Disney World is home to some of the very best dining experiences, and there are so many options you’re bound to find something you love and something you hate. Any blog post you’ll read will give you different opinions, but this is our take on the Best & Worst Disney World Restaurants.
In all of our trips to Disney World we’ve caught on very quickly on which is the best Disney World restaurants and which are the must avoids. These are just our experiences and you and your family will probably feel completely different. If you are traveling with little ones Character meals are a great way to met serval characters at once with still filling your little ones tummies-but if you’re traveling with older kids Character meals are really not that great. The food is usually not that great and you do not receive any more time with the characters than normal.
We’ve also found that may restaurants are starting to incorporate special dietary menu- keep in mind that this does not mean every restaurant will or that they will have your dietary needs in mind. I’m vegetarian and sometimes I have a hard time finding something to eat even at buffets or places with special menus, so make sure to check at restaurant’s menu before you make a reservation.
I like to get bad news out of the way first-
5 Worst places to Eat at Disney World
1. Cinderella’s Royal Table. It is a character meal in Magic Kingdom located -yup you guess it in Cinderella’s Castle. And while we enjoyed our experience, knowing what we know about it now we would not do it. It’s pricey and takes up 2 dining vouchers per person. The menu is a little lack luster and there were very few options- I think the only thing I could eat was some cornbread. They do have a vegetarian dish but I don’t (and can’t) eat tofu or any thing with soy substitute. So for our family it was not worth it and not very enjoyable because as a rule if someone in our family doesn’t get eat there we avoid it all together. It is a neat experience, so if you’re family doesn’t have hang-ups or you’ve got little ones it may be worth it for you and your family.
2. Brown Derby. It’s a geared toward sophistication and old Hollywood glamour which is why it’s the pricier place to eat in Hollywood Studios. The first few times we went were amazing but it’s become a bit run down and the service has gone down with it. They do not feature a special menu and unlike other restaurants they will not offer anything other than the menu. Aside from the limited selection they feature the prices are insane. It’s not a kid friendly location and it’s simply just no worth it.
3. Crystal Palace. It’s another character meal in Magic Kingdom. It’s a buffet style character meal that features Winnie the Pooh and other 100 Acre Forest friends. It’s probably cute and fun with little kids but for us it was just so-so. The food was not very impressive and the selections were not very good. The same issues with had with Cinderella’s Royal Table seemed to reappear and just like wth the Royal Table it’s probably better suited for smaller children too.
4. Via Napoli Ristorante e Pizzeria. This Italian Style Pizzeria is located in Epcot inside the World Showcase in Italy. We first went on our very first trip and loved it! It was so good and the service was amazing- so you’re probably wondering why it’s on the worst list if love it so much, huh? Well we loved it so much we went back time and time again but after the first visit it turned horrible. The food was not as good and the service was not great either. And because we loved it so much the first time we kept giving another chance but it was never the same. It was such a disappointment.
5. Satu’li Canteen. It’s the newest restaurant in Animal Kingdom. It’s the quick service dining experience in Pandora and it’s kinda weird. We will try just about anything once but I don’t consider our family to be overly adventurous eaters. And if you’re family is not adventurous it’s not for you. They do feature a few standard kids meal items but I don’t recommend it for families with smaller ones.
And now for the good news…
Related Links:
50 Tips to Make the Most of Your Walt Disney World Vacation
Walt Disney World Resorts: Which is the Best Choice for You?
21 Insanely Easy Ways to Save Money at Disney World
8 Best places to Eat at Disney World
1.Ohana. We LOVE Ohana, it’s probably one of our favorite places to eat breakfast in all of Disney World. It’s a Lilo and Stitch character meet with an all you can eat family style dining experience located at the Polynesian Resort. Some guest are not happy about the new arrangements because you used to have all the character come right to your table but now you have to meet Stitch before you go in and all the other character still come to your table. We personally don’t have a problem with it but for some reason some do, so keep that in mind when booking Ohana. We’ve only ever gone for breakfast but it’s always awesome and the service is always good. If you don’t eat anything else at Ohana you HAVE to have the Hawaiian Bread- it’s so so so good! I could go on and on about how good Ohana is but my advice is to just book a reservation and enjoy!
2.Yak and Yeti. It’s located in Animal Kingdom and it’s on of the best places to eat there! We especially loved eating there because they had so many vegetarian options, which can be hard to find at Disney World sometimes. It’s so good and they a couple of different options. You can either make a proper Yak and Yeti Restaurant or you can enjoy the Yak and Yeti Local Food Cafes or Quality Beverages. The Restaurant proper is a little pricer but the service is great, the food is better and the atmosphere is fantastic. If you do go you have to try the Vegetable Lo Mien, it’s so good you’ll want to turn vegetarian.
3.Prime Time Cafe. Located inside Hollywood Studios it will probably be the funniest meal of your life. Everything looks like it was picked out of a your grandma’s kitchen, it’s old school and classic and tacky and we LOVE it. The food is classic southern comfort foods like friend chicken and meatloaf- it’s just like being placed back in your childhood. They don’t have a special menu and while that’s been a negative for other restaurants that didn’t stop us from all having a good time. The Chef personally came to our table when I told the waiter I couldn’t eat off the menu and the Chef was so nice she offered to make me a special dish of all my favorite veggies and it was so good. It was probably one of the best dining experiences I’ve ever had anywhere! Oh and if you do go you should order A Sampling of Mom’s Favorite Recipes, it features the classics like pot roast, meatloaf and fired chicken. And make sure you put your cell phones away and keep your elbows off the table or you’ll get in some serious trouble!
4.Rose and Crown Dining Room. It’s located in the British section of the World Showcase at Epcot. It features classic British pub food like fish and chips and it’s delicious. Similar to the Yak and Yeti they also have a quick service that works out of the same kitchen. Everything from there is so good but if you’re going to order anything get the Fish and Chips – it’s a pub classic for a reason.
5. Sci-Fi Drive-in. Is inside of Hollywood Studios and a cool old school drive in set up. You get you’re own “car” and they play you old school Sci-Fi mini-flicks. It’s a fun experience and would totally recommend it.There’s a ton of yummy things on the menu – including insanely good cocktails. Our favorite thing to do there is order several appetizers, we love the classics like hot wings, onion rings and fried pickles.
6. Pizzerizzo’s This quick service joint in the back of Hollywood Studios is so much fun! You can grab a quick bite to eat with classics like Pizza, Subs, Salads, Sandwiches and more. It’s only open during lunch time, so take a few minutes to see the Muppet 3D show, then pop over for a bite of pizza. We love going up to eat on the upper level, where you’ll find a fun dance floor!
7. Be Our Guest The desserts alone are the main reason that this makes our favorites list. Even if you do nothing but go in during quick service lunch time & order a few different desserts, it’s fun to sit in the castle & enjoy a little down time. It’s kind of hectic, but well worth it. We’ve never had dinner there, but it is so much fun we’d love to try it soon!
8. Art Smith’s Homecoming Florida Kitchen Our very favorite restaurant on all of Disney property is over in Disney Springs, and it’s full of amazing down home cooking. We went there initially for dessert on a slow day when we spotted the Hummingbird cake on the menu… but quickly returned to eat there time and time again. We’ve had probably half of the menu by this point and have never once had a bad meal and the service is some of the best we’ve ever had at any restaurant.
Which one of the Disney World Restaurants is your favorite?
So glad I found this post. We are heading to WDW in October, so we are just now beginning to make dining reservations!
I love that your FAVE list is mine as well – except we’ve never been to Homecoming Florida Kitchen and will for sure be trying it next month when we visit. Not entirely sure how I stumbled on your blog… must have Googled something Disney or mobile home as both are my gigs as well. Fun reading, your blog!
Thank Susie, have a great trip and I am so happy you stumbled upon me 🙂
By the way, we’ve also really enjoyed Trattoria al Forno over at the Boardwalk. Outstanding service, a nice wine list, very good food. Give it a try when you’re next there!
Thank so much Susie, we will 🙂