My girlfriend and I just returned from a wonderful week of fun in the sun (and rain) at WDW. Having only been 4 times in my life, my experiences with everything from rides to dining are far less than many of the folks on these boards, but we did have several dining reservations for the week, and thought I'd share my thoughts 
Tuesday August 10th : Chefs de France
Was a bit disappointed with this meal. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't great. I started off with the french onion soup which I thought was the best part of the meal. For my entree, I had the duck. This may just not have been the best choice on the menu to select, but I thought it was so-so. My girlfriend and I split the creme brulee for dessert - it was ok. The highlight of the meal was getting a visit from the "little chef," but sadly, Remy was not a fan of us having a dog, so he won't be coming to visit us in Washington DC anytime soon.
Wednesday August 11th : Paradiso 37 (Disney Downtown)
We rolled the dice and made reservations here without reading many reviews. Prior to the trip, I'd seen mixed reviews here on the boards. I have to say, this was my second favorite meal on the trip. Our waiter explained that they derived the name of the restaurant from the 37 countries on the continent, attempting to meals from throughout the Americas. We tried the mac 'n cheese bites as an appetizer, nothing special, just your typical fried food app. Came with a jalapeno cilatro dipping sauce. The entree - which my girlfriend ordered as well - was fantastic. We both had the surf and turf, which came with Argentinean skirt steak, grilled Shrimp with a BBQ glaze, corn on the cob, green beans, and a potato pancake. It was very good, and I thought the seasoning on the steak was nice. For desert we split the churros which came with chocolate and caramel dipping sauces. Portions were adequate, food tasted good, and service was very friendly. We ate at around 7 pm, and the place wasn't overly crowded. It gives off the sort of atmosphere you'd compare to a Maragaritaville or Cheeseburger in Paradise, as they had a live musician playing on a guitar in the corner, and a bar serving tropical drinks.
Thursday, August 12th: Hollywood Brown Derby
We went to eat here on a night that Fantasmic was taking place, and you certainly could tell. The place was packed, and many people with reservations weren't able to be seated right on time. The service was friendly and attentive, and the food was decent. We had the baby greens salads with grape tomatoes, candied pecans, goat cheese and cabernet vinaigrette. I had the Herb-Marinated Spit-Roasted Half Chicken with orzo, olives, etc. It was very good, and plenty to eat. My girlfriend had the lamb chops, and she enjoyed it. For dessert I had the banana white chocolate toffee tower on cocoa almond cookie and bananas "foster" - I thought it was very good. I'd say this is the best place to eat at Hollywood Studios, but would recommend eating on a non-Fantasmic night if you'd like to avoid the zoo.
Friday, August 13th: Tony's Town Square
Let's face it, there's no real amazing meals to be had at Magic Kingdom that are going to blow you away. There target audience is children, and they want to make sure they have plenty of options that children will eat. I just had a meatball sub, and my girlfriend had a small bowl of soup and a calzone. We knew it wasn't going to be anything out of this world, and it wasn't. If you're looking for a decent place to eat at Magic Kingdom, this one is ok and a nice way to get indoors to some AC for a bit.
Saturday, August 14th: Le Cellier
I didn't really know about this place until starting to plan this trip, and saw all the reviews and hype. I wanted to check it out for myself. For a meal at Disney World, it was easily my favorite of the trip. The service was very friendly - I'm a huge hockey fan so I had plenty to talk to my Canadian waiter about We both had the Canadian chedar cheese soup (with Canadian bacon, Canadian beer - Moosehead Pale Ale for those interested -, and soft pretzel sticks to dip in it). It was very good! For entrees, we both had the mushroom filet mignon cooked medium rare with wild mushroom risotto, white truffle and herb butter sauce. It was great. Met all my expectations, and I can see why so many enjoy it. For a meal at Disney World (where let's be honest, they are interested in feeding as many people as quickly as possible) I didn't get this impression here, and the quality of food exceeded what I'd have expected at such a place. I highly recommend it. Best meal of the trip for us.
Tuesday August 10th : Chefs de France
Was a bit disappointed with this meal. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't great. I started off with the french onion soup which I thought was the best part of the meal. For my entree, I had the duck. This may just not have been the best choice on the menu to select, but I thought it was so-so. My girlfriend and I split the creme brulee for dessert - it was ok. The highlight of the meal was getting a visit from the "little chef," but sadly, Remy was not a fan of us having a dog, so he won't be coming to visit us in Washington DC anytime soon.
Wednesday August 11th : Paradiso 37 (Disney Downtown)
We rolled the dice and made reservations here without reading many reviews. Prior to the trip, I'd seen mixed reviews here on the boards. I have to say, this was my second favorite meal on the trip. Our waiter explained that they derived the name of the restaurant from the 37 countries on the continent, attempting to meals from throughout the Americas. We tried the mac 'n cheese bites as an appetizer, nothing special, just your typical fried food app. Came with a jalapeno cilatro dipping sauce. The entree - which my girlfriend ordered as well - was fantastic. We both had the surf and turf, which came with Argentinean skirt steak, grilled Shrimp with a BBQ glaze, corn on the cob, green beans, and a potato pancake. It was very good, and I thought the seasoning on the steak was nice. For desert we split the churros which came with chocolate and caramel dipping sauces. Portions were adequate, food tasted good, and service was very friendly. We ate at around 7 pm, and the place wasn't overly crowded. It gives off the sort of atmosphere you'd compare to a Maragaritaville or Cheeseburger in Paradise, as they had a live musician playing on a guitar in the corner, and a bar serving tropical drinks.
Thursday, August 12th: Hollywood Brown Derby
We went to eat here on a night that Fantasmic was taking place, and you certainly could tell. The place was packed, and many people with reservations weren't able to be seated right on time. The service was friendly and attentive, and the food was decent. We had the baby greens salads with grape tomatoes, candied pecans, goat cheese and cabernet vinaigrette. I had the Herb-Marinated Spit-Roasted Half Chicken with orzo, olives, etc. It was very good, and plenty to eat. My girlfriend had the lamb chops, and she enjoyed it. For dessert I had the banana white chocolate toffee tower on cocoa almond cookie and bananas "foster" - I thought it was very good.
I'd say this is the best place to eat at Hollywood Studios, but would recommend eating on a non-Fantasmic night if you'd like to avoid the zoo.Friday, August 13th: Tony's Town Square
Let's face it, there's no real amazing meals to be had at Magic Kingdom that are going to blow you away. There target audience is children, and they want to make sure they have plenty of options that children will eat. I just had a meatball sub, and my girlfriend had a small bowl of soup and a calzone. We knew it wasn't going to be anything out of this world, and it wasn't. If you're looking for a decent place to eat at Magic Kingdom, this one is ok and a nice way to get indoors to some AC for a bit.
Saturday, August 14th: Le Cellier
I didn't really know about this place until starting to plan this trip, and saw all the reviews and hype. I wanted to check it out for myself. For a meal at Disney World, it was easily my favorite of the trip. The service was very friendly - I'm a huge hockey fan so I had plenty to talk to my Canadian waiter about
We both had the Canadian chedar cheese soup (with Canadian bacon, Canadian beer - Moosehead Pale Ale for those interested -, and soft pretzel sticks to dip in it). It was very good! For entrees, we both had the mushroom filet mignon cooked medium rare with wild mushroom risotto, white truffle and herb butter sauce. It was great. Met all my expectations, and I can see why so many enjoy it. For a meal at Disney World (where let's be honest, they are interested in feeding as many people as quickly as possible) I didn't get this impression here, and the quality of food exceeded what I'd have expected at such a place. I highly recommend it. Best meal of the trip for us.
