My Kosher Experience January/February 2020

Here is my analysis of the kosher food I was provided at Walt Disney World in Florida in January and February 2020.

At table service restaurants, I always made an advance general reservation online via the Disney website/app, and then, close to my trip, called to request a kosher meal. For each restaurant, I was told a choice of appetizer, entree and dessert, and I chose these all in advance of my trip.

The meat products were all glatt. The dairy products were all OU-dairy (not chalav Yisrael).

Everything arrived at each table properly double wrapped and not tampered with. I was brought wrapped, new, approved silverware. I don’t know if the silverware was immersed. I relied on the kashrut company to determine if this was necessary.

These were my taste preferences:

The beef was excellent, like the kind we normally have in Israel on a holiday. The chicken and the salmon were not bad but not great, both a little dry.
The pizza was too crunchy and oily, but tasted good.
The vegetarian lasagna was gooey and inedible.
The cheese blintzes were excellent. The applesauce they were heated with was boiling hot but good.
The cheese omelet and potatoes were very good.
The vegetables (corn, peas and carrots) were tasty with a good texture.
The bottled orange juice and apple juice were good.

The vegetable soup was excellent, except for the one time it arrived spoiled. I could smell that it was off even before I opened it and then I took a little taste and it was bad. My server agreed that it smelled very off. I was not charged for it, and I was compensated with an extra kosher dessert.

The matzo ball soup had a yummy matzo ball, and the broth was just so-so.

The challah rolls were good (hamotzi).

The chocolate cake had very good frosting, and the cake itself was just so-so.

The parve cheesecake was yummy.

I was usually served or offered more than one kosher beverage with my meal. Either bottled or a Coke product in a clean glass. I was asked if it could be put into a glass.

Twice I had ice cream, at Beaches and Cream on the Boardwalk and at a stand at Disney Springs, pretty sure it was Ben & Jerry’s. At each place they patiently showed me every single item (ice cream flavor, syrup, topping) listed in a book with its kosher sign or they checked the product and came back and told me its kosher sign. They served me exactly the combinations that I requested.

There was a special early morning, separately paid for event that included a buffet breakfast. When there, I explained that I keep kosher, and they substituted a kosher meal for me at no extra charge. They were sorry that they only had kosher lunch items, not breakfast items, but that was fine with me.

At Pop Century’s food court, there was cut fruit for sale. The pineapple was excellent. The melon and grapes weren’t peak, but they were pretty good.

The food courts also sold a few packaged OU candy bars and crackers and cookies, as well as milk and chocolate milk. The coffee is a kosher brand.

At every location, I felt respectfully and cheerfully and efficiently accommodated.

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Glad to hear they took care of you!

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Thank you for sharing your experience! There is a lack of comprehensive information out there about how to keep kosher at Disney World.

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I know, right? I guess it’s because things change. They’ll switch catering companies or a food court or quick service will carry only some options but not all. That’s why I noted the dates of my visit.

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I almost plotzed when I saw the phrase “matzoh ball soup” and WDW in the same post. Although we once found Matzoh at YC club level at Pesach

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Thanks for sharing your experience. I found Disney difficult for kosher vegetarian food and we prefer to go off property to the couple of kosher restaurants in Orlando. We have liked both of them. For what it’s worth, at Disney, I thought the lasagna and mac 'n cheese were not good, but the pizza was ok. My husband tried a chicken dish once and thought it was terrible. We never tried breakfast. We love that there are so many ice cream and ices options, plus fruit cups.

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Thanks for sharing! My family and I where also there the last week in January and early February.
Our take on the meals (we had the kids free dining so did a lot of table service and quick service):
Over all the food was decent.
Table service:
Found both the veggie and matzo ball soups to be pretty good. Desserts also pretty good. For mains the brisket and pot roast were most liked then salmon then chicken but all where very edible. We liked the lasagne we got. Our party was mixed on the Mac and cheese and did not like the pizza (see more below in quick service section where I will further discuss kids meals). Sides all pretty good too. Breakfast- we like the eggs much better the the blintzes (but that’s true for us in real life as well).
Servers and chefs where very helpful. Got us lots of drinks as well as whole fruits. At some meals we got an extra entree for free (we did character buffets so where paying full buffet price for a single kosher meal).
Quick service: chicken nuggets pretty good, hot dog was good, burger was dry, pizza was pretty bad (we had liked the pizza from when they used webermans as the caterer, they are currently using sterling), Mac and cheese was so-so (very mixed reviews from our group),
For ppl on the dining plan- there was definitely some mix up with the kosher quick service meals as kid or adult credits but they fixed it each time (and comped is some free meals also).
Our favorite snacks where popcorn, Mickey ice creams and dole whip (they have all the kashrus info in allergy books and even took out boxes for us to look at)- so helpful!!!
Before I went, I had read online that the hot pretzels may be kosher- I tried to find out a few times while there and it seems the Mickey pretzels may be kosher BUT at each place we asked they were cooked in nearby triad restaurant ovens (ie same oven as turkey legs, etc…) and just kept in warmer at the kiosk.
I’m happy to hear you where able to get kosher quick service at EMM. It wasn’t in the budget for this trip but great to know for future reference!

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Bumping this old thread. In 2021 and 2022 I couldn’t find any recent info on kosher at WDW. We ended up eating outside the parks at Kosher Grill and Kosher Eatery and were very satisfied. This facebook group has recent info:

Facebook Link

It’s hard to get specifics out of Disney re Kosher. On the phone, Disney did tell me that QS kosher prices would be the same as comparable non-kosher options. I never had a chance to verify exactly what they offer but the facebook group has some photos.

Here’s what they have on the Disney Web site:

Kosher Meals

Reserve a kosher meal in advance—or find a restaurant that offers a kosher meal with no advance notice.

About Our Meals

  • Our kosher meals are purchased from a certified kosher vendor and come to us sealed.
  • The meals will be prepared and served to you without breaking the seal.
  • Individually wrapped kosher utensils will also be provided.
  • Kosher items vary from restaurant to restaurant and are subject to availability.

Reserve a Kosher Meal

Kosher meals can be reserved at table-service restaurants, and should be reserved at least 24 hours in advance.

While some restaurants may have kosher options available without advance notice (see restaurants listed below), it’s still recommended that you make note of your dietary request in advance.

  • If making your reservation by phone, the Cast Member can discuss your kosher options with you and note your choice within your reservation.
  • If you already made a reservation online, you can add your kosher meal to your reservation by calling (407) 824-1391. Guests under 18 years of age must have parent or guardian permission to call.

Last-Minute Dining Options

Looking for a kosher meal now? Consider dining at one of the following locations that can easily accommodate kosher meal requests without advance notice (subject to availability).

Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park:

Disney’s Hollywood Studios:

EPCOT:

Magic Kingdom Park:

Disney Resort Hotels

  • Disney Resort hotel table-service and quick-service locations have kosher options, subject to availability, without advance notice.
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