Les Chefs de France - Disapointment of the Trip

[zddPaul]

I'm really curious. I've read a lot of positive reviews of Les Chefs de France and I'm trying to figure out if our disappointment indicates a bad night for the restaurant or if perhaps it is just a matter of personal taste.

I went to Disney World for 4 nights with my sister and cousin. We had a fabulous time. The best meal we had was at the Yachtsman and we were very pleasantly surprised with Coral Reef. Compared to restaurants outside of the World both of these restaurants are very expensive but as we were on Free Dining, no problem!

On to Chefs. I had flatbread, pork and sorbet. My sister had the onion soup, half chicken and puff choux. My cousin had the onion soup, pork and the crepe.

I thought the flatbread was very good as was the sorbet but the pork was a cheap cut and it was dry and flavorless. It was served with a sauce that tasted like it came from a dry packet.

My sister and cousin both thought their onion soup was very disappointing. Any old bakery would have a tastier cream puff and the crepe was average at best.

I thought I might not like Chefs but only because I thought there might be sauces or flavors that I wouldn't like. As it turned out I thought that the entrees lacked flavor. Mine tasted like it came from an American kitchen and a very uninspired one at that.

Perhaps we ordered the wrong things or the kitchen was off that night but I'm curious what other people think.

Just as an aside we kept track of what we would have spent on food if not on the plan and it was over $270 per person for 4 nights. This is more than the package price cost us per person including 4 nights at the All Star Sports, Free Dining and a 1 day park ticket. If I had been paying out of pocket I would have spent less on food but it certainly would have been $200 or so.

[Disney Ella]

We had lunch there and I was not impressed. I've had much better French Onion soup at places like Fridays and the tuna sandwich I had a Columbia Harbor House was better than Chefs de France. My daughter had the steak and it was tough and full of gristle. I don't remember what everyone else had but they said it was just all right.

[Pakey]

My DH and I have eaten at Chefs de France 3 times. First time we loved it. Then they changed the menu and we have also thought the last 2 times were bland (we do like the appetizers of escargot and the goat cheese torte). We much prefer the upstairs restuarant, Bistro de Paris. Much better food.

[x5x5x5x5x5]

I've been to Chefs lots of times and usually enjoy my meal but a few weeks ago I too had the pork. Yuck. Dry and tough. I definitely won't order it again - they've got some work to do on that one haha.

[JohnathanS]

I've eaten at Chefs only once. The food was pretty good, not great, but pretty good. The atmosphere, for me, was horrible. We were at a table in the main room by a window. The tables were packed in like sardines; it felt like we were sitting right with the people beside us and there was little elbow room. I just couldn't relax and enjoy my meal.

[MsDisney23]

I just recently:sad2: at Chef's and would never go back. The chicken was pre-cooked, cold and dried out! I was not pleased.

[I loveStitchnippyjon]

We just ate at Chefs last Friday, and loved it. I had the pate' appetizer and grilled salmon, DD had salmon tartare and Chicken, and DH had escargots and seared tuna. We all enjoyed our meal immensely. Service was great and they have a good wine selection. No one had dessert...too full!

[vickalamode]

I went a few years ago and loved it, but in June I went and it was the worst meal of the trip. It seems to be hit or miss to me.

[NancyIL]

I've always enjoyed my meals at Chefs de France, but I haven't eaten there since Nov. 2006. I LOVED their French onion soup and creme brulee - so the French Menu for lunch was a great value. I also had an excellent filet for dinner back in 2001.

[Pirates4me]

We have dinner twice at the Chefs. Both meals I would rate a 8.5 out of 10. Food was well prepared and tasty. Atmosphere is about a 6. I agree that they try to sit. too many people. My biggest issue was the waiters. The ones we dealt with spoke virtually no english and as I do not speak french it was a bit odd. Not very friendly either The waitresses were great, polite and friendly and just loved our infant son. Wines were great as was the pastries. I would assume that we will go back again but we are taking a break from it for the next couple of trips.

Bon Appetite!

[lynninpa]

We were also very disappointed. Although the atmosphere was great and the service (although a bit rushed) was very good, we all pushed aside our plates after only a few bites. The only thing that was "ok" was the flatbread appetizer. The bisque tasted like it was out of a can. The lamb was "rubbery" and full of gristle. The fish was incredibly dry & tasteless. And the desserts? Ehhh. :sad2:

[Laren]

Used to be my favorite, this trip (Sept 4-12) biggest disappointment of the trip food wise.

They gutted the menu- I think due to free dining :( I'd have paid for the filet Ive eaten there in the past but it wasn't offered, neither was the potato leek soup I loved. The dessert was a full third smaller than last time (two puff pastries instead of three)- and the server charged me for Perrier when we got it for free with the DDP everywhere else we ate (it was early in the trip and I didn't know yet).

I don't think we'll go back there for a long, long looooooooooong time. Menu overhaul is in order- the staff was rude- except for our poor server who was frazzled and very inefficient. . .I wanted my TS credit back LOL

[Minniespal]

What a shame!

[Alisha's mom Sarah]

we didn't make it to our ressie there.. We were still stuffed from lunch at LeCellier. I'm sort of glad now..

[never_enough_pooh]

We ate there last week and were extremely dissapointed!!

I had the Mac and Cheese (It had a much fancier name but I don't remember it!). It was very dry!! It was Ziti pasta with some cheeze sprinkled on top. No sauce or creaminess at all!!

DH had the pork which he said was very dry.


I will definately NOT go back!!!

[LoriZH]

Hi we were there too (just put up my review) and our dinner there was just fine, my pork was big enough, but it was dry, my onion soup was good, but the dessert we had (chocolate tart) was FABULOUS, truly fabulous! My husband's chicken was good, and the rest of our meal was good, but nothing was fantastic or wanting us to try it again, well....except for that tart ;)

It's definitely a matter of taste, we didn't hate it and we had a nice time there and my dd & I live to shop in France (in 3 years we'll be shopping in the real country, keeping fingers crossed and hopping that I don't keep spending my vacation money going to Disney, lol).

[gregrmike1]

I was considering booking Les Chefs however I have changed my mind with the food descriptions and poor reviews. Thank you for providing an honest review of Les Chefs.

[gina2000]

We had a truly uninspired, outright lousy meal there in February. My husband's escargot were rubbery, my pate platter was bland (more sliced baloney than I've ever seen on a plate in my life), my husband's filet was a miniscule hockey puck (and he ordered it medium rare) and the french fries on my son's and my plate were brown, oily and limp. Quite frankly, I'd never seen anything like it at a French restaurant. Desserts were fine. And our tab was over $200 OOP. We cancelled the rest of our reservations and ate offsite the rest of the trip.

[BoomNLeon]

We, too had a bad experience at Chefs de France. I was surprised at how chaotic it was. Our server was good, but noticeable stressed out. Hopefully they will improve.

[carolinagirl]

We just ate there last week and , overall, it was the worst meal of the trip. I had the Tuna and it was pretty flavorless. My DH had the duck and it was only OK. DD11 had the Mac & Cheese (forget what they call it) and she didn't like it at all. She said it was the worst food she ate all week. Dessert on the other hand was great! The Chocolate Torte was very good and DD loved the puffs with chocolate sauce. We were all very disappointed, given the good reviews I had read. We probably won't go back here.

Edited to add: The tables here were VERY small and we could barely fit our plates and glasses on the table without knocking things over. We were seated in the corner in the window and while it made for good people watching, there were several times when children would walk by and knock on the window and make faces at us. A little distracting when you are trying to enjoy a nice dinner.

[nanadeb]

We ate at Les Chefs in September during Free Dining. Yes, the portions were smaller, but I could hardly have eaten all the food anyway if the portions had been normal sized.
The restaurant was just as crowded as any I have been in in Paris. The tables are just as small. The food--well, you need to understand that the food in Les Chef is not gourmet. You are eating Southern French country style food. Yes, the cuts of meat are the cheaper ones, but that is because they are country style. I had the short ribs of beef, and they were a bit gristly. but all short ribs are gristley. The sauce, however, was Provencal all the way. My daughter's chicken was standard roast chicken, albeit with a sauce. My husband had the pork chop. They were all good, wholesome country fare.
The key to it all was our server. I practiced my rusty high school French, to his delight, and we all engaged in a little banter. I was pleasantly surprised to find a Parisian waiter without an attitude and with the real Disney spirit.
We treated him like a real person and we received superb service. Not everyone around us did, though, because they treated the servers like near invisible servents.
We laughed, we talked, we complimented the chef to our waiter and had a roaring good time. We lived in Europe for 11 years and learned how to enjoy a meal European style. It is a social occasion to be savored. One's server is to be treated like an extension of the dining party and brought into the conversation.
Our server brought us ice water as well as our soft drinks. Our glasses were never less than half full at any time. He stopped by frequently and we received better service than anyone else around us. Our server was unfailingly polite to the other tables,as were the other servers, but no one else received the kind of atention we did. We were also not hustled out of the restaurant so that they could turn the table quickly.
Dining in a european estaurant is so very different from dining in an American restaurant. Since the World Showcase restaurants are run by natives of the represented country, you are getting as close to an authentic experience as you can get and still be in Disney World. Visibly showing enjoyment of your dining experience is a way of showing appreciation to the staff. You affirm that what they do is important in your life, that eating a meal is not the equivalent of a quick trip to the gas station for fuel.
Relax. Enjoy. You are in Disney World for a vacation, not an endurance event!:hippie:

[SGMCO]

I am not a meat eater and seems that everyone is complaining about the
Pork being dry.
Has any one tried the fish?
I was happy about the menu choices because I don't eat beef, chicken, or pork and they had a larger selection of fish.
I could say that all of the other resaurant menus are very limited for me
with usually only one choice for fish.
Usually the one choice is Grill or seared Salmon and I have not been disappointed with any grill fish that I ate on my last trip.

[Anthony1971]

Weate there was not impressed.
This time someone in our group insisted on eating there we eneded up at the Bistro $$$$ the only thing missing were masks for the staff.

[almacdonald]

We were also disappointed by Chefs de France. I had a (mystery) cheese plate, seafood something or other and profiteroles. It would have been nice to know what kind of cheeses were on the plate. There was plastic in my spinach and the scallops were not properly washed, each bite was like i had eaten a mouth full of sand. The profiteroles were edible but I wouldn't order them again. This was our least favorite meal out of 7.

[budbeerlady]

Ughh, I hope things improve here. DD picked this one, she loves all things French or French looking. (Whatever that means, its her discresion)

[lillielil]

It was great for lunch in January 2006, but not so much in September 2007. I felt very rushed, and the food wasn't as good as it should have been. It was still ok (how much can you mess up mac and cheese?), but would not have been worth the $ if we hadn't been on free dining. I though that free dining may actually have been a large part of the problem - they were very over booked and obviously in a hurry to get people out.

[Unca_Scrooge]

I was there a couple of weeks ago. Wife's friend and son had the flat bread, which they both liked. Wife loved the french onion soup.
The escargot was "meh", I've had better on carnaval cruise.
I did have the lamb with the neavy beans and pearl onions, and it was very good. The pork being dry is a common complaint I've seen.

Not happy with the lack of french beer selection. France does make some excellent beers, and wine just isn't my thing.

[Joshua_me]

We ate there last April, and we also were very disappointed.

Our server was great, very friendly considering how understaffed the place seemed to be, but there was only so much she could do.

The insult starts with the bread. A cold dinner roll and a foil-wrapped butter square ?? C'mon ! Warm breads and flavored butters are standard at most any sit down restaurant these days, and certainly ones with the prices Chefs is charging.

I had the cheese plate for an appetizer. This consisted of three wedges of cheese that probably weighed a total of a half pound. And that was it... no crackers, no anything. How many people do you know that eat half a pound of cheese by itself ??

It would be almost comical if it wasn't so sad.

I had the pork, my partner the lamb. Both were OK, but unremarkable. The real shame were the 'sauces' that tasted of Lipton's French Onion Soup Mix. (I kid you not)

The restaurant in general seems to be an example of Disney doing the bare minimum it can and still get away with it. Given the crowds and the prices for those who are not on a dining plan, they must be making huge profits, and yet it's certainly not reflected in the quality of the food.

It breaks my heart to say that we will never return.

[swankybeth]

Thanks for all of the reviews. We haven't eaten at Chefs since 2004 but we've always enjoyed our meals there. We scheduled a late dinner there on our January trip, so I hope that at least helps with the crowding issue.

[Tinkerbelll]

Nope, never again for us either. :sad2: Our meal was just no good (except the sorbet, which we really enjoyed). I guess you can't really expect much from a place where they are serving butter in foil packets. Felt more like the $9.99 All You Can Eat Buffet on I-Drive to me.... :rolleyes1

We may try the Bistro next time though.

[lillielil]

I had the cheese plate for an appetizer. This consisted of three wedges of cheese that probably weighed a total of a half pound. And that was it... no crackers, no anything. How many people do you know that eat half a pound of cheese by itself ??

I know at least two (counting myself). I liked the cheese plate at Les Chefs, but the one at Rose and Crown was MUCH better.

[Joshua_me]

I know at least two (counting myself). I liked the cheese plate at Les Chefs, but the one at Rose and Crown was MUCH better.


Ooo !

Well now, yes... The Rose and Crowns' version is much better in every way.
But, really.... a half pound of cheese all by it's self ??

Rock on, sister friend.... :banana:

*ahem*

back to topic

[Chrisinroch]

Just had lunch there a couple of weeks ago. Pretty disappointing. Service was very inattentive, food was okay but not great. Wine list was really bad and overpriced. Just a mediocre meal and a terrible value.

[mousiemom]

now i'm wondering if i should change my adr for le chefs. we wanted to dine somewhere different but i'm scared now. i know we want to end our last night with a dinner in epcot and then watch illuminations! please-give me some advice!!
thanks,
mousiemom

[shadowryter]

now i'm wondering if i should change my adr for le chefs. we wanted to dine somewhere different but i'm scared now. i know we want to end our last night with a dinner in epcot and then watch illuminations! please-give me some advice!!
thanks,
mousiemom
Okay...so I'm kinda feeling the same way. I've already changed my ADR for LeCellier when I heard the poor reviews, so now I'm wondering about this one. Plus we're celebrating two birthdays... I may have to re-think this, though I was really looking forward to eating here.:confused3 We wanted to be close to see Illuminations too!

[Gulliver]

Six of us ate here in Jan/08 so we had a fairly wide sampling of the menu. Without going into details, two consistent problems with almost every dish were too salty and not hot enough (as in lukewarm tempeature at best).

We payed $300 oop for four or five shared appetizers, six main courses, and no dessert or alcohol, or $50 a person. Quite a lot of money for mediocre food.

We did get to sit by the window and watch Illuminations , so I guess that was a bit of a bonus, but not enough to compensate for the quality of the meal.

[hmillerbarilla]

I've never had anything but a good experience at Chefs. I've been many times and it has always been delicous. The service has always been terrific as well.

[allicat]

Ate here last week-glad we tried it but wont be going back. There was nothing overly wrong with the meal but noone raved over their food either.
Even the desert, was fine but not overly "wow" for us. For the price we paid, there are other dining options that we enjoy more(Artisit point, California Grill)

[Camster0307]

PLease don't change your ADRs just because of bad reviews you've read here. Everyone has different tastes and expectations. I think every single restaurant in WDW has been given a bad review at some point in time. Pick a place to eat based on what you've seen on the menu and your interests; they go and form your own opinion.

My family and I have enjoyed many restaurants that I've seen many bad reviews of on these boards: LeCellier; San Angel Inn; and Fulton's to name a few.

Different strokes for different folks!:thumbsup2

[mousiemom]

i've been on these boards awhile and i read the dining reviews a lot cause i like to eat. the menu @ chefs didn't impress me anyway so i changed my adr to crystal palace for dinner. we've done breakfast and lunch @ CP and i know they have good food. my exhusband is going with us(my dh and dd) yes, it's true, :lmao: and he has never done a character meal and he will love it!!:)
i feel better now!
thanks,
mousiemom

[chirurgeon]

I have always loved Chefs de France. I generally only eat lunch there. I normally get the onion soup and the quiche. I have only had dinner there once but that was the first time I ate there and it started this being an every trip restaurant for me. I have never been disappointed. I will be making an ADR for my next trip when the 180 day window opens up.

Give it a chance.

Kim

[poohluvrs]

I am looking forward to our dinner @ Chefs, everyone has different tastes & valid experiences but Im keeping an open mind!

[nicolemomof4cuties]

We went there 2 1/2 or 3 years ago and it was just not good. Ig we would have not been on the Dining plan we would have either complained or left.....It was that bad. The food was just flavorless. It honestly reminded me of nursing home food. Even my children did not like it and they eat anythin and EVERYTHING. It was the big disapontmany of our trip that year and we haven't been back. The waiters were also quite stingy with bread and drinks :confused3 . We still remember that because it was just odd. :confused3

[LWcalif]

Chef's is normally one of our top choices. But when we ate there last year, the food was so salty, it wasn't edible. We're on the Deluxe Dining Plan this time, so we are trying it for lunch, since the menu is slightly different. And if we don't care for the food, we'll still have a dinner choice somewhere else.

[Unca_Scrooge]

Hmmm, they only had one French beer on the menu, and the waiter poured the bottle it like it was wine causing way too much foam. Pouring a beer propely isn't rocket science.

I had the lamb which was excellent.

[sarehm]

This was our first dinner during our last trip and DH and I enjoyed it. Maybe it was all the excitement of finally being back at WDW but I thought the food was very good. I had French Onion soup and loved it! DH had the Lobster Bisque and basically licked the bowl clean. Then DH had the salmon and it was good, it's basic salmon but I really liked the sauce that was on it. I had the Beef Tenderloin w/ scalloped potato and the beef was cooked perfectly. Wasn't big on the green beans as they were a bit rubbery but the beef and the potatoes were great. Had the crepe for dessert and wasn't very impressed. I can't remember what DH had for dessert so obviously that wasn't memorable. So all in all I would go back.

[Frothy]

Always loved Les Chefs de France until last year when we had a poor meal. We have usually made reservations at 8pm and found that is timed perfectly for the gap between the end of the main dish and the dessert. Normally we make our order and then nip out to see the fireworks but the meal was so poor last time we just left instead of ordering dessert.

Let's hope it gets back to normal service... did they hire a new manager?

[minniemee]

We have an ADR here in June and I think we have to eat here because we're a party of 13 and I'm pretty sure the other places would not have availability this late!!:eek:
I hope the food is not too bad as I picked this place and the other 12 people will not be happy if all of the food is dry and salty!:scared:
I will keep my fingers crossed that it goes OK!

[DebbyLof428]

We ate there last month and the food was very good. Hubby and I both had salads and the beef tenderloin and the profiterolles(sp?) for dessert. The only complaint was the rushed service. The main course was out before we were half done with the salads.

[Quicklabs]

Chefs was always our favorite. But after a truly awful meal there (except for the Tarte a la Alsacienne, which was delicious), we won't be back again. After waiting 50 minutes past our ADR time (we arrived 10 minutes early for that), and truly indifferent service, I would have been more than happy to write that off if the food had been good. I had the duck--the skin on it was white and flabby! Hubby had the salmon, cooked beyond all reasoning. The sweet potato (which I normally love) was inedible. We were so disappointed.

[bambam007]

On our last trip in May 2008, we spent the week eating and dining.

This was my least favorite aside from the Electric Umbrella and The CS in Germany, Epcot.

It's sad to say that in 8 days of dining it only beats these two CS meals.
That means all the other TS and most other CS meals were better in food and service.

[WelovMickey!]

We are going to dine because my 10yr dd wants to eat in France. So I am hoping for the best. If my dd didn't want to eat there so bad, I would have changed to ressie a long time ago. After reading all the reviews here. O'well:worried: