Your One-Day Gluten-Free Guide to Disney World—from Gluten-Free Mickey Waffles to Ice-cream Macarons
- A Coeliac Traveller
- Aug 11
- 5 min read
Updated: 5 days ago
Location: Walt Disney World Resort
Date: January 2025
Quick Review:
Meal Time | Location | Item | Highlights |
Breakfast | Pop Century Resort | Mickey Waffle Platter | Hearty, cheerful, mickey-shaped waffles. |
Lunch | Pecos Bill's (Magic Kingdom) | Beef & Chicken Tamales | Flavourful, generous, satisfying. |
Snack | Multiple Parks | Dole Whip | Refreshing, different flavours on offer. |
Dinner | Docking Bay 7 (Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge) | Fried Chicken | Unique setting, tasty options. |
Dessert | French Pavilion (EPCOT) | Ice-Cream Macaron (Strawberry) | Sweet, crunchy finale. |
Full Review:
Good afternoon Readers,
If you are traveling to Walt Disney World as a coeliac or with gluten-free dietary needs, you'll be delighted! Disney handles gluten-free incredibly well! Earlier this year I was able to experience this first hand, as I had the pleasure of travelling to Orlando, Florida, and spending just over a week at Walt Disney World Resort. During my visit, I sampled a wide range of gluten-free options on offer across the four different parks including iconic staples like gluten-free Mickey Waffles and more hidden gems like the gluten-free ice cream macarons. Here is a look at what one of my days eating gluten-free at Disney World looked like.
Before we begin, I should mention that on this day we only ate at quick-service restaurants. Quick-service restaurants at Disney World are excellent at accommodating allergy and dietary needs and make dining gluten-free throughout the parks extremely easy. To check out a full overview of these restaurants and what makes them so good for dietary requirements, check out my full post here: Disney World Quick-Service Eateries Guide – An overview of eating gluten-free at Disney World.
Breakfast: Gluten-Free Mickey Waffle Breakfast at Pop Century Resort
For this particular day, we were staying onsite at Pop Century Resort. Pop Century has a quick-service eatery located in the foyer of the hotel that offers a range of breakfast options. On this trip, we also stayed at All-Star Sports Resort and Art of Animation, and while each hotel offers a different theme, the food options at their quick-service restaurants are very similar.
This morning, we chose to begin the day with the Waffle Bounty Platter. This consisted of Mickey Waffles, maple syrup, scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, and potato barrels. Perhaps most importantly, it was great to see that the waffles still came out shaped like Mickey Mouse.
The waffles were soft and fluffy, the scrambled eggs were good enough, and you can never go wrong with potato barrels. The portion size was generous, leaving us well-fuelled for the day ahead. Once we had polished off breakfast, it was time to head to the bus to make our way to Magic Kingdom.
Lunch – Gluten-Free Tamales at Pecos Bill Tall Tale Inn, Magic Kingdom
After spending the morning jumping on and off rides and taking in the sights and sounds of the Magic Kingdom, we were starting to feel hungry. We decided to head over to Frontierland and into Pecos Bill Tall Tale Inn and Cafe for lunch.
Pecos Bill Tall Tale Inn and Cafe is another quick-service eatery, and as such, the ordering and process for gluten-free is identical to the other quick-service restaurants scattered throughout Disney World (for a full guide, see my Disney World Quick-Service Eateries Guide – An overview of eating gluten-free at Disney World). We ordered two sets of steamed tamales — one beef and one chicken — each served with stewed pinto beans, cilantro-lime rice, queso fresco, and pico de gallo.
As we had arrived during the middle of lunchtime, the restaurant was packed, and it was virtually impossible to get a seat indoors. We did manage to get one outside in the courtyard, and this was perhaps better anyway. Pecos Bill Tall Tale Inn and Cafe is quite dark and stuffy on the inside and, with it being so busy, also very loud. As such, the courtyard provided a quieter atmosphere and a breath of fresh air, while the Florida sun heated us up.
The tamales themselves were flavourful and satisfying, with the chicken being our personal favourite. The portion sizes were just right, leaving us comfortably full without feeling overstuffed.
With lunch done and dusted, it was time to continue exploring the park. As the afternoon wore on, we decided to jump out of Magic Kingdom and head over to Hollywood Studios for the evening.
Gluten-Free Snacks – Refreshing Gluten-Free Dole Whips
Walt Disney World Resort is huge, and you can easily rack up tens of thousands of steps in a single day. That means snacks are a must. Luckily, there are plenty of places that offer gluten-free treats throughout the parks.
One of our favourites was a Dole Whip. A mixture of slushie and ice cream, these made for a refreshing sweet treat, particularly when the Florida sun decided to make an appearance. They are offered around the parks in a range of flavours and with a variety of toppings. Do be careful, as not all the toppings are gluten-free, so it is always worth checking with a staff member at the counter.
Dinner - Dinner at Docking Bay 7, Star Wars Galaxy's Edge Gluten Free Option
For dinner, we made our way to Docking Bay 7 Food and Cargo, located in the heart of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Hollywood Studios. This quick-service restaurant was one of our favourites in the entire park, and I have already provided an in-depth review of this meal, which you can find here: Best Gluten-free at Disney World? Gluten-free eating in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge (Disney World).
However, if Star Wars is not your cup of tea, there are plenty of options around Disney World. If, by the time dinner rolls around, you need a break from the parks, the quick-service restaurants at the hotels can provide a solid meal. For example, the restaurant at Pop Century had a range of options from pizzas to burgers. The food quality at this quick-service restaurant is a step up from fast food, but not quite fine dining.
Dessert - Strawberry Ice-Cream Macaron at EPCOT's French Pavilion
To finish the night off, we dashed from Hollywood Studios across to EPCOT to watch the incredible fireworks display. While enjoying the display, we treated ourselves to perhaps our favourite snack in the whole resort – the ice-cream macaron. Found nestled at the back of the French pavilion at EPCOT, these sweet treats make for the perfect fireworks-watching snack. The macaron shell is crisp and light, while the ice cream in the middle bursts with flavour. The strawberry flavour was our personal favourite.
Conclusion:
And before we knew it, we were back at our hotel room at Pop Century getting ready for a well-deserved rest. For coeliacs and those who are gluten-free, Disney World takes gluten-free travel extremely seriously, so you won’t have to worry about not being able to eat throughout the parks. This itinerary offers just one delicious route through the parks- check our guide to quick-service restaurants as well as our individual restaurant reviews for even more options.
So, enjoy the parks, and don’t stress too much about what you will be able to eat – the Mouse has you covered.
This article was correct at writing in January 2025.
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