Category: Walt Disney World Resort

Well, I’ll be the first to admit we were wrong (maybe I should claim April Fool’s joke on it), but it seems Disney admitted it first…

With the expansion of Disney’s Animal Kingdom, we’re excited to give Guests even more opportunities to celebrate the magic of animals and nature as day turns into night. While we’d hoped to debut these offerings on April 22, unfortunately, they will not open as planned on that date as we give the team more time to bring these innovative experiences to life in a way we know will exceed our guests’ expectations.

We’ll share more information about timing by mid- to late May.

So, in short, Disney will not even share a start date until mid-to-late-May. Basically, the show is WAY behind schedule.

To tide you over until the new nighttime offerings are actually running, Disney did share this video of the Tree of Life testing out its new nighttime lighting effects:

Tiffins, the newest restaurant in the Discovery Island area of Disney’s Animal Kingdom, opens Memorial Day weekend, and the Disney chefs have been hard at work to create inventive dishes inspired by the world travels of the park’s creators.

From the familiar to something new, the menu offers something for everyone – from a berbere-spiced lamb chop to a New York strip steak or beef short rib with potatoes. Starters include a Lobster-Popcorn Thai Curry Soup with Basil and Peanuts (Asia/Africa) to marinated grilled octopus (Europe). Sustainable seasonal fish crudo (South America) and a salad of roasted baby beets and goat cheese with walnut granola and a sun-dried cherry vinaigrette Discovery Island (North America) round out international creations.

Entrées include Berber-Spiced Lamb Chop with Mustard Greens, Lentil Stew and Mint Chutney (Africa); Berkshire Pork Tenderloin with Huitlacoche Tamale, Hominy Succotash and Red Mole Sauce (South America); Miso-glazed Black Cod with Forbidden Rice in Steamed Bok Choy with Turmeric Sauce (Asia), and Grilled Head-on Shrimp with Tomatoes, Roasted Fennel, Olives and Sea Urchin Butter Sauce (Europe). For vegetarians, the Roasted Market Vegetable Curry with Quinoa, Zucchini and Lime Chutney brings a taste of Asia.

Beverages focus on Africa, Asia and South America, including handcrafted cocktails and beers. Non-alcoholic beverages include exotic-fruit- flavored lemonades, Asian and African premium loose-leaf teas and coffee beans from Columbia, Ethiopia, Indonesia and Tanzania.

“With a focus on South American and South African wines, the beverage program is very special – we don’t have another one like it at Disney,” said Master Sommelier Brian Koziol, Food & Beverage Concept and Development director for Disney Parks & Resorts. “The program will focus on environmentality: producers that focus on sustainability, organic wines, and bio-dynamic viticulture,” he explained. “Environmentality is a core value at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, and this beverage program is a great way to share that with our guests.”

With 55 seats inside, and 46 seats in a covered outdoor area, Nomad Lounge offers a half- dozen small bites such as a vegetarian summer roll, a seared Wagyu beef skewer, honey-glazed coriander-spiced pork ribs, Indian butter-chicken wings, seasonal fish balls with shishito peppers and house-made head cheese and chicken liver pate with chutney.

Like Tiffins, the lounge offers handcrafted cocktails with African, Asian and South American flavors, imported beers and a South American and South African wine list. Non-alcoholic beverages include exotic-fruit- flavored lemonades, Asian and African premium loose-leaf teas and coffee beans from Columbia, Ethiopia, Indonesia and Tanzania.

It has been quite a while since we looked at the construction of Pandora: The World of AVATAR from the skies above Animal Kingdom, so with that being said, we are taking another exclusive look from above today:

The floating mountains and vines are looking more and more realistic every day

Props still being loaded into the massive theater for the flying Banshee simulator attraction

Towards the back of the land, you can see the military hangar which will house the main dining establishment for Pandora: The World of AVATAR

The multiple layers of mountain facade on the show building provide depth for the land’s massive backdrop

LArge masses of exposed steel still remain at the base of the mountains

We also have a video taken from the air to share with you as well:

I had been hearing good things about Pizzafari at Animal Kingdom since they had reopened from a lengthy refurbishment a few weeks ago. Someone had told me that the pizzas were different now, not the practically inedible, circular, heartburn-inducing death-discs that they had been at WDW counter service restaurants since the dawn of recorded time. I had to see this for myself…

The menu still has pizzas, but quite a bit has changed

The pizza prep process was completely revamped, with the pies being made fresh rather than prepackaged pizzas that were simply heated

I decided to start with the garlic knots. These were pretty good. Better than I expected at least and the marinara dipping sauce was a good accompaniment. You actually get a rather large serving for $6.99, whcihc really puts some Epcot festival offerings to shame as far as value.

The shrimp flatbread was our favorite item of the day. I couldn’t believe this was a counter service item. It tasted very fresh and was a nice lighter option compared to heavy with cheese pizzas. All of the pizzas also came with a small cup of antipasto salad.

I got the meat lover’s pizza. Again, I was shocked how good this was. It’s not going to change your life, but it is a million times better than the previous incarnation. Pretty much tasted like Pizza Hut, which I still think is a vast improvement over what it used to be.

When I saw a counter service restaurant had tiramisu, I had to try it. Again, it was really solid. The only issue we had was that the cake layer was a little frozen, but otherwise it tasted good. I would equate my shock level to the first time I had counter service cheesecake at Disney World: this shouldn’t be good, but it is.

Overall, I was thoroughly impressed by my experience at Pizzafari. This is possibly the best counter service pizza at a theme park that I have ever had (including the often overrated Red Oven at Universal Orlando). Being from New York, I am extremely harsh on fast food Italian offerings, but this is such an improvement over what came before that even I was won over. I’m praying that this kind of menu is what we see when Pizza Planet returns as a new restaurant at Hollywood Studios later this year, because it is honestly what it should be. Is this the best counter service at Animal Kingdom now? No, but now it’s a viable option at least.