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When visiting Universal Orlando, you will find an abundance of food options, from standard theme park fare to fine dining. However, eating somewhere you have never visited can lead to some uncertainty, especially for picky eaters, so this chapter aims to help.
Reduce the time you spend waiting by using mobile order on the Universal Orlando app. This free service allowed you to browse menus, choose food and drink items, and pay for your items. You can do this even when not at the restaurant. Upon arrival, tap to confirm you are at the location and pick up your food in minutes.
In certain cases, to avoid crowding, Mobile Order may be a requirement at certain restaurants. Even if it is not required, we would still recommend it to speed up your visit to dining locations. Mobile Order is not available at all locations at the time of writing but is gradually being rolled out. Universal Dining Plans are not currently accepted for Mobile Food & Drink orders.
Guests wishing to plan their meal budget may want to consider one of Universal’s dining plans.
The Quick Service Universal Dining Plan is available to all guests and can be purchased at any theme park Quick Service location, at UniversalOrlando.com, or dining reservation kiosks in the parks. It is accepted at over 100 locations throughout the Universal Orlando Resort.
Pricing
The cost of the Quick Service Dining Plan is $25.99 for adults and $17.99 per child. Prices exclude tax.
What is included?
Each day purchased on the Universal Quick Service Dining Plan entitles you to:
• 1 Quick Service meal – with Entree and Non-alcoholic beverage.
• 1 Snack – From food carts or Quick Service locations such as popcorn, ice cream, or a frozen beverage.
• 1 Non-Alcoholic Beverage – From food carts or Quick Service locations.
You will receive a voucher when you reserve your dining plan that can be exchanged for a dining plan card at the Ticket Center or Guest Services at either theme park or the Dining Reservation Cart at either theme park or CityWalk.
The Quick Service Dining Plan can be redeemed at all food locations owned and operated by Universal Orlando in Universal Studios Florida, Islands of Adventure and Volcano Bay, and at select CityWalk locations including Hot Dog Hall of Fame and Bread Box - a full list follows in this chapter.
Is it worth the price?
In our opinion, the Quick Service plan is not a great purchase if you are looking for value for money. You have to try hard to profit from this dining plan by choosing the most expensive entrees on the menu every time.
Moreover, this isn’t what we would classify as a real dining plan, as there is only one actual meal included – the rest are drinks and snacks. This will likely not be enough for most people.
If, however, you want to pre-pay your meals to help manage your budget, you may enjoy this option.
Top Tip: You can add a Coca-Cola Freestyle cup to this plan for $6 extra per day - this gives you unlimited soda refills for the day. More on these cups later in this chapter.
Universal Dining Plan
Unlike the Quick Service Universal Dining Plan, the Universal Dining Plan is only available to guests who have booked a vacation package through Universal Parks & Resorts Vacations or an authorized reseller – this includes both on-site and off-site hotels.
The Universal Dining Plan cannot be purchased at the theme parks.
The cost of the dining plan is $69.21 for adults and $26.61 for children (aged 3 to 9). Prices include tax.
Each day on the Dining Plan entitles you to:
• 1 Table Service meal – with Entree, Dining Plan Dessert, and Non-alcoholic beverage.
• 1 Quick Service meal – with Entree and Non-alcoholic beverage.
• 1 Snack – From food carts or Quick Service locations. E.g., popcorn, ice cream, or a frozen beverage.
• 1 Beverage – From food carts or Quick Service locations.
For those familiar with the Disney Dining Plan at Walt Disney World, this is very similar. Still, there is one crucial difference: whereas at Disney, you have to purchase a Dining Plan for the entire stay, (e.g., an 8-day stay would mean purchasing an 8-day Dining Plan), at Universal you buy however many days’ worth of credits you need. So it would be possible to buy 3 days’ worth of Dining Plan during an 8-day stay.
Credits are available for your entire stay. For example, with a 3-day dining package, you would get 3 Table Service meal credits, 3 Quick Service meal credits, 3 Snack credits, and 3 beverage credits.
With the Universal Dining Plan, you could split these throughout your stay. You could have a Table Service meal one day and a snack, and then have two Quick Service meals another day.
Character fans can also use one Table Service credit for the Superstar Character Breakfast at Cafe La Bamba - each worth $35 (currently suspended due to COVID-19).
The Universal Dining Plan can be redeemed at most food locations owned and operated by Universal Orlando in Universal Studios Florida, Universal’s Islands of Adventure and Volcano Bay, and at select CityWalk locations - a full list follows. On-site hotel restaurants are not on the Dining Plan.
Guests who purchase the Dining Plan will receive a voucher when booking their vacation to be exchanged in the theme parks or CityWalk. The voucher can be exchanged for a card at the Ticket Center Desk or Guest Services at either theme park, or Dining Reservation Carts at either theme park or CityWalk. It can also be collected at on-site hotels.
Is it worth it?
The Dining Plan is a good option for food lovers but compared to Disney’s system it still has a few niggles to work out. Firstly, exchanging a voucher for a card is unnecessarily complex.
Secondly, Dining Plan restaurants in CityWalk are limited – all the other restaurants are inside the theme parks, so you will need park admission each day. Frustratingly, as the on-site hotels are operated by Loews and not Universal, on-site hotel restaurants are not included in the plan.
Thirdly, each card has its own credits and operates independently. As such, a parent wanting to get four ice creams needs all four cards, and each ice cream is processed separately. Credits are not grouped like the Disney Dining Plan.
Having mentioned all these caveats, it is a good system. If you like having all your meals pre-paid with one less expense to worry about and enjoy Table Service meals, then this is the perfect plan for you.
This plan generally offers better value than the Quick Service dining plan, especially if you eat the most expensive items on the menus, meaning that you can save money here.
Note: Gratuities are extra and not included in the price of the Dining Plan.
Universal Studios Florida:
Snacks – Schwab’s Pharmacy, Silver Screen Coke, La Bamba Slush, La Bamba Veranda Bar, Monsters’ Slush, Ben & Jerry’s, Guido’s Gelato, Louie’s Fruit Stand, KidZone Pizza Company, KidZone Snacks, ICEE locations, San Francisco Beer, San Francisco Pastry Company, Starbucks, Florean Fortescue’s Ice-Cream Parlour, London Taxi Hut, The Fountain of Fair Fortune, The Hopping Pot, King’s Cross Station Kiosk, Expo Eats and Front Gate Popcorn.
Quick Service – TODAY Cafe, Leaky Cauldron, London Taxi Hut, Mel’s Drive-In, Universal Studios’ Classic Monsters Cafe, Louie’s Italian Restaurant, KidZone Pizza Company, Richter’s Burger Co., San Francisco Pastry Company and Fast Food Boulevard.
Table Service – Finnegan’s Bar and Grill and Lombard’s Seafood Grille
Islands of Adventure:
Snacks – Croissant Moon Bakery, Cathy’s Ice Cream, Oasis Coolers, Port of Entry Fruit and Lemon Slush, ICEE, Hop on Pop Ice Cream Shop, Moose Juice, Goose Juice, Butterbeer Cart, The Magic Neep Cart, Cinnabon, Starbucks, Dippin’ Dots, Chill Car and Cotton Candy Cart.
Quick Service – Croissant Moon Bakery, Cafe 4, Captain America Diner, Comic Strip Cafe, Blondie’s, Wimpy’s, The Burger Digs, Pizza Predattoria, Thunder Falls Terrace, Three Broomsticks, Fire Eater’s Grill, Circus McGurkus Cafe Stoo-pendous, Green Eggs & Ham Cafe and Doc Sugrue’s Desert Kebab House.
Table Service – Mythos Restaurant and Confisco Grille
Volcano Bay:
Snacks – Kora Poroka Ice Cream Kona, Lemon Slush, Dippin’ Dots and ICEE
Quick Service – Kohola Reef Restaurant, Whakawaiwai Eats, Bambu and The Feasting Frog.
Table Service – No locations in this park.
CityWalk:
Snacks – Cinnabon, Coke Icon, Cold Stone Creamery, Blue Man Group Theater and Starbucks.
Quick Service – Bread Box Hand Crafted Sandwiches and Hot Dog Hall of Fame.
Table Service – The Cowfish, Bob Marley—A Tribute to Freedom, Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville, , Red Oven Pizza Bakery, Antojitos Authentic Mexican Food, Pat O’Brien’s, VIVO Italian Kitchen (seasonal), NBC Sports Grill & Brew, Toothsome and Bigfire
Refillable popcorn buckets are a great snack option if you are a big eater. You pay $8.99 for the popcorn bucket and then can get as many refills as you want for $1.99 (plus tax) each.
There are four places at each theme park where your souvenir bucket can be refilled: look for the big popcorn machines – these are usually outdoors. There are no popcorn refills at CityWalk, or at the on-site hotels.
Popcorn refills are only available for regular popcorn; flavored popcorn is not discounted and is sold at full price.
Coca-Cola Freestyle is a refillable drinks system.
You pay $16.99 plus tax for a Coca-Cola Freestyle cup. You can then visit any of the 18 Coca Cola Freestyle locations - you will find them inside restaurants and as freestanding machines too - and refill your cup for free as many times as you want during that day.
The cup has an RFID chip that, when activated, allows free refills.
There are over 100 different Coke drink mixes you can choose from at the machines, or you can stick to the standard Coke products.
You must wait 10 minutes between refills to discourage sharing.
Additional days can be added for $9.99 per day.
Coke Freestyle stations at CityWalk and at Universal’s on-site hotels are separate from this system.
This is an alternative option. Universal sells many souvenir cups in the form of characters (Minions, Simpsons) or themed (Butterbeer cup). These cups cost around $17 each (including one fill) and make for a nice souvenir.
As well as this, you can visit most Quick Service and Snack locations through the two theme parks and Volcano Bay and get refills of sodas, slushies and any non-specialty drink for $1.49, plus tax (e.g., Butterbeer, Pumpkin Juice, and Flaming Moe’s are excluded). These cups are valid indefinitely so you can refill multiple times during your stay and even for future visits, perhaps.
For guests on multi-day visits who don’t drink a lot of soda, the souvenir cups are likely to work out as better value than Freestyle.
When you want to sit down and have a Table Service meal in a busy theme park, you do not want to be kept waiting. Each minute you wait could be used to meet characters, watch shows, or ride attractions. This is where restaurant dining reservations come in.
Unlike at Disney, at Universal dining reservations are relatively easy to get. Visit http://bit.ly/unireservations and book your table online.
Except for very busy seasons, you should be able to get a reservation for most restaurants a week or so in advance.
If there is a specific place you want to eat, we recommend you book your table as early as possible.
We have known to get same-day reservations, but don’t count on it.
Universal has Table Service restaurants dotted across its theme parks, CityWalk, and the on-site hotels, and finding the best one can be tough. Luckily, we have rounded up those that you really should not miss.
Note that prices and menus change all the time with seasons and chefs - those listed were correct as of when we last ate at the locations and should be taken as examples only.
1. Mythos (Islands of Adventure) – Mythos is often rated as the number one theme park restaurant in all of Orlando, let alone just Universal. This place is a pure delight to eat in, with its lavish interior, exotic menu, and rather fair prices. This restaurant will truly transport you to a different world.
Entrees are $16 and $28. The food ranges from sandwiches to salmon. Note: Mythos is often only open for lunch.
2. Finnegan’s Bar and Grill (Universal Studios Florida) – Finnegan’s is always a fun place to dine, or to go inside for a quick drink. Themed as an Irish Pub, there is a lot of fun to be had, as well as some delightful treats.
Entrees are $15 and $26. The food includes sandwiches, Irish fish and chips, beef stew, and burgers.
3. Confisco Grille (Islands of Adventure) – Located in the Port of Entry area, Confisco Grille has a traditional range of theme park food, which may be better for families with younger children with picky eaters. It has a laid-back atmosphere.
Entrees are $14 to $21. You will find ribs, pad thai, sandwiches, salads, wraps, and more on the menu.
4. NBC Sports Grill & Brew (CityWalk) – Many ignore this restaurant when walking past, perhaps discounting it as tacky because of its sports theme. Do not be one of the people that makes that mistake; NBC Sports Grill has some great food on offer and the portions are large!
Entrees are $15 to $30. There is a wide selection of food on offer from wings to flatbreads, nachos, calamari, salads, burgers, pasta, steak, and much more.
5. Toothsome Chocolate Emporium & Savory Feast Kitchen (CityWalk) – As well as having one of the longest names we have ever seen for a restaurant, Toothsome is an excellent choice no matter what you feel like eating. Plus, if you fancy a deluxe milkshake, that is an option too.
Entrees are $12 to $30. Food ranges from salads to flatbreads, hamburgers, pasta, salmon, and meatloaf. There is even a dedicated brunch menu featuring crepes, waffles, quiche, and french toast! Brunch items are $8 to $14 each.
There are times that you may not want a three-course meal, preferring to use the time to watch a show, walk around the parks, or ride your favorite attraction again.
Here are our favorite on-site Quick Service restaurants to make the most of your park time.
1. Three Broomsticks (Islands of Adventure) – Everything about this restaurant puts it at the top spot: the atmosphere, the food, and its opening hours. Three Broomsticks is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and is the only fully-fledged restaurant at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Hogsmeade.
Entrees are $11 to $18. Breakfast entrees come from around the world: England, the USA, and Continental Europe, to name a few locations.
Lunch and dinner revolve around British dishes with some American classics too. You will find pasties, fish & chips, shepherd’s pie, as well as smoked turkey legs, rotisserie smoked chicken, and spareribs.
2. Thunder Falls Terrace (Islands of Adventure) – This is another restaurant where the atmosphere adds to the experience. Step foot into Thunder Falls, and you are in the middle of the world of Jurassic Park - and you get a spectacular view of the River Adventure ride splashdown from the restaurant’s huge glass windows.
EntrÈes are $14 to $21.50. On sale are ribs, smoked turkey legs, rice bowls, and rotisserie chicken. The portion sizes are large for theme park meals.
3. Louie’s Italian Restaurant (Universal Studios Florida) – As far as pizzas and pasta go inside the theme parks, Louie’s does it best. It should be noted that there is not a large variety of food on offer at Louie’s, and it is not particularly healthy - but it is tasty!
Entrees are $10 to $17. You can also order a full pizza to share for $35 to $40.
Food includes spaghetti and meatballs, pizza and fettuccine alfredo. The meatballs and pizzas are the best we’ve had at a theme park Quick Service location.
4. Leaky Cauldron (Universal Studios Florida) – This location has a great atmosphere inside. Like its other Wizarding World companion in this section, you can get some good British grub, including Bangers and Mash, Cottage Pie, Toad in the Hole, Fish and Chips, etc. Entrees are $12 to $22.
5. Croissant Moon Bakery (Islands of Adventure) – The food here is far from your standard theme park fare. This is a bakery and not somewhere to go for a full-blown lunch or dinner meal, but where you might go for breakfast or a snack.
Entrees are $3 to $14. Serves continental breakfasts, sandwiches, and great cakes! If you fancy a coffee, this is the place to visit too!
Chapter 13
