Ten Day Dining Review With Pictures 12/1 Casey's Update!

[Steelersfan]

My family was lucky enough to enjoy a ten day trip from July 9 to July 20th. This is our 7th trip as a family and fourth with our daughter and using the dining plan. We had the basic dining with one quick serve and one table serve a day.

The restaurants I will be talking about are the following:

Day 1: Lunch at Earl of Sandwich, dinner at Chef Mickeys.
Day 2: Lunch at Pizza Planet, dinner at 1900 Park Fare
Day 3: Breakfast at Tusker House, dinner at Port Orleans French Quarter food court
Day 4: Lunch at Be Our Guest, dinner at Via Napoli
Day 5: Breakfast at Akershus, dinner at Cosmic Rays
Day 6: Snack at Typhoon Lagoon, dinner at T-Rex Cafe
Day 7: Lunch at Whispering Canyon Cafe, dinner at Catalina Eddie's
Day 8: Lunch at Yorkshire County Fish Shop, dinner at The Crystal Palace
Day 9: Breakfast at 'Ohana, dinner at Pinnochio Village Haus
Day 10: Lunch at Casey's Corner

Before I start, some information about our group might help. My wife and I are both in our mid 40's and our daughter is 11. This was her first time on the dining plan as an adult.

None of us are picky eaters. As I have always done in my past reviews, I try to review the food in a fair way. In other words, I do expect a buffet to have lesser quality than a meal where the food is being brought out fresh. I also know that a burger from a quick service restaurant will probably not compare to a sit down. I won't be tearing apart a dining experience because of expectations that are too high.

I will; however, rate this based on past experiences at Disney and other similar places. By similar I will consider other amusement parks, restaurants and even food one can get at a Major League ballpark.

I also will be taking into account the expense of the food and what one should reasonably expect. At character meals, I will try and describe the character interaction as well as the overall atmosphere for every restaurant. Hopefully any reader will get an idea of what we experienced and will, in turn, be able to make a reasonable inference as to what their own meal may be like. Please feel free to post any questions and I will answer them as we go.


Day 1

We had a VERY early flight out of Pittsburgh on Southwest. Our flight left at 5:30 am and we had no trouble except that we were up at 2 am to allow time to the airport. Our flight landed around 7:30 and we took some time to eat breakfast at the MCO Cinnabon. We were on the Magical express by 8:30.

I had used the early on-line check in option and selected "having a room open early" as my #1 request and a room close to the main building as my second request. I got a text on the way that our room wasn't quite ready, but about 10 minutes after getting to the French Quarter, I got another and we had a room and it was in Building #2 on the opposite side of the pool. It was about the best we could have asked for.

We went to the food court and got our mugs, which were included in the meal plan, and caught the boat to Downtown Disney. The plan was to eat lunch, do a little shopping and spend a few hours at DisneyQuest since it will be closing and our daughter had never experienced it.

The last few trips we have made Earl of Sandwich our first meal and did so this trip also.


Our daughter didn't really like anything on the adult menu, so they allowed her to get the grilled cheese from the child's menu only in a full sized adult version. She got a side of broccoli cheddar cheese soup and a bottle of water. She was thrilled with the selection and loved the meal.







My wife had the original roast beef with a side of chips and a bottle of water also. She gets this every trip and looks forward to it. There were no complaints this time either. The chips went back to the hotel room and actually survived the whole ten days. She took them to work in her lunch the first day back.








I was looking forward to the reuben but it was not on the lunch menu the day we went. I was torn, but went with what I had last time which was the Hawaiian sandwich which had ham, cheese, pineapple and BBQ sauce. It was every bit as good as I was hoping! I has the macaroni salad and fountain drink to go along with my sandwich.




We really love Earl of Sandwich and were not disappointed. If there was a negative it was that the reuben was not available and I am still holding out hope that the Beef and Bleu sandwich will somehow make a return. Neither were available this trip, but hopefully will be in the future.

One thing that sets Earl of Sandwich apart from the others is the variety. Although we ate here first, it is a nice restaurant to put in at any point in a trip to help break from the burgers, pizza and chicken nugget rut that sometimes occurs. As I said before, if you are on the dining plan and have Downtown Disney in your travel plans, don't skip this restaurant. I would eat here all the time if we had one at home.

We left Earl and did some shopping, then spent a few hours at DisneyQuest. This gave us time to catch another boat back to the French Quarter and get a nap. We were happy to see that all our bags were delivered when we returned. I will give the Chef Mickey's review a little later when I have time!

 

[mommypenguin29]

Looking forward to reading! Love Earl of Sandwich!

 

[ibcindyb]

My family was lucky enough to enjoy a ten day trip from July 9 to July 20th. This is our 7th trip as a family and fourth with our daughter and using the dining plan. We had the basic dining with one quick serve and one table serve a day.

The restaurants I will be talking about are the following:

Day 1: Lunch at Earle of Sandwich, dinner at Chef Mickeys.
Day 2: Lunch at Pizza Planet, dinner at 1900 Park Fare
Day 3: Breakfast at Tusker House, dinner at Port Orleans French Quarter food court
Day 4: Lunch at Be Our Guest, dinner at Via Nappoli
Day 5: Breakfast at Akershus, dinner at Cosmic Rays
Day 6: Snack at Typhoon Lagoon, dinner at T-Rex Cafe
Day 7: Lunch at Whispering Canyon Cafe, dinner at Catalina Eddie's
Day 8: Lunch at Yorkshire County Fish Shop, dinner at The Crystal Palace
Day 9: Breakfast at 'Ohana, dinner at Pinnochio Village Haus
Day 10: Lunch at Casey's Corner

Before I start, some information about our group might help. My wife and I are both in our mid 40's and our daughter is 11. This was her first time on the dining plan as an adult.

None of us are picky eaters. As I have always done in my past reviews, I try to review the food in a fair way. In other words, I do expect a buffet to have lesser quality than a meal where the food is being brought out fresh. I also know that a burger from a quick service restaurant will probably not compare to a sit down. I won't be tearing apart a dining experience because of expectations that are too high.

I will; however, rate this based on past experiences at Disney and other similar places. By similar I will consider other amusement parks, restaurants and even food one can get at a Major League ballpark.

I also will be taking into account the expense of the food and what one should reasonably expect. At character meals, I will try and describe the character interaction as well as the overall atmosphere for every restaurant. Hopefully any reader will get an idea of what we experienced and will, in turn, be able to make a reasonable inference as to what their own meal may be like. Please feel free to post any questions and I will answer them as we go.


Day 1

We had a VERY early flight out of Pittsburgh on Southwest. Our flight left at 5:30 am and we had no trouble except that we were up at 2 am to allow time to the airport. Our flight landed around 7:30 and we took some tome to eat breakfast at the MCO Cinnabon. We were on the Magical express by 8:30.

I had used the early on-line check in option and selected "having a room open early" as my #1 request and a room close to the main building as my second request. I got a text on the way that our room wasn't quite ready, but about 10 minutes after getting to the French Quarter, I got another and we had a room and it was in Building #2 on the opposite side of the pool. It was about the best we could have asked for.

We went to the food court and got our mugs, which were included in the meal plan, and caught the boat to Downtown Disney. The plan was to eat lunch, do a little shopping and spend a few hours at DisneyQuest since it will be closing and our daughter had never experienced it.

The last few trips we have made Earle of Sandwich our first meal and did so this trip also.


Our daughter didn't really like anything on the adult menu, so they allowed her to get the grilled cheese from the child's menu only in a full sized adult version. She got a side of broccoli cheddar cheese soup and a bottle of water. She was thrilled with the selection and loved the meal.


View attachment 111445




My wife had the original roast beef with a side of chips and a bottle of water also. She gets this every trip and looks forward to it. There were no complaints this time either. The chips went back to the hotel room and actually survived the whole ten days. She took them to work in her lunch the first day back.


View attachment 111446





I was looking forward to the reuben but it was not on the lunch menu the day we went. I was torn, but went with what I had last time which was the Hawaiian sandwich which had ham, cheese, pineapple and BBQ sauce. It was every bit as good as I was hoping! I has the macaroni salad and fountain drink to go along with my sandwich.

View attachment 111447


We really love Earle Sandwich and were not disappointed. If there was a negative it was that the reuben was not available and I am still holding out hope that the Beef and Bleu sandwich will somehow make a return. Neither were available this trip, but hopefully will be in the future.

One thing that sets Earle of Sandwich apart from the others is the variety. Although we ate here first, it is a nice restaurant to put in at any point in a trip to help break from the burgers, pizza and chicken nugget rut that sometimes occurs. As I said before, if you are on the dining plan and have Downtown Disney in your travel plans, don't skip this restaurant. I would eat here all the time if we had one at home.

We left Earle and did some shopping, then spent a few hours at DisneyQuest. This gave us time to catch another boat back to the French Quarter and get a nap. We were happy to see that all our bags were delivered when we returned. I will give the Chef Mickey's review a little later when I have time!

 

[ibcindyb]

Thank you for your review I am looking forward to reading more!

 

[twinkybel81]

Following along!

 

[Nohal]

Looking forward to the rest of your review

 

[Steelersfan]

Day 1 Continued (Chef Mickey's)

We took a nap and tried to allow some extra time to get to the Contemporary from French Quarter because we cut it very close the last trip. We immediately caught the Magic Kingdom bus and transferred to a waiting monorail. Our reservation was for 6:55 and we were at the restaurant before 6:30. We got our picture and were called via our pager right on time for the reservation.

This was our 4th time eating at Chef Mickey's and had been seated in the room straight in twice and the room to the far right at you enter the restaurant before. This time we were on the outer edge of the smaller room to the left. I actually liked this better because we were more out of the way.

The selection at the buffet here was better than the two other character dinner buffets we did (1900 Park Fare and The Crystal Palace). As the pictures below will show, there was a good selection.

Our daughter ate from the children's area first. Adults can also. This is corn dog nuggets, Mickey mac and cheese and broccoli.




My wife has been doing a great job losing weight since the holidays so she was trying to pace herself, especially at the buffets. Here she had various items from the salad section. I do remember there being more basic salad choices in the past. The lettuce and dressing choices were limited this time. They did have a variety of other cold items though, but a nice basic salad would have been nice with more dressing choices than ranch and Italian.




One would never guess that I had lost over ten pounds myself since the beginning of June by looking at my first plate. The mashed potatoes here are always awesome. They also had ribs this time as well as polish sausages, prime rib and there is a piece of eggplant parm under there also. All of this was very good.



The next set are some pictures of various plates that can give an idea of what was offered the day we were there. Here is a better shot of the eggplant parm as well as a pierogi and salmon.



This was a meat dish that they had out as it appears here. I'm not sure if it is potatoes or polenta that the meat is sitting on. This actually looked a little better than it tasted.



Another plate




Here is another with more from the children's area including chicken nuggets and more corn dog nuggets. We couldn't lay off the potatoes!



As anyone who eats at Chef Mickey's knows, the desserts here are among the best on property. Here is a sample of what was available. The only issue I had was that I swear there were more ice cream topping choices in the past. That was limited this time, but there was all the ice cream, cakes and cookies anyone could ask for!



More ice cream topped with Reeses Pieces



Now, the little chocolate mousse Mickey cookies might be the best single food item of any Disney World trip. I could eat 100 of them... if I didn't just attack the buffet for an hour. I didn't see them at first and was a little sad, but my wife found them. This is all top notch.





Overall, our experience here was good. The food, service and overall "hassle" and crowding at the buffet may have been our best yet. The food selection was very good, and would have been great had there been the salad dressing choices. They had very good bleu cheese in the past.

There were truly only two negatives. The first was that the characters were very rushed here. They met everyone and posed for as many pictures as needed, but did very little else. Many times they will dance or make a signature move, but it was mostly business here this time. Having an 11 year old with us instead of a younger child may have had an impact, but Mickey and pals were kind of flying by the other tables too. We were still there over an hour, and the characters made it around twice, so I would have liked to see more interaction, especially with the younger kids. The characters there were Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Pluto and Goofy all in restaurant gear. This is a good place to see all five and get pictures and autographs in one place.

The other negative as the price. The bill for us (technically 3 adults) was over $155 after tax but before any tips. The food was good and the popular characters are there but there is NO WAY I would ever pay that much for a meal out of pocket. Being on the meal plan, it was a tremendous value and we will do it again, but only with the meal plan. These big ticket restaurants are how to make out on the dining plan. Also, beware that if you have a group of 6 or more you will have to pay a gratuity of potentially over $50 automatically. I won't get into any debate on tipping and whether that huge amount is even remotely appropriate, but it is an expense to consider. Most families can eat a nice meal out at home for the cost of just the tip at these buffets. You do have more flexibility to leave what you want or can for the smaller groups.

Overall, if on the dining plan and have character meals on the agenda, Chef Mickey's is a great choice. Every trip we add and remove some restaurants from the "next time" list, but we will definitely be back. Keep in mind; however, how much this will cost you out of pocket and even the tip is a factor if on any kind of budget, and most of us are!

After, we took the monorail back to the Magic Kingdom and went in because I had fastpasses for the electrical parade and fireworks. I would strongly recommend doing this on your arrival day if you can. Waiting in the heat for a spot to see these two "can't miss" experiences is one of my least favorite things to do. The fastpasses allowed us to walk up to both at showtime and get great spots. It also gets these out of the way in the event there is bad weather later in the trip and they get cancelled.

We were tired for sure but rode the TTA and Buzz Lightyear while the crowd headed for the transportation, then caught our bus around 11 with no wait at all. We all showered and got to sleep because we were getting up for an 8 am Hollywood Studios opening the next day. More on that later!

 

[BlondeAppetit]

So glad to see a positive Chef Mickey's review! Can't wait to go for brunch in September!

 

[Sweeney1996]

Following, loving your reviews so far.

 

[DIS_AWC]

Thank you for sharing your review of Chef Mickey's dinner! We're first timers and have one scheduled for our first park day and I've gone back and forth about whether I should cancel it based on so many negative reviews I've read. It's nice to read a recent review that is overall positive and fair (not expecting gourmet food based on the high price), so thank you! Looking forward to reading the rest of your reviews.

 

[Steelersfan]

Thank you for sharing your review of Chef Mickey's dinner! We're first timers and have one scheduled for our first park day and I've gone back and forth about whether I should cancel it based on so many negative reviews I've read. It's nice to read a recent review that is overall positive and fair (not expecting gourmet food based on the high price), so thank you! Looking forward to reading the rest of your reviews.

You will definitely find variety here. For a buffet, especially compared to the others at WDW, it has been solid every time we went. You can click on my other reviews on my signature to help give you a bigger idea. The food stays pretty much the same. As I said in the beginning, if you are expecting something to eat like a two table service credit place, you will probably be disappointed. The food here is just as good as you might get at a well catered wedding that is set up buffet style.

Also, they have two serving lines that meet where they carve the prime rib (and roasted turkey) so if something looks like it has been out too long, just ask for them to replace it or just jump to the other line! As long as the expectations are in line, you will be fine. Just don't look at the price and compare it to what you can get for $50 a person at home. Everyone has to understand that it is the characters and ambiance that raise the price even more than the food.

This is why I will pay $10 for a pretty good hotdog at PNC Park or Heinz Field and only two or three for the same basic thing at Sheetz. You can't watch a professional sport being played live before your eyes at Sheetz... just like Mickey Mouse doesn't come to my table to visit while I'm at the local buffet!

Feel free to ask any further questions. We are a good test group because we go often enough to make comparisons and such, but don't go so often as to lose the feeling that "this is something we don't do everyday" and "we sacrificed other things to be here so we better enjoy it!"

 

[OurLaughingPlace]

Really enjoying your reviews. We are going in August and have chosen many of the same restaurants as you - it's nice to hear/see what's on the menu Thanks for the great reviews as well as pictures.

 

[klo1335]

Glad to see a positive review of Chef Mickey dinner. We are going in a couple weeks, on our arrival day as well, and all I ever read are bad reviews and how horrible it is. Enjoying the reviews

 

[Steelersfan]

Day 2:

I personally love the first FULL day of each trip the most. Everyone had the highest enthusiasm (and energy) level and the whole trip is in front of us! We were up very early and went to Hollywood Studios, which was open at 8 am for resort guests. We had fastpasses for Toy Story Mania, the Tower of Terror and Star Tours. All were in the late AM and early PM. We had two main goals for this initial visit and both were based on the fact that we would never be able to so them again.

Goal #1 was to get signed up for the Jedi Academy since our daughter will be too old by our next trip. This was done by hustling over to the sign-up area and we made the first show.

Goal #2 was to get into the Art of Animation and get to do one final drawing in the art class because it was closing the next day. This was our most difficult task of the whole trip because the line was pushing an hour all day because people would make a drawing, then get back in line. We eventually made it in the afternoon and she got to draw Stitch, who was her favorite. She missed the Big Hero 6 meet and greet because the lines were huge for that also and we would have missed all our fastpasses and/or evening dinner reservation to do both. It is a shame this building is closing because we always enjoyed it. I can't help but guess that maybe a revamped Muppet movie and possibly Pizza Planet could move over there because I can foresee a huge Star Wars addition over behind Star Tours where these attractions are now.

Because my daughter loves the setting AND its future is in question due to the potential Star Wars expansion, we made Pizza Planet our lunch choice. Due to the crowd level here, we like to eat as close to 11 am as we can. We got there at around 11:15. The line was short and there were plenty of seats.

The last trip we ate here for the first time and I was actually disappointed in the quality, so I went in with low expectations. If you read my last review, the cappuccino cupcake saved it for me and I was glad to see it still on the menu.

Our daughter had the cheese pizza, apple juice, a side of chips and an Olaf cupcake for dessert. We all got an ice water for free. The cupcake was cute and it was very good also. It came recommended by the cast member who rang up our order.




My wife went with the pepperoni pizza, a Caesar salad, cookie for dessert and fountain drink.



I had the veggie pizza, Caesar salad, my beloved cappuccino cupcake and a "diet coke" just so I didn't feel too bad.



Like I said before, the expectations were low coming into this meal, but it ended up being one of the most pleasant surprises of the trip. My wife and and I both agreed that the crust was MUCH better this time. I don't know if they changed up the recipe, we had a bad batch the last time or an exceptionally good one this time, but this meal was actually very good. I left the last review without recommending it, the cupcake excluded, but I have to go with a full YES this experience.

Like I said, the pizza was actually pretty good, not New York or Chicago good, but good. The salads were a fresh side and we shared the desserts. Both the Olaf and my cappuccino cupcake were winners. There was one part of Olaf's body my daughter didn't love but it was made of fondant, which isn't all that great as a food item.

Making this positive experience even more remarkable is the fact that just as we were sitting to eat, I received a text from my mom, who was watching our dog, that my brother had fallen the night before and broke his arm to the point that he needed surgery. At that point I knew the dog had something to do with it even though she said he was just being "dumb" by breaking in new shoes when he "fell in a pothole." I kind of knew it was the dog because she breaks something every time they watch her. Last time it was blinds, a bench, molding by their door and eventually she crushed a doorknob. She's medicated now, but I knew it was her. It was. She tripped him while they were out running! I do appreciate that my family didn't want us to feel bad on our "trip", no pun intended since my brother took one too!

The point of that side story is that if this pizza still tasted good after all that, it must be good! I don't know the future of Pizza Planet, but we will definitely go there again if it still exists in three years when we plan to go back. I'm curious if anyone else noticed an improvement. More on our evening meal at 1900 Park fare later.

 

[jcarwash]

I've found Pizza Planet to be reliably good for your fill of Disney-standard pizza. Nothing special, but simple and satisfying meals. I haven't had a bad experience.

 

[Mom2Stitch]

Great review! CM has been our first night dinner every trip since we started going in 2001, it's wonderful to see how my son has grown up in those pictures. This trip we are changing things up and trying Ohanas on the first night.

You say that you had FP for both MSEP and Wishes? I have that planned for our off day this trip. Did you find it difficult to move from one FP spot to the other? I've read that it's tough to accomplish both on the same night.

 

[Steelersfan]

Great review! CM has been our first night dinner every trip since we started going in 2001, it's wonderful to see how my son has grown up in those pictures. This trip we are changing things up and trying Ohanas on the first night.

You say that you had FP for both MSEP and Wishes? I have that planned for our off day this trip. Did you find it difficult to move from one FP spot to the other? I've read that it's tough to accomplish both on the same night.

We were afraid of that also. We asked a cast member for advice and followed his suggestion. When the parade ended we just got in line behind it and followed the route up Main Street. Once we got pretty far up we ducked to the right and found the path to the Tomorrowland side.

We had no clue where we were going because all that construction is new. We had to ask a cast member who was directing traffic for help and we still found it. We just went towards the back of the area where the railing is.

It was very simple and will be even easier next time because we know where we are going. We didn't even have the luxury of seeing it in advance because that was our first night and all the construction was new to us.

I'm not saying it was a relaxing walk on the beach to get there, but it wasn't any harder than dealing with that area of the park anytime people are transitioning from the parade to the fireworks. They did a nice job keeping the walkways as clear as possible.

I say do them both the same day and be done if you can!

 

[Mom2Stitch]

We were afraid of that also. We asked a cast member for advice and followed his suggestion. When the parade ended we just got in line behind it and followed the route up Main Street. Once we got pretty far up we ducked to the right and found the path to the Tomorrowland side.

We had no clue where we were going because all that construction is new. We had to ask a cast member who was directing traffic for help and we still found it. We just went towards the back of the area where the railing is.

It was very simple and will be even easier next time because we know where we are going. We didn't even have the luxury of seeing it in advance because that was our first night and all the construction was new to us.

I'm not saying it was a relaxing walk on the beach to get there, but it wasn't any harder than dealing with that area of the park anytime people are transitioning from the parade to the fireworks. They did a nice job keeping the walkways as clear as possible.

I say do them both the same day and be done if you can!

Thank you, I think we are going to give it a shot. I was thinking that if we could get to the Emporium we could get to the end of Main St by going through the stores, I know we have exited this way to get past the parade crowds. FPs are for either of the Wishes viewing areas right?

 

[Steelersfan]

Thank you, I think we are going to give it a shot. I was thinking that if we could get to the Emporium we could get to the end of Main St by going through the stores, I know we have exited this way to get past the parade crowds. FPs are for either of the Wishes viewing areas right?

The stores are an option for sure. We just got caught up and followed the parade but the stores looked clear because I thought about it. You could use either side to watch the fireworks. We just chose the right because we were going to kill some time in Tomorrowland since so many people head straight for their bus after Wishes ends. We figured it was better to ride a few things while a bus run or two thinned out that line.

 

[Mom2Stitch]

Thank you Steelersfan--looking forward to more food reviews and pics!!!!