Can you share a place you couldnt wait to eat but was a huge letdown

Plaza and Coral Reef seem to be two restaurants that I continuously see strongly opposing views on. People seem to either love them or hate them, I have seen very few reviews in the middle. I have yet to eat at either, I have been tempted several times but always shy away after seeing the bad reviews, but they have to be doing something right for the number of people that do like them. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

The food at the Plaza isn’t bad. My beef (no pun intended), is that it should be a quick service (at least the lunch menu) NOT a table service. It’s only sandwiches.

 

Another thing to keep in mind, strange as this may sound, is that a lot of people love certain Disney restaurants despite them having mediocre food at best. They go for the experience. Character meals are a great example of this. People freely admit that the food isn't good but their kids love meeting the characters so they go there every trip, and that's perfectly fine. As long as you know what you're getting yourself into and you're happy with that, go and have a good time. It's a shame that Disney can't do better but it is what it is.

We weren't impressed with dinner at BOG but I am 100% happy that we went as I loved going inside and seeing the place which is beautiful. I wouldn't go again (though that was with the old menu so maybe I would) but I would never tell others not to go at least once.

 

Oh wow, we had a stunningly similar experience at Yak & Yeti in 2016!

We had an ADR and checked in on time. We found a spot to wait that was in clear view of the hostess. My son was in his wheelchair and he kind of stands out, so it would have been hard for her to forget we were there. And we waited. And waited. And waited. Everyone who walked up seemed to be seated within ten minutes, even when they told the hostess they had no reservations. After the whole waiting area had turned over a couple of times, I politely asked the hostess how long it would be (now nearly 45 minutes after we checked in.). She replied “very soon.” After I rejoined my family I saw her fish out our check-in slip from under some papers on her podium, and put it at the END of her seating queue! We were finally seated some time later, almost an hour past our ADR time.

The whole thing was so bizarre that I would not have believed it if I hadn’t experienced it. It is one of the only times that I have felt truly suspicious that we were treated badly because of my son’s disability. (And I’m definitely NOT one to imagine discrimination where it doesn’t exists - much the opposite actually). We should have spoken with the manager, because that woman had no business being a restaurant hostess. But our supper had already been ternished enough that we just wanted to get on with our evening, so we let it go.

I was sad because I’d eaten there a couple of times before with my daughter and enjoyed it, and was eager to share the place with my husband and son. Then they were treated badly, and it was so obvious! Needless to say, Yak & Yeti is permanently off our dining list.

 

Be Our Guest! I think my expectations were sky high though so I probably set myself up for disappointment.

 

Double post sorry

 

I’m so sorry you experienced that and felt that way. It wasn’t because of your son’s disability. What I’ve learned since is that Y&Y is a Landry’s restaurant. So people with Landry’s cards are guaranteed the next available seat even over reservations. While I may be ok with that at T-Rex or Rainforest at DS or elsewhere in the country I don’t find it acceptable at a restaurant inside a park that people have booked at 180 days. Even if I had a card I could never do that to the crowd of people waiting. So I doubt we will ever do it again.

My husband stayed by the door, so they definitely couldn’t miss him. He stayed visible and present and we still waited 90 minutes. We weren’t alone. There were about 20 or more others waiting the same amount of time as us.

I don’t think it’s right. Book less tables and leave a section for your Landry’s customers but don’t be making those of us who booked wait. It we waltzed up 90 minutes late and expected our table they’d laugh and turn us away and rightly so, so why is it acceptable for them to treat us that way?

But much as it sucks I hope it sets your mind at ease that it wasn’t about your son’s disability. They may have needed to keep you waiting a little longer for a table to accommodate his chair but only for that reason, and definitely not that kind of time.

 

Agreed! Perfect example...I just watched a reviewer who put PizzeRizzo in her top 5. I haven’t eaten there, but that’s literally the first time I’ve heard someone say something positive.

Same. It wasn’t bad, just underwhelming. I think it just didn’t live up to all the hype. Maybe I ordered wrong? I haven’t wanted to spend the money or the time to find out.

 

While I wouldn’t put it in my top 5, we ate at PizzeRizzo every visit. It was our favorite spot in DHS. The veggie pizza was fine and the meatball sandwich was good. So now you’ve heard two people be positive about it.

 

See what I mean? lol

 

Tiffins at Animal Kingdom.

I had the surf & turf. I asked for a medium rare steak. It came out pretty much medium to well done. And the lobster was chewy and so bland!!! Also wasn’t hot. Just warm. Like it was sitting out for a whole. I was so excited to try signature/fine dining. My husband wasn’t impressed either. His steak was also almost well done. And the dessert wasn’t that great. It was such a disappointment. And for 2TS credits? Not worth it.

 

La Hacienda de San Angel. Rudest service I've ever received on property. And to make matters worse- it was the day I got engaged (and it was my birthday!!) so I won't forget it in a hurry! This was 6 years ago so I'm hoping it's got better since then but it has really tarnished the place for me.

I complained and all I got was a reserved area spot for Illuminations as compensation.

 

I have no problem bypassing the people with ADRs because I paid $25 for the privilege. Anyone can get a Landry’s card and do the same.

 

I agree that the Landry card policy may have been part of the waiting issue, and that it’s hardly fair to reservation holders. But in our case there was clearly something else going on. Not EVERYONE checking in had a Landry card, some had ADRs and some simply walked up and wanted to eat. I was close enough that I could both see and hear everyone checking in. And we waited over twice as long as the cardless walk-ups with parties of the same size. ALL of them, and everyone else too. The hostess looked right at us a number of times and was well aware of how long we had been waiting compared to everyone else.

Perhaps she had lost our check-in slip in the mess on her podium. But if that was the case, there is no way she should have then placed it at the END of her 10-12 slip seating queue, given that our check-in time was 45 minutes prior. She then seated every single slip in front of us (everyone who had checked in a half an our after us with or without a Landry card, I saw it) before we were taken to a perfectly ordinary table that was not particuarly more accessible than any other. Our son left his chair to the side and walked with assistance to the table.

The best possible interpretation of our experience was that the hostess screwed up, misplaced our slip, and was trying to cover up her mistake, very badly. However, this is one of the very few times (in my long experience of taking my son places - he is an adult and this was his high school graduation trip) that I had a strong sense of being treated badly on purpose. It was so odd that I could hardly believe it myself, and was searching for other explanations. We had been very polite and given her no reason for offense. We had waited and a observed patiently before detecting an issue and re-approaching the podium. This is NOT an insinuation I make lightly, but this woman’s manner and actions toward us were definitely off. Even a Pollyanna like me had to admit it.

That said, our wonderful experiences at Disney have outnumbered this extememly strange incident 100+ to one! And our server at Yak & Yeti was perfectly nice. But the memory of that woman’s bizarre treatment of us has soured us on that place forever. There too many other wonderful places to enjoy!

 

I went through several of responses, and I saw one other (there might be more). This is completely against the norm...but.....Art Smith Homecoming. I'm basing it on the 'huge let down" part of the post. We planned a last minute trip. We usually plan a year or more in advance. We were literally less than 60 days. I was able to make dining right away. I booked Homecoming and that was the only restaurant that wasn't moved, changed, etc...I was so excited. We ordered the hushpuppies. They were delicious. The pimento cheese is out of this world. But oh my goodness...you get a TON of hushpuppies. I think there are 10/order. Way too much for 2 of us. We both ordered the fried chicken. I had mac and cheese. My husband had mashed potatoes. They were both good. Not great. Not "oh my gosh I HAVE to go back before we leave". The seasoning tasted too much like poultry seasoning. It had A LOT of sage. It was a heavy heavy dinner. Needed something to lighten it up a bit. I had built it up so much in my head that I think I expected too much. Was it outstanding. Nope. Was it horrible. Absolutely not. It was just 'meh. One and done for us.

 

We loved PizzaRizzo. It was cool, quiet, and the ceasar salad was incredibly fresh and crisp. The pizza hit the spot, too.

 

I’m so very sorry that anyone made you feel like that. Disney usually does a great job being inclusive and it’s awful this was your experience . I’m glad it’s in the minority.

 

That was pretty much the review! It’s why you take reviews with a grain of salt.

 

ONCE was enough for us
but you might like it
Update : Jan 2019
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Ohana
BOG Dinner
Via Napoli

 

I really enjoyed the pizza at Via Napoli, but I really can't speak for any of the other food there.