Gluten Free on Carnival.

[James_Bond_007]

I am thinking about bringing my mother along on our next cruise. My mom is a Celiac and is extremely allergic to gluten (found in wheat and other products). Can Carnival provide good meals for her? Please share some stories of Gluten Free sailing on Carnival.

[Blondie70]

My neighbor has a teenage son who needs a gluten-free diet. The first night they were in the dining room, they asked their head waiter about the options. He immediately told the woman who supervises the special diet needs in the dining room and she was at their table lickety-split apologizing for not knowing about them (no way she could have known) and making their son feel very special. They were taken care of the whole trip! The woman would bring their son the menu for the following night and make sure they had his dining choices already ordered so it would be ready for him when he showed up the following evening. Just last month, October 2012, we had a table mate on the Magic who required a dairy-free diet and they did the same for her every evening.

[mickym]

We cruise each year with my SIL and BIL who are both Celiac. They inform Carnival about their special dietary needs when they book the cruise. Each evening when we finish dinner they come with a menu for the next day and they are asked to choose what they would like from the menu. They then are able to prepare the meal for the next evening using gluten free ingredients. We usually choose to eat breakfast and, when possible, lunch in the dining room. They just inform the wait staff that they need gluten free and they bring them food that is safe for them. They are absolutely great about it!! It makes it so nice for them. When we do have to eat in the buffet they stick to fresh fruit and vegetables. They have always gotten along really well.

[InsideCruiser]

Is there a gluten free bread option at The Deli?

[mickym]

Is there a gluten free bread option at The Deli?

I couldn't tell you that but I do know they brought my BIL and SIL gluten free bread to dinner each night.

[Ykgorbie]

There is no gluten free bread at the Deli (that I know of)

 

Just got back from a B2B on the Liberty, my first time cruising and having to eat gluten free. What the other poster said is correct, the hostess will visit your table every evening and let you choose your meal for the next night.

They were really great about it....unfortunately, I made one huge mistake. I thought it would be easier for me to do breakfast (on the Lido) since I could have eggs, bacon, ham, fruit, etc. WELL, a word of warning to you - the egg mixture they use for omelettes and scrambled eggs has gluten in it. (you can get them to fry you a couple of fresh eggs though)

 

Late evening is a little tough to find something to eat - you may want to take a piece or two of fruit back to your room for times like that.

 

Happy sailing !

[CorrieCJ]

This is good to know, especially about the eggs. My 5 year old was recently diagnosed celiac (though he seems to be non-reactive), so we are still learning a lot. When we booked, they told us ABSOLUTELY NO PROBLEM. We usually eat dinner in the dining room but tend to take breakfast and lunch on the lido (four kids, different ages, late sleepers all). Luckily the kid loves fruits and veggies but I don't want him to miss out on his favorites (he's already sad about the pizza).

[fragilek]

does anyone know if any of the room service items are gluten free esp the breakfast stuff

[lulu78]

Hi!

 

My husband and I just cruised on the Imagination for our honeymoon. My husband has a gluten allergy, and I have to say Carnival went above and beyond for him. Like other posters have said, they came to our table after dinner every night and got his order for dinner the next day, including desserts and breakfast for the next morning. He was able to have pumpkin pie and the ever famous WCMC all made gluten free! :D He was a bit nervous about this since it was his first cruise, but left super impressed with Carnival for being able to accomodate his needs. To the poster asking about the gluten free bread in the deli, unfortunately, they do not have it at the deli, we asked. And they also do not have gluten free pizza. I do hope that this is something that Carnival will consider adding to their menus, but until then we are just super happy that we are able to go in the MDR and my husband can enjoy a great meal with the rest of us! :D

[joeyancho]

This is good to know, especially about the eggs. My 5 year old was recently diagnosed celiac (though he seems to be non-reactive), so we are still learning a lot. When we booked, they told us ABSOLUTELY NO PROBLEM. We usually eat dinner in the dining room but tend to take breakfast and lunch on the lido (four kids, different ages, late sleepers all). Luckily the kid loves fruits and veggies but I don't want him to miss out on his favorites (he's already sad about the pizza).

 

Good news!!! They will make gluten free pizza, just ask.

[Ykgorbie]

does anyone know if any of the room service items are gluten free esp the breakfast stuff

 

Not that I know of.....you actually can't order a hot breakfast from the room service menu anyway.

[KC_Cruiser_1]

We were on the Triumph in early October. Three of us have to eat Gluten Free. The staff in the MDR were wonderful, as others have described. I even asked if they could make a Gluten Free Warm Chocolate Melting Cake. They asked the Chef and we had it the third night on our cruise. It was almost as good as the original!

 

We also had the Gluten Free Pizza. Had to wait about 10 minutes for them to prepare it,but it was pretty good.

 

They have Gluten Free Bread in the MDR for Breakfast and Dinner. You have to order it special for Lunch. We had it one day, and it was very dry at lunch. Probably left over (and left out to dry) after breakfast. We skipped bread at lunch the rest of the week.

 

 

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[valancy1]

Hi!

 

My husband and I just cruised on the Imagination for our honeymoon. My husband has a gluten allergy, and I have to say Carnival went above and beyond for him. And they also do not have gluten free pizza. I

 

We got off the Valor a couple weeks ago and they do have gluten-free pizza (at least they did on our ship). They told us you have to request it and it takes a little longer to make it, but if you're willing to wait for it they are willing to make it for you.

 

They also make gluten-free chocolate melting cake if that's your thing. Every night my husband had gluten free bread at breakfast in the MDR and at dinner. I applaud Carnival for doing their best in the gluten-free and special dietary needs dept. GREAT job and hubby was happily fed and enjoyed his food without the bad side effects.

[boowaaccaa]

I like gluten free products but don't HAVE to have them. Is there an option to order some gluten free stuff - for example if they are already making a gluten free pie for someone else could a person order a slice of it, once all the special orders were taken?

[CorrieCJ]

That is great news about the pizza and the melting cake. This will be my 5 yo's third cruise (all on Carnival) and he was crazy about both those items the last time.

[lulu78]

We got off the Valor a couple weeks ago and they do have gluten-free pizza (at least they did on our ship). They told us you have to request it and it takes a little longer to make it, but if you're willing to wait for it they are willing to make it for you.

 

They also make gluten-free chocolate melting cake if that's your thing. Every night my husband had gluten free bread at breakfast in the MDR and at dinner. I applaud Carnival for doing their best in the gluten-free and special dietary needs dept. GREAT job and hubby was happily fed and enjoyed his food without the bad side effects.

 

That's good to know on the pizza, my husband is a pizza fanatic! He could eat it everyday. We just found that Domino's now has gluten free pizza and he is so happy about being able to order pizza at home again, lol!

 

But about the pizza on the ship...we will definitely try getting it on the next cruise! When we went to the pizza station and asked I said "Do you have gluten free pizza?" and the guy quickly said "yes, pizza, free", LOL !!!! maybe I said it to fast and he thought I was asking if the pizza was free :p lol !!!!

[LHP]

My advice is to always treat your meals onboard a ship the same way you do when you eat at a restaurant back home.....

[valancy1]

That's good to know on the pizza, my husband is a pizza fanatic! He could eat it everyday. We just found that Domino's now has gluten free pizza and he is so happy about being able to order pizza at home again, lol!

 

But about the pizza on the ship...we will definitely try getting it on the next cruise! When we went to the pizza station and asked I said "Do you have gluten free pizza?" and the guy quickly said "yes, pizza, free", LOL !!!! maybe I said it to fast and he thought I was asking if the pizza was free :p lol !!!!

 

Maybe you could talk to your hostess in the MDR about how to order the gluten-free pizza. She is the one that told us in the first place about the gluten-free pizza...

[fragilek]

It seems that if you have a early or late diner you speak to the waiters on the first night and then they arange the menu for the following day. But what do you do if you are on anytime dining so will get diff tables each night. Has anyone got experience of how it works for any time dining

[Csh2145]

We traveled last June with a friend who had celiac disease. She loves to cruise and prefers to eat in the MDR because they are so accommodating for her special diet. She had no complaints with her meals. Have no fear if you are on a special diet.

[la2kw]

I'm allergic to gluten and milk, so my options are a bit more limited. The staff on the Liberty last summer did a great job. I informed Carnival ahead of time, and they were expecting me the first night at dinner. The hostess in charge of allergies helped me choose my meals and as mentioned, they came to my table every night and had me pre-order my meals for the next day.

 

I tried breakfast in the dining room a few times, but I preferred the buffet. I ordered eggs cooked to order and made sure they were fried in oil. I also had the fruit, but the sausages have gluten, so couldn't have those. I did have oatmeal a few times with no problems, but as you know those are not always gluten free. A celiac should stay away from those.

 

For lunch, it was at port or at Guy's Burger (no cheese, no bun), the buffet (stir fry had rice noodles, but you have to leave the sauces off), or Blue Iguana (with no tortilla). I didn't try the dining room for lunch, but they will let you pre-order for lunch on the days it is open.

[DiverDownAZ]

Good news!!! They will make gluten free pizza, just ask.

 

Just off the Conquest and tried the GF pizza, was not worth the calories. I have had much better GF crust.

[LRene]

I've done many cruises GF over the years and I have to agree the pizza is....well, gag. So are the bread and the pancakes. I no longer eat any grains so don't miss them. It took a few years for me to realize the GF replacements for most grains (breads, crackers, pasta, crust etc.) are not only expensive but have no nutritional value.

 

My advice for anyone is to be cognizant and double check the food just like you would in a restaurant at home. Ask questions. Sometimes the hostesses are just not good or like my last one, very sweet but didn't understand English enough to get the order right. Some of them are GREAT and will make suggestions. I seem to get the rookies lately and I know what I can have made GF better than they do.

 

Just like the regular food, quality varies a great deal by ship. Also, make sure your server is well aware particularly if you have anytime dining with different servers nightly. They usually say something like "gluten free soup" when they set it down. You can tell it's GF by comparing the food to another plate at the table and SEE a difference. For example, the GF Broccoli soup should be a slightly different color. I've been served the wrong food a few times but could usually tell. Most recently, I was served the wrong dessert in the steakhouse and didn't know for about 6 bites when suddenly the manager came running over.

 

I've learned to always eat breakfast and dinner in the MDR (I don't special order breakfast) and lunch is usually salad or a bunless burger. Room service has virtually nothing but yogurt or a salad/veggies and fruit. The good news is that the ice cream and frozen yogurt are GF if you can do dairy and you will get to have things that would be a hassle to make at home. And don't forget the banana split from the kids menu or see if they will make sorbet.