My family just made the impulsive decision to head to Walt Disney World in a few months. By the time we’d chosen our dates, we were well within the 180-day window for Advanced Dining Reservations (ADRs). Many of our favorite restaurants had booked up already, but we’re oddly okay with it. A relatively recent Disney innovation has empowered us to eat a different way in Orlando. Yes, we’re all-in on Quick Service meals on the fly. Here are my choices for the best Walt Disney World restaurants that are eligible for Mobile Ordering.
ABC Commissary
Image: DisneyAt Walt Disney World, more than 20 Quick Service restaurants participate in the Mobile Ordering program. From the comfort of your phone, you can load My Disney Experience and choose your meal. Within a matter of moments, you can order your food and pay for it. Then, Disney will ready your meal when you signal them that you’re in the area. It’s a foolproof system that has turned Disney dining into an efficient way to maximize park time.
In choosing the best restaurants, I had three significant criteria. One is selecting at least one place from all four Disney gates plus Disney Springs. Another is highlighting the spots with my favorite foods, and the final emphasis is on places that serve signature Disney dishes.
ABC Commissary isn’t quite my favorite Quick Service restaurant at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. That honor belongs to The Dockside Diner due to its theming, but it’s not a program participant at the time of publication. ABC Commissary is the next best option at Hollywood Studios due to its Vegan Burger, Fish and Shrimp Platter, and Chicken Club. Plus, it has Frozen- and Star Wars-based desserts. And its location is perfect, as guests tend to crisscross the area on the way to other parts of the park.
Aloha Isle
Image: DisneyI’m honestly not even sure if this is a good idea or not, as I’ve yet to try it out. In theory, I love the idea of pulling out my phone and hitting a button to express-purchase a Dole Whip. That’s what Aloha Isle is known for, and that’s what almost everyone plans to order here. I do have a few questions about the timing, though.
Dole Whips melt in the hot sun, meaning that you shouldn’t signal that you’re ready for Disney to prepare your meal until you’re right there. Otherwise, your delicious Polynesian delicacy might taste more like pineapple milk. Still, I view the presence of Aloha Isle on the Mobile Ordering list as something from a Disney fantasy, only it is reality. A Dole Whip is never more than a few button clicks away. That sounds like Heaven, right?
Casey’s Corner
Image: DisneyI’m a baseball fanatic. I’m also a huge fan of corn dogs and hot dogs. Ergo, Casey’s Corner is my happy place. It’s one of the most energetic Quick Service eateries in Magic Kingdom, and the old-timey baseball theming is as timeless as the sport itself.
Conveniently located near the front of Magic Kingdom, Casey’s Corner is certainly easy enough to reach from most corners of the park. You can order when you’re in a different section and then grab your food to go. Then, you walk a few steps to the hub encircling Cinderella Castle and relish in the glorious combination of hearty food and people-watching. Alternately, you can eat inside the restaurant. Either way, I strongly recommend the Corn Dog Nuggets with Cracker Jacks. They’re one of the best meal combos at Walt Disney World.
Columbia Harbour House
Image: DisneyOne of the recurring themes of Mobile Ordering is that you’ll face a decision about whether to eat inside the restaurant or elsewhere. You can’t go wrong at Casey’s Corner, and the same is true of Columbia Harbour House.
The interior theming of this building is brilliant, with a Revolutionary War inn vibe. And the second floor has ample seating with a great view of Haunted Mansion across the way. Should you choose to go outside, you’ll find many places where you can watch the Liberty Square Riverboat. You might even time your meal with the Festival of Fantasy Parade if so inclined. The beauty of Mobile Ordering is its flexibility.
At Columbia Harbour House, you’re sure to eat a delicious meal. The seafood on the docket here is ridiculously good for a Quick Service restaurant. Some people call Columbia Harbour House one of the hidden gems of Walt Disney World. The only reason why I disagree is that I don’t think it’s much of a secret. This place is always packed, another great reason why you should use Mobile Ordering to skip the line.
Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Café
Image: DisneyHere’s a place where you SHOULD eat at the restaurant. Cosmic Ray’s is one of the greatest traditions at Magic Kingdom. This quasi-futuristic outer space eatery is totally ridiculous in the best possible way.
Cosmic Ray’s is home to legendary intergalactic pop sensation, Sonny Eclipse. And he plays all of his greatest hits like Planetary Boogie and Gravity Blues. Sonny is the cheesiest audio-animatronic at Walt Disney World, and he’s also my favorite.
As a young child, I was mesmerized by the goofiness of the premise, and that childish wonder has never diminished. When I watch Sonny Eclipse, I feel the same way that an eight-year-old does at Chuck E. Cheese’s. Oh, and the burgers here are great, too. Well, they were when I was a kid, so I still think of them that way. The truth of this particular issue is entirely subjective.
D-Luxe Burger
Image: DisneyBut the burgers here are superlative. That’s not up for debate. When you have burger in your name, you better cook them right. To its credit, D-Luxe Burger absolutely does.
The signature beef patties here are of the highest quality, but then the recipes call for some shocking ingredients like Tzatziki, too! Plus, D-Luxe Burger is a great place to take a date. Their special Duos menu serves two, making the joint a kind of 21st-century malt shop, complete with artisanal gelato shakes.
At this point, Disney Springs only has modest participation in the Mobile Ordering program, but D-Luxe Burger is plenty good enough for most. Plus, you can grab it and go for a leisurely stroll around Disney Springs, one of the most beautiful parts of the Walt Disney World campus.
Electric Umbrella
Image: DisneyI view this as one of the most underrated Quick Service restaurants at Walt Disney World. I realize that’s a bold statement, but I adore the location here. By sitting on the second floor, I can look down on the traffic wandering through one of the main hubs at Future World. It’s a perfect spot for people-watching. Plus, the quality of restaurants at the back of Epcot, the World Showcase, tends to pull crowds away from this section.
Electric Umbrella has a robust menu of Quick Service staples like burgers and nuggets, but it also offers some offbeat options like a brisket sandwich and a pulled pork burger. You can even get an “Energy Salad,” which cracks me up. Flatbreads are available here, too. If I’m honest, it’s not the food that I love about Electric Umbrella, though. For me, it’s location, location, location.
Sa’tuli Canteen
Image: DisneyThe first Mobile Ordering participant remains the best. The pride of Pandora – The World of Avatar, Sa’tuli Canteen is ostensibly a mess hall that serves authentic interplanetary cuisine. And that cuisine takes the unique form of bowls and pods.
Your bowl might taste like chicken, beef, or fish. Your pod is…a cheeseburger? No, it’s not like the kind you’ll find at D-Luxe Burger or Cosmic Ray’s, but it’s a marvelous deconstruction of a comfort food staple. In the entirety of Walt Disney World, Sa’tuli Canteen delivers the most original flavor profiles, a remarkable feat for a Quick Service restaurant.
By using Mobile Ordering, you can dine in the mess hall environment that Jake Sully utilized in the film, or you can explore the wonders of the world’s most advanced themed land while you eat. It’s another situation where both options are great. You should try both over the years as you return to Pandora.
Image: Disney
