dining question

[andy6326]

hi -

having never really seen the attraction of Disney before, we were won over by a recent trip to WDW and are planning our return trip for Xmas 07, when we intend to stay at the Contemporary (stayed at All Star Movies before which was great - but having eaten at the Contemporary and seen the location it had to be there next time).

In the meantime we've booked into the Disneyland Hotel at DLRP for 5 days April 06, so will no doubt be posting lots of qs as they occur.

We thought it was a bit mad to book restaurants in advance at WDW before we left, but as lots of people told us we should, we followed their advice. When we got there (August) we were glad we did, felt very smug walking past the lines waiting for a cancellation and had some great meals.

Should we do the same at DLRP. I understand you can book up to two months in advance and we thought we'd like to eat at:

Inventions, Blue Lagoon, California Grill, Cafe Mickey and have tea at Plaza Gardens

We'll be arriving Easter Monday so guess it may be quite busy

 

[dlpSteve]

We've never not been able to book a table at The Blue Lagoon or any other restaurant on the first day of our holiday but we do sometimes book ahead 'just in case'. As you are going during a really busy time it may be a good idea to book.

Reservation number: 0033 1 60 30 40 50

Welcome to DIS!

 

[andy6326]

cheers for that -

meant to say as well, does that seem like a sensible selection of restaurants. If we eat breakfast we're quite happy to skip lunch and have a decent evening meal. So basically we've got to pick four, plus afternoon tea before we go on the last day.

 

[dlpSteve]

As long as Blue Lagoon is one of the selection then I'm a happy bunny - our favourite restaurant anywhere in the world and if I'm not talking about Pirates of the Caribbean or the Christmas Market in here I'm usually going on about The Blue Lagoon!

We've never been to any of the others you listed but people on here rate them highly. We tend to be creatures of habit - Blue Lagoon is must for every trip, King Ludwigs usually gets a look in because we like the Oktoberfest Chicken they do and after that it's a free for all. I'm keen to try Inventions at some point.

 

[andy6326]

Yes Blue Lagoon seems to be rated really highly by everyone including the Brits Guide. Having been to California Grill in WDW we wanted to check out the DLRP version - then the rest had to be character affairs for DD 6.

 

[Bexx]

Steve, you might want to change the number you have for dining reservations - it's now (in full, from the UK) 0033 1 60 30 40 50. Like the new avatar BTW!!!

Andy, if there are places you really want to eat at, then there is absolutely no harm in making the reservations - especially as you will be there at a busy time. As for the Blue Lagoon, it's very popular because of its themeing, though I've heard very mixed reviews about the food. Having said that, we love it and have had two very nice meals there.

Can I just say - please don't go to DLP expecting it to be another WDW, otherwise you will probably be disappointed. But it is a wonderful Disney themepark in it's own right, albeit considerably smaller!! And the Disneyland Park, a.k.a. the Magic Kingdom is probably the best version they've done - IMHO!!!

Welcome to the DIS!!!

 

[dlpSteve]

Thanks Becky - silly thing is I've used that new number!!!

The avatar is me on the bridge over the Rio Grande walking from Hotel Santa Fe to the parks this summer.

 

[JoeSam]

Hi Andy

We've tried all those apart from Cali Grill which is quite a civilised affair, similar to the Contemporary as far as I can gather.

Blue Lagoon is worth it for the atmosphere alone, especially if you get a waterside table!

Inventions is a buffet meal w/ characters - DH is still raving about the quality of the food on offer. The seafood and meat courses are superb. The view of the park from Inventions & Cali Grill is lovely.

Cafe Mickey is a blast for the kids - really fun.

Plaza Gardens is a cake buffet - just up my street - but not a proper meal at tea time. The mix of characters we saw was odd, but great to see them (Timon, Pinocchio, Jafar, Queen of Hearts, Pluto, Friar Tuck I think).

ps Inventions buffet is quite expensive - meal for 4 with birthday cake came to 200 Euros give or take a few.

 

[andy6326]

Plaza Gardens is a cake buffet - just up my street - but not a proper meal at tea time. The mix of characters we saw was odd, but great to see them (Timon, Pinocchio, Jafar, Queen of Hearts, Pluto, Friar Tuck I think).

Thanks for your advice. We thought we'd go to plaza gardens on our last pm before getting on the Eurostar - we can always get something else on the train later on if we need to

 

[andy6326]

Can I just say - please don't go to DLP expecting it to be another WDW, otherwise you will probably be disappointed. But it is a wonderful Disney themepark in it's own right, albeit considerably smaller!! And the Disneyland Park, a.k.a. the Magic Kingdom is probably the best version they've done - IMHO!!!

We'd heard that lots of people think that Disneyland Park is the best Magic Kingdom, so as that was DDs favourite (as you'd expect) I don't think we'll be disappointed. Shame they'd don't do a version of CRT - although it seems to get mixed reviews we all thought it was ace, including DS 18 and his girlfriend.

 

[Cyrano]

Hi Andy, we have never booked restaurants in advance even in the height of summer If you have any special plans it will put your mind at ease if you have reserved.
Doesn't seem to be quite as difficult getting reservations at DLP than WDW.

 

[BONITATIME]

Hi Andy


Plaza Gardens is a cake buffet - just up my street - but not a proper meal at tea time. The mix of characters we saw was odd, but great to see them (Timon, Pinocchio, Jafar, Queen of Hearts, Pluto, Friar Tuck I think).

Last week they had ham cheese bread rolls pizza and frankfurters in pastry. I have heard various people complain it was not really tea and DLRP seem to have listened and adjusted.
We always do this as the combination of food and characters goes well.

 

[Cyrano]

Nikki that is good to see that the park are listening to the comments from guests