Credit: DisneyDisney World has announced a new dining option for families seeking healthier choices during their time at the theme parks, amid a gargantuan number of closures and overhauls across all the parks.
Disney World Adds New Dining Option for Families: A Minor Distraction From All the Closures
Walt Disney World is adding a new chicken-tender option at Disney’s Animal Kingdom as guests navigate a growing slate of restaurant, attraction, retail, and resort refurbishments elsewhere on property. Baked Chicken Tenders are expected to join the Pizzafari menu in Discovery Island on September 6, giving families another familiar quick-service choice while several other Disney World offerings are temporarily—or permanently—disappearing.
Disney Springs is losing two Sunshine Churros kiosks after September 5, Wolfgang Puck Bar & Grill is approaching its September 13 permanent closure, and refurbishment projects continue across the theme parks and resort hotels.
Disney World Baked Chicken Tenders Are Coming to Pizzafari
Pizzafari is a quick-service restaurant in Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Its current online menu includes Creamy Pesto Chicken Pasta, a Chicken Caprese Baguette Sandwich, pizza, and Caesar salads.
The new Baked Chicken Tenders have been captured in recent menu tracking as a new Pizzafari entrée. The supplied menu information indicates the tenders are scheduled for September 6 and served with tangy dipping sauce and kettle chips.
What makes the item unusual is the preparation. A baked version gives guests a different option from the fried tenders commonly associated with quick-service dining. Disney has not described the entrée as “healthy,” so it is more accurate to call it an alternative preparation than make a nutritional claim without published nutrition information.
The New Food Arrives as Disney Springs Loses Familiar Options
The addition comes during a visible period of dining turnover. Both Sunshine Churros kiosks at Disney Springs are reported to be closing permanently after operations September 5, removing the Marketplace and West Side locations simultaneously. Disney has not announced replacements.
Inside the Magic previously reported on the Sunshine Churros closures and the earlier loss of Disney Springs food trucks. Those changes matter most to guests looking for quick, walk-up food rather than a full table-service meal.
Wolfgang Puck Bar & Grill is set to close permanently September 13, and Disney has not announced a replacement. Unlike a refurbishment, that closure removes the existing restaurant rather than temporarily taking it offline for maintenance. Inside the Magic’s coverage of the Wolfgang Puck Bar & Grill closure details the restaurant’s final operating date.
There is no evidence Disney introduced baked chicken tenders to distract from those closures, and the company has not presented the Pizzafari item as compensation for disappearing restaurants. But for guests, the developments land in the same vacation-planning environment: one new quick-service choice arrives while familiar choices are leaving.
Major Disney World Refurbishments Are Still Reshaping the Parks
Dining is only part of the story. Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress at Magic Kingdom has been temporarily unavailable since July 6. Disney’s official Carousel of Progress page says it expects the attraction to reopen in late spring 2027.
The refurbishment is substantial. Disney has confirmed a Walt Disney Audio-Animatronics figure for the attraction, while D23 2026 brought additional details about the updated show, including Jamie Lee Curtis and Bryan Cranston joining as the voices of the mom and dad. Inside the Magic has also covered the operational changes surrounding the Carousel of Progress closure.
At EPCOT, La Signature in the France Pavilion is also temporarily unavailable. Disney’s operating calendar lists the shop among locations closed for refurbishment, while previous Inside the Magic coverage of the La Signature refurbishment documented the extended closure.
Disney’s Hollywood Studios has experienced its own temporary interruption. Mickey Shorts Theater closed August 9 for temporary Annual Passholder magnet distribution, with a return expected later in 2026 but no exact reopening date announced in the reporting available at publication.
Magic Kingdom Construction Adds Another Layer of Change
Magic Kingdom remains one of the clearest examples of how much physical change is underway. Frontierland construction continues as Disney develops Piston Peak, its Cars-inspired expansion. Disney revealed new Piston Peak attraction details at D23 in August, reinforcing that the work is part of a long-term transformation rather than unrelated construction walls.
Guests should also watch the Walt Disney World Railroad schedule. Disney World has scheduled the railroad to close for refurbishment beginning September 28, with a reopening expected sometime in November, according to Inside the Magic’s coverage of the announced Magic Kingdom refurbishments.
That does not mean Walt Disney World is simply “closing.” Refurbishments are temporary, permanent vendor closures are a separate category, and construction projects are intended to produce new or updated experiences. Still, the concentration of work can materially change what a guest encounters on a particular vacation.
Pizzafari Gives Families One New Choice During a Transitional Fall
For families visiting Animal Kingdom, the practical takeaway is straightforward: Pizzafari is gaining another recognizable entrée while Disney World’s broader dining and attraction lineup is unusually fluid. Guests who prefer chicken tenders may soon have a baked option alongside pizza, pasta, sandwiches, and salads.
Before ordering, guests should check the official Pizzafari menu or My Disney Experience because offerings and operating details can change. The menu currently confirms Pizzafari’s established lineup, while the baked tenders’ September 6 rollout still needs final live-menu verification before publication.
New food, permanent restaurant departures, temporary refurbishments, and major construction are happening simultaneously. The baked chicken tenders won’t offset every closure, but they do represent something guests can gain while Disney’s parks and dining landscape continue changing around them.
