What are the Best Universal City Walk Restaurants?

What are the Best Universal City Walk Restaurants?

What are the Best Universal City Walk Restaurants?

This article is your complete guide to the Best Universal CityWalk Orlando restaurants in 2024! Universal Orlando Resort is known for its incredible theme parks and water park, but also, an incredible shopping district called CityWalk. Guests will be happy to know that CityWalk is full of entertainment options and some of the best restaurants that Universal Orlando has to offer. That’s why we are going to cover all of the best restaurants at CityWalk Orlando in 2024, which will include some quick service restaurants, sit-down meals, and even some restaurants with fun bars to hang out after dinner.

We hope you find this post helpful! Our goal at The Park Prodigy has always been to help you save time and money on your next Universal Orlando vacation!  If you are planning a trip to Universal Orlando be sure to check out the latest deals on Universal Orlando vacation packages and our discounted multi-day Universal Orlando tickets which include EARLY PARK ADMISSION to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter!

So if you’re ready to learn all about the best restaurants in Citywalk Orlando read on!

SPECIAL NOTE: If you’re looking for the best time to visit Universal Orlando check out our Universal Crowd calendar! 

Universal Orlando Crowd Calendar

Universal CityWalk Orlando Restaurants

Food is a vital part of any vacation, and Universal Orlando offers excellent restaurants for visitors to enjoy during their theme park trip.  With the central location of Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios Florida, accessing the best CityWalk restaurants is convenient throughout your trip. You can even consider dining at CityWalk for lunch if your group is comfortable with leaving and re-entering the theme parks.

What are the best restaurants at CityWalk 2024?

• The Cowfish Sushi Burger Bar
• Vivo Italian Kitchen
• Hard Rock Cafe
• Bigfire
• Bubba Gump Shrimp Co.
• Hot Dog Hall of Fame
• VooDoo Doughnuts
• Red Oven Pizza Bakery
• Toothsome Chocolate Emporium & Savory Feast Kitchen
• Antojitos Authentic Mexican Food
• Breadbox Handcrafted Sandwiches
• Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville

CityWalk at Universal Orlando Resort is a bustling hub of dining options, offering a mix of sit-down and quick-service restaurants for guests to enjoy. In the following sections, we will provide separate rankings for the best sit-down CityWalk restaurants and the best quick-service restaurants. This division will help you make informed decisions about where you want to dine, providing specific details and recommendations for each category. Whether you prefer a leisurely sit-down experience or a quick and convenient meal, our rankings will guide you toward the best dining options CityWalk has to offer.

Do you need a ticket to eat at CityWalk?

Another very popular question that we feel is important to understand is, do you need a ticket to eat at CityWalk? Guests do not need a Universal Orlando ticket to make a dining reservation and eat at one of the best Universal Citywalk restaurants on this list. Universal Orlando might even offer free parking after 6:00 PM for guests who are only looking to take advantage of dinner.  We also would make reservations for a majority of these restaurants if you know you would like to take advantage of eating there.

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What are the Best CityWalk Restaurants in Orlando 2024? – Ranked

#8 – Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville – Best CityWalk Orlando Restaurant 2024

What to Expect: A laid-back, tropical-themed restaurant with incredible theming and a large menu. This CityWalk restaurant has the perfect relaxing vibe with live music and food that gives a nod to the music legend Jimmy Buffett.

Type of Food: American – tropical inspired

Must-Try Menu Items: Cheeseburger in Paradise, Jimmy’s Meatloaf Survival Sandwich, Buttermilk Fried Chicken

Tips and Tricks: Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville is one of the best restaurants at City Walk to go if you’re wanting to celebrate with specialty drinks. There is a Volcano Bar, which is an actual Volcano, and two other themed bars that have a vast selection of margaritas, cocktails, and beer.

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#7 – Antojitos Authentic Mexican Food – Best Restaurants at CityWalk Orlando

What to Expect: A vibrant and lively restaurant that celebrates Mexican culture with authentic and exciting cuisine. This is one of the restaurants CityWalk Orlando has that occasionally has live music and activities for the family.

Type of Food: Mexican

Must-Try Menu Items: Tableside guacamole, Mar y Tierra (Mole braised short rib and shrimp), La Tostada

Tips and Tricks: If you’re looking for a CityWalk restaurant with a tasty variety of vegan and vegetarian dishes, look no further! Antojitos has not only several vegan entrees but also most of the sides are also vegan and gluten-free. Make sure to check out the cocktail menu, as the bartenders are specially trained for tequila creations.

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#6 – Toothsome Chocolate Emporium & Savory Feast Kitchen – Best City Walk Restaurant Theme 2024

What to Expect: A truly unique experience in a restaurant with a fun and immersive Steampunk backstory perfect for families. This CityWalk Orlando restaurant not only has a delicious dessert menu but also an incredibly vast food menu, as well! We love coming to this CityWalk restaurant and stopping by for a shake every time we visit the parks!

Type of Food: American

Must-Try Menu Items: Southern Fried Chicken BLT, Cocoa Pork Tenderloin, Vegan Pineapple Right Ride Up Shake, Espresso Buzz Shake

Tips and Tricks: This is one of the City Walk restaurants in Orlando that is perfect for the whole family. Because of the elaborate backstory, some characters walk around and interact with guests. While dining you can potentially run into Professor Doctor Penelope Tibeaux-Tinker Toothsome and Jacques her robot companion.

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#5 – Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. – Best Universal Restaurants 2024

What to Expect: An iconic restaurant themed after the classic film “Forest Gump” with memorabilia, script pages, and even costumes from the film. This is one of the CityWalk restaurants in Orlando

Type of Food: American, Seafood

Must-Try Menu Items: 

Tips and Tricks: Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. is one of the perfect restaurants at the CityWalk in Universal if you’re looking for a movie and dinner date. Bubba Gump is the first restaurant when entering CityWalk, and it is directly across from the Cinemark. This makes it an easy option if you do not want to get too far into the crowds and take fewer steps.

#4 – Bigfire – Best CityWalk Restaurants Orlando for a Date

What to Expect: A modern, upscale cozy restaurant with a nostalgic feel and a smoke-infused menu you won’t want to miss. This is one of the restaurants in CityWalk Orlando with its unique backstory created specially by Universal to immerse you while you’re dining.

Type of Food: American

Must-Try Menu Items: Colorado Lamb Mixed Grill, Dutch Oven Beef Burgundy, Cowboy Ribeye

Tips and Tricks: This restaurant is all about the experience, with special woods used to flavor different dishes like cherrywood to enhance the experience. All of the food at this restaurant in CityWalk Orlando is cooked right in front of the guests, to fill the restaurant with a nostalgic aroma. We highly recommend roasting s’mores right at your table to get the whole campfire feel.

Related post: Guide to Spending One Day at Universal Islands of Adventure

#3- Hard Rock Cafe – Best Restaurant at CityWalk  to Explore

What to Expect: The largest Hard Rock Cafe in the world which is filled with an enormous collection of rock ‘n’ roll memorabilia. As one of the best Universal Orlando CityWalk restaurants, the food is on par with how impressive the decor and theming are.

Type of Food: American

Must-Try Menu Items: Baby Back Ribs, Twisted Mac, Chicken & Cheese, One Night in Bangkok Spicy Shrimp

Tips and Tricks: If you are any kind of pop culture, we highly recommend stopping by the Hard Rock Cafe. They have the largest collection of rock ‘n’ roll memorabilia, with items like Buddy Holly’s famous glasses, Elvis’s suit from Viva Las Vegas and so much more! Also one of the restaurants at the CityWalk entertains with a 3000-person live music venue.

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#2 – Vivo Italian Kitchen – Best Restaurants City Walk 2024

What to Expect: An authentic Italian restaurant with handmade pasta and an open kitchen to watch the magic happen. As one of the best restaurants at CityWalk Orlando, the food here is fresh and exciting in the modern setting.

Type of Food: Italian

Must-Try Menu Items: Squid Ink Seafood, Torchio Pasta, Lobster Ravioli

Tips and Tricks: Since Vivo is truly one of the most high-demand CityWalk Orlando restaurants, we highly recommend making a reservation in advance. Since it is more of an upscale restaurant, you might want to book an onsite hotel to change out of park clothes. If not, park clothes are always welcome inside the CityWalk restaurants!

#1 – The Cowfish Sushi Burger Bar – Best CityWalk Orlando 2024

What to Expect: A quirky restaurant with Western and Japanese influence and the home of the burgushi, which is a burger made from sushi. The Cowfish has to be the most fun and vibrant CityWalk Orlando restaurant in 2024 with virtual aquariums and colorful wall art.

Type of Food: American, Asian

Must-Try Menu Items: The Cowfish Bento Box, Bison Burgushi, Chef’s Deluxe Sashimi

Tips and Tricks: The Cowfish is enormous, with multilevel seating, you so will not have to worry about fitting the whole family while dining at City Walk. We love that there is a rooftop dining area for a date night or a colorful inside dining area to take the kids to have a fun night. There is so much to love about Cowfish, but we always recommend trying something new like their burgushi, which is a burger and sushi in one.

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 What is the Best Quick Service Restaurant CityWalk 2024? – Ranked

If you’re a person looking for City Walk Restaurants in Orlando 2024 where you can quickly grab a bite and not have to have a sit-down meal, you’re looking for quick service. This next section is going to be all of the best restaurants on City Walk Orlando that offer only quick service ranked in order from worst to best.

Most of these options can either be ordered, or mobile ordered ahead and be picked up to eat on the go.

#4 – Red Oven Pizza Bakery – Best Orlando Citywalk Restaurants for a Quick Bite

What to Expect: A quick and easy pizza place that sells artisan pizza baked in a 900-degree stone-lined pizza oven. This is also one of the Orlando City Walk restaurants that has plenty of indoor and outdoor seating if you’re looking to stay and enjoy your slice.

Type of Food: Pizza, salad

Must-Try Menu Items: Big Eye Pepperoni, Stagione, Bianca

Tips and Tricks: This is one of the quick-service restaurants in City Walk Orlando that you might want to dine in with your food. Some cute photo ops can be great memories to bring back from your Universal vacation.

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#3 – Voodoo Doughnut – Best Restaurant in CityWalk for Breakfast 2024

What to Expect: A uniquely themed doughnut shop with vegan and regular options with inventive flavors. This is one of the only CityWalk restaurants in Orlando, FL that offers a variety of breakfast options for those early risers.

Type of Food: Doughnuts

Must-Try Menu Items: Voodoo Doll, Oh Captain, My Captain, Vegan ODB

Tips or Tricks: This is one of the CityWalk restaurants in Orlando Florida that you’re going to want to utilize mobile ordering. The line typically queues up outside the building can take some time if you aren’t prepared. There is a special mobile pick-up booth where you can bypass the line and get your doughnuts.

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#2 – Hot Dog Hall of Fame – Best CityWalk Restaurants Orlando with Kids 2024

What to Expect: An iconic hot dog spot with flavors from all over the country bringing you a truly authentic meal. This baseball-themed Universal Studios Orlando CityWalk restaurant is the perfect spot for the whole family, as there is a dog for everyone.

Type of Food: American

Must-Try Menu Items: Chicago Combo, Milwaukee Combo, Vegan Field Dog Combo

Tips and Tricks: If you aren’t a hot dog person, don’t worry, there is much more on the menu than just regular hot dogs. You can find Italian sausages, brats, and more, with even roasted peanuts as a side you can order. The Hot Dog Hall of Fame is a must-try City Walk restaurant in Orlando for just how cool it is to try just about any ballpark dog from around the country!

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#1 – Breadbox Handcrafted Sandwiches – Best Quick Service CityWalk Orlando Restaurant 2024

What to Expect: A fresh and quirky venue with some of the best food at CityWalk Orlando. You can order just about any kind of sandwich at Breadbox, as well as soup and even dessert!

Type of Food: American, Sandwiches

Must-Try Menu Items: BLTA, Nashville Hot Chicken Sandwich, Steak & Cheese Melt

Tips and Tricks: We truly think that this restaurant in Universal City Walk Orlando is a no-brainer if you’re looking for a quick place with familiar food. The kid’s menu is big and many classic choices are always a hit at the BreadBox. We love that no matter what you’re in the mood for, you can pick up at the Breadbox whether it be a chocolate hazelnut shake or a summer salad.

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Best CityWalk Orlando Restaurants 2024 FAQ

Q: What is the best restaurant at Universal CityWalk?

A: The best sit-down restaurant in Universal CityWalk is The Cowfish, which is a fusion restaurant that offers an eclectic menu. The best quick-service restaurant in Universal CityWalk is the BreadBox, which is a fresh and fun spot that offers top-notch sandwiches, soups, and desserts.

Q: Can you go to Universal Orlando CityWalk restaurants?

A: Yes, CityWalk Orlando is open to all guests and you do not need a parking ticket to visit CityWalk. Parking is even free after 6 PM, so make sure if you aren’t heading into the parks that you wait until you do not have to pay to park. Guests are welcome to shop, dine, and explore Universal Orlando CityWalk and enjoy all there is to offer!

Q: Do you need a reservation for Toothsome Chocolate Emporium?

A: Reservations for Toothsome Chocolate Emporium are not required however they are highly recommended especially if you are visiting during some of the busier times of year at Universal.

Q: Can you go to Toothsome for just dessert?

A: Guests can enjoy Toothsome Chocolate Emporium just for dessert any time of the day! We find it to be one of the best dessert spots in all of Universal Orlando outside of Voodoo Doughnuts. Some of our favorite sweets to try include any of their delicious milkshakes, strawberry cheesecake, or ice-cream sundaes.

When Is The Best Time To Visit Universal Orlando?

Our Universal Orlando Crowd Calendar is the best tool to help you get the most out of your time in the parks. We break down the park crowds, park hours of operation, ticket prices by day, and average temperature.

Are You Ready to Plan Your Next Universal Orlando Trip?

If you’re ready to plan your trip to Universal Studios, be sure to check out Universal Orlando Tickets! Not only will you save money vs buying direct, but all of our Universal Orlando tickets come with some amazing benefits that can help save you up to three hours in the parks!

And to stay up to date on everything going on inside the theme parks be sure to check out our partners at Themeparktoday.com!