoiding ONLY dairy, and my son had a list of allergies including dairy and he often was given multiple choices and I had 1 or 2 from the menu. They've really been building up vegan options, so it is worth checking if you get somewhere and the one thing they offer isn't exciting.

Agreed - I eat vegan a lot in the Florida theme parks (and dinner shows)...

As for the best dairy free (and tree nut free) CS food I had on my last trip, I may or may not have paid for added bacon to a vegan black bean burger at Universal - my spouse thought it was a home run and better than his food (I don't know about that, b/c I couldn't try his, but mine was great...

 

[MrsHappyB]

Wow you all are so amazing. This is exactly why I asked here. Thank you so much

 

[BebopBaloo]

Yup, pretty much everywhere both QS and TS will have allergen menus. I’m lactose intolerant and have been for a long while. Disney has always been the easiest vacation place to eat at and it has only gotten better. I would recommend the Sorbet in the France Pavilion at Artisans de Gláce. The waffle cones should be fine there too, but it’s always good to double check.