Main Street, U.S.A. is the starting point for your adventure in the Magic Kingdom. Located at the front gates, Main Street, U.S.A. contains a lot of things that you may want to check out.
Regardless of the items that are marked as favorites, there are a wealth of other things to explore, see, and enjoy on Main Street, U.S.A. For instance, if you love popcorn like I do, there is no better spot to get a box of popcorn than right by City Hall. There is a popcorn cart that cooks fresh, hot popcorn quite a bit, so the smell is awesome, and you can grab a drink to go with it also! Best of all, you can use some of your dining credits from the Disney Dining Plan to pay for it if you like!
In addition to the popcorn vendor, you’ve also got City Hall. This is the place to go for buttons, dining reservations (if there are any), picking up packages you had delivered to the entrance, or any other questions you may have. You can also see some characters from time to time out front for autographs and pictures. Additionally, there is a restroom that you can use as you enter or leave the park.
As we continue to explore the Town Square section of Main Street, U.S.A., pay attention to the Walt Disney World® Fire Station — Engine Co. 71. This is a gift shop that is targeted to the EMS person in your family — don’t we all have at least one?
As a side note, last June when we were there, we went into this gift shop to purchase some things for our families. Anyway, while we were there, the computer registers went down, and they had to reboot them. For some people that were there, they decided to leave and not purchase their things. We decided to stick it out and wait. Well, to make a long story short, we were waiting for about ten minutes when a manager came over and told us that because of the problem, all of the things that we were going to buy were on the house! My niece got a nice sweatshirt for her brother for free (about a $25 sweatshirt), my daughter got a Bolt book for free, and I got a FD 71 hat free for my brother-in-law! That is one other thing that makes Disney, Disney.
On the other side of the Town Square is Tony’s Town Square Restaurant. This restaurant was the very first table service restaurant that we ate at when we arrived at Coronado Springs in 2007. The restaurant is themed with a “Lady and the Tramp” decor, with a nice fountain statue of the couple in the restaurant. The food is Italian, and was delicious. I’ve heard that it isn’t quite as good as it was then, but I would still try it out at least once!
Right next to Tony’s is Exposition Hall. It was at this location that we were able to have our story time with the Fairy Godmother. That has moved on to a venue over at Epcot, but Exposition Hall is still there, and to my knowledge, still has some of the historical pieces setup, as seen in these photos. In addition, now at Exposition Hall you can meet with Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, the Princesses, and more, so stop by and take a look!
Of course, the main attraction of Main Street, U.S.A. in my opinion is the Walt Disney World® Railroad. Where else but the Magic Kingdom can you hop on a real working train to travel around the park? The railroad takes you on a trip around the Magic Kingdom. You can stop and get off at any of the stops, which, in addition to the Main Street, U.S.A. stop, includes Frontierland and Fantasyland (the stop is near where the old Toontown Fair section of the Magic Kingdom used to be).
Before we head down Main Street, U.S.A., though, make sure you take time out of your visit to take a look at one of the two iconic statues that grace the Magic Kingdom. The one at the beginning of Main Street, U.S.A. is the statue of Roy O. Disney and Minnie Mouse, enjoying a pleasant day and having a wonderful conversation.
Continuing down Main Street, U.S.A., you come to what used to be one of my favorite places to eat: the Main Street Bakery. It is now a Starbucks, so I don’t eat here as often. If you aren’t hungry, don’t worry. Just walk by the building, or better yet, stop for a minute and just smell the delicious smells coming from the bakery! It becomes clearly evident that they have chefs that attended pastry schools! It doesn’t get any better than that, except for actually eating the food! The nice thing about it is that most of the foods that you can get there are available as a snack credit on the Disney Dining Plan, including one of Sophie’s all time favorite meals: PB&J.
On the other side of Main Street, U.S.A. and just up a little bit is Casey’s Corner. Casey’s is a quick, fun place to eat. The location is designed after America’s Pastime, which we all know is baseball. Casey’s serves a variety of foods you would find at the ball park — hot dogs, corn dogs, chicken fingers, etc., and it is good food for a low price.
Outside of Casey’s is something else that, if waited on, can be quite a treat. Outside is a special white upright piano, and from time to time, you can listen to the great music generated by one of the special Disney Cast Members. It is upbeat music, designed to put a smile on your face, and take you to a time you thought you had forgotten. If you have the patience, wait it out or ask for times on when the piano player will be appearing outside Casey’s! You’ll be glad you did!
In addition to the places I’ve already mentioned, don’t forget that Main Street, U.S.A. is home to a lot of great shops you can peruse and purchase from. The nice thing about them is that they are all connected together, so you can go from store to store on either side without having to go outside, then back in.
The other great statue on Main Street, U.S.A., is the statue of Walt and Mickey holding hands, looking over Walt’s creation. The statue, called “Partners”, is by legendary Disney designer Blaine Gibson.
The last stop on our tour of Main Street, U.S.A. is at The Crystal Palace. As I have mentioned, The Crystal Palace sits at number three on my top 10 places to eat at Disney. I have gone into a lot of detail about the restaurant, but words alone can not tell the whole story. Sometimes you need to include some pictures!
I hope that you have enjoyed this photographic and descriptive tour of Main Street, U.S.A., entrance to the Magic Kingdom theme park at Walt Disney World. Our next stop will be Fantasyland, home of Cinderella Castle, and so much more!
