Six Disney World Restaurants That Were BETTER When They Reopened

When Walt Disney World’s restaurants began reopening after closing in response to the COVID pandemic, many offered limited menus, modified character dining, and an overall “lesser” experience than what we were used to!

Welcome to Disney World!

Despite some restaurants taking a bit longer to return to pre-closure operations, we were pleasantly surprised by a number of other dining spots that were actually BETTER when they reopened!

Here are seven Disney World restaurants that were BETTER when they reopened than when they closed in March of 2020.

ABC Commissary – Disney’s Hollywood Studios

Quick Service dining in Hollywood Studios can be tricky sometimes, so we were thrilled when we visited ABC Commissary for the first time since the park reopened back in the summer of 2020. This Quick Service spot came a LONG way from what it used to be, with a brand-new menu including Buffalo Chicken Grilled Cheese Sandwich and Shrimp Tacos!

Shrimp Tacos and Watermelon Margarita

Hollywood & Vine – Disney’s Hollywood Studios

One of the restaurants that has improved in big ways, especially when it came to character dining, is Hollywood and Vine! This Table Service restaurant used to offer a character buffet, and while the food here was always decent, we didn’t truly appreciate how good of a spot this was until it converted to family style. It is also one of the locations that has returned to the traditional character dining experience!

Garlic and Cracked Black Pepper Prime Rib of Beef

Chef Mickey’s – Disney’s Contemporary Resort

We wouldn’t be lying if we confessed we’ve been pretty impressed by Chef Mickey’s when it returned. In a lot of ways, we kind of preferred the new family-style menu over the traditional buffet, but the buffet returned in 2023. Still, we’ve really liked the food more than we remember before the closures! Especially now that the characters are back in full force, we’ve enjoyed our visits here for both breakfast and dinner.

Trattoria al Forno – Disney’s BoardWalk Inn

Trattoria al Forno at Disney’s BoardWalk Inn is another restaurant that benefitted from some of the changes made to character dining. Currently, there are no characters available at this location, but that came with a silver lining! The cost of a morning meal here went down considerably sans characters, making this hidden gem of a restaurant a pretty great bargain!

Trattoria al Forno

Citricos – Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa

This next restaurant improved in a different way since reopening! While the food at Citricos was largely the same, we found that the decor was WAY better when we visited this year than when we last saw it before the closures. This Signature restaurant at the Grand Floridan has been re-themed after Mary Poppins Returns, but the theming is quite subtle and overall very lovely!

Citricos

Rosie’s All-American Cafe – Disney’s Hollywood Studios

If we were to give an award to the park with the most improved food overall since the closures, it would likely go to Hollywood Studios! This park was the only one with several dining locations included on this list, and now we’re singing the praises of Rosie’s All-American Cafe! The menu is still going to be for the most part your traditional burgers and fries, but over the past few visits we’ve been reminded more of why we should stop here for lunch instead of why we shouldn’t.