When people think of Disney parks, the first thing that comes to mind is usually the rides, shows, or meeting your favorite characters. One thing that Disney also has that may be surprising is good food. Here are some of the best things I tried on a recent trip to Walt Disney World.
1. Chicken Tikka Masala
This dish (pictured above) was my favorite from the whole trip. You can find it at Yak and Yeti in Disney’s Animal Kingdom park. It is boneless chicken breast marinated in yogurt and freshly ground herbs cooked in a traditional Masala sauce with jasmine rice and a side of garlic naan. I didn’t think it was possible for a theme park to have food this good, but this dish was perfect. It had just the right about of spice and the flavors blended so well together. If I lived nearby, I would go eat this dish over and over again. The whole atmosphere of the restaurant and the food made me completely forget that I was sitting in a Disney park.
2. Werther’s Caramel Popcorn
The perfect snack during a long day at EPCOT. This popcorn can be found in the Germany pavilion and if you have the chance to try it, do it! I’m a huge fan of Disney popcorn already and this just took it to another level. It was the perfect amount of sweet and salty. My mom, who doesn’t like sweet popcorn, even liked this and thought it was delicious. It was so good, I’m probably going to attempt to make this at home, even though I know it won’t be the same.
3. Watermelon Salad
I happened to go to Disney World during the annual EPCOT Flower and Garden Festival. This dish is only available during this time, as are the next two snacks I’m talking about. You can find this one at the Festival Favorites booth in the World Showplace area. It is watermelon salad with pickled onions, feta and balsamic reduction. Simple, yet amazing. I knew immediately why this was on the festival favorites menu because it was so good. We went on a cooler day, but on a hot summer day this would be super refreshing. I’m not the biggest watermelon fan but the arugula mixed with the balsamic and pickled onions all blended really well together. I was super impressed.
4. Pretzel Bread
Another Flower and Garden festival snack, this one is located in the Germany pavilion once again. It is toasted pretzel bread topped with black forest ham and melted gruyère cheese. When I first saw the picture on the menu, it looked like it was going to be pretty heavy. But, I was surprised that it was actually very light and the pretzel itself was lighter than a usual pretzel. I guess you can’t really go wrong with cheese, meat, and bread.
5. Cinnamon Roll Bites
The final snack that is part of the Flower and Garden festival, and one of the newest additions. Sunshine Griddle can be found in Future World East and is serving up this delicious fried cinnamon roll bites with cream cheese frosting and topped with candied bacon. The only part I didn’t like about these was the candied bacon, just because I think bacon on food is overpowering. Otherwise, these were delicious! How do you go wrong? Answer: You don’t.
Best Drink
Grand Mimosa
This is the Grand Floridian Cafe’s specialty mimosa. It is champagne, orange juice, and a splash of grand marnier. It sounds simple, but that little extra liquor gave it just the right amount of flavor that other mimosa don’t have. It was beautiful and tasted so good.
Of course, this list isn’t exhaustive. There is no way I would be able to try everything at Disney World in one trip. If there is something you tried that was good, let me know in the comments below!