Disney’s Hollywood Studios is full of epic rides, attractions, and shows, but how is the food in this park when you’re looking for a quick bite?

We’ve seen exciting pop-up events recently like the Indiana Jones Den of Destiny bar, and we’ve tried everything on the menu at 50’s Prime Time Cafe. On a recent trip, we visited Echo Lake for a quick-service meal.

We opted for a meal outside at Dockside Diner Restaurant. You may have formerly known this location as Min and Bill’s Dockside Diner, but they’ve since dropped the “Min and Bill’s” part of the name. This restaurant can be found near For The First Time In Forever: A Frozen Singalong, the back side of Keystone Clothiers, and adjacent to Hollywood and Vine Restaurant. This is a fast food location, so you’ll be ordering at the counter or through mobile order and grabbing your own food, then off to find seating.

Dockside Diner’s menu mainly consists of quirky hot dog variations, a few side items, and, on occasion, seasonal treats or desserts like a few you’ll probably catch in this review. You’ll want to be sure to check the menu, as these dessert offerings change frequently. For this review, we tried to keep it as casual as possible on a hot summer day with hot dogs and a milkshake!

Atmosphere

Since Dockside Diner is an outdoor counter, it’s no surprise that the seating is all outdoors, too.

All of the seating can be found surrounding the front section before the restaurant and to each side of it in the open courtyard…

Most tables are outfitted with a large umbrella to offer shade while you sit and enjoy your food.

There’s usually ample seating here but because it’s so open, I would also expect some people to be sitting just for a break through their day and not necessarily out of necessity because they’re eating a meal. When that’s the case it can be a bit more difficult to find ample seating, but on this day the skies were overcast and that helped shy away folks that weren’t eating then.

Overall Dockside Diner’s seating area is a relaxing place to be while waiting for your food to be prepared or sitting down to eat.

Menu

The menu here is fairly slim, so there weren’t a lot of options to choose from.

As you can see, most of the menu is made of interesting hot dog flavors, with a few kid’s options like a PB&J Uncrustable or kid’s Macaroni & Cheese, and a few beverage options like shakes and lemonade. There’s also a sign reminding you that this restaurant does accept mobile orders.

When you walk up to the cashier stands to order, you will get a better understanding of the seasonal beverage options…

…along with whatever the latest dessert is of choice. For this review, it hadn’t been too long since the last time we tried the Banana Split Parfait, so we opted for a spirited Chocolate Shake.

There’s also a menu board over the service counter if you want a better sense of the pricing before you order.

This is really helpful when you’re not looking to mobile order and might want to request modifications to your order as you’re placing it.

Eats

After a few minutes of browsing the menu, it was time to order! First, we opted for the California BLTA Hot Dog. 

The California BLTA Hot Dog is made of an All-Beef Quarter-pound Hot Dog topped with Lettuce, Tomato, Avocado, Crispy Applewood Bacon, House-made Black Pepper Mayonnaise, and drizzled with Mustard Aïoli on a Brioche Butter Bun, served with House-made Chips. This meal cost $12.29 and had a great presentation, but it left us wondering initially if it would taste as good as it looked.

This hot dog had almost a southwest kick to it, and the veggies were fresh with a nice snap. The house-made Black Pepper Mayonaise seemed to make or break this concoction and surprised us when we didn’t find it overpowering. The brioche bun had a light yet buttery crust to it which gave it a nice toasted feel and added some overall texture.

The hot dog was fairly thick though, so with so many things piled onto it, it proved a bit difficult to keep from falling apart.

We mentioned this hot dog was served with a side, which was house-made chips. 

We’ve had these chips before at several locations around the other parks and resorts, so we found these to be similar across the board. They have a great crunch to them and aren’t overly greasy or too salty to pair with a quick meal. The salt was seasoned a bit so it added a little zing to the flavor, kinda like a barbecue chip.

Then it was time to try the Bacon Macaroni & Cheese Hot Dog.

This All-Beef Hot Dog comes dressed with savory Macaroni & Cheese, Crispy Applewood Bacon, drizzled with Mustard Aïoli on a Brioche Butter Bun, and is also served with House-made Chips. This one cost us $12.29. This was fairly standard mac n cheese on a hotdog with bacon bits and mustard — it’s like having the whole meal in one bite.

However, that might have been this hot dog’s undoing from what we gather. We found the mac n cheese to be fair, and it just didn’t leave a lasting impression with us.

While overall the hot dog was good, the cheese sauce from the mac n cheese could have contributed so much to the taste, but was bland. The crispy applewood bacon bits that topped the hot dog did their best add some needed decent crunch, but ultimately the cheese sauce just proved to be a bit too much substance with too little flavor.

Dessert

To round out our meal we also tried the Chocolate Shake with Baileys Irish Cream and Kahlúa Liqueur.

The alcoholic version of this chocolate shake cost us $16.50 however, this could shake could be ordered by itself without the extra spirits for a cheaper price of $5.49. When this shake was served to us it was filled beyond the brim and although it was overcast, we were dealing with high temperatures.

Since it melted so quickly we needed to slurp it down, and we were suprised by the flavors we encountered. The mixture of the Irish cream, Kahlua, and chocolate milkshake tasted more like really felt like a blended Twix candy bar rather than the milk-chocolate taste that we were expecting. We enjoyed this one and would probably order it again on another day when it wasn’t so hot, because it did get messy very quickly.

Overall

Overall, we felt the options here were a bit limited, but we understood that going into it. The hot dogs were decent size, and the house-made chips made a great crunchy side option for them although we wished there were a few more side options. The quality of the food was fine, but we feel like we’ve had more memorable meals at other restaurants around Disney’s Hollywood Studios for similar prices.

The menu here is very heavily focused on food that can be turned out fast and won’t weigh you down to get on through the rest of your day at the park. If you’re looking for a quick meal and really enjoy a different spin on a hot dog, this is certainly a restaurant to try out on your next visit to Disney.

Nosh or Not

Stop by Dockside Diner if…

• You’re a hot dog enthusiast. If you love a good variety of flavors on a hot dog, this is certainly your best bet to stop by in Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
• You’re a fan of outdoor seating. You could very easily think of dining here like a picnic in the parks. You’ve got good light food options, and you can take your time people-watching while relaxing on the bench-style seating.
• You’re not looking for very adventurous meals. We know this might sound a bit contradictory but everything on this menu is pretty standard menu items you could get separately around the park, so you’re going to be tasting familiar flavors here.

Keep searching for another restaurant if…

• Hot dogs just aren’t quite what you’re craving. Most of the entree options here are very heavily centered around hot dogs, so there’s not much you can do to escape it here.
• You’re not a fan of outdoor seating. If sitting outside doesn’t sound like the ideal way to spend your down time eating at a restaurant, there’s several other quick service locations inside Disney’s Hollywood Studios that will offer indoor seating instead.

Disney World menus change frequently, and that’s why we’re constantly reviewing the food, drink, and snacks to help you make the best decisions on your next Disney trip. So for the latest in Disney food news and reviews, stay tuned with us at Disney Food Blog!

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Have you ever eaten at Dockside Diner? Tell us about your experience in the comments!

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