Tips for Visiting Disney World

The following is a summary of responses to a question posed to the PKU Listserv group by a parent about travelling to DisneyWorld in Orlando, Florida. The group shared these tips:

1. Disney has a website: www.disney.com

2. There are fast food places and restaurants on the grounds with salads, French fries, ices, snack foods, and vegetables to choose from.

3. Call ahead (1-407-W-DISNEY) and speak with the special needs department. They have a staff nutritionist who will help arrange all of the child's meals, which are fantastic. The chefs at the different restaurants really will go out of their way to make the meals special. Given enough advance notice, they will even purchase the low protein pasta and prepare it, or prepare what you bring to them.

4. The Disney policy is to request 48 hours notice of special diet requests. They will readily accept requests 24 hours ahead. You can call the WDW-DINE number and get the number for any specific restaurant on site to talk to a manager or chef, most of whom welcome a challenge to do something out of the ordinary. The normal menus are heavy protein, but there was no difficulty in getting pastas with marinara sauce and lots of fresh cooked vegetables, without beans or other legumes. The people we talked to were not familiar with PKU but always helpful.

5. Most of the hotels have a continental breakfast with some appropriate lower protein items like fruit and cereals.

6. Susan Shumaker and Tan Saffel, writers for the Vegetarian Times, have written a book called "Vegetarian Walt Disney World and Greater Orlando." It has reviews of over 275 restaurants in Disney, Universal Theme Parks and "elsewhere." $14.95 plus shipping, available through Vegetarian World Guides at (304) 292-2497.

7. Take a shaker for mixing formula or take formula "bars" (Phlexy-10 bars from SHS or Phenylade bars from FoodTech).

8. Parents Marsha and B.J. Magol from Tampa, Florida offer the following suggestions for dining out at DisneyWorld:

   We've had a lot of questions on where to eat at Disney. These are our favorite restaurants. We've kept a notebook and wanted to share some information that might help you when you come to DisneyWorld. This is only for DisneyWorld in Orlando, Florida.

   As noted above, you can make a priority seating by calling (407) WDW-DINE. Tell them you have a medically restricted diet and they will give you the number of the restaurant directly to speak with the Chef.

   Restaurant: Coral Reef
   Location: EPCOT - Living Seas presented by United Technologies
   Description: Dine at the base of a 40' aquarium watching sharks, sea turtles, and other tropical fish. Theater style seating and all technicolor views are excellent.
   Special requests: Chef Keith Schockling (407) 560-6784 or (407) 560-7292
   PKU notes: We called and asked Chef Keith to order penne pasta directly from SHS by calling 1-877-482-7845. He pureed fresh tomatoes with garlic and olive oil. He also made a nice mixed green salad w/vinagrette dressing. The dessert was scoops of mango and raspberry sorbets along with a black Mickey Mouse-shaped low protein cake.

   Restaurant: Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue
   Location: Disney's Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground
   Description: Western vaudeville dinner show in Pioneer Hall Theater (singing, dancing, jokes). Regular menu is served family style from buckets featuring barbeque ribs, fried chicken, corn, strawberry shortcake, salad, bread. Show lasts 1 hour and 45 minutes. Shows daily at 5:00, 7:15 and 9:30 pm.
   Special Menu requests: Tara (407) 824-2803
   PKU notes: They prepare a large salad with Italian dressing, grilled vegetable platter, and fresh fruit dessert.
   

   Restaurant: Wolfgang Puck
   Location: Downtown Disney Westside (across from Cirque du Soleil and DisneyQuest)
   Description: Celebrity Chef Wolfgang Puck serves all of his famous dishes including wood-fired pizzas and fresh pastas.
   Phone: (407) 938-WOLF Chef Rick Ney
   PKU notes: We brought a box of Loprofin a few days before and Chef Rick Ney prepared the best pizza with fresh garlic, tomatoes, onions, etc. Our son said it was the best pizza he ever ate and wants to go back (must be the oven...our creations don't taste like that!).
   

   Restaurant: Chef Mickey's Buffet
   Location: Disney's Contemporary Resort (4th floor on the monorail)
   Description: 100 foot buffet featuring Chef Mickey, Minnie Mouse,Goofy, Chip & Dale and Donald Duck.
   Phone: Chef Mark Dollard (407) 824-3674
   PKU notes: Chef Mark called SHS and made SHS penne pasta with fresh tomato sauce. He also prepared a nice fresh fruit salad with raspberries and pineapple. The buffet also includes fresh vegetables, mixed salad greens, roasted potatoes, fruit. High protein includes prime rib and peel and eat shrimp. Chef Goofy features his cupcake extravaganza where you decorate your own cupcake with him. Birthdays are celebrated with group singing, balloon, special cupcake dessert and a specially signed birthday card (with advanced notice).
   

   Restaurant: Hollywood & Vine Cafe of the Stars
   Location: Disney's MGM Studios
   Phone: Joe Karnath (407) 560-5381 (or Peter Simonini, Jerry Hunley)
   PKU Notes: Chef Joe made the every popular SHS penne pasta with fresh tomato sauce. This is similar to Chef Mickey's and features a large buffet with mixed salad greens. Minnie, Goofy, Pluto, Chip & Dale are dressed in classic 1940's Hollywood attire and visit every table for autographs and photos. The food is excellent.
   

   Restaurant: Sci Fi Dine In Theater
   Location: Disney's MGM Studios
   Phone: Chef Javier Pareja (407) 560-3359 or (407) 560-7830
   Description: Dine in a real car at a classic drive-in theater watching old science fiction movies.
   PKU Notes: Chef Javier is one great guy and will fix whatever you wish!
   

   If you dine at any location and are happy with how they accomodated diet needs, let them know. After your experience, just send an e-mail to wdw.guest.communications@disney.com We've learned that the compliment will go in the employees' personnel file and means a great deal. We've found that they know we want to come back and are starting to keep more products on hand, even visiting Publix in Tampa to buy special low protein products for when we visit.

The consensus seems to be Disney World is a great place and the diet doesn't have to be a problem. With a little advance notice and preparation, everyone will have a GREAT time!