Dining Review

[Anne2]

I always enjoy reading dining reports from others, so I thought I would contribute

Trip: Drove down Friday, September 23rd.
Stayed at Disney’s All Star Sports the 23rd
Moved to Disney’s Boardwalk Inn on September 24th – October 1st
Drove home Saturday, October 1st

Cast: Me and DH. My parents were with us, so some of the totals might be incorrect as the bills were sometimes mixed up. It never mattered since we were on the dining plan.

Free Dining

9/24 – Noodle Station – orange soda - $2.12 – 1 snack

9/24 – Noodle Station – DH (?, ice cream bar, orange drink) - $16? – 1 cs
DH said this was very good food, very good value, and he especially liked the nestle ice cream bar counting as a counter service dessert

9/24 – Cosmic Rays – me (Turkey bacon wrap, grapes, sugar free brownie, lemonade) - $11? – 1 cs
- Ok. A lot of food. Never tried the brownie. The chicken Caesar salad looked great.

9/24 – Yachtsman – me (shrimp cocktail, filet and lobster, gelato, cherry coke)
DH (shrimp cocktail, filet and lobster, key lime, coke) - $183.93 – 4 ts
- Excellent. My favorite me of the trip, and it tied with Emril’s for DH. You could not add the lobster to any meal on the plan, but you could do the surf and turf menu item.

9/25 – Electric Umbrella (French toast, bacon, coke) - $7.86 – 1 cs
- DH and I split this. It had 4 sticks of French toast and 3 pieces of bacon.

9/25 – Yakitori House – DH (?) - $14.35 – 1 cs
- DH said was ok. Glad he tried, but probably wouldn’t go back.

9/25 – Boulangerie – me (Ham and cheese croissant, cheesecake, orange soda) - $8.43 – 1 cs
- Nice light meal, though you don’t get any sides with your meal here.

9/25 – Rose & Crown – me (shrimp cocktail, fish and chips, apple crumble, sprite)
DH (shrimp cocktail, steak and fish, apple crumble, coke) - $78.17 – 2 ts
- DH and I both agreed that the appetizer was outstanding and the dessert was very good. The main course was so-so.

9/26 – Boardwalk Bakery – bottle coke - $2.79 – 1 snack

9/26 – Toy Story – me (salad, cheese pizza, rice krispies treat, sprite)
DH (salad, cheese pizza, rice krispies treat, coke) - $25.50 – 2 cs
- Horrible! I had heard others say it wasn’t good, but I thought, “hey, it’s pizza”. I should have listened. The drinks were good, and the salad was basic.

9/26 – Sci-Fi – me (onion rings, chicken Caesar salad, apple crisp, cookie shake)
DH (spinage and artichoke dip, burger + bacon+ mushroom + sautéed onion, cheesecake, coke) - $68.54 – 2 ts
- The shake was wonderful! Glad I knew to ask for it. Thanks! The appetizers were great, and DH said the burger was good. The salad and desserts were okay.

9/27 – Boardwalk Bakery – Cinnamon Roll, Bottle Coke - $5.52 – 1 cs
- Another extra Counter service. I love this place. The cinnamon rolls are a croissant with a light cinnamon flavor and light icing. Excellent!

9/28 – Cheesecake Factory – coke - $2.40 – 1 snack

9/28 – Cheesecake Factory – chocolate ice cream - $2.67 – 1 snack
- Very good ice cream here!

9/28 – Boardwalk Bakery – cinnamon roll, bottle coke - $5.52 – 1 cs
- Miss communication here with DH on counter service versus snack and out of pocket. It worked out though, and was excellent as always.

9/28 – Earl of a Sandwich – me (Chicken Salad Sandwich, drink, oatmeal raison cookie)
DH (Chicken Salad Sandwich, drink, chocolate chip cookie) - $16.80 – 2 cs
- Not too impressed with the service, and we didn’t like the bread. DH also said having grapes and onion in his chicken salad was an odd combination. He thought you should have one or the other. On an upside, the cookies were great.

9/28 – Capn Jacks – me (shrimp cocktail, Double Lobster tails, cheesecake, sprite)
DH (shrimp cocktail, Double Lobster tails, cheesecake, coke) - $116.98 – 2 ts
- Average meal. Definitely a lot for your money. You could not add lobster to any meal except one of the cheaper steaks. DH and I like Fulton’s and Rainforest better for seafood.

9/29 – Harambe Fruit Market – water - $2.50 – 1 snack

9/29 – Space Ice Cream – Mickey Ears, Strawberry ice - $5.00 – 2 snack
- Mickey Premium bar was wonderful as always. DH said the strawberry was good too.

9/29 – Restaurantosaurus – me (hot dog, fries, strawberry shortcake, sprite)
DH (Double cheeseburger, fries, strawberry shortcake, coke) - $23.47 – 2 cs
- This was later in the week, and the best lunch counter service I had. It was nice to go back to basics with the hot dog and McDonald’s fries. The strawberry shortcake was amazing!

9/29 – Boma – 2 dinners - $60.73 – 2 ts
- Service was not very good. Food was okay. Always nice to try the different foods and see the resort, but not a favorite of mine. Then again, I did enjoy a lot from the dessert bar.

9/30 – Boardwalk Bakery – Bottle Coke - $ 2.01 – 1 snack

9/30 – Magic Kingdom – coke - $2? – 1 snack

9/30 – Magic Kingdom – Mickey Ears - $2.50 – 1 snack

9/30 – Cheesecake Factory – DH (BBQ sandwich, fries, apple cobbler bar, coke) - $13.80 – 1 cs
- DH really enjoyed the sandwich and fries. The apple cobbler bar wasn’t very good.

9/30 – Kona Café – me (Caesar Salad, Filet, Kiddie Kone, Sprite)
DH (Pot Stickers, Filet, Kiddie Kone, Sprite) - $93.95 – 2 ts
- I didn’t have very high expectations for this restaurant. I think because the menu reminded me of food I don’t like. However, this turned into my 2nd favorite meal. DH and I both loved every part of it. You could add shrimp or scallops to any meal. We didn't, but my Dad did. He said if he had had to pay for them he wouldn't be happy with them, but he didn't so all was good. The kiddie kone was great, and I recommend it even for adults.
10/1 – Boardwalk Bakery – 2 cokes + 2 sprites – $11.04 - 4 snacks
- Using the rest of our snacks here.

Totals: 14 snacks, 14 counter service (cs), 14 table service (ts) - > $785.58


Other Food

9/26 – Boardwalk Bakery – apple turnover, croissant - $4.88
9/27 – Boardwalk Bakery – Apple Danish - $2.55
9/28 – Capn Jack’s – 2 Berringer - $13.08
9/28 – Cheesecake Factory – chili cheese fries - $4.80
9/30 – Boardwalk Bakery – cinnamon roll - $2.76
9/30 – Cheesecake Factory – child’s hot dog - $3.15
10/1 – Boardwalk Bakery – cheese Danish, cinnamon roll - $5.31

Total: $36.53


Overall thoughts on the Dining Plan
The dining plan was free for us, so it was great. It allowed us not to worry about getting expensive items on the menu, or trying new things. If you look at the total dining plan food cost ($785.58) compared to what the dining plan would cost ($35 * 2 people * 7 days * 11.5% tax = $546.35) it seems like a great deal. However, the bottom line is we would never order that much food! We sometimes share counter service meals and dinners. We rarely order appetizers, and if we do it is 1 appetizer to split, and rarely order desserts. We could probably order what we wanted, not be on a strict plan, not gorge ourselves, and probably come out comparable. Looking back to a past trip of 8 full days, we spent around $567 on food and extras. That is around $71 a day compared to around $74 a day or more on the plan. It is close for us, and will come down to the type of vacation we want as to which way we opt.

On an unrelated note:
All Star Sports had horrible service when we checked in. Could not get into one of our rooms. Called several times, went back to the desk, and an hour or so later (around 2 in the morning!) a guy came and let my parents in their room. He told them one should always stay in the room just in case. We let it go at the time since we knew we were leaving the next day, but I spoke to the front desk in the morning. They did make an effort to correct the situation.

The rest of the stay at Boardwalk Inn was wonderful! Great location for us at the time! Had a garden view, and if you looked left, you could see some of the Epcot fireworks at night.

 

[Krissalee]

Thanks for sharing your reviews.

 

[Terri C]

Thanks for posting. I noticed you thought the chicken ceasar salad at Sci-fi was okay. Is this something you would order again? I'm thinking about ordering this (and onion rings) in Nov.

TIA

Terri

 

[TwingleMum]

Thanks for the reviews, I enjoyed reading them.

 

[byoung]

Thanks

 

[Anne2]

Terri,
I would probably order the caesar again since I'm not a burger person. The chicken didn't wow me, but it was fine. Your typical chicken caesar really.

 

[Princess4Eeyore]

Thanks for the reviews

 

[Minniespal]

Enjoyed reading your reviews ~ Thanx for posting.

 

[we3disneygo]

enjoyed reading your reviews-thanks!