Teach me, I want to learn . . . going to Universal for the first time at Spring Break with our Boys (14 and 11)

[Mickey of the Villages]

My wife and I have never been to Universal and we are going for 3 days this Spring Break. We know all about Disney and not much about Universal.

I can figure out the part about the rides (we have express passes for the trip), but what about food, shows, and all the other things I don't know about?

Would you mind giving me the must-eats, must-sees, and all the other musts?

 

[cschaaf]

Similar thread here: https://www.disboards.com/threads/best-things-to-do-at-universal-studios-orlando.3778752/

 

[sharona]

We really like the Irish pub over by The Mummy for lunch. Dinner we like Vivo at City Walk or the NBC Sports Grill for either. Skip the crowd at Starbucks at CityWalk in the morning and go to the one in the park instead. The food in Simpson’s land was gross imo. The Royal pacific hotel has a noodle buffet some nights that is really good. There are tons of restaurants in Orlando that are just s as quick uber way if you need a brake from the crowds.

I know you said you could figure out the rides but just a heads up. The water rides at universal will soak you to the bone. Plan to need to change clothes.

 

[Jedimom33]

woohoo, we are also primarily Disney folks, but we LOVE Universal. Last trip there was last Thanksgiving, and it was BUSY. I would expect spring break to be busy too, so factor that into planning. If you're used to crowds at Disney, bring that crowd- planning mentality over to Universal, at least when it comes to meals, rope drop, etc, although express pass will help tremendously with crowds.
HOWEVER. Universal is so much more laid back, no FP planning at 60 days, no ADRs at 180 days, etc, so that's nice
Just don't try to eat at the popular times, gets very busy esp in the evening,

Even with express, we did have some waits. One time Rip Ride Rocket was 30 mins, Fast/Furious took us over 30 mins, etc. but that can also happen at Disney when lines back up, rides down, etc. but most moved very quickly w express. I think you miss a lot of the regular queue at FJ tho, so might want to walk that whole queue, maybe in the AM. I dont' think you miss anything at Gringotts w Express.

As far as food, QS in U/IoA is awful. BAD! Just think the worst QS in Disney (electric umbrella) all over the place. we actually opted to leave the parks and eat on City walk. We enjoyed Toothsomes, the Bread Box, and Cowfish (and Burger King for the pickier eater...) but I do second the PP's recommendation of the Irish pub. It was good. I have read/heard really great things about NBC café, so that may be a good option. But there are places for burgers/pizza throughout, The place in Jurassic park area was tolerable for that kind of food. NBC on City walk was ok. Craig and Ryno have done several vlogs/reviews of City walk and Universal restaurants, so check those out
We loved Florian Fortescue's for ice cream in DA. YUM! plus butter beer. Oh , the HP restaurants are fun, and to me a must do if you have HP fans. Food was just so-so though.

The horror makeup show should be fun for them, Are the kids HP fans??? In Diagon Alley, there's a brief Deathly Hallows show, and in Hogsmeade, the Frog Choir ( a little dull for my son) and Beaux Baton/Durmstrang show were good. Def do whatever projection show they're doing on Hogwarts castle. They are great! We skipped the nighttime show while were ther,e only because we ended up lingering in the pool at Hard Rock too long. Great pool. If your sons still kinda do character meets, there's Scooby doo and the gang, in Super Hero Island (Spider man, Capt America, etc), the Simpsons. My son loved the Simpsons area, and started watching the show after our trip. Kids didn't know who the Blues brothers are, but they still enjoyed watching them for awhile

Have fun!!!!

 

[Mickey of the Villages]

Thank you Jedimom33 this is terrifiic!

 

[GoofyDad_4427]

As far as food, QS in U/IoA is awful. BAD! Just think the worst QS in Disney (electric umbrella) all over the place. we actually opted to leave the parks and eat on City walk.

We skipped the nighttime show while were there only because we ended up lingering in the pool at Hard Rock too long. Great pool.

A few disagreements with this post.

We generally do table service, but we have done quick service at Universal twice. Once at Louie's and once at a place (don't remember the name) over by the comic book stuff that had made to order sandwiches. We thought both places were significantly better than any quick service at Disney.

In addition, my boys (age 13 and 9, similar to OP's boys age 14 and 11) absolutely hated the Hard Rock pool. It's only 2.5 feet deep at the deepest part. Seems the pool is made for infants and adults. You can't jump in, can't do much at all in the pool for kids that want to be active. The pool at Portofino Bay was much better and the waterslide was much better there too.

 

[PantherPete]

In addition, my boys (age 13 and 9, similar to OP's boys age 14 and 11) absolutely hated the Hard Rock pool. It's only 2.5 feet deep at the deepest part. Seems the pool is made for infants and adults.

Not entirely true. I believe it is 4’ in spots. Still not deep enough to dive or anything.

 

[GamingBuck]

A few food thoughts:

• QS doesn't really impress me at either Disney or USO. However, at USO, I agree the sandwich shop at the toon landing (Dagwood's?) is solid. The Harry Potter restaurants have some good choices too for QS. If you eat in the Simpsons area the taco truck is much better than what you get inside.
• We've enjoyed the table service, and a reservation is easy to make and generally make it immediate sit-down. We like Mythos, Finnegans, the fish place in US, and Confisco. Prices aren't much more that QS. If you don't want to go it's no big deal.
• Citywalk is such a great option right there that I don't eat dinner in the park, and frequently eat lunch there before midday breaks. We really like Cowfish, Moe's, Breadbox, Vivo, Red Brick, and Antojitos. Especially Cowfish.

 

[Alicefan]

A must do for my family is Finnegans Irish pub in the Studios. You will be in awe at the normal prices in comparison to Disney for a sit down meal. I'm always in shock because the food is pretty darn good and it's priced the same as any restaurant outside the gates. I find the same to be true with Mythos. Good food, really nice atmosphere and cheap for a theme park. As for counter service we usually go for 3 Broomsticks. They have some different choices from the nothing but pizza and burgers throughout the rest of the park. We enjoyed the big feast that they offer and it's great for big families and it has something for everyone. We had food left over and we're big eaters. It's fun to get a milkshake from Toothsome up front, but I'd avoid eating there. It's very average at best.