Backlot Express

Location: Backlot Express is located in Echo Lake in between Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular and Star Tours.  You’ll find it closer to Star Tours on the left side of it.

Food Type: Burgers, Chicken Nuggets, Hot Dogs, Salads, Sandwiches.

Dining Plan: One quick service credit and some items count as snack credits.

Menu:

Larger: http://www.easywdw.com/reports5/backlot.jpg.

Unique Items: Buffalo Chicken Breast Nuggets, Southwest Salad with Chicken, and Cantaloupe and Cucumber Salad.

Advantages:

• Fountain beverage machines are accessible to guests so you can get as many refills as you want.
• Tons and tons of outdoor seating.  Indoor, air-conditioned seating is also available.
• Inside, the theming is as good as any Disney quick service.
• Convenient location.
• More options than most quick services.

Disadvantages:

• Menu isn’t particularly inspired.
• May close several hours before the Park.

Value: Average.  Most items on the menu are Disney staples.  The fact that you can easily refill your beverage is a nice bonus though!

Reputation: Average.  I don’t think Backlot Express is on too many people’s “must do” list, but the theming is very good and the food is prototypical Disney.

Food Choices:

Buffalo Chicken Nuggets:

The cast member working the register noted that they were “spicy” and asked if that would be okay.  Knowing this was ridiculous, I smiled and asked, “Like a two or three out of ten?”  She confided in me that it was a three or four.

I’m inclined to agree.  They are a little spicy, but we’re not talking ghost peppers here.  They dipped nicely into the Ken’s ranch dressing bucket.

Chicken Breast Nuggets:

Disney Chicken Nuggets are basically the same theme-park-wide.  The exterior is light/crispy and they aren’t greasy.  The nuggets are quite good dipped in sauce, though nothing spectacular or much different than Tyson brand nuggets you can heat in the oven at home.  If you’re looking for something that isn’t quite as heavy and don’t want a salad, then the nuggets aren’t a bad idea.  At nearly $9, they don’t offer much value though.  The Buffalo version have a bit of a kick to them.

Southwest Salad with Chicken:

Mixed Greens, Crisp Corn Tortilla, Black Bean Relish, Avocado, and Cilantro Vinaigrette.  And Chicken.

I don’t know if I had bad luck or what, but this was the worst salad I’ve ever had at Walt Disney World.  There’s virtually no chicken in it.  Maybe three bites.  The salad dressing was either tasteless or nonexistent.  I ended up dumping two ranch dressing containers on it, which probably means the Cheeseburger would have been healthier.  The lettuce wasn’t particularly crisp and the small bits of avocado only added to the mushy texture.  I think this is supposed to be similar to the Fairfax Salad or Dig Site Salad, but it just wasn’t working.  If you’ve had a better experience, please post!  Hopefully it was just a salad creating noob behind the wheel or something.  At present, not recommended at all.