Are we overplanning?

[Eric Smith]

We're going to Disney on November 24 and I'm wondering if we've scheduled too many ADRs. I'd like to get some feedback. I'd also appreciate some feedback on the restaurant choices.

Day 1 (Travel Day): Dinner - Nine Dragons
Day 2: Lunch - BOG, Dinner - Coral Reef
Day 3: Dinner - Jiko
Day 4: Breakfast - Kona, Dinner - Ohana
Day 5: Universal
Day 6: Universal
Day 7: Dinner - Sanaa
Day 8: Lunch - Mama Melrose
Day 9: Lunch - Homecomin'

 

[Mr & Mrs DD]

I say it's NOT too many ADRs.
Nine Dragon - I ate there once and wasn't very impressed with it. It may be good. We have never gone back there. Everyone has opinions about places. Just go with what sounds good to you.
Coral Reef - This place gets a lot of mixed reviews, BUT we really like it. I had a very good steak there last time. The Jack Daniels & Baileys Chocolate Mousse for dessert was very good as well.
Mama Melrose - We had a good meal there and would like to eat there again.
O'Hana - Make sure you have a good appetite. You get lots of food.
Have fun and enjoy your vacation.

 

[scoobygrl79]

you may feel like the days you did two sit down meals you didn't get much else done, but I definitely do not feel you "overdid" it. Regarding your line up...D1 Nine Dragons just didn't do it for me. If you're a fan of Asian fare then Yak&Yeti out of AK was a bit more on point, but even that didn't wow me. I just love Asian food, therefore, can tend to be picky about it.
D2 I love them both, D3 Never been D4 Both are great D7 Pretty yummy but not in a hurry to go back..if that makes sense D8 ehhh... D9 Its on my "to-do" list...tell me how you like it!

 

[Shanti]

I always schedule 1 or 2 ADRs per day, so it doesn't look like overplanning to me.

 

[Dsny4fun]

I always do 2 sit down meals a day...I appreciate the breaks sitting in air conditioning....and I still have plenty of time in the parks. I've been to most of the places you picked...the only 2 that might be iffy are Nine Dragons and Coral Reef...all the others are some must do's on my trips

 

[Mome Rath]

We tend to do a sit-down every other day, unless we are just doing sit-down breakfast as we will do brekkie back to back mornings. However, it is entirely subjective; it really depends on how much you (meaning your fam) eat, how you feel when traveling, etc... We just find a sit down lunch and a sit down dinner way too much food for Disney. It also depends on if there are counter services that you find that you like well enough to want to grab a meal there, some people can't stand counter service fare, but we enjoy several places and seek them out (such as Harbour House in MK).

 

[WishICouldSpeakWhale]

We will be there over Thanksgiving too. I have two ADRs on a couple of days because it is going to be so busy. We will be much happier to sit in a restaurant than wait in a long counter service line. It is not how we did Disney last summer, but I think it will work during a busy time. I think you have a good plan.

 

[kreckl]

Doesn't seem over scheduled to me. We did not care for Sanaa. The big draw was to see the savanna and animals while you eat but we were nowhere near a window
We are also not huge fans of Ohana. We felt rushed there the past few times and it was a constant check in of what we had eaten and felt uncomfortable to ask for more ( although the servers are wonderful- it was just not our thing).
Our favorite place to eat is Boma- for breakfast and dinner.
Mama Melrose has minestrone soup that my son tried years ago, and he still thinks its the best in the world!

 

[Lisa F]

the only thing I'd do is make sure you space BoG and Coral Reef out far enough. did 2 adrs a day on my last trip it was perfect... anything less than 6 hours from start to start was too close and we weren't hungry for the 2nd.

 

[TwinkleKS]

We normally do two sit down meals a day when we go in December. Usually about half for the food and half more
for the experience. I'd rather go to a character meal versus having to wait in line to get autographs for instance. Or we do things like The Brown Derby Fantasmic meal so we have good food and don't have to worry as much about seats.

I personally wouldn't do Jilko, Kona, and Sanaa. Not that they are bad - I'd
Choose one of them and the maybe do a GF or DS restaurant if not in the parks. I like Coral Reef, but there are other choice is Epcot I prefer in Mexico or Morocco for something different, but that's just all more a matter of opinion.

 

[Parker Clan]

I don't think it's over planning! We are sit down ADR people for dinner every night. Lots of times lunch too.
If you're looking for any Universal recommendations Mama Dellas is the best Italian food!
Have a fun trip!

 

[Hopefully]

I don't think you have overplanned. If the menus at these restaurants appeal to you I think you have done a good job
Enjoy

 

[goofyintoronto]

I dont think you have too many. I personally didnt like Ohana dinner. Food is of poor quality (slimy wings, dried out meat, dry potstickers). And our ADR was at 530pm! Just not impressed at all. Its like the type of food you would get at a mall food court. And yes i can see why some people would feel rushed.

 

[Allie B]

I assume you have park hopper passes with BOG and coral reef on same day?

Otherwise looks good to me. We like to do at least one sit down per day to take a break and enjoy some good food

 

[sullyfam]

First, I don't think you over planned at all! We usually do 1-2 ADRs every day.

A couple comments on your ADRs (only since you asked), but keeping in mind it's all personal preference and what one person dislikes, another may love. So take it all with a grain of salt!

Day 1, if you have decent Asian food near you, I would skip Nine Dragons and opt for something that's more unique to Disney and you couldn't easily get at home
Day 2, like them both
Day 3 and Day 7 - unless you are staying at AKL and are dining there twice out of convenience, I probably wouldn't make 2 separate trips there for dinner. Sanaa and Jiko are different restaurants but still, I would pick 1 and then opt for another resort dining experience the other night just to switch it up and be able to experience something else
Day 4, looks good
Day 8, for our family we prefer either Sci Fi or 50's PT just for that unique Disney experience as opposed to typical Italian food we can get at home Day 9, want to try this one!

Have a great trip!

 

[srauseo]

I agree. I don't think this is over planned at all. We usually do one to two ADRs a day, generally breakfast and dinner and eat light for lunch by the pool or in the room during the a summer afternoon shower! Or we'll do a long lunch midday to take a break in the a/c.

I have never been to Nine Dragons but I've seen some good recent reviews from bloggers on it so maybe they have stepped up their game. The restaurant looks lovely.

I've been to BOG for breakfast and dinner. The restaurant is gorgeous but it does get a little noisy and cafeteria like in the main ballroom. I like to sit in the West Wing. That said, we really enjoyed the food at dinner and seeing the Beast. I also had a great server there for dinner. She was a trainer and had been at Disney for years and was excellent. For breakfast, we did PPO to get a jump on SDMT which worked like a charm. The breakfast food was fine if spendy (but my sister and I easily could have split an entree and the pastry plate) and it was a little quieter at that time of day.

I loved Jiko and Sanaa. Sanaa is more casual and the view is great. Jiko is more formal and the food was amazing. We did Sanaa for lunch and it was so cool and quiet it was a great break from the parks.

I've been to Kona several times and have liked it every time. Last time we had an especially good server. Since it's open to the lobby it's a little hustle and bustle but I don't really mind for some reason.

I have not been to any of the others yet!

 

[kniquy]

It doesn't seem like too many, but one suggestion that i received was to avoid a reservation on arrival day. Reason being if your flight or arrival is delayed and you can't make the reservation then you will be charged. As for other reservations - most you can cancel the day before without a penalty.

 

[Eric Smith]

Thanks for all of the feedback everyone, this has been really helpful!

 

[kbmartin]

I don't think you have overplanned, either. My DH and I love Homecomin' and BOG at lunch. At Homecomin', I highly recommend the fried chicken in any capacity along with their homemade BBQ chips and dressing. I asked for the dressing on the side and took the chips back to the resort and happily munched on them later. If you have an occasion, be sure they know. We were celebrating my birthday, and they brought out some of their donut holes with ice cream. It was a nice touch! At BOG, I recommend the braised pork and french onion soup. I also would suggest eating in the West Wing - it's more interesting than the other rooms.

I haven't heard good things about Coral Reef. One of my favorite blogs just covered it and basically said you were better off going elsewhere and looking at the aquarium for free in the Living Seas pavilion. There weren't many nice things he could say about the food. I will say that Nine Dragons reviews have been iffy as well. I haven't been to those places, but based on the reviews I read, I wouldn't rush there at all. May I suggest instead: Tokyo Dining in the Japan pavilion (for your Asian food fix)? My DH and I had a lovely lunch there on our first trip together. The service was exceptional. I cannot recommend Via Napoli in the Italy pavilion (for pizza) enough. We dream of the pizza there.

 

[Gophers]

We're going to Disney on November 24 and I'm wondering if we've scheduled too many ADRs. I'd like to get some feedback. I'd also appreciate some feedback on the restaurant choices.

Day 1 (Travel Day): Dinner - Nine Dragons
Day 2: Lunch - BOG, Dinner - Coral Reef
Day 3: Dinner - Jiko
Day 4: Breakfast - Kona, Dinner - Ohana
Day 5: Universal
Day 6: Universal
Day 7: Dinner - Sanaa
Day 8: Lunch - Mama Melrose
Day 9: Lunch - Homecomin'

I hope you didn't do too many ADRs. We're there Sept 23rd-30th (8 days) and have
Day 1 dinner Boathouse
Day 2 BK Tusker-Din Boma
Day 3 BK 1900-Din Liberty Tavern
Day 4 Lun/Din Skipper Canteen
Day 5 Universal Lun/Di Cowfish
Day 6 Lun 50's -Din Sci-Fi
Day 7 Epcot - None
Day 8 BK Crystal Palace, Din BOG

Enjoy what you have setup. If that's what you want to do then enjoy. That's how I look at.