In the not so distance past, Walt Disney World was known as an endless food landscape of burgers, fries, and hot dogs. And while you can still get burgers and hot dogs (and pretty good ones, might I add), the quick service landscape has been changing over the past years, adding more diverse options, in more immersive settings, while still remaining at price points that are somewhat reasonable for a theme park. Today, we are exploring those quick service options at our favorite Walt Disney World theme park, the creme de la creme, the cherry on top of WDW, the Magic Kingdom (we could go on with our loving introduction, but we think it’s time to stop before we lose our audience.) We have created a top five countdown of the best counter service options for you to enjoy while at The Magic Kingdom, in our totally biased, one sided opinions.
5. Casey’s Corner, Main Street U.S.A.
Casey’s Corner make’s the list for several reasons. For starter’s, it’s normally open later than most other restaurants at The Magic Kingdom, which mean’s that David and I can enjoy corn dog nuggets on the Hub Grass at midnight. Secondly, THEY SERVE CORN DOG NUGGETS. While it might not sound like a corn dog nugget is anything noteworthy, or special, these magical morsels are not only delicious, but one of the more economical meals on Disney property.
4. Cosmic Ray’s, Tomorrow Land.
Sonny Eclipse bumps Cosmic Ray’s up a few spots on the list, in our opinion, as any restaurant that has an animatronic Alien that serenades you and plays the piano while you enjoy your meal, should not be overlooked. We’re also of the opinion that Cosmic Rays has the coldest air-conditioning, which during summer in Florida is huge. The menu itself at Cosmic Ray’s might not be the most inspired thing you’ve ever seen, but if you get the basic burger (which we recommend), Cosmic Ray’s has an amazing topping bar, with everything from Sriarcha Aioli, to grilled onions. (You could make one heck of a loaded fries with that stuff too).
3. Columbia Harbor House, Liberty Square.
I’m a sucker for a good Lobster Roll, therefor, I’m a sucker for Columbia Harbor House. This Colonial Themed Fish House is delicious, and offers great variety for something different. Once again, I feel obligated to mention the Lobster Roll – it’s SO GOOD.
2. Be Our Guest, New Fantasyland.
I love Be Our Guest, and it would have claimed the number one spot on my list, except for my one beef with it – can you really call a restaurant a quick service if you have to make a reservation for it? It seems at counter-intuitive to me. But maybe I’m just upset that I can never get a reservation. We love Be Our Guest, and highly recommend you try to get a lunch reservation (as breakfast is nothing to write home about) for some time during your stay. The food is fantastic, and eating in the Castle is a memorable Disney experience.
1. Pecos Bill’s, Frontierland.
Pecos Bill’s recently underwent a menu makeover. Honestly, the food could have sucked, and we probably still would have given it the number one spot for one reason only – THEY SELL COUNTRY BEARS JUGS! Lucky for Pecos Bills, the food does not suck, and is actually really good. They sell Mexican food, with the BEST topping bar at WDW. David and I split a Fajita Platter, which with a trip to the topping bar (which included sour cream, guacamole, several kinds of salsa, cheese, roasted corn, and pico) could have easily fed more than us. With the great value, the good food, and the incredible topping bar, Pecos Bill’s is easily nabbing our number one spot.
We know you’ll enjoy yourself no matter where you eat at The Magic Kingdom, but we hope our list helps you narrow your choices down a little bit (and hopefully leads you to the glory that is corn dog nuggets!).