Here’s a roundup of the stuff I ate at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Spoiler alert: almost everything was pretty good.
Malva Cake from Tamu Tamu Refreshments
This was amazing. I wasn’t familiar with malva cake before this trip (it’s a delicious South African dessert) and I feel like I’ve been missing out on something amazing. It kind of reminded me of sticky toffee pudding, but with some interesting spices to mix things up (I definitely noticed nutmeg and ginger — it actually tastes fairly Christmasy). It’s soaked through with enough rich caramel sauce to make it indulgent, but not so much that it comes off as overly sweet. And the scoop of decent quality ice cream on top compliments it perfectly.
Pongu Lumpia from Pongu Pongu
If you put stuff into a spring roll wrapper and then fry it, you’re probably going to end up with something tasty. And yeah, the Pongu Lumpia — a spring roll stuffed with cream cheese and pineapple — is quite good. It’s not quite the sugar bomb I was expecting, either; most of the sweetness comes from the pineapple. The cream cheese mostly just adds a mild tartness. I wish the exterior had been a bit crispier, and the filling was vaguely slimy, but this was mostly pretty good.
Buffalo Chicken Chips from Trilo-Bites
After the Buffalo wing popcorn that didn’t taste like Buffalo wings, I figured this thing — which has Buffalo sauce in it — would satisfy my craving. And indeed it did. Featuring very hearty potato chips topped with Buffalo sauce, chunks of chicken, diced celery, and blue cheese dressing, this was seriously tasty. I was initially a little disappointed that the chicken wasn’t fried, but the thickly-sliced chips add all the crunch you need.
Frozen Banana dipped in Chocolate and Nuts
This was nothing special. They sell these things at the ice cream carts all over the various Disney parks, and I saw enough people eating them that I felt obligated to try one. If this had been freshly dipped it might have been okay, but the chocolate layer was thin and bland.