Dining reviews!

[cjsmith]

Arrived Friday and because of a lot of traffic, we missed our PS at the Coral Reef. It was so late, that we decided to just walk over to the Boardwalk and see where we could go. The kids wanted ESPN, so after waiting on line for about 25 minutes we were seated. I hate having 5 people squished on a table meant for 4, but we were starving, so we took it. Food was okay. Nachos were great, but my husband had the clam chowder and clearly it's canned. My burger was dry, so was my son's roast beef, and my daughters salad had way too much dressing on it. My husband's pork sandwich was great though.
Saturday we had lunch at Sci Fi. Love the atmosphere, and that's why you come here, not the food. Lunch was pretty okay, with the exception of mine, it was great. I had the open face steak sandwich and it was great. We had wonderful service and enjoyed ourselves.
Saturday night my husband and I had dinner ourselves at the California Grill. What can I say.......FANTASTIC!! We were lucky enough to have a table in the wine room and everything was fantastic, food and service. I had the tempura shrimp appetizer and the filet dinner. It was so amazing. My husband had a dragonroll that wasn't on the menu for his appy. It's expensive, $27, but it was the best sushi he's ever had and he's eats sushi constantly. He had the tuna for dinner and loved it. We didn't have any room for dessert so off we went. This was one of the best meals we have had in awhile and we eat out alot and have a lot of fine dining here in Naples, especially our two Ritz Carltons and this till topped them!
Sunday was the character breakfast at Cape May Cafe. We enjoyed it, but I can say that the selections have dwindled over the years. It was fun though, and we enjoyed the food.
Lunch was at Le Cellier. The food was great, but very, very slow. Our waitress was great, but it took forever to get out meals. My husband and I had the amazing cheese soup and split the steak sandwich. It was salty, but good.
Dinner was at the Flying Fish and once again our friend Bradlee waited on us. FANTASTIC again! Not as good as the C. Grill, but wonderful. I had the veal chop and it was great. My husband and the mussels and the tuna for dinner. My kids had the mussels and then had a salad for dinner. What can I say about the service, but Bradlee is the best!
Monday we had a late lunch at 50's Prime Time. We don't normally eat here, but my daughter really wanted to so we did. I am glad. Our server was so funny and we really enoyed our time here. The food was great. My daughter had the pot roast and it was the big winner of the table. My husband and one son had the clam poor boy sandwich which was nice and my other son had the fried chicken and it was great. I had the meatloaf and really enjoyed it. Dessert was the smores, and it was wonderful! I'm really glad we gave this place another chance as the food has really improved. It was a great place to end our long weekend at Disney!

 

[hockey mom]

OOHHHH to be so close to Disney you drive over for a long weekend- that would be nice.

Great reviews. We agree with ESPN. We were not impressed when we went.

 

[EmmasGrammy]

Thanks for the reviews. You touched on several of the places we were considering. Thanks for the input!!!

 

[Beth E. (NJ)]

Thanks for the reviews! Flying Fish is a favorite of mine. I too love the soup at Le Cellier.

 

[cortegro]

Thanks for the reviews!

A quick question.....

What dining places did you find that a family of 5 WOULD be seated more comfortably?

I, too, hate being cramped at a table for 4 with an "end/extra seat" !

I also have three pre-teen boys that seem to take sadistic pleasure in "nudging" their brothers! So the bigger...the better!!!


Thanks,

-cortegro

 

[cjsmith]

It was amazing but this time around they seemed to do this every place we ate. You should have seen how they were squeezing people in at 50's Prime Time. The first table they sat us at, my husband would have had to move his chair everytime somebody needed to go by our table! They tried to squeeze a family of 11 into a table that clearly only seated 8! These people refused and finally got 2 table. The only place that we didn't have this happen was our car at the Sci Fi and our table at the Flying Fish.

 

[cortegro]

That's too bad. It just dampens the excitement of Disney Dining if you are squished!
We have PS for 'Ohana, Garden Grill, Wolfgang Puck, Hollywood & Vine, and (I forgot the name) restaurant @ WL.

I hope we have some luck for a larger table at those places.

-cortegro

 

[amymouse]

Thanks for the reviews. You touched on quite a few of the places I'll be going to. Thanks for the info!

I don't suppose you had the chocolate cake at Flying Fish? I want to live vicariously through someone who has!

 

[disneyfan551]

Thanks for the reviews! I'm trying to decide between 50's & SciFi for our trip next month...My Mom is taking my 2yo dd & I (surprise trip! ), and she hasn't been to WDW since I was in the College Program! So, I can't wait to show her all of the places she hasn't seen before! Any lunch recommendations for a pretty cool Mimi's 1st visit??

 

[cjsmith]

Though I enjoyed the food more at 50's, your 2 year DD would probably enjoy the sights and sounds at SCI FI better. I think a lot of the humor would get lost on her. Now, your mom however, would probably love 50's Prime Time better. I guess it depends on whom you want to make happier! I also love, love, love, the cobb salad at the Hollywood Brown Derby. It's such a beautiful and quiet oasis in the parks and is alittle more "elegant" shall we say. I guess for your mom's sake I would choose 50's or Hollywood.

Any other suggestions you want for different parks?

 

[disneyfan551]

I'm up for suggestions for ALL parks! I know the places I love, but want her to try new things.

Thanks for the help!

 

[cjsmith]

You're welcome!

We're not that thrilled with the food at the Magic Kingdom, so we don't tend to eat meals here. Sometimes we grab a hot dog and fries at Casey's, they're great. My kids love grabbing a quick bite at Columbia Harbour House as well.

Over at MGM, Hollywood Brown Derby is our favorite, even my 3 kids love the cobb salad. My boys love the atmosphere at Sci FI and it's really one of their favorites. 50's was wonderful this time around and we had such a fun server.

Over at Epcot, we love Le Cellier, Rose and Crown. I find Alfredo's to be okay. The tables can be alittle too close together and it can
be very loud. I can honestly say that we've never had outstanding service here and I think the foods okay for what they charge. We've had great meals at Chef's, though it's not one of my kids favorites. The atmosphere at the Mexican restaurant can't be beat, but again, the tables are very tight. The foods pretty good, not the best Mexican that I've ever had, but it's a fun place to eat. I would rather have lunch here. The kids love eating at the Coral Reef, especially if we get a table up by the tank. Our meals have been hit and miss here. Sometimes they're great, sometimes they're just okay. My husband loves the soup here and they have a fun dessert for the kids.
For a quick bite, the little hut over in Japan is great. We also sometimes grab a quick bite up in the lounge here, alittle sushi and a cold beer. I'm not a real fan of the sit down restaurant only because we have 2 here in my town and the food is superior. Plus, I find it annyoing that they've done away with the salad and now make you buy it. They're also the only place that won't honor the Disney Dining card, so that's another pet peeve of mine.
We tend to eat lunch at the Rainforest when we're over at Animal Kingdom because it's one of the few places where you can really escape the heat when it's really hot outside. Plus, my kids love it here and the food isn't bad.
Our favorite places to eat are the Flying Fish over at the Boardwalk and The Calfornia Grill. We try to eat here at almost every visit and we're always very, very happy.
Hope this helps. As I think of other things, I'll add on!

 

[Kae]

You live in Naples & go to WDW. I am very jealous.

Kae

 

[Minniespal]

Great reviews ~ Thanx for sharing.

 

[cjsmith]

Originally posted by Kae
You live in Naples & go to WDW. I am very jealous.

Kae

I know, I'm lucky! Hey, when we decided to leave the cold from New York 5 years ago, being so close to Disney was such a huge draw. Plus, I love that it's snowing on Long Island again right now and it's going to be sunny and 82 here today!!! Of course come summer, I'll be wilting and my family on LI will be happy.