Magic Kingdom’s counter service restaurant lineup has been a race to the underside for the final 5 years. There’s been zero competitors for first, whereas it’s like a 9-way tie for worst. Magic Kingdom is the weakest meals park at Walt Disney World, which is an absolute disgrace provided that it’s the preferred park and has no scarcity of distinctive eating venues.
That’s exactly why we had been so excited concerning the information that one of many Magic Kingdom’s most mediocre meal spot was getting a brand-new menu! As you may recall, Pecos Invoice Tall Story Inn and Cafe was beforehand useless to us. We wrote that piece, titled “The Dying of Pecos Invoice” a little bit over a 12 months in the past, and the refrain of fifty+ reader feedback largely agreed. When it got here time to suppose up a “intelligent” title for this evaluate of the brand new menu at Pecos Invoice, the phrases “alive once more” and “worst to first” stored coming to thoughts.
Nevertheless, the previous didn’t make sense with out context, and the latter one way or the other wasn’t even true! Someway, Pecos Invoice was not beforehand the worst counter service restaurant in all of Magic Kingdom, which is actually saying one thing (and never a superb factor). Relatively, it was the one with essentially the most squandered potential. A high-capacity restaurant that might’ve been good and, at one time, was a spotlight. So mainly, this evaluate addresses whether or not the brand new menu delivers and helps Pecos Invoice reclaim the crown because the #1 counter service restaurant in Magic Kingdom…
Frankly, it has been shocking and disappointing that, on the similar time Chipotle Mexican Grill has risen in recognition, Walt Disney World had gone within the precise other way with Pecos Invoice. The menu had been dumbed down, delicacies high quality lowered, and so on. That is doubly true when you strive the distinctive Donald’s Cantina on the Disney Treasure and Want. (Tangential, however the deck eating on the brand new ships is an actual spotlight.)
Fortunately, Walt Disney World is lastly undoing that harm. We received’t bury the lede: that is one of the best menu at Pecos Invoice in virtually a decade. Not precisely a excessive bar, because the outdated meals was terrible. However it’s as if somebody lastly dared to dream: what if meals on the world’s hottest theme park had been truly edible?
In opposition to that backdrop, let’s dig into the brand new menu evaluate at Pecos Invoice Tall Story Inn and Cafe…
For the reason that 4 core menu objects are Construct Your Personal Bowls, I’m going to start out by reviewing the trio of proteins which you could select for any of those. Let’s begin with the Citrus-Chipotle Rooster.
The Citrus-Chipotle Rooster is my third-favorite protein possibility, which isn’t a knock. There are beneficiant chunks of tender and juicy meat, which is flavorful and tastes prefer it’s truly of an inexpensive high quality. The ‘notes’ of citrus and chipotle are delicate, however they’re there. If you happen to’re within the temper for rooster, you’re not going improper by ordering this–it simply wasn’t my private favourite.
Oh, and as for the dish pictured within the two images above, that’s the Grilled Masa Flatbread.
This corn-based, plant-based flatbread is already defunct. I can perceive why, because it didn’t fairly hit the identical excessive notes as the opposite entrees–and was an absolute mess to eat. I’m nonetheless barely disillusioned, because it was an creative entree that added menu selection. They need to’ve iterated on this (perhaps ditch the faux cheese?) fairly than abandoning it. Oh properly.
Sooner or later since we final dined at Pecos Invoice (so inside the previous couple of weeks), they changed the Grilled Masa Flatbread with the Plant-based Rice Bowl with Unattainable Meatballs in Pink Chile Tomato Sauce, Pinto Beans, Cilantro-Lime Rice, Cowboy Caviar, and Lime “Crema.” We haven’t had an opportunity to strive that but, however we discover Unattainable “Meat”balls to be one of the best of the Unattainable merchandise.
Our subsequent protein is the Inexperienced Chili Pork.
I actually like this pork. Nearly the precise description applies as for the rooster–that is tender and juicy, and a beneficiant portion of meat is piled onto the bowl. The inexperienced chili taste is delicate even while you eat the pork by itself, and masked completely when combined into the bowl.
As somebody who ate on the outdated iteration of Pecos Payments just a few too many instances (for lack of higher choices–not everybody with whom we’d go to likes seafood, taking Columbia Harbour Home off the desk), I additionally can’t understate how a lot increased high quality each the rooster and pork are than their predecessors. I beforehand referred to as the meats at Pecos Invoice “pet food grade.” That was solely slight hyperbole. These are on par with what you’d order at Chipotle or one other quick informal Mexican spot.
Saving one of the best for final, the ultimate protein possibility is the Coca-Cola Cherry Braised Beef.
This meat is shockingly improbable. There’s a sweetness to the meat, and it has a slow-cooked high quality that makes it tender, juicy, and scrumptious. There are two ‘extinct’ entrees this jogged my memory of, one from lunch at Be Our Visitor Restaurant and one other from Flo’s V8 Cafe again when it first opened. These are favorable comparisons, and extremely excessive reward for a restaurant that after had its meats in comparison with pet food.
Frankly, I want they’d serve the Coca-Cola Cherry Braised Beef as a standalone, plated entree. Because it stands, I can simply envision a situation the place we order a bowl with a double portion of this beef to separate. It’s that good.
Since we’re already speaking about it, let’s begin by digging into the Rice Bowl with Pinto Beans, Cilantro-Lime Rice, Cowboy Caviar, and Queso Fresco.
Like every thing within the ‘Construct Your Personal’ part of the menu, that is priced at $12.99. What’s pictured above is a single portion of the meat on high of the bowl.
I point out that as a result of this unhealthy boy is an enormous meal, virtually greater than sufficient for one particular person–and that’s price mentioning at a time when many different Walt Disney World entrees are shrinking in measurement however rising in worth.
The elements right here work very well collectively, and there are beneficiant quantities of queso fresco in addition to the pinto beans and cilantro-lime rice under. I might’ve personally used a bit extra cowboy caviar, however that looks as if a minor quibble.
As soon as once more, the purpose to emphasise is that the standard is way improved over what was provided at Pecos Invoice earlier than. This nonetheless doesn’t attain the identical excessive bar because the glory days of the toppings bar, but it surely’s superb–an evening and day distinction over what was right here earlier than.
The underside line is that it is a high-quality rice bowl, and kind of precisely what you’d anticipate. It might’ve used a higher number of toppings, however nonetheless glorious. It’s within the operating for my #1 entree at Pecos Invoice.
The opposite contender for that crown is the Steamed Tamale.
That is mainly the identical dish because the rice bowl, however with the addition of a Steamed Inexperienced Chili-Cheese Tamale and Pico de Gallo rather than the Cowboy Caviar.
I wasn’t an enormous fan of the tamale by itself, however it’s mainly a freebie and does add one thing to the dish as a complete. Unsurprisingly, corn is the dominant taste right here, and as a part of the bowl is supplies one other texture, together with a semi-sweet and earthy high quality. Most significantly, it didn’t appear to be the parts of rice or pinto beans bought any smaller because of the tamale being added.
It’s on that foundation that the Steamed Tamale is our new #1 entree at Pecos Invoice…and maybe Magic Kingdom as a complete.
There are different dishes that we every individually actually like across the park. At Columbia Harbour Home, I’m an enormous fan of the Lobster Roll and Sarah loves the Maple-Mustard Glazed Salmon. The issue with each is enjoying the portion measurement lottery. If you happen to’re a loser, you’ll stroll away hungry.
In contrast, for a similar worth because the Salmon entree–or for $4 much less than the Lobster Roll–you can order the Steamed Tamale with double beef from Pecos Invoice and it might simply feed one particular person, maybe each of us (appetite-dependent). In different phrases, when taking worth for cash into consideration, this dish has actually no competitors in Magic Kingdom.
Our remaining ‘construct your individual’ entree is the Nacho Bowl: Home-fried Corn Tortilla Chips smothered with Stewed Pinto Beans, Chipotle Queso, and Pico de Gallo.
Smothered is Disney’s phrase within the description above, and it’s an apt one. This undoubtedly had extra queso than the opposite bowls, and I actually appreciated that–it labored properly with the nachos. Additionally paired fantastically with the meat.
With that stated, the chips are extraordinary. As a base, this simply doesn’t maintain a candle to the above choices. Not as tasty or as filling. If you happen to’re within the temper for nachos and need chips piled excessive with cheese and beef, you completely can’t go improper right here, although!
We’re not performed with the entrees–there’s additionally the Double Chili con Queso Burger: Two Flame-broiled All-Beef Patties topped with Chili con Carne, Chipotle Queso, and Corn Chips with Barbecue-Cheddar Seasoned Fries.
This burger at the moment prices $16.19, which is definitely a worth lower because the menu launched. And admittedly, that is smart, as my largest criticism of this burger can be the worth proposition versus the ‘construct your individual’ choices.
For ~$3 extra, it’s simply onerous to justify this provided that it’s across the similar portion measurement–if not smaller–than the bowls.
In equity to the burger, it’s fairly tasty!
It’s slathered in Chipotle Queso, with simply the correct amount of Chili con Carne for taste and Corn Chips for texture. That is good, as a result of under which are two commonplace situation Walt Disney World burger patties, and these function a signature mix of cardboard, capybara, and hyena.
Suffice to say, Disney counter service burgers want an overabundance of toppings to masks their mediocre meats, that are dry and flavorless. This fills that function high quality, and turns into the #1 counter service burger at Magic Kingdom by default in consequence. There’s no level in ordering this when the ‘construct your individual’ bowls are proper there, however I suppose it’s a superb fallback possibility for choosy eaters who discover every thing else too adventurous.
It’s additionally price mentioning that the Barbecue-Cheddar Seasoned Fries served with the burger (or as a facet) are one of the best fries at Magic Kingdom.
The seasoning right here takes extraordinary Disney fries to the following degree. They’re nothing revolutionary, however as a easy snack, they’re fairly good. I by no means knew that is what was lacking from Disney fries, but it surely completely is.
My private wishlist for Pecos Invoice can be to have loaded fries added to the menu. I’m unsure Sarah would approve, however I’d love a heaping order of those fries (as a substitute of rice) topped with a beneficiant slathering of queso to function the bottom for my double portion of that scrumptious beef. Now that might be the proper entree indulgence!
Lastly, we now have the Candy Corn Mousse: White Chocolate and Raspberry Powder.
Walt Disney World debuted this ‘appears to be like like corn, however is definitely cake’ dessert a pair years in the past throughout both Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Occasion or Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Occasion (if reminiscence serves me), and it was an enormous hit. Disney followers get pleasure from a superb gimmick.
When you get previous that gimmick, there’s not a lot to like about this. It’s fairly costly at over $6, the portion is small, and each the flavour and texture are pretty one-note. We additionally discovered it to be overly candy (sugar, versus candy corn, is the dominant taste), however that may very well be stated about most Disney desserts. If you happen to’re going to order this for the enjoyable images, have at it–simply perhaps look elsewhere for a scrumptious dessert. Magic Kingdom has no scarcity of these.
In the end, it’s no shock that the brand new menu at Pecos Invoice Tall Story Inn and Cafe is a marked enchancment. For one factor, there was nowhere to go however up. I don’t suppose Walt Disney World followers who hadn’t been in just a few years notice simply how unhealthy and uninspired the outdated Pecos Invoice menu had gotten.
Pecos Invoice was mainly Exhibit A within the former Disney CFO’s quote about altering suppliers and substituting elements to cut back prices. Even the most cost effective Mexican meals from the Dealer Joe’s freezer case had been increased high quality than what Pecos Invoice was serving. And but, it nonetheless wasn’t the worst counter service restaurant at Magic Kingdom. (Which frankly ought to’ve been embarrassing for Disney.)
It appeared just like the outdated menu was allowed to limp alongside till Pecos Invoice bought reimagined, however with that venture nixed, Walt Disney World management realized the present incarnation of the restaurant can be round for just a few extra years. (Till the inevitable reimagining right into a Vehicles-inspired restaurant.)
Past this, high to backside menu overhauls like this are virtually all the time an enchancment. Disney’s culinary groups get the inexperienced gentle to make vital modifications and, the cooks have enjoyable creating new menus which are formidable and intriguing. The culinary groups don’t truly wish to serve slop to visitors with pet food grade meat and entrees which are worse than frozen meals–that’s the byproduct of managers meddling and modifications to make menus extra environment friendly or cheaper.
With that stated, the conventional trajectory is for tweaks to be revamped the course of the primary 12 months of the brand new menu that do dilute it. We’re already seeing this with the brand new menu at Pecos Invoice, and it’ll most likely proceed all through 2025. The culinary group goals excessive, however a few of their decisions aren’t all the time sensible for high-capacity places or in keeping with visitor preferences.
That is the first purpose that menus are dumbed down over time, all over the place will get a fundamental burger added, and so on. It’s additionally typically mandatory to cut back preparation steps, as dishes grow to be too labor intensive or time-consuming to organize. In different instances, objects that aren’t getting ordered–or are receiving destructive visitor suggestions–are pulled or changed. That just about actually explains the lack of the Grilled Masa Flatbread.
Whether or not Pecos Invoice Tall Story Inn and Cafe dethrones Columbia Harbour Home to grow to be the brand new #1 counter service restaurant in Magic Kingdom might be a matter of perspective. Specifically, does your celebration choose seafood or Mexican delicacies?
For us, each are winners–all of it will depend on what we’re within the temper for and the way hungry we’re. Columbia Harbour Home is superb, however it may be dear and inconsistent, whereas Pecos Invoice reliably delivers. As you’ve most likely gathered from the number of images, we’ve already performed a number of meals at Pecos Invoice because the overhaul and just one at Columbia Harbour Home throughout that point. That’s most likely our ‘new regular’ going ahead, particularly since there’s extra on the menu right here that Megatron can eat.
That reliability is the tiebreaker from our perspective, and what provides Pecos Invoice the slender victory. Both manner, there are actually double the variety of good counter service eating places at Magic Kingdom, and all visitors win in consequence. Right here’s hoping that Cosmic Ray’s is subsequent–it might additionally actually use a menu overhaul. Now that demand has died down for it, we’d additionally like to see Be Our Visitor revert to a counter service lunch. Are you able to think about Magic Kingdom having 4 worthwhile counter service eating places? It’s virtually unthinkable! Dare to dream, I suppose.
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YOUR THOUGHTS
What do you concentrate on the brand new menu at Pecos Invoice Tall Story Inn and Cafe? Excited for these additions? If you happen to’ve already tried the brand new menu, what are your favorites? Something you didn’t like? Do you agree or disagree with our evaluation? Any questions we may help you reply? Listening to your suggestions–even while you disagree with us–is each attention-grabbing to us and useful to different readers, so please share your ideas under within the feedback!
