13 days eating out of pocket. DS first experiences with adult menu (allergies)

[Bork]

We just got back from 2 great weeks at WDW with DW, DS12 and DD3 (who is very picky). This is our first trip to WDW in 6 years. DS has food allergies and this was the first time eating off the adult menu and using the allergy menus (which are awesome).

We got the Disney Visa mainly for dining, to save 10% at many of the places we ate, plus we used the free Disney gift cards for dining as well. I also had some Disney gift cards through a work bonus program and Landry's gift cards through Discover rewards.

These all helped with the food costs.

This will be a Reader's Digest dining review, as we didn't take many pics and notes as we did in the past. We tried to do a sit down lunch most days to get out of the heat. We also only did one character meal due to the cost. We brought a suitcase full of breakfast foods for most mornings to save money and get on the road faster.

Overall, we noticed a decline in the food since we last went, 6 years ago.

1 MK - Sunday August 21

Liberty Tree Tavern 11:30 lunch. We loved the dinner there last time, so we wanted to do it again, but opted for lunch to save money. DW had the Colony Salad which was good, but she was still hungry. I had the Pilgrim's Feast which was as good as the dinner version. DS has the allergy friendly version of the Pilgrim's Feast and he loved it. DD had the Mac and Cheese. Service was great. Still one of our favorites

Columbia Harbor House dinner. Also one of our favorites. DW and I had the Lobster roll. DS had the Salmon. All were ok, but we were all still hungry. DD had chicken nuggets, which she did not like.

2 Epcot - Monday August 22

Electric Umbrella lunch. No impressions plus or minus. Free refills are nice. Finding a table is tough at busy times.

Rose and Crown 5:40 dinner. We wanted to try some new places so we picked this one. Not happy that we had to eat outside on a hot evening. We chose TS meals so we could cool off. We all had the fish and chips. Being from Milwaukee, we know fish fries and this one was mediocre. Very greasy and just not that good. Cole slaw was disgusting. Won't be back.

3 Off day - Tuesday August 23

We did the monorail tour this morning.
Kona Cafe breakfast 10:45. Again one of our favorites, since our Honeymoon was here in 2000. DW and I had Tonga toast. Not as good as we remembered. DS had the 2 eggs which he liked. DD had the Mickey pancakes which were disappointing since they were just 3 pancakes stacked to look like Mickey. She liked it though.

Wolfgang Puck Express dinner. Another favorite. DW and I love the pizzas. DS had the Spaghetti. He was disappointed that he couldn't have the meatballs. There was also some confusion as to whether the sauce was dairy free or not. It was straightened out, but concerning. DD had mac and cheese again.

10 more days to go.

 

[Bork]

I wanted to summarize how we saved money:
Disney Visa 10% off: Kona Cafe, Hollywood and Vine, Biergarten, Boma, Diamond Horseshoe and Skipper Canteen
Landry's gift card: Yak & Yeti table service
Official guide coupon: 10% off at Wolfgang Puck Express

 

[DrunkJam]

Looking forward to see what else you get up to, food wise.

 

[Bork]

4 DHS - Wednesday August 24
Hollywood and Vine lunch 12:20. DD loves Doc McStuffins and Sofia, so this was the one character meal we sprang for. Food was quite good. Plenty of choices for everyone. DS got an allergy menu and allergies were listed on the signs as well. Made it very easy for him to pick out foods. They brought out special allergy friendly desserts for DS, since he couldn't have any desserts on the buffet. We were all stuffed. DD even found plenty to eat. Character interaction was very good. Saw all 4 characters and even saw Sofia and Jake twice. This would probably be our new favorite at DHS.

Had a really late dinner back at the Pop after Fantasmic (and a lonnnnng wait for a bus). Very busy, but many choices. Much better than any of the QS locations at the DHS. DD didn't like the mac & cheese here.

We really don't like the RFID refill mugs. Many of the soda selections were out or bad, but you didn't know until you tried to fill. Then you have to wait a minute or two before you can try again. Also very picky about the cup placement. Didn't like this at all. We ended up using the mugs quite a bit at Pop, but not as convenient at AKL.

5 AK - Thursday August 25
We checked out of Pop in the morning.

Pizzafari lunch. We ended up cancelling Tusker House because of cost, so we ate here. We had good experiences with allrgies here last time and we weren't disapointed. DW and I both loved the flatbreads. DS loved that he could have allergy friendly pizza. Only took a few minues longer to get our food (they gave us a pager). DD had the mac and cheese, but I think she preferred our pizza. Plenty of seating and nice place to cool off for a while.

Restaurantasaurus dinner. I had the bacon cheeseburger. DW had black bean burger. DS had bacon hamburger from the allergy menu. Again we got a pager and food came a few minutes later. Each allergy meal came on a green tray separate from the other food. DD had cheesburger on fish-shaped flatbread. She hated the flatbread, but she loved the shovel and pail. The topping bar had many choices, but didn't seem the freshest. It was nice to be able to fill our own drinks and take refills to go. The food was good, standard quick serve fair.

At the end of this day, we checked into AKL Kidani. Very easy resort transfer, with bags there at the end of the day.

 

[Bork]

I should add that DS is allergic to peanuts, dairy and shellfish, which he has had since he was 1. This is his 3rd trip to WDW, so we are pro's at the allergy food thing. Disney is great with allergies.

 

[dmea10]

I should add that DS is allergic to peanuts, dairy and shellfish, which he has had since he was 1. This is his 3rd trip to WDW, so we are pro's at the allergy food thing. Disney is great with allergies.

Thanks for the allergy information! We are planning on going next year with my grandson who is allergic to peanuts. We will research more but seems like we should not have any issues. What a relief! My daughter and son in law can relax and enjoy their meals.

 

[tluvstink]

I'm jealous of your 2 week trip! I would love to do that one day

Great reviews!

Terri

 

[wellesleyprincess]

4 DHS - Wednesday August 24
Hollywood and Vine lunch 12:20. DD loves Doc McStuffins and Sofia, so this was the one character meal we sprang for. Food was quite good. Plenty of choices for everyone. DS got an allergy menu and allergies were listed on the signs as well. Made it very easy for him to pick out foods. They brought out special allergy friendly desserts for DS, since he couldn't have any desserts on the buffet. We were all stuffed. DD even found plenty to eat. Character interaction was very good. Saw all 4 characters and even saw Sofia and Jake twice. This would probably be our new favorite at DHS.

How did you feel about this? I have severe food allergies (Dairy and Tree Nut) and particularly at such a kid overrun buffet and am terrified of cross contamination. (I'm ana and touch sensitive to Almond) The new move to allergy menus at the buffet scares me. It's one thing at a sit down, but it's different at a buffet where everyone shares the same food.