Vegetarian dishes??

[disney1474]

For our trip next year we will have one person with us who is a vegetarian. Will most TS restaurants be able to accomodate her?
What about QS locations. If any vegetarians out there know of places that make good veg. dishes please let me know.
I should say we were thinking of ressies at Sanaa, Boma, Teppan Edo so far. Thanks in advance for your help!

 

[CarolMN]

Moved from DVC Boards

 

[TuneTownMagic]

I LOVE Boma! It is definitely a great place for vegetarians (I am one), and even Vegan eaters!


There is a vast array of vegetarian items available at Boma. My favorites are the Potatoes with Afritude and the Couscous Marrakesh. Some of the dishes may have a few exotic flavors, but there are some mild dishes as well, in addition to flatbreads, fruits, and salads.

The desserts are amazing too! Zebra domes are well known there and a personal favorite!

I also highly reccomend Tusker House at the Animal Kingdom. Similar food to Boma, but a few different items, and some Indian dishes as well.
Crystal Palace has several vegetarian options, and you can even request from the chef something outside of the buffet if you are vegan. Last time, we got a delicious platter of pasta and marinara sauce.

Good luck!

 

[bicker]

We're vegetarians, and did quite well during our last two trips. Here's a quick view of our experiences specifically with respect to how good the restaurant is for vegetarians, as far as we were concerned ...

Sanaa - Good*
Tutto Italia - Poor*
Tusker House - Super
Jiko - Super
The Wave - Great+
Brown Derby - Good
Rose and Crown - Good*
Kouzina - Great
Yak & Yeti - Good*

San Angel Inn - Great+
Mama Melrose - Good
Tusker House - Super
Cape May Cafe - Great+
Cinderella's - Poor*
Crystal Palace - Great
____
+ Better than expected.
* Worse than expected.


Quick service was a little bit more difficult to manage. Sunshine Seasons had far fewer options than I expected them to have; Cosmic Rays was pretty good though.

 

[LisaS]

I agree with the suggestions made so far. In addition:

For CS, Columbia Harbour House's Lighthouse sandwich is superb. It is hummus, broccoli slaw and sliced tomato on hearty bread. They also have a veggie chili that is very good.

At San Angel Inn you need to ask for the Vegetarian menu. There are only two things on the menu but for whatever reason they are not listed on the regular menu.

 

[Eeyore's Pal]

All TS restaurants have a vegetarian option on the menu or will modify something to be vegetarian. Of course, that doesn't mean it will necessarily be something your friend likes. I'd recommend she peruse the menus on AllEars (LINK) to see what is on the menus. You can also check out quick service menus at that link.

Off the top of my head, I know there are veggie QS options at Earl of Sandwich (DTD), Columiba Harbor House and Cosmic Rays (MK), Backlot and Studio Catering Co (DHS), Sunshine Seasons, Electric Umbrella, Tangeriene Cafe (Epcot), Boardwalk Bakery. Of course there is cheese pizza and salads available in numerous places throughout the resorts and parks.

 

[bumbershoot]

The desserts are amazing too! Zebra domes are well known there and a personal favorite!

Have you gotten confirmation from the chefs that those are vegetarian? I've read a few times that they contain gelatin, so I was planning to avoid avoid avoid...but if you've heard from the chefs that they are OK, then I will think about trying them...

 

[Boardwalk_bride]

Tangerine Cafe is the best CS meal , IMHO, for a vegetarian! DH and I are not vegetarians, but we try to consume minimal meat, and while on the hunt for vegetarian food, we landed on Tangerine Cafe and it was so good! The portions are large, and a pretty good value.

In parks that didn't have good CS options, we would usually get a pretzel and than a fruit or vegetable cup.

Most buffets have a lot of vegetarian options as well!

 

[TuneTownMagic]

Have you gotten confirmation from the chefs that those are vegetarian? I've read a few times that they contain gelatin, so I was planning to avoid avoid avoid...but if you've heard from the chefs that they are OK, then I will think about trying them...

You are right bumbershoot, the zebra dome recipe does include gelatin. Thought this is less common, there is a vegetarian form of gelatin, and I can only hope that is what the chefs use. However, I have never asked them. Good point!

 

[TuneTownMagic]

Tangerine Cafe is the best CS meal , IMHO, for a vegetarian! DH and I are not vegetarians, but we try to consume minimal meat, and while on the hunt for vegetarian food, we landed on Tangerine Cafe and it was so good! The portions are large, and a pretty good value.

In parks that didn't have good CS options, we would usually get a pretzel and than a fruit or vegetable cup.

Most buffets have a lot of vegetarian options as well!

Yes, Tangerine Cafe is amazing!! My sister and I always make a visit. It is Counter Service but feels like Table Service with the cuisine that is served. Great for Vegans too!

 

[PatsMom]

We just returned on the 6th from 8 days with a pescatarian. She had absolutely no problems finding things that she enjoyed. We read the QS menus before going in and made sure the vegetarian option was something she would like. When we made our sit down ADR's we had her review the menus. But of course we did that six months ahead so some had changed. But she said the food was great.

Even the Hoop de Doo cooperated - she was offered a choice of dishes and chose a pasta and marinara that she said was very tasty. Between that, the salad, the cornbread and the dessert she definitely didn't leave hungry!

 

[Mortlives]

We just returned on the 6th from 8 days with a pescatarian. She had absolutely no problems finding things that she enjoyed. We read the QS menus before going in and made sure the vegetarian option was something she would like. When we made our sit down ADR's we had her review the menus. But of course we did that six months ahead so some had changed. But she said the food was great.

Even the Hoop de Doo cooperated - she was offered a choice of dishes and chose a pasta and marinara that she said was very tasty. Between that, the salad, the cornbread and the dessert she definitely didn't leave hungry!

Did she have a problem with people knowing what pescetarian is?

 

[alisonwonderland64]

My mom is a vegetarian (although she does eat salmon, so I guess she's more of a pescetarian) and she had no problem finding things to eat on our last trip. I know she particularly liked Boma as far as sit-down restaurants go, although she was able to find things that she enjoyed at the other sit-down restaurants as well (we also ate at Kouzzina, Le Cellier, Tokyo Dining, 50's Prime Time, Liberty Tree Tavern, Kona for breakfast, Artist Point, California Grill, and Grand Floridian Cafe for breakfast--all had at least one option for her). I also agree that Tangierine Cafe is great for vegetarians, my mom really liked the food there as well (as far as other QS places, I know she enjoyed the food at Columbia Harbour House, Studio Catering Co, and Earl of Sandwich). Although I also remember her saying that the veggie wrap at Cosmic Ray's in the Magic Kingdom wasn't her favorite, so you might want to avoid that. The only park that might be a problem vegetarian-wise is Animal Kingdom...my mom ended up not going with us to that park, but if she had, based on the menus I've seen, it would've been much harder to find good vegetarian options than in other places (my dad and I ended up eating at Flame Tree Barbeque, which has no good vegetarian options really). But other than that, I was surprised by how easy it was for my mom to find good vegetarian options on our trip--they were much more readily available than I expected. And she was always able to make alterations to a dish in sit-down restaurants so that it would be vegetarian if need be (for example, she ordered the Colony Salad at Liberty Tree Tavern--which is FANTASTIC, by the way--without the chicken).

 

[allyphoe]

Have you gotten confirmation from the chefs that those are vegetarian? I've read a few times that they contain gelatin, so I was planning to avoid avoid avoid...

They aren't vegan, because they contain animal-derived gelatin. There are so many variations on "vegetarian" that you probably need to specify what things you avoid if you're anywhere between vegan and "please don't serve me something that obviously contains meat."

(My dad is on the latter end of the spectrum, in that he'd eat french onion soup made with beef broth, or Caesar salad made with anchovy paste. OTOH, he doesn't eat tofu, which means the standard vegetarian option isn't a good choice for him.)

 

[Teresa Pitman]

I'm vegan (as are two of my kids) and we've had some of our best meals ever at WDW. At the table service places, if you tell the server that you have special dietary needs, they will send a chef out to talk to you. We've had some wonderful results by saying "we're vegan, please surprise us." We usually also mention that we like spicy foods. This might not work as well during busy times, but we've had some creative and fantastic meals when we've asked this.

I should also mention that TJ, who made us some outstanding vegan meals at Boma, was at Ohana's when we were there last November for my birthday. He made us a 7-course vegan meal that knocked our socks off!

Other places we've had some really good vegan meals:
Jiko
Kouzzina
Narcoosee
Kona Cafe
Tusker House
Sanaa
Le Cellier

I've heard good things about California Grill but my experience has been mixed - sometimes the vegan options have been excellent, sometimes not so good.

Teresa

 

[bicker]

They aren't vegan, because they contain animal-derived gelatin.

That means that they're not vegetarian, either.

There are so many variations on "vegetarian" that you probably need to specify what things you avoid if you're anywhere between vegan and "please don't serve me something that obviously contains meat."

Well to be clear, while individual people may have their own personal preferences in this regard, there are very clear definitions for the words vegan and vegetarian, when they are at least in part an ethical concern, and so you can (should be able to) rely on chefs, surely, to follow these guidelines: Vegan means no animal products and no animal-derived products, whatsoever. Vegetarian simply adds animal-derived products if they can be harvested without harming the animal, i.e., milk and eggs. (And wool, for that matter.)

Animal-derived gelatin is pretty-much among the first things an ethical vegetarian would be eschewing.

 

[mark38]

That means that they're not vegetarian, either. Well to be clear, while individual people may have their own personal preferences in this regard, there are very clear definitions for the words vegan and vegetarian, when they are at least in part an ethical concern, and so you can (should be able to) rely on chefs, surely, to follow these guidelines: Vegan means no animal products and no animal-derived products, whatsoever. Vegetarian simply adds animal-derived products if they can be harvested without harming the animal, i.e., milk and eggs. (And wool, for that matter.)

Animal-derived gelatin is pretty-much among the first things an ethical vegetarian would be eschewing.

learning

 

[allyphoe]

There are very clear definitions for the words vegan and vegetarian, when they are at least in part an ethical concern

Except that many people aren't vegetarian primarily on ethical grounds. The fact that you feel there's a clear definition of "vegetarian" doesn't change the fact that many people self-identify as vegetarian, despite the fact that their diet isn't one that fits your definition.

So long as people will go into a restaurant and say "I'm a vegetarian, so I'll have the cheese plate, salmon, and a Jello cup," anyone who has concerns about specific ingredients IMHO is well advised to inquire about those specific ingredients.

(Likewise for pretty much any other special dietary requirements. My mom was served a plate of ravioli last year, which both the waitress and the chef swore up and down was gluten-free. Finally she asked "what did you make the pasta out of?" "Just regular all-purpose flour. Completely gluten-free!")

 

[iwrbnd]

I'm learning here, too. Every time I saw a video from a factory farm I would think I'm going vegetarian/vegan but never actually would! The latest Conklin Dairy Farm abuse has put me over the edge! I haven't eaten meat since because I get sick thinking about it. Going completely vegetarian/vegan/whatever scares me though! Giving up the wonderful meals at WDW is one thing that really scares me! I'm glad to know you can get wonderful non-animal food there, too!

 

[Vegcentric]

Except that many people aren't vegetarian primarily on ethical grounds. The fact that you feel there's a clear definition of "vegetarian" doesn't change the fact that many people self-identify as vegetarian, despite the fact that their diet isn't one that fits your definition.

So long as people will go into a restaurant and say "I'm a vegetarian, so I'll have the cheese plate, salmon, and a Jello cup," anyone who has concerns about specific ingredients IMHO is well advised to inquire about those specific ingredients.

(Likewise for pretty much any other special dietary requirements. My mom was served a plate of ravioli last year, which both the waitress and the chef swore up and down was gluten-free. Finally she asked "what did you make the pasta out of?" "Just regular all-purpose flour. Completely gluten-free!")

The problem with saying you're a vegetarian and asking for fish is that many restaurants become confused and the line is blurred as to what a vegetarian actually is. It actually drives the vegetarian and vegan community nuts because when we go out to eat, and it says "we have vegetarian food!", sometimes we're served fish. Fish aren't vegetables. Ands yes, I totally agree with you - you need to inquire about the ingredients in practically eeeeeverything is you're vegetarian or vegan because I ate a zebra dome by mistake! There's animal products in all sorts of stuff so it's up to you to find out what you can and can't eat.

Also, I have never heard of vegetarian gelatin, ever. Can someone point me to a link or something about this? I've heard of kosher gelatin, but that isn't vegetarian either, since it's a fish product.