No two toddlers are the same, but maybe our dining experience will help you prepare!
Soft pretzels, pizza, macaroni, ice cream. They all sound like winners when it comes to feeding a toddler at Walt Disney World, if not the most healthy winners. But if you have a toddler, you know that chaos is the norm, even when it comes to the most toddler-friendly foods. For that reason, our family approached Disney dining on our family trip in March with a buffet of mixed feelings. We were excited to try all the “big people” food I discovered on TikTok. But we also worried our 19-month-old daughter would refuse everything I scoped out for her (if you’re wondering, only two of the four aforementioned foods went over well).
Nonetheless, our daughter did end up nomming on a reliable selection of meals — especially breakfast foods. But she turned down some unexpected, kid-friendly favorites, as well. Below, you’ll find a breakdown of six foods our toddler enjoyed across Disney World, including Disney Springs and the All-Star Music Resort, along with six foods she promptly threw on the ground.
Foods Our Toddler Loved
Food Court Breakfast (All-Star Music Resort): In a wonderland of unpredictable options, breakfast turned out to be our guiding star. We took advantage of the wide variety available at the All-Star Music Resort each morning. For our daughter, we ordered eggs, a banana, and a blueberry muffin. With just a little help from Mom and Dad, she devoured this meal consistently. To accommodate these plans and maintain sleep and sanity, we hesitantly gave up our plans to rope drop. And I don’t regret it. I believe the extra sleep and the (relatively) balanced meal made this sacrifice worth it.
Jumbo Pretzel (Magic Kingdom): Spontaneous meals can be tricky with a toddler at Disney World, but well-calibrated expectations can help, along with making a plan whenever possible. I scoped out the menu before most meals on our trip, but lunch at Magic Kingdom was a question mark in our itinerary. After we settled in at Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Café (where I enjoyed the Sulley Slush), I quickly realized our daughter wouldn’t eat anything on the menu. So, a nearby pretzel cart ended up being our best solution, along with some fruit and applesauce we brought into the parks. It wasn’t the most balanced meal, but she did enjoy it. Disney is known as the most magical place on earth, not the healthiest — we knew what we were getting into.
Via Napoli Pizza (Epcot): Everyone has something to say about the pizza at Via Napoli. Some say it’s overrated, but most reviewers seem to favor it. Our daughter, thankfully, falls in with the latter. She was all about this cheesy, floppy, brick-oven-style pie. That said, this meal was still a wild ride. Other foods were rejected and thrown on the floor, along with toys and anything else in reach. I managed to scarf down a few slices while keeping our daughter fed and keeping the floor (mostly) free of debris. My review of the pizza? Also a thumbs up!
Woody’s Lunch Box Grilled Cheese (Hollywood Studios): This is another item that comes up frequently in reviews, almost always favorably. And our daughter doesn’t disagree. She never says “no” to a grilled cheese, and she ate this one eagerly, despite the hot sun that beat down on our outdoor table. We served this along with some applesauce and raspberries that we brought into the park. Both daughter and mom also nibbled on a Lunch Box Tart! It was a little dry, but delicious.
Quesadilla (Animal Kingdom): If you’ve picked up on a theme, you’re not wrong: Our daughter gravitates toward the classic cheese-carb combo. Within this category, we did manage to change things up at Satu’li Canteen, where we ordered a kids’ quesadilla instead of a grilled cheese. This went over well and accommodated my plans to try Satu’li, after all the good reviews I saw on TikTok. My husband and I (both vegetarians) enjoyed our meals quite a bit, although I ran into some trouble with mobile ordering. I ended up with rice, when I wanted noodles. I think this was mostly user error. After four long days in the parks, my brain was definitely inclined to short circuit.
Earl of Sandwich Pizza Bread (Disney Springs): Our expectations weren’t high when we popped into Earl of Sandwich for lunch toward the end of our trip. But this quick-service spot surprised us. The sandwiches were great, and our daughter enthusiastically enjoyed the kids’ pizza bread. We were also glad that this kid’s meal didn’t come with any sides or a drink. For some, that might be a downside. But our daughter was too young for juice, only drinks whole milk, and wouldn’t have touched any of the sides. Which is a nice transition into the not-so-beloved foods she tried below.
Foods Our Toddler Loathed
Mickey Pretzel (All Parks): Our success with the jumbo pretzel in Magic Kingdom definitely did not translate to the Mickey Pretzel, which can be found across the parks. Our daughter rejected this pretzel resoundingly. And, really, who can blame her? These are widely considered bottom-of-the-barrel pretzels. Even toddlers can’t be fooled!
Fruit as a Side (Across Parks): We held out hope throughout our trip that we would order fruit with a kids meal, and our daughter would eat it. But this hope was repeatedly dashed. Don’t get me wrong: Raspberries are among her favorite foods, and she’s also a big fan of strawberries and bananas. But fruits she doesn’t like include oranges, melons, cantaloupes, and grapes: all fruits that tended to pop up in side orders. We had better luck feeding her a banana in the morning and bringing raspberries with us for her to enjoy early in the day.
Macaroni and Cheese (All-Star Music Resort): We wish it weren’t true, but there’s no denying it: Our toddler won’t eat macaroni and cheese. Perhaps this is a byproduct of the fact that I got her hooked on chickpea pasta at home — a healthy decision that I don’t regret. Whatever the reason, it causes plenty of inconvenience when the kids’ menu at any given restaurant leans into macaroni and away from grilled cheese. We hoped this distaste would be intermittent after she tested the macaroni at All-Star Music’s Intermission Food Court. But it held true throughout the trip, until we finally stopped trying.
Uncrustable (All-Star Music Resort): These pre-packaged PBJs are a classic choice for picky eaters. But not our picky eater. Had our daughter enjoyed Uncrustables, they would have been easy to order throughout the parks or to bring with us. But she firmly refused the one we tried at Intermission Food Court. Call me delusional, but with our trip now three months in the past, I actually bought a box of Uncrustables the other day to try again at home. Here’s hoping her taste has changed on this one!
Fingerling Potatoes (Epcot): In the section above, I mentioned several items that made their way to the floor at Via Napoli in Epcot. The fingerling potatoes were one of those items. In our worry that she wouldn’t like the pizza, we ordered these as a back-up option. As it turns out, we had nothing to worry about in terms of the pizza. At least I enjoyed a few potatoes that managed to avoid a floor-bound fate.
Cheese Empanada (Epcot): As I’ve established, our daughter loves cheesy carbs. So, we thought the Empanadas con Queso at La Cantina de San Angel would be an easy win. We were wrong. The bite we gave our daughter came right back out almost immediately. Such a waste, because I absolutely loved these!
Bonus Dessert Round
Our Toddler’s Favorite Disney Dessert: The Wookiee Cookie! This giant snack can be found at Backlot Express in Hollywood Studios. Despite her passion for this creme-filled cookie, our daughter certainly didn’t need one to herself. These treats are massive, so it’s easy to share one between parent and toddler.
Our Toddler’s Least Favorite Disney Dessert: Ice cream! Of any kind. More than once, I surely came across as the greedy mom munching on a Mickey’s Premium Ice Cream Bar or Dole Whip while my toddler looked on. I tried to share, but she just wasn’t interested. I think cold is an unpleasant sensation for her that gets in the way. She will occasionally eat ice cream at home, depending on the flavor, but all the ice cream we tried at Disney was a no-go.
That brings my round-up of toddler likes and toddler dislikes to a closes. If you can believe it, I’m still not finished putting together my Disney content from our trip in March. Stay tuned for more Disney tips in the coming weeks!