"Hot dogs! Hot dogs!" ? Mickey Mouse, from The Karnival Kid (1929)
Like everything else, food is expensive at Walt Disney World. Fortunately, the food is pretty good, top to bottom.
At the bottom you'll find portable food carts and fast counter-service (or "quick-service" in Disney's parlance) options. Once upon a time, these options were dismal; each counter service location served the same bland menu of burgers and chicken fingers, to the point where even the kids were sick of them by the end of your vacation. Happily, this has all changed in the last 15 years or so.
The small stands usually sell pre-packaged treats and snacks. The counter-service restaurants are on par with most chain fast-food joints in quality, but significantly more expensive in price. Still, it's not your typical amusement park fare; some of them are in fact quite good, and there's a lot of variety to be had. Three excellent options are Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe in Tomorrowland at the Magic Kingdom, the Seasons Food Court at The Land pavilion in Epcot, and Flame Tree Barbecue on Discovery Island at Animal Kingdom. The ABC Commissary at Hollywood Studios has a surprisingly international menu, and Toy Story Pizza Planet in the same park has arcade games to pass the time.
For the lowest possible prices, there is one McDonald's restaurant on WDW property, at the intersection of Buena Vista Drive and Osceola Parkway, between Blizzard Beach and the All-Star resort hotels.
Moving up the scale, there is a fairly big gap between the counter-service and the lower-end table-service restaurants. If anything can be said to fill that gap, it's the buffets, but there are not many around, and most of them feature walk-around characters. For table service, you'll find the menus tend to be surprisingly limited; although the food is generally good, if your party has a lot of picky eaters you may have trouble finding a restaurant everyone can agree on. (Fortunately, Disney is very accommodating of special requests, so don't be afraid to ask for the demi-glace to be left off or to substitute fries for the au-gratin potatoes.)
At the high-end of Disney dining, you'll find some options on par with the best in the country, including perhaps the fanciest restaurant in all of Central Florida, Victoria and Albert's at the Grand Floridian. These high-end restaurants do tend to be found at the resorts; few people want to go out to a fancy dinner after walking around the parks all day without changing first. Don't feel like you have to leave the kids behind, either; every restaurant on property (except Victoria and Albert's) welcomes kids and will accommodate them as best as they can.
If a dietary restriction requires you to bring your own food into the parks, it is permissible to do so, on the condition that it does not require heating or any other kind of preparation. To ensure freshness, carry it in an insulated lunch box or bag. Keep in mind, though, that Florida Department of Health regulations prohibit Disney's Culinary Cast Members from preparing, or even handling, foods brought in by guests.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Walt Disney World
Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Walt Disney World - updated Apr 2024
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Walt Disney World Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.
