Best/Worst Counter & Table Service in Each Park

[JRawkSteady]

I was just wondering what you guys all thought was the best and worst places to eat in the parks..and why... So I'll start!

COUNTER SERVICE

Best

MK- Caseys. MK doesn't really have much of a variety, but the hot dogs at Casey's are just amazing! They're huge and are just the yummiest things out there! The noodle station comes in a close second.

Epcot- This is hard... In Future World the best place to eat is definitely the Sunshine Seasons. The food is just delicious there! In World Showcase, I really like the Yakitori House even though they no longer have Yakitori.
The food is not too expensive for Disney standards and the seating area outside is beautiful!

MGM- honestly, they don't have much choice, but the Studio Catering Co. is very good. Their seating is in the shade and the food is pretty different from what you'd find elsewhere in the Studios. Also, if it's open, check out the Dip Site for a Philly Cheese Steak...that's all they sell... but it's good!!! And you can bring it right into the Indiana Jones Stunt Show.

AK- Flame Tree BBQ, hands down! The portions are great! A half rack of ribs, some baked beans, corn.. what else can you ask for?

Worst

MK- Cosmic Rays. The whole 3-line thing is just ridiculous. What if you're a single parent with 2 kids? One kid wants chicken and one kid wants burgers... too bad, I spose, because that's not going to happen unless you wait on two separate lines. (while the food gets cold) Also, the food is awful. The fries are way too salty and the burgers are dry.

Epcot- In Future World, Electric Umbrella. blegh. Their food went further and further downhill as the years have passed. It was a lot better when it was the Stargate Restaurant. In World Showcase, Liberty Inn is the most pointless excuse for a restaurant. With all the wonderful cuisine in the World Showcase, how can anyone pass up that for burgers and fries which you get at every park?! If you have kids and that's all they'll eat, I understand. But still - Why even present yet another option. (for burgers, they're pretty good I spose)...As a close second runner up, the Lotus Blossum Cafe is just disgusting. It tastes like Wok-n-Roll. Anyone who's ever eaten there will probably get why teh takes runner-up position in worst counter service.

MGM- The entire food court section on Sunset Blvd. Rosie's, Catalina, and Toluca are just never very good selections. It's standard Disney food, but it's usually not up to par with what you find at MK. Plus, there's no shade except a few umbrellas here and there.

AK- The obvious choice is Restaurantosaurus or in other words, "McDonalds." If I wanted to pay an extreme amount of money for McDonald's food I would stay in NY. The food here is overpriced and incredibly bad for you. The Breakfast is "okay," but the only reason to really go there is for the characters. I will never eat here again.

TABLE SERVICE

Best

MK - Tonys.. Basically because there are not many other choices. I had their strip steak and it was pretty good, but the spaghetti and meatballs looked extremely yummy. I'll save that for next time.

Epcot - This is really hard. For Future World I'd go with Garden Grille, although I'm not really a fan of either table service restaurant in Future World. I'm going to have to choose La Cellier in Canada for the World Showcase. The steak there is just so amazing and the service has always been spectacular.

MGM - 50's Prime Time Cafe is the BEST themed restaurant in WDW. The food is really good (except the meatloaf). But the fried chicken, the pot roast.... mmmmmmm so yummy!!! Plus when you get a load of the desserts, they will blow your mind!!! mmmmmmmm

AK - Since there are no table service restaurants, I will choose nothing. The Rainforest Cafe is overpriced garbage...if you want a table service restaurant go to one of the other parks, a resort, or Downtown Disney.

Worst

MK - Liberty Tree - If you're into New England seafood, then this is the place for you... however, I cannot eat seafood, so I stay as far away as possible. Easy as that.

Epcot - Coral Reef in Future World for the same reason as above, however, I thin kit's disgusting that people don't find it immoral to eat fish in front of live fish... I wouldn't eat a steak in front of a cow. Or chicken in front of a chicken. Yuck... In World Showcase, the Rose and Crown is very far down on my list. It's pretty boring for a table service, and the ambience is nice...but the table service in World Showcase is so outstanding this is as bad as it actually gets.

MGM - Sci-Fi Diner...wow... the ambience is great, but the food is worse than the food on Sunset Blvd. Honestly, you'd have to be offering a free meal for me to ever eat there again.

AK - Rainforest Cafe. I touched on this before, but the same as Restaurantosaurus...If I wanted Rainforest Cafe, I'd go here in NYC. The food is more expensive at the two in WDW, and they're just not that great. Go to the Animal Kingdom Lodge nearby and eat at BOMA or Jiko: the Cooking Place. It's unbelievable!!

That's it for me! Anyone else?

 

[Mickey1122]

Counter Sevice:
The Best:
AK-Flame Tree (I haven't been but Tusker House is really bad!)
MK-Columbia Harbour House and Main Street Bakery (It's a tie. Also, does Mrs. Potts Ice Cream count?)
Epcot-Yakitori House, Boulangerie Patiserie (Sommerfest and Fish and Chips are good too), the place in Body Wars that closed was good also
MGM-Starring Rolls Bakery
The Worst:
AK-Tusker House
Epcot-Electric Umbrella, Tangierine Cafe
MGM-Pizza Planet and the others aren't much better
MK-Cosmic Rays, Aunt Polly's

Table Service:
The Best:
Epcot-Rose and Crown
MK-Plaza
MGM-Primetime and Sci Fi tie for first, with Brown Derby following
AK-Well, Rainforest is just gross, and I've never been to Breakfastasoarus so I can't say

The Worst:
MK-LTT-It's very overrated for what it is
MGM-Hollywood and Vine-This has got to be demolished and turned into something good!
Epcot-Nine Dragons- Not only was it the worst meal ever experienced in Disney World, it was the worst Chinese food we had ever consumed!!!!!!!
AK-Rainforest Cafe

 

[BadgerBruce]

BEST CS:
MK-El Pirata:love those tacos & taco salad
Epcot-Liberty Inn:Great turkey sandwich on bagel w. side salad
MGM-popcorn stand (Pizza Planet pretty good)
AK-Tusker House:rotis. chicken meal with carrot cake for dessert is one of our favorite WDW meals.

WORST CS:
MK-Columbia Harbor House:fried fish & veggie chili in a very dry bread bowl were not good at all on our only visit--great views upstairs, however.
Epcot-Sunshine Seasons:loved the old menus, tried twice last trip & were not impressed with food quality at all. Used to be our favorite at Epcot
MGM-Rosies' or Catalina Eddie's
AK-Flame Tree:BBQ pork sandwich very dry & , even after adding sauce from the very messy & poorly maintained condiment bar. CM acted like I was bothering her with my order.This was our first & only attempt at a meal there.

 

[litlpixie]

Great thread!!!

Best CS:
MK--havent had a really good CS here, although the WORST was Cosmic Ray's, I still cant believe that I let my kids eat that crap!!
As far as TS, LTT was our best, although we DID like CP, I still dont like how the restaurant smells go figure....

Epcot--the best I had was at the Tangerine Cafe in Morrocco
the WORST I had was at the Cantina in Mexico, I swear the nachos looked like what was produced the last time my son got sick
The only TS had at Epcot so far was at Norway, and it was AWESOME. I will have more of an opinion when I go in July, as I have MANY TS ADR's there.

MGM--I don't really spend alot of time here and have only eaten at SciFi, and Pizza Planet....both not the worst food I've ever had, but really nothing to write home about.

AK- the best CS was at Flame Tree, plus I love the seating out back by the water.
the WORST is actually a TS...Restaurantosaurus was just a waste of our appitties, not to mention our time...the MOST disorganized character meal ever attended by our family.

A side note: I have no problem eating seafood while watching live fish, however I never understood why, at AK, they serve Bar-b-que , but thats the Top-o-the-Food-Chain for ya!

 

[sssteele]

I'm not listing all best and worsts, but want to comment on a recent experience. My wife and I ate at Sci-Fi in MGM for the first time last week. Heeding advice on this board, we both ordered burgers (10.99) They were large, but terrible. Very grissly, the worst I've ever had at WDW. We both ate half and quit, not wanting to consume any more calories. Anybody else recently had a burger there? I think the quality of burgers at WDW has gone down generally. American Adventure restaurant wasn't much better, and even Beaches and Cream burger isn't what it used to be.

 

[PatriciaH]

BEST
MK- El Pirata or Columbia HH
Epcot- Cantina de San Angel, Boulangerie Patisserie, Tangierine Cafe
MGM- Staring Rolls, Backlot Express is usually quiet
AK- Flame Tree BBQ

MK- Plaza Restaurant
Epcot- Le Cellier, Teppanyaki or Chefs de France (I like Nine Dragons and Rose and Crown too and Alfredos service is always good)
MGM- Brown Derby
AK- we shall see

WORST
MK- Cosmic Rays (Too LOUD but the veggie wrap is good)
Epcot-did not like Yakotori house very much
MGM- Pizza Planet (eardrum bursting loud)
AK- like em all so far

MK- Tony's (although I like their salads and soups and used to love their breakfast)
Epcot- I like them all pretty much but Bistro and Marrakesh were $$$$ for what you got)
MGM- I like them all here too but Sci-Fi I stick with BLT soup and a salad
AK- again we shall see

 

[Gradar1]

Best Counter-Service:
Magic Kingdom: Caseys--the atmosphere is wonderful, and who can go wrong with hot dogs?
Epcot: The Yakitori House in Japan--(quick and delicious!), Liberty Inn--I like listening to the fife/drum corp as I eat my yummy chicken fingers(I'm so boring), and the fruit salads are good at the Electric Umbrella. My dad is also a big fan of the brats and sauerkrat in Germany as well.
MGM: Studio Catering Co. is pretty decent, and the turkey legs at Toluca are delicious!
AK: Flame Tree BBQ--delicious!

Worst Counter-Service:
Magic Kingdom: The three line deal at Cosmic Rays is awful, and there are never enough seats--the best thing to do is take it outside.
Epcot: China's counter service is yicky!
MGM: Sunset Blvd.
Animal Kingdom: I haven't eaten there enough to get a 'worst'

Best Table Service:
Magic Kingdom: Liberty Tree Tavern--yummy, simple food, and good service.
Epcot: Marrakesh is very good, as is Le Cellier and the Garden Grille.
MGM: Brown Derby is hands down one of my all time fave Disney restaurants...fantastic food, and I've never had any problems with service.
Animal Kingdom: Boma (Animal Kingdom Lodge) is amazing.

Worst Table Service:
Magic Kingdom: I don't really have one!
Epcot: Nine Dragons is terrible--it's bland, the service is bad, and it's overpriced. I get much better Chinese here at home. The Japanese table service isn't all that great either--you can get better at one at home.
MGM: Sci Fi--way overpriced and not worth the money.
Animal Kingdom: none

 

[LandBoatRide]

I was just wondering what you guys all thought was the best and worst places to eat in the parks..and why... So I'll start!

TABLE SERVICE

Worst

MK - Liberty Tree - If you're into New England seafood, then this is the place for you... however, I cannot eat seafood, so I stay as far away as possible. Easy as that.

Hmmm, Confused by this advice. LTT does not serve seafood of any kind at dinner, and it only has one "seafood" entree at lunch, the salmon. LTT offers 5 other lunch entrees and 3 sandwiches, all of which are not seafood related in any way. Two appetizers are seafood-ish - the clam chowder and crab cake - but again no less than 5 appetizers have nothing to do with seafood. ???

 

[Mickey&Donald]

I'm confused... Restaurantosaurus in the AK is a CS place? But how is that possible when there's a character breakfast and I was able to make an ADR?

 

[aristocat]

I'm confused... Restaurantosaurus in the AK is a CS place? But how is that possible when there's a character breakfast and I was able to make an ADR?

It's CS just for lunch/supper. For breakfast it's a character meal and TS.

 

[Uncleromulus]

Can't weigh in with CS.

But TS favorites:
MGM--Brown Derby
MK-none
AK-none
Epcot--Coral Reef
DD--Portobello YC.

 

[LindsayDunn228]

Hmmm, Confused by this advice. LTT does not serve seafood of any kind at dinner, and it only has one "seafood" entree at lunch, the salmon. LTT offers 5 other lunch entrees and 3 sandwiches, all of which are not seafood related in any way. Two appetizers are seafood-ish - the clam chowder and crab cake - but again no less than 5 appetizers have nothing to do with seafood. ???

You beat me to it. When I hear LTT, I think of turkey, ham, and roast beef, mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, etc.

 

[bicker]

COUNTER SERVICE-Best

MK- Caseys. MK doesn't really have much of a variety, but the hot dogs at Casey's are just amazing! They're huge and are just the yummiest things out there! The noodle station comes in a close second.

I've never been impressed with the menu at Casey's. I suppose, given how limited it is, and the nature of the items on the menu, it is hard to mess up. However, it are those limitations that make me put Casey's pretty low on my list. I find Peco Bill's the best, just because it has decent options, food that doesn't destroy my intestines, and okay seating. It's the MK quick-service eatery that I hate the least.

Epcot- This is hard... In Future World the best place to eat is definitely the Sunshine Seasons. The food is just delicious there!

Agreed. Sometimes I wonder about the contrast between this place and other CS options in Future World. Why would anyone eat at any of the others?

From what I've heard, Tanierine Cafe is actually even better... we'll see in February.

MGM- honestly, they don't have much choice, but the Studio Catering Co. is very good.

When were you there last? I didn't find it to be as good as many people were saying it was, and the explanation seems to have been that their menu changed at the beginning of the year (for the worse). I'll stick with the ABC Commisary.

AK- Flame Tree BBQ, hands down! The portions are great! A half rack of ribs, some baked beans, corn.. what else can you ask for?

It's good, no question, but I think Tusker House is just a little bit better. However, they're so close to each other, and so much better than anything at MK or D-MGM, that you really could go to either with a good level of assurance that you'll enjoy your meal.

Worst

MK- Cosmic Rays. The whole 3-line thing is just ridiculous. What if you're a single parent with 2 kids? One kid wants chicken and one kid wants burgers... too bad, I spose, because that's not going to happen unless you wait on two separate lines. (while the food gets cold) Also, the food is awful. The fries are way too salty and the burgers are dry.

Interesting. I haven't eaten here recently, so I cannot say. I was rather hoping that it would be a great place to eat, based on the menu, so I'll be interested to see where it stacks up on other people's lists. I am not concerned about the multiple queues thing. I just look at it as different eateries. It is no different from getting food for one meal from the Tomorrowland Terrace and Cosmic Rays.

My least favorite eatery at MK is Pinnochio's in Fantasyland -- heartburn city.

Epcot- In Future World, Electric Umbrella. blegh. Their food went further and further downhill as the years have passed.

Definitely and unequivocally. Blech, yuck, etc.

MGM- The entire food court section on Sunset Blvd. Rosie's, Catalina, and Toluca are just never very good selections. It's standard Disney food, but it's usually not up to par with what you find at MK. Plus, there's no shade except a few umbrellas here and there.

I actually like Toluca, but I agree about Catalina and Rosie's.

AK- The obvious choice is Restaurantosaurus or in other words, "McDonalds."

Hehe.... I agree completely.

TABLE SERVICE-Best

MK - Tonys.. Basically because there are not many other choices. I had their strip steak and it was pretty good, but the spaghetti and meatballs looked extremely yummy. I'll save that for next time.

I know that'll be very controversial here. A lot of people suffer from a lot of buyer's remorse after meals at Tony's, because it is so expensive. However, I agree that it is among the best at MK, but still feel that Liberty Tree Tavern is better. The food, while undistinguished, is more uniformly yummy, and the buyer's remorse is kept in check by the set-price for the character meal.

Epcot - This is really hard. For Future World I'd go with Garden Grille, although I'm not really a fan of either table service restaurant in Future World. I'm going to have to choose La Cellier in Canada for the World Showcase. The steak there is just so amazing and the service has always been spectacular.

I'm giving Le Cellier a third chance, after two rather unimpressive meals there in the past. It's just not all it is cracked up to be IMHO, but I'll give it another shot.

The best IMHO is Chefs de France, by a mile. They can elevate even a simple ham-and-cheese sandwich to "cuisine". Very impressive. And pretty good service too.

MGM - 50's Prime Time Cafe is the BEST themed restaurant in WDW.

Hands down, absolutely, and the best value of any restaurant at WDW.

AK - Since there are no table service restaurants, I will choose nothing. The Rainforest Cafe is overpriced garbage...if you want a table service restaurant go to one of the other parks, a resort, or Downtown Disney.

I absolutely agree.

Worst

MK - Liberty Tree - If you're into New England seafood, then this is the place for you... however, I cannot eat seafood, so I stay as far away as possible. Easy as that.

Uh, wah? New England seafood? AFAIK, they only have one seafood entree, a salmon dish. I cannot imagine that the seafood there at lunch is really any good -- my suspicion was that it would be as "good" as the seafood at Cape May Cafe (in other words, not good).

This is my favorite at MK, because of the turkey and the stuffing. I know it is Stouffers from the box, but it is still really yummy.

Epcot - Coral Reef in Future World for the same reason as above, however, I thin kit's disgusting that people don't find it immoral to eat fish in front of live fish... I wouldn't eat a steak in front of a cow. Or chicken in front of a chicken. Yuck... In World Showcase, the Rose and Crown is very far down on my list. It's pretty boring for a table service, and the ambience is nice...but the table service in World Showcase is so outstanding this is as bad as it actually gets.

I cannot agree on either count. I love both of these restaurants and think they're among the best, really, along with Marrakesh, Biergarten and my favorite, Chefs de France.

The worst at Epcot is Nine Dragons. Ugh.

MGM - Sci-Fi Diner...wow... the ambience is great, but the food is worse than the food on Sunset Blvd. Honestly, you'd have to be offering a free meal for me to ever eat there again.

Not many choices, so yeah, Sci-Fi is the worst. What's interesting, I think, is that the worst at D-MGM would be among the best at MK, IMHO.

AK - Rainforest Cafe. I touched on this before, but the same as Restaurantosaurus...If I wanted Rainforest Cafe, I'd go here in NYC. The food is more expensive at the two in WDW, and they're just not that great. Go to the Animal Kingdom Lodge nearby and eat at BOMA or Jiko: the Cooking Place. It's unbelievable!!

Again, I agree completely. I don't hold out much hope for the planned Asian restaurant at AK (because it will be operated by the same folks who operate the Rainforest Cafe) but perhaps my suspicions will end up unfounded. We could hope, I suppose.

 

[NeverlandClub23]

We've only eaten TS meals so I'll stick with those:

Worst at MK:

CRT-most overrated meal at WDW. The food was mediocre and expensive.

Best at MK:

Crystal Palace-I could do without the characters but the food and the atmosphere of this restaurant is wonderful!!

Worst at Epcot:

Between R&C and Coral Reef-tried both 2-3 times. All of the times the food was bland at both and the service was slow and unfriendly.

Best at Epcot:

Chefs de France-excellent food, lively/beautiful atmosphere, and great service.

Best at MGM:

Sci-Fi - (for lunch) great milkshakes, great atmosphere (quiet and dark). decent food, and decent service.

Worst at MGM:

Don't really don't have a WORST here. We actually did eat a CS breakfast at ABC comm. many years ago and the food was bland but the atmosphere was quiet. We ate at Mama Melroses last trip. It wasn't great but it wasn't the worst either.

Best at AK:

Rainforest Cafe? We love eating here but we've never actually ate at any AK restaurants. On our next trip we're trying Flame Tree BBQ (I'm so glad they're not open seasonally anymore!!) and I've heard it's great. It has probably the prettiest seating area of any CS place I've ever seen.

Worst at AK:

none

Best Resort meal:

California Grill-amazing food, outstanding view, and great service. Would go here every night if there weren't so many other great places to eat!!

Worst Resort meal:

WCC or Boma-loud, horrible/bland food (the skillet and the chicken pasta I had at WCC), slow service, will never go back to again. Boma's-pretty atmosphere, very loud, and didn't care for any of the soups and many of the food items.

 

[gems_smiling]

BEST CS

MK - Pescos Bill Cafe
Epcot - Sunshine seasons or fish and chips in England
MGM - never eat here
AK - Flame tree BBQ

BEST TS

MK - The Plaza Restaurant (only one we have eaten at).
Epcot - Rose & Crown Pub (only one we have eaten at).
MGM - none
AK - none