It’s Snack Time At Universal Studios Florida!

Okay, kids, here’s my hot take: Universal Studios Florida’s culinary scene is not that great.

Listen! You know how everyone used to complain about how Walt Disney World food is just burgers and nuggets, and how over the last decade or so it’s experienced a culinary Renaissance? Yeah, that hasn’t happened at Universal Studios.

I mean, sure, there’s some good stuff to be had in the restaurants of CityWalk, but the counter service scene in particular is, shall we say, uninspiring. Perhaps I just made all the wrong choices? You tell me – here’s some of the items I ate and drank on my Universal Studios trip!

SNACK TIME AT ANTOJITOS IN CITYWALK

Antojitos is located in Universal’s CityWalk area, and serves the sort of decent quality Mexican/Tex-Mex food you can get at just about anywhere in America. That said, it’s got a pleasant atmosphere, with outdoor music and vibrant decor.

As is customary in most such establishments, the restaurant provides free chips and salsa. Not clear if that’s with any order or only with entrees, but I wouldn’t be surprised if you get them with drinks too. Alcohol is where the money is, after all.

For my drink, I selected the Tequila spritz (I do like a good aperol spritz). Ingredients include tequila, lime juice, orgeat syrup, smoked salt, and bitters.

If you get this drink, you MUST mix it. My first sips were surprisingly low on flavor. As I proceeded, however, the intensity amped up. I think a quick liquid vortex would do a lot to even out the experience. It was otherwise a light and pleasant flavor profile, if maybe a little light on the tequila.

For my entree, I went with the Mexican Cobb salad: romaine lettuce, grilled chicken, tomato, grilled corn, avocado, queso fresco, pickled onion, and spicy ranch dressing.

This was excellent! I mean, nothing about it was groundbreaking, but all the elements were fresh and the chicken was well-seasoned. Plus I love a good pickled onion. Our waiter suggested I get the dressing on the side as the kitchen has a habit of overdressing it. As lighter options go, I ironically heartily recommend this salad.

SNACK TIME AT THE BURGER DIGS IN ISLANDS OF ADVENTURE

The Burger Digs is the counter service restaurant located inside the Jurassic Park visitor center. It is basically as I described in my introductory paragraph – stereotypical theme park food. I trod as far off the beaten path as I could in ordering the Herbivore Burger Platter: balsamic marinated roasted Portobello mushroom, smoked tempeh bacon, vegan Swiss cheese, vegan secret sauce, lettuce, and sliced tomatoes on a toasted kaiser roll.

Baby, you would not BELIEVE how quickly this sucker fell apart on me. The roll just could not hold up to the moist mushroom cap and sauce. As for the ingredients themselves, they were pretty bland and under seasoned to my palate. The tempeh bacon registered as nothing. The fries were… fine. None of my meat-ordering party seemed particularly impressed with their meals either. I love the idea of a Jurassic Park-themed eatery, but the food wasn’t it.

SNACK TIME AT MARGARITAVILLE IN CITYWALK

We finished out our lengthy Universal park day with a late dinner at Margaritaville in CityWalk. This is of course a massive chain (fun fact: we have one in the San Juan airport here in PR!), but as convenient options go while waiting for the crowds to file out, it’s not bad. The atmosphere is lighthearted, you can people-watch from the patio, and they even had a stiltwalker making balloon animals.

Having learned nothing from lunch that day, I decided to try their veggie burger. They also specifically offer a Beyond Burger as separate from the option to swap in a veggie patty for any burger on the menu; I was therefore hoping the veggie burger might be made in-house.

Obviously this was stupid. Predictably, I received what was clearly a prefab, formerly frozen veggie burger disc. The fries were… fine. Don’t get me wrong, it was way better than anything Burger Digs served me, but I probably wouldn’t order the Margaritaville veggie burger again. Take the Beyond upcharge and let it ride.

DRINK TIME IN THE WIZARDING WORLD OF HARRY POTTER

The Hog’s Head Pub in Islands of Adventure’s Wizarding World of Harry Potter is attached to the Three Broomsticks counter service restaurant. There are entrances from both inside and outside the Three Broomsticks, with no reservation required. An animatronic mounted hog’s head presides behind the bar, and occasionally makes noises and movements.

While there are multiple specialty drinks available here, none of the beers have ever much appealed to me. I was intrigued, however, by the Fire Whiskey, which is made special for Universal. In honor of my recent Marine Corps Marathon Fireball shot, I decided to give it a go.

“Do you want anything with it?” my genuinely delightful bartender asked upon hearing my order. She offered alcoholic and nonalcoholic apple and pear ciders, from which I selected the nonalcoholic apple cider.

Guys, this combo is SO. GOOD. The Fire Whiskey does indeed taste like Fireball if Fireball were more refined and less viscous. It doesn’t have Fireball’s cloying, coating mouthfeel. By contrast, the apple cider tasted and felt more like apple juice than proper cider to me, which should be thick and spicy. Still, the Fire Whiskey amped the spice in and of itself. This is definitely my new go-to Wizarding World drink.

Wait, wait, hold on; I just had an idea. Butterbeer + fire whiskey = ????? MUST INVESTIGATE.

SNACK TIME AT ATOMIC GRILL IN CABANA BAY

Atomic Grill is a pool bar location at Universal’s Cabana Bay Beach Resort, and it is aggressively average. Yet amongst its humble nugget and burger offerings, I found a surprising bright spot in the form of the Mediterranean hummus plate.

The hummus is almost certainly the same stuff you can get in the grocery store, and there’s nothing unusual about the pita and vegetables it comes with. What impressed me was the freshness. The textures were crisp, the flavors were bright, and the pita was soft and chewy. The whole olives and parmesan in particular were a nice touch.

Most importantly, they clearly kept all the elements separate until I ordered the plate as a whole – no soggy ingredients here! I wouldn’t go out of my way for it, but the hummus plate is a great pick if you’re looking for a lighter meal.

WASTIN’ AWAY AGAIN IN MARGARITAVILLE

Look, we tried to go to Toothsome Chocolate Emporium, but apparently ya gotta get that dining reservation several thousand years in advance. It’s the Cinderella’s Table of Universal Studios.

The skies opened up on our way back to the main CityWalk area, and so we made a beeline for the first indoor restaurant we could find. This was once again Margaritaville. Ah well; we were just fueling up for Horror Nights, so whatever.

Speaking of Horror Nights, I was in for some liquid courage, so I opted to order a drink in the Watermelon Agave Fresca: Margaritaville Silver tequila, watermelon purée, agave nectar, fresh lime juice and house sweet & sour, topped with soda water. This was lighter than I expected; I might have enjoyed a heavier hand with the watermelon puree. If you like tequila sodas and watermelon, which I do, you’d like this. Consider it a less sugary alternative to a regular margarita.

For my entree, I went with the fish tacos: crispy fried in beer batter, topped with avocado, cilantro lime coleslaw and key lime crema, with black beans, island rice and pico de gallo.

These were just what they sounded like – fried fish in flour tortillas and waaaaay to much coleslaw. Although to be fair, I don’t much care for coleslaw to begin with; your mileage may vary. It was tasty enough, in the way the when you fry things it tastes good, but that’s about it. If you’re all about fried fish, you’ll probably really enjoy this, but I was underwhelmed. Sorry, Jimmy. Great location, though!

BONUS: A QUICK STOP IN WINE BAR GEORGE

Ever the bad blogger, I ordered the hummus plate AGAIN during my lunch at Wine Bar George. But I did get a new-to-me drink!

The pineapple Dole Whip mimosa is exactly what you sounds like: pineapple juice, pineapple Dole Whip, and prosecco. And the experience is exactly what you’d expect. The pineapple juice is sweet, the Dole Whip adds a creamy texture, and the prosecco provides a slight tang and effervescence.

To my personal taste, there was a bit too much of the juice and Dole Whip and not enough of the prosecco, but for those looking for an easy drinker that won’t go to your head, the pineapple Dole Whip mimosa might be just the ticket.

AND THAT’S THAT ON (MOSTLY) UNIVERSAL DINING

Yeah, that was all… fine. Somewhere Epcot’s World Showcase is tittering behind its hand. But hey, like I said, Walt Disney World used to suffer the same deal. For all we know, Universal’s own culinary Renaissance is right around the corner. Perhaps the opening of Epic Universe will be the catalyst for a whole new world of tasty snacks. We should probably go back and try everything again to be sure, don’t you think?

P.S. One big Universal win: the Coke Freestyle machine. The refill timer is annoying if you get a bad batch but Cherry Coke Zero on demand is the dream.

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