It’s no secret. I love Liberty Tree Tavern. It has one of my favorite burgers, one of my favorite appetizers, and one of my favorite desserts in all of Disney World. The food is great, the service is excellent, and the atmosphere of the restaurant is delightful.

But there is a design aspect of the restaurant that is extremely compelling and that many visitors miss: each room is decorated to honor someone who was instrumental in the creation of The United States of America! The next time you head to Liberty Tree Tavern, ask your “town crier” about the particular room in which you’re being seated. Is it the one dedicated to Betsy Ross, George & Martha Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, John Paul Jones, or Paul Revere?

Atmosphere
Liberty Tree Tavern is located in Liberty Square in Disney World’s Magic Kingdom. The building is white and columned on the outside, but full of rich Revolutionary decor on the inside. Once you’ve left your name with the front podium, you’ll wait in a huge, two-story lobby full of spindly seating, a massive cooking fireplace focal point, spice racks, and kitchen tools. Don’t forget to take a look at the themed chandelier above, and take a look around for the hidden Mickey!

Soon, one of the “town criers” will announce that a table is ready for your family: “Announcing the Smith Family of Wisconsin!” 🙂 As you walk to your table, take a few moments to check out the detail of wall hangings, tables and chairs, paintings and artwork, and the styles of each room. As is the standard with Disney, everything you see has been chosen to expertly place you into the specific setting and age of the “show” you’re seeing. In this case — the late 18th century American Colonies.

The color and decor in the George and Martha Washington room are period-specific; the tri-corner hat and coat hanging next to the “front door” are what you’d see if you were dining in a noble colonist’s house; the kite on the ceiling in the Benjamin Franklin room is unmistakable.

My one major beef with this place is the restrooms. They’re upstairs, and incredibly small and tight. I’m not at all sure where this design came from. Also, here’s a question I have about a well-known piece of trivia: On the Keys to the Kingdom Tour, several guides tell guests that the restrooms in the Columbia Harbour House are “technically” located in Fantasyland — there was no running water in colonial times and having them in Liberty Square would be unrealistic for “show” purposes. So, where are the restrooms in Liberty Tree Tavern? Frontierland? Just askin’…

Eats
As I’ve said many times, Liberty Tree Tavern is one of our “every trip” restaurants. In fact, my husband is very serious about our tradition that this is the first place we eat after we get off the plane in Orlando. It’s a consistently good restaurant — both in food quality, and service — and we’ve never had a bad meal here.

We usually visit for lunch, when the restaurant has an a la carte menu. But the evening meal — an all-you-care-to-eat, family-style menu of turkey, pork, roast beef, mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, dressing, and more — is delicious as well. In fact, it’s the perfect place for Thanksgiving! (As a reminder, although Liberty Tree Tavern used to be a Character Dinner, and briefly brought the characters back earlier in 2010 during the Crystal Palace refurbishment, there are currently no characters appearing at the restaurant.)

Here are some of our favorite items from Liberty Tree Tavern:
The Tavern Fried Cheese is a favorite of ours mostly because it includes fried cheese curds. These mini-nuggets of cheese are some of the most flavorful fried treats I’ve tasted, and I’m strongly considering begging for a whole plate of them on my next trip to the Tavern.

This Clam Chowder is tied for first place with the ESPN Club on the Boardwalk!

You’ll get your drinks in these cool Tavern mugs…I have a feeling you can buy these…

The Pot Roast is a favorite of the husband’s. While the dish used to include crispy onion strands (making it about 20 bazillion times better), it still stands well as a hearty and flavorful menu item. However the loss of the onion strands might push my husband to order the burger…

This burger is outstanding. I know I have fellow fans out there who can corroborate! You can get yours with the garden on top; I’m just a bacon and cheese girl. You can also order it with swiss and mushrooms — yum!

We also sampled one of the newest items on the menu on a recent trip — the Chicken and Dumplings. These are MUCH spicier and more peppery than you’d imagine, and have the taste and feel of a very hearty chicken noodle soup. Perfect for a colder day in the World.

And dessert for us always consists of one (and sometimes two!) Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake(s). If these come frozen off of a Sysco truck, don’t tell me. I love to pretend they’re truly home made!

Now, if you’re at the Tavern for dinner, this is the heaping pile of goodies you’ll find on your table: turkey, pork loin, roast beef, veggies, mashed taters, mac and cheese, gravy, stuffing…

And the delectable Apple Crisp (or another fruit laden dish) for dessert!

As you can see, the Liberty Tree Tavern serves hearty, casual American fare, but don’t let the simplicity fool you. This is some great food, tastes home made without you having to cook it, and comes with some of the best service and greatest cast members on property.

Final Thoughts
Just a few more quick tips if you’re thinking about dining at Liberty Tree Tavern:

• It’s a great place to book a dinner if you’re in the park for a special event like Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party or Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party. Because you pay extra for those events, you don’t want to spend half your time eating a meal. Instead, book a meal at the Tavern at around 5:00pm. By the time the party officially begins at 7:00pm, you’ll be ready to roll!
• Also, this is a great place to eat right before a parade. When you’re done, just head outside and you’re already on the parade route! However, don’t plan on watching the parade from a window table — the glass in the windows is colonial glass remember? It’s a bit warped and doesn’t give the best view.

Have you been to Liberty Tree Tavern? What are your great stories or your favorite dishes from the restaurant?

Photo Credit for Dinner Meal: C Relacion