Kings Island 2026 Food Reviews and Discussion

[IndyGuy4KI]

Let's use this thread to discuss. Food plans, meal options and perk treats.

[KICP16]

So I’m just going too accept that this was due first day open, new employees, still learning, still fine tuning things. I got the chicken tenders are chicken shack the portion size was TINY TINY TINY. 3 of the smallest chicken tenders you’d ever seen pretty much 3 small chicken chunks wish I would’ve taken a picture.  I have all season meal plan so I didn’t care but if I were someone who didn’t have a meal plan and I paid $20 for this I would be throwing a fit. 
but I’m gonna accept it’s early and things will get better. Bbq sauce empty outside chicken shack too happened a lot last year so right back too it 

[Diamondback_Is_King]

3 minutes ago, KICP16 said:

So I’m just going too accept that this was due first day open, new employees, still learning, still fine tuning things. I got the chicken tenders are chicken shack the portion size was TINY TINY TINY. 3 of the smallest chicken tenders you’d ever seen pretty much 3 small chicken chunks wish I would’ve taken a picture.  I have all season meal plan so I didn’t care but if I were someone who didn’t have a meal plan and I paid $20 for this I would be throwing a fit. 
but I’m gonna accept it’s early and things will get better. Bbq sauce empty outside chicken shack too happened a lot last year so right back too it 

From every time I've ever gone to Chicken Shack they always load me up with chicken and fries. Probably was an opening day thing. Or maybe their cutting down on portion sizes again. We saw this with Panda Express, Enrique's, and i'm sure there were others too. Give it time. I don't really like going to KI during the first month or 2 of operation because of how packed and slow everything is. But I'll be there tomorrow so I'll have to check it out.

How were the food lines today? Normally they are pretty long in the first few opening weeks.

[KICP16]

1 minute ago, Diamondback_Is_King said:

From every time I've ever gone to Chicken Shack they always load me up with chicken and fries. Probably was an opening day thing. Or maybe their cutting down on portion sizes again. We saw this with Panda Express, Enrique's, and i'm sure there were others too. Give it time. I don't really like going to KI during the first month or 2 of operation because of how packed and slow everything is. But I'll be there tomorrow so I'll have to check it out.

How were the food lines today? Normally they are pretty long in the first few opening weeks.

Last year the portion sizes were very generous and I’ve heard rumors from other parks this year that portion sizes have shrunk dramatically so when I got that from chicken shack it worries me but we shall see. My other meal was the shrimp po boy so you can’t really adjust that portion size it’s always the same and it was delicious as always. 
food lines were very reasonable from what I saw around dinner time they got a little long but they seemed too be moving and not much slow downs. For first day open they probably did very well 

[brenthodge]

Burgundy beef. BAD replacement for soy glazed. Weird taste. Weird texture. Like a pasty stew with sad carrots. Definitely a step down. 

[IndyGuy4KI]

39 minutes ago, brenthodge said:

Burgundy beef. BAD replacement for soy glazed. Weird taste. Weird texture. Like a pasty stew with sad carrots. Definitely a step down. 

I actually liked it. Sometimes the soy beef was very dry and this had a good taste and was very tender. The pork was very good today too.

[KICP16]

I had the shrimp po boy and pasta salad and chicken shack tenders today 

shrimp po boy and pasta same as last year very good hope this location is open more this year during the week it was mostly open weekends only last year. I kept going back and forth what I wanted for my second meal I wanted too try the new footlong hot dog with Mac and grippos at brewhouse but it was a pretty long line at dinner time so I decided too try too get that another day 

[BB1]

I had the burgundy beef today. I think it was way too salty for my tastes but had really good flavor. Which I feel as if is a detriment to the overall profile as the food itself was delicious but the salt just overpowered everything. Definitely way too hardy for a summer day but would be something I would enjoy in the fall. I hope the park sees value in a rotational menu and maybe starts doing a form of seasonal kitchen out of Grain and Grill as I feel like there is a lot more that can be had from that location. I just wish we had a lemon herb chicken or some form of white meat that isn't fried/processed beyond measure like the chicken tenders. 

[Losantiville Mining Co.]

2 hours ago, Diamondback_Is_King said:

How were the food lines today? Normally they are pretty long in the first few opening weeks.

The line for the Brewhouse was out of the front door around 3 as we were walking toward Potato Works. Then, we decided to ride the train before getting our food. When we got off of the train around 3:20, Brewhouse didn't have a line so we went inside and only waited about 10 minutes in line due to some register issues (which I witnessed while getting a drink from LaRosa's on I-Street as well). What we actually waited for was our food. We snagged a booth and proceeded to wait 30 minutes for a plain Pub Burger, a Mac & Cheese Dog, and a Hail Caesar Salad. The receipts still say "King's Island" with the wrong spelling and all. I swear it should be as easy as editing the name in a Settings menu, but it's not been done. For those who keep track like I do, the meal plan "price" is $11.00 per meal and the drink plan "price" is $2.00 per SP paper cup. I'm glad that the Brewhouse does still allow guests to refill their cups, but I wish they could find a way to reconfigure the guest flow and partially separate the register exit from the soda fountains. 

 

Now for my actual food review: I ordered a plain Pub Burger (no L, T, or O) and a Coke from the Miami River Brewhouse around 3:30PM today. It took about 10 minutes to get to the register due to POS system issues in front of us and about 30 minutes to get our food after ordering. We've waited that long before, but it's not a great experience when we could've just gone over to the Rivertown Potato Works and had our food out quicker. When our food did come out my burger was absolutely steaming hot (mmm yes SuperNintendo Chalmers, those were indeed steamed hams 🍔) and my tater tots — uh, I mean potato barrels — were cooked to perfection. The member of my group who got the Mac Dog received it without the Grippos despite requesting everything stay on it. It sounded like the salad was good as well. I was really close to joining the clean plate club, but I started to feel full right before I could get there. Overall, it was a really good meal!

[Swiftdrawer]

Skyline was the same as ever but they gave my sibling so little cheese while on mine, I got a little extra. Instead of often giving guests 2 packs of crackers a whole bunch as they did last year, they only gave one. Thats not a big deal but worth mentioning. Other than that, O tried the neopolitan ice cream sandwich at Sweet Spot. They prepare it fresh for you, having the ice cream stored in their big walk in freezer and everything. It was really good, cookies were warm and everything. The staff at Sweet Spot were awesome and caring and attentive yesterday.

[WoodVengeance]

I just stopped and got food at Coney BBQ. The portion sizes they were serving still seem to be rather generous. I’ve noticed they changed to waffle fries for this season, but they still use the same seasoning.

[disco2000]

^Interesting as they were not waffle fries yesterday.

[WoodVengeance]

Used my second meal at Grain & Grill. I wanted to get the roasted pork there, but they were out of it when I went, so I ended up just getting the chicken tenders with alfredo instead. I will advocate for Grain and Grill having the best chicken tenders in the park, though it's still chicken tenders at the end of the day. I do really appreciate the switch to alfredo, as it is one of my favorite pasta options and I'm glad it's now available at the park. I've seen some people upset that the alfredo replaced the macaroni and cheese that used to be served at Grain & Grill, but that's still being served at Coney BBQ so I can just get it there if I wanted it that much. I prefer it when the different restaurants have separate options from one another so you're not just getting the same thing.

I'm going back to the park tomorrow and I'll use my first meal at Grain & Grill to try and get that roasted pork.

[Hawaiian Coasters 325]

I got the roasted pork at Grain and Grill for lunch today. They were out of alfredo so I got the potatos as my side. I'm surprised the alfredo is a side. Fettuchine Alfredo has always been a meal to me. 

For dinner, I got the smoked chicken with mac and cheese at Coney BBQ. I was very impressed with the chicken. It was pretty moist which is how I like it and it is a pretty good size piece of chicken. They ran out of the chicken right before me, but luckily they had more coming out right away so I was able to get it. I definitely would have a backup plan as it does look like the chicken will be very popular so it may be one that runs out a lot. 

[Losantiville Mining Co.]

Earlier today I saw a photo of a meat (?) sandwich on a burger bun cut in half with a bowl of mac & cheese in between the two halves. Does anyone know what Kings Island food item that might be? It looked to be from French Corner, but it wasn't the shrimp po boy or the new crowaffle breakfast sandwich. It looked to be really nicely presented so I'm wondering if I should see about trying it.

I wish they would've kept some form of hot dog on the Brewhouse's menu instead of making it a Chef's Special item — though I do appreciate that the new hot dog is available for the meal plan.

In case anyone would like to see, here is the 2026 standard menu at the Miami River Brewhouse. As you can see, the prices now range from $13 to over $20 for the entrees. I also noticed that they don't have a price for fountain beverages listed anywhere, which would be nice to know if I didn't have the drink plan. Some of these prices are ridiculous, but I think most guests know to either buy a dining plan or eat outside of the park.

 

Speaking of the meal plan, do you like that the meal plan and drink plans are separate or do you wish the two were combined for a slightly higher price? I prefer them to be separate.

[disco2000]

31 minutes ago, Losantiville Mining Co. said:

Earlier today I saw a photo of a meat (?) sandwich on a burger bun cut in half with a bowl of mac & cheese in between the two halves. Does anyone know what Kings Island food item that might be? It looked to be from French Corner, but it wasn't the shrimp po boy or the new crowaffle breakfast sandwich. It looked to be really nicely presented so I'm wondering if I should see about trying it.

 

You are talking about the Muffuletta sandwich and pasta salad that has been available at French Corner for the past 2 seasons or so. 

[IndyGuy4KI]

I enjoyed the pork and the new beef at Grain and Grill. Both were very good. I prefer the Alfredo pasta over the parks mac n cheese. So I am very happy to have that at Grain and Grill. I might be eating a lot of my meals there this season.

[brenthodge]

On 4/17/2026 at 11:29 PM, BB1 said:

I had the burgundy beef today. I think it was way too salty for my tastes but had really good flavor. Which I feel as if is a detriment to the overall profile as the food itself was delicious but the salt just overpowered everything. Definitely way too hardy for a summer day but would be something I would enjoy in the fall. I hope the park sees value in a rotational menu and maybe starts doing a form of seasonal kitchen out of Grain and Grill as I feel like there is a lot more that can be had from that location. I just wish we had a lemon herb chicken or some form of white meat that isn't fried/processed beyond measure like the chicken tenders. 

Agree on it being more of a Fall thing and would love a lemony - herb chicken there. The food needs to match the season.

[IndyGuy4KI]

9 hours ago, brenthodge said:

Agree on it being more of a Fall thing and would love a lemony - herb chicken there. The food needs to match the season.

The grilled chicken they had at KD's Grain and Grill last year was very good. I would not mind that at all!

[brenthodge]

Breakfast great idea. Not so great operations or quality. You have two order lines, then no clear area or side where food is brought to. Does it come to the side you ordered? Does it come to the side closest to the kitchen? Does it come to the side more out of the way where people are all standing? Yes. Pick one, who knows which one you will get. I can guarantee you though it will NOT be the place you move to after seeing 3 orders being given out there. It will also NOT be from the bar where there is a door right into the kitchen and a single associate staring off into space because no one is drinking at 10:30am. Then when you get your food hand delivered by the executive chef who oversees all food quality and concept, you get a breakfast sandwich with a hard, kinda burnt egg rectangle and a slice of American cheese so cold it’s laying like a piece of cardboard on top. I really would’ve said “this is what you approve as ‘fine’ coming out of your kitchen, but they were so busy and backed up I didn’t have the heart to do it to anyone behind me. Again LOVE the concept and based on the line-needed, but needs to be figured out how to execute better. 

[disco2000]

Best ways to make breakfast fail is all of the above....

[Hawaiian Coasters 325]

It's unbelievable how bad the park has gotten when it comes with execution, consistency, and communication with stuff like this, operations, and special events! Whoever's job it is to be in charge of execution of this kind of stuff should honestly not have a job much longer! Busch Gardens Tampa should be able to show them what happens when you don't serve quality food at one of your restaurants and the wrong people find out (Dragon Fire Grill). I'd honestly rather wait longer to be served quality food than get mediocre/poor quality food in just a few minutes. I've defended this "new" chef as he started getting into the role, but it sounds like from complaints I'm seeing on social media that the food quality continues to get worse and not better and he's been here for 4 seasons now. If the EXECUTIVE CHEF approves poor/mediocre quality food being served to paying customers then that's a major red flag! If things don't improve this year then he should probably step down or be let go as much as I hate seeing people lose their jobs. I would rather not see the park go down the BGT route and have a restaurant be shut down by the health department bc of poor management.

[CedarPointer]

I think the main benefit of breakfast is that you can actually get drink plan coffee at 9:30am now. That building is just not set up for a high volume of people, and shoehorning an unpopular bar in there in place of the pickup window didn't help. If you've ever peeked into the kitchen, it's literally the size of a broom closet. I don't think they can/would, since it's right next to Starbucks, but I kind of wish it was at Grain and Grill instead, since that has a better setup for a high volume of people. I keep expecting it to get Brewhouse Chicken Sandwich'd and inexplicably disappear some day because it was "too popular", never to be discussed again.

One positive change since the first weekend is that the potatoes come in a paper portion cup now instead of the little tin, and you probably get twice as much (and half of it isn't burnt onto the tin).

[Losantiville Mining Co.]

Most of my meals at the park this season have been really good quality and were received by me (where applicable) in a reasonable amount of time. I got two hot slices of pepperoni pizza and two breadsticks from LaRosa's in Rivertown yesterday morning around 10:45 and marked the meal quality as "great" on my dining plan tracker. The longest I've had to wait for a meal was at the Brewhouse on Passholder Preview Day, and the worst meal of the season so far was Bacon Cheese Fries at Rivertown Potato Works last weekend. That meal was bad because they changed the cheese sauce and the fries tasted off compared to what I expected. 

A complaint I had on my visit yesterday was that, since they opened French Corner for breakfast, none of the other dining locations opened until 10:30AM or 11:00AM. That's probably part of the reason why so many flock to the French Corner beyond them having the breakfast items. Other locations not opening until 10:30/11 is fine in my book since I feel like only dedicated passholders are the ones who immediately go to eat something using their dining plan. The members of my group who got the breakfast items yesterday morning were happy with their meals.

The biggest issues in the current KI breakfast setup (that I've seen) are that it is only available at one small location and that there is not a dedicated order pickup location within the building. I'd turn Grain & Grill into a second breakfast location and move the French Corner's breakfast pickup over to the bar. The setup in FC is so crowded no matter what so hopefully a second breakfast location would help.

 

As much as I think the whole park should be ready and accepting customers from open to close, this adjusted dining location schedule is A-OK. I'd much rather have everything open later than have them all close an hour before the park closes for the night. (That might still happen this season though.)

[brenthodge]

1 hour ago, Losantiville Mining Co. said:

Most of my meals at the park this season have been really good quality and were received by me (where applicable) in a reasonable amount of time. I got two hot slices of pepperoni pizza and two breadsticks from LaRosa's in Rivertown yesterday morning around 10:45 and marked the meal quality as "great" on my dining plan tracker. The longest I've had to wait for a meal was at the Brewhouse on Passholder Preview Day, and the worst meal of the season so far was Bacon Cheese Fries at Rivertown Potato Works last weekend. That meal was bad because they changed the cheese sauce and the fries tasted off compared to what I expected. 

A complaint I had on my visit yesterday was that, since they opened French Corner for breakfast, none of the other dining locations opened until 10:30AM or 11:00AM. That's probably part of the reason why so many flock to the French Corner beyond them having the breakfast items. Other locations not opening until 10:30/11 is fine in my book since I feel like only dedicated passholders are the ones who immediately go to eat something using their dining plan. The members of my group who got the breakfast items yesterday morning were happy with their meals.

The biggest issues in the current KI breakfast setup (that I've seen) are that it is only available at one small location and that there is not a dedicated order pickup location within the building. I'd turn Grain & Grill into a second breakfast location and move the French Corner's breakfast pickup over to the bar. The setup in FC is so crowded no matter what so hopefully a second breakfast location would help.

 

As much as I think the whole park should be ready and accepting customers from open to close, this adjusted dining location schedule is A-OK. I'd much rather have everything open later than have them all close an hour before the park closes for the night. (That might still happen this season though.)

I think keeping the "cold breakfast" at FC is a good idea - like the waffle, fruit waffle and even a "breakfast sandwich" but then move the breakfast potatoes and a few "classic hot options" like baon, sausage, scrambled eggs - like an "American Breakfast" to grill and grain. The move to the bar for pick up seems like a no brainer in that the kitchen staff was having to run the food over to the register anyway (as in the order takers werent getting it in a pick up window) so they could just as easily walk out the kitchen door behind the bar for one single pick up location.