It’s no secret that we love to explore all of the new eats and drinks in Disney World! But, restaurants have SO much more to offer than just what’s on the menu.

Tree of Life

Most Disney restaurants have their very own backstories, themes, and hidden details, and most guests typically take them for granted when they’re dining. And, hey, we get it — between shows, cavalcades, rides, and more there’s a whole lot to get to when you’re visiting Disney World! But, before you scarf down the Lion King Dessert at Tiffins and head out to the rest of Disney’s Animal Kingdom, we’ve got some fun details that you should take some time to check out in the restaurant!

Tiffins is a Signature Dining restaurant that you’ll find behind Pizzafari just before you make your way into Pandora — The World of Avatar in Disney’s Animal Kingdom. It is themed to celebrate world travel and inside you’ll find decorations and a menu that are inspired by the locales that inspired the park itself!

Tiffins

The restaurant has three different dining rooms (which guests are encouraged to explore like they would an art gallery) and in one of the rooms, you’ll find five GIANT totem poles that only long-time Disney fans will recognize.

Does anyone recognize these guys?

Besides being gorgeous centerpieces for the room, they’ve actually got some Disney history behind them! They were the totem poles that originally could be found out front of the former Animal Kingdom land, Camp Minnie-Mickey!

Camp Minnie-Mickey Totem Poles!

The poles themselves were hand-carved by a family in Bali and sent to Disney World and that’s not the only place you’ll find their handiwork! The same family carved the doors to Tiffins!

Tiffins door carvings

PLUS, they also gifted the restaurant the HUGE hand-carved map that you can find on display behind the host stand as you enter the restaurant! And, it’s worth more than just a glance.

Tiffins Map

If you look closely at the map, you can see that there are six different castles that look a whole lot like the one you can find on Main Street, U.S.A. And, that’s on purpose! The family carved a small castle in each location of a Disney Park around the world, so, you can find one in Florida and California…

The U.S.

…in Shanghai, Hong Kong, and Tokyo…

Hong Kong and Tokyo Disneyland icons

…and in France!

Disneyland Paris!

And, all the other buildings and animals aren’t just there for decoration and to keep with the Animal Kingdom theme, they represent all of the humanitarian, wildlife, and habitat contributions that Disney has made in each location!

Check out ALL those details!

Now, if you’ve ever ridden Kilimanjaro Safari you know that Disney’s conservation efforts are never complete and you just never know when another Disney Park could pop up in the world, so the creators made the map in sections so that they can easily remove a piece and update it if needed!

Pretty neat, huh? So, the next time you’re stopping here for some fine dining, take some time to explore the galleries and show off your Disney history skills by cluing your family in on these details when you wait for your table to be ready! And, be sure to stay tuned to DFB for more hidden details that you may otherwise miss on your vacation!

Click HERE for MORE Hidden Details You Can Find in Disney World Restaurants!

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Have you ever dined at Tiffins? Let us know in the comments!