Dining at Walt Disney World: Columbia Harbour House

photo via http://www.flickr.com/photos/kathika/2600651433

Tucked away in a little corner of Liberty Square located inside the magical walls of Disney’s Magic Kingdom, is a quaint counter service location known for ambiance and seafood. Columbia Harbour House (CHH) is a wonderful counter service location, especially for those that are on the Disney Dining Plan. You will find an array of meal options from chicken to seafood. On the whole most of the food is fried but not to fear it does not lose its flavorful taste.

For my family CHH is a must do dining location every single time we travel to Walt Disney World. But the big draw for me this past trip (October 2011) was the fact that CHH has revamped their menu including some wonderful new options that I was very excited to try!

Before I begin I would like to make mention that this dining location gets very busy and the line can often go out of the building. Do not fear! Disney has their act together, they pass out a picture menu while you wait in line to speed up the order process. There are also cast members along the way to answer any dining questions you may have. We were outside of the building and it only took 9 minutes to get to the order podium

The first order of business for me was to try the all new Lobster Roll. I was so very excited about this addition to the menu. Both my husband and I ordered it and here is what we thought.

• Me: I thought that it was pretty good but could use a bit more seasoning. I was able to tell that it was fish but I did not taste any lobster. I felt like it was a salad made with the imitation crab meat you get in the package. I would probably opt not to order it again. I will say that the roll was very soft and fresh but that in my opinion it would have been better suited by a crunchy roll such as a French roll.
• Dan: He did not like it at all! He said it tasted like coleslaw and I can totally see what he was getting at. In addition, he did not feel like it was enough food for him.

My daughter loves salmon! So naturally when she saw that she was able to get the all new salmon meal at a quick service, she was all over it. I will say that I was very impressed with the size of the meal and thought that it offered a very nice array of items, especially if you are on the Disney Dining Plan. Here is what Lexis thought about the salmon:

• She said that it was way too sweet and lost the salmon taste. The consistency was a bit dry and she said she most-likely would not order it again. She did like the broccoli and said that the couscous was good.

I would like to point out that I sampled the salmon and thought that it was pretty darn good! It is season with white balsamic vinaigrette which is not indicated on the menu, if it were then Lexis would not have ordered it as she is not a fan of white balsamic vinaigrette. I would for sure order this meal the next time I go to CHH.

CHH is well known for their famous warm apple crisp which is made from scratch in the restaurant.  If you are an apple crisp fan you will not want to skip the dessert…it is yummy!! You can even opt to make a midday stop at CHH and pick it up as a snack item at $3.50 you can pay out of pocket or use your Disney Dining Plan snack credit for it.

Restaurant Quick Tips:

• For a unique view of Liberty square, take your food upstairs. They have a condiment bar and ample amounts of seating available. It is just adorable upstairs and the colonial theme is continued throughout this area.
• In order to avoid crowds arrive between 11:00 and 11:30 AM for lunch and 4:00 and 5:00 PM for dinner.
• Be sure to take a look around, the décor is reflective to its time period and is quite enjoyable.

All in all, I would highly recommend that you check out CHH on your next visit to Magic Kingdom for a unique step away from the traditional burger and fries counter service meals.

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Kelly, her husband, and three children live in the Chicagoland area. Kelly has been traveling to Walt Disney World since the age of two. She considers Walt Disney World to be her primary vacation destination. With 20 plus trips under her belt she still enjoys researching and learning new things about the most magical place on earth! Kelly began Disney Guru in August of 2010 with the vision of sharing fun vacation tips and magic with all fans of Disney World.