My personal experience of gluten free options at the Disney Aulani Resort in Hawaii and the surrounding area: Gluten Free at Disney Aulani Resort
Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa is a Disney themed hotel in Hawaii on the island of Oahu. This was my very first visit to Hawaii and I was concerned gluten free options might be limited. When my family decided to stay at the Aulani I knew I could relax because my previous experience is that Disney is fabulous with gluten free food.
Before my trip I emailed Aulani special diets, unfortunately, they were like Disneyland and not very helpful at answering my questions about gluten free food options. So I scoured the Internet for information and I found a few blog articles that were very helpful. I also asked people in my gluten free community who assured me I would be fine and gave me some tips.
Dining Options Walking Distance from Aulani
Our server was fabulous when I inquired about gluten free options. She was very knowledgeable about what the options were available and which options were possible cross contamination. I ordered a chicken taco plate and for my son tacos and a kids taco plate. The food was delicious and I didn’t have any issues.
We also checked out Monkey Pod after several recommendations from the gluten free community. They are a farm to table restaurant with fresh ingredients. They don’t have a gluten free menu but they were able to make a burger without a bun. The burger was really good and filling but I personally would not go here again because the gluten free options were very limited.
Grocery Options
I also brought a few gluten free items from home (peanutbutter, jelly, gf bread, gf pretzels and a few other snacks). Bringing things from home and the grocery store was really helpful in saving money and assuring we had safe gluten free options.
Character Dining at Aulani
We had dining breakfast reservations at the Aulani at the Aunties Breakfast Celebration at the Makahiki. This is a character dining experience with a variety of food on a buffet. I noted my gluten allergy in my reservation and after we were seated the chef came to our table. The chef took me around the buffet to point out what is gluten free, what isn’t and what he could make separate from the buffet. You can read my full review here.