Tess
DIS Veteran - 1997
- Joined
- Aug 19, 1999
- Messages
- 5,607
I excerpted this from my trip reports post and thought I'd place it on this board. If you're like me, you barely have time to read one or two boards let alone all of the boards! I wish I had the time for that! 
Our group consisted of my husband and I (40 somethings), a 15 y/o son, 12 (now 13) y/o daughter, and an 11 y/o nephew. We visit WDW at least once a year and have been known to go a couple of times a year. We've pretty much eaten our way through the parks and have our favorites. We also try to add something new each visit.
We enjoy dining in EPCOT and have year after year favorites. Each family member chooses a location and we all agree that HDD is a favorite. We skipped this last summer and were glad to return this year.
Our habit is to enjoy a large lunch during the heat of the day then return to our hotel for a swim. We do make exceptions to that, but for the most part our meals are lunches.
Le Cellier was a restaurant in which we had never dined. We loved it and will be adding this one to our list for a return visit. My husband had a steak and has declared it the best he's ever had. Our son enjoyed a chicken sandwich and beef barley soup--loved them both. I had a tenderloin salad and cheese soup. The other two had kids' meals--cheeseburger and mac & cheese I believe. Nothing spectacular about those two! I loved my salad and soup--in fact, I got to eat very little of the soup because my family loved it too! Next time they will all be getting their own bowls! Le Cellier is great!
Teppanyaki is a must visit each vacation. It didn't disappoint. In fact, my nephew even ate--shudder at the thought--vegetables! He really enjoyed his chicken kids meal as did our daughter. My husband loved his combination of steak and seafood. Our son had shrimp and chicken while I had scallops, shrimp, and lobster! Loved it all!
Alfredo's in Italy was a last minute choice because we had no PS, it was available, we'd never given it a whirl, and we knew it was going to downpour that afternoon. While the food was okay, it wasn't anything spectacular--my kids and nephew complimented me on my own recipe for Fettuccine Alfredo--much better than the originator! Not to be too conceited, but I agree with them--mine is much better. My two kids had the Alfredo, nephew had lasagne kid's meal, I had the three pasta combination with Alfredo, lasagne, and another unmemorable dish, and my husband had the fra diavalo dish--which despite it's name was neither hot nor spicy. I really hate to say this because it sounds so lacking in dining experience--but Olive Garden is a better meal. In fact, I can name at least two restaurants locally that make better Italian food--Ciao's and Mancy's Italian! To add insult to injury--this was the most expensive meal of all the countries! This will get a pass on future visits.
San Angel Inn--another year-after-year location for us. We all enjoyed our meal, but this restaurant just didn't seem as good as in the past. Not sure why--the food was fine, just not much to choose from. My husband and son at Tacos al Carbon, two younger ones had quesadillas off the kid's menu, and I had the Plato Mexicano.
We also dined at 50s PTC--always fun. It was more fun for us this time because our nephew was along and he had no experience. Mark was our server and he was great. Both of our kids were sent to run errands for him (returning menus to the front)--he nagged our son about his elbows, and was generally good fun. Food was good--our son had the pot pie, my husband the chicken sandwich, daughter had mac & cheese, nephew the cheeseburger, and I had pot roast. The kids shared Dad's sundae--they really wanted s'mores, but for some reason we weren't allowed to choose our dessert--Mark did and that's what he brought. Not sure we enjoyed that portion of the meal, but the kids liked the sundae.
Chef Mickey's is our first night welcome dinner. The food was good and we had a lovely time. I thought the character interaction was a bit lacking and perhaps it's because our kids were older. Just not sure of the reason. There was also an inordinate amount of unruly behavior by the young ones and a good many parents ignoring it. Our server was terrible--the only time he smiled was when he delivered our bill--he was NOT tipped at the upper end of the scale. We've had this guy before and he's always a sour puss!
Boma was not to our liking. I have waited and waited to try this restaurant--just couldn't fit it in until this year. This was part of the reason I wanted to stay at AKL the first night--just to be sure and get there. It was NOT worth the wait. I know others LOVE this restaurant--none of us did however. The prime rib was the only thing of note on the entree board in our opinion. We just found the food too "sweet" tasting. I tried all of the soups, sampled the meats/entrees, tried a large sampling of the side dishes--and found nothing to write home about. The desserts were the best thing about the restaurant! All of us thoroughly enjoyed the dessert table, too bad we wasted our appetites on the other items! Then again, man doesn't survive by dessert alone! I'm glad we tried it--no interest in returning though.
Hoop-Dee-Doo is another favorite. Yeah, it's a corny show and the food is standard fare; but we love it! We had a front row seat for this meal/performance. I have to say, however, we've had better cast interaction being a row or two back. The food was good and we all enjoyed the fried chicken. Everything was hot and fresh--the bread and honey butter is always a hit! Our seating was for the 7:15 show.
Pecos Bill's in MK is a great spot for a fast meal. We had cheeseburgers, chicken wrap, chicken salad, and fries--all were very good. The place was exceptionally busy though and it was difficult to find a seat. We managed though. . .
Quick bites at the Cantina in Mexico, sweets from the France pavillion and the fish & chips counter service in the UK. Everyone loved the food in the Cantina and I enjoyed the fish & chips--it was just a very small portion. The Napoleon from the French bakery was excellent--we also had an Eclair and Marvelous--all shared! Major yums!
I forgot this one in the trip reports--we also had lunch at LottaWatta Lodge at BB--typical fast food--nothing spectacular. Burgers, chicken wraps, and fries--Pecos Bill's is better because it has the fixin's bar otherwise fairly similar in taste.
My husband and I also enjoyed adult beverages during our stay--I LOVE the Fiesta Margaritas. Judging by the queues I encountered trying to purchase them, everyone else does too. Ringes is still our favorite beer although I also enjoy a Black & Tan from the UK.
Our group consisted of my husband and I (40 somethings), a 15 y/o son, 12 (now 13) y/o daughter, and an 11 y/o nephew. We visit WDW at least once a year and have been known to go a couple of times a year. We've pretty much eaten our way through the parks and have our favorites. We also try to add something new each visit.
We enjoy dining in EPCOT and have year after year favorites. Each family member chooses a location and we all agree that HDD is a favorite. We skipped this last summer and were glad to return this year.
Our habit is to enjoy a large lunch during the heat of the day then return to our hotel for a swim. We do make exceptions to that, but for the most part our meals are lunches.
Le Cellier was a restaurant in which we had never dined. We loved it and will be adding this one to our list for a return visit. My husband had a steak and has declared it the best he's ever had. Our son enjoyed a chicken sandwich and beef barley soup--loved them both. I had a tenderloin salad and cheese soup. The other two had kids' meals--cheeseburger and mac & cheese I believe. Nothing spectacular about those two! I loved my salad and soup--in fact, I got to eat very little of the soup because my family loved it too! Next time they will all be getting their own bowls! Le Cellier is great!
Teppanyaki is a must visit each vacation. It didn't disappoint. In fact, my nephew even ate--shudder at the thought--vegetables! He really enjoyed his chicken kids meal as did our daughter. My husband loved his combination of steak and seafood. Our son had shrimp and chicken while I had scallops, shrimp, and lobster! Loved it all!
Alfredo's in Italy was a last minute choice because we had no PS, it was available, we'd never given it a whirl, and we knew it was going to downpour that afternoon. While the food was okay, it wasn't anything spectacular--my kids and nephew complimented me on my own recipe for Fettuccine Alfredo--much better than the originator! Not to be too conceited, but I agree with them--mine is much better. My two kids had the Alfredo, nephew had lasagne kid's meal, I had the three pasta combination with Alfredo, lasagne, and another unmemorable dish, and my husband had the fra diavalo dish--which despite it's name was neither hot nor spicy. I really hate to say this because it sounds so lacking in dining experience--but Olive Garden is a better meal. In fact, I can name at least two restaurants locally that make better Italian food--Ciao's and Mancy's Italian! To add insult to injury--this was the most expensive meal of all the countries! This will get a pass on future visits.
San Angel Inn--another year-after-year location for us. We all enjoyed our meal, but this restaurant just didn't seem as good as in the past. Not sure why--the food was fine, just not much to choose from. My husband and son at Tacos al Carbon, two younger ones had quesadillas off the kid's menu, and I had the Plato Mexicano.
We also dined at 50s PTC--always fun. It was more fun for us this time because our nephew was along and he had no experience. Mark was our server and he was great. Both of our kids were sent to run errands for him (returning menus to the front)--he nagged our son about his elbows, and was generally good fun. Food was good--our son had the pot pie, my husband the chicken sandwich, daughter had mac & cheese, nephew the cheeseburger, and I had pot roast. The kids shared Dad's sundae--they really wanted s'mores, but for some reason we weren't allowed to choose our dessert--Mark did and that's what he brought. Not sure we enjoyed that portion of the meal, but the kids liked the sundae.
Chef Mickey's is our first night welcome dinner. The food was good and we had a lovely time. I thought the character interaction was a bit lacking and perhaps it's because our kids were older. Just not sure of the reason. There was also an inordinate amount of unruly behavior by the young ones and a good many parents ignoring it. Our server was terrible--the only time he smiled was when he delivered our bill--he was NOT tipped at the upper end of the scale. We've had this guy before and he's always a sour puss!
Boma was not to our liking. I have waited and waited to try this restaurant--just couldn't fit it in until this year. This was part of the reason I wanted to stay at AKL the first night--just to be sure and get there. It was NOT worth the wait. I know others LOVE this restaurant--none of us did however. The prime rib was the only thing of note on the entree board in our opinion. We just found the food too "sweet" tasting. I tried all of the soups, sampled the meats/entrees, tried a large sampling of the side dishes--and found nothing to write home about. The desserts were the best thing about the restaurant! All of us thoroughly enjoyed the dessert table, too bad we wasted our appetites on the other items! Then again, man doesn't survive by dessert alone! I'm glad we tried it--no interest in returning though.
Hoop-Dee-Doo is another favorite. Yeah, it's a corny show and the food is standard fare; but we love it! We had a front row seat for this meal/performance. I have to say, however, we've had better cast interaction being a row or two back. The food was good and we all enjoyed the fried chicken. Everything was hot and fresh--the bread and honey butter is always a hit! Our seating was for the 7:15 show.
Pecos Bill's in MK is a great spot for a fast meal. We had cheeseburgers, chicken wrap, chicken salad, and fries--all were very good. The place was exceptionally busy though and it was difficult to find a seat. We managed though. . .
Quick bites at the Cantina in Mexico, sweets from the France pavillion and the fish & chips counter service in the UK. Everyone loved the food in the Cantina and I enjoyed the fish & chips--it was just a very small portion. The Napoleon from the French bakery was excellent--we also had an Eclair and Marvelous--all shared! Major yums!
I forgot this one in the trip reports--we also had lunch at LottaWatta Lodge at BB--typical fast food--nothing spectacular. Burgers, chicken wraps, and fries--Pecos Bill's is better because it has the fixin's bar otherwise fairly similar in taste.
My husband and I also enjoyed adult beverages during our stay--I LOVE the Fiesta Margaritas. Judging by the queues I encountered trying to purchase them, everyone else does too. Ringes is still our favorite beer although I also enjoy a Black & Tan from the UK.
