The Best Disney World Restaurants for Dinner for 2023
A meal at Disney World is MORE than just your standard entrée and side dish. So let’s start looking at some of the best restaurants on Disney property for dinner, that capstone meal of the day!
Pasta at Cinderella’s Royal Table
We’ve already addressed some of the best spots to grab breakfast during your Disney trip. And breakfast gets a lot of attention for being “the most important meal of the day” (those breakfast marketing agents really did lunch and dinner dirty with that slogan), but dinner is important, too! Cue the Norman Rockwell images of the family around the dinner table…
Your ideal dinner might look different on different vacations. Maybe some days you want an indulgent, luxury dinner. On other days, you may just want to grab something quick to fill your bellies because your family rope-dropped and park-hopped like pros, and now you need to either head back into a park or hit the bed! So, let’s go through some of the best choices for dinner, no matter what you’re looking for!
Dinner on the Go!
You are racin’ through the parks, you have a rapidly approaching Lightning Lane reservation, you’ve just arrived in Disney World late in the day and don’t wanna burn a lot of time at dinner (or a park ticket, potentially), or you’re just ballin’ on a budget and looking for something tasty. Grab your pen and take some notes!
Capt. Cook’s
Staying at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort, or looking for a great counter service meal in a tropical environment? Then you’ll be hooked on Capt. Cook’s! Capt. Cook’s offers unique island-inspired quick service meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner in a casual, yet fun, environment.
A table full of Capt Cook’s eats!
Polynesian favorites (like an Aloha Pork Sandwich and Pulled Pork Nachos), along with classic quick service eats like burgers, are served for lunch and dinner. Those Pulled Pork Nachos sound simple enough, right? WRONG! We’ve loved these beauts for YEARS. They feature Poly Chips (homemade potato chips and fried wontons. Basically the best chip combo ever.) Topped with Cheese, Spicy Mayonnaise, Pico de Gallo, and Pineapple Salsa and cost $10.29! These are a loooooongtime Poly favorite for many — us included! They’re SO good. (Did we mention we like these nachos enough yet? No? OK, well we lurve these nachos!)
Geyser Point
Geyser Point Bar & Grill — located near the Copper Creek Springs Pool at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge — is a unique space in that it offers two different kinds of service for guests… all in one cozy and lovely setting. Geyser Point blends two different dining styles (a Table Service lounge and a Quick Service walk-up counter) and two different menus.
If you’re not racing to get to your next spot, let us tell you now, you may want to earmark some time to actually eat here. While so many Disney restaurants are indoor and very people-y, this open-air lakeside patio is an OASIS! The open air restaurant offers gorgeous waterfront views, and a fireplace for cool evenings. There is still plenty of bar seating, covered tables, and cozy benches that host a glorious view of the lake! The cedar and stone design creates a Northwest vibe, and the surrounding flora and fauna really set the scene. And sitting here at sunset enjoying a cocktail and a charcuterie with your friends is the BALM FOR THE SOUL YOU NEED RIGHT NOW.
Regal Eagle Smokehouse: Craft Draft & Barbecue
It’s all in the name at Regal Eagle Smokehouse: Craft Drafts & Barbecue at The American Adventure pavilion in EPCOT! This fast-casual restaurant celebrates the regions of American BBQ and serves up craft brews on tap. Guests are encouraged to try any of the four house-recipe sauces while they enjoy their Memphis Dry-Rub Pork Ribs, Sliced Texas Beef Brisket Sandwich, or Kansas City Half-Smoked Chicken — to name just a few entrees on the menu. Classic sides like Baked Beans with Burnt Ends and dessert options are available to complete the meal.
The food is decent, but we’re not sure all southerners would agree that it’s BBQ!
An abundance of seating is available indoors and out, with the outdoor seating area boasting a large smoker AND even more, sips available at an outdoor walk-up bar. (The outdoor bar even offers a few selections and cocktails that you won’t find inside.) And who, you may be wondering, is the Regal Eagle? Why, it’s Sam Eagle of THE MUPPETS fame! You’ll find nods to Sam and the whole gang around the eatery.
Columbia Harbour House
Enjoy some New England-inspired surf-and-turf at Columbia Harbour House in Magic Kingdom’s Liberty Square! In addition to Platters that feature options like fried fish and shrimp, the spot also boasts a fan-favorite Lobster Roll. Landlubbers can opt for chicken strips (among other options). And those searching for lighter fare can enjoy items such as Grilled Salmon or an entree salad.
Columbia Harbour House is BACK, baby!
Columbia Harbour House features one of the best-loved plant-based dishes in Disney World, too, with the Lighthouse Sandwich. There really is something for everyone here in this charming, nautically-themed counter service restaurant!
Ronto Roasters
Black Spire Outpost — the village on the planet of Batuu where Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge is set — serves up sandwiches, snacks, and beverages at Ronto Roasters! You’ll spy a pitmaster droid busy at work turning a mechanical spit at Ronto Roasters. What’s he grilling? Why, it’s a side of Ronto — a beast native to Luke Skywalker’s home planet of Tatooine.
Ronto Roasters
Ronto Roasters specializes in the Ronto Wrap, a handheld snack featuring spiced grilled sausage and roasted pork! And while the specialty of the house features grilled sausage, Ronto Roasters also serves some truly tasty plant-based options, as well. Look for additional snacks and intergalactic beverages to fuel your Batuuan adventures.
Flame Tree BBQ
Flame Tree Barbecue is where guests with a beastly hunger can dine in a lush outdoor paradise overlooking Discovery River, at Animal Kingdom. Flame Tree Barbecue is a popular counter service spot in Disney’s Animal Kingdom featuring barbecue classics (along with a few twists)! There’s mac and cheese with pulled pork and an onion ring(!!), ribs, chicken, and more.
A meatloaf that even non-meatloaf people will love.
Located near the Discovery Island bridge to DinoLand, it boasts some absolutely gorgeous views. All seating is outdoors, but colorful pavilions provide shade and cover from the sun or inclement weather. And if you choose the right pavilion, you’ll have a great view across the water of Expedition Everest and the character flotillas that pass by.
Chicken Guy!
Chicken Guy! — headed by Guy Fieri and restauranteur Robert Earl — has its Flagship location in Disney Springs. The menu puts the spotlight on fresh, all-natural Chicken Tenders paired with a variety of sauces (22, to be exact!). The tenders are “hand-pounded to maximize crunch,” and brined in lemon juice, pickle brine, and buttermilk, and infused with herbs. Sandwiches, salad bowls, mac-and-cheese, frozen treats, and more are also on offer.
Southwestern Chicken Sandwich
You might already know that some of the best table service restaurants can be found in Disney Springs, but did you know that there’s also some great fast food available there as well? Take it from us it might be worth it to opt for chicken tenders and mac & cheese over some of Disney Springs’ fancier eats! The location is tucked right next to Planet Hollywood where Guy Fieri created the burger and sandwich menu.
The BEST Disney World Restaurants for First-Timers in 2023!
All You Can Eat Dinner
Disney World’s buffets and family-style offerings can be a rather pricey endeavor, but they’ll make the price worth your time — as long as YOU’RE willing to fill your plates again. And again. So let’s see which of Disney World’s all-you-can-eat serve up some of the HEFTIEST offerings around — starting with the deluxe resort restaurant that may’ve slipped your mind…
Boma
Boma continually emerges on the “favorite restaurants” lists of many Disney guests! Located in the stunning Animal Kingdom Lodge, the popular buffet at Boma gives visitors the opportunity to sample flavorful African dishes while also dining on some American favorites during breakfast or dinner. We love Boma, and we love a solid buffet option, but the real selling factor here is the endless supply of Zebra Domes! In case you aren’t familiar, let us introduce you to our long-time dessert-crush, the Zebra Dome!
Zebra Domes at Boma!
It is a thin cake base topped with Amarula cream liquor mousse, coated in delicious white chocolate, and finished with chocolate stripes and shavings. This dish is a favorite here at DFB, maybe almost as long as plastic cheese! We always give two thumbs up to this restaurant, and we always find something new to try here.
P.S. We’ve got some PRO Tips for Disney World buffets right here!
‘Ohana
‘Ohana is one of the most popular and beloved dining experiences in Walt Disney World! This glassed-in restaurant at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort, punctuated by a huge cooking fire in the center, is known for its Hawaiian-style “churrascaria”-type service for dinner. Indulge in an all-you-can-eat feast of grilled meats, Hawaiian specialty sides, and the signature ‘Ohana Bread Pudding for dessert. (And if you time your meal right, you can enjoy viewing the Magic Kingdom fireworks from inside ‘Ohana!)
Our favorite noodles
The ‘Ohana Dinner Skillet features Wood-fire Grilled Teriyaki Beef, Spicy Peel-n-Eat Shrimp, and Grilled Chicken with Polynesian-inspired Chimichurri Sauce. Side dishes include stir-fried vegetables, fried dumplings, lo mein noodles, and a salad starter. Dessert is a phenomenal caramel bread pudding.
P.S. If you’ve been to ‘Ohana and find yourself craving the feast, CLICK HERE to find out how you can recreate dinner at ‘Ohana in your own kitchen!
Liberty Tree Tavern
Themed after a late 18th century home, Liberty Tree Tavern, in Magic Kingdom, is divided into different rooms decorated to reflect famous names from the United States’ Revolutionary period, including Benjamin Franklin, Betsy Ross, George Washington, and Thomas Jefferson.
The full spread
The meal, served family-style, is both hearty and plentiful. Many guests like to refer to it as “Thanksgiving all year” thanks to the Patriot’s Platter, which serves up all-you-care-to-enjoy roasted turkey, pot roast, and oven-roasted pork served with mashed potatoes, mac and cheese, seasonal veggies, and herb stuffing. (A plant-based version of this meal and allergy-friendly options are also available.) Dessert is included as well, featuring the spot’s signature Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake… one of our favorite desserts in all of Disney World!
Biergarten
If you’re ready for an exciting, fun-filled meal, head over to Biergarten in EPCOT’s Germany for a spell! The Biergarten is a theater-style restaurant filled with long, family-style tables. It’s basically set up like an authentic German beer garden! The story (because every Disney experience has a story) is that this quaint Bavarian village is celebrating Oktoberfest and you get to experience it! No matter when you eat here, for lunch or dinner, every experience is set on this Oktoberfest evening. Up on stage, German performers showcase authentic Oktoberfest numbers throughout the day — lederhosen and all!
The full buffet features your favorite German dishes, including bratwurst, spaetzle, potato salad, and more. Don’t forget to wash it down with your favorite German beer! Prost!
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Character Dining for Dinner
Do we need to reintroduce ourselves? Hello, we are Disney Food Blog, we love Disney and we love food. So, when we get to good food and fun Disney characters all together is a mashup of awesomeness, yeah, we’re here for it! Let’s check out the BEST of the best options on property for ya. You might notice that this section is a little… small, considering all of the character meals that Disney offers. Well, we’re focusing on dinner, and sometimes for some restaurants, dinner just isn’t their moment to shine. So, if your favorite character meal isn’t listed, that doesn’t mean that we don’t enjoy it — it might just mean that we prefer it for a different meal!
Garden Grill
Located in The Land pavilion in EPCOT, Chip ‘n’ Dale’s Harvest Feast at Garden Grill Restaurant is one of the only places you’ll find Mickey Mouse in EPCOT — and he’s joined by Chip, Dale, and Pluto! These four characters provide the ample entertainment at this family-style restaurant!
Mickey at Garden Grill
The food is served on platters here, so it’s an all-you-can-eat feast with your family. Since the earliest days of EPCOT Center, this restaurant has had many different styles, but has always been Disney World’s only rotating restaurant! Throughout your meal, you’ll see several of the different scenes from the Living with the Land ride below! The menu at Garden Grill is served family-style, and the reason we stopped by recently is that there were some switch-ups with the entrees. Formerly, this meal came with All-Natural Sliced Turkey Breast with Turkey Gravy, but that has now been swapped with Barbecue-roasted Chicken. Alongside your chicken, you’ll be served a Harvest-Inspired Salad, Grilled Beef with Chimichurri, mashed potatoes, macaroni & cheese, seasonal vegetables, Southern-Style Spoon Bread, and Berry Short Cake.
Tusker House
Animal Kingdom’s Tusker House is one of the best-kept secrets around when it comes to Disney dining and Character Meals. The food at this all-you-care-to-enjoy buffet is flavorful and interesting, and the characters are high-quality, featuring Donald, Mickey, and friends… all dressed in their Safari best!
He’s #1!
If you are looking for a fun character meal in a unique setting with terrific food for breakfast, lunch, or dinner, we highly recommend this restaurant. We typically really enjoy our experiences at Tusker House. The food is both approachable and unique at the same time — not easy to pull off! Animal Kingdom doesn’t have a ton of sit down meals compared to other parks, so it’s great to have this option.
Ranking the Best Character Dining in Disney World for 2022 and 2023
Date Night at Disney World
Though largely built on fairytale romances, when folks often think of Disney World, they imagine family destination instead of romantic getaways. But let us set the record straight, this place is super fun for adults. There are hundreds of marriage proposals, honeymoons, and even weddings that take place here every year. And all of those couples need a place to eat, right?
Jaleo
Jaleo is a Spanish restaurant by Chef José Andrés’ ThinkFoodGroup. Jaleo features an extensive menu of tapas that showcase traditional and contemporary Spanish cuisine such as paella (cooked over a wood fire), hand-carved Jamon Iberico de Bellota, and wood-grilled Iberico pork. This Signature dining experience in Disney Springs is the first Florida location for Jaleo, which has four other locations in the United States.
Jaleo is an upscale Spanish-inspired restaurant in Disney Springs. It’s a signature restaurant as well, so it’s a little pricier than you’ll find at other spots. Jaleo has tapas and other dishes that are meant to be shared around the table, with everyone trying a little of each food that comes by! The food comes out a bit at a time, so it’s not a classic everyone-gets-one-meal-all-at-once kind of situation. The style is based on the Spanish tradition to share food and conversation with your party, so you won’t be rushed. And trust us when we say, try the sangria!
Jiko
Jiko — The Cooking Place is, hands-down, one of the most romantic and delicious restaurants on Disney World property. We can highly recommend this one if you enjoy excellent, gourmet food and a lovely and tranquil atmosphere. This is considered a signature dining experience, so make sure you come prepared with an outfit to meet the dress code.
Oak-grilled Filet at Jiko
Sharing tastes of Africa with a special Jiko flourish, this restaurant doesn’t offer a great view or any characters, but it does offer truly beautiful food — and the Animal Kingdom Lodge savanna is right outside…As with most signature restaurants in Disney World, the food is expensive, but you can count on a high-quality meal. We’ll admit, the price is steep, but the food is AMAZING!
Topolino’s Terrace — Flavors of the Riviera
Topolino’s Terrace — Flavors of the Riviera is located atop Disney’s Riviera Resort! This rooftop restaurant features a signature dining experience for dinner — including fireworks views. Whether you want a full meal or just to grab a tasty cocktail, this is a great spot — and you don’t even need a park ticket to visit! We visited recently and found something new, and it was almost too pretty to drink.
Tramonto Cocktail at Topolino’s Terrace
The name Topolino means Mickey Mouse in Italian, so this elegant dining experience still has a Disney flair! Topolino’s is a signature dining experience (we’re talking dress code, handmade pasta, and artisanal cheeses). Unless you’ve made a special trip to the Riviera Resort, you might not know much about this nighttime dining experience! And even if you have noticed it, you might have also noticed the price tag that comes with it. If you’re looking for an adult-friendly space that feels a little less “theme park” and a little more “elegant French/Italian dinner,” this is the place for you.
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Just for Fun
Via Napoli
Via Napoli, in the Italy Pavilion in EPCOT, offers authentic Neapolitan wood-fired pizzas, pasta, and meat dishes that are sure to make any Italian food fiend happy.
The soaring ceilings, rustic frescoes, and massive wood ovens — named Vesuvio, Etna, and Stromboli after three active volcanoes in Italy — found in the restaurant offer a casual and flavorful dining experience for EPCOT guests. Seriously, the pizza here is fantastic — it’s our favorite in Disney World — and offers a great value, to boot.
Raglan Road
Welcome to Raglan Road… an authentic Irish pub right in the heart of Disney Springs! Classic Irish dishes are presented with a contemporary twist, and you’ll enjoy your terrific food and lively craic in a spot that often features live Irish music and dancing!
P.S. When we say that this pub is authentic, we mean it. The bars and furniture in the pub were actually built in Ireland! Raglan doesn’t disappoint. And in fact it lands on our ten favorite Disney World restaurants list, so we consider it destination dining for sure.
Hoop Dee Doo Musical Revue
Giddy-up, pardner, and get ready for a rootin’ tootin’ good time! The Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue dinner show made its debut on June 30, 1974 and has been delivering wonderful vacation memories to Walt Disney World guests ever since.
Hoop-Dee-Doo
Disney’s Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue is an extravaganza of food and entertainment that the whole family will love. Seriously, it’s hard not to have a good time here. Located in Pioneer Hall at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground, the setting is a huge barn complete with stage and musical numbers, and there are (literally!) buckets of food for the table to share serving up an all-you-care-to-enjoy meal of fried chicken (find the recipe here!), ribs, mashed potatoes, and MUCH more. Round up the little ‘uns and get ready for a show!
Homecomin‘
You’re always welcome at Chef Art Smith’s Homecomin’ in Disney Springs! Celebrity Chef Art Smith (known as a BBQ Pitmaster Judge, author of Art Smith’s Healthy Comfort and other cookbooks, founder of Art and Soul in Washington, D.C. and Table Fifty-Two in Chicago, and former Chef to Oprah Winfrey) celebrates Southern and Floridian cuisine and “farm-to-fork” food at his Disney Springs restaurant.
Whiskey Flight
The name Homecomin’ refers to Chef Smith’s roots as a Florida native. (Fun fact: Chef Smith participated in the Disney World College Program as a culinary intern, and is a Florida State University alum!) Homcomin’ has a lot to offer, including a delicious Hummingbird Cake, the iconic Fried Chicken and Doughnuts, and so much more (we see you, moonshine flights…). You really can’t go wrong on this menu, so if you see something you might like, give it a try!
Space 220
Space 220 is a futuristic restaurant that takes guests on a dining adventure 220 miles above EPCOT! Guests board an elevator that simulates real-time rocketing into orbit as they travel to the Centauri Space Station hovering above the Earth. Diners will take in daytime and nighttime views of Earth as they’re surrounded by a full panoramic view of space. Take a look INSIDE Space 220 HERE!
A multi-course, prix fixe menu three-course dinner allows guests to enjoy the cuisine of Executive Chef Marc Kusche through modern, upscale dishes. Oh, and we’ve ranked every dinner menu item from best to worst for you!
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Hungry yet? If you’re ready to explore MORE breakfast reviews for these restaurants, be sure to pick up a copy of our DFB Guidebook with all of our best dining tips, tricks, and money-saving hacks!
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What’s your favorite dinner spot in Walt Disney World? Tell us in the comments!
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