Boma: Flavors of Africa -- Breakfast -- Table Service -- Animal Kingdom Lodge

*This dining experience took place in May 2015.Boma: Flavors of Africa has long been regarded as one of the best buffets at Disney World, and they are well-known for their delicious brunch. In fact, the Disney Food Blog ranked high on their, "The Best Thing I Ever Ate at Disney: Breakfast" list. While the options featured on the Disney Food Blog aren't exactly gluten free and dairy free friendly, there are tons of special diets friendly meal offerings at Boma brunch, which is one of the many reasons it's my personal favorite breakfast buffet on Disney property. Alexis from Gluten Free in Orlando also enjoys this buffet breakfast, and you can read about her previous visits, including the gluten free Bananas Foster & Pecan Praline Mickey waffles, on her blog. On this particular occasion, my visit to Boma was a special request from my mom. We were celebrating Mother's Day, and this was her pick for brunch. My entire family loves Boma because the food is so delicious and the offerings are different than a typical breakfast buffet (though you will find a lot of common brunch options available).Usually when I dine at Boma, I see Chef Frank, Chef Chris, or Chef Vickie but on this visit Chef Norma helped me out. She was just as terrific as the other Boma chefs and really went above and beyond to make my breakfast delicious and safe. Typically, the chefs will walk the buffet line with you, pointing out safe items for your special dietary needs. Of course, it is a buffet, so cross-contamination is always a potential risk. The culinary team is terrific at bringing items from the back for you. On this visit, a good portion of my food came from the back to avoid cross-contamination. I usually get the carved meats and grilled items from the buffet but ask for the rest from the back. That includes omelets and allergy Mickey waffles. First up was the carving and grill station. Both the carved turkey and ham on the breakfast buffet are safe to consume and oh so delicious. Their ham is probably my most favorite on property. I also love the grilled tomatoes, grilled asparagus (which was insanely good on this visit), chakalaka (stewed tomatoes and peppers), and pap (which is now completely dairy free, only using water to make it). The breakfast meats on the buffet (sausage and bacon) are also gluten free and dairy free. Chef Norma mentioned that the tater tots are gluten free and dairy free but are placed directly next to the bread pudding and offered to bring me fresh tater tots from the back. I have to say that I loved the seasoning on the tots. The African spices along with the fried tots was the perfect combination. Ever since Chef Frank introduced me to the banana walnut gluten free and dairy free Mickey waffles, I've been hooked. Made with banana chips and toasted walnuts and piping hot real maple syrup, these are easily my favorite thing about Boma brunch. This time, I restrained myself and only ordered two. Chef Normal also brought out an Udi's blueberry muffin and some Enjoy Life Cookies. They also still have Kinnikinnick donuts on hand, and I should have asked for one. I haven't had them in ages, and they are always a delicious breakfast treat. Of course, I did not go hungry at this breakfast by any means. I also got a ham and onion omelet. I get this every time I go to Boma (for like 5+ years). I love the diced ham they have here and the finely chopped onions. Best omelets EVER! Another staple is the hot quinoa. I was told by Chef Normal that they oatmeal they use is now gluten free, but she wasn't able to tell me the brand (I know that Bob's Red Mill and Ancient Harvest are currently being used on property, as of this post). And lastly (as if I hadn't eaten enough at this point), I had fresh pineapple. This is another must-do when I dine at Boma. I get it every time, and I swear there pineapple is some of the best.  Overall, I can't say enough good things about Boma. It really is one of my Disney must-do's! I usually visit several times a year because it's just that good. If you are more of a dinner person, they also have a wonderful dinner buffet as well. Have you been to Boma? Which do you prefer -- breakfast or dinner? 

Boma -- Breakfast -- Table Service -- Animal Kingdom Lodge Jambo House

*This dining experience took place in August 2014.Boma: Flavors of Africa, located in Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge - Jambo House, is one of my favorite places for brunch on property. It's reasonably priced breakfast buffet and unique offerings make it a good value and a great dining experience. Adding to this, the restaurant is terrific at accommodating guests with special dietary needs and makes dining at a buffet meal much less stressful (and delicious!).Boma serves both breakfast and dinner, but breakfast is by far my favorite of the two meal offerings. You can read gluten free dinner reviews from my friend Alexis at Gluten Free in Orlando who is a big fan of dinner at Boma! The day before, I had dined at the Mara and was greeted by Chef Frank who mentioned he would be at Boma the next morning. And sure enough, Chef Frank was there to go through the options with me. Before we made our rounds through the buffet, our server also brought along some Jungle Juice (combination of passion fruit, guava, and orange juices) and unsweetened ice tea. Perfect way to start the morning! Once I had some caffeine flowing, Chef Frank and I toured the breakfast buffet. From carved meat to hot quinoa cereal, there are plenty of off the buffet items that I can enjoy. They will also bring many of these items from the back if you ask. I also opted for a custom made omelet (my favorite at Boma), some allergy Mickey waffles, and various breakfast pastries. Let's just say that I did not go hungry at this meal. First up were my offerings from the buffet. I always get the carved turkey and carved ham from the carving station. The sambal chili sauce is safe but their Boma mustard is not (it contains soy sauce). I also grabbed my favorite grilled asparagus which is smoky and hearty and my hands down favorite breakfast item at Boma. Some other offerings included the pap (similar to grits), chakalaka (stewed tomatoes), and tater tots. I must say that I did miss the Boma breakfast potatoes that they usually have present. Tater tots are OK but Boma breakfast potatoes are amazing! Hot quinoa is another Boma favorite, and I get it with brown sugar and raisins. If you are concerned about cross contamination (hot oats are nearby which are not certified gluten free), I recommend asking for the toppings from the back. Fruit at Boma is a must. I don't know what it is about Boma but they always have amazingly fresh fruit. I learned from Gluten Free in Orlando that Boma has bananas foster version of their allergy Mickey waffles. Of course, that means lots of dairy but that didn't stop Chef Frank from coming up with a terrific version that was different and unique. He made allergy Mickey waffles and served them with dried bananas and walnuts (on the side) and hot real maple syrup.  All I have to say is "WOW!" Super delicious. I love allergy Mickey waffles, and these were cooked to perfection. Add in warmed maple syrup and the fruit & nut topping, well, let's just say it was more than divine! I started to eat my other meal offerings first but Chef Frank made sure to encourage me to eat the waffles first while they were piping hot. Good call! (and yes, I ate every last bite of them)In addition to my regular buffet plate, Chef Frank also brought me an omelet made with ham and onion (my go-to Boma combination). This was a great protein boost post the sugar coma that was my allergy Mickey waffle plate (so worth it).  To add to all of the deliciousness, Chef Frank also brought me out a bounty of breakfast pastries that included Kinnikinnick donuts, Udi's muffins, and Enjoy Life cookies. Thankfully, he suggested that I get a to-go bag for them to take them back to my room or in the park as a snack. Typically, you cannot take to-go items from a buffet, but as a special diets diner, they will often allow you to take special diets products with you. I definitely enjoyed these later down the road as a snack!As you can tell, I did not leave Boma hungry. In fact, it's a great brunch spot that will fill you up for most of the day. The food is always terrific for breakfast, and I love how many options I have available to me. Chef Frank really went above and beyond to make my dining experience great, and the food he prepared was stellar. The allergy Mickey waffles were crisp and delicious and some of the best I've ever had on property! Overall, Boma continues to remain one of my top breakfast choices at Disney and my favorite breakfast buffet. I am looking forward to dining here again soon! (maybe for the Jingle Jungle 5K post-race meal). I give this a solid 9 out of 10. Those allergy Mickey waffles with dried bananas and walnuts blew me away! Have you been to Boma for breakfast? What is your favorite buffet item?

Boma: Flavors of Africa -- Dinner -- Table Service -- Animal Kingdom Lodge Jambo House

*This dining experience took place in July 2014.Boma: Flavors of Africa has consistently been one of my most favorite places to have brunch on Disney property. Their breakfast is outstanding, and I absolutely adore the African inspired food served at this location. However, it's been several years since I've dined at Boma for dinner. My friend Alexis from Gluten Free in Orlando along with some other friends have raved about dinner at Boma, and since it's been so long I knew I needed to go again soon. And as luck would have it, I got an invite to have dinner with a friend at Boma recently, and I was so excited to go check it out.Both my friend and I are gluten free and dairy free. I have to admit, I dine out a lot with gluten free folks but having another GFDF person to dine with is kind of nice! I also don't remember the last time I dined at a buffet with another special diets person, so I loved getting to walk the buffet with a fellow special diets diner.When were seated our server took our drink orders and shortly thereafter the chef came out to greet us. Chef Brian was very nice and told us we were going to have some fun with dinner and that we'd have plenty to eat. He took us around the buffet which is set-up in an almost identical fashion to breakfast. There are pods that have certain "themes" to them (i.e. kids section, meat section, fruit section, etc.).In the first pod, we could have the Chakalaka (also on the breakfast menu) and basmati rice. From there, we went to the carving station which included a sirloin and beef short ribs. The ribs are only served on a few nights a week - one of them being Saturday (which was the night we visited). The chef also let us know what sauces were safe or not.Moving on to the next pod, we could have Durban chicken. In the next bay, the kiddos section, we could have the chicken legs. For the veggies, we could have the broccolini as well as succotash. The chef also mentioned that we could have the peanut rice, but Alexis from Gluten Free in Orlando had warned that it may contain soy sauce in it. I forgot to follow-up with him on the ingredients but ended up passing on eating it. There were also salads, fruit, and hummus that we could all. For the salads and hummus, Chef Brian brought us some from the back.One thing that I had been looking forward to (and hoping) to try was the FuFu. It's a mix of sweet potatoes and regular potatoes and I heard was amazing. Unfortunately, it contains butter, so it wasn't safe for us dairy free folks but it is gluten free. I asked if there was any chance we could have some made for us dairy free but with the busy restaurant, they weren't able to accommodate this meal. However, Chef Brian told me to ask in advance and they could probably make it happen. He also gave us the recipe for FuFu to recreate it at home (and dairy free!).I have to say, Boma really is full of flavor. The first thing I dove into was the sausage and lentil soup. There were two soups that were gluten free and dairy free that night - this one and the vegetarian lentil soup which was also vegan. I didn't get a chance to try the vegan soup but this one was very flavorful. It was hearty and rich, and although I sometimes have a bit of problems with sausage (it's a bit of a Crohn's trigger for me), this one was fairly mild and very tasty.The salads provided interesting textures and flavors. My favorite by far was the chicken and cilantro salad. I love cilantro, though I will say that if you are adverse to cilantro, you might like this version. It was very mild! The lentil salad with hearts of palm was just OK, in my opinion. The lentils were very "crunchy" in terms of texture though I liked the balsamic dressing on it.  And then of course, there was the hummus. You know me. Total condiment queen! And a hummus addict to boot. I am mildly addicted to the roasted red pepper hummus from Sanaa, so I was looking forward to Boma's version. I have to say, Sanaa's version is still my favorite but the one from Boma was pretty great too. The kalamata olive hummus was outstanding. I basically had to make sure they took the plate away because I kept eating it and eating it. For the main entrees, I loved the Durban chicken. This was hands down my favorite thing. Super flavorful, well cooked and just delicious. No dry boring chicken here! I also really enjoyed the short ribs. Who knew?! I usually avoid beef, but I thought I'd try these as they had been slow cooked. The sauce was really good, and I'd love to see a pork version of these ribs. That would be amazing. The broccolini was also quite nice as an accompaniment. I liked the spices in it a lot! I think the only things I missed from breakfast were the turkey and ham at the carving stations and the grilled asparagus. Those are my Boma weaknesses! There's no way I can leave Boma without getting fruit. There is something about the pineapple they serve here. It's just so fresh and ripe. It's the best!  As gluten free and dairy free diners, our dessert choices were a bit more limited than gluten free diners. We could choose from Tofutti and Rice Dream, Enjoy Life Cookies and Babycakes mini brownie cupcakes. Both my friend and I are never ones to turn down Babycakes, so we opted to share a plate of the mini brownie cupcakes. You can also get Babycakes cupcakes at the Mara too! To say we were both full was an understatement!  Overall, I was really pleased with my dinner at Boma. It was filling and flavorful! Add in having wonderful company, and that's my idea of a great evening out at Disney. I would give this meal a solid 7.5 out of 10. The only points off for me were the lack of more gluten free and dairy free items, but it's a treasure trove for gluten free only guests! I'm looking forward to going back again soon! Of course, now I want to go to brunch too! Have you been to Boma? What were your favorite buffet items?