The Land Pavilion is one of my favorite spots in all of Epcot. It is home the very popular attraction, Soarin’ as well as the classic ride, Living with the Land. You will also find some great dining options inside at Sunshine Seasons and the Garden Grill.
I visit Sunshine Seasons often to grab snacks, but on this trip, we had a large party and were looking for a way to accommodate everyone’s tastes. The Garden Grill seemed like the obvious choice.
It’s been a few years since I had the chance to eat at the Garden Grill. Actually, it has been a few decades, but who’s counting? I was really looking forward to this meal because it was almost like trying a new restaurant. The menu looked fantastic!
The most unique feature of the Garden Grill is that the entire restaurant rotates very slowly as you eat. The restaurant overlooks the Living with the Land attraction, so you will see scenes from the ride as the room moves. It takes about an hour for one full rotation to take place, plenty of time to relax and enjoy your meal.
The Garden Grill is also a character dining experience which makes it a fun choice for families. The kids in our party had a great time posing for photos and saying hello to Mickey, Pluto, Chip, and Dale. The restaurant was not full when we were there and the characters all had time to make 2 visits to our table.
This whole experience was more or less new to me since I was a kid the last time I ate here. I was a little unsure about how this whole moving restaurant thing was going to go, but I was surprised by how little I noticed the motion. I felt it a little bit at the beginning, but once the characters started to come by our table and our food arrived, I forgot all about it. The next time I glanced up from my plate and took a good look around, the scenery was completely different!
Lunch and dinner are served family style, and to me, this meal felt a lot like a Thanksgiving dinner. The term “harvest feast” is definitely appropriate because this was a feast for sure!
The meal begins with bread and salad, all you care to enjoy. The main course includes turkey, sliced beef, and Italian sausage with several sides. There is a little something for everyone.
Everything was delicious! I especially enjoyed the green beans and sweet potato fries. The kids loved the macaroni and cheese topped with goldfish crackers and were already asking for more before we had the chance to pass all the food around.
If you love something and want more, just ask. The cast members were happy to bring us additional helpings of all of our favorite things. They even obliged when the kids requested extra goldfish crackers on the second round of mac and cheese.
No Disney dining experience is complete without dessert and this one was really yummy. The shortcake topped with fresh berries and vanilla bean whipped cream seemed like the perfect conclusion to the meal. It was light and fresh. The kids were treated to cupcakes topped with sprinkles. I will admit that the adults sampled these as well and they were very good.
Next time you are at Epcot, pay a visit to Mickey and friends at the Garden Grill. I truly enjoyed the freshness of the ingredients and the changing scenery of the restaurant. I hope that you will too!
Have you eaten at the Garden Grill? What did you enjoy the most? Let us know in the comments!