Son just diagnosed with a peanut allergy..

[Mermaid02]

.... I would like to hear from anyone else with a peanut allergic child (and WHERE did all these peanut allergies come from anyway??) and how good the restaurants at WDW are at giving you the lowdown on what their food is cooked in and with. I would expect them to be excellent, but I always think of Disney as "The best at everything!"

 

[Crazy Hakim]

Make sure the allergy is clearly listed on all of your Priority Seating. Also, when you check in at each restaurant, ask to speak to the chef. The Disney chefs will discuss your options with you, it should not be a problem at the Full Service Restaurants.

 

[Scratch42]

Just let them know when you sit down that there is an allergy in your party.

In April, when we were at Tony's , the Chef himself came out and talked with us as to how severe the allergy was, etc.

Another Magical Moment!

Scratch


PS Even though you may mention allergies with your reservations, don't chance them actually noted it!

As for where these allergies come from, I still can't figure that one out! DD is allergic to seafood and this is after we used to eat all the time!

 

[ducklite]

I'm the "queen of food allergies" as my husband calls me.

I'm allergic to all tree nuts, coconut, water chestnuts, scallops. In the past year I've also developed a sensitivity to peanuts. It's not a full blown allergy, yet...but that's the way all my food allergies have started.

At any rate...fear not.

I don't bother to have the reservation noted, the server and chef getting the info is slim to none. I also don't call in advance, except for pre-plated limited menu places, like the Hoop De Doo Review (which safe for me). Boma is a very scarey place for nut allergies, and I would avoid it at all costs.

WDW uses Canola oil for all frying at all restaurants except some foods at Jiko and CG. No peanut oil unless specifically stated otherwise.

Here's what you need to do. When you are seated, let your server know your son has food allergies and you need to speak to the chef before ordering. The chef will come out and speak to you. Do NOT rely on the servers. I had one suggest pasta with a pesto sauce would be agood choice for me. (duh--pesto is walnuts!) Buffets can be tricky, insist on speaking to a chef, and not just the guy on the food line fillling things...they generally don't have a clue.

Is cross contamination an issue? Aerosol contact? If so you need to be doubly careful and remind the chef's of this. (Cross contamination is a huge problem for me, but aerosol and epidermal contact aren't so I can't comment on those two.

Good luck and let me know if you have any other questions.

Anne

 

[becka]

My DH also has a nut allergey (actually all legumes - nuts, beans and peas) so we have to be careful. So far we have not had any problems at WDW. We try to be informed as best we can by checking out menus and seeing which places seem to have the best choices and then talking to the servers and/or chefs at the restaurants.

One of the biggest issues DH has is with desserts (they put nuts in almost all of them is seems) so he just tries to avoid most of them even if we are pretty sure they are safe. The counter service places are usually pretty easy (burgers, hot dogs, etc.) but some sit-down places you really have to watch. I also would not recommend Boma or Jiko. Just one look at the menu was enough for us to know it is not a good choice. Ohana' also has some peanut dipping sauces, etc..

Good luck...it is not a fun allergy to deal with but it can be manageable.

 

[lisajl]

Hello and welcome to the club!!

My DS-6 has peanut allergies. What a pain!

I am not sure how he got it, but it might be from my DH.

He gave him Peanut butter before he was 12 months old. He had a few hives around his mouth. I told him not to do that again. Well, he tried a month later and it was worse.
I spoke to the doctor, and we left with a presription for an epi-pen jr.


When I made our PS, I told everyone about the allergy.
They all spoke to me about it before we ate there.
At Cindy's the chef came out and even told me what not to feed my son out in the park.
He was wonderful!
So, I would definately tell them about it when you make the PS and confirm it when you get there.
They are wonderful about making sure our allergies don't get in the way of having a good time.

My son had no reactions while we were there...HOORAY!

Lisa

 

[LaurenS]

My daughter has multiple food allergies - milk, eggs, beef, tomatoes, celery, and peanuts. Here's what we do for sit down restaurants:

1. Note allergies on PS
2. After checking in at resort, confirmed our PSs with Guest Services, who can call the restaurants on the list. With advance notice, the restaurants can arrange for alternative foods.
3. When checking in for PS, remind the waiter that you would like to speak to a chef.
4. The chefs will walk you through a buffet, discuss different food options, and / or offer to cook something especially for your child.

On an earlier trip, we didn't bother with advance notice. Most places did just fine. With counter service, we just ask lots of questions!

Disney really is great at taking food allergies seriously and most of the chefs do their absolute best to make sure that you have great food!

LaurenS

 

[feenie]

I have shellfish allergys which are easy to avoid. But my friends little boys are allergic to everything under the sun. They can't have eggs/nuts/peas/ one can't have milk the other does not do well with the soy substitutes... She just can't win! When we take the boys somewhere we ask to look at the label a lot of the time, since they don't always know what to look for a lot of the time (whey is a biggie!) We always carry a bottle of benadryl with us. Most of the time people are very good about it. Some places will even let you bring snack/food in for your child if their menu does not offer something they can have.

 

[laughinplace199]

WDW is great for people with food allergies. My daughter (now 4 years old) was diagnosed with a peanut allergy last year, just a few months before our trip to Disney. As other posters have suggested, make sure the CM notes the allergy on all of your PS arrangements. Then, when you arrive at the restaurant, ask to speak to the chef. The chef will come out and talk to you about the menu and what your child's options are. For a buffet, they will walk the buffet with you and tell you which items are safe and which are not. We never go out to eat at home, and we were very comfortable eating out at WDW.

You can also call the food & beverage managers in each of the parks. They will be able to answer questions about the counter service restaurants, popcorn carts, ice cream carts, etc.. I have the telephone numbers somewhere, and I'd be happy to give them to you if you'd like.

WDW also told us that we were welcome to bring food into the parks for our daughter, so we did this for snack items.

We also brought Benadryl and extra Epi-pens with us, but thankfully, we never needed them.

Good luck and have a wonderful time!

 

[Mermaid02]

Thank You everyone!! I'm very nervous about what Jack eats now. We only found out about this allergy on Thursday- we are going to a family reunion today and I'm going to put a sticker on his shirt that says ALLERGIC TO PEANUTS so nobody inadvertently gives him something that contains peanuts or peanut products.

 

[zillow]

My daughter is also allergic to nuts (tree nuts and peanuts) and we just recently found out that she is allergic to shellfish - even if she were to be touched with a crab shell she would get hives. We went to WDW 2 weeks after the initial diagnosis and as everyone else has been saying - I can't think of a more attentive place for dealing with food allergies. I never noted them on the PS, just told the waiter when we arrived and he/she always had the chef come out to talk to us. Don't forget to carry the epi-pens with you to every meal. I always bring Benedryl as well. Best of Luck - and welcome to the world of reading labels. BTW, there is a vaccine that is being developed which, with a monthly shot, would lessen the reaction (so that it isn't a potentially fatal one). The FDA is trying to have it fast-tracked.

Best of luck to you. Crossing our fingers but 1.5 years later and she hasn't had another reaction.

 

[Jordan's MOM]

We are blessed not to have to deal with this problem in my family but I just remembered something that might could be an issue for the nut allergies. Some of the resturants have a peanut butter playdough on the kid's desert menu. My DS had it once at coral reef but i think that other places might have it too. The point is that he had the stuff pretty much everywhere. It would have been very easy for a CM to "miss" a bit when wipping the table. A request for an extra wipe, or using the disposable placemats for kids might be a good idea at least anywhere this or other peanut items for kids are offered.


jordan's mom

 

[n2mm]

My co-worker's family recently traveled to WDW with their son who is allergic to almost everything (food related, milke, nuts, eggs, dairy, wheat, etc...). He can eat very little food that is not prepared at home. They received calls from the Chef at different locations while at home to discuss menus and foods. They were able to prepare his food and it was sent into the kitchen and returned with the family's food, but "served" to him so that he felt special. Just when you think you know everything there is about Disney, you find out something new.....because of these many, many food allergies, the resort provided a refrigerator and MICROWAVE free of charge to this family so that his meals could be prepared in the room!!! I had never heard this before, but was moved by the help and assistance this family received on their FIRST trip ever to WDW. (Sorry, can't remember where they stayed, but thinking at POR).

 

[laughinplace199]

Jordan's MOM makes an excellent point regarding wiping down the table. We brought plenty of extra wipes to wipe down the tables and chairs. We also used "Table Toppers" disposable placemats.

We used wipes to wipe down the wall, arm rest, and tray on the airplane too.