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Our Top Food Picks at Animal Kingdom · Ear Scouts Podcast

• Rob: in this episode of the Ear Scouts Podcast, we are listing out our favorite things to eat when we are. Having a wild time at Animal Kingdom. We got a lot of delicious dishes to talk about, so let's get to it. Hi ho everybody, this is Rob with Ear Scouts coming to you from our makeshift studio here in Celebration, Florida. Joining me here in Celebration, as always, is the other half of Ear Scouts Eric. Hi ho, Eric. Erick: Hiho everyone! Rob: Eric is going to be keeping up with the live chat over on Patreon. If you'd like to join us as we record each and every episode live and get to take part in the Patreon exclusive after party, just head on over to patreon.com forward slash Earscouts. Also joining us back in her home state of Connecticut, the host of Jessica Scraps on YouTube. Jessica. Hi, ho, Jessica. Jessica: Hello everyone. Rob: Is it good to be home? Jessica: It's good to be home. It's good to be home. Rob: Well, we're we're glad to see you in your familiar environs. Also coming to us from his familiar environs in Indiana is our resident Disney trivia guru, Quizmaster Craig. Hi ho, Craig. Craig: All right, hello everybody. Rob: So we are all back together to talk about food another park. So this is actually our second in a series that we've been doing. Our first episode was all of our favorite things to eat at Magic Kingdom. And now we're hopping over to the other kingdom at Walt Disney World Animal Kingdom. ⁓ And spoiler alert, this is actually my favorite. Park for food. I think I might be the only one. ⁓ I think there's a lot of there's a lot of love for Epcot too. And I love eating at Epcot as well. But this is hands down. If I were gonna go anywhere to get a meal at any of the parks, my pick is gonna be Animal Kingdom. and we're gonna share with you all of our favorites in this park so you'll see why. it is worth planning mealtime around Animal Kingdom. but before we talk about our favorite foods at my favorite park, we do have a quick programming update. And that is that we will be taking next week off for the fourth of July holiday. ⁓ So we will be back with another episode the following week. But if you're looking for us in podcast feed, you're like, hey, where's Ear Scouts? We're taking the week off to celebrate the semi quincentennial. And with that said, let's jump back into the topic at hand, which is delicious dishes at Animal Kingdom. Why don't you start us off, Jessica? What is one of your favorite things to eat when you're at Animal Kingdom? Jessica: So I'm going start with something that we don't actually eat as much, but we drink. And that is the sangria dole whip float at Tammu Tamu. Now, there was one time when John and I did a four-park crawl, and we had to eat Dole Whip at every single park. And that is when I found the Sangria Dole Whip Float. So it is actually really good sangria, the sangria they serve in most of the restaurants with Dole Whip in it. And it's exactly what you think it is. And it is wonderful. And I highly recommend it. Probably not start. They serve it starting at like 9 a.m. So if you do want to do like a drink around the parks and start early, you could probably don't do that. But ⁓ it is sangria is just juice. It's just juice. It's it's a low ABV, a low ABV. ⁓ but anyway, it is one of my favorite ways to have Dole Whip, actually. ⁓ it's doesn't have Rob: Yeah. Craig: Ha ha ha ha! Rob: I mean it's juice, right? ⁓ sangria's juice. Yeah. That's it's appropriate. Craig: Mm-hmm. Just grapes. Jessica: Pop rocks throwback to Magic Kingdom, but it does have Sangria. So ⁓ I did want to bring a a float, a Dole Whip Float in because I did have one in Magic Kingdom. And spoiler alert for the other parks, I may really like Dole Whip Floats. It may be something you hear about again and again. But that is my favorite. The the Sangria Dole Whip Float. It is really good. If you haven't had it, ⁓ I would give it a try. Rob: Ha ha ha. ⁓ Craig: hahahaha ⁓ Rob: All right. Craig, why don't you share with us your first pick for what you should eat or drink when you're at Animal Kingdom? Craig: Okay, well, I'm just going to continue with the juicy theme. ⁓ And I'm going with the jungle juice, also known as Pog juice throughout the rest of the resort. ⁓ You can get it at Tusker House and also they have it at the Dawah bar if you're not familiar. It's a blend of passion fruit juice, orange juice and guava juice. And you can't it's delicious just that the balance is just so perfect. It just takes you right to a tropical island. ⁓ You can get it with rum vodka, however you would like it. You can get it with a, in the float with some Dole Whip. Yep. And I know it's, it's a lot of people's favorites, but ⁓ just being able to, to get it at a quick bar or even with a nice breakfast at Tusker house. Jessica: I was just gonna say that. Rob: Ha ha ha. so you mentioned one of my favorite places at Animal Kingdom. So I'm gonna jump right to that. And this is Tusker House. If you're not familiar with Tusker House, this is the character dining experience at Animal Kingdom. In my opinion, it is the best character dining you're gonna find at any of the parks, both because you've got, you know, your your favorites, you got Mickey, and you've got ⁓ Goofy and Donald and Daisy. There's no mini, correct? It's Daisy. ⁓ but they're all dressed up for a safari it's a unique photo. You can only get at Tusker House. They do wear similar outfits when you meet Mickey and Minnie for their photo op. But if you want Donald and Goofy and Daisy, it's the only place to get it. ⁓ And the real reason though that it's the best is because the food is amazing. I know we're gonna be talking a lot Tusker House. I think we all have some favorite things about Tusker House, but I I just kind of wanted to talk about it as a as a restaurant as a whole. Like I think you should put it on your list of things to try. And I'm gonna specifically call out if you're there for breakfast, ⁓ and you're less of an adventurous eater, because they do have a lot of adventurous things on the menu, ⁓ they have this cinnamon roll bread pudding. I think sometimes it's a banana cinnamon roll bread pudding. It was delicious. It's one of the best of those. ⁓ you can get lots of bread puddings at the different ⁓ buffet restaurants at Disney World. It's kind of a classic that they do really well. This one is one of my favorites, if not my favorite. So be sure to give that a try. so Eric. ⁓ our friends on Patreon, we would like to ask them to share any of their favorites from Animal Kingdom. Or if you have any questions about dining animal kingdom, throw them in the chat. Do we have anything just yet? Erick: Yes, we actually have plenty of them. right now, the one that got my attention, it's merely a tip from Heather. She said, my favorite Tosca house tip, get a reservation at 10.30 and you get breakfast and lunch. Rob: ⁓ wow, nice. ⁓ yeah. That's that's a that's a good one. I'm actually toss to Craig next because I think you did have ⁓ Jessica: Mm. Craig: Mm-hmm. Rob: The other half of Tusker House to talk about. Craig: Yeah, I especially love their breakfast buffet ⁓ and specifically the African inspired items that they have. ⁓ Now, if you've ever been to Boma at the Animal Kingdom Lodge and had breakfast there, you know, it's they have lots of experimental foods if you unless you are from Africa, of course. But ⁓ Tuscar House also has some some great ones. They have a shakshuka, which is ⁓ it's very similar to the eggs al forno. It's ⁓ eggs. baked in grits and has a tomato ⁓ sauce on it. ⁓ There's boboti, which is a casserole with ground beef. It has an egg custard on top. so that's just a few of the things that they have. special I think for breakfast. Rob: Yeah, I that's that's the main reason I love ⁓ Tusker House is because there's so many African inspired ⁓ dishes on the menu. And I think they call it African inspired probably because, like with a lot of the things you get at Disney World, it's probably not exactly what you would have if you were to be dining in Africa. But a lot of those flavors, a lot of those spices, ⁓ it's it's very it's probably been changed a little bit for American palates, but it's delicious. Craig: Mm-hmm. Yep. Rob: I love it. It's it's one of my favorites. ⁓ Jessica, what is your next pick for food at Animal Kingdom? Jessica: Going to head to another restaurant that can be controversial, I will say, but that is Yakin Yeti. So I know there are some people who have differing ⁓ experiences as at Yak and Yeti. ⁓ but for me personally, although I don't necessarily love it the indoor seating of every menu item, the Ahi Tuna nachos that are on the shareables menu to me are the perfect ⁓ midday snack. Most of the time we go and try to get one of the five, there's five bar seats. If you kind of hang out, you can get them. John and I will share the nachos and ⁓ just have that and a drink. It's a perfect midday snack. They're very fresh, they're very light, they're on the fried wonton ⁓ and not on chips. So it's just it's really nice. So ⁓ although I know some people have hit and miss on Yak and Yeti, it is a third party ⁓ vendor, but ⁓ for me the Ahi Tuna nachos there are really, really good and something that I try to get most of the trips that we go. Rob: Yeah, ⁓ my experience with Yak and Yeti, I would agree it's a little hit or miss, but I would say it's more hit than miss. I think we we've usually had a good time there. ⁓ it's a Landry's is the the third party that runs that one. So if you're familiar with Landry's or you're familiar with they do Rainforest Cafe. I think they do T Rex over at ⁓ Disney Springs. So Jessica: Right. Mm-hmm. Craig: Mm-hmm. Do they still have the discount card or thing for your birthday? Yeah. Rob: They do. Erick: That are required. Yeah, they do. Jessica: They still have a Landry's card. Yeah. And you can get reservations easier. If you haven't made a reservation, you can get in a walk up line faster if you're a Landry's member. So if you really love one of those that Rob mentioned, it's worth worth it to go online and sign up for a Landry's card. And it's a free thing. Just become a Landry's member. It's not ⁓ you do you pay for it now? Rob: Yeah. Actually, no, you pay for it, but the you do pay for it. But the way that it works is you pay for it and then you get a voucher for your next meal that is essentially you essentially end up getting more as long as you go a second time, you end up getting more for your money than you paid the first time. But ⁓ that's my understanding of how it works. And then but the the benefit of the program. Erick: Yeah, you do. Jessica: that makes sense. ⁓ Rob: is you kind of earn, you know, discounts and you yeah. And you also the big thing for fans of ⁓ Yakin Yeti, it can on really busy days, it can be very hard to get a table there. And if you are a member, you basically go to the front of the line, you know, or at least behind any other members that are there ⁓ when you do a walk up, which is great. Jessica: Point. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Rob: Craig, I think you also had ⁓ a yak and yeti pick. Craig: I do. ⁓ And I'm one of those that isn't a huge fan of yak and yeti. Now, admittedly, when it comes to Asian food, I'm kind of a snob. And I think that's because we have no decent Asian restaurants in Northern Indiana near me. So I had to learn to cook myself. And I do consider myself a good cook. And it's gotten to the point where I'll have Pad Thai in a really good Thai restaurant and go, mine's better. ⁓ But I do, have it at Yak and Yeti and I do not make this. And it's their fried calamari appetizer. And it's a crispy, battered medley of calamari and vegetables with a kimchi dressing and bang bang sauce. If you're not familiar with kimchi, it's a fermented cabbage dish from ⁓ Korea. And it's spicy and usually see it as like a little side dish for almost all of their meals. ⁓ But yeah, I love a good calamari. And this was excellent. And remember, the vegetables were fantastic, too, the sauces. So I will give that thumbs up for their calamari appetizer. Rob: I'm not generally a fan of anything that swims. Not kind of I just don't don't really do seafood or fish or anything, so I'm I can't speak to the the calamari. But Eric, I think you did have the calamari there once, didn't you? You you enjoyed it? Craig: Yeah. Erick: Yeah, and it was okay. Yeah, I mean, the time that I love the flavor, but the time that I got served it, like, ⁓ it was a little bit chewy, which made me think that it was frozen. But again, I have, I have heard like two things, like when it's like absolutely delicious and it tastes like super fresh. But that time we tried, it was, it seems like it was frozen. Rob: Which kind of brings us back to hit or miss, little hit or miss sometimes at Yaking Eddie. But Jessica: Mm. Craig: Yeah, hit or miss, yeah. Jessica: Yeah. That's what I was thinking. Erick: but I really like the flavor. Rob: Well, I'm gonna stay in Asia for my next pick. And this one is ⁓ definitely a snack. This is one of those food stands that you find ⁓ as you're walking through Asia. It's Mr. Camal's. And Mr. Camal's really just does two things typically. Sometimes they have a little special item, but usually it's either fries with really fun dipping sauces, or you can get ⁓ pot stickers. And The pot stickers, they're good. They're they're they're pretty basic. There's not anything to write home about. The fries are really good quality fries. Even if you just wanted fries, you didn't care about the dipping sauce. These are good, solid fries. But then they come with ⁓ really there's like a usually a curried ketchup is one of the options. ⁓ and then I can't remember what the other one. Craig: Mmm. Jessica: It's like an o' AoE, I think. Rob: Yeah. It's I I f I do know that they have I've been there when they've changed them up a little bit, it's been a little bit different. So I w you are they always have the curry ketchup though. I feel like that one is like always there. And it's just really delicious. It the it's it's one of those, you know, if you're looking for a a salty snack, ⁓ something good and deep fried and bad for you, to Jessica: Mm-hmm. Rob: Tide you over until your next meal. This is worth the calories. It's really, really good. all right. Eric, what else do we have that's worth the calories? Anything from our friends on Patreon? Craig: You Erick: ⁓ This comes from Dennis, from and from Jasmine. The three of them are recommending from the Flame Tree BBQ. ⁓ And ⁓ for Dennis, it's going to be the sampler. Rob: Mm-hmm. Erick: For Ray is going to be the barbecue pulled pork sandwich. And for Jasmine is the based born ends fries. Rob: interesting. Jessica: I've heard a lot of people say that about the plant based at at Flame Tree. It's something I I should ha I should try because I've heard a lot of people give positive feedback on it. So I'm gonna put that on my list. Rob: Okay. So I I will say I've got a flame tree item on my list. So I'm just gonna gonna go out of turn here and I'm gonna talk about my my flame tree pick because I actually have a dual flame tree pick. And if you think about the fact that we just had people recommend all these other dishes, I'm about to recommend two more. Flame Tree in general can be a really good pick, especially if you like barbecue. so if you're feeling healthy, they have the smokehouse chicken salad. ⁓ and if you're feeling like being unhealthy, they have the baked macaroni and cheese with pulled pork ⁓ and It's got an onion ring and it's got like a little drizzle of barbecue sauce on top. It is delicious. It is really, really good. The mac and cheese is among the better mac and cheeses you'll find at the parks. So it's not like it's not like box macaroni and cheese. It's really good mac and cheese. And I really love their barbecue. I think it's it that they do smoke it there ⁓ on site, I believe. You can certainly smell like they're smoking it there on site. and It's delicious. So as everyone on Patreon is apparently attesting, ⁓ you kind of can't go wrong at Flame Tree. So put that on your list if you're looking for some smoked meat goodness. Jessica, what is your next Animal Kingdom pick? Jessica: So I have the other part of Yak and Yeti, which is the Yaki and Yeti local cafe, which is the quick service that's attached to to Yak and Yeti. Now, this has one thing that I think is not just good, but it's totally worth the price. And that is they have a snack side chicken fried rice. So they have two chicken fried rices. One's a meal ⁓ entree, one's a snack. The snack is like packed. It's a snack credit. If you're on the dining plan, but it's like six dollars. It is enough chicken fried rice for a meal. And it's good quality. It's the same kind of quality chicken fried rice you would get inside of Yak and Yeti, which is a another thing I order when I'm in Yak and Yeti, but it's outside. It comes in the cute little Chinese food container. And it's just, it's just, it's a super fun meal. It's a super fun meal to eat, you know, there with a water. And I just find it to be, once again, not too heavy. but also a great meal. So for me, that those are the two things at Yak and Yeti that I get a lot, which are the nachos inside or the fried rice outside. So ⁓ don't don't sleep on that local cafe because it does have some interesting kind of quick service versions of some of the food that's inside Yakineti. Rob: Yeah, for those who are not familiar with Animal Kingdom in the Asia area, you'll Yakin Yeti is is a a true sit down restaurant. You know, you you wait and you're seated and there's a servers and all that. And then they have a walk up kind of outdoor counter service restaurant that serves a completely different menu. But there are a few things that, like you're saying, the the the fried rice is maybe something that's kind of overlapping a little bit, but Jessica: Mm-hmm. They also serve breakfast and they have one of the few vegetarian breakfast sandwiches on property. They have an egg and tomato, an egg, white, and tomato on an English muffin. ⁓ if and I know I I'm not necessarily plant-based, but I eat a lot of plant based food because I can't eat sausage or bacon in the morning. And it's one of the best breakfast sandwiches that I've found. So if you're a vegetarian, I don't think it's vegan because I think it does have cheese. But ⁓ it's a great, it's a great option there. So don't sleep on the breakfast there either. ⁓ it doesn't rise to like it's still a vegetarian breakfast sandwich. I mean, come on. But it's not like the best food I've ever had. But if you need to eat a breakfast ⁓ egg and tomato, it's not bad. But it is a good sandwich if you're in a situation like I am, which is ninety percent of the breakfast food at Animal Kingdom I can't eat. Craig: Hahaha! Yeah, egg white and tomato. Rob: Well, spoiler alert for when we ever get around to doing the favorite foods at Hollywood Studios, but they actually have, ⁓ I've been told, the Ronto wrap, the breakfast Ronto wrap that is vegetarian. There's a vegetarian version of it, is one of the best ⁓ breakfast sandwiches on property. Jessica: My favorite breakfast, yep. Mm-hmm. Spoiler alert, that will be on my list. Rob: Craig, what is next Animal Kingdom culinary selection? Craig: Okay, well, we're going to probably Earscout's favorite place in Animal Kingdom because we talk about it an awful lot. And that's Nomad Lounge. I love it so much. ⁓ Specifically, we're going to talk about ⁓ one of their appetizers that they have, and it's their charcuterie board. And it is one of the best I've had on property. The only one, the better one I had was at Dahlia Lounge, and I don't even think they have that in the same way that they used to have it. So. But yeah, it's always good. It's always changing, but it always has it's not your salami and regular You know cheddar or jack cheese cut up. So It's a fantastic one I know everyone else has something on that list that they're they want to talk about too and I have some more as well But anyone else want to chime in? Rob: At nomad, well, I'm gonna chime in because if you're a fan of churros, ⁓ especially for those Disneylanders out there who are are so proud of the fact that their churros are so much better than Disney World churros, I will grant you they are better than almost every single Disney World churro. But the Nomad Lounge Churros, these are The best churros you're gonna find at any theme park, including Disneyland. They come straight from the fryer. They actually happen to be gluten-free. I I don't I don't think that the this recipe was conceived to be gluten-free. It just happened to be gluten-free, which is a great perk for those folks who are gluten-free diners. ⁓ but I can tell you, I've eaten a lot of churros in my day, and these are these are second only to the churros that ⁓ Jessica: Hehehehe Rob: I had in Mexico at a Michelin-starred restaurant, ⁓ Puyol. Puyol had better churros in Mexico City. ⁓ but you know what? These are really stinking close. I mean, it was they're they're not quite as good as Puyol, but they're close. ⁓ they tend to come with some fun dipping sauces ⁓ that does rotate. ⁓ they almost always will have kind of a Craig: You Rob: ⁓ a salted caramel of some kind. Usually there'll be usually some variation of a chocolate. ⁓ there's oftentimes a vanilla option in there. There's sometimes a berry option in there, but they'll be kind of elevated. It won't just be basic. Like the strawberry, ⁓ I think used to have like some it was like a spicy strawberry dipping sauce, which is kind of unique. The vanilla, I remember had Something else going on. Like they they always keep it interesting. ⁓ so it'll be a little bit different every time you try it. But really, these churros are so good, you don't even need to dip them in anything. They just melt in your mouth. They're delicious. ⁓ so I've I've said enough about the churros. Jessica, do you have a a a different item that we should talk about at Nomad Lounge? Jessica: I I do have a different item at No Man Lounge. And and I will say this is kind of similar though to your churros in that it rotates. ⁓ and they have a chicken wing on the menu all the time. And we've gone a lot and we have not gotten the same one, I think, more than twice. ⁓ they they change the sauce up. We've had a peanut sauce, we've had a curry sauce, we've had a barbecue-ish sauce, we've had a a Thai sauce. ⁓ they change it up a lot. But every time the chicken wings are just cooked so well and the sauce is so flavorful. And it's one of those things that if you if you I love chicken wings. ⁓ and I I'm I'm a basic, I love a basic buffalo wing too, with a buffalo sauce. So I mean, but these chicken wings are really, really good and they're always so interesting. I know mom and I got them when we were there the last time. And I she even commented, ⁓ that's a very interesting sauce. It was really good. And it's just it, they're never just they're always unique, like you were saying about the churro sauces. And the wings are great. And I just would recommend give them a chance, even if they sound a little bit like, ⁓ I don't know if I will like that, give the chicken wings a chance because I've we've loved them every time we've gone. Rob: Craig, I think you had one more pick from Lounge. ⁓ Craig: Yeah. ⁓ Yes, and this is more about the lounge part because they do have a full bar and they have some great cocktails actually the whole list is great and they're not pre-made like they are at Beacon Barrel or ⁓ at August Cantina ⁓ But my favorite is the tempting Tigris, which is kind of their take on an old-fashioned And that's Russell's Reserve 10-year bourbon an all-spice dram Jessica: Mm-hmm. Craig: liqueur, tamarind, and lime juice. So it has that little bit of tartness in it from the tamarind that cuts through the sweetness that you usually get in an old-fashioned, and I think that's probably why that's my favorite at the Nomad Lounge. And I'll try something else, and then I'll always have to get a Tempting Tigress to back it up. Jessica: Mm-hmm. Rob: Yep. That that that's that's always been my go-to drink there as well. It's delicious. Really good. If you're a bourbon drinker, just stop. That's that's your drink at at Nomad Lounge. ⁓ Eric, do we have any more favorite food picks from our friends on Patreon? Jessica: I'm right there with ya. Mm-hmm. Craig: Yep. Erick: Yeah, this list drop is suggesting a pizza-fary. He heard like it's the most delicious pizza he has ever tried. Jessica: Wow. Rob: Okay, Erick: ⁓ Rob: So D Dizlist Rob is joining us in Patreon. If you haven't listened to the Dizlist podcast, you should check them out. ⁓ they're really great. But I have to say that that ⁓ Pizza Fari not really great. Really Yes. Yeah. Craig: Ha Hehehe. Erick: It was just a joke, no worries. Oh, don't do it, no worries. It looks pretty inside. It looks pretty inside! Jessica: I don't think I've ever stepped in there. I know, I'm I'm I just don't think that I've stepped in Pizza Savari. I was trying to think about that. I just don't think I have. Craig: Just don't do it. Rob: We've gone there, so sometimes they'll have ⁓ they'll have exclusive items like desserts for like different like Earth Day. They might do a special like dessert item there. So I have eaten at at Pizza Fari multiple times. I only tried the pizza once. It was one and done. ⁓ in fact I'm pretty sure it was like I ate half of it and I was done. I was like, yeah, this is this is just not good. Jessica: Mm-hmm. Mm. Yeah. Craig: ⁓ Erick: ⁓ and Rob might be interested about. I have never tried but Jessica Sanders said that the arepas that are smiling crocodile. Rob: Wow. Jessica: John really likes that and he loves Arepas. ⁓ he he he really likes those. ⁓ I am not as big of an Arepa fan as he is. So ⁓ he but he would second that. He says they're really good and he'll he'll get them often. Rob: I've never had those, said Craig: I haven't either. Rob: Well, my question is, do they make you feel better with just one arepa? Is that is that something that happens there? ⁓ that's an encanto reference. Yeah, it's an encanto. Yes, yes. So ⁓ all right. I that I that might have to add that to my list of things I want to try though, because I love arepas. I did not know that those were there. All right, delightful. Well, ⁓ I'm gonna jump over to Jessica: I don't know, is that the Craig: Yeah, that's an Jessica: ⁓ an Encanto reference, got it. Sorry. You should. Yeah. Mm-hmm. Craig: Mm-hmm. Rob: ⁓ another restaurant that I think we all want to talk about. We're going to move to the Valley of Moara. In the land of Pandora, ⁓ and they have what is essentially the canteen where the humans who ⁓ came to Pandora. ⁓ would would go and eat. And it's like it's meant to be a fusion of earth food and delicious things from Pandora. And so they're really unique menu offerings that are also super delicious, which is why I think we're we're all talking about Satuli. ⁓ so I I'm gonna start off ⁓ with the bowls ⁓ because those are my favorite things there. Jessica: Mm-hmm. Rob: ⁓ you can it's it's kind of like the bowls that you'll find at lots of ⁓ fast casual restaurants these days, but way better. There's a a variety of bases that you can choose from. I usually go either for the noodles or the rice and beans, or there's also like a sweet potato base. ⁓ and then you can choose your protein to go on top. They have lots of different protein options ⁓ that are all really good. You can see them actually. ⁓ preparing the the meat. ⁓ there's kind of like a a window where you can see where they're doing is it like rotisserie style, I feel like some of it or or is it all grilled? I I can't Yeah, it's all grilled. Craig: Mm hmm. Well, it's yeah, I it's all grilled or maybe the beef is rotisserie first, Rob: Yeah. But it's it's delicious. It's really good ⁓ quality meat. ⁓ and then you get to pick your sauce that's gonna go on top. And my favorite's the creamy herb, although I have they're all good, but I always come back to the creamy herb. It's kind of my go to. ⁓ if you can't decide which one to get, stick with that one. ⁓ but then what makes it very Pandoran, the the sauces I think are are meant to be more Let's just say less traditional flavors than you would normally pair with the the other things in the bowls. But the most unique thing, they have these little boba balls. They're little boba pearls that they put on the top of all of the bowls. And it just adds a little touch of sweetness ⁓ that that really contrasts nicely with what tends to be savory flavors underneath. I love the bowls. It's it's it they're relatively healthy. You can make it. very healthy if you want. Or you can make it moderately healthy or you could kind of if you want, you could you could just do noodles and and ⁓ the beef and make it unhealthy, but it's all it's really delicious. Jessica: Ha ha ha. Craig: Yeah, I wanted I needed to add on to that. One of the things I love is that one of the bases you can get is lettuce. So you could really just make it a salad for those of us who try to cut carbs. ⁓ And they also have fried tofu. Now, the first time I went there, it was part of a backstage Animal Kingdom tour. And I think Satulia had just opened up like within the last year. But They basically had a smorgasbord. They brought out bowls of the beef and you just basically built your own. So we really got to try everything at that one sitting. So yeah, everything I've ever had there was just fantastic. Rob: Yeah. Jessica: Yeah, and I'll I'll third that is that everything that I've had there is fantastic. I think the experience there is probably one of my favorite quick service, quick service experiences that I've ever had. ⁓ I I think that it is unique and well themed, and yet the food is good. ⁓ particularly for me, there's an ocean moon bowl, which is like a tuna bowl, and it's on noodles, but they're not just any noodles, they're blue noodles. You get blue noodles. Rob: Ha ha ha. Jessica: And it's just something about and then it's like this the radishes and then rainbows and it's it's just so much fun. And the the plates look visually stunning and they're taste good and you know the tuna is fresh and it's it's a really good experience. So I I just I think all around, if I had to pick one quick service in all of the parks, this would probably be the quick service that I would point people to. ⁓ as not just the healthiest, but the the the most exciting kind of sit-down. Interesting experience. So I I I really like it. Craig: Yeah, good point about the dining room itself is beautiful. I mean for a quick service. mean, it's just gorgeous. You can just walk in there if you're not hungry. I highly suggest checking out and even the ordering station is very well themed. it's just a great, great quick service place. Jessica: Yeah. Rob: Mm-hmm. Erick: you Jessica: Yeah. It's a lot of fun. Yeah. Rob: Yeah. All right. Well, I know ⁓ I have one more. Jessica, you have one more. What about on Patreon? Do we have any more food recommendations before we move on to our final two? Erick: Since we're talking about this brought by Dennis. He's suggesting the cheeseburger, the steam pots, that are pretty good. And for Jessica Sanders, she recommends the and beef breakfast. Rob: Where is that? The frittata b I've never had breakfast at Satulli Canteen. Erick: in Tautoli. Jessica: It's newer. I think the breakfast is newer. And I I think they've added it because so many people rope drop Pandora or early inter Pandora. So they've added breakfast. I haven't been able to get back there to to participate, but it looks really good if you can eat beef or pork. Rob: Mm-hmm. Yeah. Erick: That sense. Rob: Yeah. Yeah. I that's another thing that I I'm so excited now. I'm definitely gonna go try that breakfast for sure because I love Satulli. ⁓ pretty much everything on the menu. So I'm excited to try the breakfast options. ⁓ my thing that I want to talk about ⁓ is I consider to be the best restaurant in any of the Disney World theme parks. It is my favorite. Craig: Hehehehehe Rob: ⁓ I know we're a little bit split on this because I I it Craig has eaten there multiple times. Not Craig's favorite. ⁓ but I can say for me, almost every time I've been there, the food has been phenomenal. ⁓ and the experience of this place is just it is truly transporting. I mean, it is the theming inside is spectacular. There's really cool art on the walls. ⁓ that That is representative of the adventure that the Imagineers took when they were conceiving of Animal Kingdom. So Joe Rhody and the Imagineers, when they were when they were working on developing Animal Kingdom, they actually traveled to Africa and Asia, but not to just kind of the stereotypical places. They didn't just go to like, you know, the pagodas of, you know, Asia or the Forbidden City. They went into real, like where people live in Asia, you know, like and and soaked up the culture and and the actual life of people in in African Asia. And you're gonna see pieces of those adventures on the walls. You're gonna see beautiful artwork. ⁓ but for me the star is the food. I love the food at ⁓ Tiffin's is the restaurant we're talking about. ⁓ Tiffin's is signature dining. So It is basically on par with the nicest restaurants at Walt Disney World. But what I love about Tiffins is I can get that signature dining experience. And it is A-oka to show up in shorts and an Animal Kingdom t-shirt and ears because you're in a theme park. You're allowed, even though it is kind of fine dining, you're invited to show up in your theme park attire. I love that about this place. ⁓ so Jessica: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Rob: My favorite things on the menu, they have a really great bread service that includes ⁓ some powderia. So it's all the food there is going to kind of be a tour of the world. It's not just Africa and Asia. They also include ⁓ food from Central and South America because from the very beginning, Joe Rhody always wanted tropical Americas to be part of Animal Kingdom, and as we all know, that is coming. So The preview of what we're going to see coming to the park was already there at ⁓ Tiffin's, because they have some Central and South American flavors. In fact, my other favorite thing that's on the menu, there's there's the bread service, which you're gonna find flavors that are kind of from all around the world. ⁓ and then they have the Oaxacan pork duo. This is probably their signature entree at this point. The menu has changed up recently. ⁓ but this continued from the old menu. It is grilled pork chop. And let me tell you, this is not a dry pork chop. Every time I've had it, it's been super juicy and delicious, perfectly seasoned. It's got a peanut salsa matcha, ⁓ sweet plantain chipotle sauce, a corn tamal on the side, and then it's got a smoked pork shoulder. So that's the duo. There's two kinds of pork there. ⁓ That's got a salsa verde and a cabbage slaw. Love this dish. If you're a big fan of ⁓ Mexican and Central American flavors and you're a big fan of pork, this is gonna be the dish for you. ⁓ but no matter what you like, check take a take a look at the menu. Make sure there's something there that that's appealing to you, and it's probably gonna be delicious. I love Tiffins and I highly recommend it. Craig: Mm hmm. Yeah, I will say I serve every time I've been there. The service has been beyond impeccable. I will say that. And I think as far as the food, I think it's just a personal thing. Off day order the wrong thing. I will keep trying. I know it's so well recommended that I just got to find what I like. I did try when we went with Robin Eric and Eric had the butter chicken. That was really good. I really enjoyed tasting that. Rob: Mm-hmm. Yeah. It's it's I will say the very first time we went there, we had a similar experience to you, Craig, where it was just like, I mean, it was good, but we weren't like blown away by it. That was right after the pandemic. And since then, we've had delicious meals pretty much every time we've gone. But this is kind of one of those things that I think it's important to talk about this whenever you're talking about food at Disney World, even at the very best places. Well, I'll exclude Victorian Albert's, probably they're always. Craig: Yeah. Rob: Amazing. But but but at most places at Disney World, consistency is sometimes an issue. ⁓ I do think that, you know, it's just the volume, the the number of dining establishments that that they're maintaining. ⁓ you know, sometimes not everything is perfect, but ⁓ Tiffin's I would say is one of those that's more often perfect. You guys both love, for example, Hollywood Brown Derby at ⁓ at ⁓ Craig: That better be. Jessica: Mm-hmm. Craig: Mm-hmm. Yeah. Rob: Hollywood Studios, we've had lots of kind of misses when we've been there. But like you said, Craig, I'm gonna I'm gonna keep trying because I hear so many people love Hollywood Brown Derby. I'm sure it's just been there on the off days. Erick: for the rest of the year. Craig: Yeah. Yeah, it's funny you brought that up because of course the Cobb salad is always on that menu and it's a very famous salad. Last time I was there they changed the preparation, not the ingredients, just how they cut the lettuce because they usually like chopped it up really fine. And I was more like shredded. And I was like, what is this different? What is wrong with this? I'm not enjoying it. And I asked the server and he was like, yeah, they changed it and Jessica: What? Rob: Mm-hmm. Jessica: No Craig: No one seems to like it and they're not listening to us yet, but hopefully they will go back to. But I mean, that's exactly what you were saying, Rob. Consistency, you know, can change a lot. Jessica: Okay, well I'll wait. Rob: Yeah. Yeah. I and that happens at a lot of restaurants at Disney World. Our favorite Tratri Alforno is is ⁓ both Craig and Eric all of us love Tratri Alforno for breakfast. They they had the best iced coffee on property. It was insanely delicious. And for no apparent reason, they just took it off the menu. And people were so irate. about this coffee not being there because it's just it it's that good that you can still order it and the servers still know how to make it and they still prepare it for you. ⁓ but yeah it's ⁓ sometimes Disney makes strange decisions that don't really make a lot of sense. Like why would you remove a very popular item? ⁓ but ⁓ all right. Jessica, we have saved what I think is probably the most buzzworthy item at Animal Kingdom for last ⁓ share with us Jessica what is like the this is like Instagram famous at this point. What is your next pick? Jessica: It is Instagram famous for a reason. And I think I was the first one of the team to go try it and put it on the Patreon news feed for y'all. But it is at Terra Treats and now at other locations. The Cookie Brownie Ice Cream Sandwich. And it is everything that it says it is. It's cookie brownie ice cream sandwich. And it is Craig should not have it. Probably probably not good for Craig. Probably not good for me, but I ate it anyway. Rob: Mm-hmm. Craig: No, no, no, Jessica: it is so good. I don't even like ice cream sandwiches. I don't like in general, like a lot of of like ice cream sandwich kind of stuff. I'm not that person, but the brownie and the cookie dough, it's just it's so good. Now I couldn't eat a whole one. I think I split split it with another person because it's so big, but it is so good. ⁓ it's worth all of the buzz. It's worth them having lines that wrap around. It's worth them putting it in two places. So it is finally for the first time in a long time something that is Instagrammable, but also totally worth it. A lot of time there's Instagram food that you don't eat. This is Instagram food that you should eat. This is Instagram food that's great. So love it, love it, love it. Rob: Mm-hmm. Craig: You Rob: Yeah. Craig: Hahaha Rob: I think I think what makes it great actually is the little they just put a sprinkling of sea salt on the top. And that's that's what makes it. 'Cause it's you're right. Otherwise it would be a very s too sweet, right? But that that sweet and salty thing is just it's delicious. Yeah. Jessica: They do. Mm-hmm. Too sweet. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. It's just perfect. It is perfect. So I've been thinking about it since I had it and I'm ready to have another one. So but yeah, that's my the best for last. Rob: Yeah. I'm I now wanna go to Animal Kingdom and eat almost all of this food. But ⁓ before we move on to things that Disney has taken away from us at Animal Kingdom that we want them to bring back, Eric, do we have any final selections from our friends on Patreon? Erick: from Ray and Lauren. they are the Navi size soft pretzel next door at Pango Pongo. ⁓ they said that it's a quality pretzel that comes with actually ⁓ beer It is not the radioactive radioactive one. Rob: Yes. Craig: Mm-hmm. Rob: Correct. If you get the if you get the if you get the Mickey pretzel, it comes with genetically engineered radioactive cheese. That's it's good in its own way, I guess, kind of, but the beer cheese is delicious. And I always just tell them you want double beer cheese. ⁓ and usually they don't even charge you, they just give you an extra beer cheese. Sometimes they do charge for it though. But it's you want double. It's that good. Yeah. Jessica: Correct. It's real cheese. Craig: Hehehehehe Erick: And just the last one for me, like it's a hit or miss, but the breakfast sandwich that you can find in some places ⁓ around Animal Kingdom in the morning, it's a hit or miss, but it can be very delicious. Rob: Mm-hmm. Yeah. It it's one of those that you gotta get it when it's fresh. ⁓ but it's like ⁓ it's a stuffed pancake, is what it is. It's a pancake, and then there's a layer of guava and a layer of sausage and a layer of there's some kind of a cheese, right? Is it ⁓ or is there or is there egg? I can't remember. I think there's cheese. Is it egg? Jessica: Mm-hmm. Erick: I think it's a... I can't remember very well. It's good. Rob: It's delicious. It's sweet. It's sweet and savory. It's really good. But the catch is they serve these things out of the like carts and they make them all at a at a at a kitchen. And then they're basically in like a hot box until you or until you order it. So if you can catch it when it's fresh from the kitchen, these things are insanely good. If you Craig: You Jessica: Mm-hmm. Rob: Unfortunately, if you catch them when it's been sitting in the hot box for a long time, they're not so great. And that I think is why they've not been reviewed very well. I've seen lots of people who give these like a big thumbs down. But I gotta say, when they are good, they are delicious. Erick: sorry, Jules just added something to the chat ⁓ and Jules mentioned that caravan wrote sheath ice ⁓ and ⁓ well, yes, asks for mango and coconut It says that this is really good. Rob: Uh-huh. Okay. That's over there. That's over there by ⁓ Everest, right? Erick: Think so? Rob: I've never tried it. I've never tried it. We'll have to put it on the list. ⁓ well, before we move on to the question of the week, ⁓ we also decided we were gonna pick some things that we miss from Animal Kingdom and something that we really want to try that we haven't tried yet. So ⁓ Jessica, why don't you start us off? What are some things that you miss from Animal Kingdom and what are the things that you've heard are really good that you haven't tried yet? Jessica: I believe so, yes. Craig: I'm not sure. Jessica: Well, so those of you that are OG listeners to the podcast, to the original the first few episodes, will know my original what I miss, and that is my Buffalo chicken chips. They changed the Buffalo chicken chips. They moved them and they changed them. And I'm still not over them. They were at Trilobites. Was the best thing about Dino Land, not gonna lie, it was the best thing about Dylan. They took them away. Rob: That's a that's a strong statement, but continue. Craig: Hehehehehe Jessica: They took them away and they've changed them and they're not the same. They're not, they're not even buffalo. They're not even hot sauce. They're they're just not the same. So I'm not over it. The second thing that I miss is ⁓ the pistachio honey croissant. They replaced that at Tambu Tamma with a pistachio croissant that has now like got some weird frosting on it. It's not a pistachio honey croissant. I don't know what happened to it. Rob: Mm-hmm. No Jessica: I miss that too. I know it was we it's weird. If anybody's had it and you like it, great. But I miss that pistachio honey croissant. I used to be my I would get that and then I would go in the line for the safari and I went to get it and I looked at it. I said, That's not my croissant. And the lady at the ⁓ the cast member was like, I'm so sorry, honey. She's like, I I know. I was like, That's not what I ordered. She goes, I'm so sorry, honey. I was like, You could keep it. I'm good. Rob: Can't put frosting on a croissant. That's that doesn't doesn't work, no. Ha ha ha ha ha ha. Craig: Hahaha! Rob: Yeah. Jessica: I just give it to somebody else. and then ⁓ the last one, it for a little while they had donut macarons for Zootopia, and that was just for the movie, but obviously I liked those, and those are gone because the movie's not in the theaters anymore for Zootopia. ⁓ and I didn't really like those necessarily. They weren't the best macaroon on property, but they were just so cute, you know? Craig: Mm-hmm. Rob: Ha ha ha. Jessica: ⁓ and then the one thing I want to try, we talked a little bit about churros tonight, is ⁓ 8 Spoon Cafe now has family churros. They have a a package of churros that comes with like 16 or something churros, little churro pieces with multiple dipping sauces. I just think that if ⁓ if I had my kids there, the family there, that would be really cool thing to have. Because I think ⁓ and I this might be controversial, eating a whole churro is hard for some people. I don't it is. So having those little mini bites and the different dipping sauces I think would be fun. So I'm I'm hoping to try that ⁓ family churro ⁓ selection. Rob: All right. Craig, what do you miss from Animal Kingdom and what are you excited to try? Craig: Okay, so the first thing I missed was actually replaced by one of Jessica's favorites, and that's at Nomad Lounge, and it's about the chicken wings. Now, years ago, they had something called Nam Pla Chicken Wings, and that later became Bangkok Chicken Wings, and they were very similar. ⁓ it's ⁓ Nam Pla is Thai for fish sauce. So it had like a little fish sauce funk in there, sweet, sticky. Rob: Mm-hmm. Craig: had bird's-eye chilies like all over it, chopped peanuts so it was nice and spicy. Last time I had the Bangkok wings, they weren't putting the chilies on, but I was able to get some like I asked and they were able to get some from the kitchen for me. And I even recreated the recipe at home just faking it and I think I did really well, but they don't have many more and I'll try the other ones, but gosh, that makes me sad. That was just one of my... Jessica: Yeah. Craig: favorite things. ⁓ The other one is ⁓ the samosas or hand pies from drink walla. The samosa is like a pastry filled with ⁓ savory potato and pea and lots of spices, ⁓ not particularly hot, spicy, but very, very robust in the flavors. ⁓ But that's a place and I think that's just a thing about Animal Kingdom. Items change all the time, especially at the little booths. Jessica: Mm-hmm. Craig: Yeah, find it. You might find a new favorite, even if your old favorites gone. You'll try something else and hopefully you'll find something you like as well. The thing I want to try was actually mentioned earlier, and that's the cheeseburger pods from a Satoli Cafe. And these are like their bow buns and they are filled with ground beef, ketchup, mustard, pickle and cheese. And it's served with a vegetable slot and vegetable chips. So basically it's the from what I understand, I haven't even tried it, but. the cheeseburger spring rolls that they have in Magic Kingdom in a bao bun. And the main reason I really haven't tried it is because that's a carb bomb, but I will try it someday just to try it. Rob: ⁓ to me they're very they're very different. I've had I I love both of them for completely different reasons. But yeah, you definitely if you if you love one, you're probably gonna love the other, but they are they're totally different ⁓ vibes. But I I I agree they're really good. And I will say you still want the creamy herb on the side to dip ⁓ in because it's really good with the creamy herb. Yeah. Craig: Mm-hmm. ⁓ there we go. Jessica: Yeah, my whole family loves those, Craig. My whole family everybody in my family that eats meat loves those. So I would give them a try if I were you. Craig: Mm-hmm. Yeah, the only thing I'm not crazy about with the spring rolls is the greasiness of it. So maybe that will. Rob: Yeah, and these are these are way less. Yeah, they're way less. Yeah. And supposedly it's a it's a actually an old ⁓ recipe of Joe Rhody and his his his family made these ⁓ as like ⁓ for like fun snacks. And so that became part of the menu at Animal Kingdom. So for me, there are two things that I really miss at Animal Kingdom, and one thing I'm excited to try. ⁓ Jessica: Yeah, but the these aren't greasy. Way less greasy. Craig: Right there steamed Yeah. Mm-hmm. Rob: The first thing that I really miss, it's still there technically. But if you go to the hirambe fruit market, they have this corn on the cob. It's a grilled corn on the cob, and it's got these delicious kind of African ⁓ like an African spice blend, and it's got gobs of butter melted on it, and it's delicious. ⁓ but it used to be. a thousand times more delicious because they used to grill it right there and you would order it and you would watch them take yours right off of the grill and they would put the butter on it and they would roll it in the seasonings. And now I heard it was something related to safety, which doesn't really make sense to me because I mean it was they grill things all over all the different parks. You know, you go to the one of the festivals in Epcot, half the booths have Jessica: Mm-hmm. Rob: the exact same grill sitting outside and a cast member's operating them. So I'm not sure what the issue was, but they got rid of the grill and now they're just in a hotbox. They're just they're pre-grilled, they're wrapped in tin foil and they're they're still good, but they're not nearly as good as they were when they prepared fresh. ⁓ the other thing that I miss is at Tiffin's. So they dud they did recently redo the menu and shockingly Jessica: Mm-hmm. Rob: They took off what used to be their signature item and it was my favorite. It was a tamarind ⁓ short rib dish. It was like a braised short rib and a tamarind sauce, and it was melting your mouth delicious. I have no idea why they took this off the menu because it was from what I was I talked to the server about, they're like, Yeah, it's immensely popular. It was a shock to us that they took this off the menu, but they did. So I hope they bring that back. And the thing that I most want to try also at Tiffin's, you have to go for lunch for this. And unfortunately, it is the only item on the menu you have to order prefix, meaning it's going to come with ⁓ waffle fries and a dessert and a non-alcoholic beverage of your choice. You can't just order this at on its own, but it is the Tiffin's burger. And they grind the meat in-house. It's a mixture of beef and pork. Sorry, Jessica. And yeah, and it's you can get it standard, which comes with a demigloss and ⁓ an aged cheddar, ⁓ and then it has like a Parker House roll, or you can get the upgrade, which is the ⁓ black truffle experience, which includes shaved black truffles, a truffle aioli, and herb ⁓ truffle aioli, and an herb and truffle. Cordero cheese waffle fry side. ⁓ so it's basically everything becomes truffly, ⁓ and that costs $15 more. I'll probably skip the truffles. I just want to try that burger because it's supposed to be really, really good. ⁓ and I haven't had it yet. So that is all the time we have to talk about. Delicious things to eat at Animal Kingdom. But take my word for it. If you're planning a trip to Animal Kingdom, Make some time to eat some of the list delicious food. You will not regret it. ⁓ so Craig, why don't you share with us our question of the week? Craig: this comes from Jen from Patreon ⁓ she says, I'm hearing rumors that they are going to permanently start checking for hotel reservations ⁓ using Disney transportation from Disney Springs to the hotels. What do we think about this? ⁓ supposedly ⁓ have actually announced that it is going to be a permanent change coming up July 4th. But yeah, I mean, they're just trying to keep people from who are day guests and not staying at resorts from parking at the Springs and then using the internal bus system to get out of paying for parking at the theme parks. And Disney needs their dollars, so they're gonna squeeze it whenever they can. Rob: Yeah, I I mean, I I I feel like I can see the two sides of this. The one side, you know, and Jessica, you mentioned this when we were talking about this earlier. You know, the transportation is a resort perk, right? And so, ⁓ that is part of what you're paying for when you stay at a Disney resort. And if you are at Springs and you end up having to wait for a whole other bus to come, like you have to wait a whole bus cycle. Because there's a ton of people who aren't staying at the resort who just wanna go and, you know, ⁓ either take advantage of the proximity to the park they want to go to, right? So they a lot of people will as as Craig said, not pay to park. They'll they'll just park at springs and then take the bus over to say the contemporary, where they can have the walking path that takes them to Magic Kingdom. ⁓ I get it. You know, if I was staying at the Contemporary and I had the, you know, Jessica: Mm-hmm. Rob: Wait for another bus because all these folks were doing this, that would be frustrating. ⁓ having said that, as an annual pass holder, those of us who are annual pass holders, we get free parking included at the parks. So I have used this mainly just if I want to go shopping at one of the resorts or I wanted to eat at the quick service at one of the resorts because you can only park. At a Disney resort, if you're either staying there or you have a table service dining ⁓ reservation. But guess what? If you want to eat at ⁓ you know the the quick service at the value resorts, they don't have table service options, right? The only way you can experience or see those ⁓ value resorts is by transferring either at springs or at a park. ⁓ But that's the thing. You can still do this, right? You can still get to all those resorts. You're just gonna use a park instead of springs. ⁓ Jessica, what are your thoughts on this? Jessica: Yeah. I guess, you know, my thoughts are are twofold. ⁓ the very first time it got mentioned, it was it was back what in Easter when it happened or somewhere other time when it happened and I was ta and I was talking about I said, Well, who who who is doing this? Because annual pass holders get free parking, so it's not annual pass holders and if you're already on property and I was I was just in my head I was trying to figure out who because as an annual pass holder Rob: Mm-hmm. It was Easter, yeah. Jessica: I would never go to Springs to go to a resort. I would go to the TTC or to Hollywood Studios and get there from there if because it's just easy. Even even parking at Animal Kingdom and going to those buses is easier for us sometimes just to drive in, park, and go, right? Disney Springs is way far away from all of those other things. Cause when we're staying on, we're staying off property as annual pass holders, we're usually right in the same bubble still. Rob: Mm-hmm. Jessica: So I couldn't figure out who it was for. You know, it was just this weird dichotomy to me that I couldn't figure out who it was for. But then I started thinking about it, and I understand that some people, for some people, it's a good way to get there. But I just think it's as easy, and I get that it's a $35 parking fee, but it's as easy. TTC and Monorail, Hollywood Studios and Skyliner, and you know. It it just it's just as easy to do that. And I think you're exp getting all the same experiences, getting better dis Disney transportation than the buses to some places. I think. so to me, I get why Disney's doing it. I will say, ⁓ one of the other things I said when we started talking about this is the Polynesian right now feels more crowded than Magic Kingdom a lot of times. Like there are so many people in the Polynesian just hanging out. I can see why Disney during crowded times wants to limit that to give the people that are staying there a better experience. ⁓ Grand Floridian at Christmas time, it's it's insanity. I mean, it's it's almost not worth even if I stayed at the Grand Floridian, I would hate it. And we choose not to stay at those kinds of resorts because we don't like that. So I can see why Disney would do it, not just for the Disneys getting their dollars. But because it does give the resort guests a better experience to to limit or make it a little bit harder for people to get into the resorts that aren't staying there. I I I do think that's it's not just a dollars and cents thing, it's also an experience thing. Because I have been to the resorts when they are overcrowded and it's not pleasant for the resort guests at all. So Rob: Mm-hmm. Craig: Mm-hmm ⁓ Rob: An another thing that I heard, Jen, who asked this question, suggested that she thought might be part of the reasoning for this. If you limited the folks who could get on the buses to those who are staying at the resorts, you could theoretically then add direct bus transportation between the parks and Disney Springs. The reason they don't do it now is because they don't want people parking at Disney Springs and taking the transportation to the park. Jessica: Mm-hmm. Rob: But if the transportation is limited to those who are staying at the resort, so that that that that's not a problem anymore, right? Then maybe part of this could be that it's going to allow them to open up. And that's been something that people have wanted for a very long time. Is the ability, if you're if you're at a park and you want to go have dinner at Disney Springs, it's such a pain to have to go, you know, to a resort, to your hotel, and then transfer. Craig: Mm-hmm. Jessica: Mm-hmm. To your hotel. Yeah. Craig: Hmm. Rob: when you just want to go to dinner, right? You just want to hop over there. So that I I haven't heard anything about that that's going to be part of the plan, but it would theoretically open that up. ⁓ yeah. Do you ⁓ have something else you want to add on that, Craig? Craig: Mm-hmm. Yeah, well, just a little history lesson, you know, from Quizmaster Craig here. ⁓ I remember when and this was probably when they just had Epcot, probably before the studios open, but we had to show our room keys it had your dates on there, like the you were staying in hotel. So you had to show that to the driver or whatever to get on the bus. And even before that, when they still had the ticket books with the ABCD and e-tickets, there was also a ticket there that you had to use. to get on the monorail or the ferry from the TTC. So you actually had to have a ticket to do it originally. So ⁓ I'm not surprised. I actually, I kind of welcome it. think the, I know pass holders are going to complain enough that they will do something about that if they don't already have it planned. So ⁓ yeah, I think, I think it's a good thing overall. Jessica: Mm. Rob: But but ⁓ but as Jessica said, if you're an annual pass holder, park at the Transportation Ticket Center, park at Hollywood Studios, park at Animal Kingdom, and you're gonna have the same exact, you know, Jessica: Yeah. and I will say that's one of the big reasons John and I always drive to Disney Springs. If ⁓ unless we just rented a car, which is a weird one, we're always driving to Disney Springs and driving out at back of Disney Springs because the buses to Disney Springs are really slow. They're they're slower that feels like even than the Animal Kingdom bus to Animal Kingdom, which is the hardest, slowest bus. Rob: Eric, what are we hearing over on Patreon? Anybody wanna chime in on this change that looks like it's coming to transportation at Disney Springs? Erick: mentioned as a hotel guest I'm happy but I don't get why it's good from Disney perspective since it feels like it will decrease resort hopping. Rob: Yeah. I mean, I think Disney is counting on the fact that people who want to resort hop are gonna know that they can do it from the parks and pay to park at the park, you know, so they get more revenue that way, is my guess. Erick: From Jen, I'm hearing that they want to deter people from and going to the resorts and using the pools and amenities, ⁓ which I will believe ⁓ most of the resorts are super easy to into the pools, even gates. ⁓ But I mean, lately they have been, ⁓ as far as I know, some the pools, ⁓ they are giving ⁓ the band, right? Rob: Yeah. Jessica: Mm-hmm. Erick: To Grisman. Rob: So it it it's the resorts that are easily accessible by Disney transportation, i.e. the Skyliner resorts. Like for example, I know they're doing it at Caribbean Beach, where it's super easy to hop on the Skyliner and Caribbean Beach is the hub. I know they're doing it there. They've always done it at Yacht and Beach because you can just walk right out of Epcot and you're there at Yacht and Beach. So I think it's I don't think they do it at every resort, ⁓ but they They do it at at the resorts that are easy to access. Yeah. Erick: Jasmine says that I agree, for people spending a ton of money to stay at the resorts, it makes sense to ensure those guests are getting a good experience. Rob: well that is all the time we have to talk about ⁓ potential changes that sounds like they probably are coming to Disney Springs ⁓ transportation-wise. But right now we've got to move on to something that's much more pleasant to talk about, and that is happy thoughts. ⁓ Craig, what is your happy thought this week? Craig: Okay, so my happy thought is is rather simple and that's that I have to get up tomorrow morning very early and reserve my lightning lanes because I'm only a week away from coming to Disney World. And that makes me very happy. Yep, it's the little thing. So ⁓ yeah, I guess by the time this airs I'll be down there. So keep an eye out. Say hi if you see Rob: Very exciting. Awesome. We can't wait to see you. What are you what are you most hoping to book tomorrow morning? Craig: ⁓ well I've got I haven't done Big Thunder yet. I haven't done Rock and Roller Coaster with the Muppets. So there's a lot of stuff and there's a lot of stuff that Eric hasn't done yet either. So we got a we got a lot. We got a lot. Rob: ⁓ yeah. Very exciting. May the lightning lane odds be ever in your favor. Craig: ⁓ As always. Rob: Eric, what is your happy thought this week? Erick: So A ⁓ few days ago when I was starting my day at ⁓ they stopped me and they told me that someone wrote an aplausogram for me. And that aplausogram actually came from Diana. just want to thank you, Diana, and all of you just for sending so much love to us. ⁓ I feel very grateful to be able to ⁓ receive these, like, letters your kind words. ⁓ It means a lot to us, and trust me, like, it definitely makes my ⁓ weather, so thank you so much, I really really really appreciate that. Rob: Yeah, Diana is a member of our Patreon family. But Eric, tell people where what is an applausogram and where do people send an applausogram? Erick: Okay, an applause program is going to similar to a recognition, to a cast compliment. ⁓ You will have to go to the guest experience team. Usually, well in Magic Kingdom, it's going to be the one at front in City And you just to let them know that you want to personalize ⁓ the recognition to cast member and that you would like to write down something for ⁓ us. ⁓ And ⁓ makes like more special Different areas have different ways to it to you. Talking about where I made magic, it's when you the talk of the new things that are coming throughout your day. At the very end, they make it like something big of like, someone went out of their way the guests went to City Hall and gave this recognition to this person. And then everyone in the room just clapped for them and they read it out loud in front of the room. again, it's very special. yeah, thank you. just go to the guest experience at the front of the ⁓ And once again, if someone really, really, really goes out of their way. Just do It's a big thing for the cast members. Rob: Very nice. Jessica, what is your happy thought this week? Jessica: So I don't know if y'all know, but ⁓ I have an office in New York City that is it is on 31st and 8th Street, which happens to be right across the street from Madison Square Gardens, which means I have a whole lot of people in my team at work that were very, very excited about the outcome of a little bitty basketball game. I don't know if you guys have heard of it. Rob: Ha ha ha. Craig: Mm. Rob: Mm-hmm, mm hmm. Yeah. Jessica: But ⁓ congratulations to the Knicks, congratulations to New York City. I think it's been really, even if you're not a basketball fan, it's been fun to watch what's happening in New York and all of the kind of excitement and the parties and people coming together that maybe typically wouldn't come together, but they're all watching ⁓ the games. ⁓ in my personal office, we have we have people from all over the world that work in my office and they were all cheering together for one team. So it was really cool to see. So congratulations to the Knicks, congratulations to New York City and and I'm glad that basketball could bring people together. Craig: Wow. Rob: Very nice. Well, my happy thought is that I I have been in the parks a lot ⁓ since Memorial Day. And I have been shocked at how low the crowd levels have been thus far this year. And as a local who usually just kind of writes off the summer as gonna it's gonna be crazy every time I go into the parks, I'm not gonna be able to. You know, enjoy myself the way that maybe I can during more of the off season. It's been great. So if you're one of those people who's like, no way am I going to Disney World in the summer when all the kids are out of school, it's gonna be a madhouse. Thus far, this year it hasn't been. It's been really nice, super short waits. I was at Magic Kingdom over the weekend. Tron light cycle run had a 45 minute posted wait ⁓ on the weekend. in the summer. So ⁓ I'm not sure how long this is gonna last, but I hope it it it lasts a while for folks to be able to enjoy the parks with with lower crowd levels. It really does change the experience dramatically. ⁓ so that's my happy thought this week is for right now the parks are quite a pleasant place to be so consider planning your next trip and if you do make that next trip we will look forward to seeing you at the parks and talking about what you should be doing on that adventure in future episodes. Until then, keep thinking lots of happy thoughts, everybody. We'll see you again real soon.