Healthy Eating at Walt Disney World
Healthy eating and theme park food are two notions not often automatically associated with each other. Burgers, hotdogs and fries are more likely to top the perceived list of typical theme park fare. While these are available at Walt Disney World in abundance, Disney have really upped their game when it comes to offering more healthy alternatives.
If you've got children in your group, Mickey Check Meals are Disney's way of encouraging kids to eat more healthily. These meals are devised to have higher nutritional value, so tend to include more fruit and vegetables, lower salt content and/or more lean protein.
For older children and adults, we've found some restaurants have better healthy options than others. So I've put together this list of our favourite places to eat if you’re looking for something a little less calorie laden.
Table Service Restaurants
Most Walt Disney World Table Service restaurants have at least one healthy choice on the menu, but some have a wider selection than others.
Buffet meals always include a large range of salads and fruits, so are a good place to eat if you’re seeking this type of food.
Other notable Table Service locations with more healthy choices are:
Magic Kingdom
Jungle Navigation Co. Ltd Skipper Canteen
We discovered a number of healthy options at this really good restaurant in Magic Kingdom.
The 'A Lot at Steak' Salad and 'Hardy Har Char' Sui Pork are both served with rice and vegetables.
Alternatively, the Perkins Thai Noodles with seasonal vegetables and Tofu was an extremely tasty dish which we would definitely order again.
Epcot
Teppan Edo (Japan Pavilion)
This is one of our favourite Disney World restaurants. It's main menu includes noodles, vegetables and meat or fish cooked teppanyaki style in front of guests. Sauces are served on the side, which means you can add as much or as little as you please.
Next door to Teppan Edo, is Tokyo Dining. This is another of Japan's Table Service which has a menu crammed with sushi, noodles and rice dishes.
Spice Road Table (Morocco Pavilion)
Despite the menu changing to small plates, the options at Spice Road Table remain just as healthy. Choices include Spiced Chicken, Dolmas and Hummus Fries.
Restaurant Marrakesh (Morocco Pavilion)
Also in Epcot's Morocco Pavilion, Restaurant Marrakesh has a variety of meals which include couscous, grilled meats, fish and salads
Animal Kingdom
Yak & Yeti
Rice, noodles and fresh vegetables make up many of the Asian inspired choices at Yak & Yeti Restaurant in Animal Kingdom. These include the delicious Crispy Honey Chicken and Korean Beef.
The menu also includes a number of salads and healthy grain bowls to choose from.
Disney Resort Hotels
Kona Cafe (Polynesian Resort)
Kona Cafe menu at The Polynesian Resort is crammed with a variety of healthy meals.
A personal favourite is the Stir Fry, which is available with added chicken, tofu, or shrimp.
Dashi Bowls and Poke Bowls provide more options, and there's also a Steak Salad or Sushi Rolls to choose from.
Sanaa (Kidani)
Sanaa at Animal Kingdom Lodge (Kidani) serves a variety of curry dishes, some of which are vegetable and fish based.
Counter Service Restaurants
There's more healthy eating options at Walt Disney World when dining at counter service restaurants. We've discovered some locations have better choices than others.
Some of our favourites include:
Magic Kingdom
Columbia Harbour House
In Magic Kingdom, you can find some good choices at Columbia Harbour House. The Grilled Salmon and Grilled Shrimp are both served with rice and green beans.
Or the Hail to the Leaf! dish is a combination of greens, fruit, and vegetables topped with chicken.
Epcot
Katsura Grill (Japan Pavilion)
There are some great healthy options on the menu of Katsura Grill in the Japan Pavilion. Including sushi, noodle dishes, and teriyaki meals served with rice and vegetables.
The Tonkotsu (Pork) Ramen is a delicious bowl of noodles, pork meat, and a variety of vegetables. Alternatively, there are a couple of Udon Noodle choices.
If you're a fan of sushi, you can choose from California, Spicy, or Vegetable rolls. Or why not order the colourful Sushi Combo which comprises 4 pieces of California Roll plus 3 pieces of Nigiri.
Sunshine Seasons (The Land)
Sunshine Seasons has a large choice of healthy options served from it's many counters. These include a Power Salad with Chicken and Caesar Salad with Oak-fired Chicken. There are also noodle dishes available, as well as soups.
Tangierine Cafe (Epcot)
Tangierine Cafe in the Morocco Pavilion at Epcot is a great counter service restaurant serving healthy offerings.
We've eaten here a couple of times, and always enjoy the food. Lamb, chicken or a combination of the two, are served with a generous amount of hummus, tabouleh, couscous salad and flatbread. There's also a tasty Vegetarian Platter which comes with falafels - a personal favourite.
Hollywood Studios
ABC Commissary
Although it no longer has the Asian Chicken Salad on the menu, ABC Commissary in Hollywood Studios does serve a delicious sounding Mediterranean Salad.
This consists of mixed greens, tomatoes, onions, peppers, olives, and feta, all tossed in a Greek vinaigrette then served with hummus and pita chips. You also have the option of topping this with chicken or salmon (dinner only).
At dinner there is also a Lemon Pepper Salmon available which comprises seared salmon with couscous and green beans.
Animal Kingdom
Satu'li Canteen
When looking for healthy counter service meals at Animal Kingdom, I recommend heading to Satu'li Canteen in Pandora - The World of Avatar. It's a fabulous place where you can build your own meal from a variety of choices.
For the ultra healthy, there’s a Hearty Salad base, with grilled chicken. A great alternative is the Shrimp with either Noodles, or a Rice & Black Bean base.
Yak & Yeti Local Foods Cafe (Animal Kingdom)
Another notable counter service restaurant in Animal Kingdom, is Yak & Yeti Local Foods Cafe.
Healthy options include the Teriyaki Chicken Salad, Veggie Burger, and the Vegetable Tikka Masala which we tried on our last trip. The dish was packed with vegetables, but was greatly improved when we added more seasoning and a sachet of hot sauce to spice it up a little.
A much tastier alternative is the Honey Sesame Chicken, which is served with rice and vegetables.
Surprisingly, there are some great healthy choices available at the Disney Water Parks, particularly Blizzard Beach:
Arctic Expeditions (Blizzard Beach)
Arctic Expeditions serves Chicken Gyro - lettuce, tomato, onions and tzatziki all wrapped up in a flatbread.
There's also a Harvest Salad with Chicken, which is a tasty combination of diced apples, dried cherries, candied pecans, cheddar and raspberry walnut dressing.
Warming Hut
Warming Hut is a real hidden gem. We discovered this small counter service restaurant, located to the left of the main pool at Blizzard Beach, during our 2015 trip.
The food is tasty and a little different, so it’s perfect for us. We particularly enjoy the Chicken Teriyaki with rice and the Chicken with fried plantains. Yum.
Typhoon Lagoon
At Typhoon Lagoon, Typhoon Tilly's has a Chicken Wrap and Chicken Caesar Salad. The Chicken Wrap is also available at Leaning Palms and we can highly recommend their tasty Tropical Salad with Chicken.
Earl of Sandwich (Disney Springs)
In Disney Springs, some of the best sandwiches on Disney property can be found at Earl of Sandwich, along with a large selection of salads and wraps.
Healthy choices include the Thai chicken Salad, Greek Salad, Chicken Caesar Salad, Cobb Salad, Tuna wrap, Quinoa Chicken Salad and Thai Wrap.
Disney Resort Hotels Counter Service
Depending where you're staying, it's also worth checking out the resort counter service restaurants as many of them have healthy menu choices.
Port Orleans Riverside has a 'Customise-Your-Own-Salad' counter at the Riverside Mill Food Court, whereas, next door at Port Orleans French Quarter, the Sassagoula Floatworks and Food Factory gives you the option to 'Create-Your-Own-Signature Rice Bowl. (We salute you if you can resist the delicious hot Beignets for dessert though).
Mara in Animal Kingdom Lodge serves a Mara Chicken Salad, Vegetarian Falafel, Hummus and Pita, plus their flatbreads are nice and thin.
Contempo Cafe at Disney's Contemporary Resort serves up one of the best salads on property. The Kale Power Greens Salad is a delicious bowl of greens, farro wheat, quinoa, sweet potatoes, avocado and toasted garbanzos (chickpeas). It's absolutely deicious.
There's also a Caesar Salad (with our without chicken) on the menu, as well as a Grilled Tofu Bowl with rice, blackbeans and two different types of salsa.
There's another Superfoods Salad option available just across the water at Capt. Cook's, Disney's Polynesian Resort counter service restaurant. With more healthy choices in the form of an Asian Style Noodle Salad, or Pan-Asian Noodles & Vegetables.
We tried the latter 2 during our 2022 Disney World trip. They were just okay, but provide a good healthy alternative to some of the other dishes there. Perhaps the flavour would have been improved if one of the key ingredients on the Noodle Salad hadn't been missing!
Snacks
Healthy eating at Walt Disney World also extends to snacking, and there are some great options available.
For fruity snacks, Harambe Fruit Market in Animal Kingdom serves an abundance of fresh fruit including: apples, bananas, oranges, watermelon and strawberries, as well as carrots and celery, fruit and nut trail mix, and greek yoghurt.
A similar selection of fruit, vegetables and nuts can be found at Liberty Square Market in Magic Kingdom.
Or why not head over to Auntie Gravity’s Galactic Goodies in Magic Kingdom and grab a Strawberry or Raspberry Smoothie, complete with Souvenir Mickey Straw.
If you've got a yearning for a frozen treat, try the chocolate covered frozen banana available at most kiosks selling ice-cream snacks.
So, as you can see, it is relatively easy to maintain healthy eating while at Walt Disney World, as long as you know the right places to eat. Plus, with all the walking you'll be doing, allowing yourself the odd high calorie treat won't do you any harm. You are on holiday after all.
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