Dining Allergy-Free at Disney: Typhoon Lagoon, Downtown Disney and More

Well, we've come to the end of my seven-part series on eating allergy-free and Paleo in Disney World!  You can find links to all the previous posts (covering all the parks) at the bottom of this post, if you'd like to go back and catch up.

Today, I'll tie up a few loose ends and discuss some of the food sources that didn't fit into the previous categories.  Disney's water park, Typhoon Lagoon, offered more healthy choices than I realized it would (I was expecting burgers and dogs and nothing else).  At Downtown Disney we made a pilgrimage to the Babycakes vegan bakery, which I've mentioned in previous posts but finally we see all the bakery has to offer.  We had room service breakfast a few times, and also ordered a special birthday treat from Disney Floral and Gifts, and amazingly, we were able to eat allergy-free all of these times.

Typhoon Lagoon

This gorgeous water park features several walk-up, counter service restaurants, all offering casual, "beachy" food like burgers, hot dogs, fried fish and battered shrimp.  While it's certainly possible to eat some of these options without their gluten (i.e.: dump the bun from the burger), it's not that easy and not very filling.  Luckily, Disney has added a few healthier options to the menu over the years.

Typhoon Lagoon

We chose a Caesar Salad with Chicken, for a Paleo option, and a Barbecue Pork Sandwich without the bun (there was enough meat to make a meal and not miss the starch.  A Turkey Pesto Sandwich was also available for those who can tolerate a little dairy, and most meals were available with apple slices on the side.  A side salad and fruit cup were also available.

Inside the cabana.

We were lucky to reserve a cabana (a shaded spot just for us that featured cushioned chairs, a locker for our valuables, and an ice chest).  This allowed us to bring our own snacks as well, and keep them cold in the chest.  Refillable drink mugs were included with the price of the rental, and six bottles of water in the chest.

The chill chest full of ice.

The salad was fine (we skipped the cheese and croutons), and we brought our trusty trail mixes and pepperoni to fill in when we got peckish.  Overall, it was a successful day in a place where we were expecting to live off our snacks all day!

Caesar Salad with Chicken

Here is the link to Typhoon Lagoon's restaurant menus.

Downtown Disney: Babycakes Vegan Bakery

As I mentioned in previous posts, the Babycakes vegan bakery is increasing its presence across the Disney parks, and offering a wide variety of treats that are gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free, soy-free, nut-free and refined-sugar free.  We enjoyed Babycakes cupcakes and cookies at Animal Kingdom, and loved the delicious Babycakes birthday cake we had delivered to the Biergarten in Epcot.

To find Babycakes, enter Pollo Campero.

Finding the Babycakes store itself at Downtown Disney was a little tricky.  It is located inside a large building that is arranged like a food court, but from the outside, the signage makes the facility look like it's a stand-alone chicken restaurant.

The signage is quite small, and hidden off to the side of the entry doors.

Once inside the entry doors, turn to the right to find the Babycakes counter hidden in the corner.  When we went, there were no other customers, and I hope this is not a sign that people can't find the place!

The Babycakes counter is on the far right when you enter.

The bakery case is filled with enticing-looking treats, from cupcakes to quick breads to donuts.  We decided to do a taste test of cupcakes, and each chose a different flavor (cupcakes are 6 for $20).

Vegan, allergy-free cupcakes

This was an interesting experiment.  Vegan baked goods can be dry and dense without eggs, and we found that some of the cupcakes successfully hid this trait with a strong-flavored frosting, while others did not.  The Lemon cupcake was my favorite, with the Blondie with chocolate chips and pink frosting (see photo above) coming in a close second.  Both of these cupcakes escaped the "vegan dry" curse by bringing intense flavors (the lemon and the chocolate chips) to the forefront of each bite.  The Brownie cupcake with chocolate frosting wasn't bad -- we liked the frosting, but it was a bit mild and the cake did taste a bit dry. The French Toast cupcake had a pleasant frosting, but again, it wasn't quite strong enough to make up for the fairly bland (almost cinnamon-y) cake.  The Red Velvet cupcake failed its taste test.  The cake tasted a bit like cardboard, and the frosting was also quite flavorless, resulting in a somewhat unpleasant experience.

Vegan, allergy-free breads and donuts.

Here is the link to Babycakes website. 

Room Service

Visiting Disney World for a week can be quite tiring, between getting up early to be one of the first in the parks, walking for miles all day and into the evening, and trying to handle the intense Florida heat.  So, on two occasions we opted to sleep in a bit and have room service breakfast delivered to save a little time. 

Room service breakfast!

Plenty of egg dishes are available, as well as gluten-free Mickey waffles, sausage and bacon side dishes, and some lovely fresh fruit.  Fruit smoothies are also on the menu, but call to make sure yours is made without dairy.  
  

Disney Floral and Gifts

Our youngest son turned nine during our visit, and to help mark the day we ordered a special food gift from the Disney Floral and Gift service.  Much like FTD Florist, a wide array of floral arrangements and gifts for special occasions are available to order online, ahead of your visit.  We chose a birthday "cake" that actually was not a cake at all.  It was an arrangement of candy and treats made to look like a cake, with a special set of Mickey ears that proclaimed "It's My Birthday" on top!

A special birthday "cake" made of candy and treats!

The "cake" was delivered to the room while we were out at the parks, on the afternoon before our son's actual birthday, so he could have the hat to wear all the next day.  The "cake" was set on a large, sparkly red charger plate, and was essentially made of Hershey bars set on their ends around the perimeter.

Inside, the "cake" is lined with Hershey bars.

Inside, we found bags of Goofy's gummy candies, Mickey-shaped lollipops, and Mickey-shaped Rice Krispy treats.  While none of these can be considered healthy, they were a nice alternative to cake, and Hershey's uses sugar in their treats instead of corn syrup, which we liked.

Other treats inside included Rice Krispie treats, lollipops, and gummies.

Here is the link to the Disney Floral and Gifts order page.

Thanks for coming along with us on our Disney vacation!  I hope the information we shared about our experiences helps you eat allergy-free on your next trip, and I look forward to hearing about your own experiences in the comments :)

Mom is always trying to capture the action!

Other posts in this series:

Part 1: Planning for your allergy-free Disney vacation
Part 2: Eating in the Magic Kingdom
Part 3: The new food allergy kiosk in Animal Kingdom
Part 4: Eating allergy-free in Hollywood Studios
Part 5: Eating allergy-free in Epcot
Part 6: Eating allergy-free at Disney hotel restaurants
Part 7: The rest of the parks (Downtown Disney, Typhoon Lagoon, room service and more)


Shared with Weekend Bloggy Reading, Pennywise Platter, and Anything Goes.