Best Spanish Food Restaurants at Walt Disney World

Walt Disney World has many wonderful restaurants-- so many that it can be really hard to choose! Allow me to help narrow your choices down a bit-- if you love Spanish food and all those rich, Latin flavors, then I can tell you where to look!

These are the best Spanish food restaurants at Walt Disney World. And, if you're on the dining plan, you should know each one costs one table service per person-- a great deal!

In Epcot's World Showcase, you'll find the Mexico pavilion. The pavilion features a huge Mayan pyramid-- go inside! You will find a lively and festive Mexican night market in perpetual twilight overlooking a scenic river and volcano. There, you will find San Angel Inn Restaurante.

You will have a hard time remembering that you're actually indoors, the night market setup is so good. San Angel Inn is modeled after a 17th century hacienda that sits at the base of the Mayan ruins. You're right by the water, and boats will occasionally drift by containing passengers taking a brief cruise. The volcano in the distance will occasionally spout some ash. The mariachi band might stop outside and play. It feels like you've been transported to Mexico City.

San Angel Inn serves Mexican cuisine for both lunch and dinner, and reservations are recommended. Remember-- you have to have a ticket to enter Epcot before you can get to this restaurant!

If you want to start with some appetizers, you must try the Ensalada Cesar-- the original recipe been served in the San Angel Inn Mexico since 1963. Although the Tlacoyos de Chilorio (corn cakes served with refried beans, pork, queso fresco, sour cream and tomatillo sauce) is really hard to pass up.

Some of their delicious offerings include:

• Lomo de Puerco en Pipian (pork tenderloin over roasted vegetables, pumpkin, chilies and almond sauce)
• Mole Poblano (grilled chicken breast and poblano rice, smothered with mole sauce-- a Mexican sauce made of chilies and chocolate.
• Pescado a la Veracruzana (the day's fish served over poblano rice with a lovely white wine sauce, seasoned with peppers, onions and spices).

The cheesecake for dessert is delicious, but what San Angel is really famous for is its margaritas!

Coronado Springs Resort is a beautiful moderate resort featuring a romantic colonial-Mexico motif. The Maya Grill is a Tex-Mex restaurant on the property. While kids are welcome, the stylish and romantic atmosphere is ideal for adults-- especially if those adults are on a romantic night out! The restaurant features warm hues and cozy tables with dimmed lighting for a beautiful, relaxing atmosphere.

Open for dinner only, your waiter will bring you some crunchy tortilla chips with different kinds of salsas to munch on while you browse the menu and try to make up your mind. The appetizers are splendid-- try the Taquiza taco trio or the Queso Fundido served with choritzo and warm flour tortillas.

Here are some of their delicious entrees:

• Red Snapper Veracruzana (over white rice with peppers, tomatoes, onions and seasonings)
• Cochinita Pibil (slow-cooked orange-anchote pork with pickled red onions, guacamole and corn tortillas)
• Maya Grill's Signature Fajita Skillet (choose your favorite: steak, chicken or shrimp. served with warm tortillas, white rice, sour cream, peppers and onions)

The waiter will bring you a sampling of dessert shots to choose from, along with some other offerings. Three little words: dulce de leche.

The best thing about Downtown Disney is that there is no entrance fee-- that means anyone passing through Orlando can stop in and have a bit of fun. One of the best restaurants in Downtown Disney is Bongos, home of Cuban style cuisine.

Bongos is owned by none other than Gloria Estefan and her husband/producer Emilio, Bongos is quite a lively little hot spot! If you're looking for a quiet, relaxing place-- forget Bongos! It's full of live music and energy! Cuban dancers make their way through the isles, dazzling the crowd with their fancy footwork, encouraging people to twirl napkins or get into a conga line. It's a little slice of Havana nightlife right in Florida.

You really must try to get reservations to Bongos, and the earlier the better! They have a way of filling up pretty quickly. They offer seats both indoors and outdoors, upstairs and downstairs. While waiting, have a drink at the bar on conga drum seats while watching the live musicians play. Maybe you'll be lucky and catch the Ricky Ricardo impersonator. Great for all ages, Bongos is a really fun and festive experience.

Bongos has scores of appetizers, it's really hard to choose from the menu. One easy way to make the most of it is to get the "Bongos Combo"-- a plate for two full of stuffed potatoes, pork tamales, cuban pork bites, ham croquettes and stuffed yuca.

There are also a number of enticing entrees at Bongos, but I have found the best to be:

• El Tour Cubano (a trio of meat -- shredded roast pork, seared beef and chicken -- with fried plantains, white rice, black beans and a trio of delicious sauces)
• Parrillada de Mariscos (a seafood skillet with fish filet, mussels, clams, shrimp and a lobster tail, served with yellow rice, fried plantains and garlic lime butter sauce)
• Vegetarian Platter (white rice with a medly of Cuban-seasoned vegetables, and fried green plantains)

Don't worry if Bongos sounds a bit too exotic for the kids-- there's also a children's menu with more familiar favorites like burgers, chicken nuggets, pizza, steak or chicken breast for kids who are picky eaters.

Whatever you choose, know that there are plenty of sides to add if you want to mix things up-- you can throw a lobster tail on your steak, or get rice or beans with anything that doesn't automatically come with them.

The churros platter is a nice way to end the meal, but the tres leche cake has my heart. That is, if you have any room.