Gluten Free Monte Cristo: this post is my personal review at my dining experience at Cafe Orleans.
According to many Disneyland Foodies the must have food item to try is a Monte Cristo sandwich. I want to share a little secret with you; if you are gluten free you too can enjoy a Monte Cristo on your next Disneyland trip!
What is a Monte Cristo sandwich?
Straight from Disneyland website:
Monte Cristo is a delectable deep-fried sandwich that can be found at both Cafe Orleans and Blue Bayou restaurants.
Adapted from the classic French croque-monsieur sandwich, this battered turkey, ham and Swiss treat dusted with powdered sugar and served with berry purée is truly a slice of heaven. We also serve a meatless 3-cheese Monte Cristo made with Swiss, mozzarella and double-cream Brie.
Can I order one gluten free?
Yes you can. I am going to share what worked for me. I highly suggest following my recommendations to ensure you get a gluten free one as well. Prior to my visit, other gluten free patrons have told me Cafe Orleans didn’t have their order when they arrived. I’m not sure if they followed the steps I am going to share or maybe enough people complained to Disneyland that now things have changed.
How to order a Gluten Free Monte Cristo?
First off I made my reservation via the Disneyland app. You can start making reservations 60 days prior to your trip. Only two restaurants offer the Monte Cristo sandwich Blue Bayou and Cafe Orleans. Blue Bayou will fill up fast, so you will want to book that one as soon as you can. Take note another guest told me Monte Cristo is only offered during 11a - 3pm at Blue Bayou. The atmosphere inside Blue Bayou is very dark and there is a price difference of about $7 more for the same sandwich as compared to Cafe Orleans.
Sometimes it is easier to get a less than 60 days out reservation at Cafe Orleans. I opted to reserve my dining experience at Cafe Orleans because of the better lighting (for my photos) and the cheaper price. In my online reservation I noted I was gluten free, however, there was not an option to add any notes about my gluten free Monte Cristo request. It was suggested to me to email Disneyland Special diets about my request.
About 12 days before my reservation I emailed Disneyland special diet team with my request of a meat and cheese gluten free Monte Cristo sandwich. I also included my reservation information to make it easier for them. A day or two later they replied with a thank you and the request has been added to my reservation.
48 hours before my reservation I called the Disneyland dining reservation phone number. I wanted to double check on my reservation and it’s a good thing I did because I was informed that the gluten free Monte Cristo request was not with my reservation. The cast member informed me to always call to put in the request no later than 24 hours prior to your reservation time.
Disneyland Dining: (714) 781-DINE or (714) 781-3463
Email request: special.diets@disneyland.com
My Dining Experience at Cafe Orleans
I arrived at Cafe Orleans about 10-15 minutes before my reservation time. At that time of check in I was given the option to choose where I would like to sit indoors, outdoors or first available. I didn’t have a preference so I requested first available. I was seated less than 5 minutes later on the outside patio.
As I was seated my waitress came over with a piece of paper with my printed name, reservation information and my gluten free Monte Cristo sandwich order. She confirmed my order and also gave me an allergy menu to view. I wasn’t ordering anything else except a mint julep so I let her know.
It was probably another 10 minutes or less when she brought out my plate. Oh wow the gluten free Monte Cristo was huge. Two giant sandwiches covered in powered sugar served with a side of grapes and some sauce.
First bite, I was like WOW where have you been all my life? Yes it was that good! I don’t know how else to describe it because it was unlike anything I have ever eaten in my 13 years of being gluten free. It had maybe a tad too much powdered sugar, as I was eating it I started to cough. I likely inhaled it too fast because it was so delicious. The sauce was delicious as well but I think I like it more with out the sauce.
This sandwich is so big. I barely ate half of one sandwich and I was full. This is definitely shareable between two. I was dining solo so I had no one to share it with. My waitress offered a to go box which I gladly accepted. I debated if the sandwich would be any good cold. About 30 minutes later I decided to eat half of it while I was walking around the park. It isn’t as good room temp but it was still edible.
