Just got back on Saturday from our WDW vacation and wanted to give everyone my feedback on the places we ate and some general impressions from the Dining Plan...
First some general info on the dining plan as we experienced it...
1. All credits are still pooled. There are no "child" credits vs. "adult" credits and you can still have them all taken off of one card or several cards if you prefer.
2. We had one person in our party that was considered a child ( under 10 ), the other 3 were adults. Where a children's menu was available the child must order from that menu. We only encountered one place with child appetizers and that was Sci-Fi Diner. All other places allowed the child to order from the adult appetizer menu.
3. The only real problem we had was at Earl of Sandwich at Downtown Disney. It was the second to the last day we were there and we only had 4 CS credits available. They had a problem with their machine and it would not allow the credits to go through when they tried to process them. We ended up paying OOP for that meal and when we got back to the hotel, we checked and found that they had charged us for 4 CS credits at Earl of Sandwich in addition to paying OOP. POR immediately credited us back the 4 CS credits after seeing the additional room charge on our account.
4. Generally, people without ADRs were out of luck. Every place that we went to were turning away walk-ins at the door. Most of the time, telling them to check back in an hour or an hour and a half for a possible opening, but no guarantees. Many upset people. Luckily, we had ADRs for dinner every night except one and that was because we decided to change our plans one night.
Night 1 - Dinner at Crystal Palace...
Very nice buffet. Excellent character interaction. I think this is a great Day One dinner. We were at MK anyway and it is an easy, laid-back atmosphere and perfect for first-time WDW visitors who were still trying to find their way around the park. The food was probably comparable to an above average buffet that you would find in any city. The service was decent but not great. I think our waiter had a ton of tables.
Food - B
Service - C
Atmosphere - A-
Night 2 - Dinner at Sci-Fi Diner...
Even with an ADR, we waited an additional 35 minutes to be seated and their waiting area leaves a lot to be desired. Probably didnt help that it was raining cats and dogs at the time. Food was pretty good...My son and I had the ribs and fries, my daughter had mac and cheese, wife had a bacon cheese-burger...The bun was a little stale on the cheeseburger but the ribs were tasty. Desert selection was average as was the appetizer selection. This was the one place we ate that had a child's appetiter selection which was fine. We liked the little movies they played and we had a great server that took pictures of us in the car and was very appreciative of us letting him know about the dining plan upfront ( apparently a lot of people do not and it means more work for the server on the back end ). He was very quick with refills and seemed to be always around. One complaint about the atmoshpere was that most of the cars had people lined up like a real car would..2 in the front, 2 in the back..but it made it very hard to talk to the people behind you when the are to your back. Would rather had one of the cars where you could actually face each other. We did like the little Sci-Fi movie trailers they were showing.
Food - C+
Service - A-
Atmosphere - B-
Night 3 - Dinner at Le Cellier
Le Cellier was probably the best food we had on property. Not the best overall dining experience, but certainly the best food. Service was very good. Atmosphere left a little to be desired. We just felt cramped. All the tables were kind of pushed together and you could pretty much hear all the conversations on the tables around you. I had the surf and turf ( covered under the dining plan ) my wife and son had a steak and my daughter had the kids steak. Rave reviews from all around on the quality and preparation of the meat. Special rave reviews from my wife on the cream cheese mashed potatoes. My daughter loved the moose for desert and my son liked the smores. Me and wife had the desert sampler which was fantastic. The desert sampler and the surf and turf were all covered under the dining plan.
Food - A+
Service - B+
Atmosphere - C
Night 4 - Dinner at Ohana
The best overall dining experience we had while in WDW. The food was great , the service was fantastic and the atmosphere made you feel like you were transported to Hawaii. I thought the selection of meats and side dishes were excellent. Especially the augratin potatoes, chicken wings and won-tons. The steak was very good along with the shrimp. The turkey and pork were just ok but we are more steak and shrimp eaters anyway. The hula-hoop contest and the coconut races were great for the kids and everyone seemed to be really into the family atmosphere. By the way, the Lapu Lapu ( or two ) is GREAT after a long day at the park !
Food - A
Service - B+
Atmosphere - A-
Night 5 - Dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern
Probably the best character interaction we had while at WDW. The characters were plentiful and the resteraunt manager was on the floor making sure they got over to every table at least once. Took a lot of pictures here. Which was good, because it distracted us a little bit from rather bland food. Turkey was dry and I didnt care for the ham at all. The rest of the food was average. The best part about the meal was the cherry cobbler and ice cream for desert. That was so good. Service was very good. Our waiter was one the ball and was very quick to get refills and to clear dishes.
Food - C+
Service - B+
Atmosphere - B+
Night 6 - Dinner at Ohana
Well, we originally had an ADR for Biergarten but cancelled and tried for a walk-in at Ohana since we liked it so much the first time and was not sure how my kids would take the German food at Biergarten. We were seated in about 5 minutes. Must have had a little magic on my side. Just as good as the first experience..See ratings above.
In closing, I will say that the dining plan was well worth it. I just dont think we would have been able to eat as good or as much without it and it was nice not having to worry about the bill in the end.
As far as counter service meals, all I can say is....way too much food...We could barely finish the food we got at most counter service resteraunts in the world and most of the time we took the deserts back to the hotel with us for a late night snack.
We used all of our snack credits on water at the park. All of them. It was hot!
I will say that after seeing the Poly and eating at Ohana, we know where we want to stay next time...
Hope you found this info helpful...
First some general info on the dining plan as we experienced it...
1. All credits are still pooled. There are no "child" credits vs. "adult" credits and you can still have them all taken off of one card or several cards if you prefer.
2. We had one person in our party that was considered a child ( under 10 ), the other 3 were adults. Where a children's menu was available the child must order from that menu. We only encountered one place with child appetizers and that was Sci-Fi Diner. All other places allowed the child to order from the adult appetizer menu.
3. The only real problem we had was at Earl of Sandwich at Downtown Disney. It was the second to the last day we were there and we only had 4 CS credits available. They had a problem with their machine and it would not allow the credits to go through when they tried to process them. We ended up paying OOP for that meal and when we got back to the hotel, we checked and found that they had charged us for 4 CS credits at Earl of Sandwich in addition to paying OOP. POR immediately credited us back the 4 CS credits after seeing the additional room charge on our account.
4. Generally, people without ADRs were out of luck. Every place that we went to were turning away walk-ins at the door. Most of the time, telling them to check back in an hour or an hour and a half for a possible opening, but no guarantees. Many upset people. Luckily, we had ADRs for dinner every night except one and that was because we decided to change our plans one night.
Night 1 - Dinner at Crystal Palace...
Very nice buffet. Excellent character interaction. I think this is a great Day One dinner. We were at MK anyway and it is an easy, laid-back atmosphere and perfect for first-time WDW visitors who were still trying to find their way around the park. The food was probably comparable to an above average buffet that you would find in any city. The service was decent but not great. I think our waiter had a ton of tables.
Food - B
Service - C
Atmosphere - A-
Night 2 - Dinner at Sci-Fi Diner...
Even with an ADR, we waited an additional 35 minutes to be seated and their waiting area leaves a lot to be desired. Probably didnt help that it was raining cats and dogs at the time. Food was pretty good...My son and I had the ribs and fries, my daughter had mac and cheese, wife had a bacon cheese-burger...The bun was a little stale on the cheeseburger but the ribs were tasty. Desert selection was average as was the appetizer selection. This was the one place we ate that had a child's appetiter selection which was fine. We liked the little movies they played and we had a great server that took pictures of us in the car and was very appreciative of us letting him know about the dining plan upfront ( apparently a lot of people do not and it means more work for the server on the back end ). He was very quick with refills and seemed to be always around. One complaint about the atmoshpere was that most of the cars had people lined up like a real car would..2 in the front, 2 in the back..but it made it very hard to talk to the people behind you when the are to your back. Would rather had one of the cars where you could actually face each other. We did like the little Sci-Fi movie trailers they were showing.
Food - C+
Service - A-
Atmosphere - B-
Night 3 - Dinner at Le Cellier
Le Cellier was probably the best food we had on property. Not the best overall dining experience, but certainly the best food. Service was very good. Atmosphere left a little to be desired. We just felt cramped. All the tables were kind of pushed together and you could pretty much hear all the conversations on the tables around you. I had the surf and turf ( covered under the dining plan ) my wife and son had a steak and my daughter had the kids steak. Rave reviews from all around on the quality and preparation of the meat. Special rave reviews from my wife on the cream cheese mashed potatoes. My daughter loved the moose for desert and my son liked the smores. Me and wife had the desert sampler which was fantastic. The desert sampler and the surf and turf were all covered under the dining plan.
Food - A+
Service - B+
Atmosphere - C
Night 4 - Dinner at Ohana
The best overall dining experience we had while in WDW. The food was great , the service was fantastic and the atmosphere made you feel like you were transported to Hawaii. I thought the selection of meats and side dishes were excellent. Especially the augratin potatoes, chicken wings and won-tons. The steak was very good along with the shrimp. The turkey and pork were just ok but we are more steak and shrimp eaters anyway. The hula-hoop contest and the coconut races were great for the kids and everyone seemed to be really into the family atmosphere. By the way, the Lapu Lapu ( or two ) is GREAT after a long day at the park !
Food - A
Service - B+
Atmosphere - A-
Night 5 - Dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern
Probably the best character interaction we had while at WDW. The characters were plentiful and the resteraunt manager was on the floor making sure they got over to every table at least once. Took a lot of pictures here. Which was good, because it distracted us a little bit from rather bland food. Turkey was dry and I didnt care for the ham at all. The rest of the food was average. The best part about the meal was the cherry cobbler and ice cream for desert. That was so good. Service was very good. Our waiter was one the ball and was very quick to get refills and to clear dishes.
Food - C+
Service - B+
Atmosphere - B+
Night 6 - Dinner at Ohana
Well, we originally had an ADR for Biergarten but cancelled and tried for a walk-in at Ohana since we liked it so much the first time and was not sure how my kids would take the German food at Biergarten. We were seated in about 5 minutes. Must have had a little magic on my side. Just as good as the first experience..See ratings above.
In closing, I will say that the dining plan was well worth it. I just dont think we would have been able to eat as good or as much without it and it was nice not having to worry about the bill in the end.
As far as counter service meals, all I can say is....way too much food...We could barely finish the food we got at most counter service resteraunts in the world and most of the time we took the deserts back to the hotel with us for a late night snack.
We used all of our snack credits on water at the park. All of them. It was hot!
I will say that after seeing the Poly and eating at Ohana, we know where we want to stay next time...
Hope you found this info helpful...
