we just came back from aulani after spending 5 nights there. DD5 has been clinically diagnosed to be allergic to gluten, dairy, peanuts, tree nuts, shellfish, and fish. not quite celiac but you know, lots of things to avoid. we picked up grocery from safeway en route to aulani from HNL, but, not knowing what the allergen-free options were available, we brought a box of gluten-free cereal, a loaf of gf bread, gf buns, and lots of safe snacks for her from home.
we had a 1-bedroom villa and ate our breakfasts there every morning. for lunch, i had looked for gluten-free french fries for her, but there were none to be had from Mama's Snacks place (or whatever it's called, hotdog stand between lazy river and main pool, across from the Lava Shack) and pool-side service--i was told by the server that our best bet was to get fresh fruits because it would be guaranteed to be free of cross contamination and cross contact. so she had two bunless hotdogs from Mama's Snacks with the gluten-free hotdog buns we brought. we also ordered the breakfast potatoes from ulu cafe for two lunches, and she was very happy with that. you gotta order them before 11 though, as that's when breakfast service ends, replaced by lunch items.
we dined at ama ama twice. the first time she had the steak from the kids' meal; the waitress was really awesome and gave her fresh fruit when everyone else's bread came, and swapped out the mickey head cookie with dairy-free strawberry sorbet. DD was thrilled with that. the second time we dined there, *sigh* somehow the kitchen mixed up her order with DS'. she was meant to have grilled steak with rice, but received grilled steak with mashed potatoes, which had dairy. the sad thing was, we asked specifically about the mashed potatoes when we saw it on her plate, and were told the kitchen made sure it was dairy-free. DD happily took a few bites. then the waitress came back, apologized profusely and said she was wrong, it had dairy in it and was not meant for her. at that point DD said her tongue felt tingly, and her lower lip looked ever so slightly swollen and more red than usual. we gave her Benadryl immediately and had our epipens ready. thankfully it didn't progress beyond that, but i was like, what else could we have done to ensure the meal was safe for her, you know??? we already noted down all her allergies on our reservation, checked with the waitress, asked before the dish was served, and it
still happened. the manager came out and apologized too, said they would make her a new plate, and came back to check on her again towards the end of the meal. and that was it. they did not comp her portion. not sure if it was because they gave her a second serving? i wasn't sure what to expect. felt like they could've done more, but we let it go because we aren't the type ot make a fuss.
it's ironic that you wrote "we (of course) know that Disney is great with allergies". i say ironic because she also developed reactions twice during our alaskan
disney cruise last summer (see my
trip report). i suppose i should just be happy it didn't get worse, like an ER visit or something. because it's happened three times now with disney properties, i want to warn FA people to not let your guard down simply because it's disney.
now, because your daughter only avoids gluten, it should be a little easier.
DD did have a dinner prepared solely by the kitchen out of my sight during the premium activity "surf's up" at aunty's beach house while DH and i dined at roy's across the street. i can't remember what she had; the staff reassured me the kitchen knew about her allegies and would take everything into consideration while preparing food for her. this was before the incident at ama ama so i was more relaxed than i otherwise would've been, i suppose. but i was glad that we were away from her for 3.5 hours and she was safe and sound when we picked her up. i had packed a sandwich with her, but DH brought it back after dropping off the kids, and said aunty's did not allow outside food to be brought in. it makes sense because i wouldn't want other parents to send along a PB&J sandwich to aunty's!
as for off-property places, we did eat at monkeypod but there weren't too many options she could have due to her numerous allergies. i think she ended up getting the keiki burger, substituting lettuce for buns, which was ok.
there is a store called down to earth organic & natural, supposedly a whole foods-like grocery store near target and we even drove past it, but we didn't go in because i felt we had enough items already. you might want to call them to see what they carry.
overall, aside from that incident at ama ama, we are very happy with our vacation. but please vigilant while you dine, and don't let your guard down because "it's disney".
ping me if you have more questions.
Anyone have experience with restaurants outside of Aulani that are definitely safe options? DH has celiac, and we (of course) know that Disney is great with allergies. But we can't afford to eat every meal at Aulani on an 8-day trip. Right now I have a res at Monkeypod, which I believe will be fine, and the sushi place in Ko Olino has g-f tamari noted on their menu. But saying you have gluten-free options, and actually being safe for someone with celiac are two different things. We're in a 1-bedroom villa and will have breakfast in there almost everyday, so I'm mostly trying to get any ideas for lunch/dinner away from the resort, anywhere on Oahu, as we have plans to go to a variety of places all over the island. I've already gone through the usual g-f sites for ideas, but they never seem to have the best non-chain suggestions for any location, in my experience. Thx!
