While we were in the park that morning, I pointed out potential lunch spots to Jeremy as we would pass them. I let him know that today was his day to choose. We could do Crystal Palaces buffet if he wanted to do another character meal (we had an ADR). Or, we could go the easy route and have counter service at any number of places.
As lunchtime approached we had worked up quite an appetite, so unfortunately we wanted to eat when everyone else in the park had that in mind, also. Jeremy wanted something quicker, thinking it would be nice to head to the pool afterward and get in some lounging time before we got dressed for dinner.
I let him know what types of food each counter service offered, and he decided on
Columbia Harbour House. I was secretly happy about this because I knew they had a delicious looking sandwich made with Hummus.
We walked in, were comforted by the cool air inside, but then instantly wanted to turn around by the sight of the line in front of us. It was a madhouse. Looking back, this was the only time we ate somewhere that was mobbed by people and it also happened to be our only counter service meal of the entire trip!
We were troopers though, and faced the mass of people head-on. One thing I noted was that even though it appeared we would be able to place our order soon as the line got shorter for us, the people in front of us were ordering for a huge number of people!
When it was our turn, Jeremy was quick to place his order, turning to me to make my selection. After mentioning I was vegan and needed an alternative for the dessert, the waiter told me he had to call the manager. Even though I said that wouldnt be necessary since I knew exactly what I could have, he was insistent, and the manager came to confirm my order.
We had to wait on the large families in front of us as they gathered their huge amounts of French fries and sodas. The poor attendants behind the counter were more confused than we were, mixing up drinks and side items.
When we picked up our food, they had given me chips instead of French fries, but it was easily remedied and we went to find a less noisy spot in the seating area upstairs.
Ravenous at this point, I didnt care that they had also forgotten both of our desserts. Jeremy wasnt concerned either, since we still had two snack credits each for that day!
He ordered the
Chicken Nuggets and Fries. While there wasnt much to them other than that, he loves these two food items, and when combined with Honey Mustard I dont think he could have been happier at that moment. Nothing bad to report, but nothing different than any other fast food nuggets meal either, for that matter.
I had ordered the
Lighthouse Sandwich without the broccoli slaw, which had dairy in it. I also ordered a side of French fries, which I received after the mix-up of potato chips. The sandwich was actually very large, even while only containing hummus and tomato on multigrain bread. It wasnt too heavy after walking hours in the sun, but was filling, so I didnt wind up eating many of the fries.
For dessert, Jeremy had ordered the
Chocolate cake, and I was able to get
grapes. Like I mentioned earlier, with all the chaos at the counter we did not receive our desserts. But neither of us thought the desserts were appetizing enough to face the throngs of hungry people again!
It didnt take long for us to finish up and leave. Total out of pocket would have been
$28.31. Would we go back? Only if we were on a meal plan that included quick service meals. For us, we didnt like the chaotic, rushed feeling. There are many people that view eating in the parks as just something that they need to get over and done with, but we really love food and like to enjoy the experience of dining. The food was good, but nothing at all special and I feel a waste of one of our meal credits.
That said, Columbia Harbour House offered a better selection than many of the counter service restaurants in Magic Kingdom, and had a lot of seating space in the upstairs portion of the restaurant.
Blech, I would have taken one look and made a beeline for the door, no way I could have tried it either. 
