I’m honored to say that I got the chance to tape another WDWToday show yesterday (You can listen to it over on WDWToday.com)! The show is about healthy eating in Walt Disney World, but somehow we ended up talking about Funnel Cakes — and I quickly realized I’ve never mentioned Funnel Cakes here on the blog.
What’s a theme park food blog without a Funnel Cake post?!
Forgive me for the oversight, and let me appeal to you with a few photos.
Funnel Cake with Powdered Sugar
As you can see, funnel cakes are basically a bunch of sweet dough pushed through a funnel and fried into a funny shape in a whole bunch of oil. You can have them plain, covered in sugar (granulated or powdered — it’s up to you), doused in chocolate, or topped with fruit (talk about healthy!!).
If you’re wondering where to get them, well, funnel cakes are apparently synonymous with America (?), and so the most well-known funnel cake stands in WDW are located at the American Pavilion in Epcot…
Funnel Cake with Apples at American Pavilion
Funnel Cake with Chocolate at American Pavilion
And in Liberty Square’s Sleepy Hollow in the Magic Kingdom…
Funnel Cake at Sleepy Hollow in Magic Kingdom
Sorry about the giant soup sign, but that’s very good soup if you happen to be in a chicken and wild rice sort of mood.
Here’s the full list of Disney spots that sell funnel cakes:
Funnel Cakes stand in Epcot’s American pavilion, Sleepy Hollow Refreshments in Liberty Square at the Magic Kingdom, Funnel Cakes stand near Festival of the Lion King show in Animal Kingdom, Oasis Canteen at Hollywood Studios, Funnel Cake kiosk at the Boardwalk Resort, Disney California Adventure, Cafe Renee at Downtown Disney Anaheim, Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach. (have others? let us know!)
Wanna Try Your Hand?
Now, if you can’t wait until your next trip to a theme park or the state fair to have your very own funnel cake, here’s the gift that keeps on giving: Funnel Cake Starter Kit. Happy Friday!
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MMMMMMM!!! Love funnel cakes! I usually get mine on the Boardwalk when I’m at Disney. Soooooo good. I try to have my little nephew along to share with me so I don’t eat too much. 😉
Oh, nice post but you forgot to mention that Disneyland also offers funnel cakes at the Stage Door cafe in Frontierland. Yum!
But the real question you should ask is what’s better: a funnel cake or a beaver tail? I sooo wish Disney would bring back the Beaver Tail stand in Canada….
The funnel cake with apples looks absolutely vile. But the rest is wonderful and it is mighty tasty. The stand in Epcot always has a long line but it’s a great treat to eat while you walk and share.
Lauren — Yes! Funnel-cake-with-a-friend is a good strategy!
Lillian — Thank you for the extra info!
James — Ah. Beaver tails. Moment of silence. RIP.
Matt — Yeah, sometimes you have to sacrifice beauty for goopy, apple-y goodness. My problem with the walking and eating is that I’m covered in powdered sugar for the rest of the day. Need to wear white when planning to order funnel cake is the lesson here.
What in the world is a Beaver Tail and can I get a picture please!
Amanda, here are some good links about beaver tails and their unfortunate demise…
The Disney Blog: Where Have the Beaver Tails Gone?
LostEpcot: Beaver Tails Pictures
Amanda,
You should be able to find Beaver Tails in most Canadian Tourist traps. The closest one to me is at the Toronto Zoo, but it is seasonal.
I absolutely love funnel cakes, but rarely treat myself to them because they are so big and filling. I need to try one of those fruity ones — maybe the fruit alleviates the guilt of eating a bunch of fried, sugar-coated dough?!?
Haha! Shayne, I’m gonna doubt the fruit alleviates any of the guilt! 😉 But if you can convince yourself, more power to you!
Walking by the American pavilion with that aroma in the air is just intoxicating- I love it! They used to also sell the funnel cakes in Camp Minnie-Mickey at Animal Kingdom, but I haven’t paid attention recently to see if they still do….?
I love fruit…but forget about that! I want the funnel cake with chocolate on it! YUM!
It cracks me up that you started out talking about healthy eating and ended up at fried dough. LOL
Heather: I haven’t paid attention either. Thanks for the suggestion — I need to start a list of “questions to answer next time I’m in WDW!”
Janna: Ha! I know!
The image that pops up on my cellphone when my daughter calls is one of her in Epcot eating a funnel cake. When she saw the funnel cake for the first time, it was like a hungry mountain lion finding a herd of limping sheep bathed in barbecue sauce and mint leaves. I still can’t look at the picture of the funnel cake without having to suppress my gag reflex. Best. Trip. Ever.
Len — Aaahh, the aversion to funnel cakes makes sense now! (I think it was the visceral imagery of maimed, barbecue-sauce bathed sheep that really brought clarity.)
Funnel cakes are VERY American and have been since the early years of the Reagan administration when they were declared a vegetable in school lunches.
Trust me: I’m a history grad school drop out. I know things.
What?! A vegetable? Funnel cakes can be many things, but I’m surprised by that one!
Funnel cakes are indeed American – to be specific, they are Pennsylvania Dutch. The best funnel cakes in the country are made in Kutztown and Lancaster, PA, especially at county fairs in those areas. If you’re ever around there, don’t miss out! Funnel cakes are one of the best things about being a Pennsylvanian. 🙂
Meryl — I grew up about 20 minutes outside of western PA and went to college in western PA, so I hear ya!
I was in Epcot yesterday and noticed that the Funnel Cake stand was offering Pumpkin Spice funnel cake. I HAD to try it. It was pretty dang good, but I was a little overwhelmed by the amount of cinnamon they sprinkled on top of the powdered sugar. I think if I had realized what they were doing in time, I’d have asked for it without the cinnamon. Still, it was yum. 😀
Lauren — That sounds AWESOME! Thanks for the info!
Thank you for all the wonderful information. It was nice to find all the places that we can get the awesome funnel cakes!
I bought the funnel cake gift kit in epcot but it doesn’t have directions! does anyone know what to add to the funnel cake mix to make the batter???
Does anyone know if they are peanut free? Thanks. 🙂