Well, I may have to give CR another chance for a lunch maybe - I'm just "picky" about food in general, but not in the way people on the disboards use picky; if I'm really honest, maybe I'm a just a flipping snob? I love shrimp and grits though and I love the atmosphere of CR and the nostalgia of it from childhood. I also think my next trip in the coming months may involve a 16 and 17 year old girl, and I think that CR for a lunch would work.
V&A - if I can get a reservation I'll eat there any time/any type of dining experience, still never been able to get Chef's Table though...ding dang 180 planners!
I think its great your little one is well behaved enough to go all those restaurants. For of those of us without kids, it makes my heart happy
If you give it a go, make your ADR for right at 11:30 when they open. I have found that places known for spotty service are usually fine right when they open... it's when things get busy that they start to deteriorate. Our service was just fine there. I mean it was not standout but neither were most of the other places... but she was there when we needed something, she explained things that needed explaining and the timing on everything was fine. The server at the table next to us seemed quite a bit warmer but I would never penalize a server for being merely efficient (though someone who is very warm and makes us feel great about being there gets a killer tip).
I'm pretty snobby too, if you can't tell by my picking apart every little thing, but that said I am overall pretty easy to please if that makes sense. I will think about what could make things better and how I wish things were done but the point at which I stop enjoying myself is a pretty low bar to clear, lol. Right now I would say it's right around the quality of H&V Buffet... which was fine and some things were tasty and we did not leave hungry but I honestly can't get remotely excited about going there again. I did really like the shrimp at grits at coral reef though, it was a good and well balanced dish. The shrimp were not extraordinary (I am not there yet but the shrimp at 'Ohana were.... but to be honest I am pretty sure it is impossible to get that flavor out of shrimp if you cook them outside of the shells so there is that) but they were good solid shrimp (not iodiney and no weird texture and not over or undercooked) and the dish as a whole was quite tasty. not many of the other dishes really appealed to me.
V&A may be a thing of the past for me, lol.
I basically have quoted your entire post one line at a time so I'm sorry in advance for the novel-length response. You basically had the twin of our brunch experience. Did your server's name start with an A by any chance?
I love it, it's something I would do lol. It began with an R actually. But honestly observing a lot of the service around us, there were other servers who seemed kind of off (a planning buddy from the DIS was there at the same time and her server was so-so and her food was not great that night either... overcooked fish was the one thing I remember her saying specifically, though nothing as bad as mine).
Ha! Yes! I find wine I like and dislike at the $5 a bottle range and $40 a bottle range. Gotta go with what you know you like!
At some point in your life you stop worrying about what you feel you SHOULD like and just go with what you do like. To me that was like late 30's.
I may be guilty of this too
though your kid at least got his free, I paid 59 cents each at Cosmic Ray's
not that Disney is not beyond that level of pettiness but when your meal is pushing $120 a person with tip... you'd think they'd not charge you $0.59 for a straw. or alternatively, you got the better deal on what your straw cost!
I actually liked the shrimp and grits at Narcoossee's but ours wasn't overcooked at brunch. And now I definitely want to try Coral Reef!
you can't really see in the pics but it had lots of fleck of char on it (like it had transferred for something else) and had a bit of an ashy taste. I think only one was truly overcooked and I do remember thinking "huh that must be the bbq part." The last one had a bit more sauce and none of the ash and it was a really good bite which made me wish I paid more attention to what was wrong at the beginning.
Because their pacing is totally wrong and they left your dish there to languish?
BINGO!
This is my point exactly. If this happens at Red Lobster it's wrong, but for it to happen at a signature restaurant, which you have held out to the public as your flagship of dining experiences, you should be downright ashamed.
yeah it was kind of a slow burn with me. I was annoyed at dinner and then got more and more annoyed as the night went on. I wasn't really sure where to complain once I left the GF and we were kind of all set with FPs and whatever typical magic they make so I decided to just forget it and deal with it at home, where I was able to write a calm email. The guest services guy was really great... honestly because it was part of the dining plan and we got SUCH a good value. i mostly just wanted to be heard. But the refund was nice too, and it went right back to Disney.
Man the first time I saw you got these I was thinking they were both for you... I can't believe you shared...
I'm wishing I got the lapu lapu. what better time to be knocked on your butt than in your own room? Honestly during this whole trip it was so hot and so tiring I never really felt like drinking. I'd like to take a slower paced grownup trip someday where I can enjoy a few cocktails too. Touring alone with your kid is not conducive to drinking because I hate feeling fuzzy when I am responsible for him and even when I am somewhere (like at a family gathering) where I am not solely responsible for all of the good decisions and keeping him safe, he always ruins my buzz lol. Just bad timing I guess. So one frozen drink (it was not that strong) was probably just about right. I didn't even get to an avocado margarita on this trip!
My (unsolicited) thoughts on your dilemma with your parents - to me California Grill is just the pinnacle of Disney magic in dining - it's about the same price as Narcoossee's and every time I've dined there it's been special. If you want Disney magic, I would do California Grill. If you want classic steakhouse and lobster I would go with the Boathouse - they have lots of simple dishes there and it was certainly better than our experience at Narcoossee's.
after asking for availability help on the DVC boards it seems like my best bet will be 2 nights in a studio for me and the kiddo then a 2 bedroom somewhere near the MK the last night and doing the MK on sunday.... otherwise I'm going to be crossing my fingers for a cancellation past the 7 month window.
I was actually thinking of maybe getting a 2BR at the grand floridian villas because it's not THAT many more points for 1 night there vs BLT and I've never stayed there myself and it would be a good opportunity to try it out. It's just drop dead gorgeous. But then I'm wondering if theme park BLT might be good too. or even VWL, they should have a lot of inventory with the new villas. All that said, I'm actually more thinking of going for a lower tier restaurant. we love CA grill but pop pop, although he loves steak, is more of a strip steak or ribeye kind of a guy (he does not like filet). I think both he and my mother would find the menu quite off putting. Looking at GF Cafe, they have a lot of basics that they would love. If I can get them on the monorail, Kona Cafe would give them a little taste of the Poly. I thought about 'Ohana but not sure if they would enjoy the atmosphere of that after a day of travel. I have never been to GF cafe but the sort of onion soup/ shrimp cocktail/ wings appetizers and steak or burger dinner is right up their alley. Picky kid LOVES a good burger and fries as of late - but no bun (he does not like the texture of a bun that gets juices in it) so he'd probably love the heck out of that kobe burger plain with a side of fries. I think given the prices of signatures there is just too much pressure on a day when my parents are inclined to be tired after travel anyway so a second tier might work. I just don't love the atmosphere of the wave. Maybe I can get them to go somewhere a little more interesting for breakfast like the wave or kona or something or maybe even *gasp* a character meal (poppop does NOT like "sneeze bars" but I MIGHT convince him of 'Ohana). I think I will have to pick resort first before deciding. As you can see i am still all over the place
I just spent way too much time reading your whole report as I have a very picky 6 year old, who I am certain has some sensory issues and working on getting those diagnosed. He doesn't eat near as much as your son though.
The older he gets the harder it gets for me to justify paying for meals for him with the dining plan, but my husband swears by the dining plan. So there you go...simple meals booked!
I am excited to try Garden Grill in April, but I'm there for a runcation so no kiddos! Tusker House is one of our favorites and we'll doing breakfast there as a family in October. Coral Reef might be an interesting try for us. The kids would like the fish tank and my oldest and DH would love the shrimp and grits. I'll have to look to see if the 6 yo will eat anything there.
Your review of H&V reminds me why I swore I would never eat there again honestly, even though I was toying with the idea of doing the Halloween meal...because Halloween costumed characters. We did the Disney Jr. breakfast once and it was ok, but we did the Star Wars dinner there and it was horrendous. It is the one and only time I have ever complained at Disney....well, probably at any restaurant ever. We didn't even have good character interaction. There was a bug in my wine. The server was dismissive and inattentive. Food was yuck and cold half the time. And DH took the kids to the bathroom and he said it was on par with a horrible roadside gas station the state the bathroom was in. And yet, somehow I keep thinking that maybe we could do the Halloween meal! The lure of the characters in those costumes is strong! LOL!
Anyways, following along and enjoying your dining report.
My son did not eat this much at 6. He lived on mac and cheese basically when we were there. He had plain pasta with butter sometimes too and his big thing were the mickey raviolis (which are gone now) at kona cafe (my meal there was miserable so them changing that to tortellini helped me say no to him). So a lot can change in 2 years. What got him really interested in food was watching kid competition shows on food tv. He would still not eat most of what he saw but he was interested.
Not sure what your 6 year old eats but the menu at CR is pretty decent for kids, mac and cheese was always a win for the picky kid but they have grilled chicken too and are flexible about sides... so if there is a mickey check main but your kid isn't into ancient grains and steamed broccoli you can get it with fries if you want. Just be aware, the portions on proteins are VERY small for those, I think to keep it within caloric guidelines. We ordered the mickey check chicken breast at Sanaa and the picky kid was nearly rolling on the floor laughing at his "pigeon breast".
H&V was fine but I'm not eager to eat there again. I once again feel like I did before hand, I'll do it for the kid but not looking forward to it, lol We are probably not going to HS next time so it is a moot point and if we did we'd do Sci Fi again I think, or maybe even mama melrose. I wish the brown derby kid menu was more picky kid friendly. Picky kid is super picky about hot dogs so that's a no go and "whole wheat" is also a no go (we have a hard time with grilled cheese out and about because he doesn't eat kid grilled cheese... soft white bread and american cheese are two hard "no"s for him)
my only advice is kids do stuff when they are ready. And the lure of the characters is VERY strong, yes!
Wow, I cant believe the horrible experience you all had at Narcoossee's. We've always enjoyed our meals there, but clearly they were definitely off that night. And I'm with you on being torn. Our worst dining experience thus far has been at Brown Derby and that was almost 3 years ago and we still haven't been back. Glad disney made it right and refunded your money though!
Yeah, when I complained I mostly just wanted someone to acknowledge that it was bad and say they were sorry but the CM insisted on the refund. Still feel kind of weird about it as it was about 47% of what we paid for the dining plan an I had like 9 other excellent meals but even when I pointed that out he insisted. I felt the only thing I could do was give it right back to Disney for a cruise.
Ugh, I've been dreading your Narcoossee's review because you know we really like it lol. I will say first off that I completely understand being torn about returning. Even though my situation involved a Disney resort and not a restaurant, we had such a bad experience at BWV in 2015 that the thought of returning makes my stomach turn, even though I know the chances of it being that bad again are only 50/50 and going back doesn't bother DH at all.
yeah it is traumatizing to have a bad disney restaurant experience. You have to be emotionally ready again! sometimes I think maybe I just have bad luck at certain places.
This has been our experience too on the big 2 times we've been there, but it does calm down once we're seated. I think just like with CG it's a popular signature or kids b/c of the Wishes viewing?
well it was at 5pm so no wishes viewing but i think the waiting area is just pretty small for more than a couple of families. That said, if the meal had been stellar it wouldn't have bugged me. If we sat down and had the aaah moment and everything went even at least mostly well (like if the apps were just ok but the entrees were spot on) it would have been no biggie. It was just one more thing.
Chris and I had a table in this area in Nov. I had my back to the aisle but it didn't bother me; however DH absolutely cannot sit with his back to a door in a restaurant because he needs to see what's going on
I do NOT like that either but I think because I was raised in NYC by a vietnam vet (well my mom too, but safety stuff was drummed into me by dad). But I didn't want my kid hanging out into the aisle either or not being able to look out the window. This is the same table I had the one other time I went there and I don't like them. The 4-tops in the same ring are perpendicular to the aisle so no one has their back to it. This is one thing that would bug me regardless I think, so if I did it again I would definitely show up earlier for a 5pm adr and request a window (like we did at CA Grill)
I think I got lucky in Nov. because it was the women's bathroom that was open. And luckily there was no line, so I got right in and Chris got right in behind me. Good thing too, because I had 3 glasses of wine so if I had to wait to get to the GF lobby it wouldn't have been pretty!
lol, I get letting kids go first but it was sort of an endless stream of little boys going in there (unsupervised so who knows what that place looked like when they were all done) and there were men in there for a good 10+ minutes... which means um... not a quick pee. The other person waiting and I kind of looked at each other and were like "do you want to follow two men in there over 10 minutes and about 8 little boys? because I don't" and we both left.
Gorgeous view of the fireworks
We had no view from our room when we stayed at the Poly but we've hit the jackpot at pretty much every other deluxe we've stayed at.
We had a lake view but having never been to the Poly before I had no idea what it would entail. WOW. Second floor. I know the bungalows can block fireworks from first floor and wasn't even sure if 2nd floor would cut it but it does.
Yeah I have to say what you got is NOT typical. However I also agree your meal sucked. If that had been our experience on our first visit I don't know that we would have returned, at least not so quickly. But, and I know you know this
, we've loved both our meals there and they have my favorite dessert as well as Chris' favorite filet, so
maybe give them another chance? If not with your parents than some other time. And if you don't go with your parents, as some others have suggested look at the Citricos menu. DH and I have eaten there twice and are returning next month, it's fantastic and our service there has been top notch.
My dad is worse than the picky kid in that he is old and grumpy... at least the picky kid is interested in trying new things. So he does take a little bit of managing. He doesn't travel so well so I think safe is the best thing... (I mean since it is a travel day... he VACATIONS great once he gets there but the travel days are rough for him) Heck maybe I will even recommend we just get room service to the villa to be honest, which might be kind of fun. I've found Disney room service to not be horribly more expensive than eating in a restaurant... the entrees are a couple of $$ more and then there is a $3 delivery fee, both of which are worth it to sit at our own table in peace and quiet and eat there. I always do at least one room service meal when I am there, in 2014 we had it at BLT and it was from the wave and absolutely delicious. I have a long time to decide though.
I'm also a mom to a very picky eater, so I eagerly read your reviews! My 9 year old DD is far pickier than your DS, though -- the only thing she'll eat at a restaurant is french fries and dessert.
But it was fun to read about your trip. Thanks for sharing!
aw, I know he is not the most picky in the world but as I said above in 2014 it was mac and cheese or pasta and butter only. He eats a lot more now than he did then. But it's all been at his own pace. A friend of mine has a son on the spectrum as well and he will pretty much only eat fries. She bites the bullet and pays for him at character meals because he also can't stand in line but he eats a few fries and that's it (and he is not a disney kid either). I find it is easier to just not think at all in terms of food quantity or even what they are eating for value and it's a lot easier to stomach it all.
Thanks everyone for following! I will move on this week to happier meals![/quote][/QUOTE]
Omg. Poor kiddo with his steak. I had the same issue at Le Cellier, but I didn't send mine back because I had already eaten around the outside (which was charred and perfectly fine) and like you I won't complain for myself. I think I've graduated to ordering medium well at Disney since it always comes out a bit too rare. Swear mine was bleeding and cool. At least your little guy liked his dessert!
I have never seen a review of their shrimp and grits but it was what I wanted and it was excellent. I live in an area with lots of local seafood so I am fine if it's more of a generic frozen seafood menu there... I use frozen shrimp myself at home. 
