Monday, March 28, 2016

Kona Cafe Lunch - Disney's Polynesian Village Resort

On Saturday, we had lunch at Kona Cafe, a table service restaurant at Disney's Polynesian Village Resort.  In the past couple of years, it has become one of our favorite restaurants for lunch at Walt Disney World.  


Last year, Kona Cafe adopted allergy-friendly menus, which list options for people with gluten/wheat, milk, egg, soy, fish/shellfish, and peanut/tree nut allergies. 


If you love sushi, Kona Cafe has several gluten free options.  My favorite appetizer is the grilled beef satay, which is featured in my post The Best Thing I Ever Ate at Disney - Gluten Free Appetizers.  




When we have lunch at Kona Cafe, I usually order the grilled teriyaki steak, because it is consistently good, and it is not on their dinner menu.  


This dish is listed as being served with sticky rice and pasta salad on the regular menu, but no sides are specified on the allergy-friendly menu.  They typically serve it with rice and a side of Asian pear slaw, which is not my favorite, so I usually ask for sweet potato fries instead.  On this visit, I asked for extra rice, but received the Asian pear slaw, which was quickly rectified.  I was also brought extra teriyaki sauce, which I requested, and grilled pineapple salsa, which I did not expect, but it was a nice surprise.  My steak was cooked to temperature, and as always, was incredibly delicious with the sweet teriyaki sauce and pineapple salsa.  My husband really liked the Asian pear slaw, which they left at the table for us to eat.


My daughters and I also shared an order of sweet potato fries, which I love to dip in teriyaki sauce.  


My twins split an order of the gluten free Pan-Asian noodles with chicken, their favorite entree at Kona Cafe for lunch and dinner.  This dish is always packed with a wide variety of vegetables, and I love the gluten free teriyaki sauce it is served with.  


Kona Cafe has several amazing gluten free dessert options.  Two of them are featured in my The Best Thing I Ever Ate at Disney - Gluten Free Desserts post.  My favorite is probably the banana-chocolate creme brulee, which I shared with my daughter Emma.  The bottom layer of creamy chocolate, and the bananas with caramelized sugar make this the one of the best creme brulees I have ever had.


Katie and I shared the Kilauea Torte, which is a warm chocolate cake with a molten center.  I am pretty sure it used to be served with vanilla ice cream, but now I have to request it.  The taste and presentation are always impressive, and it is my favorite chocolate lava cake at Walt Disney World.  


You can read more about Kona Cafe, view their menus and hours, and make advance dining reservations on Disney's website here.

What are your favorite gluten free dishes at Kona Cafe?  


2 comments:

  1. Why aren't those two desserts on the allergy menu? Do you know if they're nut free? I'm excited to try them thanks to you or we'd skip this place cuz the entrees are hit and miss! -Amanda Y.

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    1. Kona is not the only restaurant at Disney World that does not include desserts on their allergy friendly menu. Sorry, I do not know if they are nut free. I noticed recently that the creme brulee is no longer on the menu.

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