WDW Dining for Vegetarians and Vegans

[DisBabe94]

I am looking for some advice from other vegans or vegetarians who love WDW

I have been planning my trip for awhile now, but have recently transitioned to eating a vegan diet.
So... I realized I have to completely rethink my dining approach and my ADRs!!

Here are my Questions:

Will I find enough food at any buffet? Maybe Boma? I'm talking rice dishes, bean dishes, cooked and raw veggies, salads, all with no dairy or eggs?

I want to dine at a few signatures.. Was thinking maybe California Grill, Jiko, Citricos? Any other recommendations? I was hoping that at signature level dining the chef may be willing to make me something off-menu, do any of you have experience with this?

DH and I are going Spring 2018 during Flower and Garden and I am soooo excited!! Will I be able to get "full" just from the kiosks? Are there many offerings that are vegan friendly or could easily be modified and made vegan? And if not... should I then plan an ADR for our EPCOT day? Maybe Via Napoli... is the crust there dairy-free? Or would you recommend one of the restaurants in Morocco?

Thank you so much for any advice or insight you may offer and I welcome your recommendations

 

[LongLiveRafiki]

I don't have much first hand experience in this, but I'm vegetarian and have a dairy allergy so have most of the vegan restrictions. I've been assured by fellow dissers, my travel agent, and several cast members at Disney that any table service restaurant will accommodate vegans. When you make your ADRs, mark the special diet/allergy box and ensure you notify your server. They will either tell you what the vegan offerings are or a chef will come out and discuss what he can make for you. At any buffet, a chef should walk you around and show you which items are vegan and depending on the place, the offerings, and how busy it is, they may offer to prepare you a separate vegan meal in the back. I've heard AMAZING things about Chef TJ at Trails End... Seriously Google "Disney Chef TJ vegan" and you will see what I mean.

I have a bit more personal experience with quick service and that one's a lot tougher. It's not too hard to request something without meat, but sooo many things have dairy and eggs. All of the quick services will have an allergy ingredients book that you can look through though and they will do their best to accommodate you, but be prepared that your food may take longer. Some of the veggie burgers and buns have dairy, so always ask about that. And apparently A LOT of desserts include gelatin (including many cupcakes) so if you're avoiding that, you may want to ask about that as well. Definitely enjoy a Dole Whip, the pineapple or orange ones are vegan (vanilla are not).

 

[amberpi]

There was a very recent thread you should search which could help and the topic comes up often. I travel with and eat locally with lots of vegans, and it can be done. You will have to ask each restaurant about cooking meat separately and that kind of thing if you are very strict about it. There's lot of good info to already be had on the boards.

As I always mention, like a broken record, Dole Whips are vegan

 

[kboo]

There was an old vegetarian/vegan thread a while back ...

Any signature will do more than accommodate you. They *will* make you a special meal but there are often also options on the regular menu that are vegan or can easily be adjusted. (I'm just a vegetarian but have had absolutely no issue. And I think somehow they made a note of it so with every later reservation they knew we had a "special" diet issue)

Boma and Tusker House are the best buffets but pretty much any of them are vegan friendly; breakfast may be less so however.

Flower and Garden is lovely! I've been able to get quite full from the kiosks as a vegetarian but I definitely scoped out the menus beforehand and planned where to go. However I seem to remember there being a fair amount of cheese and since they're little kiosks, I don't know how much actual cooking v assembling they are doing - in other words, not sure they'll be able to customize other than holding the cheese or a dairy based ingredient.

 

[JessRose]

While I'm no longer a vegetarian, dining at Disney while I was one was so luxurious and wonderful! We had NO issues at all finding enough options. Even at Ohana, we had a great experience. I liked it so much, when I dined there last weekend, I asked if it was possible to have the vegetarian option and it was just as lovely as before.

As for the Flower & Garden booths, they note the vegetarian friendly options with a little green V on the menu boards. I think there was at least one option at every booth (although some were desserts). There is also a strictly vegetarian booth, it was Urban something...I think Urban Farm.

Have a great time!

 

[DisBabe94]

I don't have much first hand experience in this, but I'm vegetarian and have a dairy allergy so have most of the vegan restrictions. I've been assured by fellow dissers, my travel agent, and several cast members at Disney that any table service restaurant will accommodate vegans. When you make your ADRs, mark the special diet/allergy box and ensure you notify your server. They will either tell you what the vegan offerings are or a chef will come out and discuss what he can make for you. At any buffet, a chef should walk you around and show you which items are vegan and depending on the place, the offerings, and how busy it is, they may offer to prepare you a separate vegan meal in the back. I've heard AMAZING things about Chef TJ at Trails End... Seriously Google "Disney Chef TJ vegan" and you will see what I mean.

I have a bit more personal experience with quick service and that one's a lot tougher. It's not too hard to request something without meat, but sooo many things have dairy and eggs. All of the quick services will have an allergy ingredients book that you can look through though and they will do their best to accommodate you, but be prepared that your food may take longer. Some of the veggie burgers and buns have dairy, so always ask about that. And apparently A LOT of desserts include gelatin (including many cupcakes) so if you're avoiding that, you may want to ask about that as well. Definitely enjoy a Dole Whip, the pineapple or orange ones are vegan (vanilla are not).

Wow that is absolutely amazing news about table service, and uh holy crap I just googled Chef TJ and I am totally making reservations for Trails End!!

Regarding quick service, I am thinking mainly breakfast will be a problem. Maybe I can survive on fruit plates and some coffee! This might be a stretch, but do you know if they make any pastries that are dairy and egg free? For lunch I think I can survive on some salads and french fries!!

Thanks for the heads up about gelatin in the desserts, I am avoiding that. Yessss dole whips

Thank you so much for your input!!

 

[DisBabe94]

There was a very recent thread you should search which could help and the topic comes up often. I travel with and eat locally with lots of vegans, and it can be done. You will have to ask each restaurant about cooking meat separately and that kind of thing if you are very strict about it. There's lot of good info to already be had on the boards.

As I always mention, like a broken record, Dole Whips are vegan

Thank you so much for the input, I did do some searching around and found a few good threads.
Yes I am all about dole whips!! So awesome that they are vegan.

 

[DisBabe94]

There was an old vegetarian/vegan thread a while back ...

Any signature will do more than accommodate you. They *will* make you a special meal but there are often also options on the regular menu that are vegan or can easily be adjusted. (I'm just a vegetarian but have had absolutely no issue. And I think somehow they made a note of it so with every later reservation they knew we had a "special" diet issue)

Boma and Tusker House are the best buffets but pretty much any of them are vegan friendly; breakfast may be less so however.

Flower and Garden is lovely! I've been able to get quite full from the kiosks as a vegetarian but I definitely scoped out the menus beforehand and planned where to go. However I seem to remember there being a fair amount of cheese and since they're little kiosks, I don't know how much actual cooking v assembling they are doing - in other words, not sure they'll be able to customize other than holding the cheese or a dairy based ingredient.

Yes Re: Flower and Garden, cheese is definitely the hardest thing to avoid. In all of my menu scouring I am finding that vegetarian options are plenty, but they usually include some form of dairy! As you said about the actual cooking v assembling it is hard to know if they are able to modify a dish. I suppose I will have to just ask and see what happens.
Thank you for your help! It is so nice to know how accommodating Disney is for this just another reason why I can't wait for our vacation!

 

[DisBabe94]

While I'm no longer a vegetarian, dining at Disney while I was one was so luxurious and wonderful! We had NO issues at all finding enough options. Even at Ohana, we had a great experience. I liked it so much, when I dined there last weekend, I asked if it was possible to have the vegetarian option and it was just as lovely as before.

As for the Flower & Garden booths, they note the vegetarian friendly options with a little green V on the menu boards. I think there was at least one option at every booth (although some were desserts). There is also a strictly vegetarian booth, it was Urban something...I think Urban Farm.

Have a great time!

Thank you so much for your input! Disney is awesome I am so relieved to hear how easy it is

Thanks for the heads up about Urban Farm! I'll definitely check them out! I really can't wait for my trip

 

[DisBabe94]

Also does anyone have recommendations for a restaurant in Disney Springs? Originally I was leaning towards Cocina or Homecoming, but maybe Morimoto Asia would be a better option maybe for some veggie ramen or something of that nature?

 

[ShellieMimi]

Wow that is absolutely amazing news about table service, and uh holy crap I just googled Chef TJ and I am totally making reservations for Trails End!!

Regarding quick service, I am thinking mainly breakfast will be a problem. Maybe I can survive on fruit plates and some coffee! This might be a stretch, but do you know if they make any pastries that are dairy and egg free? For lunch I think I can survive on some salads and french fries!!

Thanks for the heads up about gelatin in the desserts, I am avoiding that. Yessss dole whips

Thank you so much for your input!!

He might not be there by next year. They keep moving him to different venues because guests read about him on the internet and stalk the poor man.

 

[DisBabe94]

He might not be there by next year. They keep moving him to different venues because guests read about him on the internet and stalk the poor man.

Oh no!!! Poor guy, I can see his reputation as catering to vegan folks could be somewhat of a burden. Okay so maybe no Trails End, it wasn't on my restaurant list to begin with and so it wouldn't be worth it to me without him. I don't want to inconvenience anybody

 

[carlandellie31]

Also does anyone have recommendations for a restaurant in Disney Springs? Originally I was leaning towards Cocina or Homecoming, but maybe Morimoto Asia would be a better option maybe for some veggie ramen or something of that nature?

We're vegetarian, not vegan, but just got back. We liked the veggie burgers pretty well at D'Luxe. You can order any of the burger toppings with the veggie patty. For example, we got a southern burger with the veggie patty instead, hold the bacon. And the fries were spectacular. (Although I think now the veggie burger at the Plaza is my favorite. And it's a great restaurant for dealing with allergies.)

The appetizers we had at Homecoming weren't vegan, I'm pretty sure, but those we had were tasty.

And we stopped in Cocina for a small lunch. We had the guacamole and some veggie tostadas that were both excellent.

I think you'll find some surprisingly good stuff. And as others have said, we usually stick to more table service (quite often just appetizers) so we can get some actual nutrients in our diet. And if they can make the crab-less cake at the F&G festival booth vegan for you, it was wonderful as well. And the potato pancake with applesauce was good. We made a meal of the booths one day.

Have fun!

 

[DisBabe94]

We're vegetarian, not vegan, but just got back. We liked the veggie burgers pretty well at D'Luxe. You can order any of the burger toppings with the veggie patty. For example, we got a southern burger with the veggie patty instead, hold the bacon. And the fries were spectacular. (Although I think now the veggie burger at the Plaza is my favorite. And it's a great restaurant for dealing with allergies.)

The appetizers we had at Homecoming weren't vegan, I'm pretty sure, but those we had were tasty.

And we stopped in Cocina for a small lunch. We had the guacamole and some veggie tostadas that were both excellent.

I think you'll find some surprisingly good stuff. And as others have said, we usually stick to more table service (quite often just appetizers) so we can get some actual nutrients in our diet. And if they can make the crab-less cake at the F&G festival booth vegan for you, it was wonderful as well. And the potato pancake with applesauce was good. We made a meal of the booths one day.

Have fun!

That is great to know about the veggie burgers! Thanks! Cocina might be a great option for us then, I crave guacamole on a regular basis

Eating more table service meals definitely seems to be the way to go, how did you fit that into your touring plan? Late breakfast/early lunch and late dinner TS maybe?

 

[carlandellie31]

That is great to know about the veggie burgers! Thanks! Cocina might be a great option for us then, I crave guacamole on a regular basis

Eating more table service meals definitely seems to be the way to go, how did you fit that into your touring plan? Late breakfast/early lunch and late dinner TS maybe?

Now that we go more often, we aren't the commando park-goers we used to be. It really is fun to wander, look around, and see what interesting things you run into. Who knew?!

We usually go for an earlier lunch (instead of breakfast) and regular-time supper. It depends on the day and what we're doing. We usually plan at least one meal to snack our way through Epcot with a table service for the other meal, so we know there's some good quality food coming. These days, I think you could almost snack/progressive-meal your way through Disney Springs as a vegetarian, too. Pop into lounges/quick-services and have some appetizers, sort of thing.

Meals have become part of the vacation experience for us. We hardly ever go out to eat at home, so we try to really enjoy our meal times and don't mind fitting them in. It's really nice to get out of the heat and chug water for an hour, too.

 

[DisBabe94]

Now that we go more often, we aren't the commando park-goers we used to be. It really is fun to wander, look around, and see what interesting things you run into. Who knew?!

We usually go for an earlier lunch (instead of breakfast) and regular-time supper. It depends on the day and what we're doing. We usually plan at least one meal to snack our way through Epcot with a table service for the other meal, so we know there's some good quality food coming. These days, I think you could almost snack/progressive-meal your way through Disney Springs as a vegetarian, too. Pop into lounges/quick-services and have some appetizers, sort of thing.

Meals have become part of the vacation experience for us. We hardly ever go out to eat at home, so we try to really enjoy our meal times and don't mind fitting them in. It's really nice to get out of the heat and chug water for an hour, too.

Yeah I feel the same way about a more relaxed touring pace. Although this will be our first WDW trip, we are Disneyland APs so most of the rides are been-there-done-that! Dining is definitely a huge part of the vacation for us, we are total foodies and can't wait to experience all that the WDW has to offer.

 

[lady_hlh]

There is a FB group called Veg Disney if you use FB where people share info. My teen is a vegan so I have to research all the places to eat for our trips. All the TS places either had a vegan entree or made her something special after we talked to the chef. At CG they made my DD and her BFF sampler entrees for a vegan and a vegetarian that aren't on the menu. SciFi made her a special tofu dish that she said was great but the service and the 45 minute wait with an ADR made me think never again. At Disney Springs my DD and her friend wanted to go to Blaze because they have vegan cheese plus another day they grabbed vegan sausage sandwiches from a stand. There is a vegan bakery in Disney Springs, Erin McKenna and some of the resorts stock their products at their CS. If your a breakfast lover they can make vegan Tonga Toast at the Kona Cafe with a side of potatoes that my daughter is dying to get again this year. I also got bananas and cliff bars for our room because it can be hard to find any CS breakfast items.

 

[kboo]

We are afternoon break-takers and early risers with 2 little kids, so we usually have breakfast early (I know that doesn't help you being vegan), just share CS or QS lunches, and then have a TS dinner. We are foodies, as are our kids, so finding a good restaurant with good food and good theming is key. Also we tend to go in the summer so you need that break.