As you probably know, 4 Disney food trucks have opened over the past few months. Each one is themed to reflect one of the WDW theme parks, and they can currently be found in Downtown Disney. Thought I would share my opinions of them here.
Another disclaimer - I don't eat red meat or pork, which means my choices at the trucks were somewhat limited. You won't be seeing any corn dog reviews here, for example, but hopefully these reviews will still be helpful.
Over the busy holiday season, two of the trucks were serving food in the DHS. That's where I first encountered some of the trucks over the holiday week.
Of all the Disney food trucks, there's one that I've been seriously excited about trying. And oddly enough, it's inspired by the park whose quick service eateries are most frequently criticized.
Superstar Catering serves up three unique takes on meatballs. I think it's a brilliant idea, since the concept is straightforward yet allows plenty of room for creativity. My default choice was the turkey meatball dish with soft polenta and arugula-fennel salad.
This was easily the best quick service meal I've had in DHS. The meatballs had a slight sweetness from golden raisins, the polenta wasn't too stiff, and the fennel added a great flavor. If anything, I would've liked some more greens on the plate, but that's just a personal preference. This was an extremely satisfying lunch.
The second food truck I tried was inspired by Epcot: World Showcase of Flavors.
This food truck is decorated with symbols and stickers representing a variety of nations.
In fact, the truck is described as "the Best of the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival."
That said, I'm somewhat disappointed that the menu contains so many uninspired choices. Hamburger sliders? Pierogies and sausage? A lobster roll? They literally had the entire world to draw from, and they chose two distinctly American items and another relatively safe choice. Honestly, this truck has so much more potential.
Still, I wanted to try something here - maybe I'd be pleasantly surprised.
My choice was the lobster roll. It certainly looks great in the stock photo that Disney uses to promote it:
Instead, I received this.
At over $2 more than the lobster rolls at Boardwalk Bakery and Contempo Cafe, I thought this one was far, far worse. Way too much mayo - I could barely enjoy the lobster or the bread since it was all so wet. I literally used a paper napkin to 'wipe down' the lobster, and it still didn't taste right. This lobster roll was a huge miss for me, and I can't recommend it - there are better (and cheaper) lobster rolls available at other quick service locations.
Next up (a few days later) was Fantasy Fare, which draws inspiration from Magic Kingdoms around the world.
My default choice was the glass noodle salad with chicken. Even before ordering it, this dish felt like the forgotten stepchild, especially compared to hand-dipped corn dogs ("straight from Disneyland!") and a sandwich from the ever-popular Be Our Guest.
Unfortunately, it was just as forgettable as it sounds. I feel like this dish was placed on the menu for 2 reasons: it's easy to assemble (all the ingredients are cold), and it makes the other dishes look more enticing.
Still, I couldn't help but feel disappointed. The noodles tasted like peanut or sesame oil, and not much else. The chicken and veggies were bland. Not even the abundance of cilantro on top could save this dish, and I love cilantro.
If you stop by this truck, I recommend sticking with the corn dog or croque monsieur. The noodle salad wasn't worth it, and I can't believe this dish is supposed to positively represent Hong Kong Disneyland's dining options.
Last up is Namaste Cafe, inspired by Animal Kingdom (and drawing more direct inspiration from Sanaa at AKL). Of all four trucks, this one has the most beautiful design.
Seriously - the truck is full of incredible details.
My one criticism of this truck is that it lacks a vegetarian option. Together, the trucks can almost be seen as a new quick service establishment or food court, but none of them have a vegetarian option. Even though I'm not a vegetarian, that just seems bizarre to me (especially since Animal Kingdom's truck is largely inspired by Indian cuisine, which is extremely vegetarian-friendly).
Fortunately for me, though, there are 2 items at this truck that I can enjoy. My choice was the tandoori shrimp.
This was so delicious! The shrimp had a slight kick but weren't overly spicy. Paired with the rice and pickled vegetables, every bite was full of flavor (and there was plenty of naan bread to scoop up everything at the end).
Overall, I think the trucks are an exciting new addition to Downtown Disney. Two of them seriously impressed me (Superstar Catering and Namaste Cafe), even though a vegetarian option would be appreciated.
As for the other two, they need some work. MK's truck will almost certainly be popular, but that's not because of the noodle salad. Replace it with something else (maybe Columbia Harbour House's popular Lighthouse Sandwich?), and I think this truck will be solid.
Of all the trucks, though, it's the Epcot one that needs some menu tweaking. Considering that it represents the International F&W Festival year-round, hopefully they'll be willing to shake things up and add more exciting choices. All four of these trucks could be great, and even though they aren't perfect, I recommend trying them if you come across them in Downtown Disney. You might be pleasantly surprised!
Another disclaimer - I don't eat red meat or pork, which means my choices at the trucks were somewhat limited. You won't be seeing any corn dog reviews here, for example, but hopefully these reviews will still be helpful.
Over the busy holiday season, two of the trucks were serving food in the DHS. That's where I first encountered some of the trucks over the holiday week.
Of all the Disney food trucks, there's one that I've been seriously excited about trying. And oddly enough, it's inspired by the park whose quick service eateries are most frequently criticized.
Superstar Catering serves up three unique takes on meatballs. I think it's a brilliant idea, since the concept is straightforward yet allows plenty of room for creativity. My default choice was the turkey meatball dish with soft polenta and arugula-fennel salad.
This was easily the best quick service meal I've had in DHS. The meatballs had a slight sweetness from golden raisins, the polenta wasn't too stiff, and the fennel added a great flavor. If anything, I would've liked some more greens on the plate, but that's just a personal preference. This was an extremely satisfying lunch.
The second food truck I tried was inspired by Epcot: World Showcase of Flavors.
This food truck is decorated with symbols and stickers representing a variety of nations.
In fact, the truck is described as "the Best of the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival."
That said, I'm somewhat disappointed that the menu contains so many uninspired choices. Hamburger sliders? Pierogies and sausage? A lobster roll? They literally had the entire world to draw from, and they chose two distinctly American items and another relatively safe choice. Honestly, this truck has so much more potential.
Still, I wanted to try something here - maybe I'd be pleasantly surprised.
My choice was the lobster roll. It certainly looks great in the stock photo that Disney uses to promote it:
Instead, I received this.
At over $2 more than the lobster rolls at Boardwalk Bakery and Contempo Cafe, I thought this one was far, far worse. Way too much mayo - I could barely enjoy the lobster or the bread since it was all so wet. I literally used a paper napkin to 'wipe down' the lobster, and it still didn't taste right. This lobster roll was a huge miss for me, and I can't recommend it - there are better (and cheaper) lobster rolls available at other quick service locations.
Next up (a few days later) was Fantasy Fare, which draws inspiration from Magic Kingdoms around the world.
My default choice was the glass noodle salad with chicken. Even before ordering it, this dish felt like the forgotten stepchild, especially compared to hand-dipped corn dogs ("straight from Disneyland!") and a sandwich from the ever-popular Be Our Guest.
Unfortunately, it was just as forgettable as it sounds. I feel like this dish was placed on the menu for 2 reasons: it's easy to assemble (all the ingredients are cold), and it makes the other dishes look more enticing.
Still, I couldn't help but feel disappointed. The noodles tasted like peanut or sesame oil, and not much else. The chicken and veggies were bland. Not even the abundance of cilantro on top could save this dish, and I love cilantro.If you stop by this truck, I recommend sticking with the corn dog or croque monsieur. The noodle salad wasn't worth it, and I can't believe this dish is supposed to positively represent Hong Kong Disneyland's dining options.
Last up is Namaste Cafe, inspired by Animal Kingdom (and drawing more direct inspiration from Sanaa at AKL). Of all four trucks, this one has the most beautiful design.
Seriously - the truck is full of incredible details.
My one criticism of this truck is that it lacks a vegetarian option. Together, the trucks can almost be seen as a new quick service establishment or food court, but none of them have a vegetarian option. Even though I'm not a vegetarian, that just seems bizarre to me (especially since Animal Kingdom's truck is largely inspired by Indian cuisine, which is extremely vegetarian-friendly).
Fortunately for me, though, there are 2 items at this truck that I can enjoy. My choice was the tandoori shrimp.
This was so delicious! The shrimp had a slight kick but weren't overly spicy. Paired with the rice and pickled vegetables, every bite was full of flavor (and there was plenty of naan bread to scoop up everything at the end).
Overall, I think the trucks are an exciting new addition to Downtown Disney. Two of them seriously impressed me (Superstar Catering and Namaste Cafe), even though a vegetarian option would be appreciated.
As for the other two, they need some work. MK's truck will almost certainly be popular, but that's not because of the noodle salad. Replace it with something else (maybe Columbia Harbour House's popular Lighthouse Sandwich?), and I think this truck will be solid.
Of all the trucks, though, it's the Epcot one that needs some menu tweaking. Considering that it represents the International F&W Festival year-round, hopefully they'll be willing to shake things up and add more exciting choices. All four of these trucks could be great, and even though they aren't perfect, I recommend trying them if you come across them in Downtown Disney. You might be pleasantly surprised!
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