{"id":29299,"date":"2013-05-03T09:00:44","date_gmt":"2013-05-03T13:00:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/?p=29299"},"modified":"2022-05-04T20:45:08","modified_gmt":"2022-05-05T00:45:08","slug":"foodie-friday-favorite-counter-service-restaurants","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/foodie-friday-favorite-counter-service-restaurants\/","title":{"rendered":"Foodie Friday: Favorite Counter Service Restaurants"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Best<\/a>Welcome to my new column!<\/p>\n

Here we’re going to take a look at some of the best that Disney Food has to offer.\u00a0 So let’s dig in!\u00a0 (Get it?\u00a0 Ok…enough with the punny).<\/p>\n

Today, I thought we’d take a look at some of my favorite counter service restaurants that are found in the Magic Kingdom and Epcot.<\/p>\n

Personally, I am not a burger or sandwich eater, so I enjoy dining in Counter Service restaurants that offer just a little more.\u00a0 That extra little bit that Disney seems to be noticing that more and more people are enjoying when visiting their parks.\u00a0 Not that eating burgers and fries are necessarily a bad thing.\u00a0 There are certainly times when those options are right up my alley too, but I enjoy having the option to choose.\u00a0 Letting me choose is what Walt Disney World Counter Service restaurants have been doing a much better job in over the past few years.\u00a0 With that, let’s dive right in!<\/p>\n

Magic Kingdom<\/strong><\/span><\/h1>\n

Best: Columbia Harbor House<\/strong><\/h2>\n

This restaurant has some of the best options in the Magic Kingdom and before Be Our Guest Restaurant, it was one of the few places in the Magic Kingdom that didn’t rely on a menu solely of pizza, burgers, chicken nuggets, and hot dogs.<\/p>\n

This location, found in Liberty Square,\u00a0 focuses it’s menu for the seafood lover.\u00a0 With options like the lobster roll and grilled salmon, this isn’t your typical theme park restaurant.<\/p>\n

Also on the menu, fried shrimp and battered fish, plus the Lighthouse Sandwich made with hummus, tomato and broccoli slaw and the Anchors Aweigh Sandwich with white tuna and lettuce and tomato.\u00a0 (And if you did want chicken, they do offer chicken nuggets.)<\/p>\n

Columbia Harbor House also offers unique side dishes like couscous and steamed fresh broccoli!\u00a0 In addition, they do have great soup options in chili and clam chowder, for days when it’s not 1000 degrees out.<\/p>\n

A tip:\u00a0 After getting your food, consider heading upstairs.\u00a0 There is quite a bit of seating on the second level that many miss because they don’t know it’s there.\u00a0 Often it can be insanely crowded downstairs and nary a soul upstairs.\u00a0 Plus, there are some window seats where you can look down on Liberty Square.\u00a0 A perfect place for people watching!<\/p>\n

Honorable Mention: Be Our Guest Restaurant<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\"Disney\"<\/a>
Disney<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Only available at lunch for Counter Service, this restaurant offers a lot of amazing choices too like quiche, a steak sandwich and braised pork.\u00a0 One downfall…it’s popularity.\u00a0 This restaurant is SUPER busy right now with New Fantasyland just opening.\u00a0 Dining for lunch is the only way for many to get in there, because dinner reservations are going exceptionally quick.\u00a0 Another reason for this restaurant’s popularity, let’s face it…it’s cool!\u00a0 How amazing to eat in Beast’s Castle!\u00a0 If you want to try eating here, you’ll need to eat a very early lunch.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Epcot<\/strong><\/span><\/h1>\n

Best: Sunshine Seasons<\/h2>\n
\"Disney\"<\/a>
Disney<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

At Epcot, there really are so many choices for dining!\u00a0 I could really have just done a best counter service restaurants of Epcot (and maybe some day, I will).\u00a0 Having access to all the different delights that World Showcase has to offer the Counter Service diner that are unique, is incredible.\u00a0 However, the best in Epcot, for me, is not found in World Showcase.\u00a0 Instead, it is Sunshine Seasons, found in The Land Pavilion in Future World.<\/p>\n

I mean, really…just the smell of walking into this area makes you hungry.\u00a0 (Trust me, this Pavilion has a distinct smell.\u00a0 Don’t believe me, take a whiff next time you’re there.)\u00a0 The set up is sort of a food court type atmosphere.\u00a0 You have different stations where everyone can pick out what they want (granted, you will have to stand in two separate lines if one person wants one dish and the other wants another.) Then, after selecting any grab and go items you may want, your party goes up to pay.\u00a0 It is similar to the style that can be found in many of the resort food courts.<\/p>\n

Sunshine Seasons really does have something for everyone.\u00a0 Even the pickiest of eaters.\u00a0 Here, you’ll have the choice of Asian dishes, soups, salads, sandwiches, rotisserie chicken, fish, pork chops, etc.\u00a0 And don’t forget the amazing pastries and desserts that you can find too!\u00a0 (Mmm…cake). Kids will have a litany of choices as well.\u00a0 Not all traditional kid picks, either, but certainly kid friendly.\u00a0 This really is the best choice if you are with your family and not everyone wants the same things to eat.<\/p>\n

Honorable Mention: La Cantina de San Angel<\/h2>\n

Want to get your Mexican on?\u00a0 (You know I had to mention ONE World Showcase restaurant.)\u00a0 La Cantina is a great choice for guests because they have quite a few choices and they are certainly not typical.\u00a0 This isn’t Taco Bell quality here.\u00a0 The options are fresh and full of color.\u00a0 Options include tacos, empanadas, and nachos.\u00a0 Add a margarita or a churro (or both!) and life is good. Just be careful.\u00a0 Dining is all outside and well, let’s just say, don’t feed the birds.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

So, that’s gonna do it for this first installment of Foodie Friday!\u00a0 I’ll be back next week with a look at the best options (in my opinion) found at both Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Disney’s Animal Kingdom.<\/p>\n

For now, what is your favorite Counter Service Restaurant in the Magic Kingdom and Epcot?\u00a0 Make sure to share with us!<\/p>\n

In addition, I want your help!\u00a0 Is there anything you want to see here?\u00a0 Do you have a great topic idea that you want to see me explore!\u00a0 Please, feel free to email me at rikkibeourguest@gmail.com.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Welcome to my new column! Here we’re going to take a look at some of the best that Disney Food has to offer.\u00a0 So let’s dig in!\u00a0 (Get it?\u00a0 Ok…enough with the punny). Today, I thought we’d take a look at some of my favorite counter service restaurants that are found in the Magic Kingdom…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":49,"featured_media":29317,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wprm-recipe-roundup-name":"","wprm-recipe-roundup-description":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1688,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-29299","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-wdw-dining","category-walt-disney-world"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29299","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/49"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29299"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29299\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":84724,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29299\/revisions\/84724"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/29317"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29299"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29299"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29299"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}