If you’ve spent any amount of time at all purchasing and eating Walt Disney World snacks, I’m sure you’ll agree with me that not every snack is as good as it looks. That treat that you think would make for the ALL-TIME BEST Instagram picture might be good for that and that alone. It’s an unfortunate situation to be in, holding that uber-cute snack, regretting the SEVEN DOLLARS that you spent on it. That’s where we come in. We here at The DIS want to help you make good choices at Walt Disney World. Especially in the snack department.
A couple of weeks ago, Jackie and I met up in the lobby of Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa. Our mission was to try a handful of snacks from the Grand Cottage snack shop that had popped up for the Easter season. Side note: you and I can debate the merits of temporary pop-up snack locations in Deluxe resort lobbies, but I think you can guess my stance on the situation. If Disney wants to create and sell seasonally-themed snacks, I will be there with bells on. Every time. Just like the pop-up shop that that appeared in the back corner of the Beach Club’s lobby during the holiday season, Grand Floridian’s Grand Cottage is here for only a short time. And it’s up to you and I to make the most of the opportunity.
First things first: the Grand Cottage is super cute. And the cast members are incredibly friendly and helpful. There are 13 bakery items on the menu, and Jackie and I decided to purchase a total of five to be able to sample a good cross-section of the menu. We spread all of our treasures out on one of the large dining room-sized tables that can be found in the lobby and set up shop to talk and analyze and, of course, enjoy the snacks we had purchased. We decided to purchase a Marshmallow Box ($7), a Carrot Blondie Pop ($7), a Baby Chick Lemon Cupcake ($5.99), a Hot Cross Bun ($3.50), and a Mickey Whoopie Pie ($7.50).
Second thing second, and maybe it should be first: as I mentioned in the review vlog, snack money at Walt Disney World doesn’t grow on trees. There are definitely some duds in the group that we tried. And there are surely a couple that I would recommend that you pick up should you be in the vicinity this week. I won’t go into every detail here (though if you would like every detail, the review vlog is posted below), but I’d like to be able to help steer you in the right direction.
First up, the duds. Unfortunately, these treats, while cute and creative, fell flat. I would not purchase them again, and if I was standing next to you in line and you were getting ready to purchase them, I would look you straight in the eyes and tell you to put those pennies back in your pocket.
The Marshmallow Box. Friends, let me first say that I love a housemade marshmallow. There is nothing like a fresh marshmallow, and while the big puffy ones that you and I purchase at the grocery store are yummy, housemade marshmallows are in a league of their own. These marshmallows are not in that league. I’m not exactly sure what happened along the way, but these were not actual solids. I know that sounds weird, but these marshmallows seemed like they weren’t fully formed. They were more like blocks of creamy Jell-O than marshmallows, and perhaps the amount of gelatin was off in their construction, but I understand from the internets that the squishiness wasn’t just with our batch. While a few of the flavors were bright and nice, the overall texture of the marshmallows was just so off that I would not recommend that they be purchased.
The Carrot Blondie Pop. I knew this would make for a cute photo, and darned if it didn’t do just that. It was as cute as it could be as Jackie held it out with some of the Grand Floridian’s beautiful Easter eggs behind it. But literally, that was it. This blondie pop, while covered in white chocolate, didn’t actually taste like anything and was incredibly disappointing. It was all flash, and if I was standing next to you and you were tempted to purchase one of those cute pops, I would tell you to leave it in the display basket and step away from the counter. Please.
And now for the snacks that live up to expectations. Drumroll, please. Our first finalist is the Mickey Whoopie Pie. As soon as the cast member behind the counter told Jackie and me that the whoopie pies were French toast flavored, that sucker was ours. And we made a good choice. That thing couldn’t taste any more like French toast if it tried. It was perfect. The cream in the middle of the whoopie pie was lovely, and was worth the price all on its own. Be sure to grab a few napkins before you leave the Grand Cottage counter because you’ll have whoopie pie all over your fingers before everything is said and done. It’s worth it.
I love raisins. Not by the handful, mind you, and not necessarily in my chocolate chip cookies as you’ll find out if you watch the review vlog, but in pastries? Yes. Raisin-studded Hot Cross Buns are available at the Grand Cottage and are kept toasty and warm in a little display oven. I was completely enchanted by the fact that they were hot and ready and warm for guests, and I really enjoyed the bun itself. Keep in mind that if you’re expecting a really sweet treat, Hot Cross Buns by nature aren’t the sweetest pastry in the bunch. Each bun is served with a small packet of butter, which was a really nice touch.
The pièce de résistance of the five items that Jackie and I tried? The Baby Chick Lemon Cupcake. This thing not only looks adorable, it tastes delicious. It’s filled with a lemon curd that is wonderfully tart and bright and everything you would want a lemon curd filling to be. Jackie pointed out that there are flecks of vanilla beans woven throughout the buttercream icing. YUM. The citrus flavor of the cupcake is magnificent, and I would repurchase one of these little babies in a heartbeat. In fact, I came this close to purchasing one the other night but decided that enough was enough after eating at the Grand Floridian Café. I was stuffed, but mannn that little Baby Chick Lemon Cupcake is just so good.
So, what about you? What would you choose from the menu if you were able to stop by the Grand Floridian this week? How do you feel about pop-up snack shops in the middle of Disney resort lobbies? These are the big questions that we Walt Disney World snack fans get to ask and answer, and I’m here for it.
Whatever snack you choose to nibble on this Easter, I hope that it’s a yummy one.
Ready to watch Jackie and me as we sample the snacks and debate the merits of raisins in baked goods and other important topics? The video is below: