OK...The Final Word on Ohanas Please!!

[cd&kids]

I know this is one of the old, stand-by Disney classic restaurants....but one that, for some reason, our family has just not gotten around to trying in any of our four Disney visits.
On Friday, November 12th, we are scheduled for our first time!
Probably two-thirds of the comments I read here about Ohanas is very, very positive....but I also seem to notice a lot of negatives. For you Ohanas critics, what specifically turns you off? For you supporters, what specifically do you love?
By the way, we have a 15-year-old son---a football player who eats like crazy! Also two daughters...11 and 7...both fun-loving and easy-to-please food wise.
Thanks everyone! (And anyone who has a p.s. for Friday the 12th...maybe we'll say hi!!)

[trampslady]

Ohana lover here! Things we love:

atmosphere--we don't have kiddos but the hula hoop contest and the coconut roll is great fun to watch.

view--sometimes it's of the castle, depending on where you are seated.

transportation--monorail resort.

FOOD--wonderful selection of sides and meat. In our many visits the food has always been fresh and tasty. The skewers are hot and very well seasoned. In fact, we like them so much, I asked for the recipe for the shrimp marinade and the peanut dipping sauce.

I believe you and your family should definitely try it!

[DisnutDave]

trampslady stole our answers! Really, we second everything she said. You'll love it.

[bjakmom]

We just tried it for the first time in January and LOVED it !! It was the best I had seen my DS (15) eat our whole trip - he liked the (unlimited!) food so much that he just requested having his 16th birthday dinner there in January - don't know if we'll be lucky enough to get a table next to the window again, but we know we'll enjoy our meal and the friendly atmosphere. DDs and I enjoyed the shrimp and pot stickers. We even loved the fresh pineapple and caramel for dessert - perfect way to end the meal (while we watched Wishes, of course!).:smooth:

[scoutsmom99]

We got lucky and had fabulous view of the MK in October!

The appetizers were wonderful we could make a meal out of just those and the wonderful sauces that are served with them! I only had room for one serving of the meats, but they were tasty. I didn't think the dessert was anything fabulous, but my mother and sister just went crazy. Also the atmosphere was great...cousin Jeff came by and my sister (who is 27) said she was done, but she still had some meat on her plate and he said oh you can do one more bite and made airplane noises and fed her another piece. I got a picture and we laughed about it the whole trip!

[Aimeedyan]

LOVE IT

- food was good and not typical WDW fare
- we ate until we almost puked. Really.
- felt we got our moneys worth
- fun atmosphere
- great service

I say give it a try - and let us know what you thought when you get back!

[UKAnnie]

DH, DD and SIL and I went last May for the first time. Really looking forward to it after all the hype.

OVERALL VERDICT - GREAT DISAPPOINTMENT

I guess the greatest cause was the bad service. We were seated late in the evening and the place didn't look that crowded, but the food was so slow in coming.

We knew it was all you could eat so the first time the servers came round with the food we didn't take that much, expecting they would return soon. We soon ate what we had and then waited nearly an hour before they came again. Everything took forever. We sat with empty plates and glasses for most of the evening.

My DD isn't backwards at coming forwards and can create the most assertive scenes, but because I'm the type who doesn't like any embarrasing scenes, she holds back. She assured me that if she'd been on her own she wouldn't have put up with it. I do wish now that I had said something at the time.

We would never go back there again.

Ann.

[mckryan]

Things I disliked -

- the meat was overcooked. Call me crazy, but I like rare steak and meat that isn't dry and chewy.

- the shrimp were messy. Call me crazy again, but I don't want to sit and peel shrimp.

- the wait staff was inattentive, thus it was difficult to get refills on our appetizer/side tray.

Things I liked -

- location, location, location. I love the Poly, and we had a good spot for fireworks.

- great activities for young kids to keep them busy while you wait for your server to remember you're there.

For us, we went once, and that was enough. There are plenty of other restaurants on the property to try out.

[disneyrella]

Things we like:

1. Variation of appetizers, and selection of meats and seafood so that everyone finds something they like!
2. Informal, family atmosphere - we like the combination of good food (and service!) with the informality of sitting around your kitchen table. It's good family time.
3. Food volume!! We're not huge eaters, but there are times you just want to have a lot of food available to you. This is one of those times!
4. Monorail access to MK, Epcot - makes it pretty easy to plan around.

Hope you go and enjoy as much as we have!!

[HopperFan]

Like UKAnnie, we went in May for the first time, excited by all we read. We will probably not return. I will duck after I post this, but this was our experience. We are not picky and steadfastly love our Disney dining experiences. On to other places.....

Likes ~ Turkey, Steak and Shrimp were delicious. Side dishes were tasty.
View of castle was nice and we sat not far from fire pit which gave it atmosphere.
We were seated very quickly, actually before our PS.

Dislikes ~ Pork was very dry. Did not enjoy peeling messy shrimp.
We had to beg for more than a couple shrimp at a time, which considering how long you waited for them to return was not unreasonable.
While the wait staff was very friendly and seemed to be working hard, they did not get back to us very often.
For that much money I want more variety of side dishes and something more exciting than could be made at home. Pineapple for dessert is not exactly sufficient considering again the price.
Felt like we were sitting on top of our neighbors, felt like wait staff had no room to manuever around us.
Thought the kids games were hokey and my DD (10) was disappointed that it was so preschool-ish. She is a participator by nature, but not this. During game time it was very loud in there.

I guess we expected something more cultural....and we spent alot of money for our family of five and don't feel it was worth it.

[TonyS20]

We did not enjoy this restaurant either. I'm still working on my dining reviews, but 14 days is a lot to compile.

As a quick note, we had a great view of the castle. The pineapple bread was very good, but the server (Danyele) was huffy when I asked for more.

The appetizers were not sides. I like potatoes with my meat and was disappointed there was only rice (I didn't like it). My DH did like the pot stickers, but I was not fond of any of the appetizers. I was really looking forward to the green beans, but they were gross at best.

The meat is VERY SLOW to be brought to the table. We were given all 4 meats within 5 minutes of each other and they never returned. The pork was good that night (I guess it just depends), but the turkey was overdone. We don't like sauces on our meat, so we just sampled a little bit of the sauces.

Our server came to clear our dishes and was huffy again when I asked for more pork. (She had already picked up all my dishes.) She asked DH if he wanted more as well or if it was ok for her to pick up his dishes. He told her he was finished.

She brought our pineapple (very good) and 2 pieces of pork for me (no silverware). The pork was pink, so I only had the one bite.

Highlight of the meal - hanging out in the lounge before our PS. Our bartender, Karen, was great! The drinks were awesome!

I know for many this is their favorite restaurant. We tried it and it wasn't for us. We'll be trying many others on our next trip, but will not return here.

[leebee]

You know, it really seems like a lot of the dissent about O'Hana's depends on the server. We went for our anniversary on June 26, '04 and were very pleased. I was hesitant about this restaurant because DD (10) does not eat flesh-type meat. (Prechewed, like burger, nuggets, is fine, but not real chicken, beef, pork, fish etc.) I decided it was MY anniversary and this was where I wanted to go, and I'd buy her a burger at McD's on the way home if she was hungry. Anyhow, we had a really good time. Appetizers appeared quickly on our table, and DD enjoyed the green beans, salad, rice and even the potstickers! Just as we were tiring of appetizers, along came the real food; lots of it, hot and tasty. DH asked for about 6 shrimp, they gave him 14! No problem getting seconds, and although some of the beef and pork seemed overdone, we are med-rare meat eaters and there was plenty of this also. We had no problems getting additional servings, and when a waiter (not even our waiter) noticed that DD was not eating, he asked if she'd like him to get her some macaroni and cheese from the Cafe! All in all, I was very impressed. Even enjoyed the pineapple with caramel for dessert; didn't expect any dessert as the website menus all show additional charges for desserts. I really think that if it's a busy night (lots of food being cooked/eaten quickly) and the wait staff is attentive, people have a better time at O'Hana's.

[DisLUV]

We will be there during our trip Dec 6-12 and hope to really enjoy this resturant

[daannzzz]

I am a 'Ohana lover for the combination of the the atrmosphere, service, food and games. Like at all restaurants the service depends on who you get. I have mostly had great service but one time our waiter was not attentive but his assistant was of great help. Unfortunately the meat can vary in its proper temp and time of cooking. Most of the time it is all really good but there have been times when one or the other kind of skewer was dry or , as on our fisrt trip, the shrimp were mealy. They tend to tweak the menu a bit here and there. One year, after the appetiziers they brought a wok full of rice, stir fried vegetables and chunks of salmon before the skewers. Even with an occaisional slip up it is a great place to eat.

[RPrincess]

Everything hopperfan posted is exactly what I would be posting. I just returned and was a bit dissapointed. However, live and learn what and where you like best. I did not think that I would like Boma's but tried it and loved it. Again some will like Boma's and some will not.exactly exactly

[Cameo]

Definitely one of our favorites. I could see how the service could certainly ruin it for you. We had a great dinner at Ohanas and two days later ate the character breakfast there. The breakfast food was good, but the service was awful. Our waitress was also handling a large table and didn't have much time for us. Also, we didn't get to see all the characters and we did not have time to wait. We will definitely go again for dinner and will probably try breakfast one more time before taking that off our list. I would say you should give it a try and then judge for yourself. Oh, and don't forget to order a separate dessert besides the pineapple. The chocolate mousse there is my favorite dessert on Disney property. I practically licked the plate!

[Cleokitty]

Count us OUT on returning to this restaurant. Food was overcooked and very dry. Service was poor. Too much money to justify giving them a 2nd chance. We're just going to try some other restaurants this trip.

[Tony-NJ]

we went back in 98 and liked it. Had great service and the food was good, not dried out. I DO NOT REMEMBER PEEL your own shrimp! For some reason I don't think it was that way back then.

We went last friday night. Me, SO, MIL and another couple. The service was horrible. Our "cousin" was quite rude. We finally got out drinks and appitizers and didn't see him again for 45 minutes. We tried to get his attention a couple of times, I did everything but trip him!

He gave us attitude when we asked for more appitizers. We finally got them after he brought the first round of meats out. The steak was ok, the turkey was dry. I still can't imagine they served peel and eat shrimp! That was gross. Then he came by 30 minutes later with pork. I asked for water at one point, that took 20 minutes. We couldn't wait to get out of there! What a disapointment! It was the only bad meal we had in 12 days at WDW!

If it weren't for the great copmpany, we would have most likely walked out.

After all that I would still say to try it. It may have been an off night for the server. But we will not go back there.

[fmed845]

This is my wifes must do restaurant each trip for us and I have no problem with that. We loved the appetizers. The meats are very good. Atmosphere nice and always had great service. Pretty good view too! Always worth a try.::yes::

[sherry8253]

I thought the meat was dry and tough. But, we may have just caught the restaurant on an off night. Also, our service was not great. My DH waited a long time for shrimp.

[cavecricket]

Disliked here :crazy2:

no flavor to the food, very loud, our "cousin" would bring our skewer to us with a few pieces of cold dry meat after the other "big parties" had there fill.
the wait was horrible. the contests were out of control, like i had said once before, the hula hoopers are only supposed to hula around the waist. this one kid kept doing it around his wrist, eventually the hoop came flying off his wrist right into us. I ended up with a chicken wing in my lap. and my "cousin" came over and tried to make a joke out of it. not your expensive skirt , cousin.

the only reason i didnt make a complaint about this poor service overcooked place was because we had the most beautiful view of the mk fireworks.

trust me when i say i love disney world , and something has to be exceptionally poor for me to bad mouth it, i am just thankful that in 27 visits this was the first time i had such a bad experience.
i wont ever waste my money there again. i would rather spend that money on a never failed me yet dinner like le cellier or jiko or for buffet i would rather do boma.

sorry for the bad review, on a happier note every other place we ate was wonderfull!!!!

[lou7401]

I'm so surprised at the negative reviews. We were there for dinner on Nov. 2 and we had the best dining experience of our trip. The service was good we had a very friendly, funny waiter and he had an assistant who also served us. The food was delicious, not overcooked at all. It's Polynesian so I expected rice as the side-dish which was fine since I love rice. The shrimp was the best part - it wasn't the greatest to have to peel it yourself, but I think grilling it with the shell on makes it less likely to dry out.

Overall great food, atmosphere and service!

[Alice28]

WE LOVED it! We were a party of 7- me and DH, our two kids who were 5 and almost 2 at the time, my parents and my mother in law. We ALL loved it. What did we love?

The atmosphere- very friendly, laid back and the view is AWESOME.

The service people- again, friendly & attentive!

The food- specifically we LOVED the wontons and the wings! We could have feasted just on those...the honey lime dressing on the salad is great, as is the peanut dipping sauce. We all liked the prawns and steak...the pork and turkey were on the dry side, but perfectly tolerable dipped in some sauce. One was drier than the other, but I cannot remember which.

The pineapple with the caramel sauce is the perfect ending to such a carniverous meal.

And if your kids are picky eaters, they can order something off the kid's menu from Kona Cafe (I think there's hot dogs, chicken strips, mac and cheese...)

[tlev]

I am always amazed at reading threads like this, how there can be such completely different views on the same place. That being said, I have to be put in the dislike column. The appetizers were delicious but our server never offered to refill them, despite the fact that my DW and I finished the whole tray in about 5 minutes. Our server brought us each one serving of the 4 skewer products, disappeared for about 20 minutes and then came back and asked if we were ready for dessert. Never even offered us seconds at an all you can eat set-up! Not that we would have taken any because the meat was way overcooked and really did not have any flavoring at all. But again maybe we caught it on a bad night.

[Alice28]

It's so strange reading all the poor reviews. I will say it wasn't very busy while we were there....we had a team of two servers- one was kinda in charge of the appetizers (and we easily had 2-3 refills on the wontons alone, not to mention the rice, salad and sticky wings) and she came around at least twice to refill our meat...we would say, "Oh, just a couple pieces" and she would slide 4-6 on our plate."

I will say that my husband had to be a little firm when we checked in and asked to speak with the management----maybe the hostess warned our servers that we were tough or something. Our complaint was that we checked in 35 minutes early, there were maybe 5 - 7 tables occupied at the time, and DH asked for a window table. The hostess kind of snottily said that she couldn't guarantee that, and we would get whatever was available. Since you can see the restaurant from the hostess desk, my husband looked around, and say, "If you would like to seat us now, that would be great as you have a lot of empty tables." And she said the same thing and brushed him off. (we had received the same spiel at Rose and Crown 5 nights before, but they were VERY busy and I can understand why they had to say that). So then he asked to speak with a manager and another host stepped in and said, "Sir, I am sure that will NOT be a problem getting you your request as we are no where near busy right now." And we got a rockin table in the corner with a perfect view of Cinderella's castle and the fireworks. It did get busy as the meal progressed, but for us, the service never lacked at all.

[Threehearts]

Three visits, three subpar meals with dismissive servers- we're on the never again list. Threehearts

[wld]

We have been 4 times, twice with DDs and twice just DH and I. We have always had wonderful service, in fact we have to stop them from bringing us more. The appetizers are great we think and not something we have at home. We have never had cold meat and I am picky about things being hot. Pork is not my favorite but more a personal preference than the way it was prepared. Loved the steak, nice and pink in the center. I don't like the shrimp for 2 reasons, it is too spicey for me and I don't like to peel it either. But DH loves it and they always give him more than he asks for. ( you want 2? Oh take 4) They have been back before we finish what we already have. Our DDs love this restaurant too, they were in their teens the first time we went. We think the pineapple and carmel is a wonderful light dessert although 1 time the pineapple could have been riper. And one time the girls wanted to order a different dessert which they loved. After reading some of the reports I hope our luck holds.

[profdsny]

Another negative. We've been going there since they opened this theme, and it keeps getting worse and worse. Last time we went, NYE, last year, was only because we gave our 11yo her choice of where to go. Sevice has been all over the board, but no where near as good as it once was. And, the choice of items has decreased from a huge one to about just four. Even the starters have changed, and are not as good as they once were. A few years ago we were in the back room, and never did see the entertainer, which was good, because she certainly wasn't. There are some great buffet choices with all you can eat, and this year we are doing Boma instead of O'hana. Oh, AND, to make matters worse, they don't even have those great glass animal drink stirrers anymore.

[Oh, Kay!]

Have you been to a Churrascaria? I thought 'Ohana was a poor cousin to it in terms of food selection and quality. There are several Churrascarias on Long Island, Queens and Manhattan. I recommend you to try one locally.

[Laralyn]

Do you think the size of the group changes the experience? Were those of you who had negative experiences in small groups of 2-3 people?

[psupple]

Originally posted by tlev
I am always amazed at reading threads like this, how there can be such completely different views on the same place. That being said, I have to be put in the dislike column. The appetizers were delicious but our server never offered to refill them, despite the fact that my DW and I finished the whole tray in about 5 minutes. Our server brought us each one serving of the 4 skewer products, disappeared for about 20 minutes and then came back and asked if we were ready for dessert. Never even offered us seconds at an all you can eat set-up! Not that we would have taken any because the meat was way overcooked and really did not have any flavoring at all. But again maybe we caught it on a bad night.

I have to totally agree with you. We were there a few weeks ago, and our experience was very similar to yours. Never again..

[Jen D]

I'm not in the 'Ohana fan club; but I have to volunteer that I have no problem with the peel / eat shrimp-- it's all cooked on the skewer, and you wouldn't want them peeled before they were grilled, the shrimp wouldn't taste very good. Much better grilled in shell.

My take on 'Ohana isn't as negative as some, and we actually had very nice service. But I just thought the place was nothing special for the price; we probably won't go back unless we stay at the Polynesian again and are looking for a meal "in" (although we prefer Kona!)

[UKAnnie]

Re our negative experience - we were in a group of 4 adults.

Ann.

[tlev]

My negative experience - just the DW and I.

[bdcp]

I have a question. I'm allergic to shrimp, so, is the shrimp on the same skewers as the other meat or on separate ones? We'll be going to WDW next fall and I want to be able to make PS for some restaurants, but don't want to find out the hard way that I can't eat at O'Hana's.

[Alice28]

Originally posted by bdcp
I have a question. I'm allergic to shrimp, so, is the shrimp on the same skewers as the other meat or on separate ones? We'll be going to WDW next fall and I want to be able to make PS for some restaurants, but don't want to find out the hard way that I can't eat at O'Hana's.

Each meat is on its own skewer. :D

[hannahryan]

I am about as particular as they come...but, I LOVE OHANAS! It's my favorite restaurant at WDW. We ate there on our last night (11/10/04). The server wasn't overly friendly, but he did offer us refills of yummy appetizers and brought plenty of tasty shrimp and meat. Wishes started at 7pm and they pipe in the music. It was so magical to watch from there. Great food, great atmosphere and lots of magic. We couldn't have asked for anything more!
::MinnieMo