We’ve got to admit that Disney’s Hollywood Studios is not typically our #1 choice for the best theme park food.

EPCOT is famous for delicious food from around the world, and Disney’s Animal Kingdom has some sleeper hits that you really shouldn’t miss. But one thing Hollywood Studios does REALLY well is the shows! So it makes sense that even the restaurants have a show-y aspect to them. We’re heading into one of the best-themed restaurants in Disney World today to check out the fun atmosphere, sassy servers, and delicious comfort food!

Did you already guess where we’re heading? If you said 50’s Prime Time Café, you’re right!

This restaurant is located along Echo Lake in Hollywood Studios. When you step into the dining room, you’re really stepping back in time to Mom’s kitchen in the ’50s.

The dishes are tasty comfort food named after family members, the chairs are chrome with vinyl fabric, and all the servers are your extended family members.

The Cast Members here aren’t afraid to step into that role, too! You might get scolded for having your elbows on the table or not polishing off your veggies quick enough (more on that in a bit!).

Atmosphere

You will need dining reservations to eat here (like most table service restaurants in Disney World), and remember that you can make those reservations 60 days before your visit. When it was time for our reservation, we checked in on the My Disney Experience app. Shortly after, a Cast Member came out and announced that Mom was looking for us. (We told you everyone’s family here!) Let’s head inside!

Like we said, the 50’s Prime Time Café is themed after Mom’s kitchen in the ’50s. Towards the front, you’ll see the Tune-In Lounge, where adults can grab some cocktails from Dad’s liquor cabinet. These drinks are also available on the sit-down restaurant’s menu.

The check-in area looks like (what else!?) a living room. Look hard enough and you’ll likely spy knick-knacks that look like they lived in your grandparents’ house or like something you’d rummage at a garage sale!

Before we get into the actual restaurant, we need to introduce you. to the real highlight of meals here: the Cast Members.

These oh-so-sassy ladies and gents are one of the big reasons we love dining here. Much like Whispering Canyon Cafe at Wilderness Lodge, these servers are known for their antics. They’re not just taking your order, they’re a big part of the entertainment! Servers can’t heckle you as much as they did prior to the closures, but rest assured if they spy an errant elbow on the table or some unfinished green beans on your plate (don’t even get us started about washing your hands in the bathroom — just do it, K?) they’ll be swift to correct you or put you in your place.

It’s all in good fun, but just be warned ahead of time so you don’t sit down wondering why your server is so invested in your vegetable consumption or your posture!

The dining room is separated into a lot of different little areas that each look like their own kitchen. It’s a cross between feeling like you’re in an old relative’s house or that you’re on the set of a family sitcom. Either way, it feels like you’re about to be an extra in an episode of The Wonder Years!

You can see artifacts that nod to the time period on the walls here, including old posters and other home decor.

You’ll find tables and chairs as well as booths available here.

The BEST tables are the ones with a TV! If you’re lucky enough to get a TV table, you can watch old clips of black and white shows while you chow down. You can request a TV table at check-in, but remember that it might not be possible depending on how full the restaurant is that day.

We did get lucky with a TV table this time! When we sat down, our server gave us a wire basket with silverware and napkins and instructed us to set the table.

The servers here are all related to you (thnk a lot of “Aunt” and “Uncle” type speak!), so be prepared for some hilarious shenanigans during your meal.

Eats

50’s Prime Time serves comfort food at its best. There aren’t really any super unique or strange items on this menu — just good ol’ home-cooked favorites like fried chicken, pot roast, and mashed potatoes. Just like any good ’50s meal, the servings are typically ginormous too. You don’t come here for gourmet, you come here for rib-stickin’, hearty comfort food. We’ve enjoyed these eats in the past, and we can’t wait to dig in this time!

Menu

We got a QR code menu when we arrived, which you can scan with your smartphone to see all the available eats.

This spot has several options for appetizers and entrées, including comfort food classics like onion rings, chicken noodle soup, fried chicken, and meatloaf.

The kids’ meals have à la carte appetizers and some entrée options that each come with two selections (sides).

The desserts menu is next, with options like apple crisp, a chocolate-peanut butter cake, and a brownie sundae.

You can take a look at several drink options, including some non-alcoholic specialty drinks (like milkshakes!)…

…as well as a large selection of cocktails. (Love these all come from “Dad’s Liquor Cabinet” — where else?!)

The menu also has several options for wines and beers if you’re looking for a simpler alcoholic drink.

Drinks

To drink, we got a Flavored Soda for $4.79. You can choose Coke or Diet Coke and then add a Vanilla or Cherry syrup to it! We went with a Vanilla Diet Coke. (We see you, haters out there that will scoff at adding sugary syrup to a diet drink. The heart wants what the heart wants, m’kay?)

The base is just normal Diet Coke, but the vanilla that they add to it is a real vanilla syrup, and we love it. You can definitely taste the extra flavor, and it’s fun to have a little twist to a normal soda.

We also ordered a Peanut Butter & Jelly Milkshake for $9.00. 50’s Prime Time is a GREAT place to visit if you’re a big milkshake fan, because the shakes here are delicious (and very big). Plus, they’re served straight from the milkshake mixer in the metal cup and all — just like back in the day!

The PB&J shake is a classic at this spot, and we LOVED it yet again! This is exactly what it sounds like — a milkshake flavored with peanut butter and grape jelly! The most prominent flavor is definitely the peanut butter, and you just get a little taste of the jelly. Trust us, the flavors really work here, even though the combination sounds kind of strange for a shake.

It’s a very sweet drink, and you’ve got to enjoy peanut butter to love it, but we think this shake is a 10/10 choice. It’s a long-time favorite for a reason!

Food

We were VERY excited to see the Fried Herb and Garlic Cheese back on the appetizers menu! It’s available for $10.

This dish is delicious garlicky herby fried cheese served with Raspberry Sauce and fresh fruit. If you know DFB, you know how we feel about our cheese. In our humble opinion, this dish is a national treasure.

The cheese is super creamy with a lovely crisp crust on the outside.

Our favorite side with the cheese was the crostini, which was a toasted piece of garlicky bread that you could dip into the melty cheese. We would’ve loved more of that bread, and you could probably ask your server for an extra bit if you want! The sweet from the raspberry sauce paired with the savory and salty from the cheese is what dreams are made of.

The cheese also pairs really well with the tart apples that came with it. If you’re feeling real fancy, you could even order a glass of wine to complete the elegant dish. (Is it still elegant if the cheese is fried? Don’t answer that… .)

We couldn’t resist an order of the Beer-Battered Onion Rings as well, which also cost $10.

The onion rings come with a side of Horseradish sauce, and we also asked for some ketchup. The horseradish sauce wasn’t too aggressively horseradish-flavored, so we recommend still giving it a taste even if that isn’t one of your favorite flavors — it was really nice with the onion rings!

We have no complaints when it comes to these guys. They were nice, fat onion rings with a greasy, crunchy shell. Just like we like ’em! They’re pretty much your average onion rings, and we think the same dish over at Steakhouse 71 is probably better than these were. So if you’re looking to be amazed by your onion rings, maybe head over there instead. But if you just want a tasty snack to munch on while you wait for your entrées to come, we don’t think you’ll be disappointed!

For our main course, we had A Sampling of Mom’s Favorite Recipes, which comes with Golden-fried Chicken, Fork Tender Pot Roast, and Traditional Meatloaf with all the fixin’s for $26.

This is a great dish to order if you just can’t decide what you want to eat, because you get to try a little bit of everything.

Our favorite part of the meal was the fried chicken for sure. It’s crispy on the outside and very tender and moist on the inside. There weren’t any super interesting flavors or spices, but if you like a classic fried chicken, we think you’ll love this!

The meatloaf was our next favorite. It was a little bit dry in some parts, but in general, it was moist and tasty. We think mom would approve.

The gravy on top also helped add some flavor.

The pot roast was also very tasty. The meat was moist and tender, and we enjoyed it with the veggies on top. Like we said before, none of these foods were super adventurous or crazy, but they were all delicious. Sometimes a simple, straight-forward meal is the best kind!

The entrée came with green beans on the side, which were cooked with butter and tasted great. They also had a good snap, so we liked the texture too.

The mashed potatoes were pretty much what you’d expect. They were creamy and smooth, and most of the flavor came from the gravy on top.

Although none of the food was particularly exciting, we were very satisfied with our meal. It was filling and very tasty, and we think it’d be a solid choice for most people. Picky eaters especially will enjoy this restaurant, since so many of the options are familiar.

Dessert

We couldn’t resist a bite of dessert as well! We ordered Mom’s Brownie, which is a Chocolate Brownie served with a heaping scoop of Vanilla Ice Cream with Chocolate Sauce and Whipped Cream for $9. Nothin’ wrong with that!

Like the other food here it’s nothing super fancy, but it’s a simple dish done very well. The brownie is dense and rich, and it reminded us of a store-bought box brownie (in the best way possible).

The vanilla bean ice cream balances well with the rich chocolate, and there was plenty of this dessert to share if you wanted to split it between a few people. It’s not an earth-shattering dessert, but it gets the job done.

If you’re just going to get one treat here, we’d recommend trying the PB&J Milkshake instead of the brownie, just because the milkshake is a more unique choice that’s a staple at 50’s Prime Time. But if you’re a chocoholic in need of a fix, we don’t think this brownie will disappoint.

Nosh or Not

Head into Mom’s kitchen if:

• You love comfort food and want a solid homestyle meal.
• You’re a fan of the ’50s and want to re-live the days of black-and-white TV and good old-fashioned manners.
• You LOVE milkshakes. Seriously, this place is worth a stop just for the milkshakes.

Burn rubber and find your fixin’s somewhere else if:

• You want to spend more time in Hollywood Studios instead of eating a table-service meal. You could grab some sustenance at Backlot Express, which is a quick-service restaurant with lots of seating space if you just want a quick bite!
• You want to try some exciting, new foods. 50’s Prime Time is VERY basic, classic comfort food, and there’s nothin’ wrong with that. But if you want something a little more unique, try the Ronto Wraps over at Ronto Roasters in Galaxy’s Edge!
• You’re shy and don’t want your server to fuss at you. The Cast Members here are super fun and engaging, but that kind of experience is not for everyone! If you’d be irked by your server scolding you for not finishing your peas, you might want to head to Hollywood Brown Derby restaurant, which has a more upscale, traditional feel.

Overall

We had a great time at 50’s Prime Time Café. Our server was super fun and in character, and he even gave us a sticker when we finished all our food.

The fried cheese and PB&J milkshake were incredible, but other than that the food wasn’t really super special. Everything tasted good, but nothing surprised or wow’d us. If you’ve got picky eaters in your group, this might be the perfect option! We adore the kitschy vibes and food at Prime Time Cafe, but it’s hard to recommend this as a must-do, especially since we know that time in Hollywood Studios is super valuable with so many popular attractions.

Although we love the environment and shenanigans, eating at this restaurant will usually take a pretty long time. With so many attractions, rides, and shows to see in Hollywood Studios, it might not be worth it to you to spend an hour+ eating when you could be out in the park. Between Rise of the Resistance, Millennium Falcon, Slinky Dog Dash, and several other popular rides, you might prefer to grab some quick-service food and then hop in a line rather than sitting down to a table service meal. In the future, we’d possibly recommend hitting up Ronto Roasters or Woody’s Lunch Box (using Mobile Order) to get a fast meal and then hop in line for a nearby ride.

We do think the experience of 50’s Prime Time is worth at least one visit for any big Disney World fans. So if you get to visit the parks pretty often, we think you’ve got to go at least once. And make sure to get that fried cheese while you’re there! Keep following DFB for more Disney World restaurant reviews.

Click Here to Check Out the Reopened Tune-In Lounge at 50’s Prime Time Café