__disneygirl
well, all that's left now is the happy ending.
- Joined
- Aug 4, 2005
- Messages
- 3,528
Hi everyone! Here are some dining reviews for you to check out. If anyone has any questions, i'm happy to answer!
It was me, DF & DM. DF had to leave in the middle of the trip because of a work emergency, so most will just be me & DM.
I couldn't take as many pictures as I wanted to because my camera broke. We ended up buying a new one, which is where most of the pics came from.
Enjoy!
EDIT: My pictures won't show up! Can anyone help?
Dinner ~ California Grill
We had dinner here the day we arrived, and wow - what a GREAT kick off to the trip. First, I have to tell you how excited I was to get to see all the different Disney resorts and restaurants.. and most did not disappoint, however, I don't like the Contemporary very much. I had such high expectations and it didn't deliver. Except for the floor with Chef Mickey's on it & The California Grill floor, I find it rather plain and boring compared to the rest of the Disney resorts. Still, it would be cool to stay there because of the monorail and walking access to the MK. Anyway, onto the food! DELICIOUSSSSS. I am craving their potatoes as I type this. I got the Oak-fired Beef Filet with Potato and Gorgonzola Pave, Blue Lake beans, and Tamarind Barbecue Sauce. It was, I repeat, delicious. DM got the same thing and loved hers also. DF got some type of fish and also loved it. And their viewing deck for Wishes was.. just wow. The view was BREATHTAKING. I kept going out there just to hang out when the fireworks weren't going because it was just so nice. I love it so much. It was also great because it's hard for me to eat that much at once, so it was good to eat half my meal, watch Wishes, and come back to finish it & it was still warm!
For dessert, they brought me chocolate birthday cake which was great. DM had vanilla ice cream and DF had Bananas and Butterscotch "Buzz" (caramelized bananas and butterscotch custard stack with coffee caramel, cocoa nib, and crunchy plantain) and loved it. Afterward, DF complained he couldn't sleep well because of the late meal... so if that happens to you, you might want to book an early dinner as opposed to one in time for Wishes, but if you can - don't miss that fireworks show from that view. It brought tears to my eyes! I was just SO happy to FINALLY be back at WDW. It was an amazing kick off to a great trip, and I think everyone should try it at least once.
Pictures from California Grill:
My meal ~ Oak-fired Beef Filet with Potato and Gorgonzola Pave, Blue Lake beans
I can't remember exactly what this is, I know it's fish but that's all I can remember.
Breakfast ~ Whispering Canyon Cafe
I was very excited about this place! I love the "audience participation" aspect! The Wilderness Lodge is AWESOME. DF wanted to book a room here for our next vacation on the spot, actually! DF & I got the breakfast skillet and everything was delicious - I ate SO much. Our server was MT and she was GREAT. She was sooo funny and kept joking around at us and yelling at us and all of that. It was so cool. Then, she brought me a birthday cupcake with gummy worms and stuff on it and it was very good. It was another girl's birthday too and the whole restaurant sung to us!
It wasn't as crazy as I thought it was going to be, but still pretty loud. I love the atmosphere of it being in the lobby of the WL. It's great to people watch and the lobby is amazing.
Dinner ~ Sci-Fi Dine-In Theatre
ATMOSPHERE. I loveloveloveloveLOVE this restaurant. None of us were really that hungry, though! I think it's cause it was our first day at the parks for this trip, and we were snacking on all the great Disney snacks all day! DF just got a drink, DM got the Spinich/Artichoke Dip and I got onion rings. We split all the food. Everything was GREAT, our server couldn't have been nicer, and the MILKSHAKES! I got Vanilla, DM got oreo. Both delicious, the best milkshakes i've ever had. Actually, the best onion rings too. I wish so much I could have taken photos, but my camera was broken. We're planning to dine here again next time (hopefully in October! I want to go to MNSSHP!). The only bad thing was that we had to wait a long time to get seated. Most of our other ADRs helped us get seated pretty quickly.
Starring Rolls Bakery
Ended up going here on a whim one morning, DF wanted a roll & coffee.. and really enjoyed it!
Dinner ~ Rainforest Cafe
I've eaten at many Rainforest Cafe's, it's one of my favorite restarants ever. I just love the food. We shared the Awesome Appetizer Adventure which is always great (LOVE the Chimi Cha Cha), and I got pizza. Don't remember what DM got, but it doesn't matter, this place is great no matter what you get. Can't beat the atmosphere either.
Breakfast ~ Kona Cafe
I love the Polynesian resort, I must say. What a beautiful place. I was very excited to come here. Got seated right away with no wait. DM was so excited for her Kona Coffee straight from Hawaii. We both got the Big Kahuna. Everything was delicious except my eggs, I didn't like them. People say you just go to Kona for the food at not the atmosphere, but I quite like the atmosphere, I took a lot of photos!
Pictures from Kona Cafe:
ABC Commissary
This was a totally unplanned move. For some reason, DM really wanted to go here, and I had read TERRIBLE reviews about it so I kept telling her not to. She insisted, so I just chose to wait to get a bite somewhere else. She got fish & chips, I tasted them, and WOW! I thought it was great! Sure, it's something simple - but it was still really good.
Casey's Corner
Great place. The fries are totally different here than at other counter service places. Love the back room. Definitely go there at closing time, have a dog and/or some fries and let the crowds weed out. This seems like a tip that everyone knows - yet when we did it, it was empty, which was surprising to me!
Picture from Casey's Corner:
Breakfast ~ Boma
Love the AK Lodge, love the atmosphere of this restaurant. Great food, except I didn't like the breakfast pizza. Also, the West African Frunch Juice is DELICIOUS. I wish I could drink some right now!
Pictures from Boma:
Dinner ~ Gulliver's Grill
This is a HIDDEN GEM, ladies and gentlemen! I can't believe this isn't talked about more here on the DIS. The only reason I heard of this place is because I was looking at all the character meals and saw Timon and Rafiki were there - otherwise I probably never would have even thought choose this place. I also wanted to see the Swan and Dolphin resorts so I was happy to get to do that. The food was great. You have your choice of paying one price for the buffet, or ordering from the menu. If you don't get the buffet, but still want to do the DESSERT buffet, you can.. which I thought was a great thing because the dessers looked wonderful. I didn't do the dessert buffet though, so I could save room (we planned to go to Beaches & Cream after dinner). I got the filet and DM got the buffet. I chose not to get the buffet because most of it is seafood and i'm more of a land than sea girl when it comes to food. I got the filet, it was very good - but the filet at California Grill is better. The characters were excellent, stayed at the table awhile, kept waving & coming back. Rafiki kept poking people's shoulders and than turning around like he didn't do anything, he also kept dancing and really having a great time with all the kids. Also, only one character comes out at a time which is good because I think kids get distracted sometimes if a character like Chip is at your table but *MICKEY MOUSE* is at the next one, you know what I mean? After this our plans were to walk Disney's BoardWalk and then take the boat over to the Beach Club to have dessert at Beaches & Cream.
Picture from Gulliver's Grill:
Beaches & Cream
Originally, I wanted to get the Kitchen Sink, but that's really too much for just two girls and I didn't want to waste all that ice cream! I wasn't even hungry, but I ordered onion rings anyway. I just felt like eating them, LOL. I ate a few and then got a box for it. They were very good! For dessert, I had a Mickey Mouse Sundae which I loved. DM had strawberry ice cream and that was great too. I am looking forward to going there again on my next trip! 
Pictures from Beaches & Cream:
Mickey Mouse Sundae
Breakfast ~ Chef Mickey's
This was where we had my birthday breakfast, it was so much fun. Definitely the best place if you have children, actually i'd say it was a must-see. Food was excellent. I especially love Mickey waffles! I have been to many character meals in my life and I don't think they have ever been more interactive than they were at Chef Mickey's. It was wonderful. Also, birthday boys and girls get a free placemat.
Pictures from Chef Mickey's:
I suggest you book a late breakfast if you'd like even MORE character interaction. Ours was at 10:50 and we stayed long, so did the table next to us and the little kids were playing around and dancing with and hugging all the characters because there weren't that many people left in the restaurant.. maybe 10 tables or less. It was great!
Columbia Harbour House
Ate here twice! I love the Captain's Special. It's fish & chips, but it also comes with two chicken fingers. Definitely will be coming back here again. It's also so great to be in Liberty Square at night with all the hustle and bustle of the MK... I can't explain it, it's just such a great feeling.
Dinner ~ 1900 Park Fare
Our last dinner. Can't complain about the buffet much - I would have liked there to be more choices since i'm a picky eater, but I can't blame that on the restaurant. I loooved the tortellini and the chicken marsala. Delicious! The only problem about this place is that twice the waitress took my plate before I was finished... TWICE. DM and I were enjoying our meal so much we went up for another plate and I came back and my original one was gone (it's not like it was a cleared plate either, it had a lot of food on it). Then, the waitress came over with our pre-ordered desserts (princess slipper and mini wedding cake) before we were ready. A bus girl accompanied her and took my plate and was gone with it before I could say anything; we weren't ready for dessert yet so that was kind of annoying. I was so happy to get the desserts anyway cause I had seen so many great pictures on the DIS of them, so I didn't say anything. Cinderella, Prince Charming, Perla Mouse & Suzy Mouse were there. They were all great, especially Suzy who really interacted. They gave me a birthday crown which I wore proudly all night even though I felt silly. I mean, where else besides WDW can you wear a crown and people don't think it's weird? LOL. The mini wedding cake was possibly the best cake i've ever tasted. I LOVED it. I got yellow cake with white icing, I don't know if that's called vanilla or what.. I don't remember. But I suggest getting it because it's scrumptious. lol. The princess slipper looks better than it tastes, I must say. Well, not really. The only thing I didn't like on the plate was the slipper itself.. the white chocolate wasn't so good.
Pictures from 1900 Park Fare:
My cake. The "a" looks weird because they wrote "Happy Birthday Lisa" even though I specified AND spelled my name "L-I-A" on the phone. It doesn't matter to me much, but next time I'm going to run over the spelling of whatever I need a couple times.
Pop Century Food Court
Didn't eat here much, usually just grabbed a snack. I got chicken tenders and fries a few times, they're good. I was excited to try the Tye Dye Cheesecake - but it ended up looking better than it tasted. Tried the adult breakfast platter one day - it was alright, but not that good. DF hated it. I didn't like the sausage, everything else was edible, but i'm not about to try it again.
I'm upset because I also had ADRs for - Donald's Breakfastasauras, 'Ohana (dinner), Le Cellier (dinner), Liberty Tree Tavern (dinner) and I had to cancel them because a lot of stuff got all mixed up when DF had to leave... except for LTT, which was for my birthday dinner - I decided to cancel that because I didn't feel like what the menu had and I wanted to have a simpler evening, I wanted to spend it out in the parks, not in a restaurant. I am SO upset about missing Le Cellier though. I hope to do that on my next trip.
Some tips:
~Sometimes counter service can be way more enjoyable than table service, if you go to the right place.
~For breakfast - choose a restaurant based on atmosphere and/or characters, not food. Almost every breakfast I had tasted exactly the same, so you aren't taking a huge chance food-wise.
~If you can pre-order desserts at CRT or restaurants within the GF, definitely go for it - it added a great touch to our last night.
Hope you enjoyed!
It was me, DF & DM. DF had to leave in the middle of the trip because of a work emergency, so most will just be me & DM.
I couldn't take as many pictures as I wanted to because my camera broke. We ended up buying a new one, which is where most of the pics came from.
Enjoy!
EDIT: My pictures won't show up! Can anyone help?
Dinner ~ California Grill
We had dinner here the day we arrived, and wow - what a GREAT kick off to the trip. First, I have to tell you how excited I was to get to see all the different Disney resorts and restaurants.. and most did not disappoint, however, I don't like the Contemporary very much. I had such high expectations and it didn't deliver. Except for the floor with Chef Mickey's on it & The California Grill floor, I find it rather plain and boring compared to the rest of the Disney resorts. Still, it would be cool to stay there because of the monorail and walking access to the MK. Anyway, onto the food! DELICIOUSSSSS. I am craving their potatoes as I type this. I got the Oak-fired Beef Filet with Potato and Gorgonzola Pave, Blue Lake beans, and Tamarind Barbecue Sauce. It was, I repeat, delicious. DM got the same thing and loved hers also. DF got some type of fish and also loved it. And their viewing deck for Wishes was.. just wow. The view was BREATHTAKING. I kept going out there just to hang out when the fireworks weren't going because it was just so nice. I love it so much. It was also great because it's hard for me to eat that much at once, so it was good to eat half my meal, watch Wishes, and come back to finish it & it was still warm!
For dessert, they brought me chocolate birthday cake which was great. DM had vanilla ice cream and DF had Bananas and Butterscotch "Buzz" (caramelized bananas and butterscotch custard stack with coffee caramel, cocoa nib, and crunchy plantain) and loved it. Afterward, DF complained he couldn't sleep well because of the late meal... so if that happens to you, you might want to book an early dinner as opposed to one in time for Wishes, but if you can - don't miss that fireworks show from that view. It brought tears to my eyes! I was just SO happy to FINALLY be back at WDW. It was an amazing kick off to a great trip, and I think everyone should try it at least once.Pictures from California Grill:
My meal ~ Oak-fired Beef Filet with Potato and Gorgonzola Pave, Blue Lake beans
I can't remember exactly what this is, I know it's fish but that's all I can remember.
Breakfast ~ Whispering Canyon Cafe
I was very excited about this place! I love the "audience participation" aspect! The Wilderness Lodge is AWESOME. DF wanted to book a room here for our next vacation on the spot, actually! DF & I got the breakfast skillet and everything was delicious - I ate SO much. Our server was MT and she was GREAT. She was sooo funny and kept joking around at us and yelling at us and all of that. It was so cool. Then, she brought me a birthday cupcake with gummy worms and stuff on it and it was very good. It was another girl's birthday too and the whole restaurant sung to us!
It wasn't as crazy as I thought it was going to be, but still pretty loud. I love the atmosphere of it being in the lobby of the WL. It's great to people watch and the lobby is amazing.Dinner ~ Sci-Fi Dine-In Theatre
ATMOSPHERE. I loveloveloveloveLOVE this restaurant. None of us were really that hungry, though! I think it's cause it was our first day at the parks for this trip, and we were snacking on all the great Disney snacks all day! DF just got a drink, DM got the Spinich/Artichoke Dip and I got onion rings. We split all the food. Everything was GREAT, our server couldn't have been nicer, and the MILKSHAKES! I got Vanilla, DM got oreo. Both delicious, the best milkshakes i've ever had.
Actually, the best onion rings too. I wish so much I could have taken photos, but my camera was broken. We're planning to dine here again next time (hopefully in October! I want to go to MNSSHP!). The only bad thing was that we had to wait a long time to get seated. Most of our other ADRs helped us get seated pretty quickly.Starring Rolls Bakery
Ended up going here on a whim one morning, DF wanted a roll & coffee.. and really enjoyed it!
Dinner ~ Rainforest Cafe
I've eaten at many Rainforest Cafe's, it's one of my favorite restarants ever. I just love the food. We shared the Awesome Appetizer Adventure which is always great (LOVE the Chimi Cha Cha), and I got pizza. Don't remember what DM got, but it doesn't matter, this place is great no matter what you get. Can't beat the atmosphere either.
Breakfast ~ Kona Cafe
I love the Polynesian resort, I must say. What a beautiful place. I was very excited to come here. Got seated right away with no wait. DM was so excited for her Kona Coffee straight from Hawaii. We both got the Big Kahuna. Everything was delicious except my eggs, I didn't like them. People say you just go to Kona for the food at not the atmosphere, but I quite like the atmosphere, I took a lot of photos!
Pictures from Kona Cafe:
ABC Commissary
This was a totally unplanned move. For some reason, DM really wanted to go here, and I had read TERRIBLE reviews about it so I kept telling her not to. She insisted, so I just chose to wait to get a bite somewhere else. She got fish & chips, I tasted them, and WOW! I thought it was great! Sure, it's something simple - but it was still really good.
Casey's Corner
Great place. The fries are totally different here than at other counter service places. Love the back room. Definitely go there at closing time, have a dog and/or some fries and let the crowds weed out. This seems like a tip that everyone knows - yet when we did it, it was empty, which was surprising to me!
Picture from Casey's Corner:
Breakfast ~ Boma
Love the AK Lodge, love the atmosphere of this restaurant. Great food, except I didn't like the breakfast pizza. Also, the West African Frunch Juice is DELICIOUS. I wish I could drink some right now!
Pictures from Boma:
Dinner ~ Gulliver's Grill
This is a HIDDEN GEM, ladies and gentlemen! I can't believe this isn't talked about more here on the DIS. The only reason I heard of this place is because I was looking at all the character meals and saw Timon and Rafiki were there - otherwise I probably never would have even thought choose this place. I also wanted to see the Swan and Dolphin resorts so I was happy to get to do that. The food was great. You have your choice of paying one price for the buffet, or ordering from the menu. If you don't get the buffet, but still want to do the DESSERT buffet, you can.. which I thought was a great thing because the dessers looked wonderful. I didn't do the dessert buffet though, so I could save room (we planned to go to Beaches & Cream after dinner). I got the filet and DM got the buffet. I chose not to get the buffet because most of it is seafood and i'm more of a land than sea girl when it comes to food. I got the filet, it was very good - but the filet at California Grill is better. The characters were excellent, stayed at the table awhile, kept waving & coming back. Rafiki kept poking people's shoulders and than turning around like he didn't do anything, he also kept dancing and really having a great time with all the kids. Also, only one character comes out at a time which is good because I think kids get distracted sometimes if a character like Chip is at your table but *MICKEY MOUSE* is at the next one, you know what I mean? After this our plans were to walk Disney's BoardWalk and then take the boat over to the Beach Club to have dessert at Beaches & Cream.
Picture from Gulliver's Grill:
Beaches & Cream
Originally, I wanted to get the Kitchen Sink, but that's really too much for just two girls and I didn't want to waste all that ice cream! I wasn't even hungry, but I ordered onion rings anyway. I just felt like eating them, LOL. I ate a few and then got a box for it. They were very good! For dessert, I had a Mickey Mouse Sundae which I loved.
DM had strawberry ice cream and that was great too. I am looking forward to going there again on my next trip! Pictures from Beaches & Cream:
Mickey Mouse Sundae
Breakfast ~ Chef Mickey's
This was where we had my birthday breakfast, it was so much fun. Definitely the best place if you have children, actually i'd say it was a must-see. Food was excellent. I especially love Mickey waffles! I have been to many character meals in my life and I don't think they have ever been more interactive than they were at Chef Mickey's. It was wonderful. Also, birthday boys and girls get a free placemat.
Pictures from Chef Mickey's:
I suggest you book a late breakfast if you'd like even MORE character interaction. Ours was at 10:50 and we stayed long, so did the table next to us and the little kids were playing around and dancing with and hugging all the characters because there weren't that many people left in the restaurant.. maybe 10 tables or less. It was great!
Columbia Harbour House
Ate here twice! I love the Captain's Special. It's fish & chips, but it also comes with two chicken fingers. Definitely will be coming back here again. It's also so great to be in Liberty Square at night with all the hustle and bustle of the MK... I can't explain it, it's just such a great feeling.
Dinner ~ 1900 Park Fare
Our last dinner. Can't complain about the buffet much - I would have liked there to be more choices since i'm a picky eater, but I can't blame that on the restaurant. I loooved the tortellini and the chicken marsala. Delicious! The only problem about this place is that twice the waitress took my plate before I was finished... TWICE. DM and I were enjoying our meal so much we went up for another plate and I came back and my original one was gone (it's not like it was a cleared plate either, it had a lot of food on it). Then, the waitress came over with our pre-ordered desserts (princess slipper and mini wedding cake) before we were ready. A bus girl accompanied her and took my plate and was gone with it before I could say anything; we weren't ready for dessert yet so that was kind of annoying. I was so happy to get the desserts anyway cause I had seen so many great pictures on the DIS of them, so I didn't say anything. Cinderella, Prince Charming, Perla Mouse & Suzy Mouse were there. They were all great, especially Suzy who really interacted. They gave me a birthday crown which I wore proudly all night even though I felt silly. I mean, where else besides WDW can you wear a crown and people don't think it's weird? LOL. The mini wedding cake was possibly the best cake i've ever tasted. I LOVED it. I got yellow cake with white icing, I don't know if that's called vanilla or what.. I don't remember. But I suggest getting it because it's scrumptious.
lol. The princess slipper looks better than it tastes, I must say. Well, not really. The only thing I didn't like on the plate was the slipper itself.. the white chocolate wasn't so good.Pictures from 1900 Park Fare:
My cake. The "a" looks weird because they wrote "Happy Birthday Lisa" even though I specified AND spelled my name "L-I-A" on the phone. It doesn't matter to me much, but next time I'm going to run over the spelling of whatever I need a couple times.
Pop Century Food Court
Didn't eat here much, usually just grabbed a snack. I got chicken tenders and fries a few times, they're good. I was excited to try the Tye Dye Cheesecake - but it ended up looking better than it tasted. Tried the adult breakfast platter one day - it was alright, but not that good. DF hated it. I didn't like the sausage, everything else was edible, but i'm not about to try it again.
I'm upset because I also had ADRs for - Donald's Breakfastasauras, 'Ohana (dinner), Le Cellier (dinner), Liberty Tree Tavern (dinner) and I had to cancel them because a lot of stuff got all mixed up when DF had to leave... except for LTT, which was for my birthday dinner - I decided to cancel that because I didn't feel like what the menu had and I wanted to have a simpler evening, I wanted to spend it out in the parks, not in a restaurant. I am SO upset about missing Le Cellier though. I hope to do that on my next trip.
Some tips:
~Sometimes counter service can be way more enjoyable than table service, if you go to the right place.
~For breakfast - choose a restaurant based on atmosphere and/or characters, not food. Almost every breakfast I had tasted exactly the same, so you aren't taking a huge chance food-wise.
~If you can pre-order desserts at CRT or restaurants within the GF, definitely go for it - it added a great touch to our last night.
Hope you enjoyed!
Glad you had such a nice birthday trip,
