Menu Monday: Beaches & Cream Soda Shop
Recently my boys and I returned from another fun-filled adventure in Disney World. As with all great Disney vacations, one of the things we strive to include beyond the attractions are some delicious sweets. At home we don’t eat many extravagant desserts, so when we are on vacation the sky is the limit when it comes to tasty treats. One of our favorite stops is Beaches & Cream Soda Shop. When we first tried this restaurant several years ago, we were enticed by stories of mountains of ice cream and the legend of a famous sundae. Now we keep returning, not only for these enchantingly sweet concoctions, but for the ambiance and other delectable dishes that Beaches & Cream continues to offer.
On this particular occasion, my boys and I had just enjoyed a full day exploring Epcot when it was time to make our way over to Disney’s Beach Club Resort for dinner. We took a leisurely stroll through the International Gateway and along the paved path that follows Crescent Lake taking in the sights along the way.
At exactly 180 days in advance, we had booked our ADR for Beaches & Cream so we were hoping that we wouldn’t have too long of a wait to be seated. Once we arrived at the restaurant, we checked in at the stand and were given a pager. We decided to spend our time waiting in the arcade located directly next door. My kids played several games and before we knew it our pager was buzzing.
We were seated in a comfortable booth where we could soak up some of the 1950’s diner atmosphere while we reviewed the menu. The entrée menu is small and features mostly sandwiches. The main draw of Beaches & Cream is their famous desserts. We chose burgers; a kid’s cheeseburger for my youngest son and my oldest son and I planned to share the Angus Beef Burger so that we could all save precious stomach space for ice cream.
Even with the busyness of the restaurant, our food was served to us very quickly. We were pleasantly surprised to see that the kitchen staff had already split the meal my son and I were sharing. The fries were piping-hot, well-seasoned, crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. The burgers were also flavorful and well-prepared. In my opinion, this is the best “fast-food” style burger on Disney property. Although it is more pricey than most counter service burgers; a whopping $15.99 price tag in comparison to $9.99 at Liberty Inn in Epcot, the taste and quality of the burger at Beaches & Cream is far better.
We made quick work of our meals and we were soon ready to move on to what we had been longing for…the ice cream! Beaches & Cream serves malts, shakes and many incredible sundaes. Here are just a few of the possibilities:
- Milky Way Sundae – Three scoops of vanilla ice cream, drenched in hot fudge and caramel, and topped with whipped cream, chocolate shavings and a cherry.
- Fudge Mud Slide – A gooey chocolate brownie covered in hot fudge, three scoops of vanilla ice cream, Oreo cookies, and topped with chocolate syrup, whipped cream and a cherry.
- No Way Jose – Vanilla and chocolate ice cream covered in peanut butter and hot fudge, topped with peanut butter and chocolate morsels, whipped cream and a cherry.
- Mickey Mouse Sundae for Kids – A single scoop of ice cream, with Oreos and a cherry.
- Old Fashioned Sundae – Two scoops of ice cream with your choice of topping and covered with whipped cream, toasted almonds and a cherry.
We were almost full so we went with two Mickey Mouse Sundaes and they were delicious!
What about that legendary sundae I mentioned? That sundae is known as the Kitchen Sink, my friends! This enormous combination of wonderfulness includes 8 scoops of ice cream (2 vanilla, 2 chocolate, 2 strawberry, 1 mint chocolate chip and 1 coffee), hot fudge, chocolate syrup, butterscotch, peanut butter, strawberry topping, pineapple topping, marshmallow topping, a banana, a brownie, angel food cake, a Milky Way bar, Oreos, whipped cream, sprinkles, almonds and cherries. As much as my boys and I wanted to try it, there was no way the three of us could have even made a dent in The Kitchen Sink Sundae. However, there were some nice people seated near us that allowed us to take their picture while they were enjoying their Kitchen Sink. See how happy they look? Everyone needs to try one of these at least once!
What if you are dying for some ice cream, but you didn’t make an ADR for Beaches & Cream? No worries, they have a walk up counter where you can purchase select items including the Mini Mickey Sink. This is a slightly different take on the legendary Kitchen Sink smaller in both size and cost plus you get to keep the cute dish that it comes in.
Do you love Beaches & Cream Soda Shop? Have you conquered The Kitchen Sink? Please leave a comment!
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We always stay at the Beach Club or Yacht Club resort at WDW, so Beaches & Cream is a regular stop for us. You *must* try their grilled cheese and tomato soup. It’s awesome! We too want to have the Kitchen Sink, but have never yet managed more than a Milky Way sundae. Still, someday…
My family tradition is to make Beaches & Cream the 1st meal of every trip to WDW. I LOVE this place, it just screams vacation to me!!!!!! Thank you for the good post, I can’t wait to go back 🙂
Hi Scott – So glad you enjoyed my post! I love Beaches & Cream, too. It is one our family’s “Must Do’s” on every Disney World vacation. 🙂
I have only been to Beaches & Cream once, and it was before they took ADRs. My husband and I stopped there for ice cream. I ordered the Milky Way Sundae. I thought, 3 scoops of ice cream, no problem! Turns out that Disney’s definition of a “scoop” is much different than mine! The sundae was delicious, but WAY too much for 1 person. I definitely recommend asking about the actual size of the items prior to ordering, so that you know which items are shareable.
Great tip, Katie! I’ve also ordered smaller versions of sundaes at Beaches and Cream in the past. Instead of getting three scoops of ice cream, I’ve asked for just one scoop and they’ve been able to accommodate my request (YMMV).
I LOVE Beaches n Cream! The burger I had was good – not exceptional, but where this place really shined for me is in its dairy-free milkshake. Yes, you read that right! I can’t have milk, so I hadn’t had a milkshake in years, and they made me the BEST vanilla milkshake – with rainbow sprinkles and a cherry! – when I went there last year.
Dairy-free people, don’t be put off by the famous ice cream offerings – they have great options for you too!
No way, Beaches and Cream has a dairy-free milkshake? Fantastic! It’s certainly not obvious from the menu. Our kids can’t have milk either and finding interesting summer treats is always a challenge. Looks like Beaches and Cream will be added to our the dining itinerary of our next trip.
Hi Megan & Joe! Megan – That’s exciting that you were able to enjoy a dairy-free milkshake! Joe – Dairy-free “ice cream” is also available at the Plaza Restaurant and the Plaza Ice Cream Parlor at Magic Kingdom. 🙂
Thank you, Kristi! I didn’t know that about the Plaza Restaurant and the Plaza Ice Cream Parlor, and so they will go onto the list for next year’s trip, too. It’s amazing how you can keep going back to WDW and always be finding new and interesting things to try.
We went 2 years ago, walked up, waited about 40 min. to have a Kitchen Sink. No problem. This September, we went, were told that without a reservation they would not let us wait, we were basically out of luck. Very disappointing. And while the walk up kitchen sink is cute, it is very expensive and not nearly as fun as the regular one. It is frustrating that a restaurant that appears to be a diner/ice cream parlor has to have reservations booked 180 days in advance and offers NO walk up ability. Is this true of ALL Disney restaurants? It kind of soured me on going back next time. 🙁
Hi Christin – So sorry to hear about your disappointing experience with Beaches & Cream. I do notice a huge difference in the ability to dine at table service restaurants without an ADR over the last few years. I find it increasingly difficult to walk-up at most locations, especially the small places like Beaches & Cream that only have about 10 to 15 tables and the very popular spots like Le Cellier. Your best bet if you want to do a walk-up is to visit the park with the lowest crowd levels, no morning extra magic hours, and head straight to the restaurant as soon as it opens to see if they have had any cancellations for that day. Also, if you would like to try the Mini Mickey Sundae but don’t want to pay the steep price of $22.99 at Beaches & Cream To Go Window, they are also served at the Plaza Ice Cream Parlor at Magic Kingdom on Main Street. When I was there a couple of months ago the price was only $14.99. The toppings were a little different than Beaches & Cream’s version, but it still looked yummy to me!
For what it’s worth, I went there yesterday. I booked the reservation for 1:50 PM the previous day; there wasn’t much availability, but I found something. And when I was finished eating around 2:30 PM, the place was dead. So walk-ups may still be possible during non-traditional meal times, especially on cold weekdays in December. 🙂 The amount of ice cream you get in a sundae here totally dwarfs what you get at Ghirardelli at Downtown Disney. And at Beaches & Cream, they still come in glass dishes rather than the plastic cups that Ghirardelli switched to a few years ago.
I’ve only ever been there once, but it was the best banana split I’ve ever had!! I can’t wait to go back and try it again. Thanks for the fun post!
Hi Emily – So glad you enjoyed my post! Isn’t Beaches & Cream the best? I already have another ADR booked. We just can’t get enough of the place. 🙂