Looking at 50's Prime Time Café

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Wednesday, November 07, 2007
Matt Hochberg

I love to be pleasantly surprised when it comes to my trips to Walt Disney World.  Sometimes it may be an attraction I haven’t experienced in a while and then “re-discovering” it trying a resort I haven’t stayed at and quickly putting it on my mental list of my favorite Disney resorts.  I recently was pleasantly surprised by an old stalwart of the Studios, the 50’s Prime Time Café.

Okay, so I’m not sure why I fell of the Prime Time fan truck or when.  I always knew it was good, with a premium placed on entertainment (that was hit or miss based on the Cast Member you had serving you) and adequate food to boot.  It was by no means as bad as the Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater but a good restaurant.  Over the span of my last couple of trips I’ve been eating at the Tune-In Lounge as a means of a “quick service sit down meal”.  No abrasive servers or embarrassing moments because I wouldn’t eat my celery (sorry, never got the taste for celery).  Very quickly I found a number of offerings on the menu that I really enjoyed and would recommend.

Starting with lunch, going for something simple and light I think is key.  Most of the time I’m interested in having a fun second half of the day in the park so I don’t want to drop into a food induced coma.  A favorite at Prime Time is the stacked sandwich of either Turkey or Ham.  The portion size is big enough to satisfy most appetites and for $9.99, you really can’t go wrong.  Couple that with the chicken noodle soup that is pretty darn good, you have a good lunch meal for about $15. 

For dinner, hands down the best entrée is the pot roast.  It’s a great take on a family favorite.  As a kid, my mom made (and still makes) a great pot roast, which is more of a brisket.   Prime Time offers a very soft beef that is shredded and augmented with some veggies over mashed potatoes.  Simple, yet elegant and mighty tasty.  And don’t take my word for it; every time I would overhear a Cast Member be asked by a guest what they recommend, the pot roast consistently comes up.  Furthermore, as I ate mine a number of Cast Members would comment to me that the dish I had is their favorite.  Are you sold on the pot roast yet? 

The best desert in the park is also at the Studios and it’s the s’mores.  They’re simple but incredibly tasty.  A large graham cracker with melted chocolate on top with slightly melted and toasted marshmallows on top of that with some hot fudge over everything for good measure.  It’s a great dessert to share (unless you prescribe to the commonly held opinion that calories don’t count in Disney World, in which case get your own) with someone and the perfect end to a great meal.

I really glazed over what brings many back to the Prime Time and that’s the entertainment factor that appeals to kids and adults and I do think it adds to a great meal.  If you were like me and wrote off Prime Time as “been there, done that” perhaps you too should take a second look at this eatery and make a reservation for it on your next trip down (and please, don’t send me photos of the s’mores…I miss them already).