Disney Dining Reviews with Pictures-Completed!

[swankybeth]

DH and I just returned from a 10 day trip to WDW, January 20-30. We stayed at Pop Century and had the Disney Dining Plan. It was our first trip back in over 2 years and we were super excited for our trip! Feel free to post any comments or questions that you have.

Day 1-
Lunch at Pop Century Everything Pop food court. This was our first experience using the DDP. I couldn't believe that you could get a whole fruit bowl as your dessert option with a counter service meal. DH and I decided to split two flatbreads for our meal. We had the Beef, Bean and Bleu and the Chicken Mediterranean. We enjoyed both of the them, but the chicken had the slight edge over the beef. The flatbreads were served more like pita sandwiches, than actual flatbreads with toppings. The beef was shaved sirloin with bleu cheese, beans and onions. It was tasty, but I felt that the different flavors did not really meld together, it was more like you were tasting each individual item rather than a blend of the different flavors. The chicken was grilled pieces of chicken with artichokes, roasted red peppers and feta cheese. The flavors went really well together and I really enjoyed it. We both got bottles of water to take to the parks later on as well as fruit bowls for our dessert. We were way too full to eat the fruit, so we put it in the fridge for later.

Dinner at Garden Grill. DH and I had never had dinner here before and we were both looking forward to our first sitdown meal of the trip. We had 4:30 pm reservations for when the restaurant opened. We checked in a few minutes early and were seated about 10 minutes after our ADR time. We had a nice table on the lower level. We started with a delicious salad of mixed greens with a raspberry viniagrette with sweet potato chips on top. The salad was delicious. It was very fresh tasting and the dressing was nice and light, it wasn't too sweet as a lot of raspberry viniagrettes tend to be. The sweet potato chips on top were so delicious and addicting. We could have eaten a whole bowl of just the chips. We were served yeast rolls and biscuits with honey orange blossom butter. The rolls were just okay, the biscuits were good, but also nothing spectacular. The butter had a nice sweet flavor to it. We were then served a platter of turkey with orange cranberry relish, flank steak with mushroom cabernet sauce, stuffing, fried catfish strips and veggies as well as a bowl of mashed potatoes. The turkey was pretty good, I didn't really care for the relish as I would have preferred just a plain cranberry sauce instead. The steak was delicious, it was nice and tender as well as flavorful. The stuffing tasted like Stove Top, so we pretty much skipped it. The potatoes were delicious and creamy. The catfish was delicious, it was probably our favorite of the proteins. The veggies were good, if slightly undercooked. We ordered a second platter and then it was time for dessert. We received an iron skillet with a portion of vanilla bread pudding with "Bailey's hard sauce" on it. The bread pudding was delicious. The sauce was kind of like a cross between whipped cream and ice cream and was very tasty. Overall, we were very impressed with our meal and we would definitely return. We had great service and tipped extra beyond what the dining plan covered. The characters were fun and they all came around at least once.

Day 2 coming soon!

 

[basketrn]

Excited to read more!

I really want to try Garden Grill, and those pictures just sealed the deal!

 

[Daisy14]

Garden grill looks so good...can't wait to read more!

 

[DisneyJo]

Great review such detail, can't wait for more.

 

[bop28]

Your reviews are very interesting to read, and the pics are great! Thanks!!

 

[swankybeth]

Day 2
Breakfast at Captain Cook's.
I'd read in someone else's report that they served Tonga Toast at Captain Cook's now, so we were definitely in! We arrived early and parked at the TTC and walked over the Polynesian for breakfast. DH and I both had the Tonga Toast, he also had a side of scrambled eggs (sorry no picture of the eggs). The Tonga Toast was so good! It was just as good as eating at Kona Cafe, but a lot cheaper. For the uninitiated, Tonga Toast is large pieces of sourdough bread stuffed with bananas and then fried and rolled in cinnamon sugar. It was surely a yummy start to our day!

Lunch at Columbia Harbour House. We arrived at a peak lunch time (we usually like to try to eat early to avoid crowds) and had a bit of a wait to order and then get our food. We were easily able to find a nice quiet table upstairs and enjoyed the respite. DH had the Lighthouse sandwich, which was hummus and broccoli slaw with tomatoes. It was served on multigrain bread. It is normally served with chips, but DH was able to get carrots instead. I ordered the half sandwich and cup of soup meal. I had the Anchors Aweigh sandwich and the vegetarian chili. We both had sugar free jellos for dessert. The Lighthouse sandwich was really tasty, the slaw and tomatoes added sweetness to the sandwich. The Anchors Aweigh was a tuna sandwich with tomatoes on the same multigrain bread. It was an excellent tuna sandwich, not too much mayonnaise. The vegetarian chili was also good and had a nice flavor to it. The jello was strawberry flavored and a nice light dessert.

Dinner at Wolfgang Puck Cafe. We had an early reservation at 5 pm and we arrived a little bit early and were seated immediately. It was a really nice evening and we wanted to sit outside, but we found out that they had enclosed all of the outdoor seating, so we sat inside. We had a nice table with a view of the water and Saratoga Springs across the way. There were just a few restrictions using the dining plan here. One restriction was that sushi could only be ordered as an entree, but they allow you to order any one item from the sushi menu and they have a couple of different sushi samplers, so it really isn't too bad. Another restriction was on dessert, there were a couple of items that were not eligible on the DDP. One item was a sampler of different gelatos on ice cream cones. We asked if we could order that one dessert for the both of us, but they were unable to do it. We had a really nice meal with excellent, attentive service. We tipped our waiter extra beyond what the plan covered. I started with Asian Vegetable Spring rolls, which were 2 fried spring rolls cut in half. They were served over plum and mustard dipping sauces. The rolls were very good, they were fried to an excellent crunch which gave a nice mouth-feel and stuffed with an ample amount of vegetables. There was just the right amount of salt sprinkled on top, which was a tasty contrast to the sweet plum dipping sauce. The mustard sauce really didn't stand up to the flavor the spring rolls and you couldn't taste it too much. There was a pickled cucumber salad served as an accompaniment, which didn't really add anything to the overall dish. It was pretty plain. DH had the blue lump crab cakes which were excellent. There wasn't too much filler and you could taste the crab beautifully. They were served with a red pepper sauce which was very good as well as a basil aioli on the plate which really went well with the dish. There was a corn relish in the center of the plate which was good, but not memorable. I had the rainbow roll for my entree which was a California roll topped with tuna, salmon, shrimp and whitefish. The sushi was very good, it was nice and fresh and I enjoyed the flavor. It doesn't look like a big meal, but I found it very filling and DH had to help finish it. DH ordered the Asian Hoisin BBQ ribs which came with slaw, and inexplicably, a seared tuna roll. We were really confused about the tuna because it wasn't mentioned on the menu, so we don't know if it was a mistake or not. The tuna roll wasn't good because it was too overcooked, it should have been a lot more raw in the center. DH and I each had one piece of it and that's it. DH really enjoyed his ribs, I didn't taste them because I don't like ribs. The slaw that accompanied the ribs was pretty good as well. For dessert I ordered the vanilla creme brulee and DH had the warm dark chocolate souffle cake. I was disappointed in the creme brulee because it was too thick and custardy rather than being light and creamy as it should have been. DH's cake was amazing! It had a wonderful intense chocolate flavor and it was very well prepard. Even the strawberry on the side was just so sweet and fresh.

Day 3 coming up!

 

[momofdbsdc]

Great reviews and pictures!!! Thanks!

 

[swankybeth]

Day 3
Breakfast at Everything Pop food court. I had oatmeal and a banana and DH had the Western omelet without cheese. The oatmeal was good, it was made with water, not milk (I asked about it beforehand). It came with little cups of raisins and brown sugar to add in. DH enjoyed his omelet which came with a side of potatoes.

Lunch at Coral Reef. We had an early reservation at 11:30 am for when the restaurant opened. We checked in early and waited just a few minutes before being seated a table right next to the tanks. DH and I both started with frozen drinks. I had the strawberry and DH had the pina colada. For my appetizer I had the braised barbeque beef with polenta. It was quite tasty. There were two small pieces of beef with polenta and a barbeque sauce. The sauce was very strong, but it had a good flavor, so I enjoyed it. DH had the shrimp cocktail which was served in a martini glass with a noodle salad. He didn't like it at all. It was very flavorless and the shrimp were not good. I had the blackened catfish for my entree. It was served over pepper jack cheese grits and had a smoked tomato compote on top with a balsamic glaze. I have to say I was quite disappointed with this dish. The flavors were overpoweringly strong and you couldn't taste anything after just a couple of bites because of the intensity of the spicy grits with the strong taste of the smoked tomatoes. I tried the fish by itself without any sauce and it did not have a good flavor at all. DH had the grilled NY strip steak which came with au gratin potatoes and veggies. The steak was well prepared and tasted good. The potatoes were excellent, they were creamy and delicious. The veggies were a bit undercooked and crunchy. DH also had another freeze with his entree, this time he got a mix of the strawberry and pina colada. The freezes were really good and quite a treat for us. We never order drinks like that OOP, but they were included on the DDP. For dessert I just had to have the chocolate wave. It was amazing! It was a warm chocolate cake with a liquid grand marnier center. The cake was so yummy. It was accompanied by white chocolate ice cream, which I tasted but didn't eat much of because it was very plain and not worth the calories! DH had the butterscotch creme brulee. It was excellent, it had a great texture and flavor. Overall we don't think we would return to Coral Reef. I was excited to try it out, but it was pretty lacking as an overall experience. Both DH and I ordered items that just were not good. Also we found that the food came out ridiculously fast. We got our appetizers very quickly and we barely finished them when the entrees came out. It was definitely factory-like and obvious they were just preparing mass amounts of each entree in the kitchen to turn over the tables. The service was just okay and this was one of the only times we didn't leave an extra tip for the server.

Dinner at Everything Pop food court. DH had a serious hot dog craving, so we both ordered chili cheese hotdogs which came with french fries. We both got water to bring to the park later, DH had Perrier and I had Dasani. For dessert I got apples with caramel dipping sauce and DH got a fruit bowl. The hot dogs were pretty disappointing. I really didn't like the way mine tasted, so DH finished it off for me. He didn't really enjoy it either, but he can never turn down food! To me the hot dog was pretty rubbery and it was also thick so it was pretty unappealing. The apples with caramel were really yummy. It was granny smith apple slices with a sweet caramel sauce. The fruit was good too, it was grapes, honeydew and cantaloupe.

Dessert from Boulangerie Patisserie. DH got a slice of the cake of the day, which was a chocolate cake. We weren't allowed to use a snack credit, so we paid oop. The cake was okay, nothing special. It looked better than it tasted.

Day 4 up next!

 

[myosotisd]

Great review!!
thanks

 

[jbmom]

Great reviews. Thanks!

 

[oybolshoi]

Hey SwankyB, Great reviews so far! I really enjoyed the Wolfgang Puck review - those crab cakes looked especially tasty.

Looking forward to more - thanks for sharing!

 

[alwayspooh]

Thank you for the great reviews . We have never eaten at Garden Grill and they weren't getting great reviews there for awhile but I am glad that you really enjoyed your meal. This will be a place that I will be adding to our trip in September

 

[seetheworld]

Your reviews and pictures were so perfect and so wonderful - thank you VERY much!

 

[lisaj]

Excellent reviews, can't wait for the rest. Love the photos, I'm soooo hungry.

 

[lissawynn]

Great reviews! Thanks for sharing!

 

[mom2cookies]

yes, i have to agree with the above posters, your reviews and photos are quite interesting. We ate at the Coral Reef in September of 06. I didn't care for the shrimp cocktail either. My three daughters and a friend just LOVED the chocolate lava cake ( that the right name for it?) that you enjoyed.
I cannot wait to read more of you posts as I am learning alot of information and am seeing some great suggestions for our next trip!

 

[DisneyJo]

Great reviews again, I've heard mixed reviews about the CR but as we're on the DP feel as though we would like to do it just once!

 

[mommyaof2]

Wonderful reviews!!! Keep em coming!

 

[Disfan3]

great pics and reviews~~

I too had the delicious Tonga Toast from CC in August of 2006! It was about 4 dollars I think...anyway it was super yummy and fyi all...even tho the bananas may get a little brown, you can keep the toast in the fridge and it tastes good cold...for a desert too!!

 

[Enchanted Tiki Bird]

Thanks for the reviews. This is very helpful for planning our honeymoon.

Could you tell me more about the tuna roll from Wolfgang's that came with your DH's meal? You mentioned that it was cooked. I am used to tuna rolls being served as maki where the tuna remains uncooked. This is just for curiousity sake. We do plan to eat there though.

I think we have safely taken CR off our list. There are too many other places in EP that we wanted to try. I'm amazed by the number of people who go there and don't order the seafood. This speaks volumes about a restaurant that is housed in an aquarium.

The Tonga Toast sounds yummy but not for breakfast.