Gluten Free

[dzorn]

Do anyone have experience ordering gluten free meals, not just at the resort but local restaurants? Are gluten free breads available at local grocery?

 

[marx]

I have Celiac Disease and have been to Aulani a few times. There are many gluten free options available on and off property. I picked up GF bread at Costco.

Google and Yelp are your friends for locating gluten free eats. If you search "Alexis gluten free AulanI" you'll find a blog with specific meal and restaurant suggestions.

 

[happymommy]

There is a small grocery store right by Target in Kapolei called Down To Earth; I’ve shopped there for my dairy and egg allergic son. I think that would be a good place to find some gluten free options for you, and it’s only a short drive from Ko Olina (like 5-10 minutes away).

 

[stephen101]

There seems a lot of options available for Gluten free food.

 

[herrmannpt]

We just got back from Aulani yesterday. My son has both gluten and dairy allergies and we have to be extremely careful with his foods. Although we had a wonderful trip, I was very disappointed by the safe food options for him, especially at the resort. We stayed in a 1 bedroom and cooked most of our own meals, which was very helpful. We were starving upon arrival and hadn't been to the grocery so we went to the Ulu Cafe. It was not a good experience. They did not have a dedicated fryer, so fries were completely out. They toast buns on the grill and basically only offered us a corner of the shared grill that they would clean off to make him a hamburger patty or chicken breast.

Makahiki was better. We spoke directly with Chef Gregg, who was very nice and helpful. We did eat breakfast and dinner there once each with good options for my son. They had some gluten free (but not dairy free) muffins at breakfast. My son was pretty much limited to a gluten free, vegan chocolate brownie for any bread or desert-like food at the restaurants. We did not eat at any restaurants off property.

We shopped for groceries both at Costco and Target. My son is pretty picky and will only eat White Udis bread. Target was out of stock and wouldn't get anymore in until the day before we left. They were also out of the Ians Chicken nuggets that he likes that are safe for him to eat. Hopefully you will have better luck with things being in stock! Shipments come less frequently in HI than stores on the mainland (for good reason since they are in the middle of the Pacific). It's not like gluten free foods are restocked daily. We ended up buying an air fryer and frozen fries. There was a rice cooker in the room, so we made rice for him. I also picked up some gluten free oatmeal and such. You may need to get creative.

 

[happymommy]

Wow so sorry about the challenges for your son getting gluten and dairy free options. I understand it can be so difficult to find safe foods for kids with allergies. Luckily my son loves sushi and lots of rice dishes (born on Oahu so raised on rice lol).

When I traveled with him as a young boy, I often packed half a suitcase with safe foods like rice mix, safe cereal, etc. Years ago, Target in Kapolei didn’t carry Earth Balance (dairy free butter type spread) but I found it at Down to Earth (for of course a couple dollars more than what I pay here). Also, I’d have safe snacks in my carry on, since it takes a whole day for us to get to Oahu from the east coast. Once in first class, the two meal choices were both unsafe (a pasta dish with cheese or a chicken dish with dairy), but the super flight attendants said coach had chicken teriyaki with rice. Happy kid got a meal.

I’d definitely pack some safe things.

Last trip I took just my kids and my niece, and we did Door Dash a bit. We got sushi party platters from Genki Sushi delivered, Sushi Bay delivered, and Pearl’s in Kapolei (Korean BBQ place). I’m pretty sure Pearl’s has many gluten free options (if soy sauce is safe though?). They loved the chicken and kalbi. Grilling meat and having a side of rice is often what we do too.