REVIEW: This Secret Menu Item At Magic Kingdom NEVER Misses — So Why Is Nobody Talking About It?

We’ve got a confession to make and we’re pretty sure you’re the only folks who will understand. No matter how much we try to stay away from this Magic Kingdom restaurant, we just can’t seem to do it. And it’s all because of three little words: SECRET MENU ITEMS!

We’re constantly reviewing restaurants around Disney World’s parks and hotels, especially when we notice a menu change or it’s just been a while. This time, we’re headed to Skipper Canteen. But, was its menu just as good as we had remembered it or had it taken a fall from grace?

While we were out for a stroll around Magic Kingdom recently, we decided we were “so hungry we could eat a horse.” Is that how the saying goes? Nah, we’re just kidding, but we did head to grab a meal at one place we figured could hit the spot!

And that’s how we wound up at the ever-popular Jungle Navigation Co., Ltd. Skipper Canteen. Chances are if you haven’t eaten here before you’ve likely at least heard it mentioned as an option a time or two. Since its debut to Magic Kingdom in December 2015, this 222- seat restaurant lies in Adventureland just across the way from the “world famous” Jungle Cruise ride and is owned by Alberta Falls, the granddaughter of Dr. Albert Falls (remember, he’s the one that discovered the 8th wonder of the world and that infamous ‘O2H’).

Background

To give you a little more of how this restaurant came to be about, we gotta take you way back. You see, when little Alberta was sent to live with Dr. Falls, he helped her learn his business operating the boats that make up Jungle Navigation Co. LTD.

To save the declining family business, Alberta made the tough decision to switch the boats from a tropical river cargo shipping venture into sight-seeing cruises for passengers in October 1931. It was certainly a risk, but a gamble that seemed to pay off in the long run!

Atmosphere

The restaurant includes three dining rooms after you’ve stepped inside and made your way past the waiting area by the host check in.

As you make your way through the restaurant, and ultimately to your table, you’ll be sat in one of three dining rooms. The largest being the Crew’s Mess Hall. The servers here are quick to point out that it’s actually not messy at all and is the largest of the dining rooms. Its walls are adorned with photos and documents, native musical instruments, and other expedition mementos gathered by the skippers on their travels around the jungle.

But don’t be in such a hurry to walk past, take a glance upward and you might see a few familiar names written around the room. As a tribute to some of the Imagineers who lent a helping hand in the creation of the original Jungle Cruise attraction, there are three offices on the upper floor for Skipper Marc, Skipper Harper and Skipper Bill. Marc Davis was responsible for the visual gags, Harper Goff designed the waterway and the boats for the attraction, and Bill Evans was responsible for the landscaping.

The Jungle Room, is another option you could find yourself dining within which was formerly the family parlor. It’s a more intimate location and features memorabilia pulled from the Falls’ family archives…

…while the third dining area is behind a bookcase which once served as a secret meeting place for the Society of Explorers and Adventurers or S.E.A. Dr. Albert Falls was actually a founding member of this secret society and as you take a look around, you’ll feast your eyes on a few of the artifacts from the mysterious organization.

But, just like in the Crew’s Mess Hall, there’s a few other hidden gems to discover! Take a stroll by the bookshelf! A few of the sly titles of the books poke fun at topics like Disney parks with ‘The Eyes of Mara’ by Jones, a reference to Indiana Jones, Imagineers like ‘Crooning Flowers’ by Sherman and Sherman — the Sherman Brothers wrote several popular Disney tunes we sing and hum today and cheeky, inside jokes like ‘Friends for Dinner’ by T. Sam, a clear reference to the Jungle Cruise ride’s headhunter Trader Sam.

While other book titles are based on silly wordplay such as ‘Spotted Tigers’ by G. Rowl or punny amusement as you’ll find with ‘Fleas Navidad and Other Winter Insects.’

Oh, yeah… there’s also a few tables and chairs in each of the rooms for you to sit down at and enjoy your meal — wouldn’t want you to try to eat standing up around the place!

Food & Drinks

As fate would have it we were seated in the S.E.A. room for this visit and boy, were we honored to be within the walls of a once secret society meeting space! We swooned over all of the artifacts that adorned the walls and shelves but we had to refocus quickly because there was food science to do!

After finding our seating at a table with a padded booth we took a second to take in the surrounding landscape of tables and chairs while we awaited neighbors to pester (we mean, make small talk with).

Our server was quick to hand over the menus for the restaurant and we very easily found ourselves wrapped up in conversation over the menu items as we we got down to business making our selections. The main course menu looks more like a fun expedition folder…

…and contains your options for appetizers and beverages on one side…

… while the other side lists the specialty drinks, beer, and entrees…

… but the back side is home to an inviting note of welcome from Alberta herself!

Don’t think we’re here to short ya ok? We’re grabbing some dessert while we’re at it!

The restaurant also holds an extensive array of dessert offerings and hot beverages to to close out your meal.

And the backside of its menu is quite literally just that! See? It’s very plainly stated.

Yeah — we’d like to think we leave no stone unturned when it comes to this place and that’s why it’s always a good idea to drum up friendly gab with your server. This is where you’ll learn about any other secret menu items that might not have made it into the printed menu offerings and sure enough, we uncovered an appetizer we just knew we had to have but, more on that later!

So after making our winning selections, we had a few moments to sit and relax for a bit while we waited on our order to arrive. Naturally our beverage came out first, followed by our secret menu appetizer, then the entrees, and at our request, the dessert was brought out not too long after. This is how we were able to get the whole kit ‘n caboodle into one photo for you!

We chose The Jungle Bird as our first draft pick. Well, at least, it was the first to arrive to the table. This drink’s description won us over when we saw that it is made with Gosling Black Seam Rum, Campari Liqueur, Cane Syrup, and Pineapple and Lime Juices. Our taste buds were already watering as we sounded out each word of its ingredients in our heads and it’ll cost you $15 to order too.

However, tasting this concoction might have been where our tastebuds hit a slight detour. Our skipper made clear to us that this drink leaned more to the sour side, and after taking a few first sips we found out the hard way he’s wasn’t just being punny. As we started to sip a little more and pick apart the flavor, we were met with something that resembled more of a grapefruit flavor with a little bitterness to it.

We loved the pineapple wedge on the side though, and the rum also contributed to the sour, richer notes in this drink. Admittedly this one tasted a little more towards the bitter side than the sour, but we still enjoyed the drink as a whole. It’s served in a pretty stout glass so we’re willing to bet the strength of the ingredients in this one is where the majority of your price is driven.

After we’d had our fill of the drink without food, it was time to put our money where our mouth was and try out the secret appetizer! Now, this isn’t necessarily new to us, because it’s been here a while (and spoiler: it’s kind of a fav) but that’s why we keep coming back for the Pao de Quiejo.

This plate costs $15, but there’s a lot of these yummy cheese bread bites served on this plate. Just remember, this isn’t going to be printed anywhere for you to see on the menu, so to order it, you’ll have to ask your server about it. It’s served with a side of poblano cream with red pepper flakes and chimichurri sauce.

Listen, you can be the judge here, but there’s a big enough plate should you decide to share with the rest of your table but we’re not going to stop you if you want to savor every warm cheesy bite for ‘Numero Uno’. All we ask is that when you order it, make sure you try out the sauce because it can really add a little extra magic to its flavor. Now’s your turn not to judge us because sometimes, we come here just for a plate of these things and we’re not ready to apologize for that any time soon.

Each of the bites are made with warm breading surrounding a creamy melted mozzarella cheese that results in a satisfying mini cheese pull. But when you dip these little guys into the sauces together, you’re treating your taste buds to a party of a lifetime!

We ordered a second appetizer just for good measure and that’s how Orinoco Ida’s Cachapas ended up next on our list. This plate will also cost you $15 and is made of house-made corn pancakes, beer-braised pork, roasted corn, Fresno pepper salsa, and avocado cream. Just goes to show you the jokes aren’t the only corny thing in this place!

If we weren’t already in love with this restaurant from the secret appetizer alone, this one was a slam dunk in the taste department for us! This was definitely our second favorite dish of everything we ate right behind the cheese bread.

The corn pancake base is sweet and falls apart easily when you cut it, almost crumbling, and it’s so delicious. The pulled pork pieces on top was tender and juicy, and the addition of the crumbled queso, cilantro, salsa, and onions add to the sweetness. But don’t say we didn’t warn you about these little devils — there is a low heat to them, which we thought really kept the flavor interesting.

Next up it was time to start in on our entrée! We chose “Tastes Like Chicken” Because It Is — which was pretty spot on for its name! This entrée is made of crispy-fried chicken with chili-soy glaze, jasmine rice, and picked vegetable slaw and costs $28.

The first thing that really jumped out at us about this dish is just how large of a portion it is! This entree contains a lightly breaded chicken breast sitting on top of a bed of rice with the veggie slaw and the glaze surrounding the base. The veggies making up the slaw were crisp and pickled, while the jasmine rice was cooked just enough to give it a stickier consistency making it feel a bit more exotic.

The chili-soy glaze mimicked a teriyaki sauce overall, and when you mixed it all together, it gave the otherwise bland but tender chicken some much appreciated flavor. Our only complaint about this dish is that the breading was very thin and fell apart pretty easily.

Then it was time to tackle the 9th wonder of the world— dessert! After such a flavor filled mill we were looking for something that wasn’t a bit too heavy. So, we opted for the Coconut Bar with Pineapple-Basil Compote and Vanilla Cream. This treat is made of vanilla chiffon cake with coconut and lime white chocolate ganache which costs $9.

The coconut flavor and texture will probably hit you first, but don’t worry, it’s not overwhelming to the dessert. At times we got a bit of the crunch from the ganache layer within the bar. You might also think the fun, little meringue dollops are just for decoration but they’re edible, too! They were a bit chewy but added another sweet element to the treat as a whole.

The vanilla cake layers were soft and fluffy, but it’s hard to ignore that zesty lemon flavor that hits you in the aftertaste.

This reminded us of a lemony coconut cake. We already had an idea that this would probably be the dessert we decided to tackle, but after learning it was our server’s favorite, we could quickly see how it garnered so much praise.

Magic or Tragic?

We’re gonna go ahead and rate this one an overwhelming MAGIC for this visit! We can’t seem to get enough of the continuation of theming between the restaurant and the Jungle Cruise ride, the fact that you’re served by literal Jungle Cruise skippers, and the food quality here is exceptional for the price. Heck, we’d even head out this way just to pick up that secret appetizer from the menu (because we’re obsessed with warm cheese and bread)!

You might rate it more of a TRAGIC if you’re not someone who’s an adventurous eater (there’s no problem to sticking to what you’re comfortable with), you’re someone who likes to keep moving throughout your day and minimize your down time (hey, we get it, Magic Kingdom’s got a lot to accomplish), or you just can’t justify the price of the meals over something offered in a smaller portion for less. 

Our readers have given this restaurant a 7.78 out of 10 rating with 82% saying they would recommend you stop by and grub here too!

We’re constantly eating and reviewing our way around Disney World’s parks and hotels! Be sure you’re following along with us at AllEars for more!

REVIEW: This Disney Restaurant Finally REOPENED, and It’s Inspired by a Permanently Closed Attraction

Do you typically stop for a meal when visiting Magic Kingdom or do you like to keep things light? Tell us in the comments which side you lean towards most!

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