Sunday, August 2, 2009

Dining At Dollywood


On to one of my favorite subjects, food! Dollywood has some really great food throughout the whole park.

A great way to start off any discussion of food at Dollywood is to start with a great place to have breakfast, Aunt Granny's. Arrive at Dollywood 30 minutes before it opens and they will let you in. At this point, the only thing open in the park is Aunt Granny's. This is a high quality, all-you-can-eat buffet that serves both breakfast and lunch. For breakfast, you'll find ham, eggs, bacon, sausage, pancakes, grits, biscuits and gravy, french toast, hashbrowns, fruits, cereals and anything else any self-respecting southern buffet would have on hand. It amazes me that the scrambled eggs still taste exactly the same as they did 20 years ago, which is a good thing because they are great. Normally, I am not really a biscuits and gravy kind of guy, but when I was there in October 2008, I couldn't believe how good they were - I was going back for more! Its just nice sitting there having breakfast, looking out the window at Dollywood, seeing the people walk by, and anticipating all the fun stuff you'll be doing throughout the day! Aunt Granny's also serves lunch and dinner buffets with a wide assortment of stuff, including fried chicken, baked chicken, fish, shrimp, steak, corn, mashed potatoes, other vegetables, breads, and some tasty desserts such as ice cream, cakes, and pies. Believe it or not, I am not sure if I have eaten there for dinner before, so I'll have to make it a point to do that next time I am there!

Outside Aunt Granny's!


Another great place for breakfast is the Spotlight Bakery. Just walk through here and breathe in all the freshly baked breads and pastries. Fruits, salads, soups, and sandwiches can all be had here. I had a pastry last time I was there and it was huge. I would recommend sharing if you get anything really big. This bakery has it all - except for one VERY important thing... The best bread in all of Dollywood can't be found here, but rather requires a trip to the Dollywood Grist Mill. Inside this fully functioning grist mill, you'll find Dollywood's famous cinnamon bread, baked fresh daily until early afternoon. This stuff is REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLY awesome. Don't forget to try some of this. Two people will devour a whole loaf in less than 5 minutes. I am not joking. Time yourself.





Another personal favorite of mine is Victoria's Pizza. Located across from the Dollywood Express train station, this place serves very good personal pizzas and some of the best garlic breadsticks/marinara sauce I've ever had.




Red's Diner is pretty cool because its in the 50s section of Dollywood called Jukebox Junction. This gives you a real feel of what it must have been like to eat in a hamburger joint in the 50s! Hamburgers, cheeseburgers, chicken sandwiches, chili dogs, and french fries are washed down with Coca Cola and root beer. The apple pie is pretty good too. I just love sitting in here with the 50s music playing in the background and all the Dollywood staff are dressed like its 1955! There's some old cars right outside that adds to the whole 50's atmosphere.




Apple Jack's Sandwich Shop is the place to go for sandwiches, soups, and salads. I believe their main sandwich is a chicken sandwich with all the fixings. If you are in the mood for some tasty apple cider, this is the place to go. They don't call it Apple Jack's for nothing!



If you are in the mood for a hand-pulled bbq pork sandwich, Hickory House BBQ is waiting for you. Amusement Business magazine named this the best pork in any theme park in the country! They also feature smoked chicken and smoked turkey legs.



You'll likely smell Market Square before you see it. As you walk up, the aroma of onions and peppers cooked in giant skillets and later put in cheese steak sandwiches is sure to catch anyone's attention. This is one of the first places you'll come to as you enter Dollywood.



If you happen to see someone walking around Dollywood eating a turkey leg, it likely came from Miss Lillian's BBQ Pit. I had a really good bbq pork sandwich here a few times, and their rotisserie chicken is pretty good. Corn on the cob, baked beans, and roasted potatoes round out the sides.



Miss Lillian also has an all-you-can-eat buffet, Miss Lillian's Chicken House. Located in Craftsman's Valley, you'll find some really good fried chicken here. Country fried steak and ham also round out the main selections along with some sides such as mashed potatoes, green beans, and other vegetables.



The Sweet Shoppe features several flavors of Edy's ice cream along with different types of milkshakes. This place is the place to go if you happen to be there on a hot summer day. The Sweet Shoppe also has a candy kitchen in it where you can watch taffy and other candy being made. The staff will even tell you how its done if you have questions! They have a ton of different types of candy here. Notice to all fudge-lovers - this is where to go! I got 5 types of fudge last time I was here! Milk chocolate fudge, maple fudge, maple walnut fudge, mint chocolate fudge, and peanut butter fudge. They had even more flavors - those were just what I walked out of there with! I believe this is where you can also get different jams and other stuff too. My sister loves Dollywood's pumpkin butter. I, on the other hand, am a huge fan of their apple butter! My buddy Ted just went up there a month or so ago with his family and I had him bring me back Dollywood's Hickory BBQ sauce and Mesquite BBQ sauce! I forgot to have him bring me back their apple butter! Cracker Barrel has a decent apple butter, but not as good as Dollywood's!



There are even more places to eat, such as the Backstage Restaurant. I am not sure if I have eaten there, so I can't really report on it. I would imagine its good like everything else Dollywood has to offer. Again, I think I'll make it a point to try it out next time I am there.

Bottom line, Dollywood is absolutely at the top of the game when it comes to food in a theme park. There is something for everyone all throughout the park. When I am there, I feel overwhelmed because I want to eat at all the different places but I can only pick a few! If you take one thing away from this post, take this: go to the Dollywood Grist Mill and get the cinnamon bread!!! And not too late in the afternoon or they might be out! We've literally been handed the last loaf to come out of the oven, with a line of disappointed people behind us! And this was like 2 pm, I think!

Check out my other Dollywood posts:
Dollywood Introduction
The Rides of Dollywood
Blazing Fury IS a roller coaster, mom!
The Shows of Dollywood
The Crafts of Dollywood


1 comment:

  1. went to aunt grannies 03-28-2010----very good----get a coupon in pigeon forge---buy1 adult get 1 free

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