Need Advice! A little overwhlemed!!

[disfan07]

So...we just learned today that we are going ot be able to go to WDW again this december...in 9 1/2 weeks!!! we are going dec 25th-31st. Our 3rd time during the holidays (but the other 2 times we have left before the craziness began on the 24th!). I was very happy that I was able to grab 5 TS reservations today. But...I am also very very overwhelmed.

The last time we went to WDW 2 years ago I was only allergic to eggs, peanuts, and shellfish. That trip was a breeze. We only ate at 1 TS and I got outstanding service at every QS we ate at (we were on the QS dining plan). But things have changed. As of this past July, I am now allergic to:
Wheat, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts (especially almonds, walnuts, and hazelnuts), coconut, oats, shellfish, and broccoli.
I am also sensitive to thyme, ginger and soy so I try to limit those ingredients as well.

So how do I do this? I marked it on all of my ADRs but who do I contact? How do I get in contact with the chef at our resort? We are staying 3 nights at ASMu (or POP....not sure yet) and 3 nights at CBR. Who do I email regarding the TS restaurants? For QS its tsill the same right? Just tell them I have food allergies and I will be able to speak to a manager? I'm just a little concerned because we have NEVER been when its this crowded. We do eat at off-peak times so that helps. But I'm very nervous. I knwo Disney is great with this, thats why we are going again but its our first vacation in 2 years. and since my new allergies were diagnosed in July i rarely eat out. I've reacted to foods I've cooked myself and we have no idea why. So its scary.So any advice you all have would be awesome!

The ADRs we have are:

Crystal Palace (lunch)
50s Prime Time (lunch)
Sci Fi Dine (late lunch/early dinner)
1900 Park Fare (dinner)...is chef TJ still here????
Liberty Tree Tavern (lunch)

We want to do a restaurant in World Showcase but it concerns me with all my allergies. The Japanese and Chinese restaurants are definitely a no-go. We were looking at either Biergarten or Rose and Crown...how are they with allergies?

Also, how is The Wave with allergies? We are considering going there for a meal as well.

We wish we could afford a resort with a kitchen but we just cant. getting a suite at AOA would be $2900 just for the room for 6 nights and a studio at OKW is $3140 for the room...a 1 bedroom is completely insane!

But we are flying southwest so we are planning on bringing an entire suitcase of food. We will be buying a loaf of bread from a local bakery (gluten free, nut free, egg free, soy free, vegan, etc) to take with us. We will also bake muffins and cookies the night before we leave to pack as well. We also plan on bringing gluten free rice krispies, enjoy life crunchy cookies, fruit snacks, safe chips, etc. So I will always have something to eat (even if it is junk!) I cant eat any snacks in WDW (that we know of) except for what is specially prepared at TS restaurants.

Also, does WDW carry gatorade or do we have to get some? I cannot drink powerade becasue it has coconut oil but I am under strict orders to drink gatorade (some electrolyte/absorption/dehydration issues).

Right now, i also drink 2 Ensure a day. Should we just order that from Garden grocer (if we can???) or should we pack it? We would need about 12-14 bottles of it.

But if anyone has any other advice to make this trip less stressful that would be awesome!!

 

[afnaechiquita]

Re: gatorade, can you use the powdered gatorade? It may be helpful to buy it in powdered form and take it with you to mix into water versus carrying the bottles.

 

[Random Ninja]

First off...relax. You'll only upset yourself if you get overwhelmed. Disney is going through a lot of changes with allergies but it's not quite as bad as some have made it out to be. You need to email Special Diets with your allergy list, your TS confirmation numbers, and tell them which resorts you will be at so they can tell the chef. Most likely, you will get a canned email response from them telling you that you're basically on your own. Email them back and reiterate that you have allergies that aren't on their common allergy list.

The process is still the same at CS. Tell the cashier you have an allergy and ask to see the binder. Most will let you go off to the side to read the binder and send a manger out to you to take your order. I have had terrible service at the new CS in Japan so I don't recommend them to anyone who has allergies. The manager told me something was okay and then asked if whey was the same as dairy. He also refused to let me even look at the allergy binder, claiming that he wasn't allowed to let me see it.

Crystal Palace is great with allergies. I've had a chef there actually bring me labels off packaging so I could check for myself that it was safe for me. They even made me special plates of safe food in the back since the buffet was an issue.

Sci-fi was awesome too. The server even warned me when someone near me ordered something I have a respiratory allergy too just in case it bothered me. She offered to move me to an out-of-the-way table if the food got overwhelming.

I haven't been to any of the other places you're asking about. Hopefully someone else can chime in here and help out with them. Good luck and safe travels for your trip.