This is a topic that has for some reason really been bothering me lately. Let me tell you all a quick story.
At the beginning of the year I was at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park and in my anticipation to get there as close to opening as possible, I skipped breakfast. So when I got there I was hungry but hesitant to eat, as I assumed typical zoo food would be all that is offered. However, when I sat down to eat I was so happy to be wrong. I ate a fantastic salmon burger with tarter sauce, parmesan garlic fries and a small salad with a refreshing class of coke as a drink. The food was excellent and certainly worth the price. Not to mention there was the overall aesthetics of the eating area. A semi shaded deck with African music in the background, that was not so loud that it was disruptive but just loud enough to where I could here it. Not to mention, the deck overlooked a splendid shoebill stork island with dozens of ducks and pelicans swimming about. I didn't even care I was using time I could have been spending looking at animals. It was a brilliant experience, so much so I'm willing to declare it the best zoo meal I ever had. I may even be willing to declare it the best meal I ever had.
Though perhaps I feel this way not only because the meal was excellent in its own right, but because it exceeded anything I ever eaten or experienced (Food wise) at a zoo before. My local zoos food has some, eh, issues in my opinion. There are plenty of eateries scattered throughout the parks, but food ranges from passible to down right awful. Its usually just grossly overpriced fast food. It's not just my local facilities that have this issue, many other places have eateries that serve really quite bad food that is much to expensive. I never knew how good a zoo meal can be until the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. The zoo was also quite good may I add. A chicken caesar salad while staring out at a gorgeous look of the jungle landscape below. Not quite as good as its sister location, but certainly nothing to be ashamed of either.
So what are ways zoos can improve with their food and café quality? What are some of the best zoo eateries that currently exist?
At the beginning of the year I was at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park and in my anticipation to get there as close to opening as possible, I skipped breakfast. So when I got there I was hungry but hesitant to eat, as I assumed typical zoo food would be all that is offered. However, when I sat down to eat I was so happy to be wrong. I ate a fantastic salmon burger with tarter sauce, parmesan garlic fries and a small salad with a refreshing class of coke as a drink. The food was excellent and certainly worth the price. Not to mention there was the overall aesthetics of the eating area. A semi shaded deck with African music in the background, that was not so loud that it was disruptive but just loud enough to where I could here it. Not to mention, the deck overlooked a splendid shoebill stork island with dozens of ducks and pelicans swimming about. I didn't even care I was using time I could have been spending looking at animals. It was a brilliant experience, so much so I'm willing to declare it the best zoo meal I ever had. I may even be willing to declare it the best meal I ever had.
Though perhaps I feel this way not only because the meal was excellent in its own right, but because it exceeded anything I ever eaten or experienced (Food wise) at a zoo before. My local zoos food has some, eh, issues in my opinion. There are plenty of eateries scattered throughout the parks, but food ranges from passible to down right awful. Its usually just grossly overpriced fast food. It's not just my local facilities that have this issue, many other places have eateries that serve really quite bad food that is much to expensive. I never knew how good a zoo meal can be until the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. The zoo was also quite good may I add. A chicken caesar salad while staring out at a gorgeous look of the jungle landscape below. Not quite as good as its sister location, but certainly nothing to be ashamed of either.
So what are ways zoos can improve with their food and café quality? What are some of the best zoo eateries that currently exist?
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