Coral Reef Dilemma

[JSDisneyMommy]

We have ADRs for Coral Reef in late September. It will be a party of 4 (myself, my mom, and DS4 and DS2). At first, we were really excited about eating here, as we thought the boys would really enjoy eating inside the aquarium. However, I keep reading bad reviews, especially of the service and wait times. (We are going to be on the free dining plan, so high cost is not a factor.) After reading about some really horrible instances of poor service, and knowing that poor service is my worst pet peeve, I am really rethinking our plan to go here.

Our dilemma was that this was to be our one day in EPCOT and we wanted to eat over there (or in the EPCOT area) so that we can see Illuminations that evening. So, we have been thinking that a good alternative would be to walk or take the boat ride over to the Beach Club and have either a fun early lunch or a fun early dinner at Beaches and Cream. I have heard that the wait times can be horrendous so I thought if we went around 11:30am or 5:00pm, then we wouldn't have to wait too long with antsy children.

What do you all think? Should we stick with Coral Reef or switch to Beaches and Cream? And if we switch our plan to Beaches and Cream, when should we go to avoid crowds? I've also considered keeping our ADR at Coral Reef...we could try our luck at Beaches and Cream for lunch, and if the wait is too long, we still have our ADR for Coral Reef that night.

Thoughts?

Thanks!

 

[disneynutz]

We ate there in May. It was ok but not great. Better service if you eat early. Why would you waist a TS credit at BC? Just a thought.

 

[TruBlu]

We love Coral Reef.
Have you been there before? It is so beautiful and relaxing. My boys love watching all the happenings in the tank (sharks, divers, etc.). It is our one "must do" for every trip.

We just had dinner there in June, and it was fantastic. I would definitely keep the ADR.

 

[hildarumpole]

We had a noon reservation, arrived 15 min. early and were seated within 5 min. The meal was one of the best of our trip. Our waitress, Leah, provided outstanding service. In fact, I would put her at #1 if I had to rank our Disney waiters/waitresses. My kids loved the atmosphere. It's a noisy place, but the giant aquarium kept them calm throughout the meal. Remember, reviews are completely subjective. Everyone has different expectations, plus things can go awry anywhere. We ate at some restaurants that got a lot of great reviews, but weren't impressed by service and/or food. Give it a try, but I recommend an early reservation, not just Coral Reef, but any Disney retaurant. You'll have less chance of waiting, the servers will be fresh, and your kids are less likely to get ants in the pants.

 

[SB in KY]

Well if you are worried about the wait times at the CR I would NOT suggest B&C....the only time you are likely not to have a long wait is if you arrive right at 11AM but no ADR's are taken, there are only about 10 tables and booths plus counter space in the whole place. It would be quite a hike to go all the way over there from Epcot and then decide the wait was too long!!

I think you may have picked the wrong time of year to go if you are totally irritated by bad service at the TS places!! Free dining weeks are notorious for bad service and long waits. Wait staffs are stretched to the max and generally frazzled (understandably)...I think you might want to have very low service expectations at TS places during free dining weeks. In our experience it was absolutely the worst time of year for Disney dining.

Personally we like the CR and find it a cool and very calming retreat at Epcot. Yes, sometimes the service has been less than optimal, but we have had some excellent service there as well (more good than bad experiences by far).

If you are concerned about waits and service I would suggest looking for the less frequented dining options (Spoodles at Boardwalk is not usually crowded, maybe Rose and Crown or Marrakesh inside Epcot).

 

[sandybobandy]

People are so much more inclined to write a negative review than a positive review. You and I could both be eating there and you have a fabulous server and a great steak and I have a terrible server that is rude and my food isn't good. So while it's good to get other people's opinions about restaurants, their situation could be isolated or it could just be that particular situation.

Sorry, I get long winded. I just don't want you to miss out on a potentially fantastic meal and experience because you're scared to try

 

[goofy4tink]

I"ve seen all those bad reviews of Coral Reef, and I've avoided it like the plague up until now. Well, we want to try some new restuarants next month, so Coral Reef is going to get tried out. It's only one meal, it won't kill our vacation if it isn't stellar. We love LeCellier, and have had good service, as well as horrendous service, but we keep going back. I'll be sure to let everyone know how we liked Coral Reef when we get home.

 

[disneyquilter]

People are so much more inclined to write a negative review than a positive review. You and I could both be eating there and you have a fabulous server and a great steak and I have a terrible server that is rude and my food isn't good. So while it's good to get other people's opinions about restaurants, their situation could be isolated or it could just be that particular situation.

Sorry, I get long winded. I just don't want you to miss out on a potentially fantastic meal and experience because you're scared to try

Well said!

I feel if the menu appeals to you go for it. Do not rely on someone else's bad experience, you might miss out.

 

[ThreeAngels]

I think if people avoided restaurants at Disney because they heard bad reviews, there would't be anywhere left to eat because there's always SOMEONE who has something bad to say about a place. I've heard bad reviews of Coral Reef, but I've also eaten there and I'm so glad we did. My family LOVED it and we wil definitely be back on our next trip. I would say most definitely keep your ADR for Coral Reef. I think your sons will love it. You've got to try it out for yourselves and hope for the best. That's all anyone can do. Have fun!

 

[jess20k]

We ate there this past Feb. We did not enjoy it at all, except of course for the tanks...We did have a nice table right next to the tank. Other than that, it was not an enjoyable experience.

We were on the DDP. When we got there we waited about 20 minutes, so it wasn't that that bad of a wait. The food was our biggest disappointment. I had the Mahi-Mahi, which the fish itself seemed to be good, but I did not like the sauce that was served with it, nor the cous-cous (spelling?) My DBF ordered a chicken dish, which was flat out terrible. The appetizers were the lobser bisque, which was pretty good, and the dessert was the chocolate wave, which was good as well. Overall, the menu selection is poor. There is not a very wide selection to choose from.

Service was so-so, our server was just ok. One thing that I wanted to mention is that is was REAL LOUD, and I mean REAL LOUD, and very messy. There was mashed up food on the floor all around the place. I think they could've made a better effort in keeping up with cleaning up the messes that evening.

We do not plan on returning anytime soon, unless maybe they do make a big change to the menu, then we might give it another chance, since the scenery is hard to beat. I am still glad that we did give it a try because we did avoid it for awhile, mainly due to bad reviews, but finally decided to try it out....Even though we did not have an overall good experience, doesn't mean that you won't. Good luck if you do decide to go.

 

[tinaluis]

We ate there last August during Free Dining. It was one of the BEST meals of our trip. I'd read several negative reviews (as well as several positive reviews) and we decided to give it a try no matter what the reviews. We're glad we did!!!!!!!!

 

[lady_hlh]

I almost cancelled our ADR for CR last year because of all the bad reviews on the board. I'm glad I didn't cancel the ADR because it was the best meal of the entire trip, I even liked it more than our lunch at Le Cellier. We are going back again this year and I can't wait to have the blackened catfish with grits again it was delicious.

 

[jpaulgor]

My wife and I ate there last Monday, and it was in our top 2 meals of the trip. Our server was great. His name is Bung and he is vietnamese. We both loved the lobster bisque. The wife had a steak that she enjoyed and I had shrimp pasta which was tasty. I got the chocolate wave for dessert and she got some kind of mousse which doesn't show up on the menu at http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/dining/diningdetail.cfm?Restaurant.ID=80.

Anyways, we loved it. Our service couldn't have been better and the food, in our opinion was absolutely worth it. I wish we could have gone back a second time instead of going to Cap'n Jacks.

 

[ballarinamom]

We ate there in May despite the reviews and glad we went. DH got the steak. He said it was a good cut and cooked perfectly. It was a little bland for him but we live in San Antonio and are used to a little more kick in our food. I know they have to cook to appeal to the masses and we noticed the food was on the bland side at all the restaurants, again based on our South Texas taste buds. I ordered the shrimp pasta which was good as well. Apps were the shrimp and beef thing (sea and land) which was very good and lobster bisque was the best. Chocolate wave for dessert was very good but DH's Bailey's and Jack Mouse was incredible. The view was great, not too loud and not dirty. Have a great trip. Seated within 5 minutes of ressies at 6:00

 

[hellokitty86]

I ate there in September 2006 and February 2007 and loved it both times!! Go and have fun...the atmosphere is one of the most beautiful of all the restaurants in Disney, in my opinion!

I thought the food was great too- but I don't like seafood, so I can't comment on that. I had the NY Strip both times...the braised BBQ beef and the pineapple upside down cake were both yummy too!

 

[mericletwins]

Party of 11 including 5 kids and we all liked it quite a bit. Beaches and Cream will probably have a wait at any time unless you go aabout 10 minutes before they open for the day.

 

[steelfish535]

I can't speak for myself, since we can't get a reservation there!

BUT, my grandparents were there in February, and they loved it. They said the service was very good, the food was excellent, and the atmosphere was very nice. She recommended it to me for this trip, saying there was definately enough going on to occupy the kids too.

If I were you, jmo, I'd keep the reservation and give it a try.