BuffaloJim
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Feb 25, 2012
- Messages
- 213
Its taken awhile, but I finally had enough time to sit down and post these mini restaurant reviews for our trip that occurred back in October. We had a total of nine people four adults (me, my wife, and my two sisters) and five kids DS16, DD12, DS11, DD9, and DS8. We also went during Epcots Food & Wine Fest, although we only sampled the booths on one night. We were on the Deluxe Dining Plan, so the non buffet meals included appetizers, entrees, and deserts. One of my sisters is a vegetarian, and our two oldest kids are extremely picky eaters.
I made most of our reservations 180 days out, although I did change a few as our trip got closer. I think I got every reservation I wanted, although a few times were either slightly earlier or later than I would have hoped for. We ended up eating at a huge variety of restaurants, both for cuisine and for theme.
We stayed in a two bedroom villa at the Animal Kingdom Lodge.
Monday
We flew in to MCO mid morning. Most of us took the Magical Express while I picked up the minivan from Enterprise. I wanted a van for a couple of reasons. One, I just like having my own transportation, and two, early morning breakfast reservations at resorts meant wed either have to leave 90 or so minutes before our reservation or 15 minutes before it. I like to sleep in as late as possible, so I rented the van.
We were spending our first day at the Magic Kingdom. I wanted to make reservations for the Crystal Palace, but I was worried that we might miss them since we were dependent on air flights and bus transportation. So, I did not make any reservations, and of course, they were booked solid when we got there. No biggie, but it would have been nice to eat there. Instead, we ate at Cosmic Rays. Nothing special, it was mostly regular counter service food, although there was a huge variety of choices. I will admit though, that despite be a carnivore, my sisters vegetable sandwich was quite good.
For dinner, we took the monorail over to the Poly and ate at Ohana. If youre a meat eater, this place is great. Endless skewers of meat brought to the table. I was certainly happy, and DS8 ate more meat than Ive ever seen him put away. The chef cooked a special vegetarian dish for my sister, and DD12 somehow managed to get a plate of chicken nuggets brought to the table. The meal was very good, but what really topped it off was heading out to the beach after dinner to watch the Electric Water Parade and the Wishes fireworks display. They pipe the Wishes music down to the beach, and it ended up being a great place to watch the show. Highly recommended.
Tuesday
We were headed to Hollywood Studios on Tuesday, but we started it out with a character breakfast at Cape May in the Yacht & Beach Club resort. A wonderful place for breakfast, very peaceful and quiet. The characters were great and the kids had a lot of fun. After breakfast, we checked out the resort, and then most everyone took a boat to the Studios. I drove the van over to the park so it would be quickly available when we wanted to leave.
Lunch was at Sci-Fi. Its all about the setting here, and the place certainly did not disappoint. We were seated in two side-by-side cars, so we got the full experience. The food was certainly nothing to write home about. I had the ribs. They were average at best, probably below average. DD9 loves ribs and she wasnt particularly happy with them. The chicken wing appetizer was very good though. So were the deep fried pickles.
We ended up skipping Fantasmic! and headed back to our resort because the kids wanted to go swimming. The kids ate a couple of so-so pizzas in the room after swimming, while the adults prepared for an evening out. We headed to Jiko, which was conveniently at our resort. Bottom line is that this was the best meal of the week. I expected nothing less, but everything was absolutely exceptional. There were zero complaints. Id recommend Jiko to anyone. Its an especially good place for vegetarians, as they have special menus for both vegans and vegetarians.
Wednesday
Epcot was on todays schedule. We ate breakfast on our balcony. It overlooked the savannah and it was a great place for a quick meal. Not too many animals that morning for some reason, but Im glad we spent one morning doing this.
We had lunch at the Coral Reef. I know this place often gets less than stellar reviews, but our experience was fantastic. For starters, we were seated in two semi circular booths directly in front of the aquarium. The kids loved the setting. But the food was also really quite good. DS8 described his salmon as melt in your mouth good, and everyone left there happy and satisfied. If we werent on the DxDP, this would have been a very expensive meal, especially for lunch, so it was definitely a good use of our credits.
For dinner we split up. My wife took the kids to Via Napoli for Pizza. We originally planned to go to Teppan Edo, but the kids were dying for pizza, so I checked to see if we could get in there and then cancelled Teppan Edo after finding out that spots were available. My sisters and I grazed the F&W booths. We were on the DxDP, so we had a lot of snack credits to use. This was a great use of our snack credits as anything that did not include alcohol was available for one credit. The variety was enormous and most of the food was quite good. Some of our favorites included:
Grilled Lamb Chop with Mint Pesto and Potato Crunchies
Linda Beans Lobster Claw Cuddler with Herb Mayonnaise
Linda Beans Perfect Maine Lobster Roll ( I didnt care for her Maine Home Style Clam Chowder though)
Lamb Meatball with Spicy Tomato Chutney
Merguez Sausage
Steamed Mussels in Hoegaarden Beer Broth & Baguette
Cheese Fondue with Sourdough Bread
Spinach and Paneer Cheese Pocket
Escargots Persillade en Brioche
Lobster and Seafood Fishermans Pie
Kerrygold® Cheese Selection
Canadian Cheddar Cheese Soup
Le Cellier Wild Mushroom Beef Filet Mignon with Truffle Butter Sauce
Overall, the good items far outnumbered the bad. If I had to pick a favorite, it would probably have to be the fillet from Canada.
Thursday
We spent Thursday at the Animal Kingdom. We had a character breakfast at the Tusker House. Another great spot for breakfast. A huge variety, as well as a few foods out of the ordinary. Plus our server was very good and the kids liked the décor. Overall, a good place for breakfast.
It was very hot that day, and all the walking took a lot out of us. Lunch was at the Yak & Yeti. I was just glad to have a place to sit down and get out of the heat. I have no complaints about the food, but nothing great to say about it either.
Everyone was absolutely shot by the time we got back to the resort. The kids ate at Boma. DS11 was the only kid who ate anything. I know Boma is supposed to be a great place for dinner, but my family was just too tired to enjoy it. A few of them did like the zebra domes though.
The adults were supposed to enjoy another night out, but my two sisters just couldnt make it. My wife and I went to Downtown Disney and ate at Fultons Crab House. We ate here on our honeymoon back in 1994 when it was known as the Empress Lilly. Its not nearly as formal as it was back then, but its still certainly a good place for a meal. I had the crab legs. They were decent, the lobster bisque was excellent. My wife had crab cakes. She was happy with them, but just couldnt stay awake during the meal. We were supposed to head to Raglan Road for an evening of merriment, but that just didnt happen.
Friday
Before heading to the Magic Kingdom, we had another character breakfast, this time at 1900 Park Fare. Best character interaction of our meals. They were really fun and all of them seemed to take a lot of time at our table for photos. The food was also good. More upper end food here than at the other buffets. I know some people complain that the place is getting run down and looking a little dated, but I didnt have a problem with it. I was there for the food and the characters, and both were enjoyable. We then boarded the monorail for a trip to MK.
Lunch was at the Whispering Canyon Cafe. We took the boat to the Wilderness Lodge. This is a really cool resort and Im glad one of our meals was here. The food was fine, the place was fun, and we all had milkshakes with our meals. Except for DS16. He had the largest glass of pop Ive ever seen. And then he had it refilled.
For dinner, we split up again. The girls headed to the Castle for Cinderellas Royal Table, while the boys went to Chef Mickeys at the Contemporary. Undoubtedly, the girls had the better of the two meals. They all loved the Castle, and they were more than satisfied with their dinner. I probably should have walked to the Contemporary, but I figured the kids would much rather ride the monorail. Disney was having some kind of a problem because we were parked for awhile, but we eventually did make it. I wouldnt ever go to Chef Mickeys for the food its standard buffet food gruel. Its not significantly different than the Old Country Buffet. There wasnt anything wrong with it, but there wasnt anything memorable about it either. The characters were good though, and it really is cool to see the monorail come right through the hotel.
Saturday
Breakfast was at Boma. No characters, just excellent food. For many people, this would be an out of the way trip for breakfast, but its probably worth it. Really good.
DD12 is taking French, and loves everything France, so we ate lunch at Les Chefs de France. I think everyone enjoyed it although my short ribs werent even in the same league as the ones I had at Jiko. Plus, Im still waiting for my desert that somehow got forgotten. But we did get to see the animatronic Remy when he paid a visit to our table.
For dinner, we went to the Biergarten. Free show with the dinner, and the food was good too. Lots and lots of meats. I havent had beef roulades since my father died. I think I had at least three or four servings of them. Pretty happy with that meal.
Sunday
We split up on Sunday. It was a breakfast-free morning as my wife took the girls to Universal so my daughters could meet up with a friend and see Harry Potter. I was taking the boys back to MK, but first we stopped in Downtown Disney. We had an early lunch at T-Rex. This is a cool restaurant, no question about it. If your kids like dinosaurs, theyll love the place. The food was chain restaurant fare. But it did have cool names attached to it, and there was a lot of it. We definitely did not leave hungry.
The girls had lunch at Three Broomsticks in Harry Potter World. They all raved about the Butter Beer. Thats all I could get out of them.
For dinner, I left WDW and met them at Jimmy Buffets Margarittaville at Universals CityWalk. This is a fun restaurant lively music, fun activities, and the food was pretty good too. A nice way to finish up our trip.
Our trip to WDW was really great, and the meals were a big part of it. Many people dont think you should spend a lot of time eating. But I really wanted to make the meals a significant part of this trip. Since we were going during F&W and my sisters were joining us, this was a perfect trip to be somewhat food-centric. But the restaurants were not just about the food. We saw the different resorts (GF, WL, CR, Y&BC, Poly), took boats and the monorail to get there, and even saw Wishes from the Poly beach after dinner. All in all, a really wonderful vacation.
I made most of our reservations 180 days out, although I did change a few as our trip got closer. I think I got every reservation I wanted, although a few times were either slightly earlier or later than I would have hoped for. We ended up eating at a huge variety of restaurants, both for cuisine and for theme.
We stayed in a two bedroom villa at the Animal Kingdom Lodge.
Monday
We flew in to MCO mid morning. Most of us took the Magical Express while I picked up the minivan from Enterprise. I wanted a van for a couple of reasons. One, I just like having my own transportation, and two, early morning breakfast reservations at resorts meant wed either have to leave 90 or so minutes before our reservation or 15 minutes before it. I like to sleep in as late as possible, so I rented the van.
We were spending our first day at the Magic Kingdom. I wanted to make reservations for the Crystal Palace, but I was worried that we might miss them since we were dependent on air flights and bus transportation. So, I did not make any reservations, and of course, they were booked solid when we got there. No biggie, but it would have been nice to eat there. Instead, we ate at Cosmic Rays. Nothing special, it was mostly regular counter service food, although there was a huge variety of choices. I will admit though, that despite be a carnivore, my sisters vegetable sandwich was quite good.
For dinner, we took the monorail over to the Poly and ate at Ohana. If youre a meat eater, this place is great. Endless skewers of meat brought to the table. I was certainly happy, and DS8 ate more meat than Ive ever seen him put away. The chef cooked a special vegetarian dish for my sister, and DD12 somehow managed to get a plate of chicken nuggets brought to the table. The meal was very good, but what really topped it off was heading out to the beach after dinner to watch the Electric Water Parade and the Wishes fireworks display. They pipe the Wishes music down to the beach, and it ended up being a great place to watch the show. Highly recommended.
Tuesday
We were headed to Hollywood Studios on Tuesday, but we started it out with a character breakfast at Cape May in the Yacht & Beach Club resort. A wonderful place for breakfast, very peaceful and quiet. The characters were great and the kids had a lot of fun. After breakfast, we checked out the resort, and then most everyone took a boat to the Studios. I drove the van over to the park so it would be quickly available when we wanted to leave.
Lunch was at Sci-Fi. Its all about the setting here, and the place certainly did not disappoint. We were seated in two side-by-side cars, so we got the full experience. The food was certainly nothing to write home about. I had the ribs. They were average at best, probably below average. DD9 loves ribs and she wasnt particularly happy with them. The chicken wing appetizer was very good though. So were the deep fried pickles.
We ended up skipping Fantasmic! and headed back to our resort because the kids wanted to go swimming. The kids ate a couple of so-so pizzas in the room after swimming, while the adults prepared for an evening out. We headed to Jiko, which was conveniently at our resort. Bottom line is that this was the best meal of the week. I expected nothing less, but everything was absolutely exceptional. There were zero complaints. Id recommend Jiko to anyone. Its an especially good place for vegetarians, as they have special menus for both vegans and vegetarians.
Wednesday
Epcot was on todays schedule. We ate breakfast on our balcony. It overlooked the savannah and it was a great place for a quick meal. Not too many animals that morning for some reason, but Im glad we spent one morning doing this.
We had lunch at the Coral Reef. I know this place often gets less than stellar reviews, but our experience was fantastic. For starters, we were seated in two semi circular booths directly in front of the aquarium. The kids loved the setting. But the food was also really quite good. DS8 described his salmon as melt in your mouth good, and everyone left there happy and satisfied. If we werent on the DxDP, this would have been a very expensive meal, especially for lunch, so it was definitely a good use of our credits.
For dinner we split up. My wife took the kids to Via Napoli for Pizza. We originally planned to go to Teppan Edo, but the kids were dying for pizza, so I checked to see if we could get in there and then cancelled Teppan Edo after finding out that spots were available. My sisters and I grazed the F&W booths. We were on the DxDP, so we had a lot of snack credits to use. This was a great use of our snack credits as anything that did not include alcohol was available for one credit. The variety was enormous and most of the food was quite good. Some of our favorites included:
Grilled Lamb Chop with Mint Pesto and Potato Crunchies
Linda Beans Lobster Claw Cuddler with Herb Mayonnaise
Linda Beans Perfect Maine Lobster Roll ( I didnt care for her Maine Home Style Clam Chowder though)
Lamb Meatball with Spicy Tomato Chutney
Merguez Sausage
Steamed Mussels in Hoegaarden Beer Broth & Baguette
Cheese Fondue with Sourdough Bread
Spinach and Paneer Cheese Pocket
Escargots Persillade en Brioche
Lobster and Seafood Fishermans Pie
Kerrygold® Cheese Selection
Canadian Cheddar Cheese Soup
Le Cellier Wild Mushroom Beef Filet Mignon with Truffle Butter Sauce
Overall, the good items far outnumbered the bad. If I had to pick a favorite, it would probably have to be the fillet from Canada.
Thursday
We spent Thursday at the Animal Kingdom. We had a character breakfast at the Tusker House. Another great spot for breakfast. A huge variety, as well as a few foods out of the ordinary. Plus our server was very good and the kids liked the décor. Overall, a good place for breakfast.
It was very hot that day, and all the walking took a lot out of us. Lunch was at the Yak & Yeti. I was just glad to have a place to sit down and get out of the heat. I have no complaints about the food, but nothing great to say about it either.
Everyone was absolutely shot by the time we got back to the resort. The kids ate at Boma. DS11 was the only kid who ate anything. I know Boma is supposed to be a great place for dinner, but my family was just too tired to enjoy it. A few of them did like the zebra domes though.
The adults were supposed to enjoy another night out, but my two sisters just couldnt make it. My wife and I went to Downtown Disney and ate at Fultons Crab House. We ate here on our honeymoon back in 1994 when it was known as the Empress Lilly. Its not nearly as formal as it was back then, but its still certainly a good place for a meal. I had the crab legs. They were decent, the lobster bisque was excellent. My wife had crab cakes. She was happy with them, but just couldnt stay awake during the meal. We were supposed to head to Raglan Road for an evening of merriment, but that just didnt happen.
Friday
Before heading to the Magic Kingdom, we had another character breakfast, this time at 1900 Park Fare. Best character interaction of our meals. They were really fun and all of them seemed to take a lot of time at our table for photos. The food was also good. More upper end food here than at the other buffets. I know some people complain that the place is getting run down and looking a little dated, but I didnt have a problem with it. I was there for the food and the characters, and both were enjoyable. We then boarded the monorail for a trip to MK.
Lunch was at the Whispering Canyon Cafe. We took the boat to the Wilderness Lodge. This is a really cool resort and Im glad one of our meals was here. The food was fine, the place was fun, and we all had milkshakes with our meals. Except for DS16. He had the largest glass of pop Ive ever seen. And then he had it refilled.
For dinner, we split up again. The girls headed to the Castle for Cinderellas Royal Table, while the boys went to Chef Mickeys at the Contemporary. Undoubtedly, the girls had the better of the two meals. They all loved the Castle, and they were more than satisfied with their dinner. I probably should have walked to the Contemporary, but I figured the kids would much rather ride the monorail. Disney was having some kind of a problem because we were parked for awhile, but we eventually did make it. I wouldnt ever go to Chef Mickeys for the food its standard buffet food gruel. Its not significantly different than the Old Country Buffet. There wasnt anything wrong with it, but there wasnt anything memorable about it either. The characters were good though, and it really is cool to see the monorail come right through the hotel.
Saturday
Breakfast was at Boma. No characters, just excellent food. For many people, this would be an out of the way trip for breakfast, but its probably worth it. Really good.
DD12 is taking French, and loves everything France, so we ate lunch at Les Chefs de France. I think everyone enjoyed it although my short ribs werent even in the same league as the ones I had at Jiko. Plus, Im still waiting for my desert that somehow got forgotten. But we did get to see the animatronic Remy when he paid a visit to our table.
For dinner, we went to the Biergarten. Free show with the dinner, and the food was good too. Lots and lots of meats. I havent had beef roulades since my father died. I think I had at least three or four servings of them. Pretty happy with that meal.
Sunday
We split up on Sunday. It was a breakfast-free morning as my wife took the girls to Universal so my daughters could meet up with a friend and see Harry Potter. I was taking the boys back to MK, but first we stopped in Downtown Disney. We had an early lunch at T-Rex. This is a cool restaurant, no question about it. If your kids like dinosaurs, theyll love the place. The food was chain restaurant fare. But it did have cool names attached to it, and there was a lot of it. We definitely did not leave hungry.
The girls had lunch at Three Broomsticks in Harry Potter World. They all raved about the Butter Beer. Thats all I could get out of them.
For dinner, I left WDW and met them at Jimmy Buffets Margarittaville at Universals CityWalk. This is a fun restaurant lively music, fun activities, and the food was pretty good too. A nice way to finish up our trip.
Our trip to WDW was really great, and the meals were a big part of it. Many people dont think you should spend a lot of time eating. But I really wanted to make the meals a significant part of this trip. Since we were going during F&W and my sisters were joining us, this was a perfect trip to be somewhat food-centric. But the restaurants were not just about the food. We saw the different resorts (GF, WL, CR, Y&BC, Poly), took boats and the monorail to get there, and even saw Wishes from the Poly beach after dinner. All in all, a really wonderful vacation.
