Looking for the best Gluten Free Disney World Restaurants in 2024? It’s that time of year where families are making plans for their vacation to Disney. So much planning goes into a Disney vacation, so let’s make this part fast and easy!
My husband and I are both gluten free due to Celiac Disease, so we know the struggle. We have learned that the best way to eat well at Disney is to plan ahead.
You want to make sure to plan out your meals along with which park you will be in and the attractions you plan to enjoy.
Being prepared and making reservations is the best way to eat well at Disney.
Maybe I’m a nerd, but I love looking at the menus ahead of time. It helps me know if the restaurant will be a good fit for our family.
We have 4 kids, so it’s important to me to make sure that our kids have food they will enjoy. Likewise, we note prices as well since there are 6 of us!
I’ve linked to each of the restaurants’ menus for you to peruse as well! On each menu, you’ll need to scroll down until you get to the Allergy Friendly section. Alright, let’s go down the rabbit hole!
Here are the 5 Best Gluten Free Disney World Restaurants in 2024 (and 3 to Avoid!).
Let’s start by exploring the best Gluten Free Disney World 2024 Restaurants!
1) Coral Reef Restaurant – gluten free Epcot 2024 – gluten free disney world
The Coral Reef at Epcot is definitely one of the best Disney World restaurants and it belongs at the top of the list. Everyone in our party, both gluten free and otherwise had a great meal here.
The atmosphere was amazing. It has the ambiance of a fine dining restaurant and every table has a gorgeous view of the giant aquarium from The Seas with Nemo & Friends.
My husband and I enjoyed the Seared Mahi Mahi with Jasmine Rice, Coconut and Cilantro-Lime Sauce, and Caribbean Shrimp Salsa. It was simply amazing (and totally gluten free!)
A few other stand-out items on the Coral Reef gluten free menu are Grilled Rib-eye and Seared Salmon. There’s even some gluten free desserts available including a warm Chocolate Cake and Sorbet.
An important note is that you do need reservations to eat at the Coral Reef Restaurant. This is a definitely a Disney World gluten free restaurant you don’t want to miss!
2) Liberty Tree Tavern – Magic Kingdom
Liberty Tree Tavern is one of our family’s favorite restaurants at Disney. It has consistently great food in a fun Colonial atmosphere. It’s a great place to cool down, refresh, and get ready for the second part of your day!
Liberty Tree Tavern seems like it keeps changing its menu so, honestly you will have to check the menu here to see the latest changes. Every meal we’ve had there was fantastic. The pot roast and mashed potatoes is always really delicious.
Liberty tree serves up amazing gluten free food…so good you wonder if it’s actually gluten free.
I would recommend placing a reservation here towards the end of your trip, when you’ve over the novelty of having fried foods and are ready for a refreshing salad or home cooked meal.
3) Backlot Express – Hollywood Studios
The Backlot Express is where you want to be for great gluten free options. This is a quick service restaurant, but you’ll be delighted with the options.
Backlot Express offers bacon cheeseburgers, southwest chicken salads, chicken strips, fries, and more.
There’s lots of great kid friendly foods as well. The great food and good prices make this a solid restaurant choice!
This is my favorite place at Disney’s Hollywood Studios for a quick meal because you can mobile order your gluten free meal on the My Disney Experience App, making it super fast. And those chicken tenders – they have to be the best on Disney World Property!
4) Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Cafe – Gluten Free Magic Kingdom
My husband gave this quick service restaurant a big thumbs up! He loved the gluten free fries and bacon cheeseburger on a gf bun.
The Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Cafe menu is pretty standard fast food. But for those of us who can’t get a gluten free burger and fries any day, this place will make your day!
5) Be Our Guest – Magic Kingdom
Eating in the magical atmosphere of the Beast’s Castle is a treat unto itself. This Disney World Restaurant is an absolute magical dining location.
The “snow” falling in the main hall had our kids convinced it was actually snowing outside. Pure Disney magic.
The cast member waiters treated us like princesses and the food was excellent and well presented. The whole experience was magical.
The Beast made two appearances throughout our dinner there. My children were able to meet him and take a picture with him with no line at all. The rooms of the “castle” were so amazing and it was definitely something I was so glad that we did.
You can find Filet Mignon, Sea Scallops, and Pork Tenderloin on this delicious fancy menu with multiple courses.
The only reason this meal did not rank at the top was that we suspect the truffles served to the gluten free guests at our table contained barley. So, we completely loved the meal and the magical experience, but next time we would skip the truffles.
Pinocchio Village Haus and Columbia Harbour House – Magic Kingdom
I wanted to give an “honorable mention” to two quick service restaurants: Pinocchio Village Haus and Columbia Harbour House. Both provide excellent air conditioned Disney atmosphere with the advantage of quick service prices. Also both have great gluten-free options for kids (and adults) with food allergies.
Pinocchio Village Haus has gluten free pizza, chicken nuggets with french fries, and flatbreads.
Columbia Harbour House has gluten free grilled salmon and everyone raves over their chicken tenders with fries. (Okay, that’s me, I’m raving over those chicken tenders!) Definitely some of the best on Walt Disney World resort property!
3 Gluten Free Disney World 2024 Restaurants that Got a Big Thumbs Down
Sunshine Seasons – Gluten free Epcot 2024
Our family planned out every meal ahead of time, except for our evening meal at Epcot. We assumed we would “eat around the world.”
But you really need to plan ahead to find those dedicated fryers, gluten-free items and options that are kid-friendly, and gluten free diet friendly. In reality, for gluten-free dining, you often need reservations. (We didn’t know that our first time!)
We had heard good things about the Sunshine Seasons on multiple blogs so we decided to eat there. First of all, it is air conditioned, but it’s basically a food court. No Disney magic here.
Lunch is probably fine, but at supper time only half of the offerings in the Sunshine Seasons food court were open.
The ones that were still open were not super appealing to our group. We found food, but it wasn’t amazing. So, learn from our mistake: Know your gluten-free Epcot locations and get reservations if you are gluten-free and want to eat excellent food!
Update: A couple of Epcot quick service locations that have good options for a gluten allergy and I’ve heard good things about: Connections Eatery and Regal Eagle.
Flame Tree BBQ – Animal Kingdom
Another restaurant that I wish I could give a better rating was Flame Tree BBQ in Animal Kingdom. We had read that the food was some of the best on the Disney Property.
We didn’t find the food particularly great, but the real disappointment was that on the sultry hot day, this quick service restaurant didn’t have any indoor seating. There was no place to cool off and refresh.
In addition, if you have anyone in your group who fears birds, this is not the place to eat. The outdoor seating area had a LOT of birds milling around looking for crumbs. It was not the relaxing, refreshing meal we had hoped for.
Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater – Hollywood Studios
Lastly, our meal at the Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater Restaurant was not great. We were rather looking forward to going to this restaurant set up like a drive-in movie. The theme of this restaurant and the details were amazing.
However, it missed the mark with the sci-fi movie clips that played. Our kids (under 9) were either scared of what was on the movie screen or just plain not interested.
In addition, our meal took forever. We literally watched the same sci-fi clips for 3 loops.
I was thankful that we hadn’t planned any Genie+ reservations around this meal, because we would have missed our time slots. Service was exceedingly slow, compared to other Disney table service restaurants, which is a problem when you are at Disney theme parks where every moment counts.
And once our food FINALLY arrived, it wasn’t worth the wait.
Doing Disney World Gluten Free 2024 Reservations
Once you decide which park you will be at each day, I would recommend that you go ahead and make meal reservations. Disney Restaurant reservations can disappear quickly, so if you have specific restaurants in mind, you should definitely grab reservations as soon as possible.
I share more in depth information over on my other blog Simplify Orlando. Be sure to check out The Best Gluten Free Dining Options at Disney World here.
If you are looking for a great resource for ALL of the updated gluten free menus for Disney visit Gluten Free and Dairy Free at Disney World. To make reservations be sure to visit the Walt Disney World website.
That completes my list of the 5 best Disney World gluten free 2024 restaurants (and 3 to Avoid)! I hope this helps you plan your next trip and truly make each moment you spend at Disney magical!
Are there any Gluten free dining at Disney World experiences you recommend from personal experience? Feel free to drop them in the comments below!
Other Disney Articles:
Planning a Disney Vacation – be sure to check out the 6 Best Shows at Disney (and 2 to Skip!) to maximize your time in the parks.
Want to talk more about food? …me too! Here’s the Best Gluten Free Foods at Disney World. Let’s talk about the amazing dole whip, the allergy-friendly items at Erin McKenna’s Bakery and more!
Be sure to check out the Top Movies to Watch Before Going to Disney World here to give your kids their Disney education!
If you are driving to Disney with kids, don’t miss the Best Toys for Road trips. (As a mom of 4, I know what works!) And finally, be sure to check out the Must Have Items on my Disney packing list.
We will be back at Disney in April. Had no clue all the alternative food options
Yes! Disney is very allergy friendly!
This is awesome! While I am not gluten free, my sister is, so we always have to be careful to select a restaurant that will work for her!
There are lots of great options!
That’s nice to know. I am pretty sure not many people knew about all the various options. Thanks for sharing
Absolutely! Disney does a great job with gluten free options!
Great read! Disney is very accommodating with their food options. My son has a peanut allergy so we have to scrutinize the menus, too. Glad to hear you found great dining options for your family. Thanks for the insight.
Ah, you know the struggle well! And yes, Disney food options are amazing!