Teal Mouse

Through out the Disney Parks, the kiosks and quick service venues usually have an “Ingredient Binder” which contains the details of every ingredient of every menu item at that location.  These binders are a wonderful resource to be used with the Managers and Chefs at the location to find option for anyone with food allergies.

There are a couple things to know about the binders to make the experience as good as it should be.

1. You are not allowed to review the Binder alone, most of the time. The Binders are a resource to assist in the conversation with a Manager or Chef and you.  As such, cast members are not allowed to provide the Binder to you – only a Manager or Chef are allowed.  At the kiosks, there are usually only 1 or 2 cast members, often without a Manager, so you can usually just ask for the Binder and review on your own.
2. You need to review the Binder with a Manager or Chef. Continuing from the first point, you will need to find a Manager or Chef to work with and review the Binder at most locations.  At the Quick Service locations, there are often lines that everyone uses to order and pay for their meal.  At most locations, there are copies of he Binder at the cashier station in each line. In order to be fair, you will need to wait in the line with everyone else.  But, once you get to the Cashier, you should immediately state that you and food allergies and need to speak with a Manager.  They will likely raise a hand or use their headset to call a Manager.  Especially at busy times, the Cashier may ask you to stand to the side until the Manager arrives so they can assist the next person in line.  Once the Manager shows up, he/she will grab the Binder and start the conversation.  Additional Note: more recently, some Disney locations have stared to offer “Allergy Menus”.  While these are helpful for people with only one food allergy, we recommend you not waste your time reviewing these if you have more than only allergy.
3. Be prepared to list all of your allergies before reviewing the Binder.  Usually before the Manager or Chef will let you go through the Binder, they will take out their yellow notepad (specifically designed working with allergy special orders) and ask you to list all of the allergies that you are worried about so they can record them.  Now that all of this is out of the way, on to the Binder….
4. Check the Binder every time you go – things change. Even on the same visit to Disney, there can be changes in menu items, recipes and vendors used.
5. Go through the whole Binder whenever you get a chance – you never know what you will find. As an example, you may have assumed that you could not have the ribs on the menu so focused on the chicken dish only to find out that the ribs are perfectly fine for your allergies!  It has happened several times in our experience.  Even if you still go with the chicken dish, you will know next time that you can go for the ribs.  Also, there are some items that do not appear on the regular menu, such as allergy-free chicken fingers or cookies, that are available.