Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge welcomed guests back to Boma today as the first Walt Disney World restaurant to return to buffet service since the COVID shutdown.
The great news is that Boma is serving breakfast and dinner in full self-service buffet style, and not family-style plated offerings that we have seen at other former buffets. Watch the video below for a quick look at Boma from this morning.
The setup is almost identical to the original, with a few minor adjustments that we think actually make things better than before.
At the omelet station, instead of placing an order and waiting for it to be cooked, the omelet chef is constantly producing three different varieties and placing them on the buffet for a grab and go. They are still fresh out of the pan, but without the queue and the wait.
Parfaits and fruit salads also get a similar treatment, with those items set up in dishes ready to pick up and go.
The ham carving station is back as before, as the vast majority of the other items on the hot and cold menu.
Since reopening, one of the only notable omissions is the Pog or Jungle Juice that both Boma and 'Ohana served for many years. Apparently, the product is no longer produced by Coca-Cola, so the standard beverage choice now is orange juice and coffee.
The restaurant is currently operating at around 50% capacity on its first day, with plenty of spacing between seated groups. Guests are wearing masks when moving from the table to the buffet, and all servers are masked.
Hand sanitizer stations are available around the buffet stations.
It is excellent to see Boma return in its original format and delivering great food and service. The Cast Members throughout the restaurant were excited to be back and providing a great experience.
Boma has always been a highly rated location for breakfast and dinner, and it seems fitting that it is the first buffet to return. And talking about dinner, our breakfast server today told us that dinner is also resuming essentially unchanged from before, with just a few modifications with some pre-plated items for grab and go.
Other former buffets are expected to revert to buffets from their reopening family-style soon. We understand the next buffet is likely to be Crystal Palace in September.
Click the gallery to see more pictures of breakfast at Boma.
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