Our Top 5 Places to Eat at Disney World

Hello loyal readers! I wanted to use this post to share my top favourite places to eat while at Walt Disney World in Orlando Florida. There are so many great places to eat at Disney it was very hard to narrow the list down but here it is.

5. Cinderella’s Royal Table Disney’s Magic Kingdom: CRT was for a time the most popular restaurant at Magic Kingdom until the introduction of Be Our Guest, which I’m sure now surpasses it in popularity. To me this restaurant is all about the experience which is why it made the top 5 list. The food is ok, especially when compared to other locations in the top 5. However, the experience is one of those “once in a lifetime” style experiences. Eating a meal inside Cinderella’s castle which is the center piece attraction at Magic Kingdom is pretty amazing.

The experience starts with a PhotoPass photo with Cinderella herself at the entrance of the restaurant. After that you make your way up a winding staircase which leads to the main dining area. I don’t think I need to mention it but the entire restaurant is castle themed. CRT is very pricey, even on the dining plan. The cost for the dining plan is two table service credits per person. The meal includes one appetizer, one entrée and one desert per person. You will also be greeted at your tablet by Princesses Jasmin, Snow White, Aurora and Ariel. For the price the entrée portions where considerably smaller than most table service locations.

It is considered close to fine dining but the food just wasn’t our favourite. The girls really enjoyed the “build your own cupcake” dessert and the overall experience of being in the castle. Each of them got a little wand and a star souvenir as well to commemorate their visit. For us this was a one and done style adventure. I wouldn’t do it again but I really enjoyed the experience.

Emily and Keira meeting princess Jasmine at CRT

4. Chef Mickeys Disney Contemporary Resort: This Table Service Restaurant is a very fun experience for the entire family. It is one of Disney Worlds very many character theme dining experiences. Chef Mickeys is located at Disney’s Contemporary Resort and is about a 5-minute walk from the entrance of Magic Kingdom. We took the opportunity to ride the monorail from Magic Kingdom to the resort which was really cool because it goes right into the middle of the resort. Once you enter Chef Mickeys and check in we had the opportunity to do a PhotoPass opportunity with a chef mickey statue.

The actual dining area isn’t heavily themed like some of the other character restaurants but it matches the whole feel of the contemporary resort. We booked our reservation during Brunch time which runs from 11:30AM to 2:30PM. The characters are all dressed in chef attire and you’ll get to meet Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, Donald Duck and Goofy. They will eat make a stop at your table and give you the opportunity to take photos and of course sign you autograph books.

The buffet style food was good and there is a good mixture of breakfast and lunch foods available. As always the Mickey head waffles are really good and they have them setup to make them into yummy dessert. If you have kids who want to do character experiences this one is a must as the food is good, the characters are classic and the whole experience overall is really fun. It didn’t feel as rushed as some of the other tablet service restaurants especially those that are character themed.

The other good thing about this one is unlike Crystal Palace the characters don’t take an hour or more to make their way around the room. Those of use using the Disney Dining Plan will give up one table service credit. I should also mention you’ll want to book this restaurant using the ADR system (booking 180 days out from your trip). Chef Mickey’s is quite popular and therefor can be very difficult to book.

Chef Mickey's in Disney's Contemporary Resort. Photo Courtesy of Walt Disney World Resort.

The girls giving Pluto some love at Chef Mickey's

3. Pecos Bill Tall Tale Inn & Café Disney’s Magic Kingdom: Located in Fronteirland this hidden gem is a very good Quick Service option when spending the day at Magic Kingdom. Before going to Disney I had actually never really heard of Pecos Bill’s before. My wife was pregnant at the time and had a massive craving for tacos and burritos. So I opened up google and started searching for the best Mexican food options at Disney World. I totally thought I would have to make her wait until we went to Epcot. However, to my surprise we stumbled across Pecos Bill.

The inside is old west and Mexican themed and has tons of seating. Even on the busiest days we’ve been able to find seating for our family of five. Over our many visits here we’ve ordered a variety of items but our favourite is the Beef Nachos. Two orders can easily fill up 4 hungry bellies. The nachos come covered in beef and nothing else as (and this is the best part) the other ingredients for your toppings are self serve. You can choose generous portions of sour cream, salsa, guacamole, cheese, etc. Whether you’re on the dining plan and paying out of pocket this place is a great bang for your buck as again the portion sizes are pretty hefty especially since you can stack on your own ingredients and one meal can easily be shared with two people.

This restaurant is super quick as well. I’ve been lined out the door and been loading ingredients on my food within 15 minutes. I recommended checking this place out if you haven’t already had the chance. If you’re on the Disney Dining Plan this restaurant will use one quick service credit

2. Sci-Fi Diner Disney’s Hollywood Studios: My wife has booked this Table Service restaurant every time she has gone to Disney and every time for whatever reason she has cancelled it last minute. Last year she made me add it to our list and swore we where doing it this time for sure. Well we finally did it and it was a really fun experience. Everyone in our party really enjoyed the atmosphere of the drive in movie. The kids especially enjoyed the black and white movies, especially our 13-month old who was increasingly grump before we sat down.

The little short movies seemed to really entertain her and some random ones really made her giggle. My wife and I both decided on the Drive-in BBQ Burger. I mean BBQ, bacon, crispy fried jalapenos with cheese….how can you go wrong. The burger was amazing, the meat was seasoned really well, the BBQ sauce was delicious and the jalapenos added a nice healthy amount of spice to the burger. I love hamburgers and I’m very picky with what I call a “good burger”. Nothing really beats a handmade burger at home. Not until I had this burger. It was so good that I would recommended this restaurant on that one menu item alone.

Definitely worth the cost of a Table Service credit! Sci-Fi Diner is very popular so much like Chef Mickeys make sure when you’re doing your ADR that you book as one of your top choices if you really want to try this restaurant out.

Sci-Fi Diner in Disney's Hollywood Studios. Photo Courtesy of Walt Disney World Resort.

1. Satu’li Canteen at Disney’s Animal Kingdom: I wasn’t quite sure about this place when I first added it to our list of places to try last November but I had read so many good things I thought it might be worth it to give it a try. This Quick Service restaurant is located in the Pandora section of Animal Kingdom. The inside décor fits the theme of Avatar and is very cool inside and out. We went inside and the line looked pretty long but the cast members moved us along is true Disney fashion and we got to the counter to order our food very quickly.

My wife and I chose the build your own bowl with grilled beef and chicken. I paired my meat with the mixed whole grain & rice as well as creamy herb dressing. The meat was quite tender, so juicy and very well seasoned. The portion size was more than enough and it was honestly so good I could have ordered a second bowl! The kids ordered the cheeseburger steamed pod and the Teylu hotdog wrapped in dough and really loved their meals. We each split a Blueberry Cream Cheese Mousse…honestly my wife will tell you I’m the worlds pickiest eater. I don’t like much in the way of fruit, especially blueberries. This dessert however, was phenomenal! I highly recommend this restaurant and its definitely a must if you’re visiting Animal Kingdom.

If you’re using the Disney Dining Plan this location will cost you one quick service credit.

Make sure to check out my post about Disney's Free Dining promotion and i'll make sure to post more information about the Dining Plan in general.