Am I the **ONLY** person who dislikes Yachtsman?

[tobikaye]

I enjoyed YS very much. I enjoy a good steak and that was the best one I had that week. I rarely eat steak more than once on a vacation, but that week, I had steak at CG and at YS. I definitely preferred YS as my steak was a perfect medium-rare.

As for atmosphere, I think I enjoyed it since it was the last night of our trip and everywhere else we had eaten had been loud and busy locations. I think our being placed in a smaller area next to a window helped not feel so stuffy.

 

[gonzalj1]

We went to the Yatchsman for dinner one year and I was underwhelmed. I am not a huge fan of steak, so this is probably why. Hubby and I were looking for a place for a good dinner without the kids. He was all about the steak. For me, the atmosphere is just as important as the food. It just did not do it for me. Am I the only one?

You are not alone! We are steak lovers and thought the meal was just OK. Definitely not at the level to justify the price. We also had a family next to us that allowed their kids to essentially do whatever they pleased. Including bumping into our table several times.

I get you're on vacation and relax the rules a little. We do the same. But common courtesy requires that we ensure our rule relaxation does not impact anyone else's experience. I know we expect more out of our kids.

 

[smcabee]

Heavens no your not the only one. This past April was our 3rd or 4th time there. We usually give it a shot every few years and Ive never been impressed. The first few times it was like eating from a salt lick. This last time I got about 10 bites of gristle and 5 bites of steak. I will say the truffle mac n cheese is very good and probably the only reason we even attempt again to see if its gotten any better.

 

[Huff]

Seems every signature restaurant has its lovers and haters. We're on DDP for our next trip and will have a day for a signature. Right now we have an ADR at Yatchsman. Four of us are all steak and prime rib lovers. The atmosphere does seem boring in photos but then, so do many other restaurants at Disney. Last year we tried Jiko which many rave about. We found it so-so. The main entree's were great. The sides not so much. Decor was boring in my opinion. Service was decent but waiter was boring. Never talked to us much, explained menu etc. Just did his basic job, took orders and brought the food. Looking for a better signature experience but seems we can't expect much. Disney doesn't have any really upscale elegant experiences except for V&A which is out of our league and DDP not accepted.

 

[DisneyHardin]

We had a pretty bad service experience followed by meh food about 5 years ago, so no, it's not just you.

We checked in 15 min before our adr and sat on a bench right next to the hostess stand (i think there's been a remodel since then so idk if those benches still exist). Then we waited for 45 min. The first 15 min was before adr time, so no big deal. The next 15 - 20 min, we just figured they were running behind. However, we could hear everything at the hostess stand, and couples with adrs after ours were being seated, so we finally asked the hostess what was going on, and she told us she called our name a couple times and we didn't answer so they took us off the list.

Now, i wasn't kidding when i said i could hear every word said at the hostess stand. We were right there. If she had called our name, we would have heard it. We have common enough names they would have been pronounced correctly. When i pointed that all out to her (nicely), she had no idea what to say, and finally ran off; someone else came out to tell us they would seat us next (which they did, but it was almost 45 min after adr time).

Frankly, if she had just said they mistakenly crossed us off the list (what I'm assuming happened), that would have been fine. What i don't appreciate is the obvious lying.

After that, our food was mediocre and our service slow. We decided we would not be back.

We had a weird hostess interaction during our visit last fall too. We had an early ADR - 5:30 I think. We checked in and the hostess pointed to a bench out in the hall and told us to sit there and not to go anywhere else because they would be looking for us on THAT bench when it was time for our meal. We waited about 10-15 minutes and then were called by a different, very young girl, who made no eye contact and walked us to our table while looking at the floor - she seriously looked so intently at the floor that I thought she was going to run into things.

 

[klacey1]

I enjoyed the food and the service a lot, but I was surprised by the atmosphere. It was much more casual and loud than I expected. It was on a Saturday in October so the resort and restaurant were packed. For $50+ steak I'd prefer it not be so rowdy.

Same—I love the food, but the atmosphere is super casual. I don't like looking over a pool while I eat a $100 pp meal!

Service has been 50/50.

 

[DaisyDuck001]

Same—I love the food, but the atmosphere is super casual. I don't like looking over a pool while I eat a $100 pp meal!

Hmmm, I actually enjoyed the view of Stormalong Bay.

 

[MomOTwins]

Seems every signature restaurant has its lovers and haters. We're on DDP for our next trip and will have a day for a signature. Right now we have an ADR at Yatchsman. Four of us are all steak and prime rib lovers. The atmosphere does seem boring in photos but then, so do many other restaurants at Disney. Last year we tried Jiko which many rave about. We found it so-so. The main entree's were great. The sides not so much. Decor was boring in my opinion. Service was decent but waiter was boring. Never talked to us much, explained menu etc. Just did his basic job, took orders and brought the food. Looking for a better signature experience but seems we can't expect much. Disney doesn't have any really upscale elegant experiences except for V&A which is out of our league and DDP not accepted.

Hah! You are our vacation twins! We did Jiko earlier this year and had the exact same reaction. Trying Yachtsman on our upcoming trip in August with our DxDP credits as it is DH's birthday request since he loves a nice steakhouse and we are staying at Beach Club.

I am wondering what cuts of meat everyone had that are gristle-y. I remember back in my waitress days people would send back ribeyes complaining it had big chunks of fat in it not realizing that cut is supposed to. If it is filet with big chunks of fat that is more concerning.

I see half people here complaining it is stuffy and other people complaining it is casual. I for one hope for casual--one of the things we like about Disney is you can have relatively nice dining that is family friendly and not too formal. We will be taking our toddler and 6 year olds, and yes, to everyone here who is convinced children are demon spawn and yet still choose to vacation at Disney World (I recall one post in another threat at this forum that signatures should be adults only), our kids are pretty well behaved, we dress them well, and they did fine at Jiko.

 

[nco91590]

Heavens no your not the only one. This past April was our 3rd or 4th time there. We usually give it a shot every few years and Ive never been impressed. The first few times it was like eating from a salt lick. This last time I got about 10 bites of gristle and 5 bites of steak. I will say the truffle mac n cheese is very good and probably the only reason we even attempt again to see if its gotten any better.

Our dinner was way over-salted as well. I was crunching on salt crystals in my salad! I would only go back for the onion rolls lol.

 

[rentayenta]

Hmmm, I actually enjoyed the view of Stormalong Bay.

I would enjoy this as well.

 

[BEASLYBOO]

I am wondering what cuts of meat everyone had that are gristle-y. I remember back in my waitress days people would send back ribeyes complaining it had big chunks of fat in it not realizing that cut is supposed to. .

I always order the NY strip each time (been a handful of times) it’s my favorite cut and it’s always been juicy, med/rare as ordered, never encountered gristle. I have no complaints regarding food/steak quality nor service, the noise, well that’s Disney. The Carnivores (son & best friend) like it, so I take one for the team and give in every other year. I don’t eat red meat often but if I go to a steakhouse, I’m having steak! I’ve heard people complain about saltiness from LC & YS but I like things well seasoned! The escargots/bone marrow appetizer could sway me...

 

[Minnesota!]

It sounds like both of your steaks were bad. One underdone and one tough . Seems sad for $170 worth of beef.

Well, I didn't complain - I got the correct cook on the outer edges (the only portion I really like, anyway), and my son loved his as-is. So, it didn't make me sad, at all!

 

[polyqueen]

We love, love, love the Yacht Club and stay 4 or 5 times a year. That said, we will NOT eat at the Yachtsman. It is the most 'meh' of all the signature restaurants in service, atmosphere, and often, quality. We're in Chicago and have plenty of access to truly top-notch steakhouses. We do, however, enjoy the hamburgers at the bar next door--we think they are the best on property. The steak at the old Flying Fish is sorely missed as is the Banana Napoleon.

 

[ChanduTail]

Hah! You are our vacation twins! We did Jiko earlier this year and had the exact same reaction. Trying Yachtsman on our upcoming trip in August with our DxDP credits as it is DH's birthday request since he loves a nice steakhouse and we are staying at Beach Club.

I am wondering what cuts of meat everyone had that are gristle-y. I remember back in my waitress days people would send back ribeyes complaining it had big chunks of fat in it not realizing that cut is supposed to. If it is filet with big chunks of fat that is more concerning.

I see half people here complaining it is stuffy and other people complaining it is casual. I for one hope for casual--one of the things we like about Disney is you can have relatively nice dining that is family friendly and not too formal. We will be taking our toddler and 6 year olds, and yes, to everyone here who is convinced children are demon spawn and yet still choose to vacation at Disney World (I recall one post in another threat at this forum that signatures should be adults only), our kids are pretty well behaved, we dress them well, and they did fine at Jiko.

Mine was a filet

I think it's important to remember that this is a theme park resort restaurant & not to go in expecting Peter Luger. They do the best they can. If steak (or anything else!) is a food you're really serious about & it would pain you to have an Outback quality meal at a higher price, it's probably better to avoid it in this kind of setting, because you can really only be disappointed. It's still a nice place to have a meal on a Disney vacation, and the food is usually quite good.

 

[Aimeedyan]

To be honest... I have yet to be impressed with any Disney signature restaurant. Yachtsman, Flying Fish, CA Grill, Jiko, Citricos, Brown Derby, LeCellier - they are all overpriced and inconsistent in service and food quality. True signature/high end restaurants are NOT inconsistent in food and service quality - period.

Yachtsman was fine, but we won't spend the money on it again. There is nothing about it that makes me want to come back, you know?

 

[Ralph&Pam]

The steak at the old Flying Fish is sorely missed as is the Banana Napoleon.

I think that FF may have brought back the steak from their former menu, or at least the same cut of beef. As I recollect, that was a New York strip. After the renovation, the steak on the menu was a Filet, but more recently, both filet and NY strip have been offered. What’s still missing is the salmon with the potato crust.

 

[Storminion]

It’s a “one and done” for me. My $48 steak was meh, and the creme brûlée was eggy. Also done with Le Cellier. Shula’s is my “go to” steakhouse now.

 

[DLgal]

You can get the onion rolls with roasted garlic at the Crews Cup Lounge...Just so you all know.

 

[ChanduTail]

To be honest... I have yet to be impressed with any Disney signature restaurant. Yachtsman, Flying Fish, CA Grill, Jiko, Citricos, Brown Derby, LeCellier - they are all overpriced and inconsistent in service and food quality. True signature/high end restaurants are NOT inconsistent in food and service quality - period.

Yachtsman was fine, but we won't spend the money on it again. There is nothing about it that makes me want to come back, you know?

It's unfair to think of any of the signature restaurants outside of V&A as fine dining venues. They aren't, and can't be held to that standard. I really dislike the "signature" label because I feel like people go in expecting more than they ordinarily would & what could have been a nice date night or family dinner turns into a negative experience because the food & service, even if satisfactory, don't justify the price tag.
(They're reaching with the "signature" label on Le Cellier, even in the Disney sense of the word )

 

[GillianP1301]

I'm sure you're not the only one. Restaurant reviews are completely subjective and you will always have a wide range of opinions. I see very few negative reviews for Yachtsman, but they do exist.

Me personally, my son and I love the place and it's a must do. The filet I've had each time has been excellent quality and our service is always good. The atmosphere is pretty typical steakhouse so you either like it or you don't.