Dining for Newlywed Couple

[mwachter]

Hi all.

My wife and I are planning our trip to Disney in September and are looking to make a couple nicer dining reservations for our trip. In the past trips I have made, we never did any sit-downs within the park so I am not quite as familiar with the restaurant scene at Disney.

We want to have a nicer meal, but aren't looking to go all out budget wise and would like to stick to mostly casual dress restaurants to avoid the trip back to the hotel to change for dinner.

What would everyone suggest? We are planning for a 7 day trip with 2 days spent at universal so I am thinking of 2-3 sit-downs.

 

[Sweet Melissa]

For more casual table service meals, I like Kouzzina at the Boardwalk, Sanaa at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, the Coral Reef in EPCOT, and the Hollywood Brown Derby in Hollywood Studios. I think all of those have good food and a unique atmosphere that will be either romantic (in the case of Brown Derby and Sanaa) or celebratory (Kouzzina and Coral Reef).

 

[tarheelmjfan]

Casual attire is acceptable in all of the park restaurants. Most people at Le Bistro (which is now Paul Monsieur) in Epcot wore nicer clothes. I don't know if that's still the case, after the change. Regardless, that isn't really a budget friendly restaurant anyway.

San Angel Inn can be very romantic. Book a late ADR & ask for a table by the water. My DH & I shared the restaurant with two other families late in the evening. We thoroughly enjoyed it. Going early in the evening can offer a very different experience. It will be much louder, but sitting by the water can still be romantic.

I wouldn't categorize Sci-fi as romantic, because you'll have to share a car with another family, but it's dark & quiet. We like the burgers & onion rings. The quiet restaurant is a welcome respite from the restaurants where everyone seems to be competing for the loudest table. I don't know if they have tables for 2 in the back. That may be a better option for you. Hopefully, someone here will know the table sizes.

If you're willing to spend a little more, there are more romantic options that I can think of. To save money you could share an appetizer or two, an entree, & a dessert.

ETA: I agree with Hollywood Brown Derby, if it fits in your price range. If you go, ask for the back room. It's usually much quieter in there.

 

[mwachter]

Thanks for the suggestions. We can probably go for one nicer meal, but I was more worried about the time we may have to spend going back to the room to change in order to have dinner. I suppose if we chose a later reservation that was later on, it wouldn't take up as much of the day as otherwise. I want it to be romantic, but at the same time, we are at Disney, and sometimes it feels out of place.

 

[gingerfeathers]

Le Cellier was a favorite on our honeymoon. Unfortunately, the last few times we went the quality was down, so we won't be going back. This year we're trying Yachtsman Steakhouse. I'm also looking forward to Les Chefs de France and Be Our Guest this year.

Some others we have enjoyed together: Coral Reef, Wolfgang Puck's, and Kona Cafe.

 

[mmmears]

You don't need to go back and change if you are eating in the parks (and from your question it looks like you are looking for dining ideas in the parks) so don't worry about that.

Nice, but not break-the-budget places in the park with nice atmosphere IMO:

DHS -- Sci Fi Diner
Epcot -- San Angel Inn, Chefs de France, Rose and Crown
MK -- Plaza Inn

More pricey options would be things like Brown Derby, Flying Fish (BW), Cali Grill (CR), Jiko (AKL). Most of the fancier places we like are not in the parks...

 

[karenklo]

We LOVE Jiko at AKL. We wore casuals clothes, but not flip-flop attire. But the service and food was amazing!! We were staying at the AKL, but I would imagine a walk around the resort after dinner would be nice if you were not staying there.

 

[mwachter]

What do they consider casual attire in most cases? Obviously not flip-flops, but many people will wear casual shorts and a t-shirt. Is that too dressed down or is considered acceptable? I don't want us to be the odd duck out.

I think we are definitely going to do the San Angel late to watch Illuminations. I have been hearing that over and over as a great place. How do you ask for a table by the water? Is that something that has to be done via a phone call ADR?

 

[Sweet Melissa]

What do they consider casual attire in most cases? Obviously not flip-flops, but many people will wear casual shorts and a t-shirt. Is that too dressed down or is considered acceptable? I don't want us to be the odd duck out.

It's acceptable. The signature restaurants actually don't mention footwear at all in their dress codes. The forbidden articles are hats for men, tank tops, swimwear, ripped or torn clothing, and t-shirts with inappropriate or obscene graphics.

That said, you really do need to dress for your own comfort level. There are some signature restaurants where I would be let in wearing jeans and a t-shirt, but would still feel uncomfortable or under-dressed. Jiko is one of those. My partner feels best in a polo shirt and khakis there. I like to wear a nice top, dressy sandals and capris.

 

[disnmooner2013]

Hi all.

My wife and I are planning our trip to Disney in September and are looking to make a couple nicer dining reservations for our trip. In the past trips I have made, we never did any sit-downs within the park so I am not quite as familiar with the restaurant scene at Disney.

We want to have a nicer meal, but aren't looking to go all out budget wise and would like to stick to mostly casual dress restaurants to avoid the trip back to the hotel to change for dinner.

What would everyone suggest? We are planning for a 7 day trip with 2 days spent at universal so I am thinking of 2-3 sit-downs.

Below is the link to my honeymoon itinerary thread for where we are eating on our June honeymoon; if you want to look at it for suggestions.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3041090

 

[ParkHoppers]

We went on our honeymoon last November after getting married in downtown disney. We had the deluxe plan and went to many of the nicer restaurants. We loved Narcoossees at the GF, California Grill at the Contemporary, Le Cellier at Epcot and Hollywood Brown Derby in HS. We also dined at Artist Point on our wedding night, which we thought was 'ok' but not our favorite.