California Grill observations...

[LisaZ1113]

I will be writing a complete review armed with lots of pics, but just wanted to say something.

Cali grill has always been mine and FH's MUST DO while in WDW.
This past trip, (last week), we had scheduled to go twice, as my sister would be joining us for one of the ressies.
FH and I always get flatbread, YUM, and sushi.

While the flatbread was still excellent, (despite the fact that it was not the one we ordered), the sushi was bad!!! It's ALWAYS been excellent....
I chalked it up to being an off night, and our server was awful! I wish I could remember his name

I was confident that wednesday nights meal would be better....we decided we would try the entrees.
We had a different server, much better than the first one! Score .
The wine was good.
FH ordered the filet which he said was "ok".
I ordered the scallops, which if it was not for the coating of salt, maybe would have tasted better?
During dinner we started talking to the couple next to us, who we found out is a Disboard junkie as well (HI SCTIGGER)
Anyways, her hubby was telling us that his sushi was awful and he has always loved it as well.
Overall we were dissapointed...the service was spotty, the overall "magic" just wasn't there this time.....I wil try again in may, as we love it.

 

[lindsey clare]

oh that's such a shame I hope it is much better next time!

 

[famcruisefun]

Cali Grill has always been our favorite - for the food, the service, the view... It's always the first place we make ADR's for. My 90 day mark is tomorrow - and I'm planning Cali Grill as our "big night out" for my parents' and sister's first trip to Disney and an anniversary celebration. I'm still going to make the reservation - but I'd love to hear from some others who have eaten there recently to hear what you think. I really want this dinner to be special and thought it was a no brainer with California Grill.

 

[TDC Nala]

Ate there last on September 1 and had no problem with the sushi. I never order entrees there anymore, just concentrate on the sushi and flatbread, so no comment on the entrees.

 

[MickeysMommy]

We ate there for my mom's birthday on the 14th and while we didn't have sushi, our meals were good but nothing to write home about. And, our server was HORRIBLE as well...must have been the same. I think his name was Jason or Justin or something and he was so arrogant

 

[PoohsFan1]

The Cali Grill is our favorite restaurant anywhere, we compare it to places here at home. With that said it is a traditional must do for us. We haven't eaten there since March but the food, atmosphere, and service still lived up to our expectations. We are going back in December and my DH and I always order the filet mignon and have never had a problem (that is our favorite entree). We even took our 6 and 8 yr olds with us last time and they too really enjoyed the food (it was their first time eating there). It is unfortunate about the sushi, but we never eat it (not sushi fans). Hope the next time you plan on going back, (and glad to see that your experiences this trip is not making you change your mind about CG for future trips) the magic will return.

 

[JerseyMamaBear]

My 90 day mark is tomorrow - and I'm planning Cali Grill as our "big night out" .

same here! I have never been to Cali Grill for dinner before and I am trying so hard to get a res. for the 7th for my birthday... fingers crossed

 

[Calgary DISHeads]

I will be writing a complete review armed with lots of pics, but just wanted to say something.

Cali grill has always been mine and FH's MUST DO while in WDW.
This past trip, (last week), we had scheduled to go twice, as my sister would be joining us for one of the ressies.
FH and I always get flatbread, YUM, and sushi.

While the flatbread was still excellent, (despite the fact that it was not the one we ordered), the sushi was bad!!! It's ALWAYS been excellent....
I chalked it up to being an off night, and our server was awful! I wish I could remember his name

I was confident that wednesday nights meal would be better....we decided we would try the entrees.
We had a different server, much better than the first one! Score .
The wine was good.
FH ordered the filet which he said was "ok".
I ordered the scallops, which if it was not for the coating of salt, maybe would have tasted better?
During dinner we started talking to the couple next to us, who we found out is a Disboard junkie as well (HI SCTIGGER)
Anyways, her hubby was telling us that his sushi was awful and he has always loved it as well.
Overall we were dissapointed...the service was spotty, the overall "magic" just wasn't there this time.....I wil try again in may, as we love it.

Oh no! What do you mean by awful?? Do you mean fishy tasting, old, chewy, fall apart? I skipped sushi last visit but that is what I am looking forward to most on our Christmas trip. I'm the only person who eats sushi so no one else will care, but that combined with lacklustre entrees and service...

 

[ljspjsapsras]

So sorry to here about your lackluster experience. When we were in WDW in Aug 2009 we scheduled a late dinner to catch the Wishes fireworks. The food was great, flatbreads, filets, salmon and desserts. The highlight of our meal was our server. So much so that, we intend to ask for him the next time we go there.

 

[disneyfav4ever]

A friend of mine ate there last week and said it was really good. I unfortunatly didn't get a chance to eat there this trip, but I hope it hasn't gone downhill.

 

[drsanvil]

Sadly we have to agree. We had never been there, had heard about Yoshi and picked it as one of our most anticipated meals.
Maybe our expectations were too high, but it was nothing memorable.
The sushi was just meh and not nearly worth the price.
The view was great, but our server and food were just OK.
We won't return.

 

[natalielongstaff]

we had a great time at Cali grill, im sorry you didnt enjoy it

 

[PatriciaH]

Our friends went in May and said their server was awesome but 3 of them ordered the fish dish on the menu and said it was awful. So salty it was like poison. My same friend and I went back for just sushi and drinks later in the week while they were here and it was awesome. Our server was trying really hard but did not smell clean (to put it nicely.)

 

[jlewisinsyr]

The California Grill has gone down in quality so much over the past few years. I noticed it about 3 years ago, then 2 years ago I really just wrote off the place and really will only book it if someone I am going with wants to go, otherwise, no.

It's very unfortunate the decline in Disney dining has turned the place with such a great location, view and ambience to nothing more then average at best.

 

[GrumpyLuver]

We just ate at Cali Grill Fri. 10/2. Our server, Gary, was wonderful. We were a party of 4 adults and 2 children. All of the adults had the filet and it was out of this world. The kids had pizza and cleared their plates. We are not sushi people, so can't comment there, but we did have a flatbread and it was delicious as well. This was our best dining experience of the week.

 

[LisaZ1113]

Oh no! What do you mean by awful?? Do you mean fishy tasting, old, chewy, fall apart? I skipped sushi last visit but that is what I am looking forward to most on our Christmas trip. I'm the only person who eats sushi so no one else will care, but that combined with lacklustre entrees and service...

Ok, the fish still tasted fresh, don't get me wrong, but there sushi has been PHENOMENAL in the past....I guess I was comparing it to my first few times there prior.

Don't let my experience deter you, yours may be great! The presentation was not that nice, and it just did not taste as good, if that makes sense.

 

[UK Princess]

We just ate at Cali Grill Fri. 10/2. Our server, Gary, was wonderful. We were a party of 4 adults and 2 children. All of the adults had the filet and it was out of this world. The kids had pizza and cleared their plates. We are not sushi people, so can't comment there, but we did have a flatbread and it was delicious as well. This was our best dining experience of the week.

Hey GrumpyLuver - we were there too that night!

I had made our reservation for 8pm (Hallowishes at 9:30) but we checked in at 7:10 and asked for a window table as it was the last night of our Honeymoon

We got the most AMAZING table but at 7:30 but our server (Michael I think?) was great at helping us have the longest meal of our lives so that we were still there at fireworks time (although I actually think we would've been warmer on the observation deck as the AC was freezing!!!).

Anyway although we were on DDP we had flatbread, then sushi, entrees and dessert - like I said it was a long meal!!

I liked everything although have to say I wasn't blown away by any of it and my filet was a little dry

My favourite thing was the sushi (I think we had the rainbow cruch platter or something?) but I am no sushi expert so can't really comment other than that I liked it!

My husband said it was the 2nd best meal of the trip after Raglan Road!! His final list from best to worst was Raglan Road, Cali Grill, Kona Cafe, CRT (Dinner), Teppan Edo then Narcoossee's just to put it in some perspective!

Oh it may have helped that they left a $14 drink off the bill - things like that always help cheer him up!!!

 

[Sleeping Becca]

Oh no! That's awful! We've eaten there 3 or 4 times in the past 12 months and have had great service and the sushi was amazing! I get the Spicy Kazan Roll and DD gets the Shrimp Tempura. I never get tired of that Spicy Kazan roll, it is the best sushi I have ever eaten!

 

[Thmacs1]

We ate there last sat night 10/3. I had the spicy kazan roll and thought it was great, very fresh, didn't fall apart like some rolls, and I loved the sauce. This was the best part of my meal. I ordered the filet medium and it came out much too rare. DH had the chicken dish (which was great). When I got a new steak it was cooked properly but not the best tasting filet I have had. The baby zucchinis that were served with it were raw. Crunchy raw. The potatoes were ok. DH's chicken was so much better than my steak. Great flavor, interesting side dishes, moist juicy chicken. I was pretty disappointed in my meal as we have eaten there in the past and always thought it was great. I was also not loving any of the desserts. Ever since they took the butterscotch buzz off the menu nothing really wows me here. Probably will not be back on our next visit. We ate at Citricos for the 1st time 2 nights before and it was soooo much better than CG.

 

[mickeyluv'r]

I ate there in fall '08 and again witha different group in march '09. Both times it was our least favorite TS meal. One server was a bit snotty. the second was nice, but service was still slow. I'm not just talking entrees, I'm talking water refills. Both times our table location was disappointing. Check-in staff also has an attitude problem, IMO. Not just hw they treated us, but how we witnessed them treating other folks. There's no resaon why they have to be that way.

Both times the dessert was teh highlight. Some of the sushi was also good, but I got the 'sushi deluxe' as my entree this last time. Wow. Portion was tiny, presentation was boring.