Is Busch Gardens’ all-day dining plan worth it? Tips to maximize your visit
Did you know Busch Gardens Tampa Bay offers an all-day dining plan? Would this upgrade be worth it for your visit to the park?
UPDATE (August 2025): In recent weeks, there have been some significant changes to the all-day dining plan since we first published this report in December 2024. One change stands as a great one for Busch Gardens Tampa Bay guests. However, some others lower the potential value of the dining plan. We will explain those in this theme park resource.
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For some guests, the theme park dining prices qualify as scarier than a visit to an after-hours spooky event like Howl-O-Scream. For those planning to spend a day at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay in Florida, a dining upgrade known as the “All-Day Dining Deal” could help with food and beverage prices.
Busch Gardens’ all-day dining: The basics
Busch Gardens Tampa Bay says the park’s all-day dining deal allows guests to “Pay once and enjoy delicious meals and exclusive benefits throughout the day.”
Busch Gardens’ all-day dining costs $59.99 per person. The children’s version costs $29.99 per child. Annual pass member discounts apply. Sales offering additional savings can happen during certain times of the year (sometimes at half-price). The prices listed do not include tax and service fees. Park admission is not included, but is required. In addition, this dining plan is not valid during Howl-O-Scream evenings.
Busch Gardens’ all-day dining includes:
- one entrée platter (e.g., burger and fries or chicken tenders and fries)
- an additional side or dessert
- one fountain soft drink
The kids’ version consists of the standard kids’ meal, which includes a beverage.
Guests can get a new round of food every 90 minutes. Sharing Busch Gardens’ all-day dining is not allowed.
According to the Busch Gardens website, guests with the all-day dining plan can use it at:
- Zagora Café
- Oasis Pizza at Serengeti Overlook
- Dragon Fire Grill
- Zambia Smokehouse
- Chick-fil-A
Yes, you really can use the dining plan to get a Chick-fil-A sandwich, waffle fries, and a sweet tea. This dining plan is also accepted in a few other Busch Gardens Tampa Bay locations. However, the quick-service restaurants listed above make the most sense to visit with the all-day dining plan. (We hope this dining plan will be accepted at the TOMA quick-service location, which will open in 2025.) Places like the upscale Treetop Kitchen do not accept the all-day dining plan. Also, newly opened in 2025, Tot Topia is not part of the plan.
UPDATE: Good news! The All-Day Dining Plan is now accepted at TOMA at Orang Cafe. TOMA at Orang Café is a vibrant, quick-service restaurant. The dining establishment is known for its Latin-American-inspired menu, which was co-founded by actress Sofía Vergara and her son, Manolo Gonzalez Vergara. The menu features a variety of options, including flavorful bowls like the TOMA Beef Barbacoa Bowl and Pollo En Salsa Verde Bowl, as well as classic empanadas with unique fillings like French onion and vegan lentil. In addition to its culinary offerings, the cafe provides an exceptional dining experience with a prime view of the park’s orangutan habitat, making it a perfect spot to relax and refuel while enjoying the sights and sounds of the park.
Our most recent day utilizing Busch Gardens’ all-day dining
In 2024, we’ve utilized Busch Gardens’ all-day dining upgrade several times. Based on this, we reasonably grasp the best way to maximize this purchase. Nevertheless, your group may dine differently. Based on our most recent visit, this resource intends to showcase some guidelines for Busch Gardens’ all-day dining. We hope this account helps you plan a fabulous theme park day and determines if the all-day dining plan is worth it for your group.
Arrive early
You cannot eat all day if you do not start in the morning. Busch Gardens Tampa Bay usually opens at 10 a.m. Since most guests come to this theme park to do more than eat, we suggest heading to the right side of the theme park when you enter around 10 a.m. This will allow you to get a head start riding Cheetah Hunt and Cobra’s Curse, two attractions that typically accumulate the longest average wait times later on a standard day at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay.
Eat early (or at least try to eat early)
Since guests with the all-day dining deal can order food and beverages every 90 minutes, the sooner you start eating, the more you can eat. Note what time the Busch Gardens ambassadors scan your wristband or mobile phone bar code connected to all-day dining. (If you receive a receipt from an ambassador, this will help.) It is from that point that the 90-minute countdown starts. This could be useful if you have people who get hungry quickly in your group.
Conventional theory suggests that guests with all-day dining head back toward the theme park entrance after riding the previously mentioned two attractions to dine at Zagora Café. Zagora Café opens at 10:30 a.m. most days, and it will be the first dining location to open, giving guests a slight advantage in using the all-day dining deal.
Still, this plan does not always work. For example, during our most recent visit, Zagora Café did not open until 11 a.m. We noticed a crowd gathered to dine. They probably intended to use the all-day dining deal, but left at 10:37 a.m., giving up on the quick-service location opening on time. We also gave up and headed to a different quick-service location.
UPDATE: We have used the all-day dining plan twice since this visit. Zagora Cafe has opened at 10:40 a.m. both times.
When operating, Zagora Café serves standard theme park cuisine. Expect burgers, chicken sandwiches, chicken tenders, and salads. A plant-based burger can also be purchased here. The food quality rates as average theme park food, but portion size deserves some praise. Without the all-day dining deal, a burger with fries, a beverage, and dessert will cost about $29 here before discounts, if applicable. Based on that pricing, the value of all-day dining (again, $60 for adults) could help.
If one thinks they can bring their own food and beverage into Busch Gardens, like at Universal Orlando or Walt Disney World, that is prohibited at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, foiling that plan. This also increases the appeal of Busch Gardens’ all-day dining.
Word of warning about Zagora Café
At Zagora Café, guests dine outdoors in a covered area. The birds understand guests dine here, and they will not be shy about stealing your food. We have experienced our food being stolen by the birds before. If the birds steal your food, the Busch Gardens ambassadors will assist you in acquiring more.
UPDATE: Bad News! At Zagora Cafe and Dragon Fire Grill, some entrees come with an upcharge if using the all-day dining plan. For example, the Double Cheeseburger (regularly $20.99) requires an additional $5 upcharge if using the dining plan.
Want bacon? That’s another $2 — even though the menu board claims it’s $1. And the kicker? The $5 upcharge isn’t clearly displayed on the menu, leaving Busch Gardens ambassadors to explain it repeatedly to confused and slightly hangry guests. We’ve witnessed these conversations during two separate recent visits — and yes, they’re always a little awkward. We suggest checking with the ambassadors on details before ordering.
Busch Gardens’ all-day dining deal: Dragon Fire Grill
If Zagora Café does not open on time or you spend more time riding attractions to open the theme park day, Dragon Fire Grill in the Pantopia area offers many choices for those with all-day dining.
We visited this place as our first stop on our (self-planned) all-day dining tour. Our first entrée was the DFG Rice Bowl (with chicken), which costs $17.99 before any annual pass discounts. Guests receive rice, refried beans, cheese, and a protein of choice. We selected chicken. This makes a reasonable choice for those looking to avoid traditional theme park food.
The best part of this quick-service location is the topping bar. Guests can add items such as lettuce, tomatoes, and salsa to their entrée, creating a full meal with an above-average portion size.
Busch Gardens’ all-day dining meals include a regular-sized fountain beverage and a side or dessert. At Dragon Fire Grill, we selected a cupcake with our rice bowl.
Enjoy the theme park
Unless you came to Busch Gardens only to eat food, look at the show schedule and take in other attractions. For example, after dining at Dragon Fire Grill, we rode Phoenix Rising, located nearby, and walked to ride Sheikra before our next dining stop at the Zambia Smokehouse. Dragon Fire Grill and the Zambia Smokehouse should be considered the better quick-service options available with Busch Gardens’ all-day dining. Yes, we know Chick-fil-A exists. Still, what if you visit on a Sunday?
Busch Gardens’ all-day dining: Zambia Smokehouse
Zambia Smokehouse serves a variety of barbecue entrees. The primary menu items here are:
- Pulled Pork Sandwich
- Texas Style Brisket
- St. Louis Style Ribs
- Smoked Chicken
They each offer reasonable portion sizes and flavors. Guests not on the dining plan pay over $20 for an entrée. Therefore, if you plan to eat at Zambia Smokehouse, the Busch Gardens’ all-day dining plan deserves consideration.
Zambia Smokehouse presents guests with more side choices than other dining options that participate in the all-day dining plan. These sides range from macaroni and cheese, baked beans, coleslaw, and fresh fruit to a pickle.
We ordered the Texas-style brisket, which comes with baked beans, Texas toast, and fries. Since we had all-day dining, we got a diet soft drink and a side of macaroni and cheese.
The positives of this entrée are the variety of flavors and the large portion size. The negatives for us on the most recent visit were the lower quality of the beans and macaroni and cheese. On a personal note, we find the brisket here has too much fat for our dining preference. In fairness, we think our steak has too much fat when covering upscale signature steakhouses.
UPDATE: Bad News! Several of the higher-priced entrees at Zambia Smokehouse are no longer available using the dining plan. This includes the Texas Style Brisket. However, the menu items that are part of all-day dining are clearly marked on the menu screens.
UPDATE: Good News! Our new favorite theme park sandwich is the Smoked Turkey Sandwich at Zagora Cafe. It remains available with the Busch Gardens dining plan. You can also order it with an additional side of mac & cheese.
Busch Gardens’ all-day dining: Breakeven point
Though we doubt anyone would order food like this at a theme park, we had ordered enough food and beverages based on standard pricing to equal the standard price of Busch Gardens’ all-day dining. So, with these two meals at Dragon Fire Grill and Zambia Smokehouse, we would have spent around $60 paying without discounts or the dining deal.
Once again, it is not realistic for theme park touring to have two full meals before 1 p.m. when the theme park opens at 10 a.m. Still, that is part of the trap of buying Busch Gardens’ all-day dining. Once you buy it, you feel you need to use it, no matter what! Guests should weigh this carefully before purchasing this dining upgrade to decide if it is worth it.
Busch Gardens’ all-day dining: Oasis Pizza
Near Cheetah Hunt, guests can find our next stop, Oasis Pizza. This is located on the second floor of the building directly across from Cheetah Hunt. As the restaurant name implies, this location focuses on pizza. In fact, the main menu items here should be called flatbreads.
UPDATE: Bad News! Margherita Pizza is no longer at Oasis Pizza. Also, our last three dining experiences here have been below average.
Despite that distinction, the flatbreads offer a decent flavor. Guests can choose between cheese, buffalo chicken, Margherita, and pepperoni style. This place also sells some sandwiches with fries. We suggest selecting flatbreads if dining here. Our current preference is for the Margherita version. Some sides are offered, like garlic knots and mozzarella sticks. Our experience with the sides has been less than stellar in the past.
Oasis Pizza offers indoor and outdoor seating, and the Giraffe Bar is on the same floor for those who want an adult beverage during their theme park day.
On our most recent visit, we ordered pepperoni pizza and mozzarella sticks as a side. Based on the all-day dining plan, these also came with a fountain beverage.
This visit confirmed an age-old dining rule in theme parks: Do not order quick-service pizza! We have eaten here at least four other times in the last six months. The pizzas are good but not great, and the speed of service has been slower than ideal.
During this visit, we watched people leave the queue, giving up on getting their food. We understand, since it took 27 minutes from placing our order until we received it. This is not an everyday occurrence, but guests should expect a slower process here.
Nonetheless, we enjoyed a relaxing meal outdoors on a beautiful day at Busch Gardens. In fact, we typed every word to this point in this article during that relaxing meal. On a slower day at Busch Gardens, Oasis Pizza can provide a nice break from the crowds of a theme park day.
Busch Gardens all-day dining: Status update
Everything listed above happened before 3:30 p.m. on our day with all-day dining. The theme park closed at 8 p.m. on this weekday. By this point, we had ridden several attractions, dined three times, and saw some shows.
We decided to search for any new merchandise and then make our way over to Chick-fil-A since the #blessed chicken was calling our name.
If you are wondering, the chicken sandwiches at the Busch Gardens location taste the same as those at your local Chick-fil-A. Guests using the Busch Gardens all-day dining plan get fries as their side and a non-alcoholic beverage. The menu is minimal, with two sandwich choices and a chicken tender option.
Since we would pick up our Chick-fil-A order around 4:15 p.m., we would have at least one more all-day dining meal after that if we desired (utilizing the 90-minute rule). Zagora Café would make the most sense. It stays open longer than the other dining spots at Busch Gardens, or at least it is supposed to do so. We had doubts based on our experience in the morning.
Busch Gardens all-day dining: Break from food
For those trying to “get their money’s worth” with Busch Gardens’ all-day dining, you will hit a food wall at some point unless you are sharing food among a group. Once again, sharing food is prohibited by the rules of this upgraded food deal.
We have encountered the “food wall” before when working using the all-day dining deal. For us, this usually hits after the fourth meal. Your experience may vary. If one person consumes all the food as a part of this deal, they might want to take a break from food. Busch Gardens provides a wonderful theme park experience to aid with that.
After we ate at Chick-fil-A, we walked around (not a bad idea when you have eaten so much food). Then, we rode the Skyride to take in some views of Busch Gardens. There was a queue to ride this attraction, which slowed us down slightly.
After that, we walked towards the Pantopia area. The posted wait for Phoenix Rising, the newest roller coaster in the theme park, was only five minutes. However, we waited longer than that due to the ride’s slow loading. We enjoyed our 20th ride of the year on this coaster.
Busch Gardens’ all-day dining: Final meal
Though we considered finishing our evening at Zagora Café, we took a different path. Phoenix Rising is near Dragon Fire Grill, so we decided to dine there to complete our evening. Depending on your stomach’s condition, you may want only a beverage and a dessert at this point in the theme park day. You can do that. Still, we ordered a bacon cheeseburger with fries, a Coke Zero, and a cupcake.
(Remember, we also ate here earlier. You can use the dining plan at the same restaurant multiple times, if you so choose.)
Regarding a dining review, we have previously eaten cheeseburgers at Dragon Fire Grill and Zagora Café. The burgers were fine and maybe above average in those cases, with a reasonable portion size. However, we ordered those in the morning and early lunch hours. In this case, we ordered a burger in the evening during our latest visit to Busch Gardens. We would not suggest doing that.
After eating our meal, we went to Cobra’s Curse and Cheetah Hunt to close our evening. As mentioned earlier, those roller coasters draw the longest daily queues. Each also breaks down more often than other attractions at Busch Gardens. If guests see a short queue, this makes an ideal time to ride.
Is Busch Gardens’ all-day dining plan worth it?
Whether Busch Gardens’ all-day dining is worth it for you and your group can only be decided by you. Still, some principles should be examined to determine the worthiness of this dining deal. They are:
1.) Do you plan to stay all day at Busch Gardens? If not, you will pay for food opportunities you could not use.
2.) What are Busch Gardens’ operating hours when you plan to visit? This theme park often closes at 5 or 6 p.m., especially during September and October when Howl-O-Scream occurs. With limited theme park hours, the value of the all-day dining plan reduces. Of course, when the park stays open until 10 p.m., the value of this plan goes up. Still, longer hours of operation equal a more significant predicted crowd level, so queues for dining will be much longer.
3.) Do you expect to dine three or more times and order a non-alcoholic beverage and a dessert or side for each meal? If not, this dining deal might make you spend money on something you would not usually use. With entrées costing about $20 on average, guests must dine three times to ensure the $59.99 price point for Busch Gardens’ all-day dining makes sense.
4.) Do you have one or two members of your group that eat more than others? If you have a stereotypical hungry teenager in your group, the pre-paying convenience of the all-day dining deal might make sense. The adult could buy the hungry teens this plan. The teens could eat whenever they wanted, and the adult in charge of the theme park budget would know precisely the cost in advance.
5.) Did you purchase Busch Gardens’ all-day dining at a discount? For example, did you find a sale price of $40 for this dining deal? If so, the value increases. During our most recent visit, we paid around $25 (including tax and fees) for the Busch Gardens’ all-day dining deal. At that price, one entrée and a soft drink equal what we paid upfront. All other dining would be a bonus.
Final thoughts
We love the Busch Gardens’ all-day dining deal. Since July 2024, we have used it five times. We think it is worth it, especially when we find a discount for this dining deal.
Nevertheless, not everyone dines the same way in a theme park. This dining upgrade can save you time and money.
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