Very, very disappointed with Disney food

[moonvine]

I was at Coronado Springs for a convention last week. Ate at Pepper Market for lunch one day, and that was about enough for me. My friend had a sandwich (I believe it was tuna) and the cheese was hard on the edges like it had been sitting out all day. The coleslaw was rancid. I saw sooo many plates with full containers of coleslaw being collected. The fruit was not fresh. I had a hamburger and fries. The hamburger was tasteless and the fries had been sitting under a heat lamp for way too long - they were barely warm. I do not mind paying $8.50 for a burger, but if I do I would at least like the burger to be edible.

I tried Maya Grill for breakfast - it is supposed to be better, right? The waffles had quite clearly been frozen and reheated, possibly many times. Not worth nearly what I paid for it.

I ended up eating at Pepper Market again because I had a friend in a scooter and her scooter wouldn't fit in my rental car.

I am not sure why people are talking about huge portions there. They sell you half a quesadilla for like $10 - I can get a whole quesadilla here for $6, and it is much, much better than the PM quesadilla.

This experience pretty much put me off Disney food for good, I'm afraid. I'm not about to go spend $75 or more on a meal and have it be as awful as what I had. I ended up eating off property the whole rest of the time I was there.

 

[Praying Colonel]

I'm sorry you had a bad experience. Our family stayed at CSR last week and had better experiences when we ate at PM for lunch twice, but we ordered different items than you and your friend ordered.

I wouldn't judge all WDW food on what you experienced. CSR is only one of dozens of dining locations at WDW, and they have their own cooks and menus. We had some truly outstanding meals last week at WDW and can't wait to try those places again on our next trip.

 

[Simba22]

we have never had a bad dining experience in WDW and I am sorry that your dining experience was less than magical. Don't judge everyone based on that one location...there are hundreds of dining locations in WDW!

 

[princesspiglet]

That makes no sense whatsoever. So you tried TWO restuarants out of 100 and now you will never eat anywhere else on property?

There are many excellent restuarants on property, some mediocre and a few downright awful. However, you should never let a small few spoil the whole bunch. That's like saying, "Well, I tried one place in New York City and it was horrible, so I guess every restuarant IN THE ENTIRE CITY must be awful!

 

[gigi1313]

jftr, i learned last week here on the disboards that the PM and MG are not owned/operated by disney... so don't judge all "disney food" by two non-disney restaurants...

 

[tigerdragon]

I've never stayed at CSR but when I stayed at CBR last October the 2 worst meals I had on that trip were at Shutters and Old Port Royale (food court). I had the lasagne at the food court and it was very dry and the pasta I had at Shutters was some of the worst I have ever had. However, all the other meals we had at the various parks and at DTD were wonderful. I think you should try eating at the parks and you will find much better food there.

 

[Buzz2001]

In my opinion, you won't find a better spot than the Pepper Market. Huge portions, great choices and tasty food.

 

[Letsbgoofy]

We loved the Maya Grill for dinner - going back in 13 days!

 

[gurleym]

We stayed at the CBR and AKL and both food court areas were good. I do have to say I liked the CBR better though. I just think there were more choices and everything we ate was great. The atmosphere was also better at the CBR in the food court area than at Mara. However Boma was definately better than Shutters. The atmosphere was better in that restaurant as well. All in all when we don't like something we just simply take it back and say can we please have a new one. They have always been very courtious and have always said sorry no problem. Sorry you had a bad experience. But please don't let that keep you from trying new places. They really are great.

 

[moonvine]

In my opinion, you won't find a better spot than the Pepper Market. Huge portions, great choices and tasty food.

I guess all I can really say to that is opinions vary. The Pepper Market was probably the worst place I have ever eaten in my LIFE, and I have eaten a lot of food in my lifetime.

I didn't think the portions were especially large either.

 

[DukeStreetKing]

I've eaten at the Pepper Market a couple of times and I really would not miss it if I never eat there again. However, there are those that enjoy it and probably don't like the restaurants that I enjoy. OP don't give up hope on finding a nice meal at Disney, there are plenty to be found.

 

[Mom of Sleepy Bashful and BabyDoc]

I guess all I can really say to that is opinions vary. The Pepper Market was probably the worst place I have ever eaten in my LIFE, and I have eaten a lot of food in my lifetime.

I didn't think the portions were especially large either.

Opinions sure do vary. But by the description of your food, it doesn't sound like too many of us would have liked it either. Who knows?

Maybe it was an off day for the PM. Every restaurant has them. And the odds that if you eat at a place 10 times, the majority of meals will be good. The trick is, wanting to go back after you've had a bad first impression.

But I would NEVER judge a HUGE resort area, with over 100 restaurants, by one little-old restaurant in a moderate hotel. You see, they almost all have different chefs in charge and some (I believe CSR is included in this) aren't even operated by Disney.

For burgers, I would try Pecos Bills if you are at MK or Sci-Fi if you are at MGM. If you aren't in a park, Rainforest Cafe is one of our favorites, along with Beaches and Cream at the Beach Club.

Sorry this time wasn't a good experience.

 

[DznyLvr2005]

This is the first bad thing I've heard about CSR's food. And I'm constantly reading the boards and other 'reviews'. Hopefully it won't be that bad when I go next month!
(Apparenly it's good enough that it's not even on the dining plan for 2007 ???)

 

[3princesses4us]

Hmm, have to agree with everyone. You're really missing out on a lot of fantastic food by judging them based on one resort! Instead of boycotting all of WDW's food, maybe just start by steering clear of CSR and it's restaurants if they weren't to your liking...

 

[Mischa]

Sorry you had such a bad experience with the food at CSR. When I stayed there back in 1998 all I remember of the food was that I wasn't impressed. It wasn't awful, just not impressive.

When DH & I stayed at Ft. Wilderness Resort & Campsite this past May. We had breakfast every morning there (LOVED their breakfast pizza - yummy!) and had a couple of dinners there too. This was at the Tavern. Really great buffet - we loved it.

Thanks for the report!

 

[markb]

Moonvine,
Tomorrow we leave for my 33rd trip to WDW. I've never cared for the food at CSR, but please don't judge WDW food by those restaraunts. It would be like coming to New Orleans and judging the food by dining at an Applebee's and a Shoney! There is plenty of terrific food in Disney and many gifted chef's doing some world class cuisine... just not at the CSR, imo.

 

[DisneyMommyMichelle]

Why are you saying ALL Disney food when you ate at 2 places????

anyway, we LOVE CSR! we find the portions to be rather large. It one of our fave places to stay AND eat!

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

I must echo the sentiment that determining you won't eat at a Disney restaurant on the basis of two restaurants, neither of which Disney operates is doing a great diservice to yourself.

 

[Caren]

Hey, I was at the same convention

And I agree with you that the food at the Coronado sucked. It was such a shame, too, because the hotel is beautiful and the convention facilities are awesome.

 

[hmp2z]

Um, I personally never expect gourmet quality food from a food court. If you're a Dis member, surely you've read reviews of the dozens of top notch restaurants there. To me, going to WDW & eating at a food court would be (to borrow someone else's analogy) like going to NYC and eating at McDonald's. Some people do it & like it, but it isn't my cup of tea.

I certainly don't blame you for disliking the Pepper Market food; when we ate there, it was food court quality food. Fine, if that's what you like, but certainly not anywhere near the best that WDW has to offer! And, having once eaten at the food court and found it to be food court quality, I'm not sure why you returned, if you were looking for more upscale cuisine.

Next time, I suggest packing that scooter friend onto WDW transportation and zipping over to Epcot for dinner. A little advance planning could have avoided this entire issue, and could have given you an unforgettable culinary experience, rather than something you could get at any mall in the US.

Cheers!
Heather W