The process of acquiring an advance dining reservation at Walt Disney World frustrates some visitors. For example, you wake up at 5:45am Florida time to book a reservation 60 days in advance. You keep refreshing only to see that the time slots you wanted are gone for your desired restaurant. For most people, this means choosing something else. Of course, you could set some alerts at MouseDining.com for when a reservation opens. Yet, the frustration felt at that early hour 60 days in advance hurts a bit. For those of us trying to book from the Midwest, we wake up before 4:45am to book dining 60 days in advance to be denied. My friends in California often just stay up all night to book dining reservations at Walt Disney World.

Now, riddle me this…what does a vegan diner do when the place they wanted turns up unavailable? Vegan menu item choices reside as limited already. Then, the place they thought they could have a nice vegan table service dining option has no available reservation when they wanted one. Of course, they should set an alert at MouseDining.com. However, the Disney Springs table service options offer numerous solid vegan selections. If you or someone in your group dines vegan, this list offers my suggestions.

I need to clarify a few details before we reach the list of suggestions. A few clarifying statements must be made to set parameters. I will only be discussing vegan items as listed on the menu. I will not include menu items that need to be modified to be vegan. The focus will be on menu items intended to be vegan. For vegan diners, the frustration level increases when you order a salad but half the items on there get removed but you get charged the same price. I understand that sometimes that may be needed.

Still, I would not plan a reservation as a vegan diner for a place like that when visiting Walt Disney World. I, especially, would avoid that when planning a meal at Disney Springs. With about twenty table service options, vegans should not have to settle for “modified” menu items. Having said that, if a bun or something simple like that needs to be substituted, that would be okay for these parameters.

Finally, before getting to the list, vegan menu items change often. Please confirm the menu when booking your advance dining reservations. For example, some vegan menu items changed during the time I researched and wrote this article.

#5           Vegetarian Pasta at Paddlefish

Yes, I know it says vegetarian. I would not make mistake confusing that with vegan. I have no idea what they do not call this vegan pasta. Though I have double-checked with them a few times (and others have done) that it is made with egg free noodles. This pasta dish features linguine, garlic, olive oil, and market vegetables. This currently costs $21. The market vegetables usually are asparagus, yellow squash, zucchini, red bell peppers and mushrooms. For transparency, I cannot eat a few of those vegetables, which does make vegan dining reviews tougher. However, my vegan friends agree on this being good. Also, Terralina Crafted Italian served a version of this, but I would suggest the Paddlefish one over this that version. Of course, confirm with each restaurant on status on any item being truly vegan friendly.

#4            Impossible Burger at House of Blues

The menu description of this item tells the story. The menu description reads “built 100% vegan – Impossible™ burger patty, American cheese, shredded lettuce, secret sauce, dill pickle chips.” This burger costs $17. Once again, I wish these places would be more careful with their menu descriptions though. If you are going to use vegan cheese (which they have been doing), then please put those words in description to make vegans feel more comfortable. Yet, here, as at all places, you should always confirm vegan ingredients. The quality of the patty adds to the taste of this burger. For the record, The Edison also offers a decent plant-based burger but I would select the House of Blues version.

#3           Napa Valley Vegan Flatbread at Paradiso 37

 

Generally, I would not recommend Paradiso 37, Taste of the Americas. This place provides decent dining. However, with so many better options within Disney Springs, this would rarely be a top choice for me. In addition, the price point at $22 seems a bit high. Yet, the Napa Valley Vegan Flatbread presents a solid vegan option outside the norm. This flatbread comes with cauliflower crust, vegan mozzarella cheese, tomato, basil, and a balsamic glaze. The crust’s texture works quite well. The mozzarella cheese tastes like vegan cheese but not in a bad way. Also, the balsamic drizzle provides as nice touch with this flatbread. Though I would disagree, this entrée could be shared due to portion size. On a final note, this place offers several quality vegan appetizers to round out a meal if desired.

#2 Kung Pao Cauliflower at Morimoto Asia

 

One of the best restaurants at Walt Disney World is Morimoto Asia. The legendary quality of an “Iron Chef” provides an excellent experience here. As you can imagine, this place provides high quality Asian food. A great vegan example offered here would be the “Kung Pao Cauliflower” This entrée gives diners flash fried cauliflower florets, peppers, carrots, mushrooms, and tobanjan chili. This costs $16 with a decent portion size. City Works Eatery and Pour House also sells a dish like this. Yet, the one at Morimoto Asia tastes far better. The texture of cauliflower crunches just the right amount. The magic of chefs at this place makes this sometimes-bland vegetable pop with flavor.

Two other notes if dining as a vegan here to mention. First, the last time I checked the soy sauce here was not vegan. Yet, the gluten free soy sauce was vegan so ask for that. Second, you could select the “Wok Sauteed Chinese Vegetables” for $15 here as a vegan entrée also.

#1 This Shepherd Went Vegan at Raglan Road

 

I hear some vegan diners do not like this heavier style entrée. Yet, I think the most value and quality for the vegan dollar in Disney Springs is this dish. I have two different advance dining reservations at Raglan Road scheduled. If not for the fact that Raglan Road just added several new menu items, I would be getting this shepherd’s pie again. This vegan version of a shepherd’s pie costs $25. This comes with faro barley, carrots, wild mushrooms, green onion, peas, and rutabaga topped with olive oil mashed potato with a burnt onion gravy. With full honesty, some of those ingredients do not appeal to me. However, together they provide the positives of non-vegan shepherd’s pie while still being vegan. Despite that, this vegan item will not destroy your vacation budget. Also, it will provide a filling meal.

 

As someone who does not dine exclusively vegan, I cannot truly understand the frustration of dining vegan at a theme park resort. I hope these suggestions help in your quest for less stressful vegan dining at Walt Disney World. As always, eat like you mean it!