If there’s anything I’ve learned in all my years of being gluten free at the parks it’s that I will go out of my way to try new places and new gluten free foods, often dragging others along with me to do so. I usually pick one to two “bigger” meals to try each trip. This past trip the reservation I was most excited about was having breakfast at Boma at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. My first time here and first buffet since they reopened with the pandemic.
To start I want to first say that this restaurant is at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, not in the park! I totally made that mistake so we ended up in the park to check in when we should’ve been at the lodge *insert face palm here*.
I made our reservation via the Disney World app. Whenever I search for a dining reservation I usually just do a general search unless I know I want to eat somewhere specifically.
To do this you log on to the Disney World app and from the main page hit the + in the circle at the bottom. From there a menu will pop up. At the very top it says “check dining availability”. You click on that and the first thing that comes up is entering your group number. Once you do that you pick the date you are looking for from the calendar, then the time you are looking to make a dining reservation. Each of these pop up after you have completed the step prior, which I find helps with knowing which step you are on and the info you
After you pick all of that the possible reservations will be listed! You choose the time slot you want and a “review your reservation time” page will come up. You will have to enter a credit card. This will only be charged in the event that you do not cancel your reservation within the dining locations cancellation period. At the bottom of this page right before you click the “I have read the guest policies” you can add if there is a food allergy within your group or if you need wheelchair accessibility. Be sure to do this if either of these pertain to your group!! It allows the restaurant to be more prepared for your arrival and dining experience.
For Boma their breakfast buffet goes from 7:30am-11:00am, then they have dinner from 5:00pm-9:30pm. The price for the breakfast buffet is $15-$34.99 per person, and dinner is $35-$59.99 per person. The lower end is the price for kids, with adults coming in at 34.99 for breakfast. The total for us was around $40ish per person once tip and tax was added on. The best part about this for me was that the gluten free goodies were included! So often at restaurants they add an extra fee for the gluten free items, which I freaking detest, but I was still charged just the standard amount. It’s also an all you can eat buffet, so I really thing its a pretty good bang for your buck.
Our breakfast reservation was at 7:30, and even though we got there 15-20 mins late they were still able to take us (shout out to the Disney employees who were super understanding and got us in as soon as they could).
The vibe of the restaurant was very fun. Since it’s in the animal kingdom lodge it has an African/safari feel to it. The wait staff are all donned in African style clothes and each one was so so friendly, whether we interacted with them directly or in passing. The decorations and designs around the area also followed this theme. The back wall is all lined with windows looking out on lush greenery adding to the safari feel. We were lucky and got seated at a table for two by one of the windows.
I always enter that there is a gluten allergy when making any reservation and they always ask and know whenever we check in. I will say they didn’t use to be this aware and I’d have to let them know again when I got there and sometimes even again when we were seated, but they have gotten a lot better about it. Makes my gluten free heart so happy and know that they take it seriously.
Once we were seated at out table our waitress handed me the allergen guide. This guide included info for gluten/wheat allergies, but also eggs, fish, shellfish, milk, peanut, tree nut, and soy. It included every item on the buffet, organized by sections, with the last part of the guide labeled “allergy-friendly options upon request”. This is where they let you know the items you can request gluten free that are not at the buffet. It included allergy-friendly sweet breads, breads, and waffles. Our waitress then listed some of the specific items: doughnuts, muffins, toast, bagels, and waffles. They had mickey shaped waffles, but also Simba shaped since it was the animal kingdom
So what did I order? One of everything! Bagel with cream cheese, cinnamon doughnut, blueberry muffin, and mickey waffles (I went with the classic, rather than Simba). I ordered it right away, as I knew it would take a bit, then went to check out the buffet.
I totally carried the guide with me to make sure I was safe. Made it challenging to carry my plate and get food, but rather safe then sorry. The guide is easy to follow. You find your allergy at the top then follow the column straight down to see if there is a green ✅, or red 🚫 next to each food item. If there is a green check it means it is not made with that allergen and you can eat it. However, they say at the top of the guide that there is a risk of cross contamination due to the self serve nature of the buffet, and that items there are not necessarily made completely separate. The guide has everything including condiments which was great because I never know with condiments and usually avoid them due to this.
There were a decent amount of items on the buffet that were gluten free, but I only got a few items from the buffet to eat as I knew I had a lot coming that I ordered. Plus I am a bit wary when it comes to the possibility of cross contamination. I got a small piece of the ham they were carving, bacon, and two of the deviled eggs (my downfall as I could eat 20 of them in one sitting #addicted). Each of these were delicious, and I had zero stomach pain after eating them.
My cousin (not gluten free) ate from the buffet and went up a few times, trying something new each time. She said all of it was delicious, Simba waffles and all. So if you take any normal eating folks with you I think they will also enjoy the food.
Then all the gf items arrived and I was in heaven! My excitement level when there are gluten free items at restaurants is through the roof, and even though I knew this place had options, I was still so excited.
I took a taste of each of them, then may or may not have brought baggies to take the left overs with me (anyone else do this?).
My reviews:
I started with the bagel and was pleasantly surprised with how good it was! It was toasted the perfect amount and not dry in the least (a problem that often occurs with gf
As per usual the mickey waffles were delicious and I could’ve eaten 30 of them.
The muffin was rather dry in my opinion. After the first bite and realizing this I added butter to it, but it didn’t help much. I love blueberry muffins but I wouldn’t order this again.
Lastly, the donut! Donuts are probably one of the things I miss the most being gluten free. I miss the light fluffiness of them with the delicious icing or glaze on top *drooling*. I don’t think gluten free donuts have quite got it down, but this one was pretty good! I love cinnamon donuts and it was delicious. However, it was a dense donut. I had my cousin taste it to get a “normal foodies” opinion and she said it was like a cake donut. So, although it was good, I shall have to keep waiting for a gluten free donut that is more on the fluffy side (I can’t think of another word to describe it).
So, to wrap it up, yet another successful dining experience with disney and all things gluten free. Be sure to check the app before you go and try to get a reservation. It was a popular restaurant with every table taken and those who did walk up had to wait a bit. I highly recommend eating here and experiencing this restaurant and the unique vibe it has to offer.