Whispering Canyon is a favorite among guests, and we revisit it often to check if it still delivers on the food and fun we’ve come to expect. When we saw the new Mickey-shaped scrambled eggs were making an appearance here — we had to check it out! We hope you’re in the mood for a rollickin’ good time with some equally good eats! We’re bringing you a BREAKFAST review from one of the loudest and most fun restaurants in Disney World.
Yup, we’re headed over to Disney’s Wilderness Lodge Resort to pay a visit to the hootin’ and hollerin’ locale of Whispering Canyon Cafe. This not-so-aptly named spot has a reputation for being a good time, but are those eats still worth the visit? We’re looking to cook up an answer for you.
Whispering Canyon is a fun and quirky restaurant located inside Disney’s Wilderness Lodge. This spot is well-known for servers who are DEDICATED to making you laugh, plus some seriously tasty all-you-care-to-enjoy skillet options. Plus, it’s got a Western theme; what more could you want?
While we’ve had hit-or-miss experiences at Wilderness Lodge, our most recent visits have been pretty darn exceptional. Will this time keep up the trend? Let’s find out!
Atmosphere
Whispering Canyon is renowned for its raucous hijinks like wooden pony races, massive straw drops, and tables overloaded with ketchup bottles. It is one of Disney’s dining options that put the fun front-and-center, and also provides some consistently tasty eats.
You’ll find the Whispering Canyon Cafe located just off of the main lobby area at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge. Head for the sign to get yourself all checked in.
Like we mentioned, the restaurant has a fun Western theme.
You’ll also still notice some health measures in place, such as plexiglass and social distancing markers.
Seating consists of standard tables and chairs or booths — all of which are socially distanced at this time.
As for the menu, you’ll spot a QR code available on your table that you can scan to access the online menu. Paper menus are available upon request.
They also provide a cloth napkin and set of utensils.
Butter and syrup are available on the table. That’s a good thing because you can DEF use some syrup with the breakfast options here!
Whispering Canyon has a well-earned reputation for providing a fun and engaging dining experience. The Cast Members delight in their playful hijinx with guests from special ketchup bottle deliveries to stick-horse races around the dining hall. Back in 2018, the rip-roaring good time was mellowed a bit to not disrupt other Wilderness Lodges guests in the lobby and lobby-facing rooms. When the restaurant reopened after the COVID closure, its antics were further mellowed to ensure guests and Cast Members followed health and safety measures.
During our visit, it still wasn’t up to its full-scale antics, but we had a delightful time with our server! Every time she visited our table she had a joke or jab for us. As much as we enjoyed her humor, we’re looking forward to when Whispering Canyon is back to its ol’ self, again!
But enough about the atmosphere, let’s talk about the food!
Eats
So, once we scanned that QR code, we were directed to the breakfast menu. Here you can spot a wide variety of options including all-you-care-to-enjoy signature skillets, omelettes and frittatas, and more!
You can order sides to accompany your meal, too. Choices include a House-made Buttermilk-Cheddar Biscuit, Blueberry Muffin, and more.
Kiddos will delight in the Mickey Waffles option for sure, but there’s also a full All-You-Care-to-Enjoy Breakfast Skillet for littles! Kids opting for the Breakfast Skillet will receive a child-portion of the adult options, but can always ask for extra of their favorites.
And drink options cover all of the bases with juice, coffee, and morning cocktails.
We, of course, couldn’t pass up on one of those all-you-care-to-enjoy signature skillets, so we opted to snag The Heritage for $22. Note that you can order more of whatever you’d like until you eat your fill, but the price is per person so no sharing. Our skillet is a single-portion serving, so if more in your party order the same, your portion sizes will be scaled to match the ordering party.
This platter is a serving of House-made Buttermilk-Cheddar Biscuits and Sausage Gravy, Mickey Waffles, Scrambled Eggs, Country Potatoes, Hickory-smoked Bacon, and Pork Sausage Links.
The Mickey Waffles were delicious as always. Seriously, who is going to hate on waffles shaped like Mickey?
They’re even better when they’re covered in syrup!
The Mickey-shaped scrambled eggs are SO MUCH FUN. You know the whole “everything tastes better Mickey-shaped?” Yeah. Totes true. Mickey-shaped eggs FTW. The eggs were cooked nicely as well and struck a good balance of moist and fluffy. They didn’t have a ton of flavor though. We needed the salt and pepper but picky eaters or kids might prefer the unseasoned serving! You might want to ask for extra of these if you don’t want to fight over them with your tablemates!
Note that we returned to Whispering Canyon Cafe a few weeks after this initial visit and the eggs were no longer being served with that Mickey shape for adults. Instead, our server shared that the Mickey-shaped eggs are only being served for kids now. So, that’s just something to keep in mind!
The sausage was very flavorful and salty. The bacon wasn’t nearly as crispy as we’d like, but it’s still bacon! The flavor was there and it made for a yummy bite.
The potatoes were cooked with sautéed onions and peppers, which added to the flavor of the side dish. But, the potatoes themselves were a little undercooked — they were barely fork tender.
As for the biscuits and gravy, they were DELICIOUS. The sausage gravy was salty and rich and paired PERFECTLY (like, just right) with the buttery and cheesiness of the biscuits. Whispering Canyon didn’t have to bring it so hard with their fluffy CHEDDAR biscuits, but they did. Fluffy and soft, cheesy, buttery — these biscuits rock.
We feel that the all-you-care-to-enjoy signature skillets still make this a destination worth visiting.
Our other entrée was the Ham and Cheese Omelette for $16.
Get ready for a nice portion of House-smoked Ham and Cheddar Cheese served with House-made Buttermilk-Cheddar Biscuits, Country Potatoes, and choice of Hickory-smoked Bacon, Pork Sausage Link, or Fruit.
The omelette was a really nice portion and it was FULL of cheese. Don’t worry, the ham chunks were definitely present too! This was another case where the seasoning was lacking as-is, but we had salt and pepper to add so it didn’t bother us too much.
The potatoes were the same as the ones served in the skillet, as were the sausage and the biscuit. We recommend grabbing a side of sausage gravy with this! The biscuits are delicious and fluffy on their own, but they’re NEXT LEVEL with that gravy. Proceed with caution: a side of this delicious gravy will set you back $6 and, for that additional cost, you might be better off just ordering the full skillet (with all-you-can-eat biscuits and gravy!). We love gravy, and we definitely love THIS gravy but for $6, you have to measure if YOUR love of gravy is worth $6 to you.
If you’re looking for something on the lighter side, these meals might not be for you. Still, we felt like BOTH the skillet and the omelette were a pretty good value for the price — especially if you plan on eating a lot!
During a separate visit a few weeks later, we grabbed some more items at Whispering Canyon Cafe! First, we opted for the Carnivore Skillet.
This skillet once again comes with those House-made Buttermilk-Cheddar Biscuits and Sausage Gravy which we talked about above.
The skillet also comes with the Hickory-smoked Bacon and Pork Sausage Links that are included in the Heritage skillet.
Again, during this more recent visit, the scrambled eggs (which are also included in the Carnivore skillet) were no longer Mickey-shaped. Instead, our server noted that the Mickey-shaped eggs are only being served to kids now.
While we missed the Mickey-shaped eggs, our reporter who had the Carnivore skillet said that these eggs might have actually been their favorite thing on the entire skillet! The eggs themselves were so fluffy and creamy. Our reporter said they were actually some of the best eggs they’ve had at Disney in a while!
What’s unique to this Carnivore skillet is that it features House-smoked Ham and Oak-smoked Beef Brisket. It’s also missing the Mickey Waffles and Country Potatoes from the Heritage Skillet.
The sauce and seasonings on the brisket were flavorful and delicious! The ham was good, especially when paired with the eggs. But, we do wish the ham would have had more of a smoky flavor. It tasted more just like a standard slice of ham, but again was good when paired with other items on the skillet.
The Carnivore skillet is priced at $22 per person.
During our recent visit, we also opted to grab the Belgian Waffle. This waffle is served with fresh berries and your choice of Hickory-smoked Bacon or a Pork Sausage Link.
The waffle wasn’t anything out of this world, but it was very tasty! Since we got the skillet in addition to the waffle, our server opted to swap our bacon or sausage choice for some fruit, which made for a nice accompaniment to the waffle.
Considering that you can get one of the all-you-care-to-eat skillets for $22, while this waffle alone is $14, the skillets offer a much better bang for your buck. If the Belgian Waffle was topped with more fruit or more items were offered on the side it might better justify its $14 price tag.
But, if you’re craving a Belgian Waffle and want to grab one here we will say it is very yummy!
We also got a Bloody Mary during our most recent trip. The menu notes that this item is made with Svedka Vodka and Bloody Mary Mix. Our server, however, asked if we wanted Svedka or Titos, and we opted for Titos.
If you plan on getting a Bloody Mary here and would prefer Titos be used in your drink, be sure to ask and see if that’s available. This Bloody Mary did taste like it came from a bottled mix, but it was pretty good. We wish there was something more exciting about this Bloody Mary, like a funky garnish or something to make it really unique.
This likely won’t be the best Bloody Mary you’ll ever drink in your life. But, if you’re at Whispering Canyon Cafe and craving a Bloody Mary, this one is pretty good!
You can get the Bloody Mary for $11.
So, should YOU stop by Whispering Canyon Cafe for breakfast?
Nosh or Not
You SHOULD eat breakfast at Whispering Canyon Cafe if…
- You have picky eaters. Most of these options are CLASSIC so they’ll likely be happy with the offerings here.
- You’re looking for a fun, casual atmosphere that still has a lot of character. We absolutely LOVE the Cast Members here. They help it to feel like a truly special meal.
- You’re staying at Wilderness Lodge and looking for a filling way to start your day. If you’ve got an EPCOT day or resort day in the plans, Whispering Canyon could be the perfect place to start.
You should SKIP breakfast at Whispering Canyon Cafe if…
- You’re looking for something light and quiet. Whispering Canyon is supposed to be a loud and fun time (the name is a part of the joke, if you didn’t figure that out!) and that it is. If you’re looking for a peaceful retreat for your breakfast, look elsewhere. Consider grabbing something to go from Roaring Fork and heading outside!
- You’re hoping for BIG flavors. Some items were pretty amazing flavor-wise, but most are on the more standard side. Consider dining away from the resort if you want something more flavorful and unique.
- You’ve been here before. There are a lot of amazing breakfast spots to try in Disney World. Whispering Canyon is fun, but once you’ve enjoyed a skillet once, consider trying your hat at something else!
Overall
We love eating at Whispering Canyon Cafe and the rustic ambiance of the Wilderness Lodge, in general. The Cast Members are hilarious. Our server brought us funny banter throughout the meal; we felt excited to see her headed for our table! We left our breakfast with full bellies and smiles from ear to ear!
Keep in mind that some of the fun hijinks of Whispering Canyon are still on pause, for health and safety reasons. Asking for the ketchup won’t result in the usual shenanigans and you won’t spot any horse races. Those aspects are on pause for the time being. If you’re looking forward to the more zany aspects of the meal, you may want to wait for their full return!
Still, people are absolutely hootin’ and hollerin’ to each other. The atmosphere is fun, the food is good, and Mickey-shaped breakfast items are hard to pass up for most Disney fans. (TWO Mickey-shaped foods on one skillet? Sign us up!)
A big benefit here is that this meal is a more accessible all-you-care-to-eat breakfast than some others. It’s not a character meal, so the prices are a little more reasonable than places like Chef Mickey’s and it’s not in a park so you can plan a visit without using park time (like you would need to at Garden Grill). The other bonus is that even with the toned-down antics, it’s still a fun atmosphere. Kids might enjoy it a little more than a visit to Boma (when it reopens) or Trail’s End!
Overall, Whispering Canyon Cafe is certainly a fun place to try. You’ll have food that’s great for picky eaters, and all-you-can-eat options. Still, the best part is the interaction from those Cast Members! We’ll certainly be back to check in on Whispering Canyon in the future, and as always, you can stay tuned to DFB for all the latest Disney reviews!
Click here to learn another experience we had at Whispering Canyon!
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Do you like to eat at Whispering Canyon Cafe? Tell us in the comments!
Ken says
In my book, the breakfast at the Canyon is one of the best on property. I like it better than Chef’ Mickeys.
Susan R Gerritsen says
It looked like there was some sort of a sauce on the brisket. Was it a mustard sauce? I can’t even stand the smell of mustard, so that would be a deal breaker for me and they’d have to take the whole thing away so I wouldn’t get nauseated. That’s definitely something that should be listed on the menu in case of allergies or picky eaters!
DFB Sarah says
Susan, it is dijon mustard. You’re always welcome to request ingredients lists or to speak to a chef.