I'm Going To Dollywood

I'm Going To Dollywood Rate Topic:

#1 Tim-n-VA

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Posted 28 July 2009 - 03:17 AM

Next week I'll be in Pigeon Forge, TN, Asheville, NC and Salisbury, NC. Any restaurant suggestions in those areas?

In Asheville our primary stop will be the Biltmore house, Salisbury will be for a wedding. You'll have to ask my wife why we are going to Dollywood.

Note: I did search for Pigeon Forge and found a few threads that were about three years old.

#2 Jestgar

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Posted 28 July 2009 - 04:18 AM

gluten stuff aside, let us know what Dollywood is like.

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#3 LDJofDenver

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Posted 29 July 2009 - 11:14 AM

Here is a link to Gluten Intolerant Group of North America's page with 4 restaurants in Asheville.

http://www.glutenfreerestaurants.org/adv_s...p;submit=Search

You might contact Dollywood in advance and see what accommodations they can make for gluten-free diet.

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#4 Tim-n-VA

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Posted 29 July 2009 - 12:54 PM

LDJofDenver, on Jul 29 2009, 03:14 PM, said:

You might contact Dollywood in advance and see what accommodations they can make for gluten-free diet.

Thanks for the suggestion. I went to their site trying to find a contact and found a link that I'd missed before. It isn't a large list but they have a few gluten free options:

http://hfeimages.ari...ietaryNeeds.pdf

#5 Tim-n-VA

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Posted 09 August 2009 - 01:12 PM

I survived the trip without getting sick but I really can't recommend Dollywood or the Pigeon Forge area for gluten-free dining. Based on the menu list at the link above, I planned for my lunch in Dollywood. When lunch time came, we discovered that that particular food concession was taking the day off. I had left the list in the car and guest services wasn't in a convenient location at that point. I could have made other choices I guess but I ended up opting for soft drinks and popcorn for the day and we left early to get a "safe" meal.

One of the other attractions, owned by the same company is the "Dixie Stampede". It is a dinner and show. We asked at the information desk and was assured they could provide a gluten-free meal. They did but they did it by putting food in front of me and then saying "sorry, don't eat that", giving me an unseasoned potato, corn-on-the-cob and roasted chicken and then giving my wife two desserts to make up for me not getting one.

In answer to the question about what Dollywood is like, it seemed like a better than average theme park. Many of the shows have a country theme, but our favorite had music from the 50's and 60's.

I ate at several buffets that I didn't fully trust but tried to be careful about what I selected and tried to get there early to minimize other customers mixing up the serving utensils, etc. I ate more baked potatoes from Wendy's than is good for my diabetes.

Bookending the tourist stuff I got to take niece and her children to a play and attended a nephew's wedding.