We review the Braised Short Rib entrée at Busch Gardens Christmas Town. Get our hopefully humorous take on flavor, portion size, and menu accuracy.
UPDATE (November 26, 2025): Busch Gardens Tampa Bay updated the name of this Christmas Town offering.
If Christmas Town at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay is Santa’s all-you-can-eat culinary playground, then Cabin #10 (Savory Sleigh) is where the elves experiment with comfort food wizardry. One of their headline offerings this year is the Braised Short Rib, priced at $10 (or significantly less if you’re using a Christmas Town Sampler Lanyard, the most powerful financial tool of the holiday season). Before we begin the taste-testing tale, let’s set the stage for the event itself.
Christmas Town 2025 Overview
Busch Gardens Tampa Bay’s Christmas Town once again transforms the park into a shimmering, sparkling, LED-powered winter wonderland. The park glows with millions of lights, seasonal decorations, holiday entertainment, and festive foods offered across multiple Christmas cabins.
Guests can expect:
- The dazzling Christmas on Ice show
- Character meet-and-greets and photo ops
- A massive array of Christmas lights
- Dozens of seasonal food and beverage offerings
- The bustling Festival Walkway, where Savory Sleigh proudly sits
If you love holiday lights, this event is your Super Bowl. If you don’t, bring sunglasses—because Busch Gardens went hard on the sparkle again this year.
Braised Short Rib — Dining Review
Menu Description
UPDATE: This Christmas Town menu item is now called the Short Rib Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese
Slow-braised beef short rib with butternut squash, mac and cheese with smoked gouda, basil, and crispy fried onions.
Location: Cabin #10 – Savory Sleigh (Festival Walkway)
Price: $10 (or less with sampler lanyard)
Read that menu description carefully and check out the website photo. Those will be important as we move on with this tale.
First Impressions (a.k.a. “Hey, This Is Actually Pretty Good!”)
Right out of the gate, we were impressed. Among the many dishes sampled during opening weekend, this one ranked higher than most, a minor Christmas miracle in itself.
The flavors worked well together:
- The mac and cheese, boosted with smoked gouda, had that cozy holiday warmth
- The butternut squash flavor was present
- But not take-over-your-life present
- (Unless you’re one of our team members who dislikes butternut squash—in which case, you were pleasantly surprised that the flavor played nicely with the others)
Portion size? Respectable! Especially for a theme park festival where “portion size” sometimes translates to “blink and it’s gone.” Despite our positive first impression, something felt missing!
But Then… the Great Braised Short Rib Disappearing Act
On the less-festive side, this entrée joins a growing club we call:
“The Bier Fest Misrepresentation Society.” (Exhibit #1)
The menu said braised short rib.
The website photos showed a legit piece of short rib majestically perched atop cheesy goodness.
Reality said:
“Well… here’s a whisper of short rib for you.”
Our serving had very little actual short rib, certainly not when compared to the chunky piece shown in promo photos. It was more like the soul of a short rib had passed through the dish at some point on its way to the afterlife. Perhaps we are being too harsh. Still, this entree does not look like the photo!
Also, the menu description suggests butternut squash pieces. There was very little, if any. The squash flavor showed up only in the mac and cheese sauce, like a guest appearance from a celebrity who wasn’t available to film full scenes. Seriously, why call it Braised Short Rib if there’s so little? Even we cut it a break when posting about it during our meal. A simple name change would make this dish work better.
Braised Short Rib at Christmas Town: Final Thoughts
The Braised Short Rib entrée at Christmas Town 2025 is:
- Good,
- Festive,
- Filling,
- And definitely worth trying with a sampler lanyard
…Still, it’s also another example of Busch Gardens’ seasonal tradition of “Expectation vs. Reality: Holiday Edition™.” If you go in expecting a hearty short rib centerpiece, you may be disappointed. If you go in expecting delicious mac and cheese with a hint of short rib involvement? You’ll have a merry little Christmas.
For more theme park dining reviews, visit MSM News every weekday at noon Eastern Time. As always, eat like you mean it! Additionally, we’ve placed other Christmas Town dining reviews below. Also, if you would like more information about Christmas Town, you can consult the official Busch Gardens Tampa Bay website.
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