Tag Archives: Starring Rolls Cafe

Disney World Breakfasts for Champions

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Wheaties may be the “Breakfast OF Champions”, but when you need to fuel up mid-morning on a Walt Disney World vacation, there are a few great places we favor.  You may be asking yourself, “Champions”, Lisa?  Yes!  When we’ve rope-dropped and managed 4 or 5 rides before the first meal of the day we ARE champions…hungry ones.

Five Great Disney World Breakfasts FOR Champions

1. Starring Rolls.  Centrally located in Disney’s Hollywood Studios, this is one of our all-time favorite must-visit breakfast spots.  It’s the convenient location, the ample outdoor seating, and the variety of Danishes, bagels, huge sandwiches, and the latest in magical Disney cupcake-ery.RM-Disney-Olaf-CupcakeStarring Rolls / Red Velvet Cupcake

2. Main Street Bakery.  We like Starbucks and while there are some things we miss (about the pre-Starbucks version) at this Main Street USA location in Magic Kingdom, we can very happily pop in for a great morning meal.  RM-Main-Street-StarbucksWe love the coffee and the wide assortment of baked goods and hot sandwiches.  Seriously, I can even make myself feel like I’m being healthy on vacation with a tasty spinach and feta breakfast wrap.  We’re all about the grab and go here so we can get back out there and ride on.

3.  Sunshine Seasons.  This is a great place to relax in Epcot after Soarin’ and Living With the Land while waiting for World Showcase to open.  Sunshine Seasons BreakfastThe Chocolate Croissant is a perennial favorite, but Raymond and I also love to share the focaccia breakfast sandwich – it comes with fried potatoes and is very delicious…and filling.  Which is why we share it – saving room for lunch!

4. Gasparilla Island Grill.  We ducked in this tidy little eatery at the Grand Floridian after a massage at the Senses Spa there.  We were famished and couldn’t think about continuing on with our day without sustenance.  Our experience (Croissant Sandwich – YUM) made us fans of this underappreciated quick-service location.  While I recommend you do not order the grits here, the rest of our breakfast was delish!

5. Contempo Café (Contemporary Resort).  HERE is where to order grits (best we’ve found at Disney World), if you’re so inclined.  The Contempo offers an impressively wide array of choices for breakfast in a convenient location near Chef Mickey’s.  RM-Contempo-Cafe-Breakfast-SandwichBreakfast sandwiches, platters, Mickey Waffles, even steel cut oatmeal and assorted baked goods – huge menu, certain to please every member of your dining party.

Bonus:  We can and have enjoyed breakfast at the Earl of Sandwich in Downtown Disney – but I recommend waiting for lunch.  Lunch is better there.

Where’s your favorite Walt Disney World breakfast location?

Earl of Sandwich Breakfast

Disney World Snacks, Sweet and Savory

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RM-Joe-With-Mickey-PretzelI’m not sure there’s a more hotly debated food topic among Disney fans than which Disney World snacks are the best.  For many years, I was not a big Disney vacation snacker.  I chose instead to save room for the all important table-service meals.  Then I started blogging.  It’s pretty hard to blog about Disney and have no game where snacks are concerned.  So I, as is my nature, embraced my new endeavor whole-heartedly.  Needless to say, once I “researched” Disney snacking, there was no going back.  Sadly, no matter how many miles you walk in a day at Walt Disney World, you cannot burn off all the calories you consume snacking with abandon.  Trust me on this.  I know.

What did I learn?  That there seem to be many more sweet snack choices than savory ones.  I must confess, I’ve never purchased or even tasted Disney World popcorn or a Citrus Swirl (Adventureland, Magic Kingdom).  If you are a huge fan of either of those, I’m sorry I cannot include them in this post.  RM-Dole-WhipMy dislike of the wildly popular Dole Whip is unfortunate, but nevertheless factual and I cannot, with a clear conscience, bring myself to tell you to rush out to get one with a guarantee that you’ll love it.  I will, as a gesture of good will, offer you this article on the Dole Whip versus the Citrus Swirl for your review.

My list is in no way all-inclusive – I simply wish to offer choices and recommendations based on my own personal experiences.  In other words, I ate a heck of a lot more snacks than I’m talking about here.  Bear in mind that I don’t have much of a sweet tooth and can literally go for weeks or months at a time with no cake, cookies, candy, ice cream or pie.  I did, for you, kind readers, consume an unprecedented number of sweet treats at Walt Disney World in the past 12 months, just so I could tell you what snacks I found worth trying.  With all disclosures made, I give to you…

Disney World Snacks, Sweet and Savory

Sweet Treats!

RM-CronutCroissant Doughnut (Refreshment Port, Epcot):  Is it a croissant?  Is it a doughnut?  Who cares!?!  It’s covered in cinnamon sugar and served warm.  What’s not to like?IMG_5064

Chocolate Croissant (Sunshine Seasons, Epcot):  I love the not-too-sweet attitude of this treat.  Best as a second breakfast or mid-morning snack, in my opinion.  Flaky, buttery goodness.RM-Epcot-Italy-Gelato-Affogato

Espresso Gelato “Affogato” (Italy Pavilion, Epcot):  It has to be the strong coffee flavor with the sweet, smooth gelato and the crunch of the cookies and coffee beans in this Italian delicacy that make it indescribably wonderful.  Raymond and I shared one and thought it was perfect.  Next time, I’m not sharing.RM-Cinnamon-Glazed-Almonds

Cinnamon Glazed Almonds (Animal Kingdom):  I love these!  Crunchy, sweet, but not too sweet and served in a cute paper cone.  Great for sharing and convenient for eating while strolling along and soaking up Animal Kingdom’s amazing atmosphere.RM-Churro

Churro (Various Locations):  This is going to sound weird (you should be used to that about me by now) but I think churros that have been under the heat lamp in the snack cart for a while taste better than when they’re freshly made.  I like them super crunchy and I think that extended heat lamp thing makes them extra crispy.  Anyway they’re served, though, these are about as perfect a sweet snack as you’ll find.  Easy to eat on the go, not too messy, not overly sugary.

Mickey Premium Ice Cream Bar (Various Locations):  It’s vanilla ice cream covered in a chocolate shell, shaped like Mickey’s head.  There’s nothing not to love about that.  On a warm day, you’ve got to eat fast or you’ll drip all over your shirt, but this does not detract from this snack’s simple goodness.RM-Disney-Olaf-Cupcake

Cupcake (Starring Rolls Café, Disney’s Hollywood Studios):  Butterfinger, red velvet, character-themed – doesn’t matter.  These are good, if you like cake and icing.  Big enough for sharing…or not.

Savory Snacks!

RM-Mickey-PretzelClassic Mickey Pretzel (Various Locations) – I like mine in Tomorrowland for a Magic Kingdom day snack break.  I also like to enjoy one in the Studios with a beer.  Salty, chewy, filling when your hungry, AND shaped like Mickey.RM-Jalapeno-Cheese-Pretzel

Jalapeno Cheese Pretzel (Animal Kingdom) – NOT shaped like Mickey, but these pretzels are excellent.  They’re not too spicy, but there’s enough jalapeno flavor to not disappoint.  A very nice choice when looking for something satisfying on the go.  Also good with beer!RM-Gaston's-Pork-Shank-and-Lefou's-Brew

Roasted Pork Shank (Gaston’s Tavern, Fantasyland, Magic Kingdom):  If you know the nutritional facts about this snack, please, PLEASE do not tell me.  It’s slow roasted pork, simply seasoned with salt and pepper.  Fall-off-the-bone tender, our whole family loved it.  I daydream about this snack.  I must have it again.

Smoked Turkey Leg (Various Locations) – Even though I’m not a fan, I felt I needed to mention the Turkey Leg.  While I may not understand the draw, Joseph loves them and this hunk o’ poultry has a huge and very loyal following.  This bad boy’s nutritional info is enough to make me swoon – at about 1000 calories and 50 grams of fat, I just can’t justify its consumption.  The pork shank probably has as many calories, but I don’t care (or want to know for sure).

A Little Bit of Everything!

RM-Sweet-&-Spicy-Chicken-Waffle-SandwichSweet & Spicy Chicken Waffle (Sleepy Hollow, Liberty Square, Magic Kingdom) – While I wished the waffle itself would have been be a little less soggy and a lot more crispy, this was an excellent snack!  The chicken is surprisingly very spicy, which I found terrific with the coleslaw and the sweet syrup topping.  It’s an amazing combination!

Which snacks are your favorites?  Which ones have you tried?  Are there any you don’t like?  Which ones are on your to-try list?

 

Disney Cupcake Cravings

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DSCN2521For many of us (okay, probably mostly me) this is always the time of year when we feel the need to…well….work on lightening up, you could say.  Don’t know about you, but I’m fluffy.  I’m well-insulated for the winter and paying the price for eating, drinking and making merry during the holiday season.  You’d think by now at the ripe old age of…uhmmmm.  Lets just say I should know better.  I’m down to three pairs of pants, two skirts and a dress that still fit from my work wardrobe.  I refuse to buy bigger clothes.  So I started this 21-day quick start diet thing.  This is not a post about dieting.  I’m just going to say that after four days of eating according to the “plan”, I do feel lighter.  I’ve also taken to chewing on my sleeves a little at my desk when no one is looking.  Yesterday I may or may not have eaten a sticky note.  And, if anyone asks, you have no idea what may be wrong with the bamboo plant on my desk.

I am a little hungrier than usual.  I’m sure I’ll get used to this – I’m consuming a big bunch of fruits and veggies and that’s good, right?  It’s only 21 days, right?  All I can say is that It’s a super good thing I’m not at Disney World right now.  You may have heard – I don’t have a sweet tooth – and it’s really true.  I don’t ordinarily crave sweets – if I have a craving, it’s for pasta, rice, or potatoes.  Until this week.  Must be the new “pDSCN2520rogram” – suddenly I NEED (with a soul wrenching desire) a Disney Butterfinger Cupcake.

Close your eyes (figuratively or you won’t be able to read this) and imagine the texture, the sweetness, the dessert nirvana of that perfect combination of cupcake and candy bar.  Whoever invented this food-for-the-gods should be anointed with top baker honors!  Back in the Unfair and Unbalanced review of counter service restaurants at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, I mentioned Starring Rolls Café and the Butterfinger Cupcake, but I did not have the opportunity in that post to wax poetic about its virtues.  Probably because I was still eating macaroni and cheese back then.  Today I’m here to tell you that you have got to try one of these culinary miracles.

I’m begging you…if you are at Disney World right now and you purchase a Butterfinger Cupcake…please, oh, please send me a shout out!  If I have to be here at home subsisting on spinach, kale and broccoli, at least I could live vicariously through your snack choice of the day and, come to think of it, still be sticking to the “plan”…unless you send me a picture and I eat it.