Bad review of 'Ohana--what do you think?

[Mickeyluver37]

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Hint: If you still want the fresh pineapple with caramel sauce, just ask for it. We've done this every time and it's always brought out at no extra charge. One server even brought it out along with the other dessert.

I am so happy to hear this!!!! This was our favorite meal last trip and dh requested it again, but was sad to hear that the dessert changed. (He is allergic to bananas.) I hope this is still the case for our September trip!

 

[Tam1067]

I was very close to cancelling our ADR at 'Ohana in July because I'd read lots of negative reviews from poeple who liked the "old" menu. But DH told me we should just try it, so we did. It ended up being good food and a fun time. Yes, the entertainment got to be a bit loud at times. No, the food is not gourmet. But, some of the food was very good (potatoes, dessert) and it's a completely silly Disney experience.

My opinion on reviews is that they're all subjective. I don't like Olive Garden; my MIL loves it. We disagree. That doesn't mean one of us is right and the other is wrong, just that we have different tastes. It's the same thing with any restaurant.

Try it and come to your own decision.

 

[Peter Pirate 2]

While it's true that everyone has different tastes, reviews can still break through these barriers. For example, I find nothing on the V&A's menu appealing yet I know from specific reviews (from unbiased and competent reviewers) that it is certainly the best restaurant on property, my tastes notwithstanding. It is simply too simplistic and short sighted to say "everyone has different tastes" or for me to proclaim some shortcoming because of my limited pallete.

'Ohana used to be great but they took away their TWO biggest plusses, the skewered shrimp and the shrimp wontons. The replacements are good and many people say they like them better but this again proves my point about reviews. You need to look at them objectively and people need to not take it so personal when someone disagrees AND the fact that many people now rave about the scalloped potato's is indictitive of the reviewers home base and the decline in what's really special at 'Ohana.

I fully understand that people love Outback Steakhouse but I truly love steak and the offerings of Outback don't compare to Ruths' Chris or Morton's...It just isn't woth the effort or money for me to go to Outback when The Palm or Shula's is close by.

The thing that I'm stunned by is that Disney has gotten away with raising the price of their buffet's to over $30.00 when just few short years ago the same buffet's with more varied and vastly superior offerings were less than 20.00!!!

Love 'Ohana for what it is but don't review it with rose colored glasses. Give it an honest review and if it's GREAT then so be it!

Just my 4 cents.

 

[HeatherPage]

The review is accurate. We'll never go back.

The review may be accurate in your "world". It wasn't necessarily accurate, you just agreed with this schmoe's opinion, and you know what they say about opinions...

OP - go for yourself...decide for yourself, you may be pleasantly surprised.

 

[Pumbaa_]

We found the service to be poor and the food not very good (think mealy shrimp and grisly meat). We won't be going again. The last 2 times were not good at all.

Reviews are just that, someone went, and here is their opinion. Some will agree, some will disagree, and it is all good.

If it is something you have always wanted to try, go for it! You may have a different experience.

 

[dancemomnj]

Do the kid's meal still come in a sand pail and shovel? My DD would love that, we leave on DCL after our stay at WDW.

Sorry, no they didn't in November.

 

[Peter Pirate 2]

The review may be accurate in your "world". It wasn't necessarily accurate, you just agreed with this schmoe's opinion, and you know what they say about opinions...

OP - go for yourself...decide for yourself, you may be pleasantly surprised.

Yikes!!! What a HOSTILE POST...Sounds like you either believe only your opinion (or those who agree with you count) or no one's opinion counts and we should just call everything Disney does GREAT and get over ourselves. Yikesoschmikesodominikeso...

 

[KPtoys]

We were there in 1/06 and thought the salad dressing was fabulous, the meat over done and dry but the dessert was good. We will NOT be going back.

 

[zurgswife]

My family ate there for the first time last Aug...it was horrible...the waiter was the worst and the food was aweful . We will not be returning any time soon..

 

[HeatherPage]

Whatever PP2, I think I remember saying the OP should try it for herself and decide. Hostile? What did I ask her if she wanted to "step outside" to discuss it...I don't recall that. And opinions are just that...opinions and everyone's got 'em. I might think a place sucks big time, but I'm not going to tell someone else they have to love it, just that maybe they should try it for themselves and form their own opinion.. I guess I should have said - OP go for yourself, decide for yourself...you may be pleasantly surprised...or you may (like others have posted) find it really does suck...

 

[Peter Pirate 2]

Whatever? OK by me.

 

[AurorasDad]

Ohana was one of our favorite dining experiences ever. The food we got was excellent, although, we're midwesterners -- not necessarily gourmet diners. The skewers of meat and the pupu platter were quite tasty, and our server was excellent. The kids dd5 and dd2 LOVED the hula hoops and coconut races. Oh, and the kids desert came in a pail & shovel - not the whole meal. Also, we timed dinner perfectly to catch the fireworks from MK. They dim the lights in the restaurant and synchronize the music. Of course...that was in 2004, but we're definitely getting an ADR for December of this year.

 

[HeatherPage]

Yes, let's get past this silly little agreement (especially with all the bigger things going on in the world) and sing Kumbaya together...everybody!

 

[powellrj]

Planet Hollywood and Capt. Jacks are two places that usually get pretty beat-up on by reviews, but we have always enjoyed them.

Boma and Rainforest Cafe usually get really good reviews and they are places we really didn't care for!

I have learned to read between the lines when reading reviews because many times the things that people complain about are things that we enjoy in a resturant!

Even this thread people couldn't agree on it. If the menu seems to be something your family would enjoy, go for it.

We have never been there because we usually go to Texas De Brazil and its also a meat on a skewer type resturant. We really enjoy TDB, but 1 meat on a skewer type meal on vacation is enough for us. Maybe next time I can talk them out of TDB and try Ohana.

 

[Pumbaa_]

Things have changed alot since 2004. We enjoyed the restaurant then, and did it about once a year. In the last year or so, it is no longer as good.

I loved the yummy skewer shrimp. I think the mealy peel and eat shrimp in the sauce does not compare favorably. The sausage they replaced it with was not very good and no one at my table ate more than a bite.

The worst part for us was the service. I can overlook a lot, but poor service is a deal breaker.

I think for us, part of the issue is we go to Disney a couple times of year for 5 or 6 days. We are DVC members and AP holders. This has changed how we do disney. Dining is an important part of our trip and we try (emphasis on try) not to commando park anymore.

I want a nice ts meal, where I have good to excellant service and an enjoyable meal. We just haven't gotten that at 'ohanas the couple of trips. Too many other places to go where we do get a good meal and excellant service.

Is my experience your experience? Absolutely not! Try it for yourself and see if you like it. Choice is good, isn't it?

 

[Nancyg56]

Is my experience your experience? Absolutely not! Try it for yourself and see if you like it. Choice is good, isn't it?

It's fun to ask for opinions, but I agree that in the end the only way to tell is to try it for yourself. In my own family we have several differences. Our ADR's are not completed because we finally decided to try a new restaurant because I just am not fond of my families favorite.

 

[IWISHFORDISNEY]

I really like the food and our server was great with the little one and brough out food he would eat. I thought the shrimp and turkey were out of this world. It was loud and it is a family atmosphere. We are going back this trip so we obviously liked it. I was just glad I didnt have to worry constantly that my 2 year old was going to disrupt someone. He had a ball with the parade and coconut races. It is one of the new places that we tried and liked. If you are looking for a family meal you will like it if you are looking for romantic skip it.

 

[CamColt]

I was a huge fan of the old Ohana. I ate there in 12/03 and went back on my next trip in 7/04. Some of my favorites were the rice, bread and pineapple. I was so upset to hear all those were gone on the new menu I refused to go back(take that with a chuckle). I had the opportunity to go with a group of friends this past Dec so I went.

While I didnt hate it, it was disappointing knowing how good it could have been. To me the old rice made the meal and the potatoes good or not, just didnt go with a Polynesian meal. I thought the new dessert was too heavy after an all you can eat meal, where as the pineapple was just perfect...light and sweet. I have to admit I still enjoyed the salad and wings and the new wonton chips..I never really was big on the meats and I'm still not.

Overall it wasn't horrible for me, but I certianly wouldnt make it a point to go back...especially knowing how good it was. With that said, I always feel if something interests you, try it for yourself.

 

[gk90]

I know that reviews are always subjective and that everyone has their own opinion. It was good to hear a range of responses and also to have TheDisneyClan point out that Kevin from The DIS review staff can have a bias against "family" places. I tallied up responses and saw that Ohana is really a place that brings out strong feelings--7 people really loved it and 6 people really disliked it. 9 people gave it a qualified positive while 4 were neutral or more negative than positive.

So...I was still undecided myself and asked DH and the kids. His last WDW trip was 22 years ago and he still remembers seeing the Poly from the lagoon and thinking he'd like to go there someday. He looked at the descriptions and reviews and thinks that it's worth a try, specially since he didn't think the Luau was worth the high price. DS6 loves the sound of coconut races. DD9 is undecided, I think she's secretly interested but doesn't want to sound like she's interested in activities that are "babyish". As for me at least I know both positives and negatives and will be prepared.

So--now to see if we can get ADRs for 3rd wk of August, the week before free dining starts! DH loves bananas so is looking forward to the dessert!

 

[poohluvrs]

We loved it! DH & I are uber-picky and we just loved the food! Even the veggies!

1 of our kids slept through the meal from park exhaustion, the other one did the hula & parade - fun!

Our server wasnt the best, but did get DD a special kids meal...

Everyone has their own views, we enjoyed our experience & after sampling a week of hard to get TS meals, we agreed Ohana was the only one we'd definately return to.