I have been working for the Hollywood Studios for almost a year but I have yet to experience any of their table-service restaurants. While the Hollywood Brown Derby remains by far their most prestigious, arguably their most popular is the always-bopping Sci-Fi Diner. This spot pits you back into the 1950s as it resembles a drive-in theater complete with a movie screen full of campy horror/sci-fi films of the Eisenhower era. While everyone knows my disdain towards Hollywood Studios’ lack of a consistent theme, this restaurant is definitely an exception to the rule with its movie set-up, 1950s presentation, and overall fun campy low-budget look. But can the food live up to the hype? This place boasts incredible burgers and excellent desserts, so I decided to visit to try them both.
Sci-Fi Diner doesn’t look like much from the outside and on the inside when you are confirming the reservation (hint-hint, you’ll need it). But after a short trip around the backdrop you’ll see a plethora of tables shaped like 50s vehicles and a massive movie screen in the background. The best part of the dining experience here is all the silliness, campiness, craziness, and hilarity of the 50s and 60s commercials, cartoons, movie trailers, and other random moments. We were seated and immediately you can tell from looking at the menu that you have a wide variety of foods to choose from—they range from pasta to ribs to burgers.
I decided to start the lunch with some tortilla chips and a spinach and artichoke dip. I also went with a Space Monkey: a mix of chocolate milkshake, coconut rum, and banana liquor. For the lunch itself I went with their cheeseburger, which I had been told is big and delicious. One final note, its mildly odd that such a cheesy place like this offers a diverse set of wines. After a short wait I get the drink and the chips. The appetizer is of a decent portion, not too big. The dip itself wasn’t too strong, matched well with the chips by combining a creamy and cheesy taste. The drink was phenomenal though, albeit not strong in the least bit. Maybe it’s my high tolerance, or maybe its that the thickness of the delightful milkshake offsets any potential strong punch of alcohol. Think of a deliciously mildly spiked milkshake, and you have the Space Monkey. That was the best part of my meal.
Here comes the disappointment. The cheeseburger, which usually is made with onions, mushrooms and the usual works, doesn’t deliver. The burger didn’t come out as hot as I am used to, and the added ingredients didn’t enhance the burger much. It isn’t a bad burger, but it’s definitely nowhere near the best I’ve had in Walt Disney World (Beaches n’ Cream holds the honor). Even the burgers in Magic Kingdom’s Starlight Café give it some competition. The portion was a little underwhelming as they gave me a small bit of fries—also failing in comparison to the excellent burger/fries duo in Beaches.
Needing a way to wipe off some disappointment, I decided to give dessert a shot. While this spot is known for the sundaes, I went with the peanut butter chocolate cake—which is a chocolate cake with pure peanut butter in the middle. As I waited, I noticed that the plethora of movies and trailers runs at around 45-50 minutes before looping again. Personally I think they should add another half-hour of footage could prevent us consumers from seeing the same thing twice. The atmosphere and the service however were definitely preventing this place from being a total bust.
The cake was decent, albeit suffering from odd texture. The exterior was very hard and quite tough, while the inside practically melts in your mouth. The pure peanut butter might be a factor, but the inside of the cake was the best part, while the outside was an adventure to maneuver through. The recurring theme of the food here is that it’s decent, but there’s much better out there….all within the grounds of Walt Disney World. The prices aren’t too crazy, but you can get better food at larger portions in more reasonable prices. But you can’t find the trailer to the Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman anywhere…
Bottom Line: Sci-Fi Diner was a quirky presentation (that the kids will love I might add) unfortunately served with a side of disappointing food. Like I said before, none of the food is deplorable, but none of it is also worthy of bragging about. There are better burgers, better appetizers, and better desserts out there in Central Florida, better yet Disney. However if you are willing to put up with mild mediocrity, then get ready for a wild time back to the 1950s inside a nice car watching some vintage horror and science fiction—with even a cameo by Walt Disney himself. This is like 2001: A Space Odyssey---worthy of at least one experience, one viewing, but anything further would be a questionable call.
Verdict: Mildly, Loosely Recommend
P.S. Yes, I am calling 2001: A Space Odyssey overrated.
Sci-Fi Diner
Disney’s Hollywood Studios
Lake Buena Vista, Fl
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