Restaurant Review: Capt. Cook’s Breakfast
I stay at one Disney resort more than all the rest because it’s the place that feels like home to me.
While I’m there, I eat at all three restaurants because I adore each one for different reasons.
In looking at previous reviews, I realized that the one thing I’ve never done is discuss breakfast.
Well, I’ve got the perfect place because it comes with a unique option.
Here’s a restaurant review of breakfast at Capt. Cook’s, home to one of the must-try foods at Walt Disney World.
About Capt. Cook’s
Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort is pretty much my happy place in life.
The moment that I enter the Great Ceremonial House, which you would know as the hotel lobby.
You’ll know that you’re there by the aroma, as the relaxing tropical scent here possesses a calming effect.
After a hectic park day, this lobby doubles as a tranquilizer, instantly relaxing you. It’s what “serenity now!” smells like.
You’re likely familiar with several parts of the Great Ceremonial House, including BouTiki and Moana Mercantile, the two shops here.
On the second floor, guests love to dine at ‘Ohana and Kona Café. Just beyond the lobby, Pineapple Lanai serves Dole Whips.
Finally, Disney day drinkers worship at the altar of Trader Sam’s Grog Grotto and Tiki Bar.
Sometimes, these folks get lost and almost stumble into Capt. Cook’s by accident. It resides mere steps from the entrance to Trader Sam’s.
You just have to keep walking. When you do, you’ll notice some cash registers and refrigerated items. That’s Capt. Cook’s!
About Mobile Ordering
Like many Walt Disney World restaurants, Capt. Cook’s has leaned hard into Mobile Ordering during the pandemic.
So, that made our dining experience much simpler than in past years.
Historically, we’ve entered one of the cash register lines, which have generally remained crowded.
Casual Disney fans aren’t too aware of Capt. Cook’s, but frequent Polynesian resort guests are fanatical about it.
Since we’ve historically used the Disney Dining Plan more often than not (come back soon!), that added an extra layer to the ordering process.
We usually expected to wait at least five if not ten minutes before we had our order placed.
Thanks to the magic of Mobile Ordering, there’s no time delay whatsoever now!
We noticed a stormfront developing outside our hotel window. This caused us to cancel plans at Disney Springs that morning and choose Capt. Cook’s.
We whipped out our phone and pulled up the breakfast menu. The beauty of Mobile Ordering is that you can customize as desired.
However, we’re fairly meat and potatoes at breakfast (literally, in my case). So, we had no need for such specialization this time.
Dinner is a different story, and I can tell you that we ordered here twice for that meal as well. This was a VERY Capt. Cook’s-intensive trip.
Anyway, once we placed our order, we started walking to the Great Ceremonial House.
We were staying in the Moorea longhouse if that means anything to you.
By the time we were halfway there, we could signal for Disney to prepare our meal. Once we arrived via the back door by the lava pool, our order was ready.
This proved important, as the cast member in charge wasn’t going to let us in without a Mobile Order ready.
Breakfast for Carnivores
Over the years, I’ve made no secret of the fact that I love one Disney breakfast above all others.
The Bounty Breakfast Platter just makes sense to me because it has a small sample of everything I need.
The standard version comes with bacon, sausage, breakfast potatoes (See? Meat and potatoes!), scrambled eggs, French toast, and a biscuit.
If I were ordering a la carte, those are the precise items I would want. In fact, I snagged some extra bacon and sausage since this was closer to a brunch.
I was flying out that morning and didn’t want to settle for airport food instead.
As always, every ingredient tasted fantastic. In truth, if I’d gone to a Disney character meal breakfast, I would have snagged the same items off the buffet.
The only difference would have been that I’d have had more biscuits that way. Oh, and the meal would have cost three or four times as much.
I still would have done it, though. My family really misses the Best Friends Breakfast at ‘Ohana. But I digress.
The point is that I enjoyed this meal so much that I lamented that my dinner that evening at home wasn’t anywhere near as satisfying.
Breakfast for Foodies
My wife is a vegetarian, which causes her to investigate plant-based options during most meals.
At Capt. Cook’s, she has a better choice. This restaurant sells the legendary Tonga Toast, and it does so for cheaper than Kona Café.
Yes, those are the only two places at Disney that sell Tonga Toast, with Capt. Cook’s offering the better deal.
Several influencers have compared the two versions over the years before coming to the obvious conclusion. It’s the same dish. So, why would you pay more for it?
What is Tonga Toast? Imagine sourdough bread stuffed with bananas and then sprinkled with cinnamon sugar.
Now, imagine a chef deep-frying the whole monstrosity. It’s glorious.
Tonga Toast stacks so high that you’d swear it was like eight different slices of bread. But this stack is overflowing with banana! It’s deep-fried banana bread!
Folks, I’m not speaking hyperbolically when I say that Tonga Toast is among the tastiest treats at Walt Disney World. It’s also the most unique.
Importantly, Tonga Toast comes with bacon or sausage, your choice. This is the extra that I snagged for my meal since my wife wasn’t going to eat it.
There’s just no way I’m letting spare Capt. Cook’s sausage go to waste.
That’s something else I love about Capt. Cook’s. Between this and the Bounty Breakfast Platter, there’s plenty of food for a couple to divvy up.
Final Thoughts
Obviously, my wife loved her Tonga Toast just as much as I adored my breakfast platter.
We’ve legitimately had this meal at least 10 times, and it’s never been anything other than exceptional.
Here’s the most remarkable part. That breakfast cost only $35 for both of us! And it was better than the $70 meal we had at home later that night!
Friends, when you stay at the Polynesian, you simply MUST try breakfast at Capt. Cook’s. Order the Tonga Toast and then thank me later!