Howdy! Today we’re rustling up some dinner grub at the Trail’s End Restaurant courtesy of guest author Daniel Staten. Don’t forget this restaurant for breakfast and lunch too. Let’s dig in…
The atmosphere at Walt Disney World changes often. With the seasons come new decorations and with the decades come new attractions.
There are a few places at Walt Disney World, however, that evoke a sense of nostalgia while providing a fun environment and novelty. Trail’s End Buffet at Disney’s Ft. Wilderness Resort and Campground is one of those places.
Traveling to Fort Wilderness, and Atmosphere
Nestled far away from the hustle of the Magic Kingdom, Trail’s End feels uniquely Disney. It’s very low-maintenance and rustic.
Should you decide to dine at Trail’s End, prepare by factoring in additional travel time to the restaurant. If you arrive by bus or car, plan on an extra 30 minutes from the time you pass through the front gates of the resort.
Trail’s End Outside
Due to the expanse of Disney’s Ft. Wilderness Resort, a separate inter-resort bus system shuttles guests to and from the main entrance to where Trail’s End is situated.
If you’re visiting the Magic Kingdom during the day and plan to eat at Trail’s End, you have the option of taking a boat. As a veteran Walt Disney World vacationer, I was taken by surprise and was even late to my reservation at Trail’s End due to the unanticipated transportation.
Seating at Trail’s End
Once you arrive, the tall trees and relaxed atmosphere reminded me of a family reunion, where the details aren’t fussy and the food is plentiful.
Buffet at Trail’s End
Eats
For dinner, Trail’s End offers a buffet with several unique and fun options. The selection of meat, sides, and desserts is sure to please families and large groups. In addition, Southerners take note: this is one of the only places at Walt Disney World were you can order traditional sweet tea. At the end of my vacation, I had been tea-free for a week and was certainly experiencing cravings!
Buffet at Trail’s End
The buffet area is smaller than newer restaurants like Boma, however we never found it cramped, and this was on a Friday night where we waited about 20 minutes after our Advance Dining Reservation time.
Several items on the buffet proved to be particularly popular, including the fried chicken and BBQ ribs.
Fried Chicken, Salmon, Mashed Potatoes and Gravy
Fried Chicken
BBQ Ribs
One of the best things about Trail’s End was the unique dishes that
fuse comfort food with buffet standbys, like the cornbread salad. It was a composed salad with lots of green vegetables, a kick of something spicy, and ranch dressing. It was topped with crumbles of Trail’s End’s famous sweet corn bread.
Cornbread Salad
Corn Bread
Tomato Mozzarella Salad
Tomatoes
Salad Fixins
Salad selections
Pasta with cannellini bean sauce was delicious and had a great wine flavor throughout.
Pasta with cannellini bean sauce
Pasta options
Pasta with Marinara Sauce
As far as carbs go, the redskin mashed potatoes were also stellar.
If you’d rather dress potatoes yourself, the baked potato bar is right up your alley. Pick a salted baked potato, top it with barbecued pulled pork, butter, cheddar cheese, sour cream, and chives — or any combination of those!
Baked Potato Bar
Baked Potato and Barbecued Pulled Pork
Baked Potatoes
Barbecued Pulled Pork
There were two types of meats being carved fresh, a sausage and beef. The latter was a little too rare for my taste, but I’m told if you make a request, they’ll be happy to cook it to your liking.
Beef and Sausage on the carving board
Sauces
Salmon
Shrimp
Veggies
Dessert was the most overwhelming part of the meal. I can always make room for dessert, but at Trail’s End, my skills were put to the test!
On the night we visited, there was a very rich chocolate cake, banana pudding, red velvet cake, various cookies, and warm, iron skillet peach cobbler. If that wasn’t enough, you can make any of those a la mode with the soft-serve ice cream machine!
Chocolate Cake
Banana Pudding and Cookies
Red Velvet Cake
Peach Cobbler
We were celebrating a birthday during our visit, and our waitress got the entire restaurant involved and brought out a delicious serving of strawberry shortcake, which I’m assuming was from the Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue, situated next door.
After the meal, we walked around the restaurant and the attached Crockett’s Tavern, marveling at the animal heads mounted to the wall. If you’re adventurous, you might even discover a full sized bear!
Crockett’s Tavern
Bear at Crockett’s Tavern
If you time your reservation right, you may have the opportunity to view Wishes from the boat dock at Ft. Wilderness. They even pipe in the soundtrack! It was a new and unique way to see the fireworks.
Overall
Trail’s End is great for families or those visiting in large groups. It’s a single table service credit on the Disney Dining Plan. If you’re looking for a bit of nostalgia, a glass of sweet tea, and a piece of fried chicken, Trail’s End won’t let you down.
Have you ventured to Trail’s End? What’s your favorite dinner buffet at Walt Disney World? Let us know in the comments!
Our handy (and portable!) ebook guides make sure you get the best deals and can plan a vacation of a lifetime.
Wow, that chocolate cake…. wow.
This is one of our favorite places to eat. We went there with 11 people last time and it was our most relaxed meal of the entire trip. We have never had a bad meal there.
It all looks good, but I’m not so fond of the shrimp with the feet still on. lol
We used to stay at Fort Wilderness when the kids were little. Trails End is still one of our favorite restaurants. We last visited WDW in February and made a trip to Trails End. It’s not that out of the way and the food/atmosphere is great. On our prior visit in 2012 we did the Hoop-de-do review which is right next to Trails End and the food is similar. Great times.
We are preparing for our third trip to Disney, staying AGAIN at the Cabins at Ft. Wilderness. We won’t even consider staying anywhere else … after a day braving crowds and all the stimulation of the parks, there’s nothing better to us than relaxing in our own cabin out in the woods! We have eaten at Trail’s End several times and it never fails to please us. It’s not the Ritz Carlton folks, but it’s reliably good, with a great variety of foods, and the price is reasonable for Disney. If you are staying in Ft. Wilderness it’s a no-brainer, go enjoy the eats at Trail’s End!
One of our favorites we try to eat there a few times during our stay. Good variety of foods.
The best place to eat on the property. If you do breakfasts, I really recommend that you ask for Ken, or as we call him Mr. Happy. He’s always there taking care of your party, and if you’re kije ys and go quite often, he actually remembers your names. He’s tge best and really shows what Disney hospitality entails
Definitely looks like a comfortable down home kind of place!!! I’d be interested to see the how that salmon tasted…
I ate here again recently, it was even better than I remembered. I think its the best value on Disney property, especially when you’re using Tables in Wonderland. I would issue one warning…make sure you work up a good appetite before going. Although it may be smaller than some buffets, all of the food is heavy and filling.
One of my families favorite restaurants! We love both the breakfast and dinner buffets. The salmon is my favorite and also as mentioned above, Ken is our favorite server. When you ask him how he is he always replies with ‘Fantastic’! And yes go with a big appetite.
The salmon is very good, I usually get 2-3 servings when I go to The Trails End
There’s NO way I’ll around a hotel filled with hunting memorabilia, no matter how tasty the food is. Sorry, but it’s not for me.
Ah, buffet food at its finest….none of that looks even remotely appetizing.
Trail’s End is one of my families favorites and a must do for us! We spent the first 15 years of my life as Ft. Wilderness guest’s and it brings back those memories every time I go there. The horse barn, petting zoo, Meadow’s Pool, Chip and Dale sing along. The Fried Chicken at Trail’s End is the same mouth-watering fried chicken served at the Hoop De Doo! (another family favorite that thankfully hasn’t changed much over the years.) The value is one of the best on Disney property and the food and atmosphere are down home comfort. I recommend it to anyone that wants a great meal at a good price!
Love, loved, LOVED this place when we visited for dinner with my adult daughter on Sunday night in September last, and the boat ride over from MK really added to the anticipation and made it special. Staff were efficient and friendly and the food was simple and delicious. I’m a sucker for good ‘homey’ feel food and this was lovely, especially the mashed potatoes (what do they put in those things) and the cornbread (yum!) Barely had room for dessert but it’s hard to say no when it all looks so good and as a result we ate w-a-y too much, goodness knows how we rolled / waddled back to the boat dock afterwards. Two thumbs up for Trails End, hoping to get back there on our early summer trip.
Danny, what’s the difference between the cruelty of hunting and the cruelty of eating meat?
This is one of the places I want to try one of these days!
Looks delicious! Too bad I don’t see any baked beans though….
Mike, it looks like two pots of beans there in front of the beef and sausage carving station. There are several things there I would try, but I would have to say the cleanliness of the various food stations looks like some messy people had just gone through the line. With my Mom having food allergies, I always worry about a buffet type meal.
When you go to the take out window for chicken, is this where they get your food from the buffet?