Tiffins Restaurant Review at Disney's Animal Kingdom

This review of Tiffins Restaurant at Disney’s Animal Kingdom shares our latest dining experience. Tiffins is the theme park’s only signature dining location. It opened in 2016 in the park’s Discovery Island area, at the edge of the bridge leading to Pandora, the World of Avatar. Most guests will want to secure reservations for Tiffins ahead of their visit. However, the restaurant can accommodate walk-ups based on availability.

This location is also home to the popular Nomad Lounge, which generally takes walk-ups based on availability but will begin accepting reservations soon. If you’re an annual passholder, remember that Nomad Lounge is offering a special promotion through mid-December that pairs small plates with cocktails.

As for this review, we’ll focus on dining at Tiffins, where you’ll be seated in one of three dining rooms. Each dining room offers African and Asian theming with nods to exotic animals and artwork. It’s worth taking a moment to take in your surroundings, especially if it isn’t too crowded. If you’re interested in the design or how it came to be, the cast members are exceptionally knowledgeable about each dining room.

If you’ve eaten at Tiffins before, you might even request a specific dining room. They are: the Trek Gallery (Asian-inspired), the Safari Gallery (African-inspired), and the Grand Gallery (Animal-inspired). We’ve dined at Tiffins about 7-8 times since the restaurant opened. Each experience has been unique and memorable.

You may remember I stopped in not too long ago to review the signature burger prix fixe lunch special. It was delicious and reasonably priced, yet still felt like an upscale lunch. That visit prompted us to return and try a few other menu items that were new to us since our last visit.

We started with a Charcuterie and Cheese Board, featuring a chef’s selection of cheese, meats, and accompaniments. The honeycomb, pickled onions, and fig spread were all nice touches. The honey paired well with the goat cheese, and I think we all enjoyed the variety of meats. However, it wasn’t quite as much of a standout as the charcuterie we tried in our review of GEO-82 at Epcot.

Charcuterie and Cheese Board from Tiffins

Next, we tried the Gobi Manchurian, a crispy-fried cauliflower dish with Manchurian sauce and green onions. This flavorful dish was well executed. I’m not a huge fan of cauliflower but was impressed with the sauce.

Crispy-fried Cauliflower, Manchurian Sauce, Green Onion from Tiffins Restaurant at Disney

Kristen ordered the whole fried catch of the day, which was the star dish of the night. It’s served on a bed of coconut fried rice, Thai green papaya slaw, peanuts, and curry sauce. This is one of those dishes where the meat easily pulls away from the bones with the touch of your fork. It was so tasty. I would order this on a future visit, especially given its simplicity.

whole fried sustainable catch of the day from Tiffins at Disney

On my last visit, the table next to mine kept talking about the shrimp and grits, so I ordered that. While shrimp and grits isn’t necessarily what you would expect from a restaurant like Tiffins, the menu notes that these are Peri Peri shrimp. Peri Peri is a South African spice blend made from a special pepper. So if you see Peri Peri on a menu, it’s worth considering if you enjoy spicy foods or dishes like curry.

I was really pleased with my dish. The grits were rich, with notes of goat cheese and apple chutney, and that buttery, creamy texture you always hope for when you order them. The shrimp were cooked well, not the least bit rubbery, which is a chance you always take when you order something that cooks so quickly.

Shrimp and Grits from Tiffins Review at Disney

Lastly, Kristen’s son ordered the children’s steak with potatoes cooked medium-rare. It came with a side of potatoes.

Kids Grilled Steak, Tiffins Review at Disney

Final Thoughts

Overall, we enjoyed our meal and the restaurant’s ambiance. It was a pleasant end to an afternoon spent at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. If you’re looking for a good way to end your day or evening at the park, this is a great option. They typically take reservations until the park closes.

However, if you’re hoping to try the special burger meal, keep in mind it’s only available at lunch. Here is a photo from that review. (This option comes with a dessert.)

Or you can always stop by Nomad Lounge, a place we frequent. The lounge offers the same cocktail menu as Tiffins, along with a small plates menu. We’ve enjoyed quite a few meals there over the years. See our review of Nomad Lounge for more details.

Overall, Tiffins is a top choice for table-service dining. Of course, we think Disney’s Animal Kingdom is the best park for food. You might also enjoy our review of Yak and Yeti’s quick service. We have a Flame Tree Barbeque Review, which is a tasty and interesting place to dine. Another favorite is our review of Satu’li Canteen, a quick service restaurant in Pandora.

For all of our dining experiences, see our list of Disney World Restaurant Reviews. Or if you’re just getting started, you might enjoy our Disney World Dining Guide. Check back with ResortsGal.com for more updates.