The last of my good culinary adventures in Walt Disney World take us to Hollywood Studios, and Animal Kingdom park and lodge. My journey of deliciousness ends with these last four destinations. Both Animal Kingdom (park) and Hollywood Studios lack dining options, in my opinion, compared to Epcot and Magic Kingdom. Selections aren’t as varied or available as the other parks, however, I was able to dine at two great spots this trip.
50’s Prime Time Café, Disney’s Hollywood Studios – If you haven’t eaten here yet, get yourself a reservation now! We absolutely adore everything about this place! The food, the setting, the servers, the theme – it’s Disney at its best. If you’re not familiar with this place, it looks like it stepped right out of the 1950s. Many tables have TVs on them tuned into classic black and white shows. The servers could be your cousin, aunt or uncle. Our 12 year old loved the attention as he was nicknamed “Skipper” the whole time and yelled out for texting at the dinner table (rightfully so)! You’re in mom’s kitchen and you’re going to eat mom’s classics like pot roast, meat loaf and fried chicken. We started with a fried goat cheese appetizer that was ooey gooey goodness. I’ve been here before and knew I wanted that fried chicken again. And it was great, perfectly fried, not too greasy, and served with veggies and yummy mashed potatoes. My other half got Mom’s Sample Platter which contained fried chicken, meat loaf and pot roast, all very yummy, if you like that kind of rib-sticking home cooking. For dessert, your server hands you a Viewmaster (if you know what this is, you are a child of the 80s like me). Here you can see pics of the desserts. For my usual I ordered the S’mores – how can you go wrong with this awesomeness? Overall one of our favorite experiences! Rating A+
Flame Tree BBQ, Animal Kingdom – Dining is limited in Animal Kingdom, but you can count on Flame Tree BBQ for delicious counter service in a beautiful setting. Here you will find ribs, roast chicken and pulled pork sandwiches, all deliciously seasoned and cooked, all served with baked beans and coleslaw. They also offer a great salad. Seating is all outdoors and multi-level. It’s a great place to get away from the hustle and bustle and sit down to enjoy a meal surrounded by the beautiful scenery. Rating A-
Dining at Animal Kingdom Lodge
Since we were staying at Kidani we chose to eat at two of the four dining options we had this trip, both repeat visits for me, both worth going back to again and again.
The Mara at Animal Kingdom Lodge – Mara is the only quick service eatery on-site at Animal Kingdom Lodge (Jambo House) and Kidani Village. I’ve eaten here before when I stayed at Jambo House several years ago. We ate breakfast and lunch here a handful of times and would have eaten here more if not for the long walk from Kidani Village (which lacks a quick service restaurant). They have your standard breakfast fare here but you can also find some African specialties, including: a breakfast platter featuring Merguez sausage, pap (i.e. polenta), and chakalaka (spicy, stewed tomatoes), and a Bobotie platter, a traditional dish with seasoned ground meat and an egg custard on top. You can also find the popular Mickey waffles here (which are delicious) and eggs. For lunch you can find burgers and nuggets but try the Vegetable Flatbread featuring an olive tapenade, four cheeses, artichoke hearts, roasted red peppers, caramelized onions and arugula – a veggie lover’s best friend. If you can’t make it to Boma, you can find the famous Zebra Domes (a delicious Kahula and chocolate mousse bite size dessert) here as well to go! Rating = A-
Boma at Animal Kingdom Lodge – one of the standouts of our trip was our last supper. We headed over to Boma as we waited for the dreaded Magical Express to cart us over to the airport. Boma is an African-themed buffet restaurant serving breakfast, lunch and dinner. It probably has some of the most unique offerings in all of WDW. Here’s your chance to try such interesting finds as watermelon rind salad, fufu (sweet potatoes), kool slaai (coleslaw), interesting spice rubs for meats, and a large assortment of various desserts. Don’t be scared by the African food if you are not an adventurous eater, it is very mild and wonderfully delicious. As always you can find food for the cautious eater, i.e. roast chicken, pasta, soups. If you get there when they open you will be treated to the servers performing a musical routine featuring drums and singing. Rating = A+
And that, my friends, is the end of my “good” (mostly great) dining experiences. If you’ve been following the series you will see that there were many great restaurants, which I believe holds true for WDW. They have some awesome restaurants in the parks and at the resorts which really add to your trip. For our next adventure I will detail a few of my not-so-bad experiences and end with our “ugly” ones (it’s only a few!) Mangia!
View more articles from The Good, the Not-so-Bad and the Ugly Dining Series by Danielle:
Part One: Introduction
Part Two: The Good (at Magic Kingdom)
Part Three: More Good (at EPCOT)
Part Four: The Rest of the Good
Part Five: Not-so Bad…
Part Five: Not-so Bad…
Part Six: More Not-so-Bad and the Ugly
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