Carnival Breeze: Gluten Free Dining for Small Children?

Hello All! I’m currently looking at cruise options for Spring break 2019 and I’m trying to decide between Carnival Breeze and Royal Caribbean Adventure of the Seas. My daughter, who will celebrate her 6th birthday on this cruise, has Celiac disease so must have a strict gluten-free diet. I have done tons of RCI research for our upcoming cruise on Oasis, so I know what to expect from them, but Carnival is new to me. My questions for you experienced cruisers:

1) How are the gluten-free kids meal options on Breeze?

2) Are the quick-service places (burger, bbq, Mexican, etc) safe for a kid with Celiac, or will she have to eat all meals in the dining room?

3) Anyone had experience ordering a GF kids birthday cake on board? Is this even an option?

4) Can anyone comment on who does Gluten free (for kids especially) better? Carnival or RCI? Or are they equal? Truly this could be the most important consideration for me as a dad when I finally decide which ship to pick.

5) Any other general advice for a child with Celiac on the ship?

I’ve searched, and there is a lot of great info I've been able to find about general GF offerings but most of it has been from an adult's perspective, so any additional resources to look at this from a child's perspective would be sincerely appreciated. Thank you!

Hello there! I was diagnosed with Celiac a year ago, and I was worried about what my food options would be on my Sunshine cruise in July. Well, I didn’t need to worry at all, Carnival was awesome!

In the MDR, my waiter brought me the next night’s menu, and I selected what I wanted. They were able to make changes (remove sauces, etc) so it was safe for me to eat. GF bread was awful, but isn’t it usually awful? Didn’t really go to the buffet much except for a salad now an then. I am sure they will be able to figure out some options for your little one. From what I have read and experienced, they take GF food prep seriously and take precautions against cross contamination.

You can get Guy’s burgers bunless, and the ‘naked burritos’ (no tortilla) at Blue Iguana were awesome. Guys fries are safe because they’re the only things cooked in those fryers.

This doesn’t apply to your little one, but even the bartenders were good about making sure they used Tito’s in my vodka drinks!

Let them know when you book that you need GF, and remind them in the MDR when you board.

Happy GF cruising!

I hope you get a response from someone who has had experience with children and avoiding gluten.

Until that happens, let me give you an adult experience on the Breeze from last June.

Breakfast - eat in the MDR. They make amazing gluten-free French toast. We used to pick breakfast the night before, but this cruise we ordered when we arrived in the morning. To clarify, it is my DW that has gluten issues, and everything she wanted for breakfast, they had a gluten-free option. She felt in heaven. I tried some of her GF concoctions, and almost without exception they were as good as the "normal" version.

No experience at the buffet. DW didn't even want to chance it. Except for bacon. Lots of bacon.

Lunch - you can get a gluten free bun at Guys Burgers. My wife opted for just the patty, so I don't have feedback on how good the buns were. I believe, though, that the buns were Udi's. She watches the fixin's table carefully, but one of the Guy's Burgers servers provided her with toppings of her choice from unopened containers in the back.

The BlueIguana Cantina has corn soft and hard tortillas that were labelled as gluten free, and I believe the meat choices were all safe. She always asks a lot of questions, and keeps a keen eye on the prep process. She also looks for signs of possible cross-contamination. She gave a thumb's up to Guys Burgers and the BlueIquana.

I hear the deli keeps a supply of gluten free bread, and seems to understand avoidance of cross-contamination. We did not eat there, no other reason other than, well, we just didn't.

Any buffet questions, we were told to find the Floor Manager and he/she would help. They were very nice and accommodating, but again, we did not do the buffet.

We know nothing about the Guy's barbeque.

One little known venue for lunch, so don't tell anyone. The Cucina Del Capiano restaurant, which is a for-fee restaurant at dinner time, is open for lunch with no extra charge. They have gluten free pasta options which were, per my wife, just delicious. If your daughter likes spaghetti and meatballs, or any of that kind of thing, this is an excellent option.

One last mention. One of my boys, when he was in elementary school, liked sushi. The Breeze has a for-fee sushi bar. Ask for gluten free, and they can set you up. It has limited hours, so you would want to check on that.

Dinner - we only eat in the MDR. We always have, even before she was diagnosed. Choices are limited the first night, but then after dinner they come by our table and gave her the next night's menu from which she can pick, well, just about anything. So she preorders her dinner and they let her know if they can make it without gluten. They almost always can (even the chocolate melting cake).

Well, thinking back on our last cruise, they did not always just come by and get her pre-order. Sometimes we had to ask. Other times, we didn't pre-order. But, they always seemed to be able to give her what she wanted, with maybe just a few alterations.

Also, this last cruise, she did not think the gluten free bread basket was as good as previous cruises. I tried a couple of the rolls and thought they were good.

Other - the Pizza Pirate (is that its name now?) has a gluten free crust. She liked it, plus she gets the whole pizza for herself. There are usually long lines, though, and they have to make it to order. Honestly, I didn't think the wait was that long. But then, I am not a six year old. Pizza available twenty-four hours.

The ice cream concoction is gluten free, and available twenty-four hours.

I assume the food options and such will not be too different regardless of age. The kids menus will allow for plenty of gluten free choices. And, absolutely, do not underestimate the power of the food staff. Let them know what you want, regardless of any printed menus or preconceived ideas of "no way they can do this", and you will be surprised how often they can make magic happen!

I am sure I am missing something.

I always alerted Carnival, prior to sailing, that there is a "special need". They consistently advised for me to go to the dining room immediately upon boarding, and talk to the maître d'. To date, I have tried ever time to do that, but either the dining rooms are shut down (with those big honkin' doors), or the maître d' just wasn't available or to be found. Therefore, I have never talked with the big guy or gal, but yet everything seems to work out just fine.

Regardless of which ship you and your daughter take, it should be a great experience for you!

Wow thank you both for all the info. This definitely sets my mind at ease if we ultimately do decide on Breeze. Thanks!

Not GF specific but here’s how to work with allergies onboard—-

This is my basic post about allergies.....

Each ship seems to do things a little differently. This has been our experiences on the West Coast ships.

https://www.carnival.com/about-carnival/special-needs/dietary-needs.aspx

See the Hostess at embarkation when the Maitre 'd has hours. Hours will be in the FunTmes, usually starting around 1pm. The hostess will take that night's order. Each night the hostess or your waiter will bring you the next day's MDR menu-breakfast, brunch/lunch and dinner. If deciding between two entrees, order both. For brunch don't hesitate to order a breakfast and lunch if you want to eat both meals in the MDR. At ATD, an order slip will be generated and given to your waitstaff when seated. They will confirm the order with you.

Only issue we've ever had was one cruise DD's food arrived before mine.

For room service, they cannot make special for you but they can tell you the ingredients. No special area so there is always the possibility of contamination

Buffet is a minefield. Ask the Hostess or the Head Lido Chef or the Food and Beverage crew in the officer whites. DO NOT ask the line cooks or those serving desserts. They mean well but do not know the full recipes. Cross contamination is always a possibility.

Onshore--- we bring allergy cards. I made our own but you can buy some at selectwisely dot com.

You can only bring off commercially prepared food. We bring cereal bars, boxes of cereal, bottled water, hard candy etc.

Many ports will check. Some will do a physical search, others use dogs. You do not want the cute Labrador to sit next to you. I've had them alert on my Lemonheads.

Kids clubs have a form to fill out. There are some snacks served at times. The younger kids meet up at the dinner buffet certain nights. Ask the counselors what's on the menu.

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Hi everyone! Again I appreciate the prior posts and info-extremely helpful!  We never ended up booking this cruise as we opted for Royal Caribbean instead, but I’m back because this time I’m pretty certain we will be booking the Breeze Eastern itinerary for spring break 2020.

I’d love to hear any more recent comments, tips, impressions about how Carnival Breeze handles gluten free diets. Thanks! 

My wife, who has Celiac, gets an omelette every morning for breakfast from the omelette station at the buffet.  Her "trick" is to provide her own cheese from the cheese, fruit and pastry station.  Which is usually located near the omelette station.  She just puts the cheese she wants on her plate on hands her plate to the omelette worker.  If you rely on the shredded cheese that they have on hand at the omelette station it is not GF as it contains starch that has gluten in it to prevent it from clumping.

Thanks for the tip!

On 2/19/2018 at 2:38 PM, SadieN said:

Not GF specific but here’s how to work with allergies onboard—-

 

This is my basic post about allergies.....

 

Each ship seems to do things a little differently. This has been our experiences on the West Coast ships.

 

 

https://www.carnival.com/about-carnival/special-needs/dietary-needs.aspx

 

See the Hostess at embarkation when the Maitre 'd has hours. Hours will be in the FunTmes, usually starting around 1pm. The hostess will take that night's order. Each night the hostess or your waiter will bring you the next day's MDR menu-breakfast, brunch/lunch and dinner. If deciding between two entrees, order both. For brunch don't hesitate to order a breakfast and lunch if you want to eat both meals in the MDR. At ATD, an order slip will be generated and given to your waitstaff when seated. They will confirm the order with you.

Only issue we've ever had was one cruise DD's food arrived before mine.

 

For room service, they cannot make special for you but they can tell you the ingredients. No special area so there is always the possibility of contamination

 

Buffet is a minefield. Ask the Hostess or the Head Lido Chef or the Food and Beverage crew in the officer whites. DO NOT ask the line cooks or those serving desserts. They mean well but do not know the full recipes. Cross contamination is always a possibility.

 

Onshore--- we bring allergy cards. I made our own but you can buy some at selectwisely dot com.

You can only bring off commercially prepared food. We bring cereal bars, boxes of cereal, bottled water, hard candy etc.

Many ports will check. Some will do a physical search, others use dogs. You do not want the cute Labrador to sit next to you. I've had them alert on my Lemonheads.

 

Kids clubs have a form to fill out. There are some snacks served at times. The younger kids meet up at the dinner buffet certain nights. Ask the counselors what's on the menu.

 

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Thank you so much...glad I thought to do a search.  I didn't think Guy's had gf buns, it didn't show it online...only that their fries are and you could order it bunless.  I am super excited to try the French toast.  I was wondering about the pizza also...yay!  I have sailed many times, just never gluten free.  Thank you for all your info