Cape May Cafe - Do we Dare?

[MJS]

We are thinking about trying Cape May Cafe for dinner. This place has a mixed history. Has anyone been there recently? Thanks!

 

[Scottwdw]

Mixed history? I've been there 3 times on our last 3 trips and just loved it each time. Great variety for everyone (seafood or non-seafood). One note of caution: SAVE ROOM FOR DESSERT!

 

[wdwgoofeeee]

We were there for a character breakfast and for the Clam Bake dinner last June.
The food was very good, the service excellent, and we really enjoyed ourselves. The Clam Bake has something for everyone and a wonderful dessert area. We are certainly hoping to go back again on our next trip.

 

[ducklite]

Definitely GO! We've had breakfast there a couple times, and it's always ben great. The clambake is one of the best values around, with good food and EXCELLENT desserts...my DH ate so much there one time he got sick!! (And it wasn't fod poisoning, it was piggy husband! LOL!)

It's our DS's favorite WDW restaurant, we've had dinner there close to a dozen times over the years!

Anne

 

[SamR]

We had the character breakfast there on Monday (three days ago). The food was good (crispy bacon and Krispy Kreme doughnuts!), the service fine, and the character interaction excellent.

I haven't tried the Clam Bake yet, but plan to do so on our next trip. Most reports that I have read on it have been quite positive.

 

[Bill3]

We ate there on NYE and had the usual great meal. Until we went to Bomas this was our favorite buffet, now its our 2nd favorite WDW buffet.

 

[travelbug]

We also ate there for dinner on NYE and were very favorably impressed. The food was delicious and the service was excellent. Scottwdw is right -- definitely do save room for dessert!

 

[MJS]

Thanks for the responses. I think we will try it for breakfast. I am not a seafood fan, but I understand that there are many non-seafood choices on the menu at dinner.

 

[DMRick]

The ribs were wonderful this past week..yummy! The salad is really nice, and I couldn't believe the dressing I used was diet (why, you ask? So I could eat more desserts and not feel as guilty)..it was the best diet dressing I've had! Yummy mashed potates also. The dessert area just makes me want to skip the "real" food!

 

[s&k'smom]

DMRick that's the best picture! Yes definately try it. We always go there and it's always excellent.

 

[DMRick]

Just so you aren't confused..that picture is my grandson enjoying the Kitchen Sink from Beaches and Cream (he ate about half..can ya believe it??!!), not the desserts at Cape May. The desserts at Cape May are much better LOL

 

[Candlelady]

DMRick,

I'm positive we were at B&C at the same time! I recognize your grandson! Can't remember exactly which day it was, but I know it was him. He's a cutie.

So where was your lime green ribbon??

 

[eeyore0062]

I have never understood the mixed reviews that Cape May's Clam Bake gets... unless people go expecting something it is not. I think many think they are going to a seafood buffet, which it isn't. Yes, it does have steamed clams, mussels and shrimp, as well as a fish dish, but it is not a "seafood" buffet.

We have been 8 times in the past 7 trips and have PS again for it in March. It is one restaurant we NEVER miss! The quality has never faltered. We have been eating there since 1993!

 

[DMRick]

I'm positive we were at B&C at the same time! I recognize your grandson! Can't remember exactly which day it was, but I know it was him. He's a cutie.

That picture of him was taken in May...he talked about the KS for weeks, and only had a small breakfast. Other than the cherries we all stole from his KS, he did a great job on it..ate about half. Of course we made him carry a big plastic bag in the car on the way home ; )

We were just there last week (without him), and I wore a button with a green ribbon on it my entire trip.

We made three trips to Beaches between Jan 21-28th.

 

[Jacksmom99]

We love the Cape May for both dinner and breakfast! It's one of the few repeats we do. I took my mom there for breakfast during our girls' trip. She had a BALL with the characters and didn't stop talking about them all day. I promised her we'd go again when she and my dad join us in 2004.

 

[Candlelady]

LOL, then he's definitely got a twin! He looks so familiar! I would've sworn that's the child we saw eating a KS last week.

 

[BAST]

We did the dinner on Sat., Jan 25th and were not at all impressed. We had a late seating - about 8:00 pm - but the place was still very crowded. Nonetheless, the food was simply not very good. The seafood portion was fine - the mussels and clams were pretty good but were quite tough (i.e. overcooked). The rest of the buffet was marginal at best - the ribs were very fatty and the other hot items were not very fresh. The desserts were pretty good and the service was good, but I cannot recommend this buffet.

On this trip we did several other buffets - Crystal Palace, 1900 Park Faire, Boma, Biergarten, Ohanas (and Cape May). Boma stands out as the best by far (the food is as good as any sit down restaurant) with 1900 Park Faire the worst (and it was REALLY bad).

I think that the most important thing with respect to buffets is to get there early - food is fresh, and replaced often.

Maybe if we had done CM earlier it would have been better. But, since the price is the same at any time, it should have been good when we sat down, and it simply was not.

 

[cgcw]

One of our favorite -- we'll be there next trip for certain.

 

[DeeP]

Cape May buffet used to be one of our "must do" restaurants every trip but the last 2 times we were there for dinner we were very disappointed. The most recent trip was this past Dec. We found the food not good at all, the ribs very fatty, a lot of the dishes empty or very dried out and were not being replaced and the clams and mussels very over cooked. The last 2 times we ate dinner at Cape May we ate after 8:00 PM so maybe that is the reason but I agree with the above poster, that is not a good reason. The food should be fresh and replenished the entire time the buffet is open. We are very sad to see how much this restaurant has gone down hill over the years, we have been dining there at least once per trip since they opened but not any more.

 

[ScottJoy]

I'd be interested to hear if those who go earlier in the evening are more satisfied. We're likely to eat at the Cape May Cafe on our first night at Disney in November, and because we have young kids, we'd prefer to go around 6:00 p.m.