To ensure the best data for our site and Lines 2.0 app’s dining pages, the TouringPlans team eats at Disney a lot in a year. In some cases, we are pleasantly surprised that an old favorite continues to be good. In other cases, we can be surprised when a good restaurant hits a rough patch or be shocked when a restaurant that isn’t the best suddenly changes their menu and becomes a superstar. Looking at all the reviews of quick service dining for 2020, here’s our top 3 stand-out meals.

Satu’li Canteen (Pandora, Disney’s Animal Kingdom)

No question, Satu’li is the place we recommend for our friends and family when dining in Animal Kingdom. I’m a huge fan of the bowls, which are both healthy (in terms of theme park dining) and delicious. For something a little less filling, the cheeseburger pods continue to be a favorite. Adding a limited-time-only peppermint cream cheese mousse dessert that was simply delicious was a great way to end 2020.

 

Regal Eagle (American Adventure, EPCOT)

Generally restaurants need a shake-down period (and at Disney, often this means menu changes) to really hit their stride. But Regal Eagle wowed us from the start. A few items could be tweaked, but overall everyone on our team who dined there was pleased with their meal. (And since it looked so good, I think everyone for TouringPlans who ended up in EPCOT at one time or another dined there this year!) It is certainly agreed that this is a vast improvement over the previous dining at the American Adventure pavilion.

 

ABC Commissary (Disney’s Hollywood Studios)

If you had told me at the beginning of the year that ABC Commissary would be on a “best of” list for 2020, I’d have said that 2020 was going to be a really crazy year. Both ended up being true, obviously. The new menu after reopening at ABC Commissary was surprisingly good, with bold, fresh flavors that were properly prepared. This is even true with what our team called the best plant-based dish in Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Compare that with the embarrassingly lackluster review of the menu in January 2020. . . . at least some things improved this year!

Did you have a quick service meal that wowed you this year at Walt Disney World? Have you tried our top 3 picks? Let us know what you think in the comments.

 

The post Top 3 Quick Service Meals of 2020 appeared first on TouringPlans.com Blog.

We’re saying BYE to 2020 and looking forward to the new year.

For some, 2021 will bring a trip to Disney World and now we know the park hours a little further out. Previously we knew alllll the hours through March 6th, and now we know another two weeks — March 7th through March 20th.

Let’s take a look at Magic Kingdom first! Magic Kingdom will continue the same trend it’s had since earlier in the month. The park will be open from 9AM to 6PM every day with park hopping hours from 2PM to 6PM.

Hours remain the same for EPCOT as well. This park will be open from 11AM to 7PM with park hopping hours from 2PM to 7PM.

Disney’s Hollywood Studios continues with hours of 10AM to 7PM and park hopping hours from 2PM to 7PM.

And finally, Disney’s Animal Kingdom will see a continued pattern of hours as well. The park will be open from 9AM to 5PM with park hopping hours from 2PM to 5PM.

Stay tuned to DFB for all the latest updates and TIPS for your 2021 visit to Disney World!

Click here to see earlier March hours!

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Are you headed to Disney World soon? Tell us in the comments!

The post NEWS: Disney World Park Hours Released Through March 20th first appeared on the disney food blog.

We’ve been showing off our excitement for the new year by eating our way through all the specialty snacks in Disney World.

We’ve been happy to try some 2021 cupcakes along with a special margarita, and we’re still keeping an eye out for as many special treats as possible! Today, we scored with a specialty New Year’s Eve dessert from Sunshine Seasons in EPCOT!

Sunshine Seasons has been churning out some tasty specialty desserts this season, so we were really excited to try this new treat today!

The Stroke of Midnight Dessert is German chocolate chiffon cake and milk chocolate mousse filled with blackberry puree. It’s topped with a chocolate clock, dusted with edible glitter, and decorated with fondant circles. And boy, is she a beauty!

When prepping this treat, the Cast Members even go above and beyond to paint Roman numerals on the plate — how cool is that?!

The blackberry filling with the chocolate mousse is seriously so GOOD! The light and fluffy texture of the mousse really contributes to the deliciousness as well.

The base of this dessert is where you’ll find the German chocolate cake, and it has a great richness to it that really brings some depth.

Sometimes, with desserts that have multiple chocolate elements, things can get a bit TOO rich. We definitely didn’t get that vibe from this treat, and we’d totally order this again! Sadly, this is a limited time treat and isn’t expected to be around very long.

You can grab the Stroke of Midnight Dessert for $5.99 at Sunshine Seasons in the Land Pavilion. There are so many treats to try, so follow along with us in 2021 for more Disney news and reviews!

Check out the 2021 Dole Whip Float HERE!

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What’s your favorite dessert to get at Disney World? Tell us in the comments!

The post REVIEW: Count Down to 2021 With the Stroke of Midnight Dessert in Disney World! first appeared on the disney food blog.

When it comes to potatoes, the possibilities are endless!

And as much as we love some classic fries, it’s always a treat to discover new ways of preparing this classic food staple! And when they look like Mickey Mouse? Well that’s just a win/win.  

Who’d guess that potatoes and applesauce would combine to make a tasty dish? Well Jamie Lee Mclntyre — who is a GoGo squeeZ Content Contributor — certainly did! Check out these potato cakes Jaime shared with the official runDisney site!

Adorable right? Set your french fries aside for today and check out this healthier alternative. And the best part? They are Mickey shaped!

This simple recipe provides a boost in nutrients that can help support your immune system! Check out the recipe below.

The post Disney Recipe: Mickey Mouse Potato Cakes! first appeared on the disney food blog.

Headed to Disney World in January? Well, there’s a lot you’ll need to know!

Starting tomorrow (January 1st, 2021), MagicBands will no longer be complimentary for Disney Resort guests, AND Park Hopping returns in a modified way. We’ll be ready to experience all of the changes, along with the return of EPCOT’s International Festival of the Arts next week. With so much going on this month, it’s important to stay current on news if you’re planning a Disney trip, and now we’ve got an update on park hours!

Disney World park hours have been extended for the week of January 17th-January 23rd on the Walt Disney World website. During this week, all four parks have now extended their hours. Magic Kingdom was previously opening from 9AM-6PM, but will now be open until 7PM.

Disney’s Hollywood Studios was scheduled to open at 10AM during this week, but has now moved that time up to 9AM. The closing time of 7PM remains the same.

At EPCOT, the hours used to be listed as 11AM-7PM, but they’ve now been bumped up to close at 8PM. 

For Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park, the park will now be opening an hour earlier at 8AM. This makes their current hours for this particular week 8AM-5PM.

We’ll be on the lookout for any more changes to park hours in Disney World, as well as any planning tips that you need to know! Stay tuned to DFB for the latest in Disney World news!

NEWS: Park Hopper Hours Are Now Listed on Disney World’s Website

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Will you be visiting Disney World in January? Let us know in the comments!

The post News: Park Hours Extended for Select Days in January in Disney World first appeared on the disney food blog.

We’re counting down to a new year with oodles of limited-time treats!

New Year’s Eve in Disney World is a little different this year. The theme parks are closing before midnight and guests are encouraged to celebrate from their resort. Plus, Disney has been releasing a few special treats! So far, we tried the surprisingly tasty Animal Kingdom 2021 cupcake and a surprisingly underwhelming Strawberry Champagne cupcake. (Two of them actually!) We found ANOTHER surprise New Year’s Eve treat today at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort.

The Polynesian had a helpful board listing all the ways guests can get in the NYE mood tonight. We noticed that Pineapple Lanai is serving a special Raspberry Dole Whip today!

Naturally, we HAD to get it because a) it looks gorgeous and b) DOLE WHIP. The Raspberry Rosa Regale Dole Whip Float is made with raspberry soft-serve, Rosa Regale Sparkling Wine, and garnished with dried raspberries, and rose petals. 

The presentation did NOT disappoint. Look at this beauty! We love the raspberry and rose complimentary colors.

Ok, here’s the deal. If you’re not a fan of Dole Whips, this treat might just convert you. This Dole Whip Float was an absolute HIT for us. And let’s be real, we’ve eaten A LOT of Dole Whips. Like. A lot of them. This float was the perfect boozy blend of sparkling wine and Dole Whip. The wine cut the Dole Whip so it wasn’t overly sweet.

The sweetness of a Dole Whip can be a turn-off for some and the alcohol dulled the sugar down a bit. The tartness from the raspberry also tasted super refreshing. We think raspberry fans will love this the most, but pretty much anyone over 21 should give it a try.

Happy New Year’s Eve to us! We are having the Raspberry Dole Whip with Rose Regale Sparkling Wine and garnished with Raspberries and Rose Petals! pic.twitter.com/wKNxxtlvln

— AJ Wolfe (@DisneyFoodBlog) December 31, 2020

Our biggest complaint? We wanted more. Alright, you might not like it if you don’t enjoy sparkling red wine and raspberries. (Or if you don’t have tastebuds.) 2020 has been a wild ride, but this treat finished our year strong! The special limited-time treat is $15.

Read our review of the 2021 cupcake at Animal Kingdom!

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Are you a fan of Dole Whips? Let us know in the comments below!

The post  No Lie. This Dole Whip Float from Disney World is What We’ve Been Waiting For All Year. first appeared on the disney food blog.

2020 is almost at an end, and you probably thought you were never going to see the words “Minnie Mouse: The Main Attraction collection” again. NOT SO FAST.

For the uninitiated, the Minnie Mouse: The Main Attraction collection was a monthly merchandise series that ran for alllll of 2020. We got to see VERY high-demand limited-edition merch based on some of our favorite attractions. Now, it seems we have one last SUPER limited chance to snag this collection in Disney World!

You might be thinking that there are some leftover items from the Grand Finale December release. Nope! And it’s not the November release either. We just found VERY few items still available from the October Haunted Mansion collection!

We were checking out the latest at Sir Mickey’s in Magic Kingdom’s Fantasyland when we noticed a SUPER limited display of Haunted Mansion items — as in literally two Haunted Mansion Minnie Plushes and one Haunted Mansion Pin Set.

We were definitely surprised to see this stuff hanging out, but some lucky folks will have a chance to snag these limited-edition items that we thought were gone for good.

If you happen to be in MK and are looking to get your hands on these limited edition items, HURRY!! We seriously don’t know if they will be restocked again. As always, stay tuned for all the latest updates on merch and more from Walt Disney World.

Click here to see MORE of the Haunted Mansion collection!

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Did you pick up any Main Attraction merch this year? Tell us in the comments!

The post We Spotted a VERY Limited Main Attraction Merch Surprise in Disney World Today first appeared on the disney food blog.