Olivia’s Cafe Breakfast Review
Olivia’s Cafe at Disney’s Old Key West Resort, is a great way to start a day at Walt Disney World. This restaurant review features food photos, a look inside Disney Vacation Club’s “family kitchen,” and thoughts about whether breakfast at Olivia’s Cafe is worth your time. Olivia’s Cafe has a breakfast menu features a variety of American cuisine, with a mix of unique dishes and breakfast mainstays.
In terms of background info, Olivia’s Cafe participates in the Disney Dining Plan as a 1-credit meal for breakfast, accepts Tables in Wonderland for a 20% discount, and offers a DVC discount. Since breakfast is on the cheaper side (relative to Walt Disney World prices), it’s a poor use of a Disney Dining Plan table service credit if you’re trying to maximize your value on the Disney Dining Plan.
Olivia’s Cafe is located in the Hospitality House at Old Key West, right across the way from Papa’s Den, which is one of my favorite not-so-hidden quiet spots in all of Walt Disney World. Across the way is Olivia’s, which features a large “Family Album” of DVC Member photos from over the years. This is a big part of the reason why I consider Olivia’s Cafe to be Disney Vacation Club’s Family Kitchen…
While other DVC resorts have a few member photos on display, Old Key West is the only resort that really still embraces this, and it’s on full display at Olivia’s Cafe. There are well over one hundred member photos on display in the lobby and throughout the seating area.
These date back to the early days of the club, back when Old Key West was the Disney Vacation Club Resort. My favorite of these are those from the 25th Anniversary of Walt Disney World, where you can see the Cinderella Castle Cake in its full, Pepto Bismol-glory!
There’s something about these gallery of family photos that I love. They tug at my heartstrings, personifying the abstract concept of nostalgia. They make me think of the trips my family took, and present the “club” side of Disney Vacation Club.
At times it feels like Walt Disney World is really adept at emotional manipulation, but this comes across as real–something some manager of Old Key West probably decided to do on a whim, without layers of bureaucratic meetings and iteration.
In a review of breakfast at a restaurant, I’m sure most of you probably don’t care about photos of random families on the wall, but that’s something that actually resonates with me. It sets the tone for the ambiance at Olivia’s Cafe, and is a touch that I really appreciate.
Otherwise, the interior of Olivia’s Cafe feels a lot like the neighborhood greasy spoon that you might find somewhere in the Conch Republic, right down to the collection of nautical and ocean-inspired bric-a-brac adorning the walls.
This all gives Olivia’s Cafe a familial sense that is fun, inviting, and relaxed. Perfect for Old Key West. We did breakfast at Olivia’s Cafe with friends, and I’ll start with quick photos of what a few of them had…
Sarah and I opted for what we felt were the two most unique items. I had the Crab Cake Eggs Benedict, pictured below.
Per the menu, this consists of “Two-Poached Eggs and Two-Pan Fried Crab Cakes on an English Muffin with Key Lime Hollandaise and Olivia’s Breakfast Potatoes.”
This was pretty good, but slightly lacking. Instead of just being crab or lobster eggs benedict (a dish I love), it seems Olivia’s went the cheaper route by making these crab cakes.
Don’t get me wrong, I love crab cakes, and it makes for a unique dish, but it just wasn’t quite there for me. The Hollandaise with a hint of key lime was delicious, as were the seasoned potatoes, though.
Sarah ordered the Banana Bread French Toast. This is topped with “Bahamian Banana-Rum Syrup, Coconut Whipped Cream, and served with your choice of Bacon, Sausage, or Ham.”
This was another dish with a crazy amount of potential, that ever-so-slightly missed the mark. This skewed far more towards banana bread than it did French toast, and while delicious, I wish it melded the two together better. With that said, the banana-rum syrup and coconut whipped cream were both delicious.
I want to underscore that both of these items were really good, and I’d order each of them again…but I still feel like they had a bit of squandered potential, if that makes sense.
Still, Olivia’s Cafe ranks among the best breakfasts at Walt Disney World, but the competition for that is not exactly staunch. The majority of the time, I’m disappointed by breakfast at Walt Disney World. Even at table service restaurants, I think it’s the meal that offers the worst value, with few exceptions. For buffets, I’ve become a big fan of the breakfast at Trail’s End.
Ultimately, we enjoyed Olivia’s Cafe for breakfast. Their specialty dishes were not quite as good as I was hoping, but it was still good overall. With all of that said, this is a spot pretty much only for three types of guests: 1) those already staying at Old Key West; 2) groups heading to Disney Springs for the day; or, 3) the most serious of Walt Disney World completionists. I cannot recommend making a special trip to Olivia’s for breakfast, but then again, no matter how good this meal was, that probably would be the case. It’s simply too much effort to get to Old Key West early in the morning, and is not convenient en route to any park. If you happen to be staying at Old Key West or find yourself with a non-park morning to kill it’s worth the time, but otherwise not worth the effort.
Want more dining tips? Check out our 101 Delicious Walt Disney World Dining Tips. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. 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 done breakfast at Olivia’s Cafe? What did you think of the experience? Do you agree or disagree with our review? Any standout menu options you’d recommend people give a try when dining at Olivia’s? Does it remind you of the “DVC Family Kitchen”? Any questions about this breakfast? Hearing from readers is half the fun, so please share your perspective on whether this meal is ‘worth it’ or any other thoughts you have in the comments below!
We made reservations! Horrible wait time! They let people wait for 45 mins and more. When we got in, 4 empty tables were available and still let people wait that long. Unbelievable amount of time we had to spend for food. They keep on saying 5 more minutes and we still end up waiting in vain. The employees were just ehhh. Very unhappy and very disappointed with the whole experience. I had doubts coming in, but we didn’t have any choice coz we are staying at Old Key west. Disney has to do something with this place!
The manager Scott came and apologize – SO LATE DUDE! Very FAKE! Coz they know, and i let them know that i am UPSET! That is a rude move from a manager!
The chicken? Yes i agree with another person who made a comment about the Southern Fried Chicken, Popeyes Chicken – way better!
Please don’t waste your money, time and effort to go to this worst restaurant in Disney place!
Breakfast is our favorite meal when we are at Disneyworld. My teenage daughter wanted to try something new so we tried Olivia’s Cafe. At the time we were staying at AOA so we had to uber there. We both had french toast, eggs, bacon and grits with sweet tea to drink. The grits were some of the best grits I’ve ever had and the food was just as good if not better than some other resort restaurants. What my daughter loved about it was the SWEET TEA! She’s a bit of a sweet tea snob and she said it’s the best she’s ever had. I do agree, I would not come here on a park day, but if it’s your off day, I would recommend coming for breakfast then taking the bus to Disney Springs afterwards for some shopping.
We made a special trip to Olivia’s for breakfast, and you are absolutely correct. The breakfast was fine but not worth going out of your way for it. The best part of our effort was just walking around the resort and the boat trip after for another experience at DisneyWorld.
Your comment about how the family album of pictures was started was alittle inaccurate. While a manager was involved in ok’ing our photo to be the first ever on the walls of the restaurant, my husband originated the idea to display a picture of our brick in front of the magic kingdom …. framed and displayed….at Olivia’s. I have a picture of my family under our framed photo…taken with a camera back in 1993 at Christmas time…on the wall to the entrance of the restaurant. A large sailfish was perched above it at the time. I did write a letter at the time of the 25th anniversary of Old Key West including said picture but it seemed to get pushed to the wayside which I thought at the time to be very disheartening. If you would like to know the complete story please email or call me and I’d be happy to fill you in on the details to the story of the beginning of this treasured tradition. 630-615-1422 We owned Disney timeshare for over 25 years.
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I never had breakfast at Olivia’s Cafe. But my sister and I had dinner there and enjoyed it very much. I had the Plantation Pork Chop with a sweet potatoes and apples salad. Very enjoyable. And we didn’t feel rushed.
I’m staying at Saratoga Springs in February 2018. Our family’s home resort is Old Key West and we love eating at Olivia’s! I’m considering eating there during our trip as an excuse to hang around Old Key West since it is only a boat ride away, but if I was staying at another resort I would skip it.
The banana bread french toast at Whispering Canyon is much better in my experience!
Thanks for the tip–I’ve been wanting to try that (or the new options at Roaring Fork). Hopefully next time!
I love that picture of the couple sitting at the corner table, eating their breakfast in a quiet, (basically) empty WDW restaurant. So many people vacation at WDW and only experience the “rush” moments, never really having the chance to slow down and enjoy a leisurely sit-down breakfast like one at Olivia’s. Days when I’m having breakfast at Kona Cafe, Whispering Canyon, Olivia’s or Grand Floridian Cafe are always the best for me. I know I can just enjoy my meal (and where I’m at) without having to really be anywhere else in a hurry.
“So many people vacation at WDW and only experience the “rush” moments, never really having the chance to slow down…”
Agreed completely, and I’d extend that far beyond just enjoying a leisurely meal.
I agree. We own the majority of our DVC points at Old Key West and love eating at Olivia’s when staying there, especially for breakfast. But would never consider making a special trip to eat there when staying elsewhere.
Although if someone had never visited the very charming Old Key West, and was inclined to do so, they should definitely consider the fun, scenic boat ride from Disney Springs and enjoy Olivia’s while there. But as you inferred, it’s not as easy to do during breakfast time.