My holiday to
Florida back in February feels like a lifetime ago now. I’ve had blog posts in
my drafts for months but I’ve been taking a little blogging hiatus. You might
have thought I had disappeared forever or not even noticed my absence but I’m
back and ready to bombard you with all my travel tips and photos!
Since I’ve
returned from my Disneyworld vacation I’ve had friends and family ask me for
holiday planning tips, itineraries and food recommendations. Going to
Disneyworld can be overwhelming so I thought I would write a series of blog
posts sharing my highlights of what to see, where to stay and what to eat. The
next time anyone asks for tips I can send them the links ;)
I got quite a
good deal when booking my trip to Disneyworld resort in Florida. I got a very reasonable rate for the hotel as some construction work was going on elsewhere on the
site. I also got free dining, a $100 Disney gift card and Memory Maker for
unlimited ride photos. There was also an offer where I got a 14-Day Ultimate
Ticket for the price of a 7-Day Ticket for entry to all Disneyworld parks including
the water parks.
I booked through
Virgin and these types of deals tend to come around once a year and are
available at the moment until 22nd October. This was a good deal for myself and my husband but you can stay off-site, takes snacks into the park and get hotel discounts at other times of the year so I recommend working out which deal works best for you and your family.
The Quick Service plan I had looked a little like this:
• 2 Self Service meals, with 1 alcoholic or soft drink per meal
• 2 Snacks
• 1 Refillable
Resort Mug per stay
You get this every day you stay at the resort and it was more than enough as
Disneyworld portions are far from small. Enough of the details, let's get to the food!
The Polite Pig
The Polite Pig
I love a chicken tender or a burger as much as the next person but this isn't all Disney has to offer. There are a number of independent restaurants in the Disney Springs area and one of the foodie highlights of the trip for me was our stop at The Polite Pig, run by a local husband and wife duo.
I opted for the tasty Coffee Rub USDA Prime Brisket served with Jalapeño Cornbread, Signature Polite Slaw and sweet potato tots. The brisket was tender and the coffee rub was very subtle. This was included in our meal plan - no cash needed and I simply had to scan my MagicBand at the till and the appropriate number of credits were be deducted from your account. Don't forget to visit the sauce bar if you eat here and try out all the amazing BBQ and ranch sauces.
Refreshment Port - Poutine
The Traditional Poutine served up at the Refreshment Port in Epcot was a great use of a snack credit and filling enough to have for lunch. This is the Disney version of a Canadian favourite French Fries, Beef Gravy and Cheese Curds. This little stand also has seasonal specials and is serving up Duck Confit Poutine at the moment.
Storybook Treats - Peter Pan Float
This Peter Pan Float at the Magic Kingdom was ideal on a roasting hot and humid day in the park. It's Sprite topped with lime Soft-serve and a Chocolate Feather. It comes in at $5.99 and is snack credit eligible. So refreshing!
Karamell-Küche - Mickey Krispie treat with Werther's caramel
The Karamelle-Kuche shop in the Germany Pavilion in Epcot is a caramel lovers heaven. It features freshly made caramel popcorn, caramel apples, strawberries, marshmallows along with gourmet caramels, cookies, brownies, fudge, and cupcakes. I couldn't chose just one item from caramel counter of dreams so I picked up this Mickey shaped krispie treat and a huge bag of popcorn.
Les Halles Boulangerie-Patisserie - Macaron
Epcot really is the park filled with foodie treats and the macaroon with raspberry and lime cream that I got there didn't disappoint. The fresh fruit and sharp lime cream was the perfect filling for a sweet macaron.
The deli–bakery counter is stocked with goodies such as salads, quiches, soups, and delicate pastries. Breads and pastries are made in the bakery above Chefs de France and offers a pretty authentic Parisian experience.
The Trolley Car Café - Carrot Cake Cookie
You can pick up this humongous carrot cake at the Starbucks in Disney's Hollywood Studios. This store has all your typical Starbucks offerings plus some Disney bakery treats and things unique to this location. If you're in Hollywood Studios I would say this is a must try item and would easily service two people. It isn't over spiced and has the perfect cake to frosting ratio.
Top tip - the Starbucks stores across Disney all have free iced water which you can help yourself to instead of buying bottles water and save some serious $$$. (The water from the drinking fountains tastes gross)
Mickey Pretzel - Available at stands all over the resort
A giant pretzel, shaped like Mickey which comes with plastic cheese. Dreamy! These are a classic and available all over the parks. I grabbed one of these as a substantial snack to eat whilst watching the nighttime show Fantasmic. Some of my other favourite Mickey shaped snacks I tried during the trip were the colossal cinnamon swirls available at Starbucks in Animal Kingdom and the Mickey’s Premium Ice Cream Sandwich - cookies and cream ice cream sandwiched between chocolate cookies.
Contempo Café Breakfast
D-Luxe Burger - Disney Springs
D-Luxe burger was high up on my to-eat list before heading to Florida - I had heard some great things about it from Disney Vloggers. I opted for the barbecue burger - a signature blend beef patty topped with a fried onion ring, smoked gouda, bacon, barbecue sauce, grilled onion and lettuce. De-lish! As I was on holiday and living my best life I washed this down with a artisanal gelato shake - I highly recommend the chocolate one.
The fresh cut fries are a must because of the sauce bar where you can stock up on three-mustard and honey, garlic ranch, curry ketchup, chipotle mayo and buffalo sauce. I'm a little bit obsessed with ranch sauce so I loved the help yourself sauce station.
This place get very busy and we had to wait a while for our food to come so I recommend ordering your food via the Disney Experience mobile app before heading in. There are also some secret menu items on the mobile app so worth checking out.
Big Top Treats
Big Top Treats is a feast for the eyes and filled with counters of treats made on site - lots are inspired by Dumbo and the circus. Some of the treats you can find there are cotton candy, house-made popcorn, candy coated apples, chocolate dipped strawberries, chocolate dipped marshmallow wands or pretzels, character inspired cake pops, assorted Disney themed cupcakes, and crispy treats. It’s fun to watch the sweet treat creators dipping and designing these special treats right in front of you.
The candy apples and cupcakes look and taste amazing but can be enormous or a little tricky to eat. My top pick from big top treats is the chocolate dipped rice krispie treat covered in M&Ms. These freshly made ones are so much nicer than the pre-packed ones you can pick up all over the parks.
Joffrey's Coffee strawberry ice tea & doughnut
A big shout out also goes to Tangierine Cafe in Epcot. where I had a relatively healthy Shawarma Chicken and Lamb Platter which came served with a side of Hummus, Tabouleh, and Tangierine Couscous Salad with fresh Moroccan Bread. This was a welcome bread from all things fried or sweet. The peanut better and chocolate cupcakes at the Coronado Springs Resort cafe were also magnifique and worth checking out if you stay at that resort like we did.
This post barely scratches the surface of all the food on offer at DisneyWorld as this is just a selection of things I tried during my 10 day trip. I didn't even have time to try the famous Dole Whip whilst I was there.
Any fellow Disney enthusiasts have a favourite park treat?
This post barely scratches the surface of all the food on offer at DisneyWorld as this is just a selection of things I tried during my 10 day trip. I didn't even have time to try the famous Dole Whip whilst I was there.
Any fellow Disney enthusiasts have a favourite park treat?
