Five Walt Disney World Quick Service Restaurants That Will Make you Swear Off Advance Dining Reservations

While just about all of us have missed the boat now and then when it comes to securing an Advance Dining Reservation in time for our Walt Disney World vacation, it’s never the end of the world. Sure, it throws a wrench in your plans to an extent, but by no means will you starve or ruin your vacay.

And because they say necessity is the mother of invention, we’ve actually made some pretty delicious discoveries because of our ADR oversights. You see, as a direct result of not getting into the table-service restaurants we wanted to dine at while on our Disney World trips, we’ve had to “get creative” and seek out adequate quick service substitutes!

As a result, we have enjoyed some of these no-reservation-required spots so much that when our next Disney World vacation came around, we actually chose to forgo many of our favorite ADR restaurants in favor of these quick service spots! Which ones made our list? Let’s check them out!

Satu’li Canteen

You’ll find Satu’li Canteen in Animal Kingdom’s Pandora: The World of Avatar. The create-your-own bowls are super fresh and totally customizable — think of it like Chipotle if it was run by James Cameron… we kid, we kid! It really is quite delicious, though, and a thoroughly surprising quality for quick service dining.

You build your bowl by choosing your base (which can be either rice and black beans, noodles, sweet potato and red potato hash, or mixed greens). Next you choose a protein (such as slow-roasted and grilled beef, wood-grilled chicken, grilled meat combo, chili-spiced crispy tofu, or chili garlic shrimp). Last, you select a sauce (including charred green onion vinaigrette, creamy herb dressing or black bean vinaigrette).

The bowls are also topped with a crispy-crunchy vegetable slaw and boba balls, which seem a little strange at first, but we trust the Na’vi’s tastebuds! The boba balls add a fun texture to the dish, but you can always pick ’em off or ask the Cast Member to leave them off if you’re not into it.

Aside from the bowls, we also enjoy the kids’ menu items! The Cheeseburger Steamed Pods are like  bao buns filled with a seasoned ground beef mixture that hits all the cheeseburger notes. And the “Teylu” Hot Dog makes a classic appetizer or snack! The beef hot dog comes wrapped in a Parker House dough, and it’s seriously nostalgic. You can order both of these items a la carte instead of getting the whole kids’ meal, too!

Yorkshire County Fish Shop

This booth over in Epcot’s World Showcase doesn’t offer the seemingly-endless combination of ingredients like the Satu’li Canteen menu, but the one thing these U.K. guys do, they do exceptionally well! We’re talking about the delicious Fish & Chips at Yorkshire County Fish Shop — a staple of our Disney World vacation diet!

The batter they use to coat these little perfectly-fried pieces of fish is so light and crunchy. Even if we’ve already had our fill of food at one of Epcot’s many annual festivals, we always find room for an order of Fish & Chips!

Of course, we love to smother ’em in the tartar sauce and malt vinegar packets available next to the pick-up window. And even though we’ve been ranting and raving about only the fish until this second, the chips segment of the basket is equally satisfying! We’re talking thick-cut steak fries that are crispy on the outside and soft on the inside! The perfect chip.

So perfect, there’s even merch.

Flame Tree Barbecue

Next, we’re staking out the menu at Flame Tree Barbecue! For a long time, this Animal Kingdom institution has been one of the only decent barbecue joints at Disney World. And while we can’t make that claim any longer now that The Polite Pig is open in Disney Springs (which we also highly recommend), Flame Tree Barbecue is still the OG purveyor of fine delicious smoked meats!

The name of this spot isn’t ironic! You can actually taste the flames in many of the dishes they smoke up and serve hot, like this half of a roasted chicken with a side of tasty beans and coleslaw!

Diners can also order up a St. Louis rib dinner, hotlink smokehouse sandwich, and macaroni and cheese topped with a huge, delicious pile of pulled pork. While we can’t wait for Epcot’s Regal Eagle Smokehouse to open soon, Flame Tree Barbecue will always hold a special place in our meat-loving hearts — and continue to make us feel a-okay about ditching the ADRs!

Boulangerie Patisserie les Halles

When we’re looking for something sweet or a delicious baked item, it doesn’t get much better than Boulangerie Patisserie les Halles. Nestled into the back of the France pavilion in Epcot’s World Showcase, you wouldn’t think many folks would know about this off-the-beaten-path spot, but you’d be wrong!

Lines for Boulangerie Patisserie les Halles can run notoriously long at times, as your assigned your own Cast Member who assists you with grabbing and warming your selections as you move through the queue.

We’ve been known to forgo a formal breakfast to fill up on croissants, quiches, bacon and cheese rolls, and sandwiches from Boulangerie Patisserie les Halles instead — especially because we know the trick to getting in and out fast!

You see, while the rest of the World Showcase doesn’t typically open until 11AM, you can walk right up to Boulangerie Patisserie les Halles and order your French goodies starting at 9AM! That’s when you can usually beat the rush and be treated to a shorter wait along with your authentic French pastry!

Whether you find the line short or long, these baked goods and sweet treats are a delicious way to fuel  your Epcot fun — and they’ll make you happy you skipped the ADR!

Primo Piatto

When we visited Disney’s Riviera Resort for its grand opening, we couldn’t believe how wonderful the food was. Especially at Primo Piatto — the resort’s quick service restaurant.

While the fast-casual spot is located just steps from Bar Riva — Riviera’s pool bar — and shares many of the same menu items, the focal point of Primo Piatto is a large open kitchen where you can watch the chefs prepare your meal. The dining space itself is airy, stylish, and welcoming.

The dishes we tried at Primo Piatto were prepared well and presented nicely on real dishware. And with breakfast, lunch, and dinner options, there are many reasons to make a stop by the trattoria. The Blueberry Lemon Pancakes we had one morning were a major stand out for us. We think if you’re unable to score a reservation to the Topolino’s character breakfast, you could at least soften the blow a little with a delicious breakfast at Primo Piatto instead!

The Croque Monsieur with an Egg on Top that we had for lunch also tasted as good as it looked! If Primo Piatto is the direction Disney World’s counter service restaurants are heading, then consider us HUGE fans!

These five quick service spots have got us asking “ADR”? What for?” And while we know there are many virtues to table service dining at Walt Disney World, these fast-casual options are satisfying and impressive in their own ways.

Tell us about which counter service restaurants you think are better than some of Disney World’s table service restaurants in the comments below! We’d love to hear your recommendations!

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