Eating gluten free in Disneyland can be delicious, easy, and fun if you know the right spots to go to!
I visited Disneyland for the first time ever and was pleasantly surprised there were tons of gluten free options to choose from throughout the park. From restaurants, food halls, to snack stands, I promise you will not go hungry if you are gluten free like me.
I have Celiac Disease, which means I eat gluten free everywhere I go. I am very sensitive to cross-contamination so I am cautious as to what places I trust eating at. If you are sensitive to gluten like me, rest assured that all the places I visited were thoroughly researched and vetted and I didn’t experience any issues!
I visited Disneyland and California Adventure Park over the course of two days. I tried so many different foods and am excited to share all my gluten free finds with you! In this post I cover all the places I visited but you can peruse a full list of all dining options available at Disneyland here.
Gluten free in Disneyland
Alien Pizza Planet
Our first stop after arriving to Disneyland was Alien Pizza Planet! Upon stepping inside, you are immediately transported into the Toy Story world with Aliens and Pizza Planet spaceships everywhere. The only thing missing was “the claw”!
I was nervous that a pizza place wouldn’t be safe, and even if it was, would taste any good. But I loved Toy Story too much to not give it a shot. I spoke with the cashier about having Celiac and inquired about the safety protocols in the kitchen. She immediately brought out the head chef who talked me through their process.
The head chef informed me that she would personally prepare my food in a separate area of the kitchen. The pizza goes through the same conveyor belt oven that the regular pizzas go through, but would be put on a separate tray. For reference, I am sensitive to cross contamination but share an oven at home with my non-gluten free roommate and never have issues. For that reason, I felt that these safety protocols would be satisfactory for me but use your own discretion when visiting.
I definitely wouldn’t go so far as to say that this was the best gluten free pizza I have ever had, but it wasn’t bad! The crust was super thin but it was seasoned with rosemary and herbs and was super tasty.
Final takeaway from Alien Pizza Planet: decent pizza, amazing atmosphere, but definitely check in with one of the chefs if you are sensitive like me before ordering.
Snack #1: Cotton Candy
The next thing I tried was cotton candy from one of the snack carts. You can find cotton candy snack parts all over both parks. I grabbed a strawberry flavored one and thought it was delish!
Final Takeaway on the Cotton Candy: You can’t ever go wrong with cotton candy. I could easily eat 5 bags in a day if someone let me!
Snack #2: Blue and Green Milk
This was definitely a more adventurous choice out of the gluten free Disneyland snacks I tried. Blue and green milk originates from the Star Wars franchise. Blue milk is mentioned in “A New Hope” and green milk is from “The Last Jedi”.
You can find blue and green milk in Star War’s Galaxy Edge. Despite its name, there is actually no milk in this drink! It is made of a rice milk powder and coconut oil.
I tried the blue milk and it definitely had a unique taste. I could taste the coconut pretty strong and it was more sugary than I was expecting. I would categorize this as being somewhere between a smoothie and a milkshake.
Final Takeaway on the Blue and Green Milk: If you are a Star Wars fan, this is a quintessential stop you need to make. Even if you’re not, where else are you going to get to try blue or green milk?
Snack #3: Chili Lime Corn on the Cob
Chili lime corn on the cob is another snack you can scoop up at many stands throughout the park! I found mine near the Haunted Mansion.
I have three words to describe this snack: to die for. This may have been my favorite snack at Disneyland. Excellently seasoned, warm, and a great “healthier” snack option to break up the sugary snacks I was devouring like there was no tomorrow the rest of the day.
Final Takeaway: I don’t think you can go wrong with either the buttered corn on the cob or chili lime flavored one, but I highly recommend trying out the chili lime.
Dinner at Torilla Jo’s
For dinner, we are actually headed out of Disneyland and over to Tortilla Jo’s in Downtown Disney for a sit down meal. Tortilla Jo’s is a Mexican restaurant with an extensive gluten free menu offering.
Upon arriving, I told my waiter that I had Celiac and he assured me that he would let the kitchen know and that my food would be prepared away from the rest of the food and that the kitchen staff would change their gloves. Also, he let me know that all of their tortilla chips are corn-based and fried in a dedicated chip fryer so there is no chance of cross contamination.
With that in mind, we started off with chips and guacamole. Since I was feeling more cautious knowing that I had another day of Disney ahead of me and didn’t want to risk getting sick, I ended up getting chicken nachos for my main meal as well. The plate was huge and the nachos were really good.
Final Takeaway: Good food, nice outdoor seating, but definitely let the waitstaff know if you are sensitive to gluten since there is risk for cross contamination in the kitchen.
Trader Sam’s Enchanted Tiki Bar
This isn’t necessarily a gluten free stop, but I had to throw it in because the drinks here were just. that. good.
If you are staying at one of the Disneyland properties, you can find Trader Sam’s near the pool area. At night, it is illuminated by tiki torches and has both indoor seating as well as a wrap-around outdoor patio.
My friend and I were obsessed with the Tiki, Tiki, Tiki, Tiki, Tiki Rum which was an explosion of coconut, pineapple, and orange. I substituted the tropical flavored rum with Bacardi to be safe, but if you aren’t that sensitive to gluten then this drink should be fine to drink as is.
Final Takeaway: There is no better way to end the night than with a drink at Trader Sam’s Enchanted Tiki Bar!
Gluten Free at California Adventure Park
Flo’s V8 Cafe
On day 2 of our Disney visit we headed over to California Adventure Park. We got a later start to the day so we dove straight into lunch at Flo’s V8 Cafe. This was my favorite place to eat gluten free in Disneyland throughout our visit.
The café, located in Cars Land, looks like it popped straight out of the movie and into the middle of Anaheim, California. In fact, all of Cars Land was incredibly immersive and probably my favorite area of the entire park.
Flo’s V8 café is an order at the counter and seat yourself restaurant. Similar to Alien Pizza Planet, I let the cashier know about my gluten sensitivities and she brought out the head chef to speak with me. The head chef let me know that they had a separate area of the kitchen that they would prepare my food in and pointed out that they had gluten free bread for their sandwiches and burgers. Additionally, they have dedicated fryers for their steak fries!
I ended up ordering a turkey club on gluten free bread and the steak fries on the side. Huge plus, their milkshakes are gluten free as well! And let me tell you, my chocolate milkshake was one of the best milkshakes I have had in my life. Note that they do have an optional Oreo topping, but this is added after the fact and not in the machine so there isn’t cross contamination with the other flavors. When my food came out, it was marked with an allergy label which I appreciated.
Final Takeaway: You have to go here if you have a chance. This is a completely immersive dining option plus the food is really good.
Snack #1: Spicy Pickle
The spicy pickle can be found at the same food stands along with corn on the cob and turkey legs throughout the park. These pickles are GIANT and offered in both spicy and non-spicy form.This is another good snack to scoop up to help break up a lot of the more sugary options offered!
Final Takeaway: This is a good light snack to grab as a mid-day snack while eating gluten free in Disneyland.
Snack #2: Buttered Corn on the Cob
We ended our second day in the park by mid-afternoon so this was the last snack I tried during my trip. I loved the Chili Lime Corn on the Cob so much on day one that I had to round my trip out by trying the buttered option! It was buttered to perfection and a good, filling snack option.
Final Takeaway: I like spicy foods so I preferred the Chili Lime flavored option, but you can’t go wrong with either one!
Final Thoughts on the Gluten Free Options in Disneyland and California Adventure Park
Eating gluten free in Disneyland with Celiac was way, way, way easier than I was expecting. It can be really hard to find safe and tasty options at theme parks and other places but Disneyland was an exception to this.
You never have to walk far to find a snack or dining establishment with gluten free options. All of the cast members I interacted with at the dining establishments were incredibly knowledgeable and went out of their way to make sure I felt safe about my food options.
Gluten free favorites: Flo’s V8 café, Alien Pizza Planet, and the Chili Lime Corn on the Cob
It never hurts to arrive prepared though! I recommend bringing a couple snacks just in case your experience is not the same as mine. Check out my post on gluten free travel snacks for a comprehensive list of all the best snacks to take with you on your trip!
Gluten Free like Me?
It’s uber important to always travel prepared! No matter where you are going, its important to always travel with some gluten free snacks on hand!
Click here to learn more about my favorite gluten free travel snacks!
Looking for more gluten free travel inspiration? Check out my other posts!
- Gluten Free Venice: 8 BEST Restaurants and Stores to Visit
- Gluten Free in Florence: 7 MUST Visit Restaurants and Eateries for a Delicious Trip
- 14 Delicious Gluten Free NYC Dining Options
