Coral Reef

[CoachBagFanatic]

The last time we dined at the Coral Reef was in December 2004 and we had a great time. My mom and I are doing our first ever mother/daughter trip in August and I would like to take her there. Does anyone have any opinions which includes the good, bad and ugly. TIA.

 

[DAZY3BYZ]

We LOVED Coral Reef! The atmosphere, service and food was all amazing! We ate at a lot of great places last trip because we had free dining and I must say that other than LeCellier this was my favorite meal of the trip. My DH would actually vote Coral Reef as his fave! The only bad thing was that because we were a party of 5, we couldn't sit right near the tank. The booth was very nice though and still had a very nice view. With just 2, you should have a better chance of sitting right near the tank. Enjoy!

 

[heatherlynn444]

we love it there. its a "nice" place without being a signiture restaurant. We have always had great food. Service can be spotty but I am sure that happens to everyone at some point at some restaurant. go for it!

 

[m_fancher]

We love Coral Reef also. We are a family of 4 and had nothing bad to say about our meal.

 

[hearts8701]

eaten there twice its my husbands favorite too we have lunch reservations for valentines day for just the 2 of us

 

[Disney Abby]

we ate there a year ago, thought the food and service were very good!
We'll definitely eat there again.

 

[JoePa4Ever]

Coral Reef is my favorite restaurant: love the atmosphere with the aquarium view and we've have always had excellent meals there.

 

[jennylyn_b]

I hate to be the opposite of everyone but this was our worst meal in Disney. I am really really hoping that we had an off night in October. The atmosphere was great as was the service. The food was not good at all. My dad had the fish of the day and it was tough and flavorless. My mom had fish and it was bland and overcooked also. I had the chicken and the only good thing I could say about it is that it was moist. My husband had salmon and it was so strong and the sauce was burnt.
Again, I am hoping we caught them in an off night. Perhaps the regular chef was sick or something...who knows?!?
I am just letting you know since you asked for the good and bad.
My sister and her husband ate there in July and they loved it! That is why we went there in Oct.

 

[suse66]

We also had a bad experience. The children's food was so salty it was almost inedible. My oldest son's salmon was burnt. My fish (mahi mahi) was okay but quite bland. DH's tuna was flavourless.

Now this could have just been an off night but combined with bad service and a very loud atmosphere, it just wasn't a favourite of ours.

With so many good places to eat in WDW, everyone will find their favourite. I hope your meal works out for you.

Susan

 

[rudy7696]

Have eaten there once and will never eat there again. Ate there Dec. 2008 with my wife and in-laws. The atmosphere was great, I have to admit it is a gorgeous restaurant, but the service and food were well under par. Our server was not friendly at all and rushed us through our entire meal and was obviously annoyed we were a large party. My father in law ordered the pork loin and I know he ordered it because I was sitting right next to him when he ordered. Well when the food came out the waiter handed my father in law a steak of some sort. Well my father in law said, "I'm sorry I didn't order this I ordered the pork loin." Well the waiter snapped back, "No you didn't you ordered this steak!!" Well as everybody knows you never send food back to the kitchen, so my father in law just bit his tongue, and settled for the steak. Well as soon the waiter handed everybody their food he immediately asked, "So what do you guys want for desert?" Mind you we had only had our food for like 45 seconds. Well my wife was obviously very upset on how we were being treated so she snapped back, "Can we finish our dinner first?" Well the waiter huffed and stormed off. Honestly this was the worst meal and service we received in any Disney restaurant.

 

[johamna]

my bf and I ate here about a week ago and had a fantastic meal! our ADR was for 1:45pm but since Magical Express and then check in at CSR was so fast, we got to Epcot early and were hungry. So, we got to Coral Reef around 12:30 and asked if they were able to seat us earlier; waited 10 minutes and we were seated!
for entrees, we had the lobster ravioli and grilled mahi mahi. for dessert, we had the chocolate wave and cheesecake. everything was delicious!

the service, however, was a bit slow, but that's our only little complaint

 

[goofy4prez]

We have only been there once and we loved it. I almost cancelled my ADR to the Coral Reef and was glad we didn't; we loved the food, atmospher, and had good service. I would do it again.

 

[karen l]

Love Coral Reef! We have an adr there each trip. My DSis is very picky & she loves it there - caesar salad & steak. My DS loves the sea & land app & the steak. I enjoy the lobster bisque, grilled mahi mahi & chocolate wave for dessert.

 

[CoachBagFanatic]

I thank everyone for your very honest answers. It's truly appreciated. I am still on the fence about the Coral Reef. There are restaurants that we consistently have a good time at so, I think we may just stick with those. But still deciding. Thanks again.

 

[tarmale]

Hi there, we've never eaten there before last week and didn't quite know what to expect. My husband had the lobster ravioli and really liked it. It was too much lobster for me though (I'm mainly vegetarian). I instead had the mushroom lasagna and it was fantastic!!! My children had lobster bisque and grilled chicken and said it was tasty. I had the bailey's/jack daniels mousse for dessert and it was so good I'm going to make it at home!!!

The only real complaint I can think of is that the service is a bit slow so if you want to eat a little quick then I would clue your server in when you are seated. It might just be us because we're from a faster paced city.

Enjoy your meal!!!

 

[DisneyMomx7]

Mixed review - love, love, love the Lobster bisque! DH loves the mahi mahi. Now for the entrees I'm kind of lukewarm. I used to like it when they crab cakes, shrimp pasta etc. I know everyone says the steak is good but we have ADRs for Le Cellier, the Wave and California Grill where I LOVE their steaks. All that being said we have an ADR there for July because the kids love seeing the aquarium! I think we go more for the "experience" than great food, but I wouldn't say the food was awful. In fact the only two restaurants we will NEVER go to again in Disney are Tony's and Hollywood and Vine.

Good luck deciding!

 

[DisGirl23]

We ate there September 09 and were very pleased. DBF had lobster ravioli and loved it. I, the NON seafood eater, had the chicken caesar salad and was very happy and satisfied! The desserts were fabulous!! Our server was terrific and helpful.
We would definitely eat there again.

 

[danjoan14]

Great food and service. The steak was wonderful!

 

[CoachBagFanatic]

Oh this is getting very difficult. I do remember that I fell in love with the restaurant itself and our food was good. Now I know service and food can be so so anywhere's else but with my mom, I think I may just stick with where we have always had great food and service. Again, thanks to all of you have given your honest opinions. This is one of the reasons why I love the DIS.

 

[DisneyMom4964]

We ate at the Coral Reef when it was free dining. The service was average and so was the food. Atmposhere was great! But we watied over an hour even though we had reservations. No, I would not go back again.