EPCOT: Allergy Friendly Eating
- Nicki
- Jan 14
- 5 min read
Updated: Feb 15
My personal favorites for safe eating around EPCOT …. And a few things I avoid.
2020 was a pretty monumental year. Sure, there was a global pandemic and I started working from home, but it’s also when I learned more about what I can and cannot eat. Because I was home all the time, I started to realize that something was making me sick. Turns out, I shouldn’t eat gluten! While Celiac Disease is not a food allergy, I am going to refer to it as one since all the Walt Disney World menu include Gluten Free eating as a part of their allergy friendly menu. I have had great success finding fabulous food at Walt Disney World, here are my person picks of places to check out and reconsider if you have food allergies or sensitivities while at the EPCOT.
The Experimental Prototype Community Of Table Service Locations:
I have this goal of dinning at every World Showcase pavilion. I’m about halfway through eating my way around the world and have had great success with the allergy menus.
Rose & Crown Dining Room:
Okay, so Fish and Chips were one of my favorite pub meals when I was still eating deep fried fish. I was so excited to see a baked fish and chips option on the menu. The fish was flavorful and made for a great rendition of fish and chips. This location has a small menu, but I feel they are able to accommodate a lot dietary needs with it. Overall, I felt I had options at this location and would dine here again.
Chefs de France:
At first, I was a little concerned eating here since I didn’t see an allergy menu online. They don’t have it posted! However, our cast member was so helpful table side. They marked all the dishes on the menu that were safe for me to eat based on my dietary needs. Of course, the one thing I had been eyeing was not marked. My best tip is always to ask. I was really craving the Blanquette de la Mer (sautéed shrimp and scallops with spinach and a creamy lobster sauce). The cast member was amazing! They check with the chef and the chef was happy to accommodate. Versus having the spinach stuff puff pastry, I had my seafood over rice pilaf. They did have to substitute the lobster sauce with a white sauce, but it was still amazing! The food was excellent, but the Chefs de France team really made this experience wonderful.
A Fiesta in Mexico!
La Hacienda de San Angel & San Angel Inn Restaurante have both proved to be great places to dine! In general, I find Mexican food to be one of the most versatile menus for my needs. I can almost always get a corn tortillas and chips as an option. While there is no allergy menu online for these locations, cast members once again save the day with helping to find the perfect meal. Lucky for me, tequila is naturally gluten free, so margaritas all around!
Coral Reef:
I have not spent much time eating outside of the World Showcase, but I have ventured to dinner at Coral Reef. This is a location that I typically recommend to first time solo travelers. Usually, when I talk with those traveling alone for the first time, eating alone always seems to be a concern of theirs. Coral Reef is a great spot since you’ll always be entertained by the aquarium. Allergy menu wise, probably not a location I would recommend to those with a shellfish allergy, this location is a lot of sea food. The last time I dined here, I thought my food was great, but I felt the menu was so limited in options. It seemed like the same flavors across all the dishes. As I write this, I revisited their menu and it appears the location has made some updates, so this is possibly a better experience with the updates.
Quick-Service and Snacks at EPCOT:
As I review my foodie notes of Quick-Service & Snack spots I’ve been to in EPCOT, I must admit that I don’t have a lot of experience here. Prior to needing the allergy menus, I found myself enjoying the Festival Fun with the Food & Wine Booths or Festival of the Holidays Kitchens. While I love visiting during the different festivals, I find the menus to be tough to take part in. The Food & Wine Booths and Holiday Kitchens are adorable during their respective Holidays, but I find it tough for those small booths to accommodate food allergy needs while avoiding cross contamination. Do I wish I could take part in all the festival foodie fun, yes. However, I understand that it probably tough to make accommodations with these specialty menus in those pop-up locations. Wishing those with food allergies success and they check out the new Festival of the Arts Menus.
Outside of EPCOT for Snack and Quick-Service
On my previous trip, I found myself in EPCOT during the Food & Wine Festival. To avoid the lines and busy of the Quick Service and Snack locations at this park, I found myself venturing outside of the park. There are several resorts within walking distance of EPCOT that have great menus. For my EPCOT Quick-Service bites, I took a walk over to The Boardwalk resort.
The Boardwalk Café is a new, favorite spot of mine. If it’s a peak lunch/dinner hour, I go ahead and make my mobile order from the World Showcase International Gateway. By time I walk from the gateway to The Boardwalk Café, my order is practically ready. They have a good variety of allergy friendly menu items and it’s so quick to pop out of the park for lunch and then right back in for my next fast pass time. I’ve found this to be a great alternative to eating at the Festival Booths at EPCOT.
The newly added Cake Bake Shop to The Boardwalk resort was also a pleasant surprise for meeting my allergy needs. They had a large variety of menu options both in the bakery and café. While I tend to avoid bakeries in the parks because they lack the ability to meet allergy needs, the Cake Bake shop seems to be doing a pretty good job. I also appreciated that all the signs in the bakery were labeled with the common allergens contained in the treat.
My experiences will not be the same for everyone. Everyone’s dietary needs are different, but I hope these notes help those concerned with the experience they will have. I’ve only been traveling to Walt Disney World for three years with dietary restrictions, so let me know what makes your list of places to go and places to avoid when at EPCOT. I look forward to comments on those Quick-Service and Snack locations that I must try!
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