Gluten Free, R U?: Port Orleans French Quarter Walt Disney World Orlando FL

Monday, May 18, 2020

Port Orleans French Quarter Walt Disney World Orlando FL

In February, we travelled to Walt Disney World to celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary. We stayed at the same hotel we stayed in for our honeymoon and 10th anniversary, Port Orleans French Quarter.

This time we got a top floor, corner room overlooking the river. It was splendid.

Even more splendid was the food court at Port Orleans French Quarter, specifically Chef Paul. He treated us like royalty and made us anything we wanted in a gluten free variety.

Our first meal and our last meal there were like nothing else I have ever had before and everything in between was also amazing.

Our first meal was dinner our first night in Disney. We met Chef Paul and asked what was available for dinner that night. He mentioned most of the menu but then added that he had two plates only of fried chicken he was testing out for the gluten free menu. We were SOLD!

Gluten Free Fried Chicken, mashed potatoes, carrots and broccoli. The best words I can use to describe it are... "are you sure it was gluten free?" It tasted better than any gluten filled fried chicken I have had in my life pre-going gluten free. Oh my goodness good. It was so juicy and sweet and perfectly seasoned. It seriously was so good and now I wish I were there so I could have more.

We ate all but one breakfast in the food court and they were all delicious. My favorite being the Gluten Free Beignets that I have never had before. Oh my goodness, yum!!

And of course Mickey waffles. And the crispiest bacon ever!!

I also loved that we could get baked tater tots for a side for breakfast!

Then our finale!
We needed food for our plane ride home.
I had a special request for Chef Paul. Could we get the beignet burger but with a piece of grilled chicken instead of the hamburger? He seemed taken aback at first but then said "I don't see why not". We asked for baked tater tots and Chef Paul didn't let us down.
The beignet chicken sandwich may be the best thing I have ever eaten of any gluten filled or gluten free sandwich.

The photo doesn't do it justice as it had to travel from the resort to the airport, where we decided to eat it in the airport and not on the plane. Yum, yum, yum.

Thank you Chef Paul and all the amazing people at Port Orleans French Quarter in Walt Disney World for feeding us the best gluten free food for our vacation.

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My gluten free history

When I turned 30 years old, I started to gain weight that I couldn't lose and I was getting back to back colds. The final straw was I got bronchitis and I had to take an antibiotic to help me get better. The side effect for 4% of people on this antibiotic was gastrointestinal issues. Yes, I was part of that 4%. The medicine basically stripped away whatever had been protecting me through my first 30 years of life. You see I have always had gastrointestinal issues since I can remember. My father also had the same issues and my paternal grandmother too. I was so sick from the medicine (or so I thought) that I had to go back to the doctor and do a series of tests. During this time I was following the BRAT diet (Banana, rice, a, toast). Saltines and toast were my go to comfort, little did I know they were NOT what I should be eating. My co-worker gave me an article about food allergies and there was a quiz. You only needed to answer 4 of the 8 questions with yes to fall under their designation and I had answered 6 of the 8 with yes. I was on my way. My husband and I cleaned out all our cabinets of the 7 allergens… all that was left was rice. After a few weeks, I was feeling somewhat better when I stayed at a home where they told me to eat whatever was in the fridge. I saw the rice and started eating. Within a hour I was violently ill. I couldn't understand. I took the rice with me to work the next day and when I told my other co-worker about my issue she asked to see the rice. It was orzo… pasta… gluten/wheat filled pasta! I had my first allergen to check off the list as being an issue. It turned out at the time dairy and eggs were also triggers but I have since been able to add them back. My husband and I went on a full gluten free diet and within a few months I had lost my weight, stopped living in my bathroom, looked healthy and was not terrified to eat things any more. Now it has been 15 years and while I have gained some weight back (darn those yummy gluten free cookies and pretzels) my issues are still in check and I couldn't be happier to figure out what was wrong with my body and be able to fix it.