Vegans at Disney! The Magic Kingdom Review

A few Saturdays ago was the unofficial Gay Day at The Magic Kingdom. We had never been before and a friend who works for the park took us for free! It was a great day. It's always wonderful to be at a Disney park with someone who knows them inside and out. Lucky for us our friend is a fantastic guide and we were able to ride and see just about everything before the end of the day. We're telling you- FAST PASSES- use them... strategically.

So for those of you who have never heard of Gays Days it is a series of events that go on the first weekend of June in Orlando. Unofficially, one day for each park is selected and everyone shows up in red shirts to identify each other and just enjoy the park. Really it was just like any other day aside from a good amount of same-sex parents and lots of adorable bear groups.

Like these guys! If you can't see it in the picture their shirts all say "Bear 1", Bear 2" and so on. I think they had almost a dozen guys with the numbered shirts on. Totally cute.

As most vegans know, often the most difficult part about having a nice day out is knowing what food options may await you in your desired location. Good news for us is that when you're talking about animal-free options at the Disney parks The Magic Kingdom is actually the most friendly. It has a whopping TWO options! Which honestly is a spectacular number compared to most places.

If you visit the park you will find both your options at Cosmic Rays in Tomorrow Land. There will be three 'bays' to choose from. The veggie burger is on bay 2 and you will find the other option, the veggie sandwich, in bay 3.

On the menu below it's listed as a 'veggie wrap' but we assure you it comes on a multi-grain loaf and is a sandwich now.

The last time we were at The Magic Kingdom we asked a lot of extensive questions about their veggie burger and found that the burger itself is vegan. The bun it comes on is not. However, the wheat bun they put the meat burgers on is vegan... go figure. So to get yourself a vegan burger just order the veggie burger with the wheat bun. There are also tons of fixings like grilled mushrooms, onions, pickles, tomatoes, and lettuce over at the side bar. We double-checked about the grilled mushrooms and onions and they are indeed vegan and grilled in oil, not butter.

There is also several condiments available. The spout ketchup, mustard, and also barbecue sauce packets are vegan.

Jenna definitely took advantage of the fixings bar this trip. Th taste of the veggie burger is pretty good, but very heavy. Not the best but certainly not the worst veggie burger we have ever had. 

So let's talk about this veggie sandwich. This trip was the first time either of us gave it a whirl and ordering it proved to be a difficult task. After looking at the ingredient list (which they will provide for you at the cash register if you ask) Brandy ordered the sandwich without the chipotle mayo. Now here's where things get tricky. In the ingredient listing they call the sauce a chipotle mayo- in the kitchen they call it an aioli sauce. So although the cashier put in my order correctly in her system we still ended up getting a sandwich covered in mayonnaise. 

Not ones to make a huge fuss we waited another 10 minutes and received a new sandwich, but the stares we got in the meantime for holding up the line from both cast members and guests felt a little harsh. In either case, if you want to order this sandwich, we suggest just mentioning the sauce by both names and hoping for the best.

We managed to snap a picture of the ingredient listing for this item. Of course, as the Disney cast member made clear to us as we took the picture, these ingredients are subject to change.

The taste of the veggie burger is always pretty consistent, but this veggie sandwich is still something were on the fence about. 

Firstly, be aware, it's cold. The bread is not toasted and all the veggies are served chilled. I'm not sure why we expected it to be a warm sandwich like the veggie burger but it just sort of seemed like it was marketed in such a way. Just be advised, it is literally cucumbers, pickles, onions, and what seemed to be squash and zucchini on a thick multigrain ciabatta roll. Nothing more, nothing less. 

We suggest taking advantage of the fixings bar again and covering it in some warm mushrooms and onions... and maybe a little barbecue sauce. Overall, we were not impressed. But props to Disney for giving it a go and offering something more than just a veggie burger. 

Alright, so let's talk sides. Your options at Cosmic Rays for sides are sliced apples, a cucumber salad, and the classic theme park staple- french fries.

If you order the apples expect to get about half a flavorless red apple cut into slices. The cucumber salad comes in a small cup no bigger than a side of ketchup would come in and was originally verified as vegan and then taken back by a cast member. He said it may now contain dairy. He was going to double check for us, but got really busy. If you want the cucumber salad it would probably be wise to ask for an updated ingredient list first. It didn't look like it contained diary (it just looked like cucumbers soaked in oil and vinegar to us) but you never know! They love to sneak that stuff into anything.

Now, sad news. On our way out after lunch we stopped back by the cashier to get a photo of the veggie sandwich ingredient list and she informed us that as she was looking for more info about what was animal product free a chef made her aware that, although it is not currently available in the information book at the counter, they have changed their frying method and their french fries are now fried in the same fryer as the breaded chicken. To some vegans this is a big deal, to others it's not. That is entirely up to you. But that is something they have recently changed at Cosmic Rays and we wanted to make you aware. 

So where do we stand on our Gays Days Magic Kingdom trip food-wise? Eh, it was okay. When you're paying over $20 as a couple for your lunch it's sort of difficult to be impressed. The problem we found was an hour later we were both feeling very sluggish from the greasy food and more than anything just wanted to rest or call it a day and go home. That's fine for us, we're local. But for families that are from further away and only have a day to spend, you don't want to spend it dragging yourself around, or worse- in the bathroom. 

Bottom line: if you are inclined to eat at the park these options will be animal-free, regardless of their nutritional value.

There are also a few vegan options at the stands for quick snacks you may not want to pass up like soft pretzels, candied nuts, and popsicles on a hot day.  

However, after this experience we're thinking The Two Vegan Ladies may still indulge in the snacks, but pack their own lunch the next time they visit The Magic Kingdom. 

With peace, love, and compassion-

The Two Vegan Ladies