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Sometimes you can find good food in the most unlikely of places. One of Universal’s Value resorts has food that is certainly worth eating during your stay.
Cabana Bay Beach Resort
If you want to save money when you head to Universal Orlando, you might consider staying at one of the official Universal Hotels. Cabana Bay Beach Resort is a Universal Prime Value resort that has a lot to offer guests during their stay.
You can read a full guide to Cabana Bay Beach Resort HERE. You will find that one of the benefits of a stay at Cabana Bay is the availability of decently good food options.
In addition to a Starbucks, a Soda Shop, pool bars, and food at the bowling alley, you will find a quick service staple called Bayliner Diner. And, some of the options here are worth your hard-earned vacation dollars.
Bayliner Diner
Bayliner Diner is a quick-service restaurant at Cabana Bay Beach Resort. It is a cafeteria-style restaurant with several different food stations preparing hot options for visitors.
It is full of fun retro-diner theming and decor. You will find classic TV clips and advertising on big screens and plenty of seating in the dining room to keep you entertained and comfortable while you enjoy your meal.
Location
Bayliner Diner is relatively easy to find. It is the biggest dining area at Cabana Bay Beach Resort.
If you head into the lobby in the main building, you need only to turn at the gift shop, toward the Starbucks. Keep heading past the Starbucks, and you will find it right there on the first floor!
Market
If you are interested in a grab-n-go selection, Bayliner Diner has plenty of quick eats. These are primarily prepackaged items, premade salads, or premade sandwiches.
You will also find refillable souvenir cups for purchase. These mugs can be used throughout the length of your stay. You can bring your same mug back and pay to reactivate on subsequent visits as well.
Of course, you can also find hot meals at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Here is a rundown of everything we tried!
Breakfast
It is pretty hard to mess up breakfast. And, Bayliner Diner has plenty of options ready for you to try at the various stations. The options are all relatively basic, and there is nothing particularly memorable, but it is all pretty good.
The Sandwiches & Wraps station offers bacon, egg, and cheese croissants, salmon bagels, or breakfast wraps. Or you can visit the Griddle for items like waffles, made-to-order omelets, pancakes, or french toast.
If you like, you can enjoy yogurt parfait or fresh fruit salad. It is spread out on the salad bar so you can make your own combination if you wish. Or you can also grab sweet pastries and muffins.
Lunch and Dinner
Bayliner Diner also has a variety of lunch and dinner options. There are plenty of basic items including premade salads.
But, if you want hot food, you will have plenty of choices as well. In fact, it is this meal period that offers some pretty stellar items.
Sandwiches
The stars of the show, surprisingly, are the sandwiches. Bayliner Diner offers a great Cuban sandwich. It is served with a side. This meal is a large enough portion to share if you would like to save a little money.
This Cuban is fresh and flavorful. It is piled with ham, pork, turkey, swiss cheese, pickles and mustard. And the pasta salad is just one of the many side dish options.
But, an even better sandwich is the Ultimate Grilled Cheese Sandwich. This isn’t a standard slice of chees between two pieces of bread. This grilled cheese is layer with cheddar, swiss, and provolone cheeses, as well as spinach and tomatoes on multigrain bread.
If you like, you can even add bacon! However, it is perfectly delicious without it. It is possibly the best theme park grilled cheese on the planet.
Bayliner Diner serves amazing sandwiches.
International Options
If you prefer other hot options, you are in luck. Bayliner Diner also offers international foods to enjoy.
One of the best of these is the Brazilian Beef Churrasco. This is marinated and grilled flat iron steak served with chimichurri sauce and choice of two sides. Side options include rice, vegetables, plantains, roast cauliflower, black beans, and more. It is another dish that is certainly large enough to share.
Different members of my travel party found that the dish was tender and flavorful on two different days, which speaks well for the consistency. I was actually surprised by how good it is.
Pizza
And, if all else fails, you can rely on pizza. The pizza at Bayliner Diner is what you will find at other counters around Universal.
It is a big pizza, and plenty enough to split with other members of your travel party. It isn’t the best pizza in the parks. However, it is a well-documented fact that even bad pizza is still pretty good.
This particular pizza is a little puffy, and a little greasy, but it does the trick! You can enjoy cheese or pepperoni options.
Dessert
If you want dessert, and you love ice cream, you might be better served to skip the bakery items and head over to Shakes Malt Shoppe, which is near the Bayliner Diner seating area. It serves sundaes and milkshakes. And, they are tasty.
Overall
Should you go out of your way to head to Bayliner Diner if you aren’t staying at Cabana Bay Beach Resort? Probably not. It is convenient if you are right across the way at Aventura and want a change of scenery.
However, if you are planning to head back to the resort in the middle of the day or you would like a late dinner after a day at the parks, you will certainly be able to find decent and even delicious options to enjoy! This is especially true if you love a good sandwich.
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Have you ever tried Bayliner Diner at Universal Orlando’s Cabana Bay Beach Resort? Let us know in the comments. And, be sure to share the review with anyone you know who is considering a trip to Universal Orlando.