One of the most confusing seasonal food items this year at Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios Florida would be the “Petrified Rat Tails.” Yes, they really named it that. This qualifies as a very scary sounding food item. I think this year the Universal Orlando chefs are sending a clear message.

You can find this in the Gramercy Park area of Universal Studios Florida only during Halloween Horror Night events. The base of this dish consists of Florida Bay seasoned funnel fries. This leads to the most important detail to remember about this seasonal food item. These are funnel fries not standard salty theme park fries. If you partake in these without knowing that you will find these fries off-putting. Also, the fries are covered with creamy crab dip and sliced scallions. I strongly suspect the crab dip consists of same recipe used for dip with the “Creole Crab Beignets” from 2022 Mardi Gras season.

Though not listed, these have a small amount of sweeter chili style sauce also. I have tasted these several times. One time, I got just a funnel fry with an obvious amount of sauce and corresponding flavor. Thus, I concluded the sauce, but I could be incorrect. Yet, these will cost you $9.99 before any applicable discounts.

These fries bring a reasonable sweet and savory combination. The crab dip goes nicely with the funnel fries. I enjoyed the creaminess of crab dip also. In my experience (and some others also), we detected a small amount of spicy kick the longer we ate these. The portion size rates are above average. I suggest sharing it with someone so you can try another food item or two without filling up on this.

On the negative side, some guests found the combination of flavors too odd. Also, they struggled with the texture of funnel fries and crab dip. The funnel fries by themselves do not hold up flavor-wise. Also, this item can taste a bit greasy.

Overall, I found this Halloween Horror Nights item to offer reasonable value with solid non-traditional flavor. Fair warning, the quality of entire item drops as it cools. I enjoyed these far less when the dip and fries were no longer warm. In addition, the quality of product lessens as the night goes on in terms of preparation based on my experience. Despite these potential negatives, I found this a good choice for seasonal food outside the norm.

As always, eat like you mean it!