Geyser Point Bar & Grill Review

Geyser Point Bar & Grill is a waterfront lounge and counter service restaurant at Wilderness Lodge on the shore of Walt Disney World’s Bay Lake. This WDW dining review features food photos from the restaurant, thoughts on the ambiance, and whether we’d recommend making the trip here from Magic Kingdom. (Updated February 18, 2021.)

Note that during the initial phase of Walt Disney World’s reopening, Geyser Point Bar & Grill is one of the few Magic Kingdom-area restaurants with open air or outdoor dining. As covered in our List of Outdoor Dining Options at Walt Disney World, avoiding prolonged indoor exposure and eating outside is one of the best ways to mitigate your risk.

We’ve revisited Geyser Point Bar & Grill during two post-reopening stays at Wilderness Lodge in the last ~8 months. We’ve subsequently updated this review with new-to-us menu items, plus info about changes, thoughts on our experience, and more. Suffice to say, we’ve always been fans of Geyser Point, but our opinion is now even more favorable!

Let’s start this review with ambiance. There’s really not much of the Imagineered variety at Geyser Point Bar & Grill, beyond the basic stone and exposed cedar design of the open-air structure. It looks rustic and fits the vibe of Wilderness Lodge, and that’s perfectly fine from our perspective. The inherent atmosphere of being in the natural setting along Bay Lake is more than sufficient. More than perfectly fine and sufficient–it’s fantastic.

Geyser Point doesn’t need a backstory within a backstory, or clever references to the unreleased “Cat Cheesing” episode of Walt Disney’s True Life Adventures to make its ambiance exceptional. To the contrary, if ever a locale called for understated design, it was Geyser Point. Thanks to its serene waterfront setting, Geyser Point is an excellent place to unwind and enjoy the natural side of the Vacation Kingdom.

During our first post-reopening meal at Geyser Point last summer, it was totally uncrowded. During our more recent visit, it was significantly busier with a wait to be seated. We’d recommend planning for the latter.

With that in mind, the optimal time to dine at Geyser Point is anytime before sunset or later at night (it’s currently open 11 am to 11 pm). We typically avoid the peak dinner rush of around 7 to 8 pm. Our favorite time to dine at Geyser Point is much later. Electrical Water Pageant has now returned to Seven Seas Lagoon and Bay Lake, and it passes directly in front of Geyser Point between 9:30 and 9:45 pm. During or after that is a great and lower-crowd time to eat at Geyser Point.

Note that while Geyser Point is normally a hybrid lounge and counter service restaurant, right now only the sit-down dining is available. This means that the quick service window where you can order and pick-up food is currently closed. This may change as capacity at the resort increases (to-go counter service food is available at Roaring Fork.)

As a lounge, Geyser Point does not accept Advance Dining Reservations. Additionally, vehicular access to Wilderness Lodge is currently restricted to only guests of the resort, or those with ADRs. This means that if you’re not staying at Wilderness Lodge, you need to take Walt Disney World transportation (boat or bus) to the resort in order to dine at Geyser Point.

The menu at Geyser Point Bar & Grill has a few interesting items, and includes both the Rustic Fare and Lite Bites. When you’re viewing the menu, be sure to view both the Lounge and Lunch & Dinner menus. To our knowledge, you can order from either menu while seated in the lounge.

In any case, here’s what we’ve tried thus far during our meals at Geyser Point Bar & Grill…

We’ll start with the “Lite Fare” on lounge menu. The star here is the Cheesy Barbecue Brisket with House-made Chips.

This is delicious. The brisket has a delicious smoky flavor, and the savoriness of the meat works well with the chips. Our only complaint is the portion size is too small. Don’t plan on splitting this between more than two people–it might even be better as a light meal for one.

Moving to the lunch and dinner menu, we have the Grilled Portobello Salad with Steak: “Grilled Portobello, Zucchini, Roasted Red Peppers, Tomato and Multigrain Salad with Goat Cheese Dressing.”

This is fantastic and highly recommended. It’s one of the best salads I’ve had at Walt Disney World, and it almost pains me to say this, but I might consider ordering it again over the next (all-star) option in this review. The portion is hearty, it’s fresh and refreshing, and the giant portobello chunks coupled with the tangy goat cheese dressing provide an earthy heft. The steak is good, but felt superfluous–next time I’d order the normal/base version of the Grilled Portobello Salad (sans meat) and put the money saved towards another appetizer.

Next, the Bison Cheeseburger. From the menu: “Bacon, Tillamook Cheddar, Sweet Onion Straws, Lettuce, Tomato, Garlic Aïoli and Marionberry Barbecue Sauce served on an Artisan Roll with choice of Multigrain Salad or Waffle Fries.”

This is also exceptional–the menu’s MVP. It’s very similar to the Bison Burger inside at Whispering Canyon Cafe, but with a few slight differences. Far higher quality meat than a standard Walt Disney World counter service burger. Even though it doesn’t have the leanness you might normally associate with bison, it’s juicy and delicious.

There’s a lot going on here, but none of the ingredients are out of place. To the contrary, this is a symphony of flavors. Everything adds something, be it in terms of texture (onion straws) or flavor (aioli). The Marionberry BBQ sauce is the highlight in this regard, and made the dish more like something you’d find in the Pacific Northwest.

All things considered, I’d highly recommend this Bison Burger. It’s probably the best counter service burger, and deserving a spot on our list of the (overall) Best Burgers at Walt Disney World.

Finally, the Crab Cake. This was previously served as a sandwich with house-made Canadian bacon (see above). We found it to be a really odd mix of flavors. Additionally, the crab cake was heavy on filler and light on actual crab.

More recently, this has changed to just a normal crab cake. We’ll revisit it at some point as we plan on dining at Geyser Point a lot in the next year, but it’s not high on our list of priorities. The original version simply left too much to be desired. (Items that are on our list of items to try include the Crispy Fried Oysters, Roasted Salmon, and Smoked Turkey Sandwich.)

As far as the drink menu goes, there’s a Huckleberry Punch. I’ve always thought more dishes should incorporate huckleberries. This is one thing the Northwest has figured out–you can get huckleberry anything. Ice cream. BBQ sauce. butter. Your imagination is the limit. It’s like Trader Joe’s and pumpkin-anything in the fall.

That drink is not the only unique one on the Geyser Point Bar & Grill drink menu. This is not the standard Disney Parks Generic Drink menu, instead featuring a variety of drinks–both mixed and beers with Pacific Northwest origins. These include Rogue beers and 44° North Idaho Vodka, among other things.

As for whether you should make a special trip to Geyser Point from Magic Kingdom, it depends. Do you need a break from the chaos of the park? Want a meal after Magic Kingdom closes? Is outdoor dining a must-do for you right now? Want to try one of the best burgers at Walt Disney World? If the answer to any of those questions is yes, then Geyser Point is worth seeking out.

In addition to the Walt Disney World menu mainstays, there are several unique and ambitious items worth ordering at Geyser Point Bar & Grill. It’s deceptively good on the cuisine front. Then there’s the serene and relaxing ambiance, which alone could be enough of a draw to get you here. If you want to enjoy a leisurely boat ride (a fun experience in itself) or want a nice waterfront lounge with a decent menu and deep drink list, a visit to Geyser Point is even more compelling.

Overall, Geyser Point is a good option for those staying at Wilderness Lodge, particularly guests in the Cascade Cabins at Copper Creek or those hanging out poolside. It’s also an excellent way to soak up the natural ambiance while grabbing a drink, watching the game, or simply enjoying sunset. Geyser Point Bar & Grill is an excellent addition to Wilderness Lodge, particularly for those staying at the resort looking for a place to unwind in the evenings. It has some significant upsides, especially now that outdoor dining is the smarter choice. Suffice to say, we love Geyser Point. It’s now one of our go-to Walt Disney World restaurants and part of our regular rotation for the rest of 2020, so stay tuned for subsequent updates to this review!

Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!

Your Thoughts

Have you dined or had a drink at Geyser Point Bar & Grill? Are you a fan of the Bison Cheeseburger or Grilled Portobello Salad? Enjoy the waterfront dining, or do you prefer taking your meal to go? Do you agree or disagree with our take on this Walt Disney World lounge? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing feedback about your experiences is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!

34 Responses to “Geyser Point Bar & Grill Review”
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