REVIEW: Disney World’s New Sit-Down Restaurant With Direct Fireworks Views is Surprisingly Affordable With Great Food

The newest Disney Vacation Club addition, Disney's Polynesian Resort Island Tower just opened at Disney World! This new resort is located across the Seven Seas Lagoon from Magic Kingdom offering a variety of studio and villa rooms. Disney's Polynesian Resort Island Tower offers a new hotel restaurant with an incredible location and fireworks views!

We had the opportunity to tour the resort before it opened and try some of the offerings at the new Wailulu Bar & Grill restaurant as part of a media preview. You can read our overall thoughts on the new hotel tower and details about what we liked and disliked in our Island Tower at Disney's Polynesian Resort review.

Keep reading for a first look at the Wailulu Bar & Grill at Disney's Polynesian Resort Island Tower and our review of the foods we tried.

New Island Tower Wailulu Bar & Grill Review

The Wailulu Bar & Grill offers a menu with offerings inspired by cuisine from the South Pacific Islands. The highlight of this restaurant is the amazing view looking out over the Seven Seas Lagoon.

The restaurant is located just across the water from the Magic Kingdom. There are plenty of outdoor tables that look directly towards Magic Kingdom. You can very easily take in the fireworks from here. The music for the show is piped in from speakers in the area. If you don't end up eating outside, there's also plenty of room to step outside the restaurant to take in the fireworks.

Beautiful Outdoor Restaurant Space

This restaurant is bound to be extremely popular due to the great fireworks view it provides with a dining experience that is relatively less costly than other options around the lagoon (prices range from $22-$33 for main courses).

The restaurant is surprisingly affordable when compared to the other restaurants in the area. There is indoor seating, outdoor seating, and this great bar that wraps around at the far end of the restaurant. It's easy to access from the new hotel pool area also.

The bar area is really amazing

Much of the Polynesian-inspired artwork in the restaurant was crafted with recycled materials and reclaimed fishing nets. This restaurant is the first all-electric restaurant at Walt Disney World.

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Let's Get Into the Food Items

The restaurant menu offers a selection of starters with options like Ahi Tuna Crisps or Sweet Potato Hummus. Main courses include some variety with options ranging from a Wayfinder Hamburger to a Grilled Fish of the Day.

Sampler of the New Food Items at the Restaurant

We will share our review of the foods we tried at Wailulu Bar & Grill below. Beforew we dove in, we tried a sampler of some of the featured food items. These included the Misubi, Sweet Potato Hummus, and Short Rib Loco Moco. These are some of the key items they are featuring on the menu.

New Sweet Potato Hummus

Of the above items, I was most excited about the Sweet Potato Hummus that is served with Breadfruit Tostones. This dish was incredible! A great hummus and super good version of bread. I loved the breadfruit offered here.

The Chicken Wings

Next up we tried the Crispy Chicken Wings with a soy glaze. These were substantial chicken wings and the glaze wasn't too thick.

Chow Mein Chicken Salad

Moving on to the main course, the Chow Mein Salad with Chicken. That is pickled sweet potato on top of the salad.

Smash Burger With Sweet Potato Fries

Here's the smash burger with sweet potato fries. This burger is two thing patties. The burger was very good and also comes with a spicy volcano spice. A great burger that rivals the offering at Steakhouse 71. This will be a new favorite restaurant on the monorail loop.

Chicken “Sliders” With Macaroni Salad

The chicken sliders were two pretty substantial chicken breasts on smaller slider bread. The mac salad was also a great side here.

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Creme Brulee Dessert With Raspberries

Next up, here are the three desserts offered on the menu. First, the Creme Brulee. I love the raspberries on top.

Chocolate Cake Dessert

Next, the chocolate cake with coffee-infused cream.

Their Take on a Disney Dole Whip

And finally their version of the Dole Whip which includes these fun fruit garnishes. The dish features hibiscus meringue, macerated, pineapple, and berries.

The full Wailulu Bar and Grill Menu

Here is a look at the full Wailulu Bar & Grill food menu.

Wailulu Bar and Grill Drinks Menu

And here's the full Wailulu Bar & Grill drink menu.

Final Thoughts on the New Polynesian Resort Restaurant

Generally, the Wailulu Bar and Grill was a great offering and one that was quite affordable for what we had and the great location. The sit-down restaurants with these views are typically reserved for the most upscale restaurants. You can look directly from this space towards Magic Kingdom to see the fireworks. We will be back here to see how the fireworks crowds are handled at this new restaurant that is sure to be popular. I liked all of the foods that I tried and found them to be good offerings for the price.

There are still some kinks being worked out at the space. It was a bit windy outside and they gave us napkins instead of coasters. The napkins kept blowing away. They definitely need a cool branded coaster here sooner than later. This made the table feel messy and took a little bit away from the restaurant ambiance. The ceiling heaters are also not yet working, but there are temporary gas heaters there for now which did the trick.

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