The Smoked BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwich gets another review at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay after a disappointing recent experience.

When given the chance to choose a quick-service meal in the Florida theme parks, a pulled pork sandwich always appeals to us. We are not sure whether it’s because of training and going to school in Texas or just our fascination with BBQ sauce on a sandwich. No matter why, if a pulled pork sandwich is on the menu, we’ve most likely ordered it several times.

Speaking of pulled pork sandwiches, we recently went to Zambia Smokehouse at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay to eat the Smoked BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwich for at least the fifth time. This will be our third written review of this item, with some vlogs floating across the internet.

We Should Get An Award or Something, Right?

The main reason we’re visiting to try this sandwich is our proclivity for dining at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay. As of this writing, we have eaten every entree and snack available to guests at Busch Gardens daily. Sadly, our weight increase reflects that. Additionally, if a similar menu item appears at more than one dining location, we have tried each of those as well. This helps us compare which location has the best burger, chicken tenders, or pizza. By the way, this review will be published while we are on an All-Day Dining adventure at either SeaWorld Orlando or Aquatica Orlando.

This leads us back to the Smoked BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwich at Zambia Smokehouse. Since we have eaten everything at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, we needed to return for a few items. This sandwich got a terrible review last time. We needed to find out whether it was just a bad day or a pattern guests should know about.

In our June review, we determined that the Smoked BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwich at Zambia Smokehouse was well below acceptable standards. Still, with the time and resources to try it again, we did. In fairness, we did this with trepidation, fearing the worst. So how did it go?

Smoked BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwich at Zambia Smokehouse Review

Well, let us start with a surprise. The menu says all entrees come with fries. However, the ambassador asked us what side we wanted. Zambia Smokehouse has other sides like mac & cheese and coleslaw. Still, thinking that most guests will be offered only fries or choose them anyway, we went with fries.

This turned out to be a stroke of good fortune. The portion size of fries was plentiful. They looked well seasoned, as United Parks & Resorts does with this side. For theme park fries, these were very good. They were far better than the shoestring fries served at most Walt Disney World quick-service places. They actually enhanced the meal rather than just being filler.

Now, About the Smoked BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwich at Zambia Smokehouse

In our most recent review of this sandwich, we were struck by how bad the sauce tasted on the buns. On this visit, the sauce didn’t taste as bad.

However, while eating the sandwich, we kept thinking the pork and sauce lacked flavor. In fairness, we concede a bias toward Texas-style barbecue. However, we are familiar with and enjoy North Carolina, Memphis, and Kansas City style barbecue. The pork and sauce on this sandwich would not qualify as a reasonable version of any of those options either.

Sure, the sandwich was better than in early June. Still, we would expect more from a “smokehouse.” The “smokehouse” quick-service model is common and usually highly rated at United Parks & Resorts’ theme parks. However, as we wrote last time, the quality has dropped at Zambia Smokehouse.

Positives

On the plus side, the pork portion is excellent for a theme park sandwich. The bun holds up fairly well. If you get a good batch of fries, this makes a filling meal.

Additionally, Zambia Smokehouse recently updated the menu items in the All-Day Dining Program. During this visit, we once again saw that every menu item could be purchased with that dining plan. This offers guests variety and value.

Repeat Performance of the Smoked BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwich at Zambia Smokehouse

Just like in our most recent review, the sauce fails this sandwich. If the goal is to create barbecue that isn’t too challenging for picky eaters, the sauce might work.

However, most guests would be better off asking the ambassadors to leave the sauce off the pulled pork sandwich. Zambia Smokehouse has dispensers of Sweet Baby Ray’s barbecue sauce. That sauce, though not the best, would work far better.

We tried adding the Sweet Baby Ray’s brand sauce to our sandwich, but the two sauces don’t pair well. It helped a little, but not as much as we’d hoped. Also, before we even added extra sauce, the pulled pork and sauce left a significant amount of grease and sauce on our plate. That will not encourage guests to enjoy this meal.

Though this is part of the improving All-Day Dining Plan, the Smoked BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwich at Zambia Smokehouse currently costs $20.49. Sure, this provides a good portion size and fries. Still, that price point makes this meal tough to swallow- pun intended!

Was the Third Time the Charm?

While our most recent visit to Zambia Smokehouse didn’t completely change our opinion of the Smoked BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwich, we are encouraged that the experience was better than in our previous review. The generous portion of pork, plentiful fries, and continued availability through the All-Day Dining Program make this meal a worthwhile option. We still hope to see the sandwich improve, especially the barbecue sauce and overall flavor. Busch Gardens Tampa Bay has plenty of strong food options, and we know the park can deliver better barbecue. For now, we will keep trying the Smoked BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwich from time to time because, despite our criticisms, we are always happy to give a favorite type of theme park meal another chance to win us over.

By the Way, We Have Other Busch Gardens Tampa Bay Dining Reviews

For some reason, we love being in Tampa. That means we eat a lot while we’re there, right? Here are some other reviews we have done at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay. We promise most of them are more positive!

• Texas Style Brisket at Zambia Smokehouse
• Meat Lover’s Pizza at Oasis Pizza
• Bier Fest
• BG Cuban Cafe
• Penne Pasta at Dragon Fire Grill

For more theme park dining reviews, visit MSM News every weekday at noon Eastern Time. Additionally, we sometimes post bonus theme park dining reviews. As always, eat like you mean it!

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