One of the most straightforward patterns in the theme park dining reviews involves mocking the chain-type restaurants on theme park property. You can rant about why anyone would eat at that place when you can find those restaurants in other locations away from the theme park resort. After you do that, then you rant again about the low quality of food offered at many of these highly themed chain restaurants. For example, those valid criticisms apply when writing a review about Rainforest Cafe. Since the main reason to visit Rainforest Cafe revolves around kids loving animatronics, the food often takes second place (and sometimes third place). What should you order here if you want something decent instead of overpriced (even for Disney Springs) food? Visitors have tried to solve this mystery for so long. Yet, I decided to give it a try also.
Rainforest Cafe in Disney Springs consistently falls in the top five most searched-for advanced dining reservations in Disney Springs. Despite the weaknesses of this place, reservations can be tough to acquire. I used MouseDining, of course. I received an alert about two weeks before my latest trip to Orlando. Some reservation drama with Rainforest Cafe involves this being a Landry’s restaurant. The Landry’s restaurant group holds back reservations for their club members and holds walk-up spots for them. If you really need a reservation here, you should consider joining Landry’s Select Club.
However, the food quality rarely earns high marks if you obtain a reservation. People become frustrated before eating when you add in the awkward check-in process, even with a reservation. For example, with my 11:00 reservation, I waited in a queue from 10:50 am until 11:13 am just to move to another line to wait five more minutes to be seated. This pattern is typical here. We even have circumstantial evidence during my visit that they knew to expect a food blogger, which still happened.
Eventually, I reached my table. I wanted to try out one of their sandwiches for this dining review. The sandwich choices led me to the “Blue Mountain Chicken Sandwich.” Before I could order that, my server started aggressively pushing the alcoholic beverages before noon. I know a few weeks of theme park research during the daytime hours and typing all night can be challenging, but maybe he thought I needed a drink. Once we moved passed that awkwardness, I ordered the sandwich. This sandwich cost $21.99. This sandwich consists of lemon grilled chicken, bacon, Swiss cheese, roasted red peppers, lettuce, and Rainforest Cafe’s Zesty Safari Sauce. Like most entrees, this comes with fries.
You are not alone if you find that price point a bit high for a table service sandwich. This place often gives guests sticker shock. The price point indicates that most guests expect a higher quality of food. Yet, Rainforest Café tends to produce food at Applebee’s or Chili’s level for far more money. For the record, I enjoy chain bar & grill places but would not expect to pay $21 for a sandwich and fries there.
While I waited for my lunch, I gazed at the animatronics nearby. The fact that a simulated tropical storm happens within this restaurant every so often is noticed by me. The real tropical storm, of a different sort, Nicole approached Florida on the day I had this lunch.
When my lunch arrived, the presentation lacked any natural flair. I tried one of the fries first. They tasted better than average Walt Disney World fries to their credit, so I found a positive there. The first few bites of the sandwich offered a better-than-expected flavor. The chicken itself faces being overwhelmed a bit, however. As I continued to eat this sandwich, I discovered that the flavor mainly came from the pepper jack cheese and peppers. When I tasted the chicken, I found it lacked an upbeat flavor. This may be why my server brought some yellow mustard.
Since adding mustard seemed odd with the zesty sauce already on the sandwich, I had to see if mustard helped. I cut off a sandwich section and then placed mustard on it. I found the mustard to be a neutral factor. Still, I spilled some mustard on my favorite generic Marvel shirt when visiting theme parks in the Orlando area. Since I sometimes do not know which major theme park resort, I will be visiting when packing my clothes, I prioritize Marvel clothing since it is appropriate at both major Orlando area theme park resorts. It says something about my weaknesses, but I despise seeing Disney shirts at Universal and Universal shirts at Disney. Yes, that counts as a “me” issue but back to the sandwich.
In evaluating the rest of the sandwich while sitting with mustard on my shirt, the bread worked well as a palate for this sandwich. The quality of bacon ranks as average to below average. When I consumed the second half of my sandwich, I found it lacked as much cheese and peppers as the other half, so the quality dropped dramatically.
My initial reaction to this sandwich would be to declare it a decent lunch option. Yes, even in Disney Springs, the price point exceeds a reasonable level by at least a few dollars. However, this could work for you if you want a chicken sandwich with flavor but not an overwhelming amount of spice. Yet, be prepared for inconsistent levels of flavors with this sandwich. However, when you can order the new Britton’s Chicken Salad Sandwich at Chef Art Smith’s Homecoming for less money, this sandwich should be a low priority for most guests.
One last thing, the interior of Rainforest Cafe will be dark to allow special effects to be maximized. When you leave, be prepared for the bright Florida sun. For the record, I forgot about this. Please learn from my mistakes. As always, eat like you mean it!