There’s a legitimate hack to getting your Yak & Yeti favorites WITHOUT having to wait in those notoriously long lines (seriously, we tested it)!
We made a meal!
It’s no secret that Disney’s Animal Kingdom is home to some of our favorite restaurants to enjoy when we’re at Disney World, but we’re not always a fan of waiting around for our food. So where’s a good place to visit in the park that’s not going to keep you waiting? We’re about to blow your mind!
Most people don’t realize that one of the most sought-after spots to dine around the Asia section of Disney’s Animal Kingdom isn’t always the restaurant with the longest line. So when you walk up to Yak & Yeti Restaurant and find tons of folks already waiting for their reservation with no chance at a walk-up reservation, AND the line is as far as your eyes can see for Yak & Yeti Local Foods Cafe, you’re not ENTIRELY out of options (depending on when you’re visiting)!
Crowds in Asia
It was tough due to its tricky schedule, but we recently stopped by the little-known Yak & Yeti Quality Beverages quick-service restaurant to see if trying to order a few of our favorites here was any faster. We were pleasantly surprised!
Atmosphere
This is truly a “blink and you’ll miss it” kind of place. It’s pretty elusive because it’s not a restaurant that stays open all day, and you’ll need to be aware of its operating hours to visit unless luck is on your side and it’s open as you pass by.
Yak & Yeti Quality Beverages
When you walk up to the restaurant, you’ll notice right away that it’s mainly just a menu and serving window where the Cast Member will take your order AND present your food to you. They’re pretty quick, too, so we don’t recommend walking away and expecting it to be a while before they’re ready to hand your order over.
All of the seating is outdoors
The plus side here is that there’s plenty of seating as long as it’s not terribly busy. You’ll want to keep in mind that this restaurant shares seating with Yak & Yeti Local Foods Cafe as well, so if you can plan to eat in the off times that might be less crowded for you.
Seating
There are also self-service utensils, napkins, and condiments nearby that you can grab until your belly is content to accompany your meal.
Condiments cart
Seriously, you’ll forever find us here picking up sauces and more napkins!
Menu
The menu here isn’t as extensive as its sister location just around the corner at Yak & Yeti Local Foods Cafe, however it does have a few light bites like chicken fried rice, side pork egg rolls, a salad…
Menu
… and a few alcoholic and fountain soda beverage options.
Drinks
There’s one drink here we KNEW we should be after and it’s called the Yak Attack! This gem is a mango daiquiri made with Don Q Cristal Rum and wildberry flavors and will cost you $14 (but spoiler alert: you’ll be begging them to take your money for one of these)!
Yak Attack
This is one of the tastiest alcoholic blended drinks we’ve ever had at Disney World and we’ve tried a TON! The wildberry in the bottom is very tasty and mixes incredibly well with the mango daiquiri. If you let the cherry float long enough in the drink though, you’ll get hints of it in the frozen drink’s taste, too!
So fruity!
This drink is delicious and not one to be overlooked! We loved that this wasn’t just another boring daiquiri and we were content with the cost for what this drink delivered in taste. Do yourself a favor and pick one up on your next visit (you can thank us later for that pro tip)!
Eats
While we knew we were stopping to try out the Yak Attack we had to grab something to snack on while we were here. Naturally, we decided to throw caution to the wind and make it a multi-course meal (you know, in the name of Disney World food research). So to accompany our Yak Attack we also ordered the Side Pork Egg Rolls which come as a serving of 2, a Mini Mango Pie, and a Cookies & Cream Parfait. Doesn’t this look like the lunch of theme park champions? We thought so, too!
We made a meal!
To kick things off after sipping on our chilly frozen daiquiri we decided to put the Side Pork Egg Rolls to the test! These beauties will cost you $8 and look (and taste) exactly as they’re billed.
Side Pork Egg Rolls
Each of the egg rolls has a crispy outer layer that’s not too greasy to turn you off from eating them already, but the surprise with these is just how packed they are with a whole array of FLAVOR on the inside! Once you bite through them they’re so soft, and you could cut them in half with a spoon or fork if you had to. The inside pork and veggies have a light Asian spice and you can tell they’ve been prepared with Asian spices and sauce, however, we did recognize that they could be a little dry for some folks.
Inside the egg rolls
If this is the case for you (or you’re just really looking to knock it out of the park on the flavor intensity), stop by one of the nearby condiment carts to grab some soy sauce to help them out a bit!
We decided to “treat” ourselves to not one but two desserts this visit so we opted to try out the Mini Mango Pie. This pie is a returning FAVORITE of ours which we’ve loved from the very first bite, and they’re still as good as ever. You can grab one for $8.49.
Mini Mango Pie
While the packaging has changed a bit over the years since they were first introduced to us (it was love at first bite, what can we say) the contents are still the same. The mango-flavored gooey pie is so tasty, and we actually preferred keeping ours out in the sun to melt just a little so it gave it a different texture than when it’s first served. The outer crust is more of a crumbled crust that just melts in your mouth with every bite, and now that we’re reminiscing on it we’re so tempted to run right out for another immediately.
As delicious as ever
But, these aren’t exclusive to Disney’s Animal Kingdom! If you find yourself craving one once you’re home you can often find them in your local Kroger or Publix supermarket to get you by until your next visit!
Alright, now that we’ve hit this sugar high we had to try to keep it going. So, last up on our list to try out was the Cookies & Cream Parfait. This treat was made of chilled, layered pudding, whipped cream, and cookie crumbles and cost us $8.49.
Cookies & Cream Parfait
This was another GREAT option for a quick treat that wouldn’t get super messy on a hot day like an ice cream could! It had all the same makings of what you would ideally want in a cookies & cream treat between the layers of chocolate pudding and whipped cream, and when you dug down enough, you could even get to the final cookie crumble at the very bottom!
A spoonful
While we enjoyed it, it wasn’t our favorite. But in fairness, it had some stiff competition going up against our beloved mini mango pie. We could easily see this becoming a popular snack option for parents with little ones looking to treat them.
Overall
To be fair, while this place is tiny, it is mighty in what its small menu offers. It does its job effectively.
All outdoor seating
There are plenty of great options for a snack break, or combine a few like we did to make an entire quick meal.
Nosh or Not?
Make sure to time your next visit here just right if:
- You truly just want to grab a drink and maybe a light bite. The menu here isn’t very extensive at all.
- You want to beat that long line at the other two Yak & Yeti Restaurants. The lines can back up for Yak & Yeti Restaurant and Yak & Yeti Local Foods Cafe, resulting in a fairly lengthy wait. If you want to get in and out as quickly as possible, this is the best option of the 3!
- You HAVE to have the exclusive alcoholic drinks served here! Remember that INCREDIBLE Yak Attack drink is only served here or at the bar inside Yak & Yeti Restaurant. If you’re not looking to dine inside or have to step into the bar to grab your drink, this is your best option.
Keep breezing past those order window shutters if…
- You’re dying in the heat and NEED to be indoors for your meal. Unfortunately, there’s only covered seating available for this quick-service restaurant. If you’re looking for an indoor meal, this isn’t a restaurant to visit.
- You’re looking for some sharable entrees or snacks. Again, the menu here is really more light bites and small portioned snacks with a few beverage options and not anything more than that.
- You’re not a fan of animals surrounding you and your food while you’re eating. Disney’s Animal Kingdom is an incredible park, but there is true wildlife that surrounds you. While that might not be a bother when you DON’T have food in your hand (or your little one’s hands), that could change on a dime when there’s a hungry bird strolling the area waiting to sneak a bite. They don’t mean any harm, you’ve just made the food look too good to pass up!
We’ve eaten EVERYWHERE at Disney World and reviewed THOUSANDS of drinks, eats, treats, and snacks! Be sure to check out a few of our latest reviews below and stay tuned with us at DFB for more.
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Do you prefer to visit Yak & Yeti Restaurant, Yak & Yeti Local Foods Cafe, or Yak & Yeti Quality Beverages when you visit Disney’s Animal Kingdom? Tell us all the reasons for your choice in the comments below!