It’s a tale as old as time: you’re watching your favorite animated Disney movie when something scrumptious appears on-screen. It looks so good, in fact, that you wish you could reach straight in and grab a morsel for yourself. It’s a nigh-universal experience for Disney movie audiences to see some of the best-looking animated foods, mouths watering at the tastes that can never be. And although lucky travelers to Disneyland and Disney World may get the chance to try a version of these delectable treats, the real-life versions of these foods will never stack up to these animated ambrosias. There’s just something about these foods in their animated form that’s impossible to replicate for our live-action palates.

This is easily reducible to the power of our imaginations, but there’s something more. Food in Disney animated films isn’t just a snack or a meal — its deliciousness (or lack thereof) is often integral to the scenes or characters themselves. Whether these foods are on the screen for just a moment or are key elements to the film as a whole, they continue to inspire mouth-watering awe and culinary creativity in Disney fans the world over. Here’s our list of the best-looking food in Disney movies.

Updated on December 8th 2023 by Zoe Dumas: This list now contains even more mouthwatering information on everyone's favorite Disney foods.

8 Aurora’s Leaning Birthday Cake — Sleeping Beauty

Walt Disney Animation Studios

A classic among classics, Disney’s Sleeping Beauty is a paradigm of Disney style that holds firm to this day. The studio’s latest outing, Wish, lovingly homages its predecessors’ penchant for lush, painterly backgrounds and a contemporarily fashioned heroine. Here’s hoping that that film also features some tasty-looking treats, such as Aurora’s gravity-defying birthday cake. The fairies Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather want the secret princess’s 16th birthday to be perfect, and thus Fauna sets out to make a cake. The problem, though? Fauna’s never cooked.

A Juicy, Decadent, and Intriguing Concoction

As any baker could tell you, Fauna’s cake-baking methods are nothing short of disastrous. The measurements are imprecise, the ingredients aren’t added properly, and the cake hasn’t even been baked before Fauna frosts the thing. And yet, despite all that, there’s something intriguing about the too-tall cake that makes the mouth water. It's a disaster, but most of us would be lying if we didn’t want a slice of this 15-layer cake for ourselves as kids. Stream Sleeping Beauty on Disney+.

sleeping beauty
sleeping beauty
R
Release Date
June 10, 2011
Director
Julia Leigh
Cast
Emily Browning , Rachael Blake , Ewen Leslie , Peter Carroll , Chris Haywood , Hugh Keays-Byrne
Runtime
104

7 The Gray Stuff — Beauty and the Beast

beauty and the beast
Walt Disney Pictures

Belle’s introduction to the Beast’s servants in Beauty and the Beast is perhaps one of the animated film’s most iconic scenes. As Belle sits down to dinner, the transformed staff, led by Lumiere, entice the young woman with an array of delicious treats to the unforgettable tune of “Be Our Guest.” Given everyone’s enthusiasm, it’s hard to imagine that any one of these foods is anything but divine, but the one that inevitably catches our eye is the mysterious whorl of gray stuff.

Related: Best Movies About Food That We Can't Live Without

The Gray Stuff Is a Mystery We Want to Solve

The secret of the gray stuff in Beauty and the Beast is precisely why we want to get our hands on it. Lumiere insists it's delicious, and Belle’s reaction is nothing less than delighted, but how does this morsel taste? Is it sweet? Savory? What’s the texture like? While the real-life version of the gray stuff does exist at some of the Disney parks as a mousse-covered cake or cookie, the version in Beauty and the Beast shares a plate with salty hors d’oeuvres like a pimento-stuffed olive. The gray stuff in Beauty and the Beast is enticing because we don’t know exactly what it is; anything served with such zeal by a magical cavalcade of dancing dishware can’t help but intrigue the taste buds. Stream Beauty and the Beast on Disney+.

Beauty and the Beast 1991 Poster
Beauty and the Beast (1991)
Release Date
November 22, 1991
Cast
Paige O'Hara , Robby Benson , Jesse Corti , Angela Lansbury
Runtime
1h 24m
Main Genre
Animation

6 Spaghetti and Meatballs — Lady and the Tramp

Buena Vista Distribution

It's one of the sweetest moments in the history of Disney animation, and it's all over a plate of spaghetti and meatballs. In the Disney classic Lady and the Tramp, the dogs’ adorable first date sees the canine companions lovingly sharing meatballs and slurping up noodles outside Tony’s Italian restaurant. Even if you’d never seen Lady and the Tramp before, you’ve likely seen some version of this scene in one of the countless parodies and homages from film and television over the years.

A Timeless Classic

A big, steaming plate of fresh spaghetti and meatballs is hard to beat, especially when it comes from an authentic Italian establishment like Chef Tony’s. Add to that the ambiance — the red checkered tablecloth, the candlelight, and, of course, the dulcet tones of “Bella Notte” — and it’s no wonder why this scene from Lady and the Tramp has us running to our favorite old-school Italian joint for a plate of our own. Stream Lady and the Tramp on Disney+.

5 Arepa Con Queso — Encanto

Walt Disney Animation Studios

The magical Madrigals in Disney’s Encanto each have special gifts, but the most enticing one is certainly Julieta’s power to heal others through her cooking. Mirabel’s mother is a powerhouse in the kitchen, where she whips up dishes that soothe body and soul. One time we see this power in action is when Mirabel’s cut hand is repaired with just a single bite of Julieta’s arepas con queso, a type of cheesy fried bread that hails from Colombia.

Related: Movies With the Most Delicious Looking Food

We Want to Be Healed By Cheese

How can you go wrong with something as simple as fried dough filled with gooey cheese? These little cakes look absolutely mouthwatering in Encanto thanks to their perfect shape, crispy exterior, and melty queso. The fact that Julieta’s tasty arepas con queso also has the power to heal physical wounds feels less like a selling point and more like a helpful bonus when compared to just how delicious they must be. Stream Encanto on Disney+.

Encanto
Encanto
PG
Release Date
November 24, 2021
Director
Jared Bush , Byron Howard , Charise Castro Smith
Cast
Stephanie Beatriz , María Cecilia Botero , John Leguizamo
Runtime
1hr 42min

4 Crème de la Crème à la Edgar — The Aristocats

Walt Disney Animation Studios

The Aristocats is set in Paris and focuses on a family of cats stolen from their owner, Madame Adelaide, in a slap-dash inheritance scheme. Adelaide’s butler, Edgar, is the culprit. Although Edgar is a greedy person awful enough to abandon the cats in the countryside, there’s no denying that we all want a taste of the delicious cream he serves them.

French Food Is the Most Decadent

The name really adds to the decadence of it all. This simple concoction of heated milk with warm spices and sugar sounds utterly divine on a cold or rainy day: of course, Roquefort the mouse had to go in for a quick taste. While we know cats shouldn’t have crème de la crème à la Edgar (regardless of any added sleeping pills), we still can thanks to nostalgic online chefs eager to recreate this delectable treat for humans. Stream The Aristocats on Disney+.

The Aristocats
The Aristocats
G
Release Date
December 24, 1970
Director
Wolfgang Reitherman
Cast
Phil Harris , Eva Gabor , Sterling Holloway , Scatman Crothers , Dean Clark , Paul Winchell
Runtime
78

3 Trenette Al Pesto — Luca

Walt Disney Pictures

In Luca, we see the titular sea monster boy and his friend Alberto experience human food for the very first time. The two share a meal of trenette al pesto with Giulia and her father, Massimo, digging in with their hands since neither of the boys has used cutlery before.

Who Doesn't Love Pesto?

The scene of Luca and Alberto’s first human meal in Luca is warm, inviting, and nostalgic for the simple taste of old-world foods. In addition to the delicious bright-green sauce and flat, linguini-like noodles, this pasta dish features hearty potatoes and fresh spring peas, making it a unique spin on a familiar sauce. The pasta looks perfectly cooked and the ratio of sauce to noodles is exactly right. Luca and Alberto's way of eating this delectable dish seals the deal, making us want to dig in in kind. Stream Luca on Disney+.

Luca
Luca
PG

Release Date
June 18, 2021
Director
Enrico Casarosa
Cast
Jacob Tremblay , Jack Dylan Grazer , Emma Berman
Runtime
1hr 35min

2 Beignets — The Princess and the Frog

Walt Disney Animation Studios

Tiana from The Princess and the Frog is a truly hard worker on her quest to raise the money to open her own restaurant. In an early sequence, viewers see the young restauranteur hopping from job to job without anything in the way of a break. No doubt, Tiana’s most famous dish has to be the beignets she serves to the people of New Orleans.

Sweet, Fried Dough Speaks For Itself

Beignets are somewhat like a donut: crispy, airy pieces of dough fried to perfection and topped with powdered sugar. Tiana, being the masterful chef that she is, prepares these beignets with ease, spinning the plate with precision as she drizzles them with honey. Everyone loves Tiana’s beignets, which is why Lotte orders 500 of the “man-catching” treats in her quest to woo Prince Naveen. And though we picked Tiana’s beignets for this list, her special gumbo also deserves an honorable mention. Stream The Princess and the Frog on Disney+.

The Princess and the Frog
The Princess and the Frog
G
Release Date
December 8, 2009
Cast
Anika Noni Rose , Bruno Campos , Keith David , Michael-Leon Wooley , Jennifer Cody , Jim Cummings
Runtime
97

1 Ratatouille — Ratatouille

Walt Disney Pictures

One of the most iconic meals in an animated Disney movie, the ratatouille in Ratatouille looks so good it could convince even the pickiest of diners to eat their vegetables. The scene of Remy making the dish — carefully slicing the vegetables, ladling on the sauce, and baking it all to golden perfection — is hypnotic and hunger-inducing. Little chef’s version of the provincial dish is a variation called confit byaldi, which replaces the traditionally fried vegetables with the thinly sliced ones seen in Ratatouille.

Vegetables So Perfectly Cooked They'll Soften Anyone's Heart

The reaction from the notoriously harsh food critic, Anton Ego, is the best part. With just one bite of Remy’s ratatouille, Ego is transported back to his childhood in a sweet flashback of his mother making him the same dish. Aside from the perfectly sliced vegetables arranged just so, this dish proves good food’s magical ability to change people’s hearts and bring them together. Stream Ratatouille on Disney+.

Ratatouille
Ratatouille
G
Release Date
June 28, 2007
Director
Brad Bird , Jan Pinkava
Cast
Patton Oswalt , Ian Holm , Lou Romano , Brian Dennehy , Peter Sohn , Peter O'Toole
Runtime
110

Disney fans should check out these forgotten animated movies from the studio: