Best Restaurant In Your Opinion?

[DisneyLover902]

Hello! I'm 13 years old, and my mom and I just went out to AAA to book a trip to disney! I've already been there 10 times, but the only time we've decided to go to a "fancier" restaurant while we're there was before I can remember, when I was like 3. Mom said that we can go to one bigger place to eat, rather than eating at the quick service chicken strips and fries or personal pan pizzas every week. The cheapest that we could find were $18.99 per person, and we really don't want to spend that much money, so what is the best restaurant in your oppinion? For a good deal, of course . . .

Thanks for your help!

 

[IluvKingLouis]

Hi Disney Lover,

I do know that lunches are more reasonable then dinners. We usually plan a late lunch around 2:30-2:45 and then grab a very light snack for dinner.

Also, if you skip restaurants that offer character interaction that will save you some money too.

Were you looking for a sit down? Or something fancier (more atmosphere). What type of cuisine do you like?

 

[CamColt]

Welcome to the Dis, Disneylover902! We are glad you found us.


You can see a complete list of restaurants on our site. This might help you see what you would enjoy and prices.
http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/dining/disneydining.cfm

 

[Harambe]

You should try the Sci Fi Diner in the Hollywood studios! If you go at lunch, you can get sandwiches or burgers, and the place is so fun. You sit in old cars and pretend that you're at a drive-in. They show old black and white movie clips of stinky B movies.

And they have great milkshakes!

 

[familyS]

Welcome DisneyLover902, glad you found us

Definitely check out the menus in CamColts link.

There are many sit down table service restaurants that have great lunch (or breakfast) menus. I did lots of comparing when I thought we may skip the dining plan. There are many restaurants where we considered ordering just entrees and drinks (or iced tap water), or maybe just sharing two appetizers and one dessert. I could get many table services down to about $15 per person or less. Some restaurants lend themselves to sharing, too. It is OK to share at any restaurant that is not family style or buffet.

Sci-Fi at Hollywood Studios lunch, Liberty Tree Tavern at Magic Kingdom lunch, Kona Cafe at the Polynesian breakfast or lunch, and Raglan Road lunch at Downtown Disney come to mind first. We considered sharing two appetizers and one dessert at Raglan Road, Rainforest Cafe or Planet Hollywood in Downtown Disney or ar the Rainforest Cafe in Animal Kingdom.

Yes, I am a compulsive planner

Hope this helps

 

[lynninpa]

to The DisBoards, DisneyLover902!!!

 

[DisneyLover902]

Wow, so many posts in so little time! I'll be sure to check out the menus, I was doing that a little while ago, my dad was suggesting things all over the place, and I was like, "My computer, My thing!! Stop bothering me!!" But, oh well! He's going too! My older sister had fun with it also, making the custom maps on the WDW site and ordering them. We love it all, and we're going to take our time this time since we've already seen most everything! We thought we'd splurge a bit this year, with more of a sit-down lunch, maybe with characters, maybe without. The only two times that we've had a character dinner was Chef Mickey's when I was 1 1/2, and Crystal Palace when I was 8, so I remember that one more than the Mickey's, although I have pics of both! We were checking out going to Chef Mickey's again, but it was just so expensive, and we don't make the most money in the world! Breakfast we thought might be better, go to a park for the morning extra magic hour, and then go to breakfast at the Contemporary, then take the monorail to MK, but we decided against it. I'll check out some of the ones that you guys mentioned, you guys are a great help! A friend of mine referred me to DisBoards, and it works wonders! I posted a thread with a poll, and by the time I was done with the poll, someone had already replied to my post! Amazing! Ah, well, I'll shut up now and go check out the menu! Thanks again, and some more suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!

Also, we're looking for something between the $10-$15 range per person, to whoever asked!

 

[FormrCastMbr]

Welcome DisneyLover! I agree, look at the menus and I am sure you will find something. Have fun planning!

 

[RllngRckBrw]

It all depends on how much you are willing to spend and what type of food you want to eat. Below are a few that we keep going back to.

Spoodles (Boardwalk hotel, just a short boat ride from MGM or Epcot)
50's cafe (MGM)
Coral Reef (Epcot)
Wolfgang Puck's Cafe (Downtown)

 

[2Princes2Princesses]

This is not a whole meal, but if you were looking for a special treat this trip, my DS13 and DD15 love this:

Beaches and Cream over at The Beach Club has a dessert called the Kitchen Sink. It is $22.00 total and will feed all of you, believe me. It is this monstrous sundae in a dish that looks like a sink.

They do also have burgers and sadwiches there, delicious, for about $7-9, soda is $2 or so, although we usually don't try to eat a meal then the sink.

We will usually have fish and chips in Epcot and then wander over to Beach Club a little later and get a sink.

 

[DisneyLover902]

Thanks for all of the input! I've heard of the sink, my parents and sis ate that one time before I was born and told me about it. We always get fish and chips in england, my dad loves fish!! I prefer chicken, but we were trying to find something a bit "fancier" because pretty much all we eat that week is Chicken strips and fries, personal pan pizzas, and hot dogs, that's the things that you can find everywhere. I was hoping to try something from Germany and France, since they were the two languages that we studied this year, and maybe mexico, since we study that next year, to try some of the food that my teachers were talking about, but I was looking at the menu, and I wasn't sure until I see it. Any favorites from those three countries? Place, and dish? Thanks again for all of the input!

 

[LSchrow]

first, welcome to the DIS, disneylover!!

there are quite a few good restaurants in WDW, unfortunately most are pretty expensive.

if you're looking for fun, 50's pime time in MGM can be great! (the waitstaff might lecture your parents about putting their elbows on the table, not cleaning their plate, etc). the waiter/waitress pretends they're part of your family (e.g., aunt betty, cousin joe, uncle tim, etc) & do silly things to tease everyone. the decor is like a 50's style kitchen & really cute. food is more "common", but you could get appetizers or split an entree at lunch & stay within budget.
http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/dining/diningdetail.cfm?Restaurant.ID=113#menu

chefs de france (EPCOT-world showcase:france) has very good french food in a nice atmosphere. their lunch menu has a few entrees around $11 (soda normally costs about $3 everywhere)
http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/dining/diningdetail.cfm?Restaurant.ID=322

san angel inn (EPCOT-world showcase:mexico) has a few items on their lunch menu between $10-15. atmosphere is interesting, very similar to the "real mexico" & can have, depending upon the location of your table, a view of boats from mexico's attraction, Rio Del Tiempo, go by . be forewarned tho: personally we enjoyed the food, but i've heard of a few people who don't like it.
http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/dining/diningdetail.cfm?Restaurant.ID=93

tangierine cafe (EPCOT-world showcase:morrocco) is a counter service restaurant, but i'm including it b/c it has "interesting food" and a nice atmosphere (tho it can get crowded). lunch ranges from $8 to $14. we found the portions very generous
http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/dining/diningdetail.cfm?Restaurant.ID=223

there are many other choices, but i hope this gives you an idea of what's out there.

my feeling is that you would enjoy chefs de france the most. it has everything you're looking for: nice atmosphere, reasonable price, "non-american" food, & since the waitstaff are french, you can practice some with them!
btw, as with any WDW restaurant, your mom should make an ADR (advance dining reservation).
if you need anymore help, just ask.....a lot of the fun of a trip to WDW is the planning when are you going?

 

[DisneyLover902]

I'll be leaving the house June 14th!! I'll be sure to take some of this imput to the WDW!

 

[Tricia1972]

Hello and welcome!

There is a GREAT resource on the Disney Dining Plan board. Robinb created this awesome spreadsheet that spells out all of the counter service and table service locations - along with the averages of what a meal costs at each place. Since budget is important to you and your family, maybe you can take a look at her averages and see which place works best for you. After you have a few choices in your price range - we'll be happy to tell you which of them are our favorites for food and atmosphere.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1650616

This is her thread and the page that I was thinking about are here.

http://personalpages.tds.net/~rb/DIS/MYW Dining/DisneyDiningRanking2008.htm

and

http://personalpages.tds.net/~rb/DIS/MYW Dining/DisneyDiningRanking2008.htm

 

[SorcererDonald16]

Welcome to the DIS!

I know what you mean about being budget conscious; my upcoming trip we're really splurging because I'm celebrating a couple of things, but otherwise we are very cost conscious. We split entrees at times, split meals at counter service places, and hardly ever order appetizers. We also tend to eat in restaurants for lunch rather than dinner because it's usually cheaper. But we still have fun and eat some GREAT food, so I'm sure you'll find a meal you'll love in your price range!

For the price range you're talking about, I'd suggest a late lunch at Chefs de France in Epcot. I first went to WDW when I was almost 10 years old back in 1993, and I liked the idea of eating in France also because I was taking that foreign language in school. Fast forward many years and Chefs de France is a tradition among my family; only year we went and didn't go there was 2005, when there were no openings and 1996 when we didn't go to Epcot.

You could get the french onion soup (my favorite!) and a salad for under $10. Everything but the "big" entrees (short ribs, salmon) are right around $15 or lower. Their desserts are awesome too! You can always get one to share between two people; not huge portions, but enough to try a dessert anyway.

Best of luck to you deciding, and have a great trip!