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Why the asterisk? The post title needs additional detail, but I didn’t want it to be too long and off putting in the header. The full title is “A trip to Tiffin’s Restaurant at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, which sits right at the entrance of the soon to be opening Pandora – The World of AVATAR… and we wished to visit before the crush of humanity makes it impossible to leisurely stroll directly to the restaurant entrance”. That being said, if you want to visit this restaurant (which I recommend), then you had better take advantage of the My Disney Experience app, or online reservations, or by phone (the old fashion way) and make your reservations early.

From the start, as we entered the restaurant I was drawn to the decor and overall general laid back atmosphere. This restaurant trip could be referred to as a “cold call” since no prior research of the restaurant was done by myself, and it is a pleasant surprise to be pleasantly surprised. I’m not saying that no planning was done, since the hardest working travel planner in the travel planning business, Crystal, booked our reservation for the monthly Disney Dining Excursion.

It’s hard to say what put me at ease as we entered the restaurant, but the look and warm glow of wood finishes is something that has always been a favorite of mine… then again it could have been the easily accessible restrooms just to the right of the hostess stand. Everybody has their thing. As we enter through the double doors of square glass panes and wood carvings the hostess station is directly in front. I advise any guest to make good use of their wait time, turn around and take a look at the carvings as you enter the building (after you check in of course). The wood carvings throughout are something to admire. The colors glowed of warm gold, browns and copper.

We dined in Tiffin’s Grand Gallery and of all the Walt Disney World restaurants we have enjoyed since starting the monthly Disney Dining Experience, this is my favorite room. Why?… two reasons. 1. The room decor is a pleasure to view throughout the meal. Each wall is unique. 2. The Grand Gallery is smaller and has a more laid back pace. The hustle and bustle you may experience at some of the large open dining rooms doesn’t seem to be prevalent at the Tiffin’s.

We had 3:15pm dining reservations and the obviously the crowd was thinning a bit, but we did wait at least 20 minutes beyond our confirmed dining reservation time. An interesting point brought up by this tripadvisor review concerns the dining package for reserved seating at Rivers of Light. This review contradicts my laid back statement… so you may wish to consider your dining times when making your reservation.

Being a bit surprised at the size of the dining area (not that I’m complaining), we questioned our server and he enlightened us to the layout of the restaurant. There are three dining rooms. The Grand Gallery, Safari Gallery, and the Nomad Lounge.  Table seating in the Bar at Nomad Lounge does require a reservation except at the bar. See paragraph one, last sentence. There isn’t a feeling that you are being turned quickly and the pace of the wait staff is relaxed. The setting is conducive to easy conversation with your fellow diners.

Unless of course you don’t want conversation with your fellow diners then I would recommend Chef Mickeys. We love that place, there is a lot of activity at all times; a monorail overhead; special visits from the Mouse himself and guests; and you can leave the table at any time to get some food. For example, your table mate starts to speak,  and you say “Excuse me I need to go get another plate of Filet of Beef and some dessert.” If that is said to you don’t take it personally now that you know the secret.

Why are we here? That is a deep question and my answer has always been… we are here to eat. Someone has to do it and it might as well be me. Unfortunately it isn’t an appetizer sort of day for us and we proceed directly to the Main Courses. The meal consists of a two Berkshire Pork Tenderloins ($39), Pan-seared Duck Breast ($39) and Grilled Swordfish ($42).

Overall an enjoyable trip. A good dinner and fun time was had by all. It’s a place we will add to the return in the future list.

There are more photos to share from the Tiffins visit and you can view them here at Doug Travels Orlando Facebook page.