Hey Disneyland Management-Food Service!

[Disney Davo]

Last night the park was very crowded and I spent a very frustrating hour in line for food at Rancho Del Zocalo. One line to get the food second line to pay, by the time we ate our food was cold to luke warm. Anyone ever been to Mammoth skiing, they got the food service thing down to a science with very little wait. Disneyland Food Service Management should take a trip up there this winter and take a lesson on how they can improve. Anyone been to Mammoth and agree? Less wait equals more sales, cha-ching. It is very evident the food quality is not what it used to be and it costs goes up food quality is going down.

 

[jlmarr]

Davo -

How does Mammoth handle it?

Are there any counter services places elsewhere at DLR or WDW that are exemplary in your opinion?

 

[Disneyluvr2]

I had the same experience last weekend at Rancho Del Zocalo. The only difference was that we hardly waited in line at all before we sat down to eat and the food was still cold! It will probably be awhile before I eat there again.

 

[Dizneydaz]

I too am constantly unimpressed with Disney Food Management. I hate having my food get cold while waiting to pay.

A few weeks ago we had 2 frustrating experiences while at the parks. These both took place mid week. Low crowds.

1st time at Pizza Oom Mow Mow. There were only 2 guests ahead af me waiting for their food. It took at least 5-7 min. for each of them to get their food. Then the CM took my receipt and disappeared into a back room. After a few minutes another CM came up to me an asked if I'd been helped. I told her another CM had taken my receipt and disappeared. She said she would find her. At least 5 minutes later the first CM came out and apologized for the delay-she had to go in the back and refill the sauce bottle for my BBQ chicken pizza. Huh??? This takes more than 5 minutes? Are you kidding me? It took over 20 mins. to get our food that lunch and we were there at about 1:30 so the lunch rush was over. Talk about disorganized. Also the BBQ pizza would have been really good if it was hot. It was barely warm.

Next was dinner at Stage Door Cafe. Again, there were only 2 guests ahead of me waiting for their food. Again it took over 20 minutes to get our food. What can possibly take so long to serve chicken strips and fries? The good news was at least the food was hot since we pay before the food is served.

I was at Pizza Port a fw days ago and luckily DD9 and I decided to have pizza and salad and skip the pasta. The line for the pasta was out the door. While we were eating I saw the line for pasta, and the 2 cashiers, continue to grow. I also saw one Dad put his finger in his Chicken Fusilli and return to get a hot one. (I've done this before as well). Why can't Disney figure out a way to get the food lines moving faster? (And I love almost everything about Disney, just not the food service, and only some of the food.) If we are going around lunchtime we drive thru either McDs or Del Taco. Better food, better service, much better prices.

When we eat at Disney, we always try to hit off times. It's the best way, but not fool proof.

 

[Sherry E]

Well, my Blue Bayou commentary is a separate issue because I think they overbook the Priority Seating times, and thus, leave too many people waiting for an hour in a crowded parlor area with few seats available, so I will refrain from going on my rant about how they could improve that situation.

But we usually have very good dining experiences at Carnation Cafe, which is always busy, but this last time, three weeks ago, was a different story. The meat loaf was not as advertised and it was also quite different from how it had been when I ate it in the past, not to mention that it was lukewarm. The waitress was disinterested and unconcerned when I asked her if the recipe had changed or if my order had been mixed up in some way, and she didn't ask the chef about it being different either. Then, we ordered the apple pie a la mode - another previous hit with us at Carnation - and it took 20 minutes for the pie to arrive at our table, and when it did, I noticed that the pie was not warmed up at all and the ice cream was straight out of the freezer - not the typical apple pie a la mode one expects. Our waitress disappeared except to drop off "some extra napkins" at our table - which turned out to be ONE extra napkin which we were supposed to split between the two of us! So I didn't bother trying to ask her about the pie because she was unconcerned about the meat loaf and she seemed spaced out overall. I did, however, complain to Guest Communications when I returned home and, after some persistence, am in the process of waiting for them to send me some food vouchers to make up for that bad experience.

I think DLR's overall food quality and choices have improved vastly from how it was pre-1992. The food of the old days used to be cardboard, basically. Now, they do have some very adequate and tasty - and even healthy - options around the resort, but too frequently, food is arriving lukewarm or not as it should be, and it is difficult to justify spending $5.00+ for one slice of pizza that is not hot, or $8.00 for a piece of pie that is supposed to be warm but isn't!

 

[pixiewings71]

Pizza Om Mow Mow is defnitley not a choice we will make again. The salad I had was yucky. The BBQ pizza was good but not good enough to go back.

Stage Door Cafe actually services two places, the walk up outside and the Golden Horseshoe inside. The GH is always busy so that is likely why you had to wait.

OP, Rancho is one of my favorites places to eat inside DL. We do it at least once per trip, usually twice. I'm sorry your experience was less than stellar. I have never been to Mammoth, tell us how it's done there please!

 

[Disney Dreams]

OP, Rancho is one of my favorites places to eat inside DL. We do it at least once per trip, usually twice.

LOVE RdZ! The CMs there are great about working with you to make something custom and will do anything to make it right if something isn't right with your food.

If you ever get something cold there, tell them. They will fix it.

- Dreams

 

[Disney Davo]

Davo -

How does Mammoth handle it?

Are there any counter services places elsewhere at DLR or WDW that are exemplary in your opinion?

Very orderly process also serving a large number, very quick to get food and pay, it seems they use the same number employee so wouldn't be anything DL couldn't do. As mentioned it would be beneficial for DL to look into it.

I think our best dinning experience would have to be the German Buffet at Epcot.

 

[Disney Davo]

I think DLR's overall food quality and choices have improved vastly from how it was pre-1992. The food of the old days used to be cardboard, basically. Now, they do have some very adequate and tasty - and even healthy - options around the resort, but too frequently, food is arriving lukewarm or not as it should be, and it is difficult to justify spending $5.00+ for one slice of pizza that is not hot, or $8.00 for a piece of pie that is supposed to be warm but isn't!

I would agree but lately food service is headed back the other way while the price continues to go up. Almost all food items in the park have gone up in price and quality, portion size and service has gone down.

 

[Sherry E]

I would agree but lately food service is headed back the other way while the price continues to go up. Almost all food items in the park have gone up in price and quality, portion size and service has gone down.

And quality is probably not far behind on the downhill slope! You are right about portion sizes decreasing and prices increasing. I noticed my (normally great) meat loaf at Carnation had only a small dollop of gravy on top of it this time, whereas, in the past, the gravy was dripping off of the sides of it and soaking the bread atop which the meat loaf rests. This time, it didn't even touch the bread! And it had gone up in price by a dollar or two as well.

 

[LilyTheBootQueen]

My weekend food lack of service story. 6 Adults and 4 kids go to the Cove bar where they serve drinks and Appetizers. Shouldn't be that hard. We all order drinks, 2 bbq chicken pizzas, an order of crab cakes and wings. He brings out the non-alcoholic drinks first. ( I can see the bartender making the others fine ) then it starts going down hill fast .. The server waits an extra 10 minutes to bring those drinks to us. then brings out ONE of the pizza which they have changed the recipe to include diced tomatoes and not include that on the menu One of our guests is allergic to Tomatoes and Cannot have them. I quickly tell our server to make sure the other pizza is changed please. He Brings out the wings and crab cakes another 15 minutes later. Then the re-ordered pizza ANOTHER 15 minutes after that. in that time one of the kids dropped a plate and they now have shards of plate around the area and in the walkway. I tell the server and he says ok and leaves to some unknown abyss. He comes back 20!!! minutes later and asks if there is anything else we need.... Uh a BROOM so our children don't cut their feet.. "oh yeah sorry" comes back a few later with the broom finally himself. we and the table next to us as for our checks. The table next to me goes to the bar itself to find their bill about 5 minutes later. we do the same. He was the only server in the dining area and there were only 6 parties there. What in the world was he doing the whole time? 90% of the time he was not in visible range. .. Ok rant over..

edit: or not.. Forgot they used to have wonderful calamari strips made out of real steak calamari now they are rings BTW also the Drink that was new on the menu that he recommended that was sweet was like drinking a shot of tequila and he did nothing about it like offer a different one or take it off the bill, which would have been the norm anywhere else.

 

[evilprncess96]

I find it amazing that the biggest complaint that most people have at the park is the SERVICE or lack there of at the dining establishments. With DL being close enought to the outside world and other much better options for food, you would think that they would change this. It makes you wonder who is actually in charge of the staffing of the restaurants and don't they realize that is where the majority of the complaints are. I understand captive audience and all but...