Boma, Flavors of Africa Breakfast Review

Boma, Flavors of Africa, is a table-service restaurant at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge. However, it’s not just any old restaurant. It’s a buffet that most consider the best at Disney World, maybe anywhere. For reference, Boma is available for two meal periods: breakfast and dinner. Breakfast is typically served until 11:30 a.m. each day. Then, the restaurant reopens for dinner at 5:00 p.m.

This article offers our review of breakfast at Boma. We’ll preview several items and discuss our overall dining experience. You’ll soon find out why we consider this location to be one of the best Disney Resort restaurants.

Boma’s breakfast buffet boasts many items, including a few gluten-free and plant-based options. From our experience, a chef will take your order and prepare it separately if you have cross-contamination issues. Vegans will find a selection of items that meet their dietary needs. Plant-based food options have a green leaf indicated on the sign. Below is an example.

The buffet offers a variety of meats, bread, vegetables, salads, traditional breakfast items, specialty items, and more! At the end of this review, we have a complete list of items on the breakfast buffet.

Boma, Flavors of Africa, is on the resort’s lower floor. If you take a bus or drive to the resort, you need to know that the resort has two bus stops. You’ll want to park or exit the bus at Jambo House (not Kidani Village). Before arriving at each stop, the bus driver will make an announcement so guests can prepare to disembark. After entering the lodge, you will head toward the right center of the lobby area. A large staircase will be on the right, or there are elevators nearby. You can take either down to the lower level.

This is also where you’ll find the resort’s signature restaurant, Jiko, The Cooking Place.

Boma has a great atmosphere with a more casual, laid-back vibe at breakfast. Since Boma doesn’t serve lunch, there is no rush to leave or get last-minute items off the buffet if you have a late-morning reservation.

Since the breakfast buffet at Boma is substantial, I took a video during this visit. Unfortunately, it isn’t easy to accurately portray what’s available between the lighting, guests, and cast members.

This portion of the buffet consisted of assorted bagels, wheat bread, white bread, croissants, and toppings. The toppings included cream cheese, peanut butter, African chocolate hazelnut spread, jellies, and butter. Thankfully, sticky buns were available. They will probably stick with you for days if we are honest. But calories don’t count on vacation, right?

Here are a few photos; you can select any item to enlarge it.

Below we have Boma’s bread pudding, which the cast members constantly had to replace. A vanilla sauce is available to drizzle over it. That’s caramel sauce in front of the sticky buns as if they needed anything else.

If you haven’t figured it out, Boma is a four-letter word for carbs! If you prefer warm and crisp bread, a toaster sits at the end of the buffet line.

Our next stop along the buffet line is to check out the different meat selections. The meats are spread out across several areas. I have compiled them for this review. Boma has plenty of bacon and sausage.

Below, we have Afritude tots and West African sweet plantains.

No, I didn’t make that up. They are called Afritude Tots, per the sign.

There is a carving station that formerly offered several different selections of meat.

On this recent visit, ham was the only carved meat available. (We love the Boma mustard!)I sometimes think about that mustard. It’s sweet and tangy, making it the perfect accompaniment to ham.

Several specialty dishes are available since the Boma buffet features various African cuisines. Unfortunately, the corned beef hash pictured below was not available on our last visit.

While I thoroughly enjoyed my meal at Boma, this was the one thing I felt was missing. However, the Turkey Bobotie is still a staple on the buffet. This bobotie dish reminds me of a breakfast casserole, and I found it to be an excellent option.

The turkey bobotie sat next to the chakalaka, a South African spicy tomato stew. Further down, there was pap, which is creamy white cornmeal.

The pap is another top item on my list. It has a creamy consistency similar to grits, but its texture is a bit different.

The vegetables are in this same section of the breakfast buffet. Below are the grilled asparagus and oak-grilled Roma tomatoes. The asparagus has a nice, smoky flavor, and it was enjoyable.

This next section of the buffet has changed somewhat significantly. Before, there was a large selection of meats, cheeses, smoked salmon, and accompaniments.

Now, the area has a few meat and cheese selections alongside hard-boiled and deviled eggs.

The deviled eggs are topped with smoked salmon.

Mixed berry yogurt parfaits were available. In the past, you could mix and match different items to make a personalized parfait.

Another specialty item that Boma is known for is the watermelon rind salad. Unfortunately, it was not available on this visit. However, they did have a new item, watermelon with mint pistachio crumbs.

This combination was excellent!

An avocado, grapefruit, and papaya salad was in the same area.

We will continue by looking at a few traditional items for less adventurous diners.

The buffet offers eggs prepared two ways: scrambled plain and whatever the “scrambled eggs of the day” are.

Instead of having a make-your-own omelet station, several different preparations are pre-made. Guests can choose which one they prefer.

Children and adults alike will appreciate that Mickey-shaped waffles remain plentiful.

Plain and blueberry pancakes were available. The blueberry pancakes looked like berries were dropped into the batter in the shape of a hidden Mickey.

We saw a grains section that had oatmeal and quinoa along with toppings.

Here’s a closer look.

They also had a coconut steel-cut oatmeal. Being a fan of oatmeal, I decided to try a bite of the coconut version. You might notice a little green Le Creuset honey pot before the dish. I drizzled it over my oatmeal, and it was surprisingly delicious. I’ll try to make this at home.

One of the nice things about breakfast at Boma is that beverages are included in the price. Upon arrival, a cast member will bring you water and then ask what you want to drink.

I usually get a soda, coffee, and Jungle Juice, commonly called POG juice, which stands for passion fruit, orange juice, and guava.

List of Items on Boma’s Breakfast Buffet

Below are some items you might find at Boma’s Buffet. Please note that the items are subject to change.

Pod One: Cured Meats & Cheeses

• Smoked Pastrami Salmon
• Sliced Cheeses
• Cucumber, Tomato, Red Onion, Caper, Egg Whites, Egg Yolks
• Salami and Ham

Cold Station Pod Two: Fruits

• Watermelon Rind Salad
• Melons
• Grapes
• Pineapple
• Apple Sauce
• Seasonal Fruit

Cold Station Pod Three: Fruits

• Greek Yogurt or Parfait
• Banana Yogurt
• Dry toppings

Cold Station Pod Four

• Hard-Boiled Eggs
• Avocado/Papaya/Grapefruit Salad
• Spinach Quinoa Salad
• Omelets (Ham and Swiss | Western with Ham, Peppers, Onions, Cheddar | Egg White with Roasted Red Pepper, Spinach, Feta | Plant-based Bobotie)

Hot Station Pod Five:

• Maple Syrup
• Pancakes
• Waffles

Hot Station Pod Six:

• Sausage Gravy
• Biscuits
• Scrambled Eggs of the Day
• Scrambled Eggs

Hot Station Pod Seven:

• Fried Sweet Plantains
• Fried Breakfast Potatoes
• Sausage
• Bacon

Rotisserie:

• Grilled Asparagus
• Oak Grilled Roma Tomatoes
• Chakalaka
• Creamy Pap
• Turkey Bobotie
• Boma Mustard
• Brown Sugar
• Raisins
• Oatmeal
• Coconut Steel Oats

Bakery Items:

• Wheat Bread
• White Bread
• Croissants
• Whipped Butter
• Peanut Butter
• Jellies and Jams
• Assorted Bagels
• Whipped Cream Cheese
• Chocolate Hazelnut Spread
• Breakfast Muffins and Bread
• Apple Pockets
• Vanilla Sauce
• Pecan Praline Sauce
• Bread Pudding
• Sticky Buns
• Doughnuts

Allergy-Friendly Options Upon Request

• Sweet Bread (Doughnuts and Muffins)
• Allergy-Friendly Bread (Toast and Bagel)
• Allergy-Friendly Waffles

Final Thoughts

Whether you’re a foodie or are just looking for that one place to enjoy a nice meal for breakfast, you’ll want to consider Boma, Flavors of Africa. But expect to leave this dining experience beyond full and allow time to pace yourself during the meal. I start with a trip to the buffet for savory items, followed by a second trip for sweets, I mean sticky buns.

Cast members behind the buffet line are constantly working to replenish dishes. They will be glad to help you if you need any assistance. Since the restaurant is almost always busy, the food is fresh. So you don’t have to worry about anything sitting out for a while.

As with all Disney World sit-down restaurants, you will want to make a reservation for Boma in advance. While the restaurant is large with a decent capacity, timing might be limited for a last-minute reservation. If you would like to learn more about our experiences staying at the resort, you might also enjoy the following:

• Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge Restaurants List

• The Pools at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge

• Animal Kingdom Lodge Bus Schedule

• String of Memories at Animal Kingdom Lodge

For more dining reviews, in general, see our list of Disney World Restaurant Reviews. Check back with Resorts Gal for more updates around Disney World!

In the Comments

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