Garden Grove at Swan

[jp02]

Anyone been lately? I don't see a lot of people discuss it here, but I am thinking of adding it to my next trip. If anyone has any other suggestions for buffets that would be appreciated! TIA.

 

[DisNorth]

Anyone been lately? I don't see a lot of people discuss it here, but I am thinking of adding it to my next trip. If anyone has any other suggestions for buffets that would be appreciated! TIA.

I was there in September. Food was ok, everyone found something they liked but there were a few things that weren’t to my tastes. Seemed like good quality food. It was pretty quiet in the restaurant about three tables, I think, in addition to us. There were two characters: Goofy and Pluto and they came around twice. I really liked the decor, with a tree in the room. My camera died on me so I regret not getting a photo of the tree. You do have to pay for parking if you drive there.

 

[TheRustyScupper]

Our Ratings of Garden Grove - Dinner Buffet: (4/12/2012)
. . . food price value: C
. . . food quality: B
. . . food quantity per serving: A
. . . food prep speed: A
. . . food selection: C
. . . seating quantity: C
. . . seating comfort: B
. . . eatery atmosphere: C
. . . eatery convenience: B
. . . staff friendliness: B
. . . staff attentiveness: C
. . . character interaction: n/a

NOTE: We have dined at all three themed dinner buffets. They are
Seafood, Southern BBQ, and Mediterranean. We found the food quality
and taste to be above average, not superior. For a buffet, we thought
the price slightly high. We liked the Southern BBQ, and really enjoyed
the Seafood "Fisherman's Wharf" buffet (I am very fond of Bouillabaisse).
Overall, an acceptable buffet at WDW and not as bad on the wallet as
expected. The only thing we thought was bad was the service. We waited
long periods for dirty plates to be cleared. We waited for drinks refilled
or replenished. The table got crowded with plates we were using and plates
that needed to be removed.

We did the non-character dinners, thus cannot comment on interaction
on weekend character meals.

 

[wdwfan1]

We did not like it at all. Food was tasteless and the servers were not very attentive.

 

[hidmickey:myantidrug]

Solid 'eh' to us. There was good food, but nothing that we find worth going back for. The carvers at the meat station were wonderful and very nice. The desserts were way too fancy for my tastes, although for someone who likes truly fancy desserts, they'd probably be underwhelmed. It was pretty dead in there, like a previous poster said. The characters were obviously bored with so few people to visit, so they started goofing around which made for hilarious entertainment. It seemed like they were just doing it to entertain themselves since they were doing it way off to the side. Definitely fun to see.

Overall, it wasn't a bad experience, but we won't be going back. Nothing made it worth making the hike to get there for us.

 

[Belle83]

We liked it. We had dinner there during Mediterranean Night and the food was pretty good. It wasn't crowded at all, and if you are into character interaction (we had Goofy and Pluto) it's a great choice because the crowds are low. We ate for free because we had a voucher from our hotel, so that might be why we liked it so much.

 

[bcrook]

We had a less than comfortable dinner (sea food buffet), service and layout of the restaurant was not ideal. We are not likely to return.

 

[TDC Nala]

Doesn't get discussed much because it isn't on the dining plan. On the flip side, it's easier to get into because it isn't on the dining plan.

Remember guests coming to the Swan/Dolphin to eat must pay for parking. Don't know if Garden Grove is one of the restaurants that validates.

 

[Mkrop]

Garden Grove was the worst meal we had on our trip in July. It was Southern BBQ night. The ribs and pulled pork were cold. The corn on the cob was burnt. Desserts were bland (and that is picky DS15 reading over my shoulder) The characters were great and we were surprised bc we thought the characters were only there for breakfast.

 

[TDC Nala]

They have characters every night at dinner, and at breakfast on weekends.

 

[nascarelbert]

Had breakfast there yesterday (note that we were staying at the Swan). Advantages are that no reservations were required/accepted for breakfast, and the character interaction was great (we had Pluto, Goofy, Chip and Dale...all came multiple times and spent a decent amount of time with us). Food was on par, if not better and seemingly fresher, than other character buffet breakfasts we did this week (1900 Park Fare and Cape May Cafe). I wouldn't run there, but it was a very convenient option and a pleasant surprise given that we went into it with no expectations (just trying for a quick-ish full breakfast before hitting the MK).