Disney World. The very words evoke happy memories in my mind. During our college years in Florida, when my fiancé (now my husband of over 28 years) wanted to treat me to a particularly special outing, he would take me to his parents' home in Orlando, and we would spend a day at Disney's Magic Kingdom. In later years when we had children, it was a delight for us to take our little ones to “Mouse Kingdom” and experience with them the magical fantasyland. When the children were older, there were even a few occasions when we left them with their grandparents in Orlando, and my husband and I went to Disney Epcot on a daylong excursion by ourselves – with no children. (Only veteran parents understand the full extent of this bliss.)

Such happy memories floated through my mind as we traveled to Orlando in February 2004. We were taking our youngest child, currently a college student in Tampa, Florida, to Epcot. It would be the first time we had returned to Disney World after we, and the grandparents, had emigrated from Florida eight years ago, and it would be the first time I had “eaten out” at a Disney park since I began the gluten-free diet. Would I be assured of a gluten-free meal? Would there be something for me to eat besides salad? Remembering how solicitous Disney World always was of its guests when we had visited in the past, I had no doubt that I would find celiac-safe food at Disney.

Immediately upon entering Epcot, we went straight to Guest Relations. I asked about making reservations for lunch or dinner, specifically asking if there were a restaurant where gluten-free food was available.

The lady at the counter said that all the restaurants offered gluten-free food choices. I must confess that I thought she probably didn't know what she was talking about, but when she explained that her cousin had celiac disease and had “been like a kid in a candy store” when she had eaten at one of the Disney restaurants, my skepticism began to subside. She went on to say that once we chose a restaurant where we would like to eat, she would call the chef and have me talk to him. There were many choices, but we chose the Norwegian smorgasbord Restaurant Akershus since the cuisine sounded so different from any we had eaten before, and our helper dialed the chef.

I spoke with Chef Dan who told me which of the hot entrees I would be able to eat. Surprisingly, they included all the hot entrées except meatballs, which contained breadcrumbs, and the roast lamb, which was slow-cooked with a wheat flour coating. He said that when we arrived for our meal, he would walk me through the cold selections bar and point out which items were safe for me to eat. His next statement convinced me that he fully understood the gluten-free diet; he said that some of the cold salads might not be safe because they were made with sour cream or mayonnaise that might contain modified food starch, but he would check on the ingredients before we arrived. He then asked me if I would like bread with my meal. Thrown back into a bit of doubt, I responded that I usually didn't eat bread because it was so hard to find gluten-free bread. He reassured me that he understood, but that he stocked gluten-free bread in his pantry and would supply it with my meal if I wanted. I can't tell you how delighted I was! I could hardly wait for our dinner time to arrive.

When we arrived at Restaurant Akershus and informed our server that I needed a gluten-free meal, including guidance with the cold selections, she promptly brought out the chef on duty (who happened to be Mary). Chef Mary guided me through the hot and cold selections. I could eat such a wide variety of foods that it was astounding. When Chef Mary herself brought out my gluten-free bread, I was amused that she was obviously a bit dubious about its quality. It was delicious, but it did have the characteristic dry and somewhat grainy texture of gluten-free bread. No doubt she was afraid that the texture made the bread unappealing, but I reassured her that celiacs were quite used to bread that was of this texture (or worse!), and it was the flavor that counted the most.

I had a fantastic meal and suffered no ill effects afterwards. There was more safe food for me to eat than I was capable of eating. In the language of Disney, my dining experience at Epcot was truly “magical.”

If you plan a trip to Disney World, it would be advisable to contact Disney ahead of time to verify that the park you choose has restaurants and food courts with gluten-free menu selections. Call 407-939-3463 for reservations or special dietary needs. My expectation is that since Epcot was so well prepared with gluten-free food that all the park areas would be as well equipped to handle the gluten-free diet.

May your Disney dining experience be as wonderful as mine was! (March 2004)

By Debbie Holladay