Allergies at Aulani

hswillia07

DIS Veteran
Joined
Sep 11, 2014
Hi there! We're thinking of a Disneyland/Aulani trip in 2019. My daughters have severe food allergies - one peanut and the other egg, dairy, and wheat. I'm a part of Disney allergy groups and have heard that Aulani handles them well, but I wanted to check here to see if anyone has any feedback/advice. We're not staying in a villa, so no kitchen. I'm thinking we can do cereal, fruit, etc. in the room for breakfasts. I was thinking for some of our dinners we can grill, but as I read I see that the grill availability is somewhat limited. Is it realistic to think we'll be able to use one a few times during our trip? Interested in any and all allergy Aulani feedback! Thanks so much :)
 
It's been 2 years since we went, but I doubt much has changed. DH has celiac and is quite sensitive to even slight cross-contamination. He could not eat at the pool-side quick service shack (literally nothing safe), but we ate at Makahiki (breakfast as well as dinner), Ama'Ama (breakfast as well as dinner), Ulu (lots of times for lunch/dinner), Off the Hook (lunch once), and even the shave ice stand. We also had room service for dinner our first night. We were there for a week and a half in a 1 bedroom, but I had no interest in cooking and eating in our room constantly. We did have about half our breakfasts there, all snacks, a couple lunches and made dinner twice - once was frozen pizza, the other we used the grill. For the restaurants, it was pretty much what you're used to if you've been to the parks. For the buffet, the chef will walk you around the buffet to discuss what's safe. Ulu doesn't have a ton of options that will be safe; he always had the daily plate special b/c they didn't have anything else naturally gluten-free, and usually it involved subbing in a side (double veg instead of whatever the starch was, for example). Not ideal for kids, but it was fine for him. He ate very well at Makahiki and Ama'Ama. Off the Hook had gf buns, although I'm not sure if they were dairy and egg free too. The grills are kind of a pain to use, and yes, you'll see a line. Part of the problem is that they have them available for such a limited amount of time. If you try to use them over the weekend when locals are doing staycations - you'll regret it. It was kind of funny to see the locals pull up and unload cooler after cooler, bag after bag; they were there for the pools, etc, and not the restaurants, that's for sure. There will also be large groups cooking big quantities. We got lucky and were round 2 to get on the grill, so it's all about timing.

Editing to add: our most challenging part was eating off-site. DH brought lunches whenever we'd be gone for the bulk of the day. There was nothing safe at the Dole Plantation (aside from Dole whips), nothing at the Pearl Harbor food stands, etc. I don't typically have such a hard time finding places with good gf reviews, but I found it rough searching out places in Oahu.
 
It's been 2 years since we went, but I doubt much has changed. DH has celiac and is quite sensitive to even slight cross-contamination. He could not eat at the pool-side quick service shack (literally nothing safe), but we ate at Makahiki (breakfast as well as dinner), Ama'Ama (breakfast as well as dinner), Ulu (lots of times for lunch/dinner), Off the Hook (lunch once), and even the shave ice stand. We also had room service for dinner our first night. We were there for a week and a half in a 1 bedroom, but I had no interest in cooking and eating in our room constantly. We did have about half our breakfasts there, all snacks, a couple lunches and made dinner twice - once was frozen pizza, the other we used the grill. For the restaurants, it was pretty much what you're used to if you've been to the parks. For the buffet, the chef will walk you around the buffet to discuss what's safe. Ulu doesn't have a ton of options that will be safe; he always had the daily plate special b/c they didn't have anything else naturally gluten-free, and usually it involved subbing in a side (double veg instead of whatever the starch was, for example). Not ideal for kids, but it was fine for him. He ate very well at Makahiki and Ama'Ama. Off the Hook had gf buns, although I'm not sure if they were dairy and egg free too. The grills are kind of a pain to use, and yes, you'll see a line. Part of the problem is that they have them available for such a limited amount of time. If you try to use them over the weekend when locals are doing staycations - you'll regret it. It was kind of funny to see the locals pull up and unload cooler after cooler, bag after bag; they were there for the pools, etc, and not the restaurants, that's for sure. There will also be large groups cooking big quantities. We got lucky and were round 2 to get on the grill, so it's all about timing.

Editing to add: our most challenging part was eating off-site. DH brought lunches whenever we'd be gone for the bulk of the day. There was nothing safe at the Dole Plantation (aside from Dole whips), nothing at the Pearl Harbor food stands, etc. I don't typically have such a hard time finding places with good gf reviews, but I found it rough searching out places in Oahu.

Thank you so much for all of the information! This is fairly consistent with what I've heard, so very useful. I hadn't heard about the locals being there on the weekends though! That will change my game plan about what we do on which days, so thanks for that as well :)
 
We were there last October with multiple life-threatening food allergies and they were FANTASTIC!! We spoke with chefs ahead of time and they also told us to stay away from quick service locations and use table service exclusively -- which we did. We ate at Makahiki twice (breakfast and dinner) and 'AMA'AMA six times. We also had shave ice every day, but you'll want to be careful as they use condensed milk at that location - so you would want to speak with the staff there and make your own safety assessment. (I have a dairy intolerance, so I wasn't overly concerned about cross contact, but they did review how they manage dairy with me, anyway, upon mentioning allergies.)

I would avoid the grill if you can. They are cleaned daily, but how clean is a grill, really? If you use one, be sure to put down foil to prevent cross contact. We never used them, but I saw many other people using them.

Our only disappointment with regards to allergies at Aulani is that the Golden Malted gluten-free waffle mix they use for allergies has a label that reads ok for most top allergies, but upon further investigation when we got home, we found out it is made on undeclared shared lines with milk, eggs, soy, wheat, potato, and sesame. (All their 'Golden Malted' waffle mixes are manufactured in a peanut and tree nut free facility, though.) The chefs didn't know any wiser, so they aren't to blame, but I was less than pleased because it could have caused a reaction. That's the problem with trying new foods on holidays and relying on labels alone - it's scary. I have notified Aulani of this, but I am fairly certain they are still using the mix as their 'allergy friendly' option. :(

I would be cautious of the sorbets, too, unless you're familiar with the brand(s). A chef gave me sorbet once but I gave it to my husband because I was leery of traces not declared on the label. (Ha, I should have been leery of the waffles, too... but I was starving at breakfast and it was literally the only option, besides fruit that was safe for me.)

Oh, and there are 'Snacks with Character' treats in the store that are rebranded Enjoy Life trail mix and cookies. We also found a huge abundance of allergy-friendly foods and treats in the natural foods store near Costco. We wish we found that store sooner, actually - definitely worthwhile to stock up on all your favourites from home to make your own meals and snacks in your room.

Otherwise, the chefs took fantastic care of us. There are allergy menus available at both restaurants, but they're merely suggestions and shouldn't be relied on for life-threatening allergies. Always ask to speak with a chef when you arrive; they will review the menu and what can be made safe -- or maybe they'll surprise you and make something amazing not on the menu. We had some great surprises (when we asked the chefs to surprise us, plus one we didn't even know about.) Desserts will be limited, but we had a chef at Makahiki make a beautiful fruit 'cake' with tropical fruits. It looked too pretty to eat.

I'd go back to Aulani and eat there every day in a heartbeat if we could afford it more often. We'll definitely go back!

PS - I'm allergic to peanuts, tree nuts, potato, wheat, and sorghum; with a dairy intolerance and vegan preference.
 
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We were there last October with multiple life-threatening food allergies and they were FANTASTIC!! We spoke with chefs ahead of time and they also told us to stay away from quick service locations and use table service exclusively -- which we did. We ate at Makahiki twice (breakfast and dinner) and 'AMA'AMA six times. We also had shave ice every day, but you'll want to be careful as they use condensed milk at that location - so you would want to speak with the staff there and make your own safety assessment. (I have a dairy intolerance, so I wasn't overly concerned about cross contact, but they did review how they manage dairy with me, anyway, upon mentioning allergies.)

I would avoid the grill if you can. They are cleaned daily, but how clean is a grill, really? If you use one, be sure to put down foil to prevent cross contact. We never used them, but I saw many other people using them.

Our only disappointment with regards to allergies at Aulani is that the Golden Malted gluten-free waffle mix they use for allergies has a label that reads ok for most top allergies, but upon further investigation when we got home, we found out it is made on undeclared shared lines with milk, eggs, soy, wheat, potato, and sesame. (All their 'Golden Malted' waffle mixes are manufactured in a peanut and tree nut free facility, though.) The chefs didn't know any wiser, so they aren't to blame, but I was less than pleased because it could have caused a reaction. That's the problem with trying new foods on holidays and relying on labels alone - it's scary. I have notified Aulani of this, but I am fairly certain they are still using the mix as their 'allergy friendly' option. :(

I would be cautious of the sorbets, too, unless you're familiar with the brand(s). A chef gave me sorbet once but I gave it to my husband because I was leery of traces not declared on the label. (Ha, I should have been leery of the waffles, too... but I was starving at breakfast and it was literally the only option, besides fruit that was safe for me.)

Oh, and there are 'Snacks with Character' treats in the store that are rebranded Enjoy Life trail mix and cookies. We also found a huge abundance of allergy-friendly foods and treats in the natural foods store near Costco. We wish we found that store sooner, actually - definitely worthwhile to stock up on all your favourites from home to make your own meals and snacks in your room.

Otherwise, the chefs took fantastic care of us. There are allergy menus available at both restaurants, but they're merely suggestions and shouldn't be relied on for life-threatening allergies. Always ask to speak with a chef when you arrive; they will review the menu and what can be made safe -- or maybe they'll surprise you and make something amazing not on the menu. We had some great surprises (when we asked the chefs to surprise us, plus one we didn't even know about.) Desserts will be limited, but we had a chef at Makahiki make a beautiful fruit 'cake' with tropical fruits. It looked too pretty to eat.

I'd go back to Aulani and eat there every day in a heartbeat if we could afford it more often. We'll definitely go back!

PS - I'm allergic to peanuts, tree nuts, potato, wheat, and sorghum; with a dairy intolerance and vegan preference.

Thank you SO much! Great info! Absolutely - we could never use the grill as is, we would have to use foil or a tray. Good to know about the waffles - ugh. Same at Disney World, you don't really know about shared lines, etc. You're right, it is scary. Good to know about the natural foods store as well - I hadn't heard about that! That will be a huge help. Thanks so much, I really do appreciate all of the info!
 

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