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I really love visiting Magic Kingdom whenever I visit the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida. It’s my favorite part at Disney World and has some of my favorite rides in any theme park.
But if I had one complaint about Magic Kingdom, then it would have to be the food. There are not nearly enough good dining options.
But luckily, there are a few restaurants my family really likes. And one of those restaurants is Columbia Harbour House.
Columbia Harbour House is a quick-service restaurant. That means you can order your food ahead of time through the My Disney Experience App. Then, you pick it up and can take it back to your table.
You can save a little money going here rather than a sit-down restaurant in that you won’t have to bother with a tip.
So today, we want to tell you about why we like Columbia Harbour House (and what we don’t like about the restaurant). And then we’ll tell you how you can save money on tickets to Disney World!
Theming
One of the things I like about Columbia Harbour House is the theming. Not all quick-service restaurants at theme parks have extensive theming. In fact, you generally expect that at more expensive sit-down restaurants, like Space 220.
But Columbia Harbour House is definitely themed. It is themed to a New England revolutionary era inn. You can see it even on the outside of the restaurant.
And you can see it throughout the decorations throughout the restaurant.
The servers even dress in Revolutionary-era outfits, which I think is a really great touch. One thing I like about themed restaurants is that it can if it is immersive enough you can feel like you’ve stepped into a different place or era, and I think Columbia Harbour House does a great job with that.
Convenient Location
Another great thing about Columbia Harbour House is its location. It is really close to some of my favorite rides. It is in Liberty Square and is really close to Haunted Mansion. But it is also really close to Fantasyland and classic rides like Peter Pan’s Flight and It’s A Small World.
This convenient location works out really great if you use Disney Genie Plus. Disney Genie Plus, by the way, is an updated version of Disney’s old Fastpass System. It lets you skip the lines and gives you a shorter wait time. You can read the specifics of the system here.
If you make a Lightning Lane Selection with Disney Genie Plus, then you’ll get a time frame (like, say, 5:00 PM to 6:00 PM) and you can only redeem the pass during this time.
When we were at Disney World last month, we had a Lightning Lane Pass for both Peter Pan and Pirates of the Caribbean, with a short window in between. But we were also hungry for dinner. But because Peter Pan is so close to Columbia Harbour House and Columbia Harbour House is in between the rides, we were able to eat our meal in between our rides.
Since the restaurant is quick service, we even ordered our food through the My Disney Experience App before we did Peter Pan. Once we were done with the ride, we pressed the button on the My Disney Experience App to let Disney know we were there and ready for our food.
So we didn’t feel like we had to rush our meal and we were able to easily do both rides – and we had short lines for both rides.
By the way, if you are considering purchasing Disney Genie Plus for your next trip to Disney World, read our reasons why Disney Genie Plus is worth the cost. Also, check out these Disney Genie Plus tips.
Indoor Seating
Another thing I like about this restaurant is that it has indoor seating. It has two floors worth of tables. This is good on exceptionally hot days when you want to get out of the sun. Or especially cold days (which can happen, especially in January) when you want to warm up. It is also great if it is raining, which happens a lot in Florida.
Food
But all the other things wouldn’t matter if the food wasn’t good, right? But luckily, it is.
Now one complaint I do have about the restaurant is that I liked the entrees better a few years ago. Then, I could just order an entree of Fried Shrimp, which everyone in my family liked.
You can still order Fried Shrimp. But you get it by ordering a Trio Platter. You get French Fries and Hush Puppies still. But in addition to Fried Shrimp, you also get Battered Fish and Chicken Strips. Luckily, I do like all these foods.
And I can still get Hush Puppies, which was always my favorite part anyway. A negative however of this Trio Platter is that it is more expensive. As of today, the meal is $14.29.
Additionally, I must that my family has we’ll say mixed reactions to fish. But that’s why I am excited to tell you about a nice hack that can save your family money.
Since this is a quick-service restaurant, you don’t have to individually order anything. So one thing you can do is that if everyone in your family likes at least one of the chicken, shrimp, and fish platter, is that you can basically treat these meals as shareable. Last time I went here, I ordered just two platters for my whole family. We were able to divide the meal up and it was great portion-wise. And this made the entire meal more affordable. So depending on your appetite, you might be able to save a little money by ordering less meals and dividing it up between your family. And if you are still hungry a bit later, you can always order dessert somewhere, right?
One other note I will mention, however, if you are deciding between this and another entree item, is that I think fish has been mixed here. I have had delicious fish here but also not so delicious fish. The chicken and shrimp have more consistently been good.
Also, one other thing to note about the Columbia Harbour House menu is that they’ve recently added some exciting new menu items. I really like them because they are appropriately themed to the very nearby ride, Haunted Mansion.
You can get the Doom Burger. This is a Plant-based Crab Cake Sandwich topped with Red Onion and Cabbage Slaw. It also comes with French Fries.
You can also order Spoon for One More, which is a side menu item. It is New England Clam Chowder served appropriately in a Black Sourdough Bread Bowl.
Conclusion
So overall, I definitely recommend Columbia Harbour House if you are visiting Magic Kingdom. Even though it is quick service, it is wonderfully themed. The location in Liberty Square right by Fantasyland is great. And your family can share platter meals, which saves you money. It is definitely one of the best restaurants in Magic Kingdom.
Disney World Coupons
But wait, one more thing before you go! I know you don’t want to leave here without finding out how to save on Disney World tickets, right?
Well, click here and you can find some great Disney World tickets!