Carthay Circle Restaurant vs. Wine Country Trattoria WOC Dining

[danimaroo]

My husband and are going to Disneyland in late November/early December, and are planning on doing the WOC dining package. I read that you can do it either at Carthay Circle Restaurant or Wine Country Trattoria... Initially, I was thinking we should do Wine Country, but upon reading some reviews, it seems like Carthay may be the better choice of the two. I understand at Carthay you have to buy either an app + dinner or dinner + dessert for the pass, but I'm not too worried about prices it as we'll have Premier Annual Passes for a discount.

That being said, can someone tell me which restaurant is better? Are the reserved seating passes better for one restaurant vs. the other? Is the whole dining package worth it?

Right now, I'm leaning towards Carthay based on their menu and the reviews, but I figured I'd see what you guys have to say about it.

 

[Girimama33]

For me, it would be Carthay Circle hands down! The menu is more appealing and there is actually a different viewing area for CCT where you don't have to wait as long. CCT is more expensive, but you definitely get more for your $.

 

[dblaettl]

Check the menus for both, the trattoria has a more rustic feel to it but we found it quite relaxing. I found the seafood to be especially tasty, though you may not get the same value from the pasta dishes.

 

[zavandor]

The dining WoC package at the WCT forces you to choose from a limited menu. I think there are three choices for appetizer and entree.
I felt a little bit limited.

At the Carthay Circle instead, you choose from the whole menu what you prefere and the food is much better. Moreover the preferred area is different: the Carthay one is much less crowded. To get a good spot with the WCT pass I had to go there one hour in advance. I've read that going just a few minutes before the show with the CC pass is enough.

The only downside of the CC is the price, higher than WCT, but if that is not a problem for you, I highly recommend the CC.

 

[ArchOwl]

I much prefer the food at Carthay over the food at WCT, but Carthay is more expensive. You do have much more of a selection at Carthay as well. But I would caution you that to get a good view, you still need to show up early even for the reserved viewing for Carthay. I watched WOC from the Carthay section on July 29th and showed up for the first show 35 minutes before it began. Good thing my husband and I are tall, because we were behind rows of people. If you are shorter, or want a better view, get there early!

 

[jmkmum]

Thanks! I was just looking up all this info, so I'm glad I found this thread. From the sounds of things, we will be booking carthay circle. I've heard the picnics are rubbish, both her kids refused to eat it. So just to make sure im right, there is an area for people who get the CC pass that you don't have to line up for? Thanks again for the thread!!

 

[OKW Lover]

We ate at both just a couple of weeks ago. We enjoyed the surroundings at both, but the food and service was far superior at Wine Country. I think CC needs to work out the kinks a bit yet. I'd give it another chance in a few more months.

 

[PinkBudgie]

We prefer CC. However, I don't usually care much for Italian restaurants because I can easily make pasta at home. It is cheap and often I like my own better anyway, so I don't like paying so much for it. What I can't do is cook like CC!

DH and I both got appetizers to share since to us those seemed fancier than the desserts. The Carthay Biscuits are so yummy and count as an appetizer for the WOC tickets. Our other one was the gorditas which we also liked.

We went for lunch but we asked for tickets to the second show because we thought it would be less crowded. It started at 10:15pm but we wandered over to that area at 9:40pm. They were just putting up a sign that said "Reserved Viewing" so we went over to see if that was our area and it was. She looked at our tickets and directed us down and to the right to a CM there. The couple in front of us were directed down the big circle in the middle so I can only assume there were two different areas for WCT and CC. We showed our tickets to the second CM and had our pick of a rail spot behind some rose bushes. The rail slowly filled up and by 10pm, the railing spots were gone but the rest of the section was still empty. A little after 10, a family came behind us. But they were back several feet behind us and they had plenty of room to adjust to find a good place to see.

I don't know how that area is during the first show, but I was very confortable for the second show. We had a great view and I didn't feel squished and crowded. We would do this again.

 

[momsquad]

Great thread! I've been trying to decide which restaurant package to enjoy with our upcoming trip. Eager to see more opinions.

Just a quick verification recap (am I correct?):
- WCT -- Less expensive. Limited menu, although apptz and dessert included. WOC preferred seating better than general admission FP.
- CC - more costly. Full menu options. WOC preferred seating better than WCT.

After looking over the menus at both places, I have another question: What could I expect if my DS13 wants to order from the children's menu? Is it allowed? At CC I would be wasting $$ on a full dinner for him, the Sloppy Joe I know he would completely consume.

Thanks in advance for your guidance. . .

 

[Hunnypaw]

We ate at both Carthay Circle Restaurant and Wine Country Trattoria within the last month. We really enjoyed both meals very much. Both have very nice seating (we enjoyed the terraces outside at both spots), but the inside seating is more appealing at CCR.

The entrees were very, very good at both, which the first time at WCT, a couple of years ago, I felt was lacking - this time, not the case. We ordered the catch of the day and it was quite tasty. The garnish was just right and the portion size was larger than I expected.

The entrees at CCR are amazing as are the appetizers! Very clean, fresh and leave you wanting to come back. The service was excellent as our waiter and attendees were eager to please and mindful when we needed refreshing of our drinks.

Both are great spots and have earned our return visits.

 

[pixiewings71]

Great thread! I've been trying to decide which restaurant package to enjoy with our upcoming trip. Eager to see more opinions.

Just a quick verification recap (am I correct?):
- WCT -- Less expensive. Limited menu, although apptz and dessert included. WOC preferred seating better than general admission FP.
- CC - more costly. Full menu options. WOC preferred seating better than WCT.

After looking over the menus at both places, I have another question: What could I expect if my DS13 wants to order from the children's menu? Is it allowed? At CC I would be wasting $$ on a full dinner for him, the Sloppy Joe I know he would completely consume.

Thanks in advance for your guidance. . .

I'm not sure how they handle this at CCT, at Storyteller's when DD12 wants the make your own pizza they simply charge a $2 upcharge for her, at Cafe Orleans when she wants the pasta from the kids menu they charge her double the price and she gets twice the food. I'm assuming that CCT would be the $2 upcharge but you may want to ask before hand.

I much prefer CCT over WCT, the atmosphere, the service, the food, it was so much better. I wasn't a fan of the biscuits but loved my bacon wrapped shrimp and the dessert was so good. I would definitely go back to CCT!

 

[danimaroo]

Wow, thanks for all of the fantastic responses! Looks like we will most definitely be doing Carthay Circle for our meal! I think we will shoot to catch the 2nd show that evening, as I'm expecting we'll be eating a later dinner on that Saturday night. I'm so excited to enjoy a great meal AND to see World of Color for the first time!

 

[lori2tigers]

Sorry to bump an old thread, but those of you who have been there more recently... do you have any updated thoughts on these restaurants? Would the comparisons of August still hold today?

Thank you!

 

[theworldneedscolor]

We ate at the Carthay Circle Lounge the other week, and we did not think the food was that great. We like nice food, but we are not food critics, by any means. We had the lobster rolls, asparagus plate, Vietnamese tacos, and warm olives. It just wasn't very good, especially for the cost. The building was beautiful, though.