What Rex Cafe does

T-Rex Cafe is a single-location, prehistoric-themed full-service restaurant operating at Disney Springs in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, owned and operated by Landry's Inc. since its opening on October 17, 2008. The venue combines an American casual-dining menu with an immersive themed environment featuring life-sized animatronic dinosaurs and woolly mammoths, simulated meteor showers, three themed dining rooms (Water, Fire, and Ice), an Octopus Bar with moving tentacles, and a Coral Reef Dining Room containing over 5,000 gallons of saltwater fish tanks. Interactive attractions include the first-ever Build-A-Dino by Build-A-Bear Workshop and an Interactive Paleo Zone with educational kiosks, a Discovery Dig fossil sandpit, and Discovery Creek gem-panning. The primary customer segment is families with children visiting Walt Disney World, supplemented by corporate events, birthday parties, and school educational tours.

Revenue is generated across multiple streams: dine-in restaurant service (entrées $20.49–$53.99, appetizers $15.99–$35.99, kids menu $11.99), to-go orders, gift cards redeemable at 600+ Landry's locations, merchandise at the on-site Dino-Shop, birthday party packages at $38.99 per child, private and corporate events, and educational tours priced at $12–$20 per attendee. The restaurant accepts the Disney Dining Plan and Disney Gift Cards and operates without requiring a Disney park admission ticket, broadening its addressable demand. GTM is direct-to-consumer via walk-ins and a 60-day advance reservation system through the Disney World website and My Disney Experience app, supported by organic social (Facebook, Twitter/X, Instagram), email newsletters (E-Club), and Landry's Select Club loyalty. The business has no disclosed revenue figures, no public funding history, and operates as a single-site subsidiary brand within a larger diversified hospitality conglomerate.

Name

Rex Cafe

Legal name

T-Rex Cafe

Website

https://trexcafe.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

T-Rex Cafe is a single-location, prehistoric-themed full-service restaurant at Disney Springs in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, owned by Landry's Inc. It serves families visiting Walt Disney World with American casual dining, animatronic dinosaur attractions, an aquatic exhibit, and the exclusive Build-A-Dino by Build-A-Bear Workshop.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Lake Buena Vista

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Dine-in Restaurant Service: Full-service casual American dining with table service. Menu features appetizers, entrees, desserts, and beverages. T-Rex Cafe accepts Disney Dining Plan and offers reservation system for dine-in guests.
2. To-Go Orders: To-go orders available for pickup at the restaurant. Guests can call to place orders for pickup.
3. Gift Cards: Traditional and e-gift cards available for purchase. Gift cards can be used at over 600 Landry's locations nationwide. No service fees or expiration dates.
4. Merchandise Sales: Dino-Shop sells dinosaur-themed apparel, toys, souvenirs, and Build-A-Dino products. Online shopping available via Landry's website.
5. Private Events and Parties: Birthday parties, corporate events, and educational tours. Birthday party package at $38.99 per child. Educational tours for groups of 15+ with lunch packages. Group events can include meal packages, scavenger hunts, and cocktail receptions.
6. Educational Tours: Morning educational tours prior to restaurant opening for school groups. Includes 30-minute expedition, lunch, and learning about dinosaurs. Groups of 15+ required.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Rex Cafe (operating as T-Rex Cafe) is a full-service dinosaur-themed American restaurant at Disney Springs in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, owned and operated by Landry's Inc. It delivers casual American dining inside immersive prehistoric environments featuring life-sized animatronic dinosaurs, themed dining rooms, the Octopus Bar, and an interactive Paleo Zone for children, complemented by retail merchandise, birthday parties, corporate events, and educational school tours.

Product overview

T-Rex Cafe is a prehistoric-themed full-service restaurant and entertainment venue at Disney Springs, operating as a single unified concept within the Landry's restaurant portfolio. The core offering is the dinosaur-themed dining experience featuring animatronic dinosaurs, themed dining rooms (Water, Fire, Ice), and the Octopus Bar. Adjacent offerings include the Dino-Shop retail store with Build-A-Dino Workshop, private event hosting (birthday parties, corporate events, educational tours), and a gift card/loyalty program integrated with the broader Landry's Select Club. Limited-time seasonal menus (Mediterranean Voyage, Shark Month) rotate throughout the year, while the Kids Menu and Gluten-Sensitive Menu provide specialized dining options.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• T-Rex Cafe Restaurant Full-service dinosaur-themed American restaurant at Disney Springs featuring life-sized animatronic dinosaurs, woolly mammoths, meteor shower effects, an Octopus Bar with moving tentacles and jellyfish, and an interactive Paleo Zone for guests.
• Educational Tours Pre-scheduled guided prehistoric expeditions for school groups and organizations, including a 30-minute interactive tour through themed dining areas and coral reef aquarium exhibits followed by chef-prepared lunch packages, customized for ages 3-12.
• Birthday Party Packages (B-Day Expeditions) Prehistoric-themed birthday party packages featuring Build-A-Dino workshop by Build-A-Bear, themed party decorations, kid-friendly menu options, and optional upgrades including souvenir cups and the Chocolate Extinction dessert.
• Corporate Events Private event hosting for corporate parties, employee rewards, holiday gatherings, reunions, and larger restaurant buyouts with themed dining rooms, group sales coordination, and customizable event packages for groups of 15 or more.
• Gift Cards Traditional and e-gift cards accepted at T-Rex Cafe and over 600 Landry's locations nationwide, with personalized greetings, photo personalization options, and no fees or expiration dates.
• Dino-Shop (Retail Store) On-site dinosaur-themed retail store featuring prehistoric merchandise including apparel, toys, souvenirs, and the exclusive Build-A-Dino experience by Build-A-Bear Workshop where guests create custom dinosaur plush companions.
• Landry's Select Club Nationwide loyalty rewards program offering welcome rewards, priority seating, points earning on spend, birthday rewards, and member-only offers across 600+ Landry's restaurant locations.
• Voyage into the Mediterranean Limited Time Menu Limited-time seasonal menu featuring Mediterranean-inspired dishes including Tuscan Pork Chop, Mediterranean Skewers, Chimichurri T-Bone, and Seafood Stuffed Salmon, paired with specialty cocktails.
• Kids Menu Age-appropriate dining options for children 9 and under featuring dinosaur-themed selections including Jurassic Chicken Tidbits, Paleo Pizza, Sly's Sliders, and themed desserts.
• Gluten-Sensitive Menu Allergen-friendly menu offerings with staff coordination for safe preparation using separate preparation areas and chef supervision.
• To-Go Orders To-go orders available for pickup at the restaurant, with guests able to call ahead to place orders.

Quantifiable outcome

• Included in Disney Dining Plan

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Build-A-Bear WorkshopcoreOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing PartnerFirst-ever Build-A-Dino by Build-A-Bear Workshop located inside T-Rex Cafe. Guests can create custom dinosaur plush companions with clothes, accessories, and sounds. This is a unique branded attraction exclusive to T-Rex Cafe locations.
• Disney (Disney Springs)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerT-Rex Cafe is located within Disney Springs at Walt Disney World Resort. Accepts Disney Dining Plan and Disney Gift Cards. No Disney park ticket required to dine. Part of the Disney Springs Marketplace area near LEGO Store and World of Disney.
• Landry's Inc.coreOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing PartnerT-Rex Cafe is owned and operated by Landry's Inc. Gift cards are part of Landry's Gift Card Portfolio usable at 600+ Landry's locations. Participates in Landry's Select Club loyalty program. E-commerce shop powered by Landry's platform.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Rainforest Cafe: Direct sibling concept under Landry's Inc., offering an immersive themed full-service restaurant with animatronics, retail, and party venues. T-Rex and Rainforest Cafe share the same parent, loyalty program, gift card ecosystem, and Disney-area presence, making them the closest possible comparable.
• Hard Rock Cafe: Iconic themed full-service casual dining chain with rock-music memorabilia, merchandise retail, and event hosting. Directly comparable as a tourist-anchored themed restaurant with entertainment overlay and family appeal.
• Medieval Times: Themed dinner-theater experience combining immersive entertainment with a prix-fixe meal. Comparable as a high-experiential family-dining concept that competes for the same theme-park-adjacent tourist wallet.
• Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. Forrest Gump-themed seafood casual dining chain commonly located in tourist destinations. Comparable as a movie/IP-themed chain with strong merchandise component and tourist-traffic reliance.
• Planet Hollywood: Movie-themed full-service casual dining chain with memorabilia displays, bar/lounge, and merchandise. Closely comparable as a destination dining concept positioned in tourist districts and using themed décor as the core differentiator.

Broad incumbents

• Tony Roma's: Casual dining chain known for ribs, themed décor, and broad family appeal. Comparable as a Landry's portfolio brand and a casual themed-dining operator competing in similar tourist and mall-adjacent venues.
• The Cheesecake Factory: High-volume full-service casual dining chain with expansive menu, dessert focus, and locations at premium real estate including Disney Springs. Comparable on unit economics, table-service model, and family appeal, though not themed.

Others

• Landry's Inc. The parent conglomerate operating 600+ hospitality venues. Not a peer but the binding corporate counterparty controlling T-Rex's systems, loyalty, gift card, and capital allocation — critical to understanding T-Rex's structural constraints.
• Disney Springs: The landlord and commercial ecosystem in which T-Rex operates. Not a peer in the competitive sense, but the defining distribution channel and traffic source for the business — directly comparable for foot-traffic dynamics and tenant economics.

Emerging players

• Build-A-Bear Workshop: Strategic partner and the licensor of the Build-A-Dino experience at T-Rex Cafe. Comparable as a family/children experiential retail concept and as the source of T-Rex's most differentiated in-restainment attraction.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/trexcafe
• Facebookfacebook.com/TRexCafeOrlando
• Instagraminstagram.com/t_rexcafe
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/rex-cafe

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Rex Cafe