Phoenix Zoo - Starbucks - Yakulla Caverns - Mexican Food - Orangutan Habitat

There is now a Starbucks near the front of the Phoenix Zoo and they have our favorite

Starbucks handcrafted coffee drinks as well as pastries and some breakfast items like Burritos that look amazing.

We tried the Latte (with a little chocolate on top at my request) and a Mocha and they were very good. It was such a treat to have Starbucks at the zoo.

We walked with our Starbucks drinks over to Yakulla Caverns splash area for the kids to play and for us all to cool off a bit. If you head up the row with the zebra's and flamingos then turn right at the restaurant/snack bar at the end of that row you will find this area.

The stairs lead through the caves and then they can come down the slide on the right.

There are other caves behind that one they can walk through to the other side

There are some nice shady areas with little water squirters that are great for the little guys and girls to get wet. Please note this area usually has many kids running around so there is also the water area by the pirate ship playground near the carousel where there is less activity and might be good for the littlest ones.

Behind the water area there is a shaded artificial grass area with benches for the parents to sit and watch the kids. 

There is a tree trunk they can play in and many areas of water jets that spray into the air.

Here is another view of the area. It was very popular the day we were there. 

Also, there is a restroom area and changing areas for boys and girls right next to the splash area so you don't have to go far for potty breaks or to get the kids changed into dry clothes.

The little snack bar/restaurant right by Yakulla Caverns served Mexican food. They have tacos, nachos, burritos and more. We tried the Burrito and the Barbacoa Tacos. 

The tacos sauce was amazing. We also had chips and salsa not shown in the photos but it was very good. We paired it with our Starbucks drinks and it was a very enjoyable lunch!

This was our view of the lake while we were eating. 

More views from our lunch table. 

There were monkeys across the island and beautiful birds in the lake that we watched while we were eating.

This is the farm play area by the Children's portion of the zoo, near the petting zoo. There was not a water area there so keep that in mind if it is a warm day, you may want to go to the water area on the way to the kids area to cool off. 

One of our favorite exhibits is the Orangutan area. This is the beautiful sign at one of the entrances. Each time we visit we see a new area of the zoo and have been very impressed by all the advances they have made.

It says Orang - Hutan People of the Forest.

This is at the center of the exhibit. there are windows all around and boards with information about the Orangutans and their natural habitat.

At this exhibit you can walk through a center portion with the grass areas all around and look through windows to see the Orangutans from all different areas. We counted five including the young baby who just turned 1. 

There were 2 adult Orangutans and the baby here on this structure.

This is from inside the house like portion at the center of the exhibit. 

This was one of our favorites. He climbed down the netting and found some bamboo he managed to pull through the netting to eat. 

The exhibit allows you to walk all around from many different sides of the habitat. It was one that really kept all of our attention, even the kids. 

(This was not a sponsored post.)