Restaurants at Walt Disney World fall into two categories: quick service and table service. Quick service restaurants, also called counter service restaurants, are typically less expensive than the more elaborate table service eateries, but that doesn’t always mean they’re lower quality. One quick service option in particular is worth seeking out.
All Disney World hotels have quick service options for breakfast, but one resort has a truly unique feature for its guests. Let’s get into why this hotel breakfast is called one of the best. Mickey Visit brings you the latest Disney news and planning resources, including changes to Disney World ticket access and new offerings coming to Disney’s BoardWalk replacing closed locations.
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Breakfast at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge
The main quick service restaurant of Jambo House at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge is called The Mara, and it’s perfect for breakfast before a long day in the parks.
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What really makes The Mara stand out from other Disney World quick service dining options is its location and theming. While the theming of Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge as a whole is inspired by an African kraal village, The Mara instead takes after the natural world. The large seating area features tree trunk pillars leading up into a canopy of leaves on the ceiling. The back walls are painted with animal murals.
This leads to the main attraction of The Mara and Animal Kingdom Lodge. The resort has large savanna areas where over 200 animals live and roam around during the day. After finishing up breakfast at The Mara, you can take a short walk to one of the savannah viewing areas and get an up-close look at some of those animals.
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This would be a great option after breakfast, especially if you plan on visiting during the hot summer months. When the weather gets too warm, the animals are less active, so if you want to see some animals, be sure to do so before it gets too hot. The morning and evening are the best times for this.
The Mara has a breakfast menu, complete with allergy-friendly alternatives for these same dishes:
- Savanna Platter – scrambled eggs, French toast sticks, crispy potato barrels, bacon, and sausage
- Ancient Grain Power Bowl – farro wheat, quinoa, seasonal berries, greens, sweet potato, feta, and a hard-boiled egg
- Kilimanjaro Bowl – a “mountain” of potato barrels topped with scrambled eggs, sausage gravy, chakalaka, cheddar, bacon, and chives
- Mickey-shaped Waffles – served with mixed berries, whipped cream, and choice of bacon or sausage
- Croissant Breakfast Sandwich – ham, egg, cheddar, and crispy potato barrels
- Cereal with Milk
- Steel-cut Oatmeal served with choice of toppings (plant-based)
Here’s the oatmeal.
The Ancient Grain Power Bowl with the farro wheat, quinoa, seasonal berries, greens, sweet potato, feta, and a hard-boiled egg stands out as a great bowl option that we had most mornings. I had it with different variations. One day I had hard boiled eggs and another swapped it out for the scrambled eggs.
Apart from these entrée offerings, The Mara also has a bakery section with muffins, croissants, and Mickey-shaped cinnamon rolls, as well as fresh fruit and yogurt parfaits if you’re looking for something a little lighter.
Personally, my go-to for quick service breakfast is always the Mickey-shaped Waffles, and The Mara was no exception for me in that way, but the Savanna Platter is also a tempting choice. The inclusion of African spices and flavors is not often seen across Disney World, especially at a quick service restaurant.
These unique flavors and spices, as well as the vegetarian-friendly choices, mark a distinctive flavor profile for The Mara that sets it apart from other quick-service restaurants.
Like other quick service Disney World restaurants, you can mobile order your breakfast at The Mara from the My Disney Experience app and have it waiting for you by the time you reach the restaurant. If you choose not to mobile order, you can walk up to the ordering area where a cast member will assemble your breakfast right there for you.
This restaurant is also home to Animal Kingdom Lodge’s iconic zebra domes, which have to be mentioned in any conversation about The Mara. They are chocolate mousse bites coated in Amarula cream liquor and white chocolate, bringing out some of the unique African-inspired flavors The Mara is known for.
You can find the zebra domes in The Mara’s grab-and-go refrigerators. While not exactly a classic breakfast choice, they are still worth a trip over to The Mara. They are incredibly popular and a well-loved fan favorite of Disney World guests. Zebra domes are also served at Boma – Flavors of Africa, a table service restaurant at Animal Kingdom Lodge.
Apart from the standard breakfast choices, The Mara’s lunch and dinner options are also great. Two of the restaurant’s barbecue dishes, the Chermoula-spiced Shrimp Bowl and the Harissa-spiced Beef Bowl, include those two traditional North African spices and sauces. Almost all of the entrées include these kinds of flavors, even the burgers that less adventurous eaters might gravitate towards. This is the combination shrimp and chicken bowl.
The Mara also has a selection of plant-based and vegetarian options for guests. The main entrée menu includes the South African Vegetable Bowl, which is made of curried vegetable stew, pilau rice, kale slaw, dried fruit achar, and avocado-tahini sauce. The specific plant-based menu features the Marrakesh Falafel Platter and a Chickpea Salad Sandwich.
Continue exploring Disney World food with our reviews of a hidden Mexican restaurant and an overlooked spot for picky eaters.
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