Dining Reviews 5/8-5/19 Table Services

[donaldtutter]

We stayed at Pop Century on the DDP from 5/8-5/19. Only written reviews--no pictures. Small cast. Me(42) and DM(69). DM is on a very low sodium diet. She usually spoke with the very accomadating chefs at the restaurants. She basically had the same meal at every dinner--rare unsalted unseasoned sirloin steak,sliced tomatoes, and no salt fries. Most were very good, therefore I will not mention too many details of her dinners unless it was extra good or bad.

A couple of observations before beginning. The DDP saved a little money but mostly because of ordering desserts which we normally wouldn't order. My main complaint is that I found it to be very uncomfortable when the server asked for the tip and pointed out how much it should be. Many times this happened before we even finished eating.

The reviews will be:
5/8 Tony's Town Square
5/9 Tusker House
5/10 Le Cellier
5/11 50's Prime Time
5/12 Tutto Italia
5/13 Crystal Palace
5/14 Chefs de France
5/15 Yak and Yeti
5/16 Grand Floridian Cafe
5/18 Kona Cafe
5/19 Coral Reef

 

[donaldtutter]

Tony's Town Square
I ordered the catch of the day, which was pan seared salmon with pancetta and orzo pasta. It was pretty good. The pancetta was too hard so I had to pick it out and put it to the side. For dessert we had tiramisu and pistachio creme brulee. Both were very good.

The waitress brought the check and pointed out the suggested tip amounts 18% $12.07 and 20% $13.41. If I were to charge it to the room I would have to write the amount of the tip now so she could process it. I told her I would pay cash after the bill was processed. She told me I still had to write the amount I would be tipping. I felt I was being forced to tip one of those figures regardless of the level of service. She was a good waitrees and I would have given her a 20% tip anyways but it was a very uncomfortable situation. It was pretty much the same scenario at every restaurant, although a few did not ask me to write the tip if I was paying cash.

 

[MickeyNicki]

Sounds awesome!

 

[TigerKat]

I'm so ready.......

 

[suzimar57]

more more more!

 

[donaldtutter]

Tusker House
We had a 4:15 ADR, arrived a little early(3:50), and were seated right away. There were only three or four other tables of people seated. Since there were so few customers the food seemed to be not as fresh as other buffets due to slow turnover.
The food was similar to Boma, but not quite as good. DM asked if they could cook her some salmon without salt and spices. A few minutes later the chef brought to the table a large perfectly cooked piece of salmon. DM really enjoyed it. I had rotisserie chicken, spiced salmon,curry chiken and beef,mashed potatoes, and green beans. It was good but I actually liked Tusker House better when it was a counter service restaurant.

 

[donaldtutter]

50's Prime Time Cafe
We had Cousin Sabrina as our server. She was young but played the part very well. I ordered the PB+J milkshake. It was awesome and a meal in itself. For the entree I had pork tenderloin with root vegetables and apple raisin chutney. It was good. Not very flavorful or something I would order again. For dessert I had the hot fudge sundae. It was very good but I couldn't eat as much as I would like to have eaten after the milkshake.

 

[donaldtutter]

Le Cellier
The best meal of the vacation!! Brendan was our server and he was terrific. Great personality and always available without being intrusive. The chef was also wonderful. He came out to speak to DM about her diet and returned after to see how everything was. The manager was also asking every table if their food was prepared properly and if he could do anything for them. Best service we have ever received at WDW and we have eaten at nearly every restaurant except for Victoria and Albert's.
I ordered the mushroom filet mignon medium rare and it was perfect. Very tender piece of meat and the risotto was a great match. For dessert I had the maple creme brulee which was also very tasty.

 

[mom2aredhead]

So funny - we were at Kona Cafe the same day as you. We went for dinner around 6:00-ish. Looking forward to your opinion...

 

[suzimar57]

i've had the maple creme brulee at le cellier before and agree: it is good!

that brownie sundae at 50s is enough to share - too bad DH gets really possessive where ice cream, brownies and chocolate sauce is concerned...

 

[donaldtutter]

Tutto Italia
If Le Cellier was the best meal of the vacation, then Tutto Italia was definately the worst. When DM told the waiter about her diet he said he would get the manager . The manager came over and said the only thing on the menu she would be able to have was a steak, which was fine. When DM asked what pasta/potato and vegetable she could have, he said there was nothing. She asked if they could cook pasta plain and he said no. She asked if they had any kind of potato that they could cook without salt and he said no. He also said there was no vegaetable in the entire restaurant that she could have. We have been to countless restaurants around the country and all have made some kind of accomadation to her special diet. This manager obviously couldn't be bothered with helping his customers.
I ordered the fish filet with tomato and capers. It was very aveage. The fish was flavorless, the sauce was good. DM received a large plate with a small piece of steak and nothing else. For dessert I ordered cassata which is a ricotta cake and it was actually very good.

 

[donaldtutter]

Crystal Palace
Good solid food. Nothing special. DM asked for and received a plain piece of salmon.

Chefs de France
I ordered beef short ribs braised in cabernet but it came with mashed potatoes not polenta as on allearsnet. It was average. Very good server named Johan. dessert was crepe filled with cinnamon apple and vanilla ice cream. It was very good. The tables seem to be closer together than before if that is even possible.

 

[donaldtutter]

Yak and Yeti
This was the surprise of the trip. I wasn't expecting much but it was one of our top three dinners. Not that it was great, but in these days of uniform menus due to the DDP, it was at least a little different. I ordered the steak and shrimp. It was a little spicy especially with the chili dipping sauce. Dessert was fried wontons filled with cream cheese. They were almost like crab rangoon without the crab. They tasted good with the fresh pineapple.

Grand Floridian Cafe
Another solid if unspectacular meal. I had the land and sea. The strip steak was cooked to order. The lobster was very bland and certainly wasn't Maine lobster. Chocolate Fondue for dessert was good but I would have prefered plain chocolate rather than the chocolate with orange ganache.

 

[John's Mom]

Thanks for your reviews!

 

[donaldtutter]

Kona Cafe
We arrived a few minutes early for our 6:15 ADR and were seated immediately. Our waitress came over and was, I think, trying to be funny but I found her to be borderline rude. She was a decent server but continued to make odd comments during the meal. Anyway she brought the bread and macadamia nut butter which was very good. I ordered the beef teriyaki. I enjoyed it except for the onions mixed with the pineapple teriyaki sauce. For dessert I had banana chocolate creme brulee.

Coral Reef
The last day at WDW is always a little sad but lunch at the Coarl Reef made things better. I had the Lobster salad. It was a little small but very good. Dessert was the chocolate wave--great as usual. Another issue with the tipping as I wrote cash on the check but the waiter insisted I write an amount even as I was eating dessert.

 

[suzimar57]

love the mini reviews!

 

[DisOrBust]

I'm guessing the tip thing had more to do with reporting to the IRS then anything else.