Great meals make great memories. We all have a favorite family meal that we fondly remember being served at the family reunion, or for your childhood birthdays, or as a weekly Sunday supper. And many of us have memories of a wonderfully indulgent meal we had on vacation.
©Disney
We know you spend your time – and money – planning a Disney World trip, and the dining experiences can be a HUGE factor in your enjoyment, and in your memory making.
Today, we want to unveil some Disney World dining misconceptions – and address the people in the comments who keep repeating them.
“Food at Disney World is just overpriced theme park fare.”
It is absolutely true that you can find mediocre burgers, fries, and pizza at Disney World. But diverse, elevated dining experiences have also been part of the plan at Disney World from the very beginning! When the resort opened on Oct. 1, 1971, it included the Top of the World Restaurant (in the space we now know as California Grill) on the 15th floor of the Contemporary Resort.
The space now occupied by California Grill was a restaurant (with entertainment!) known as Top of the World when Walt Disney World opened in 1971.
At Top of the World, you could dine on Rose Petal Salad and Roast Duck with Orange Sauce, and see evening entertainment like singer Jack Jones and comedian Phyllis Diller. Across the Seven Seas Lagoon at Disney’s Polynesian Resort, you could enjoy a buffet including glazed pork ribs and coconut sticky rice while sipping tropical drinks and watching the Polynesian Revue dinner show right on the beach.
Today, there are more than 200 dining locations at Disney World, including 90 full-service restaurants. You can enjoy an African-inspired buffet at Boma, browse your way through an expansive wine list – more than 250 strong – at California Grill, try multi-course Japanese Omakase tasting menus at Takumi-Tei, and have an intimate, upscale tasting menu at Victoria & Albert’s – Disney World’s “culinary crown jewel.”
Victoria & Albert’s has been recognized by the Michelin Guide.
Yes, Disney parks are known for Mickey-shaped ice cream bars and caramel corn – but a commitment to quality and creativity runs through Disney World’s entire culinary scene.
“Vacations are spontaneous. There’s no need to make reservations.”
While we would love a world where we could walk right into any location without a crowd – an empty restaurant is often a sign that you’re not visiting a GREAT one. Disney World restaurants are IN DEMAND, and we don’t want you to miss out by just planning to “wing it.”
Reservations for Cinderella’s Royal Table go very quickly!
Know that dining reservations open up 60 days in advance – and that the most popular Disney World restaurants will book up on that 60th day out – sometimes within minutes! (Now, if you’ve already missed your window, we encourage you to keep checking, and checking, and checking … cancelations do happen, and last-minute tables DO open up. But the best way to save yourself some stress and guarantee your spot is to plan ahead, and be ready.
Our DFB Guide to Walt Disney World Dining exists to help you with this planning. With detailed reviews and photos of EVERY Disney World dining location, our guidebook is designed to help you set priorities, and determine which restaurants are going to meet your family’s needs – and most importantly make the best memories for your crew – in advance, so you can be ready to hop on those reservations.
You can find this amazing Chocolate Bar Dessert at Toledo!
What if you don’t want to eat a bunch of sit-down meals? (We would urge you to try a couple, but we will also tell you not to plan too many and use up all your park time!) There are still dozens of choices for fast food (“quick service” in Disney-ese), and if you want a simple burger and fries, you’ll find it easily. But what if we told you you could be eating hidden gems like the “Totchos” at Woody’s Lunch Box, the Seasoned Fries at Mr. Kamal’s, or a Breakfast Ronto Wrap from Ronto Roasters, instead? Because you CAN – if you know where to look.
Click here to order our Disney World Dining Guide — use code WDW2023 for 25% off!
“All Restaurants in Disney World are the Same”
This third misconception just couldn’t be farther from the truth. We’ve picked on burgers and fries today, but you’ll even find a HUGE variety in the most standard of foods. I mean, we LOVE a burger! But when you’re at Disney World, why would you get a plain one, when you could have the BBQ Burger at Regal Eagle Smokehouse – topped with pulled pork and onion ring, and served on (gulp!) garlic toast? Or how about the Kobe Beef Burger at Yak & Yeti – served with a shiitake mushroom and scallion compote? I doubt you could find MORE variety in cuisines per square foot anywhere else in the world!
Kobe Beef Burger
And with ALL that variety, and so many choices, the best way to navigate the dining scene and make informed decisions is by using the DFB Guide to Walt Disney World Dining. Sure, you can do all of the research yourself – I mean, we’ve spent more than 15 years doing it – but that’s why we wrote the book: To share everything we’ve learned, and save you the time and effort.
Click here to order our Disney World Dining Guide — use code WDW2023 for 25% off!
We want you to have a truly unforgettable trip to Walt Disney World. That’s literally why we do what we do – and incorporating those unique Disney dining experiences is one of the quickest routes to lasting family memories. Disney World is a great place to step out of your comfort zone and explore new culinary adventures, so let us hold your hand and guide you to take that plunge!
The 2023 DFB Guide to Dining in Disney World
Our guide includes three separate books:
- Plan 101 – Breaking down all of your planning into 5 easy-to-follow steps so that you don’t miss a thing!
- Reference Guide – Sharing all of the best-kept secrets to dine like a pro!
- Printable Resources – Giving you the exact format we use to plan our Disney World trips –with the worksheets you need to make dining reservations, plan your vacation budget, and much more!
Cinderella Castle
Check out the DFB Guide to Walt Disney World Dining for our detailed insights, tips, and recommendations. We can’t wait to help you get started planning your trip!
Click here to order our Disney World Dining Guide — use code WDW2023 for 25% off!
Great dining experiences take up a significant part of your Disney World vacation budget, and they are an important part of the memories you’ll take away from your next trip! Don’t let common Disney World dining misconceptions keep you from missing out on an amazing culinary adventure.
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WE KNOW DISNEY.
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To quote a favorite author of mine,
“Dear people,
Please remember to be a good human. We don’t need more bullies.
That’s all.
Love,
Person who’s sick of seeing people tear down others when you could just leave them alone if you don’t agree”
I actually agree with the points you make in your article. Your clickbait headline, however, is classic bullying. You’re better than this.
Sincerely,
Karen
(One who received her name from parents who thought it was a good name to have)
I ate at The Top of the World back in the 1970’s and I so miss it.