Some of the best food in Disney World can actually be found OUTSIDE the parks.

The Disney World hotels are known for having some pretty spectacular restaurants, but there are also dozens of delicious dining options in Disney Springs — from snack stands to quick service to sit-down meals. Recently, I stopped by one of the shopping and dining complex’s most well-known restaurants…and I’m here to bring you my full review!

Atmosphere

For this review, I’m taking you along to Planet Hollywood in Disney Springs! This sit-down spot serves American cuisine and has a very unique theme.

When you first step inside Planet Hollywood, you’ll be greeted by one of the two gift shops. They have a variety of t-shirts and other basic souvenirs.

From there, you’ll need to head upstairs to get to the dining area. But along the way, you’ll pass some things of interest!

The staircase and walkway to the dining room are lined with display cases of costumes and props from iconic movies. They’ve got everything from action to comedy to superhero to romance films represented here!

Any 27 Dresses fans out there? They’ve got the film’s iconic dress on display!

And right before you reach the host’s stand, you’ll find the second gift shop! (Because, ya know, one gift shop per restaurant just isn’t enough!)

Finally, it’s time to head to the dining area! On the main floor, the dining space is filled with tables, booths, and lots of TV screens. Those smaller screens will coordinate with the restaurant’s large screen.

This is one of the restaurants in Disney Springs with the most seating — during my visit, they didn’t even need to open the upper floors of the restaurant, and I had lots of room at the tables around me.

Speaking of those upper floors, there are three floors in total! You can visit the upper floors even if you’re not dining up there, and each floor has its own theme — terra, lunar, and galaxy.

Even more costumes and props are up on the second and third floors, and these spaces have some spectacular views of the restaurant!

The third floor (galaxy) is up inside the restaurant’s dome and has a direct view of the large screen. This level has the smallest amount of seating, and I probably wouldn’t recommend sitting up here if you have a fear of heights.

Speaking of that screen, it fills up nearly half of the dome and plays videos constantly throughout your meal. There are music videos for popular songs…

…“adventure” videos themed to different things like pirates, space, or superheroes…

…and sing-along videos for Disney songs and classic karaoke tunes. Of course, “Let it Go” was on the docket!

The restaurant definitely has a fun, karaoke/dance party atmosphere, so if that’s your vibe, you might love it here!

Menu

For the menu, they gave me a multi-page book. The appetizer list is filled with options like chicken, shrimp, a five-cheese dip, and nachos. If you want a little bit of everything, I’d recommend the High Roller Sampler.

There are four different salad options on the menu, as well as three pastas — lasagna, shrimp florentine, and penne with chicken and broccoli.

If you want something from the grille, you can choose from a selection of steak cuts, seafood options, ribs, or chicken. 

If you didn’t know, Planet Hollywood’s newest menu is a creation of Food Network star Guy Fieri, and he has curated a menu of burgers and sandwiches for the restaurant. Burgers come in varieties from Kobe beef to mac and cheese topped, and sandwiches are available in chicken, turkey, and pulled pork. 

And of course, there are several desserts available as well! The options include a Brownie Sundae Martini, White Chocolate Bread Pudding, Butter Cake, chocolate cake, and cheesecakes.

Now that we’ve been through the whole menu, let’s dig in!

Eats

I got a few different specialties from the menu to try, so let’s see how the food fared!

I kicked off the meal with a beverage, the La La Land Lemonade for $8. This is lemonade with real strawberry syrup, topped with a strawberry. I got mine served in a light-up souvenir cup!

This was light and refreshing, with a great strawberry flavor. The lemon wasn’t too tart, and it really just tasted like springtime.

For my appetizer, I decided on the Five Cheese Dip for $14.99. This is made with Swiss, mozzarella, provolone, Parmesan, and Asiago cheeses, as well as spinach and artichoke hearts. It’s served with both tortilla chips and pieces of pita bread.

For my entrees, one of my choices was the Bird is the Word sandwich for $18.99. It’s made with crispy fried all-natural chicken breast, buttermilk ranch dressing, pickles, cheddar, slaw, and honey hot sauce on a brioche bun. I was pretty intrigued by the combination of ranch and hot honey, so let’s see how this goes!

The chicken portion was decent size, and it was nice and crispy. It was very similar to the chicken you get at Planet Hollywood’s sister restaurant, Chicken Guy (which is next door). It makes for a really good sandwich filet.

The combination of ranch and hot honey came out more like a buffalo ranch, and it was delicious! There’s enough spice to satisfy but it’s not overwhelming. The slaw and pickles add a nice crunch.

Each of the sandwiches and burgers comes with a side of seasoned fries, which are a mix of different fry shapes! I thought the blend of waffle fries, spiral fries, and shoestring fries was a really fun twist for this restaurant. They were really well-seasoned — nice and crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.

The other entree I chose was The Original Ringer for $20.99. This is a Guy Fieri smash-grilled burger, with crispy rojo onion ring, Guy Fieri signature BBQ sauce, SMC (super melty cheese), cheddar, LTOP (lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle), and donkey sauce on a brioche bun.

The first thing I’ll warn you about this burger is that they didn’t have me request a temperature for the cooking of the burger, although it’s possible that it was just an oversight for my meal in particular. The burger itself is REALLY tall so it can be hard to eat unless you cut it up into smaller bites. 

It has a lot of sauce, so you’ll need to eat quickly before the bun gets soggy. There is a good mix of textures with the crunch from the onion ring and pickles and the softness of the bun. A lot is going on with this burger and it’s pretty challenging to identify individual flavors, but I thought they worked well together.

For dessert, I simply couldn’t resist the chance to try a new-to-me bread pudding (we’re big bread pudding fans here at DFB!). Planet Hollywood has a White Chocolate Bread Pudding for $9.95. It’s a warm white chocolate bread pudding served with vanilla ice cream, and a sweet whiskey sauce.

This has a really strong white chocolate flavor with vanilla and white chocolate shavings. I was really impressed that they got white chocolate to come through so accurately, since it’s a milder flavor. The bread pudding is moist and dense with just enough chew, but this would overall be better if it were served warmer. 

So where does Planet Hollywood stand in my book?

Overall

In the past, we haven’t been very impressed with this restaurant, but I had a surprisingly good time during this visit! The atmosphere can be a little bit overwhelming, but the children and families in the restaurant seemed to really enjoy it.

I didn’t dislike anything I tried, and the Bird is the Word and bread pudding were standouts to me. I wouldn’t say that anything absolutely knocked my socks off, but there was still a significant improvement from our past visits to Planet Hollywood here at DFB. It’s a really great choice if you just want some classic American-style eats

Nosh or Not?

Take a trip to Hollywood if…

• You’re a mega karaoke or music fan. The atmosphere here is very unique as compared to other Disney World restaurants, and if you or your kiddos would enjoy the giant screen and music videos, I would definitely try it at least once.
• You have picky eaters. Many of the eats on the menu are classic American dishes, and I think you’d find plenty of crowd-pleasers here.
• You’re a big movie buff. Anyone who’s obsessed with movie memorabilia would really enjoy this experience with all the props and costumes on display.

Scout out a different spot in Disney Springs if…

• You want a fancy or super high-quality meal. There are plenty of incredible table service restaurants in Disney Springs with more sophisticated fare. If that’s what you want, try one of the spots owned by a James Beard Award-winning chef.
• You’re on a budget. While the burgers, sandwiches, and other eats were delicious, you can find similar items for cheaper at quick service restaurants around Disney World. Chicken Guy next door is a great alternative if you don’t have the extra dough to spare.

That’s a wrap on my visit to Planet Hollywood! Stay tuned to DFB for more reviews from Disney World restaurants.

Click Here to See the List of Disney Springs Restaurants!

Have you ever been to Planet Hollywood? Tell us in the comments!