suggestions for dining with multiple intolerances

[IsoandElli]

I also posted a similar question on the restaurants board, but thought you might be better able to help.

I just found out that I have a histamine intolerance, meaning that I react negatively (get pretty sick) after consuming foods high in histamines. My main triggers appear to be dairy, soy, beer, wine, anything fermented, tomato and avocado. Preservatives may be a source as well.

My son, now 7 months, is dairy and soy intolerant, but may grow out of it by the time of our trip in October (his sister outgrew it by age 1).

So, my questions are: Would you recommend just/mostly TS restaurants? Which TS and QS places do you have good experiences with?

I won't go into shock if I do ingest any high histamine foods, but I will feel very uncomfortable and may get sick - neither of which make for a fun trip. So, trying to limit my intake

 

[sleepingbean]

With so many severe allergies in contention, I would create a short list of the SAFE foods. So, if you CAN eat chicken, fish, beef, salad greens, broccoli, green beans, carrots, olive oil, palm shortening, apples, oranges, bananas, cane sugar, rice, corn ... whatever the case may be.
I would have notecards typed up that you can hand to the chefs that show what foods you CAN eat, but not too crazy long. Basics of main meats, main handful of veggies, main fruits, main safe fats, main safe drinks, main safe grains.
It will be easier for them to look at what they can make you based on your safe list, I would think. And you can check out some of the low allergen brands ahead of time so you know if you can eat the breads or ice creams that they carry. If not, you may know what works better for you and you can suggest. Table service sounds smart to me, unless you know for certain you can eat a plain grilled chicken or burger with carrots or apples, and keep it really simple. The chef at counter service can prepare it separately and make sure no unsafe oils are used, for allergies. This takes longer and it can be stressful to stand at the front of a counter service line for 15 minutes while many people are waiting behind you, so you'll find the table service less stressful and more enjoyable, but they can help at many counter service places.
Knowing what you CAN safely eat is going to make it easier. I would look over the menus on All Ears and see what meals and restaurants look like they would work for your specifications.

 

[GinnyBear's_mom]

I would stick with TS meals. In fact we are going in a few months and made ADRs at 3 TS places per day even though we are not big eaters. DD (2) has some of the same allergies (gluten, dairy, yeast, anything fermented, food dye). We found that QS locations don't understand anything beyond gluten & dairy allergies. Also, at each QS location we ate it took about 5-20 minutes to wait for a manager, look and another 30 minutes to wait for food. It would have taken almost the same amount of time to eat at a TS restaurant and there would have been more food choices.

Make sure you are specific about fermented items. We had several TS chefs stare at us blankly when we said that word. It isn't an allergy they seem to come across often.

As the PP mentioned, it can be easier to provide a list of items you CAN have when you have multiple allergies or allergies outside the top 8.

We had great luck at 1900 Park Fare & Grand Floridian Cafe for dinner and Cape May Cafe for breakfast (we had such phenominal experiences with the chefs there that we are doing a split stay at Grand Floridian and Beach Club for our next trip). Even though Biergarten has a lot of salads made with vinegar that were off limits, the chef offered to make DD a number of items in the back and there were several meat items on the buffet she could have. The lunch chef at Crystal Palace was amazing, as was the breakfast chef at Chef Mickey's.

Not all TS chefs understand allergies though. The chef we encountered at Tusker House (lunch) was horrible and didn't seem to understand DD's allergy. He kept recommending items she couldn't have and did not offer to make alternative items for her. The chef at Crystal Palace for breakfast made us feel like freaks that could not be accomodated. He seemed annoyed he had to help us. We waited 30+ minutes for fresh scrambled eggs.

Since you have allergies outside the top 8, contact Disney Dining and ask to speak to the chefs at the restaurants directly. You might not be able to get in touch with each of them, but it will help if they aren't blindsided at the restaurant when they have 20 other allergy tickets to deal with. They can go over your options in advance.

Here are our QS experiences:
We ate at Pecos Bill's and had success (burger, no bun and fries) although from the time we walked in to the time we got our food was about 1 hour. Heard a lot of groans behind me as we were holding up the line waiting for a manager.

At AoA it took over an hour before we received our food (same order as above). They had to make our food twice because they put a gf bun on DD's burger-the staff was confused why they couldn't just take the burger out of the gluten free bun even though parts of the bun (which contains yeast) were stuck to the burger and I told them she was allergic to the gf bun.

At ABC Commissary it only took about 20 minutes to get our allergy friendly chicken nuggets and fries from the time we walked in. We were waiting at the door the second they opened.

 

[WheeledTraveler]

I would suggest presenting your intolerances as allergies when talking directly to chefs and wait staff. Chefs aren't going to understand the difference and/or some may think that because it's an intolerance they don't have to be as careful (plenty seem to think intolerance is a fancy way of guest indicating they don't like the item in question). I learned that the hard way, luckily, not at WDW. There's no point in taking risks in the middle of a vacation. You might want to make up a card (business card size, preferably) that on one side lists foods you cannot have and on the other has suggestions of food you can have (obviously make it clear which is which!). That way the chef has a written list of what needs to be avoided. If you carry multiple copies, then you can just give it to the chefs and they don't even have to worry about returning the card. (It may be worth considering getting some actually printed up like business cards in the future because it's very handy in all sorts of places.)

TS is generally going to be the best option. Also, trying to stick to TS restaurants that are Disney owned & operated will help. There's not a complete list anywhere, but most of the non-Disney restaurants are in the WS. Also, both Pepper Market and Maya Grill at CSR are owned/operated by a separate company. Of CS, the place you're probably going to have the most options is Sunshine Seasons. They have such a wide variety of foods that there are quite a few options that might work for you.

When contacting Special Diets, be persistent. They usually respond to requests with the pertinent allergen-free food sheets (AFAIK they only have those for top-8). Those sheets only list food items that are specifically ordered because they do not contain the allergen and you have to cross-reference between the sheets if there are multiple allergies. Those will be somewhat helpful since you can use them to check the ingredients in those items (the sheets are specific about what brands are ordered so you could even contact the manufacturer to get a complete ingredient list). Because your intolerances are mainly not top-8, it's worth e-mailing or calling until you get an answer that is more specific to you. You need to get to the point where you feel your needs are being taken seriously. Don't be afraid to ask directly for calls from chefs at places you have ADRs, but don't necessarily expect calls from the chefs (I think some of that is beyond Special Diets's control). Unfortunately, even when you get a call the chef who does call may not be the one in the kitchen when you're actually at the restaurant. Still, it's worth getting as much info as you can before your trip!

 

[IsoandElli]

Thank you so much for your suggestions!
Trying to work around my intolerances is still very new to me - but I will be thrilled when I no longer have to worry about feeling terrible after what should have been a nice meal.
Thankfully, wheat/gluten don't seem to present much of a problem, otherwise I'm not sure what would be left for me. My main problem seems to be with foods that have been preserved in one way or another, mostly involving fermentation. And tomatoes and avocado - so San Angel is pretty much out. Not that my DD ("tortillas with nothing on it") will mind that

Here's a list of potential ADRs - can anyone comment on allergy/intolerance experiences with these restaurants?

Plaza (lunch)
Liberty Tree Tavern (lunch)
Coral Reef (lunch)
Marrakesh (lunch - maybe, instead of Coral Reef)
Garden Grill (dinner)
Yak & Yeti (lunch - despite the soy sauce/fish sauce intolerance)
Sci-Fi (lunch)
50s PT (lunch or dinner)
Beaches and Cream (lunch/dinner)
Captain's Grille at YC (breakfast)

Would you switch out any in favor of something else in the same park/area?

 

[clanmcculloch]

At the Plaza, the majority of the meals are sandwiches. If you can't have yeast then there are no safe breaks. My yeast free DD loves the tuna salad (the chef custom makes one for her because she's allergic to something in the standard one) served on lettuce with potato chips on the side (I don't know if they have soy or not). And of course there's the dessert if you're able to eat Rice Dream ice cream. While our experiences have been great, make sure that there's something on the menu that you'll be happy eating without bread or else skip it.

Sci Fi is also another place with mostly sandwich type meals. Look over the menu to make sure there's something you'll be happy eating without bread. My kids LOVE the ribs (milk free but not sure about soy; they eat them without any sauce and say they're great that way; just meat with a dry rub).

I've read some good reviews of Beaches & Cream but I'll never set foot in there again. We experienced a complete disregard for allergies and were served regular ice cream in one of our milkshakes (luckily the regular vanilla has tiny black dots so the difference was visible so I only had a tiny amount that I scraped off the side before I notices and luckily I'm not anaphylactic so I just ended up crashing for a couple hours and having an uncomfortable flight home that night). Never again.

We LOVED our meals at Captain's Grille. We ate there for breakfast, lunch, and supper when we stayed at YC. The chefs were are amazing and created some delicious meals for us.

Do you have any problems with citrus? We've never eaten at Marrakesh because the food seems to almost all have citrus when I look over the menu and reviews.

Despite the soy sauce, you might actually do well at Teppan Edo. Your food can be prepared in a safe area in the kitchen and done without sauces. Plain rice, simple sauteed vegetables and meats, it just seems to be a good fit. Do NOT get the sushi as sushi rice has vinegar (that's standard everywhere) but I would think that they have plain steamed rice for their regular rice. They have a great reputation for allergies. I have no first hand experience though because it's not a good restaurant for those with sesame allergies.

We've had very good allergy meals at Coral Reef. They have a lot of simple ingredients to work with and they do a good job of preparing it. DH's non-allergy meals have been just ok but our allergy ones have been pretty good.

Garden Grill has a very limited menu. The one time we ate there the chef was very good about serving us plain meats, fish, and vegetables and they were very nicely prepared but we like the types of foods that are on the regular menu so it worked well for us. Definitely look at the menu to be sure that the basic ingredients they use are safe. I don't recall any marinades but it's been a while. I've read some terrible reviews since then but I've also read amazing reviews since then. It seems to be hit or miss depending on who's working that night.

 

[Ariel on Land]

we only deal with dairy and soy FAs, but of your list, we had excellent options at 50s PTC and Coral Reef. Chef Mickeys was another that was excellent. CP was just ok.