Here's the run down from "The Other Orlando":
Eating at Kennedy Space Center
While you wont have to subsist on the powdered drinks and squeeze-tube dinners that were once standard fare for astronauts, neither can you expect a gourmet dining experience at KSC Visitor Complex. The eateries here are geared to processing hundreds of generally young diners in a quick and efficient manner, and the food quality seldom rises above fast-food or cafeteria level, although the desserts in The Orbit are delicious. One of the managements best inspirations has been to dispatch dozens of freestanding food carts to various points in the Visitor Complex. They offer everything from ice cream snacks to fruit to more substantial fare like hot dogs. Given the difficulty of squeezing everything into a one-day visit to the Center, it makes a lot of sense to eat on the run from these carts and save the big sit-down meal for later in the evening.
The only full-service restaurant at the Visitor Complex is Milas Roadhouse, overlooking the Space Mirror. The decor is vaguely fifties or sixties in feel (there are a few outdoor tables) and the menu runs to home-cooked meat-and-veg meals, burgers, and beef and chicken sandwiches. Hot dogs and spaghetti are offered to the small fry. Most entrees cost less than $10, desserts are under $4. Wine is served by the glass ($4) and bottle ($14 to $22).
Next door is The Orbit, a large, noisy fast-food emporium with a modern metallic high-tech decor. Service is cafeteria style, with a large central carousel dispensing beverages, salads, sandwiches, and desserts. On one side of the carousel, you can get pizzas and pasta dishes for about $6 to $8. On the other side, a steam table offers roast beef, turkey, chicken, and fried fish dinners with a choice of vegetables. Prices range from $6 to about $10. Beer and wine is served here ($4).
Another cafeteria, The Lunch Pad, is located near the bus depot. This is the place to come for breakfast first thing in the morning or for burgers and fries or a variety of sandwiches later in the day. There is also a decent grilled chicken Caesar salad available here, one of the healthier food choices to be found at the Visitor Complex. A standard meal of sandwich, fries, and soft drink should cost well under $10.
Food is also to be had on the Kennedy Space Center Tour. The LC-39 Observation Gantry and the International Space Station Center both have hot dog stands where a quick meal will cost about $5. The Apollo/Saturn V Center features the Moon Rock Cafe, a cafeteria where you will find hot dogs, Polish sausage, and cheeseburgers served with fries for $4 to about $6. Individual pizzas are about $5 and desserts are in the $2 to $3 range. If you are trying to pack as much as possible into a one-day visit, grabbing a hot dog on this tour and eating it while waiting for the bus is a good strategy.
Beyond these sit-down eateries, the Visitor Complex offers a number of walk-up windows dispensing a variety of fast foods and desserts. Planetary Pizza, near the Lunch Pad, offers pizzas and calzone for about $5. The New Frontier Cafe, opposite the Astronaut Encounter, serves up beef, pork and chicken sandwiches for about $7. The Milky Way Parlor, near the Universe Theater, sells Comet Cones ($2 to $3) and Solar Sundaes ($3). There are a number of even smaller freestanding kiosks selling drinks and snacks; these open and close as the crowds ebb and flow.
