Carnation Cafe or Cafe Orleans?

[Houstonmouse]

In less than a month we will be arriving at GCH for 5 days! Our first full day is a Saturday and we plan to take advantage of Magic Morning entry. I was thinking of an early sit down lunch since we will be at the park early that morning. Which restaurant should we try? I am looking for decent food in a fun atmosphere for five of us..dh, me, dd16, dd11 & dd8. And do you think we'll need a ps?

 

[spacemermaid]

You will definitely need a PS, as these are 2 popular restaurants that are super-busy during the summer/"on season".

As for which one to choose, it all depends on what kind of food you like. Do you like "comfort food"? Meatloaf, potpies, baked potato soup? Then go with Carnation Cafe. Do you like spicy "New Orleans style" food? Gumbo, ratatouille, beignets? Then go with Cafe Orleans. You can also order the Monte Cristo sandwich (that used to be available only at Blue Bayou) there. These are *my* 2 favorite restaurants in the Park, so I can't recommend one over the other

 

[PinkBudgie]

I have not been to either but we chose Cafe Orleans for our upcoming trip because of this:

Pommes Frites - Traditional French-fried potatoes tossed with Parmesan cheese, garlic and parsley, served with a Cajun spice remoulade $4.99

I've been hearing too much about how good they are so we have to try it. Hopefully they will give DH beignets for his birthday, but if not, we will probably order some. It seems like with EVERYONE having their bday there, it might not be noticed as much as before, but we'll see.

 

[Kayla's Mom]

These are my two favorite places to eat as well. I can tell you that in general, Cafe Orleans is more expensive. Depending on what you get, of course. I always get the bowl of Loaded Baked Potato soup at Carnation Cafe and it's only $5.29 or something like that. The Monte Cristo that I get at Cafe Orleans is $15.99. Then of course I have to have the Pommes Frites, which is another $5 or so. So Carnation Cafe saves me a lot of $$

 

[chickyann]

In less than a month we will be arriving at GCH for 5 days! Our first full day is a Saturday and we plan to take advantage of Magic Morning entry. I was thinking of an early sit down lunch since we will be at the park early that morning. Which restaurant should we try? I am looking for decent food in a fun atmosphere for five of us..dh, me, dd16, dd11 & dd8. And do you think we'll need a ps?

We had a great 'simple' meal at the Carnation Cafe, it really was gorgeous, themed to fit in perfectly with Main Street & people watching on Main St while we ate was fun. We missed out on Cafe Orleans because we didn't make a PS, it looked great, love where it is situated, we love New Orleans Square.

 

[SilentFeline]

I strongly recommend Carnation Cafe over Cafe Orleans. I actually wrote a very long post about the bad experience my bf and I had at Cafe Orleans when we went there for his birthday on our recent trip. We received the worst service ever, my bf didn't get his bday beignet (even though other people were), and the food tasted terrible. Carnation Cafe, on the other hand, was one of our very favorite restaurants. The loaded baked potato soup is divine, and many of the other dishes looked delicious as well.

Whatever you decide to do, a PS is required for both restaurants, as spacemermaid said.

 

[DisneyIsMagical]

These are my two favorite places to eat as well. I can tell you that in general, Cafe Orleans is more expensive. Depending on what you get, of course. I always get the bowl of Loaded Baked Potato soup at Carnation Cafe and it's only $5.29 or something like that. The Monte Cristo that I get at Cafe Orleans is $15.99. Then of course I have to have the Pommes Frites, which is another $5 or so. So Carnation Cafe saves me a lot of $$

I have never eaten at either, so I am looking forward to September as I would like to try both! Can you tell me what's in the Loaded Potato Soup? I can't imagine a loaded potato soup without bacon....my mouth is watering now.

 

[Kayla's Mom]

I have never eaten at either, so I am looking forward to September as I would like to try both! Can you tell me what's in the Loaded Potato Soup? I can't imagine a loaded potato soup without bacon....my mouth is watering now.

Loaded Baked Potato Soup - Creamy, hearty potato-cheese soup, with chives, bacon, sour cream, Cheddar and Jack cheese. Bowl $5.49, Cup $3.29

We are going on Friday and this is definitely what I will be getting!

Let me see if this link works -- there is a picture another poster posted of the soup. It's post #1555.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1253888&page=104

 

[Houstonmouse]

Okay, you all have me way excited now! I didn't realize I chose two favorites. I think since we will be in the parks 5 days, I will make PSs for both places. Is the lunch/dinner menu the same for both of these restaurants? Thanks so much for the advice!
Tracey

 

[ScooterL]

Yes, both places have the same menu/prices at lunch as they do at dinner.

 

[Kayla's Mom]

Okay, you all have me way excited now! I didn't realize I chose two favorites. I think since we will be in the parks 5 days, I will make PSs for both places. Is the lunch/dinner menu the same for both of these restaurants? Thanks so much for the advice!
Tracey

I am pretty sure the menus are the same for both lunch and dinner at both places.

 

[spacemermaid]

Okay, you all have me way excited now! I didn't realize I chose two favorites. I think since we will be in the parks 5 days, I will make PSs for both places. Is the lunch/dinner menu the same for both of these restaurants? Thanks so much for the advice!
Tracey

Since you'll be in the Parks for 5 days, there's no need to choose between the two- you can enjoy BOTH! As others have pointed out, the prices at both are the same for lunch and dinner; here is a link to the menus: http://allears.net/dlr/din/menu/menus.htm

 

[DisneyIsMagical]

Loaded Baked Potato Soup - Creamy, hearty potato-cheese soup, with chives, bacon, sour cream, Cheddar and Jack cheese. Bowl $5.49, Cup $3.29

We are going on Friday and this is definitely what I will be getting!

Let me see if this link works -- there is a picture another poster posted of the soup. It's post #1555.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1253888&page=104

OMG! That soup looks so incredibly good! I must be hungry! That looks like a perfect snack/ late dinner during one of the nighttime show.

 

[blackjackdelta]

As you can see the menu's are different. I would never do a sit down without a PS. I have watched many people get turned away during our August trips.

Jack

 

[pixiewings71]

I very much enjoy them both!! At Cafe Orleans we vary what we order as our meal but we always get the Pomme Frites, we've had great service every time and the food has always been very very good! At Carnation Cafe I had the half veggie sandwich and baked potato soup....OMG, it was soooooooooooo good!!! I liked the CC so much that I just booked a breakfast there for DD's bday trip!! We will do CC for breakfast and AG for dinner that night.

 

[EnchantedTikiGal]

We ate at the Carnation Cafe last week and it was OUTSTANDING! Yes, I'm yelling that, the food was good, but the service was amazing. Our waiter Stephen was top notch. He brought my son pickles for his sandwich, had our drinks refilled before we could mention it to each other, and at the end, my sister said to my son "I'm trying to find the hot fudge" when we were eating the sunday, our waiter overheard I guess and brought her out a little pitcher of fudge just for her! He really was fantastic, and the meal was the best we've had in a long while. The kid's love eating there too, for the PB&J painters palate.

Here are some pics,
We lost the other meal pics on a dead memory card

Smoked Turkey Sandwich & Loaded Baked Potato Soup

PB&J Painter's Palate

my son's crazy sandwich

Matterhorn Sundae

 

[nunzia]

Man! That all looks good...
However, do not discount Cafe Orleans..WONDERFUL gumbo with dirty rice...I have been craving it since I had it in January and will try to get the recipe when we go in September.

 

[PinkBudgie]

At this point I have a questions about Cafe Orleans. We have a PS. If there is a line, do we stand in line to tell them we are here for our PS? Or is the line for people waiting to get in without a PS? We've never had a PS before, we just always did counter service. I just don't want to wait in a long line only to find out we missed our time.

 

[luna99]

I'm deciding between these two places as well for my quick trip to the parks in october! thanks for starting this great thread!

 

[pixiewings71]

We ate at the Carnation Cafe last week and it was OUTSTANDING! Yes, I'm yelling that, the food was good, but the service was amazing. Our waiter Stephen was top notch. He brought my son pickles for his sandwich, had our drinks refilled before we could mention it to each other, and at the end, my sister said to my son "I'm trying to find the hot fudge" when we were eating the sunday, our waiter overheard I guess and brought her out a little pitcher of fudge just for her! He really was fantastic, and the meal was the best we've had in a long while. The kid's love eating there too, for the PB&J painters palate.

Here are some pics,
We lost the other meal pics on a dead memory card

Smoked Turkey Sandwich & Loaded Baked Potato Soup

PB&J Painter's Palate

my son's crazy sandwich

Matterhorn Sundae

Ohhhhh man, I want that Matterhorn sundae, you think they will serve it to us as dessert at breakfast? LOL

At this point I have a questions about Cafe Orleans. We have a PS. If there is a line, do we stand in line to tell them we are here for our PS? Or is the line for people waiting to get in without a PS? We've never had a PS before, we just always did counter service. I just don't want to wait in a long line only to find out we missed our time.

You need to check in at the podium, then you will wait off to the side. We've never had a PS at CO but we've eaten there a few times, everyone waits off to the side for their table to be ready.