Thursday, March 10, 2016

Gluten Free Chicken Tenders at Disney World

Since we moved to Orlando in the summer of 2008, I have been eating gluten free chicken tenders at Disney World.  I first tried them at Columbia Harbour House in the Magic Kingdom, which used to bake them for me, but now, they have a dedicated fryer.  For years, Disney owned and operated restaurants at Walt Disney World have used AllergyFree Foods Chicken Tenders.  They are free of corn, and the top 8 food allergens.


Last fall, because of a supply issue, the AllergyFree Foods chicken tenders that Disney uses were replaced by Saffron Road and Ian's chicken tenders, but in the past month, they have been appearing at Disney restaurants again.



You can read my review of the Saffron Road chicken tenders I had at Gasparilla Island Grill at Disney's Grand Floridian Resort here, and my review of the Ian's chicken tenders I ate at the Backlot Express at Hollywood Studios here.  With ketchup, I felt that they were just as good as the AllergyFree Foods chicken tenders Disney has been using for years.  Without ketchup, you can taste that the Saffron Road chicken tenders have a lot more seasoning than Disney's previous option, and the Ian's chicken tenders could use more seasoning, like salt.  Both the Ian's and Saffron Road chicken tenders were crispy on the outside, and had tender pieces of whole breast meat on the inside.


In the theme parks, you can find gluten free chicken tenders at the following quick service locations:


They are also available at some table service restaurants in the theme parks, and most of the Disney Resorts.  My friend Sarah has a list of allergy friendly chicken tender locations on her blog Gluten-Free & Diary-Free at WDW.

I have never seen AllergyFree Foods chicken tenders in any stores, and they are currently not available to order online, but Trish from Gluten Free Tees found them at Naturally Soergel's in my hometown of Pittsburgh.

June 15, 2017 Update 

Before we traveled to Disney World last week, I learned that they are no longer carrying AllergyFree Foods chicken tenders.  It appears that all locations that carry chicken tenders are now using Ian's brand, and have been for about the last 6 months.

What are your favorite restaurants for gluten free chicken tenders at Disney World?




3 comments:

  1. So these aren't fried in soy-containing oil?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Not that I know of, but I think to be soy free, they have to be baked, because fries might be made in the same fryer, and they are not soy free.

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  2. Interesting!
    Thanks

    ReplyDelete