Best Gluten Free Food at Magic Kingdom and Disney Resorts

My favorite thing to do at Disney is eat. I feel like I just wrote this about Hilton Head, so don’t judge, but its true. Disney isn’t just the most magical place on Earth for kids or the grown adults who walk around dressed like Disney princesses. It’s also the most magical place on Earth for those with dietary restrictions, particularly gluten free diets. Disney truly has so much to offer, and knock on wood, I have never been glutened there, nor have I heard of anyone who has. What a relief to go on vacation and not have to worry about what you are going to eat!

Dang, It’s Magical – Sure, I still do my food research before Disney as I do for other trips. But, when I’m researching Disney food it’s to make sure that I don’t miss out on the best stuff, not because I’m looking to make sure there’s something safe to eat. Disney’s food is legitimately delicious too. If you’ve never been to Disney, you may be thinking “it’s an amusement park, how great can it be?” But, it’s really so many steps above amusement park food and there’s so much variety as well. It would probably take me a dozen more trips to Disney and a whole book to cover it all, but I’m hoping this sampling of my favorite food from our last four trips will give you a little taste and get your mouse ears wet, if you will. 

Important Disney Dining Reservation Tips – But before we really dig in, I feel like I would be doing you a disservice if I did not give you a few tips I’ve picked up concerning Disney dining reservations.  First, you will make dining reservations via the Disney World app, and reservations open 60 days out from your trip. So figure out which restaurants you really want to hit, mark your calendar, and make your reservations 60 days out, if possible.

However if you are last minute Disney tripper like me, then getting reservations may be a little more difficult. In this case, I recommend the following: 

1. Make a plan, where will you be on specific days and what are your must do restaurants at these parks/resort(s). 

2. Keep checking the app for open reservations at random times in the days leading up to your trip, you never know when something will open up at a time and restaurant that you are hoping to snag. 

3. Be flexible. The past times we’ve visited Magic Kingdom, I’ve easily snagged 10:45 lunch reservations at Be Our Guest a couple weeks before our trip. This may be the biggest lunch you’ll ever eat in your life, so we just have a Kind bar in the hotel room for a breakfast snack, eat this massive delicious early lunch at Be Our Guest, and then we are set until dinner. 

4. If something opens up at a restaurant you really want, but at time you aren’t sure about, snag it anyway. Reservations can be changed or canceled up to two hours before the reservation without you being charged. Even if a reservation is not at the best time, you’ll feel better now that you have a reservation under your belt. You can always change it later, and you probably will change it later because…

5. You will have the best luck getting those coveted reservations a day or two ahead of time. People tend to change their plans the closer it gets to that magical date. So, lucky you! You may just snag a Topolino’s character breakfast the night before hand like I did last time!!! Bottom line, keep checking the app in the weeks before hand, but don’t kill yourself over it because you’ll have the best luck right before OR DURING your trip. 

“Jeez, is she ever going to talk about the actual food?” Yes, I am!

So, without further ado, and before our clock strikes midnight, and before the sun sets on the third day, let’s talk about the best gluten free food at Magic Kingdom and Disney resorts!

Gluten Free Mickey Waffles – The gluten free Mickey Waffles are hands down the best gluten free breakfast item at Disney. They are also made on gluten free dedicated waffle irons, so no worries there! The waffles are crisp, sweet, thick, and reminiscent of childhood. 

They are simply magical, I’m not sure how gluten containing ones could be any better. In fact, I’d be totally onboard if Disney wanted to start an all day breakfast initiative. Or even a late night snack breakfast initiative!

I had the Mickey Waffles three times on our trip when we stayed at Caribbean Beach, twice from our resort quick service restaurant (Centertown Market at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort) and once from our character dining breakfast (Topolino’s at the Riviera Resort—conveniently within walking distance of the Caribbean Beach Resort). 

The first time I ate the Mickey Waffles, I was immediately blown away by how good they were. Five minutes later, I accidentally dropped my last half of waffle on the floor. I nearly cried. I also nearly picked it up and ate it. This is coming from one of the biggest germaphobes you’ll ever meet. Luckily, I got to enjoy the Mickey Waffles two more times after that. 

As a side note, if you have the opportunity to dine at Topolino’s for the character breakfast then, by all means, do it! The food is amazing, they even start you off with a basket of gluten free pastries upon request!!! Yes, I did eat the little GF pastry basket AND get the waffles for my breakfast entree. 

The waffles also came with the best seasoned breakfast potatoes I think I’ve ever had. The character aspect is also amazing with Mickey, Minnie, Daisy, and Donald rotating around the room and visiting each table. It was easily the highlight of our trip. There were many reasons why I loved the Caribbean Beach Resort and would like to stay there again. One of the big ones is definitely it’s proximity to the Riviera Resort, and therefore Topolino’s restaurant. 

I should also mention that though the gluten free Mickey Waffles seem to be available at most Disney resorts, they aren’t at all of them! You should definitely double check before booking, because they are not nearly as prevalent inside the parks and you don’t want one of the few resorts that doesn’t have them!! 

French Onion Soup at Be Our Guest in Magic Kingdom – I used to be a big eater of French Onion Soup during my gluten eating days. Before Disney, I probably hadn’t had any in about 10 years. It’s never on gluten free menus anywhere because of the croutons that are traditionally in it, so then I’m left wondering would it still be unsafe to eat if I just got it without croutons? 

Soup, of course, is tricky since flour is often used to thicken them up. But, at Disney they assure you that their French Onion Soup without the croutons is most definitely gluten free, and man is it delicious. 

The salty savoriness of the broth, the slight sweetness of the onions, the melty richness of the Gruyère cheese stretching into oblivion—it’s sublime. It’s almost a shame you have to eat a (pretty expensive) three course meal to the point exploding with it, because the soup is such a delight on its own. Pair that with the gluten free rolls (gluten free rolls!!!!!) and it could easily be its own meal. 

But it’s not, so I would recommend getting the Trout Almondine entree. The Trout Almondine has a hefty amount of crab piled on top. Though if you are a big steak person, then get the Filet Mignon. This is what my husband gets and loves it.

The little sampler dessert tray is also delicious—“try the gray stuff, it’s delicious!” It is, but I like the other little desserts that accompany the gray stuff even more. 

Here’s a look at the Be Our Guest menu.

Pao De Queijo Off the Secret Menu at Jungle Navigation Co. LTD Skipper Canteen in Magic Kingdom – I don’t know if y’all knew this, but it takes a lot to impress my husband, food wise, and I guess regular wise as well. Usually when we are eating some food that is just really knocking my socks off, I’ll ask him what he thinks and he’ll say “it’s alright” or “pretty good.” But, he actually LOVED and REMEMBERED this appetizer Skipper Canteen. So much so that the second time we went to Jungle Navigation Co., he told my dad and step mom that THEY’VE GOT TO TRY THIS APPETIZER, IT’S SOOO GOOD! Who is this man and what has he done with my husband?!

But, I do agree with this Disney imposter husband, this appetizer is the bomb, and the fact that it’s on Disney’s Secret Menu and gluten free, just makes it even more awesome.

“Tastes Like Chicken” Because it is! at Jungle Navigation Co. LTD Skipper Canteen in Magic Kingdom – Yes, two entries under Jungle Navigation Co.! I couldn’t pick which I like more and they are both deserving. Plus, since one is an appetizer and one is an entree, you can get both!

This dish seems light for a fried chicken, which is very appreciated during a day of filling my belly with all the magic things that Disney has to offer. The sweet chili glaze is easily the star of the show. Though I’m also a sucker for jasmine rice, and then the stir-fried vegetables are just a bonus. It all works really well together. Hats off to the Disney Food Imagineers on this one. I think about this entree pretty frequently even when I’m not at Disney. They also have a kid’s version of this chicken—Chef Tandaji’s Crispy Chicken, which has the same gluten free “breading,” but the chicken is in chicken finger form. 

I just feel sick about it, but I must have accidentally deleted the picture I took of this chicken! I will get one next time. In the meantime you can check it out on Disney’s website.

Here’s a looks at the Jungle Navigation Co. menu.

The picture of my husband’s steak did survive, which I tried and was delicious as well! I especially loved the sauce and spicy, crispy potatoes that it came with. I ended up eating a fair bit of it, but I still prefer the chicken. Here is the steak picture though—because it is beautiful looking, for a steak

Jerk Chicken Wings and Fries at Banana Cabana at the Disney Caribbean Beach Resort – This was my first time having chicken wings at a Disney restaurant, and these Jerk Chicken Wings were definitely on point. The wings were big and tender and the jerk sauce was just want you want jerk sauce to be. The pickled vegetable ribbons and cilantro-lime crema that they came with were also a nice touch. I’ve since also had wings at Wilderness Lodge’s Geyser Point and those were delicious as well.

The fries that we ordered with them at the Caribbean were also amazing. I love a really good thin fry, like Steak n Shake has, and these were like those, but crispier. It was a very good last meal at Disney during our 2023 trip despite the fact that both our daughters were melting down from too much fun and the Bengals were also melting down in the last playoff game before the Super Bowl. But hey, the food was great! 

PS. The view from the Banana Cabana is so lovely at night. Banana Cabana is right on the lake and there’s a view of the Epcot fireworks. Sometimes there’s even a little steel drum band playing. It’s a great place to unwind with a nightcap after a looong day at the park, and no matter how much fun you have there, a day at the park is always long day at the park.   

Here’s a look at the Banana Cabana menu. 

Warm Churros at Three Bridges Bar and Grill at Villa del Lago at Disney Coronado Resort – Speaking of long days at the park, did I ever tell you about the time when Crystal Palace (boo, Crystal Palace) was running late and still hadn’t called our name 30 minutes after our reservation and our daughter pulled her arm out of the socket horsing around? We didn’t even get to go to the Crystal Palace. We had to go to Disney First Aide and leave Magic Kingdom early instead. Her shoulder ended up magically popping itself back in on the bus ride back to Coronado. We then ate a 9pm dinner at the Three Bridges Bar and Grill at Villa del Lago at Disney Coronado Resort. 

A 9pm dinner folks, with a two year old. I have studied and studied this menu trying to remember what I ate for dinner, and I simply have no idea. All I remember is that the woman at the table next to us ordered the Sangria Flight, and I couldn’t fathom why I hadn’t thought to order the same. The Sangria Flight, I remember. I also remember that it was here that I discovered gluten free churros!!

I had never had a churro before, but I feel as if it was love at first sugary cinnamon sight. My long Magic Kingdom day melted away into that melted chocolate dipping sauce. I saved one churro for the next morning, which was disappointing. It’s definitely an eat warm and fresh kind of thing. I’ve also had the gluten free beignets at the Port Orleans Resort, and I think I actually preferred these churros. Though in the beignets’ defense, I may have built them up too much in my mind, where the churros came in the form of a very happy surprise. 

Here’s a look at the Three Bridges Bar and Grill menu. 

Gluten free churros are also available at Nomad Lounge at Animal Kingdom, though regrettably, I have not eaten them there.

The Gluten Free Brownie, Cupcake, Shrimp Cocktail, and Mongolian Beef at Chef Mickey’s at the Disney Contemporary Resort – I’m so excited to tell you guys all about Chef Mickey’s. I adore the food at Be Our Guest, but the high-energy dining at Chef Mickey’s is hard to beat character-dining wise. And all the gluten free choices of food at Chef Mickey’s, wow.

I was initially scared to attempt to eat gluten free from a buffet (the cross contamination has to be unavoidable!), but the chef was super nice and came out to inform me that he would bring out my gluten free food straight from the kitchen himself!

He then gave me a super long list of all the menu items that could be made gluten free and I checked off nearly 3/4 of the page for my order. I felt like I checked off way too much food for one person to eat, but I wanted to try as much as possible and the Chef acted like it was no problem whatsoever.

The freedom choose so many gluten free choices was very thrilling! It was even more thrilling when the food started coming out. The first course included a very LARGE salad and a peel n eat shrimp cocktail that was so addicting. The shrimp and cocktail sauce were so good, I finished every last bite of the shrimp.

My entree plate was next and it was jam-packed with food. Everything was good, but the Mongolian Beef was amazing. It was so tender and the flavor was spot-on. It was definitely the best thing of the meal and one of the best things I ate that trip.

Finally it was dessert time and as you can see below, they really knocked it out of the park with the presentation—so fun! The brownie and the cupcake were top-notch; the cookies were just ok. The big chocolate chunks in the brownie made it so rich and delicious. I was in chocolate heaven.

Are you planning on staying at the Contemporary Resort? Also, check out my post on gluten free dining options at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge! It’s just a short boat ride away from the Contemporary and has Snow White character dining as well as outdoor water front dining.

GFG’s post for gluten free dining at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge.

Orange Cream Soft-Serve Cup (DOLE Whip Orange and Vanilla Swirl) at Sunshine Tree Terrace in Magic Kingdom – Let’s keep this sweet treat train rollin! There are a lot of DOLE Whip variations to choose from at Disney, and Mickey Bars are also gluten free, so you have to be strategic about this one. Unless you just want to eat all the icecream treats, of course!

I’ve yet to try all the DOLE Whip options, but so far the Orange and Vanilla Swirl is my favorite. It’s such a flavorful, refreshing treat. Currently, this location has orange and strawberry DOLE Whip. If you are looking for the pineapple flavor—also delicious, though I prefer orange for some reason, you’ll have to on head over Aloha Isle right behind Aladdin’s Magic Carpets. Aloha Isle also has the raspberry flavor FYI.  

Here’s a look at the Sunshine Tree Terrace menu. 

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