Poor Old Nine Dragons.....

[bluejasmine]

We were impressed. We thought the food was great and I wasn't even looking fwd to the ADR we only made it b\c we missed ours and ND was the only opening that night. I'd definately go back they had the best general tso I've ever had!

 

[WTP]

We were there for the CP package in Dec 2009. I thought the package itself was overpriced but the menu prices looked on par for what it was. I loved everything I had and thought it was better quality than the takeout I get here at home, but on par with similarly priced sit-downs I've been to in major cities.

With that said, I didn't think anything was amazing enough that it made it onto our list for our upcoming trip. I liked it, but didn't love it enough to give up trying new places.

 

[LuluLovesDisney]

We enjoy 9 Dragons. Their jasmine iced tea is fabulous and very refreshing after being in the heat. I love that it is unsweetened but still a somewhat unique noncaloric drink offering in WDW.

The food is the same as the "good" Chinese take outs at home so I have no complaints. The shrimp toasts are excellent- even my then-three year old niece loved them. The fried rice, soup etc. are all pretty much what you'd get from a good take out place. They used to offer a salad in a vase, that I loved. It was prettily sliced veggies in a container so they looked like flowers.

Service is always good and I like that it is often less crowded than some other park restaurants.

 

[DVCconvert]

Nine Dragons is the closest Chinese food I've had to NY Chinese in all of Florida. not bad!

You really have to try Ming Court.

 

[Condorman]

Never been there. Apparently if you like regular Chinese food of the type you can get at the neighborhood restaurant, it's just fine, but not raveworthy. The problem I would have with it is paying those prices for just regular Chinese food of the type you can get at the neighborhood restaurant.

Does your neighborhood Chinese restaurant have 1,000 rides, shows and attractions? Do they have 60,000+ employees? Do they have the third largest bus system in the state? Do they have nighttime fireworks spectaculars? The answer is no.

You do realize that's what you're paying for when you spend $18.99 on honey sesame chicken at Nine Dragons, right? The same goes for any Disney restaurant... $1.72 goes to the diesel gasoline for the transportation that gets you around; $.97 goes towards the landscaping of 40 square miles, etc. etc.

Always keep this fact in mind. Never believe that the ticket price covers everything. Never believe that the nightly resort price covers everything. Costs are distributed across every revenue-generating outlet. Never compare your "neighborhood" to Walt Disney World.

Food for thought.

 

[TheTXTaylors5]

Nine Dragons is a "must" for our WDW trips. I find that most people on the DISboards that put the restaurant down, have never eaten there. We've had nothing but great service and food each trip. The honey sesame chicken is the BEST and the potstickers always get gobbled up by our kids. We've tried all of the Epcot World Showcase restaurants except the ones in the Mexico Pavilion. We live in Texas and get authentic Mexican food at home. We may try it one day just to say we've eaten there. After eating "around the world", we now have some family favorites and we keep going back to Nine Dragons. It has been consistently good and a place the kids beg to visit each trip. I'm fine when I see negative posts. I know better! Personally, I think it is one of Epcot's Best Kept Secrets. Great view of the lagoon, attentive servers and yummy Chinese food. Shhhhhh! Don't tell anyone!

Have a magical trip!

 

[AlternateEgo]

In 2009, we went and used the bathroom by there and the restaurant smelled so good. We had ate at Coral Reef earlier in the day and left hungry because the food wasn't good at all.

 

[TheTXTaylors5]

Below is my review of Nine Dragons copied from one of my Trip Reports:

Nine Dragons

We have yet to find a decent Chinese food restaurant at home. So, we always try and eat at least once at Nine Dragons on our WDW trips. Being DH's birthday, having one of his favorite meals was very fitting. The CM quickly seated us at a table not near the windows, but in view of the windows. So, we had a little view. Better than nothing. Another CM came to take our drink and food order. We order the same thing every trip, pot stickers for an appetizer and honey sesame chicken for our main entree. They are consistently good every trip. I was keeping my fingers crossed, we would get another great lunch.

Our Meal
Appetizer: Pot Stickers ~ Sauteed pork and veggie dumplings served with cilantro-soy dipping sauce. $6.98
Adult Entrees: Honey-Sesame Chicken ~ Tempura chicken tossed in a mildly sweet honey sauce topped with a sprinkle of sesame seeds served with steamed white rice and cucumber salad. $16.98
Child Meals: Sweet and sour chicken (sauce on the side) served with white steamed rice, fresh baby carrots and steamed broccoli. $7.68
Pound Cake (gratis)

Pot Stickers and Honey Sesame Chicken (I finally remembered to take some food pictures.)

When the pot stickers came out, they looked perfect. Looks were NOT deceiving. They were delicious as usual. With our family of five and everyone liking pot stickers (even DS3), we usually get two orders. They were devoured in minutes. Next our entrees arrived. The chicken was crispy with the mildly sweet honey sauce. It was heaven on a plate. Yum! Yum!

I noted on ALL our ADRs that we were celebrating DH's birthday. After our plates were cleared, our server came over with some other servers with a piece of cake with a candle on it. They sang "Happy Birthday" to DH in Cantonese. One birthday song down, two more to go. Our server presented DH with a birthday card written in Chinese. He loved that!

DH and his complimentary birthday piece of cake.

Somewhere after eating chicken and before the birthday cake, DS3 fell asleep at the table. He never does this. He had already done a lot of walking that morning. He wanted nothing to do with his stroller. I was fine with that. So with the heat and all the walking, he was worn out. After paying the check, DH carried DS3 out of the restaurant and into his stroller. DS3 was still soundly asleep.

DS3 catching some zzzz's at lunch.

The family enjoying a great lunch at Nine Dragons.

 

[chocovrdmicears]

Hungry family + wicked thunderstorm = our family having an unexpected dinner at Nine Dragons last August.
We all loved it. DH could eat bad chinese out of sneaker and love it...needless to say he was pleased. I was pleasantly surprised. The plate I had was a special - never saw it listed on any menu. It was really good! Spicy shrimp on one side, a chicken and veggies dish on the other and some yummy rice in between. Our kiddos loved their meals. We would definately go back again.

 

[Belle5]

We avoided this restaurant for years due to bad reviews on the DIS. One year my kids just wanted to try something new so we went to ND for dinner. LOVED it! What a beautiful restaurant! Our food was very tasty! For some reason there was only one dessert that night and we weren't overly fond of it, but I've noticed better choices on the menu since that time. We would not hesitate to dine there again!

 

[Johnny_B]

I had dinner at 9D for the CP package in Dec 2010. Like most others, I thought it was good, but not great, American Chinese food. The menu has most of your favorites from you local places, plus a few surprises. I would go again, but probably for lunch instead. I would avoid the ginger cake -- mine was literally frozen and obviously hadn't been defrosted yet.

The best "Asian" food I've had on property was at Yak and Yeti. Perhaps because it's not owned by Disney?

 

[marivaid]

We've been to Nine Dragons twice and enjoyed it both times. Yes it's Americanized Chinese, just like Teppan Edo is Americanized Japanese.

As far as it being twice as expensive as a regular Chinese restaurant, isn't that true of almost every other WDW restaurant ?? Le Cellier serves what many have called TGI Friday's types of steaks ... except it's $40 not $20. And where else are guests supposed to pay $16 for a plain, appetizer-sized caesar salad or $12 for a single cannoli?

 

[jennylyn_b]

We LOVED Nine Dragons! The food was delicious and a bit different from the typical take out restaurant around the corner. The service was wonderful also. We had no complaints and highly recommend it. Is it the best in WDW ? No, but we enjoyed it and can't wait to go back.

 

[koolaidmoms]

We also avoided Nine Dragons because we have decent Chinese in our area and thought why bother?

But we ended up being in Epcot with no ADRs one night and the only restaurant we could get into was Nine Dragons. We were pleasantly surprised that we actually had a nice meal.

Other than the spacing of the tables (I was in a wheelchair) which were placed one right next to the other we were pleased with our meal and the service. I am wondering if this was because it was during Candlelight Processional or are the tables always so close together?

There is a review and some photos on my blog - Nine Dragons Dinner

 

[Coconuts]

Never been there ourselves but my friend and her family tried it last year and loved it. Her kids LOVE Chinese food so they tried it on their last trip. Her family enjoyed it so much that they returned there 2 more times during the trip. Kids can be so picky with eating, which is why she returned there; she knew they would eat a good meal and enjoy it.

 

[LMO429]

the reason why I never went to nine dragons, is because I know every time i eat chinese food I need a nap..the last thing I want to feel is tired, full and sluggish in a theme park.

 

[Disnydad]

We have no complaints either. For years we avoided it due to feedback on Disney forums, but once we tried it a couple of years ago we now include it once a year.

 

[copper0426]

We use to love Nine Dragons. Our favorite was the Peking Duck. It was unbelievable. They use to bring the duck out, take the crispy skin off at the table for you to have in the little wraps with the sauce and green onion slices. The best. Then they would take the duck to the back to carve. I was so dissappointed when they took that off the menu. You just cant get that at a corner take out, nor have I been able to find it anyplace we've gone.

We have been there with the revised menu, just nothing that is that appealing anymore.

 

[Luv4Disney]

DH and I went when they first remodled it and thought it was delicious! We're going back in December!

 

[disneyfav4ever]

I thought it was good too, (and I also had the honey-sesame,) but like you said, most people can get the same at home, and for much cheaper, so it just isn't worth a return trip for me.