As a Southerner, I have a passion for true sweet tea, which is why I have some complaints about Disney World on this subject.
I have lived in North Carolina for 30 years, and people will tell you I love a cold, tall glass of sweet tea. I’m talking tea so lovely that it will almost hit you in the teeth and probably taste like candy to some. Unfortunately, Disney World breaks my heart every time I visit when it comes to this Southerner’s staple — sweet tea.
At the Disney World hotels, you’ll find a Gold Peak station at the beverage center at quick service restaurants or the food court. While the Gold Peak brewer has an option for sweet tea, I’m going to go ahead and tell you, this is not real sweet tea. Is it sweeter than brewed iced tea? Yes. Does that make it Southern sweet tea? No, no, it does not. However, if you want to grab this and add in your own sweetener packets, that might hold you over if you are a sweet tea fan like me.
Now, most quick-service restaurants at the parks will also have Gold Peak sweet tea as an option. But I tend to hold off on grabbing it here, and I will wait for the good stuff.
Even table service restaurants might serve iced tea, but those of us who are more like sommeliers of sweet tea will leave here disappointed as well. For example, if I’m having a meal that would rival a Thanksgiving dinner, like you can find at Liberty Tree Tavern in Magic Kingdom, it just feels incomplete without a sweet tea, so you can order iced tea and ask for sweetener packets to create your own.
Now, I won’t gatekeep, and I will share with you where you can find the good, real, Southerner-approved sweet tea. First, Chef Art Smith’s Homecomin’ in Disney Springs has my favorite sweet tea, and of course, they do it right. They are known for their Southern-style dishes here. But that’s not all, you can also find some at City Works and Polite Pig.
If you love sweet tea just as much as I do, just be prepared to maybe go on a hiatus from it while at Disney World. For more tips on Disney World dining, be sure to follow AllEars.net.
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Have you found great sweet tea at Disney World? Tell us where in the comments below!
Trails End has brewed sweet tea. Only reason I buy a mug!
The Rainforest Cafe also has fresh brewed sweet tea and it is good! Being from Alabama, it’s like striking gold when you find fresh brewed sweet tea on Disney property.
You forgot Olivia’s at Old Key West!