#60 - Starring Rolls Cafe

Category: Restaurants
Category Ranking: 10

Park: Hollywood Studios
Park Ranking: 7

Our family is a creature of habit; we often get the same snacks each time we visit on our meal plan, so you are likely to see them all in this list (spoiler!).

Speaking of which, I was already re-thinking the list for I didn't include some items that are institutional logistics.  The dining plan, fast passes, and extra magic hours aren't on here, though a case could be made for their inclusion.  However, not being a tangible place or activity gets you put on a different list for a different time.

If you are unfamiliar with Starring Rolls, it is located near where the Sorceror's Hat was (RIP).  Technically, it is at the end of Sunset Boulevard, which is the "street" that goes down to the Tower of Terror.  It is sunk down a bit from the main street, and we often will cut through the outside eatery to get around a gaggle of other pedestrians to make it over to Toy Story Mania's line (Yes... let's rush to that hour long wait in line!).

Starring Rolls serves both snacks and quick-service lunch, but we have never eaten lunch there.  Our family will share three of our snack credits to purchase three of their mammoth cupcakes.  We always get the Butterfinger one, as well as typically the Red Velvet and Peanut Butter Chocolate ones.  Apparently, we only take pictures of Hannah eating the cupcakes, but rest assured we all like them.  Even me, and I'm not really a chocolate cupcake kind of guy.

I should mention that Starring Rolls has, in our opinion, the best snacks in all of WDW, though it might not be our favorites, and it certainly doesn't rank highest in what we consider our most nostalgic.  Part of what it as well as other items from Hollywood Studios have going against it, is that we went to this park last out of the four on our initial visit.  By that point, some of the wonder and mystique had worn off.  This will be a trend throughout this list, as Hollywood Studios will constantly get the shaft (no thrill attractions eliminates three-fourths of what the park is known for).

If you are planning your own WDW vacation, don't just take our word for this can't-miss attraction.  People everywhere agree that this is one of the best (in most cases THE BEST) deal for the snack credit in all of WDW.

#59 sees us move to a slow ride that has taken some time to build itself in nostalgia for us...

#57 - Dinobites

Category: Restaurants
Category Rank: 9

Park: Animal Kingdom
Park Rank: 4

For number 57, we hit my personal-favorite snack in the entire World, the ice cream sandwiches at Dino-Bites in Animal Kingdom.  Unlike the Starring Rolls Cafe however, Dino-Bites doesn't pretend to offer quick service entrees; it is all about the snacks there.

It goes without saying that the Dino-Bites are really big ice cream sandwiches and a relatively excellent deal when used as a snack credit (though you can get the same deal at the Plaza Ice Cream Shop in Magic Kingdom).  However, it used to be an even better deal, because they were downright ginormous at one point in time, as seen by our first visit (no, our kids are not midgets or the victims of trick photography).  With the amount of ice cream and cookie you got, it made this a must-do attraction within Animal Kingdom.

As mentioned in the post on Starring Rolls, we have our favorites when it comes to snacks, so it makes sense for our favorites to be on this list when other individuals probably do not think they rise to the level of beating out other notable attractions.  One thing that was difficult for me to consider is how they ranked in terms of nostalgia.

The ice-cream sandwiches are my favorite snack.  The cupcakes at Starring Rolls are typically considered the best snack, because you can only "gourmet" ice cream and cookie so much.  But both get ranked lower than the snack option from Epcot and Magic Kingdom.  What gives?

Part of this is the overall effect of the parks.  I consider Magic Kingdom to be the park that truly screams WDW, and Epcot a distant but respectable second.  Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom, while offering the better snack option, don't bring the same cachet when making one reminisce fondly about the World.  Ergo, they rank lower on the list.

Animal Kingdom, as you noticed, has only four items in the entire 60 (not counting World-wide things like the maps).  That's pretty low, compared to the 21 that Magic Kingdom has.  Part of this is because the park is smaller (in number of attractions that is... in size, it is a lot bigger actually).  Part is because it isn't quite as good.  A big part is because it has a disproportional number of thrill attractions compared to total ones.  Festival of the Lion King, Finding Nemo the Musical, Expedition Everest, Dinosaur, and Kali River Rapids are all ineligible for this list, and that doesn't leave you with much in the park.

Number 56 on our list is going to see us move outside the parks and look at a resort (hotel) for the first time, featuring an up-and-comer for our family.

#54 - Magic Kingdom Snack Carts

Category: Restaurants
Category Rank: 8

Park: Magic Kingdom
Park Rank: 21

We go to Magic Kingdom for the first time, though as you can see, it won't be the last.  We actually will be spending over a third of our time on this list in that park, as it brings the most memorable sights and sounds from the World.

And we should say, smells as well.  Our next entry is once again a snack item, but unlike the other three on our list, this one's biggest selling point is the smells wafting from it.  They are the Magic Kingdom Snack Carts, and their periodic placement around the park help place those lovely aromas everywhere.

While the carts sell a variety of different items (ice cream bars, popcorn, cotton candy, frozen lemonade), our favorite item is the cinnamon-glazed almonds.  These roasted nuts and the popcorn especially can be smelled from a long ways away, and are the perfect late-night snack.  More cinnamon-sugar than nuts, I'd say, the nuts offer a great salty-sweet taste.

I mentioned we were creatures of habit when it came to our snack credits.  Magic Kingdom is the one park that we don't always do the same thing when it comes to snacks, so the temptation is to put this snack much lower than the other three snacks.  However, we are ranking the restaurants, not the snacks, and the carts bring something extra to this equation as well.  The old-time carts couple with the fresh smells to bring that relaxed sense of small-town America in the middle of this bustling amusement park.  Nostalgia.

We will stay in Magic Kingdom with our next attraction, featuring a slow-ride with a famous narration that has been around since the opening of the park.

#51 - Crepes des Chefs de France

Category: Restaurants
Category Rank: 7

Park: Epcot
Park Rank: 8

We've talked quite a bit in our first 10 items on our list about snacks in Disney, so not much background needed here.  Snacks don't rank as high as our favorite restaurants in terms of nostalgic longing for WDW, but when you have set ones that you hit every trip, those are going to make your list as well.

That is definitely the case for the "Crepe Stand" in Epcot.  Its full name is Crepes des Chefs de France, from the restaurant around the walkway.  They have a simple menu featuring sugar, strawberry, or chocolate crepes.  They also have ice cream available, although the ice cream is extra and does not come with the snack credit.  For those that haven't had a crepe before, it is essentially a very flat/thin pancake, folded over several times into the shape of a triangle.

The Crepe Stand ranks highest on our list out of the different snack locations, meaning it is the most nostalgic out of the group.  This in spite of it being my least favorite out of the snacks (which is a bit like being the least favorite flavor of ice cream or your least favorite cruise destination).  What makes the crepes special?

Part of it is Epcot is a more special place.  It is the food capital of WDW, and as our representative snack in that place, crepes have a higher than normal level of nostalgia.  It also has been our place since the beginning, and like the carts in Magic Kingdom, the kiosk itself is quaint and the aroma is enticing.  Plus, they make the crepes right before your eyes.

Crepes, for us at least, also are a more unique food.  Ice cream cookie sandwiches can be recreated, as can fancy cupcakes.  Even the roasted almonds are a staple around the Christmas season.  Crepes for us are a little less present in our ordinary lives, making the experience even more unique.  So while the other snacks are great to eat and a special experience for us when we visit, crepes remain a special item for us all the time.

This is a good example of where people differ in their lists.  I estimate there will be about 20 items that everyone would have, and 20 more items that many people will have.  And then 20 items that are more unique to me and my family.  Many of you will have Dole Whip on your list, something we have not been that fond of.  Others will have the Mickey Bar or the Mickey Ice Cream Bar or the Butterfinger Bar (or whatever else there is).  Or even something simple like the Cotton Candy.  That's part of the magic... WDW is so big, there are many different corners of it for every taste.

That concludes our first 10.  We start off our second ten with our first seasonal event... one that really racks up the electric bill for the Disney Corporation.