Robert P
GLOBEX - taking over your world one country at a t
- Joined
- Oct 24, 2002
- Messages
- 2,550
REVIEW: Raglan Road (located at the Pleasure Island area of Downtown Disney)
SUMMARY: Great meal, good service, spotty hosting (yet again)
Another tropical storm evening, with wind and rain, but noticeably lighter than the past two days. Taking the bus from Wilderness Lodge, then picking up guests at the Grand Floridian, it took 27 minutes to get to DTD. Thats one long bus ride. Anyway, we went to the bus stop early, in case we needed extra time, or needed to stop our journey and wait out the rain at some point. Of course, being early, the bus arrived within one minute, and we got to DTD PI at 6:15 p.m. for our @ 7:00 p.m. ADR.
Funny Story:
Were on the bus with a large family group, Id say 15 people, covering many ages. They were headed to DTD to eat. They were not sure at which stop to get off the bus, so they ask us, and we asked them where they are going. They had no idea. No ADRs (which is fine if you want to wing it), but also, no idea which restaurant they wanted to even try, as long as it was a sit down table service type place. We suggested they wait and exit at the PI stop, which is closer to all of the West Side dining places, and smack in between Planet Hollywood and Raglan Road, with Fultons very close by. So were talking with a few of the ladies in the group, and we get to Marketplace, and the gentleman in charge takes his park map to the front, and asks the bus driver which stop to exit at. He comes back, and says this is it, the driver says to exit here. Now mind you, the first two table service places they will come to are RFC (at 6:10 p.m. on a Saturday night), or Captain Jacks (yuck). The ladies we have been talking to said these people seem to know their way around, and they say to wait til the next stop. Nope, alpha male wont hear of it. Off they all go. As we pull away from the stop, and make that tight bus loop turn around to leave Marketplace, we see them all, standing in the blowing rain, looking at the big oversized park map pedestal sign, getting soaked, going nowhere ..
Not So Funny Story:
So, we arrived at the PI bus stop, and exit, and the rain and wind have let up a notch, so we go marching off to Raglan Road (RR). We were wet, and tired, and ready to eat. We got there, and sure enough, the rain has the foyer half full of people without ADRs looking for a place to eat. Waited maybe 4 minutes, got to the front of the line, and checked in with the podium hostess (standing beside what appears to be a useless front of house young looking manager guy, who Ill call Skippy). Told her we were early, gave her the name, she said no problem, stand over there, well get you right in. Didnt even give us a beeper, like she had the people in front of us (who had no ADR). We stand there .5 minutes .10 minutes .all of the people in front of us have been seated, and now they seat a group that came in after us (party of 4, just like us), without an ADR.
Finally, the seating hostess (the one with some common sense) asks us if we have checked in, I tell her yes, but she cant find a ticket for us, so I give her the name. Its now after 6:30 p.m., when she goes over to useless manager guy, who looks us up on the computer and says in a sarcastic voice too loud for the situation Yeah, they have a reservation, for later. Okay, I know a bit about customer service, and I know that being a wise-aker in front of the customers is not good, especially when they have been either overlooked or skipped in the seating system (or if they feel like that has happened). And, I am smart enough to keep any comments either to myself, or quiet enough where the customer wouldnt hear them. So, Skippy the useless manager guy makes his smarty-pants comment, then looks up with a smirk on his face, and didn't realize how loud he was, and that I am staring right at him,
and am about two seconds from giving him a good piece of my mind. He immediately looks away, cutesy smirk disappears, and he says something to seating hostess, who immediately and very politely shows us to a table. My point: Who cares that we are early? We have been queued up by the podium hostess, just like people without ADRs, and something has slipped through the cracks, and were still waiting there. Just fix it you idiot. This is the second time, in our last 4 visits, that the front podium crew cant get their act together. I know things happen, but just address or fix the problem at hand, rather than make smarty comments loud enough for the paying customers to hear!!
We were seated in the bar area, immediately to the left of the entry hall. This normally doesnt bode well for us, as I have consistently found table service in a bar area to be lacking, compared to normal seating in the dining area. This time I was surprised. Our server, Todd, was quite good, even though he seemed to be slammed with tables. He had good timing and spacing throughout the meal, wasnt pushy with suggestions, and overall, gave great service. This was the second best service we received this trip, next to Stephanie at Artist Point.
Mrs. P and I started out with a Smithwicks for her, and a Jaygail Sangria for me (at the recommendation of one Oybolshoi). The Smithwicks was great, as always, but the Sangria blew me away. If any of you have followed the EPCOT drinking around the world escapades of Hank Scorpio, over on the famous Brenda and Jay blog, you may remember that I am quite fond of my new discovery, Strongbow Cider. Well, this sangria is not wine based, its Strongbow cider based. Excellent! Not a traditional sangria by any means, but great none the less, and very refreshing. It did not disappoint!
One thing that did disappoint was the new bread. Apparently the old style slices of Irish soda bread have been replaced with something resembling an Irish soda bread mcnugget. Slightly larger than the size of a golf ball, this new mini-muffin style of bread leaves too much crunchy coating for the dipping sauce to tackle, and was really a chewy mess. Here is a picture, of the sangria, and the soda bread. (Note: Yes, more overflow prevention drinkage by Robert P on this one. Looks like, by the liquid level left in the glass, I may have gotten a bit carried away here. But being safe and avoiding spillage, well sometimes, you just have to 'take one for the team'.)
Appetizer: Scallops Forest
Mrs. P suggested this one, and I thought it was a great idea, as I didnt want to get all sticky eating the baby back ribs this meal, and we just werent in the mood for calamari. The scallops were excellently cooked, not overdone, with a nice airy breading on them. According to Mrs. P, the lime dipping sauce didnt have much flavor though. (Note: the attempted napkin backdrop Mrs. P holds up. This looks like a driver's license photo gone horribly wrong....)
After the appetizer, we ordered another Smithwicks, and I switched off the sangria, as good as it was, for a more traditional Irish experience, beer. The League of Nations beer flight, was next up:
From closest to farthest (or is it furthest??): I found the Kronenbourg 1664 to be unimpressive, but the Strongbow Cider absolutely rocked! The Stella Artois was its usual reliable self, and the Smithwicks was delicious, and all mine, since Mrs. P had put a stop to me sampling her beer.
For dinner, one of our girls went with the crispy shrimp (aka shrimp-n-chips). Served in the same paper cone as other items, the breading was a little heavy, but she just picked that off, and ate the shrimp. It was good, and a nice change of pace for a kids menu item. The mixed veggies were surprisingly good as well.
Our more adventurous daughter chose the young shepherds pie a smaller version of the adult entrée. This was a very good sized portion, and she thought it was excellent. I tried one small bite, and it was the same quality as the adult entrée, just slightly smaller in size.
Mrs. P opted for something different this visit, and got the Sod The Stew. Beef stew infused with a hint of Guinness. She said it was excellent, with a rich taste and good consistency. (Note: Backdrop working better on this one....)
Following the pattern of getting something different, I opted for the Pie in the Sky - chicken and wild mushroom pie served with rocket lettuce salad. The pie was excellent, but the lettuce salad wasnt my thing. I felt like it was more garnish than side item. I took a picture of the whole pie, then I cut it in half (without eating any mind you) for a side view to show the filling. No half eaten food pictures here.
We perused the dessert menu, and almost ordered one, but we were going to head out for ice cream to keep the kids happy. So, once again, I skipped one of the worlds greatest desserts, the Bread & Butter pudding. Yes, I know, I screwed up. I will remedy this oversight, upon our next visit. Mea culpa.
With DDE discount, the total was just over a C note, with DDE mandatory tip included. We tipped extra, for the level of service that night.
Summary: The food was excellent, and the service was well above average for both Raglan Road as of late, and WDW in general. Except for the podium screw up (which can happen), and the wise-aker manager Skippy (which should never happen), this was a very good meal. Sitting in the bar area was out of the way, but since we didnt stay for the music, it was just fine for us. We also observed that half of the tables in the bar section had kids at them, so apparently, they are quite accustomed to seating kids in there.
Misc: Rant On: Kids, and especially kids without their shoes on. Saw several (counted 4 kids at 3 different tables) running around, crawling around on the floor, playing on the rails, all without shoes on. (Saw one kid come within inches of wiping out a server carrying a loaded tray full of drinks). Do these parents know how dirty the floors are in a restaurant like this, especially in the bar area?? We found it disturbing that these kids were walking around, and in some cases through, wet looking spots of spilt beverages, and then crawling around all over the seats or benches. It cant be hygienic, certainly not safe, and definitely wasnt good manners at any restaurant. Rant Off:
In closing, Ill throw in a few extra menu pictures below, that came out okay.
SUMMARY: Great meal, good service, spotty hosting (yet again)
Another tropical storm evening, with wind and rain, but noticeably lighter than the past two days. Taking the bus from Wilderness Lodge, then picking up guests at the Grand Floridian, it took 27 minutes to get to DTD. Thats one long bus ride. Anyway, we went to the bus stop early, in case we needed extra time, or needed to stop our journey and wait out the rain at some point. Of course, being early, the bus arrived within one minute, and we got to DTD PI at 6:15 p.m. for our @ 7:00 p.m. ADR.
Funny Story:
Were on the bus with a large family group, Id say 15 people, covering many ages. They were headed to DTD to eat. They were not sure at which stop to get off the bus, so they ask us, and we asked them where they are going. They had no idea. No ADRs (which is fine if you want to wing it), but also, no idea which restaurant they wanted to even try, as long as it was a sit down table service type place. We suggested they wait and exit at the PI stop, which is closer to all of the West Side dining places, and smack in between Planet Hollywood and Raglan Road, with Fultons very close by. So were talking with a few of the ladies in the group, and we get to Marketplace, and the gentleman in charge takes his park map to the front, and asks the bus driver which stop to exit at. He comes back, and says this is it, the driver says to exit here. Now mind you, the first two table service places they will come to are RFC (at 6:10 p.m. on a Saturday night), or Captain Jacks (yuck). The ladies we have been talking to said these people seem to know their way around, and they say to wait til the next stop. Nope, alpha male wont hear of it. Off they all go. As we pull away from the stop, and make that tight bus loop turn around to leave Marketplace, we see them all, standing in the blowing rain, looking at the big oversized park map pedestal sign, getting soaked, going nowhere ..
Not So Funny Story:
So, we arrived at the PI bus stop, and exit, and the rain and wind have let up a notch, so we go marching off to Raglan Road (RR). We were wet, and tired, and ready to eat. We got there, and sure enough, the rain has the foyer half full of people without ADRs looking for a place to eat. Waited maybe 4 minutes, got to the front of the line, and checked in with the podium hostess (standing beside what appears to be a useless front of house young looking manager guy, who Ill call Skippy). Told her we were early, gave her the name, she said no problem, stand over there, well get you right in. Didnt even give us a beeper, like she had the people in front of us (who had no ADR). We stand there .5 minutes .10 minutes .all of the people in front of us have been seated, and now they seat a group that came in after us (party of 4, just like us), without an ADR.
Finally, the seating hostess (the one with some common sense) asks us if we have checked in, I tell her yes, but she cant find a ticket for us, so I give her the name. Its now after 6:30 p.m., when she goes over to useless manager guy, who looks us up on the computer and says in a sarcastic voice too loud for the situation Yeah, they have a reservation, for later. Okay, I know a bit about customer service, and I know that being a wise-aker in front of the customers is not good, especially when they have been either overlooked or skipped in the seating system (or if they feel like that has happened). And, I am smart enough to keep any comments either to myself, or quiet enough where the customer wouldnt hear them. So, Skippy the useless manager guy makes his smarty-pants comment, then looks up with a smirk on his face, and didn't realize how loud he was, and that I am staring right at him, and am about two seconds from giving him a good piece of my mind. He immediately looks away, cutesy smirk disappears, and he says something to seating hostess, who immediately and very politely shows us to a table. My point: Who cares that we are early? We have been queued up by the podium hostess, just like people without ADRs, and something has slipped through the cracks, and were still waiting there. Just fix it you idiot. This is the second time, in our last 4 visits, that the front podium crew cant get their act together. I know things happen, but just address or fix the problem at hand, rather than make smarty comments loud enough for the paying customers to hear!!We were seated in the bar area, immediately to the left of the entry hall. This normally doesnt bode well for us, as I have consistently found table service in a bar area to be lacking, compared to normal seating in the dining area. This time I was surprised. Our server, Todd, was quite good, even though he seemed to be slammed with tables. He had good timing and spacing throughout the meal, wasnt pushy with suggestions, and overall, gave great service. This was the second best service we received this trip, next to Stephanie at Artist Point.
Mrs. P and I started out with a Smithwicks for her, and a Jaygail Sangria for me (at the recommendation of one Oybolshoi). The Smithwicks was great, as always, but the Sangria blew me away. If any of you have followed the EPCOT drinking around the world escapades of Hank Scorpio, over on the famous Brenda and Jay blog, you may remember that I am quite fond of my new discovery, Strongbow Cider. Well, this sangria is not wine based, its Strongbow cider based. Excellent! Not a traditional sangria by any means, but great none the less, and very refreshing. It did not disappoint!
One thing that did disappoint was the new bread. Apparently the old style slices of Irish soda bread have been replaced with something resembling an Irish soda bread mcnugget. Slightly larger than the size of a golf ball, this new mini-muffin style of bread leaves too much crunchy coating for the dipping sauce to tackle, and was really a chewy mess. Here is a picture, of the sangria, and the soda bread. (Note: Yes, more overflow prevention drinkage by Robert P on this one. Looks like, by the liquid level left in the glass, I may have gotten a bit carried away here. But being safe and avoiding spillage, well sometimes, you just have to 'take one for the team'.)
Appetizer: Scallops Forest
Mrs. P suggested this one, and I thought it was a great idea, as I didnt want to get all sticky eating the baby back ribs this meal, and we just werent in the mood for calamari. The scallops were excellently cooked, not overdone, with a nice airy breading on them. According to Mrs. P, the lime dipping sauce didnt have much flavor though. (Note: the attempted napkin backdrop Mrs. P holds up. This looks like a driver's license photo gone horribly wrong....)
After the appetizer, we ordered another Smithwicks, and I switched off the sangria, as good as it was, for a more traditional Irish experience, beer. The League of Nations beer flight, was next up:
From closest to farthest (or is it furthest??): I found the Kronenbourg 1664 to be unimpressive, but the Strongbow Cider absolutely rocked! The Stella Artois was its usual reliable self, and the Smithwicks was delicious, and all mine, since Mrs. P had put a stop to me sampling her beer.
For dinner, one of our girls went with the crispy shrimp (aka shrimp-n-chips). Served in the same paper cone as other items, the breading was a little heavy, but she just picked that off, and ate the shrimp. It was good, and a nice change of pace for a kids menu item. The mixed veggies were surprisingly good as well.
Our more adventurous daughter chose the young shepherds pie a smaller version of the adult entrée. This was a very good sized portion, and she thought it was excellent. I tried one small bite, and it was the same quality as the adult entrée, just slightly smaller in size.
Mrs. P opted for something different this visit, and got the Sod The Stew. Beef stew infused with a hint of Guinness. She said it was excellent, with a rich taste and good consistency. (Note: Backdrop working better on this one....)
Following the pattern of getting something different, I opted for the Pie in the Sky - chicken and wild mushroom pie served with rocket lettuce salad. The pie was excellent, but the lettuce salad wasnt my thing. I felt like it was more garnish than side item. I took a picture of the whole pie, then I cut it in half (without eating any mind you) for a side view to show the filling. No half eaten food pictures here.
We perused the dessert menu, and almost ordered one, but we were going to head out for ice cream to keep the kids happy. So, once again, I skipped one of the worlds greatest desserts, the Bread & Butter pudding. Yes, I know, I screwed up. I will remedy this oversight, upon our next visit. Mea culpa.
With DDE discount, the total was just over a C note, with DDE mandatory tip included. We tipped extra, for the level of service that night.
Summary: The food was excellent, and the service was well above average for both Raglan Road as of late, and WDW in general. Except for the podium screw up (which can happen), and the wise-aker manager Skippy (which should never happen), this was a very good meal. Sitting in the bar area was out of the way, but since we didnt stay for the music, it was just fine for us. We also observed that half of the tables in the bar section had kids at them, so apparently, they are quite accustomed to seating kids in there.
Misc: Rant On: Kids, and especially kids without their shoes on. Saw several (counted 4 kids at 3 different tables) running around, crawling around on the floor, playing on the rails, all without shoes on. (Saw one kid come within inches of wiping out a server carrying a loaded tray full of drinks). Do these parents know how dirty the floors are in a restaurant like this, especially in the bar area?? We found it disturbing that these kids were walking around, and in some cases through, wet looking spots of spilt beverages, and then crawling around all over the seats or benches. It cant be hygienic, certainly not safe, and definitely wasnt good manners at any restaurant. Rant Off:
In closing, Ill throw in a few extra menu pictures below, that came out okay.
I was just hilarious over this comment! And oh so true ... that horrible blue!
) but I believe no reservations are needed to dine outside. I would think you still need to enter through the front door - as opposed to the patio gate - so someone would know to assign a server to you. But it's an option.
)--although more my loss than yours 
