Easy to Please Thread?

[Withacy]

When I read all these reviews, I sometimes wonder if I've been to the same place. And it doesn't make it easy for me to decide what new places to go to.

Maybe I need my own section - an Easy to Please section. I read bad reviews about places I really enjoy (like Sci Fi Drive In - a MUST for every trip, or Whispering Canyone Cafe) and all I can think is "We had fun, no one got sick, and no one was mean to us".

Maybe MY reviews wouldn't be very helpful to people with higher standards. But I think I'd find reviews from people with similarly low standards much more helpful.

I wonder why the folks at Michelin don't return my calls...

OK - who's with me in the Easy to Please section? Anyone?

 

[wide awake]

I usually read a wide selection of reviews and go from there. And if we've been there and liked it I just assume the other person and I don't see eye to eye and forget about it. There are also certain things that people say that are a huge tipoff that our reviews aren't going to match. When people write that they order their meat anyway but rare...when they say they don't really like vegetables, fish, whatever...when they come right out and say they're picky eaters...when they complain about the food after telling you they had two martinis before dinner...I like to drink but I do realize that my taste buds might not be at their most discerning after a liquor bath...when they order an icky combo for their meal...cheese in their app, main course, and dessert for example, or all fried things, or ask to sub starch for veg. I just scroll right on down to the next review.

 

[DisGirl23]

Count me in!
Let me first say that I can be a pretty picky eater. I do not eat seafood, prime rib, filet mignon... I don't drink wine... I could go on. I am a simple food kind of gal. Maybe that's why I haven't noticed much missing off the menus since the dining plan started. Most of it is stuff I wouldn't eat anyway.

We always love Sci-Fi for lunch, not dinner. I like to enjoy the theming and, for me, that included a burger, fries and a shake. Burgers were not on the dinner menu the one time we ate there for dinner so, we made note of it.

DBF and I really enjoyed our dinner at Whispering Canyon Cafe last fall. Unless we just got really lucky, we had an excellent experience. Great service, the steaks were great! Tender, not fatty, and flavorful. We like to try different places but, DBF made it very clear that WCC was one he definitely wanted to go back to this year.

We also really liked Coral Reef (gasp). DBF loved his lobster ravioli and I (the no seafood girl) really liked the chicken caesar salad.

In all my trips, I can't recall a terrible restaurant experience. I think there's only one place I'm not dying to get back to... Big River Grille. We didn't hate it, it was just okay. The server was great, the atmosphere was nice, just thought our food was a little bland.

We've never gotten sick from anything we've eaten. Except the occasional upset stomach telling me to STOP SNACKING! Which is difficult with all those delicious treats everywhere!

This year we will be doing Chef Mickey's for the first time. Although it seems like one of the most hated restaurants on this board sometimes, I am very excited about it. It's a classic and I'm looking forward to the experience. Maybe I'll hate it too but, I won't know if I don't try it.

On a side note, I also don't have a problem making ADRs 180 days out. I don't know what I'm going to want to eat 6 months from now either but, I've don't the menu research and I know they're going to have something there for me to eat. Just my take on it.

 

[Withacy]

My tip offs are if someone complains about how loud a place was, if it's someplace you'd expect to be loud, or complain about small things that no one has control over (like related to the behavior of other guests).

 

[Amysita]

I'm with you...EZ to please. I'm just thrilled to be in parks that serves more than just cold hotdogs, hamburgers that have been under a heat lamp for hours, where deluxe nachos is when you have jalapenos added to watered down cheese sauce pour over chip crumbs, and day old pizza!

 

[kstatefamily]

We don't eat out much at home. I'm just happy not to have to decide on the menu, cook it and clean up after we are done eating. We were on the DxDP 2 years ago and honestly only ate at one place that we said we didn't want to go back to.

 

[Withacy]

Count me in!
Let me first say that I can be a pretty picky eater.

{snip}

This year we will be doing Chef Mickey's for the first time. Although it seems like one of the most hated restaurants on this board sometimes, I am very excited about it. It's a classic and I'm looking forward to the experience. Maybe I'll hate it too but, I won't know if I don't try it.

Well, I'm NOT a picky eater. I don't like beans - that's my one big thing (though I'll sometimes eat refried beans or hummus). There are a few little things I don't care for - I'll just eat around them if I don't like them.

I've actually been brought the wrong thing before (not at WDW) and just ate it ("oh, that looks interesting"). I actually enjoyed it. When one of my co-diners pointed it out when the waitress came back, I was half-way done and said I didn't need them to bring me something else - and I actually felt guilty when they didn't charge me for my meal. Like I said, I'm just not very picky.

Of course, if they brought me bean soup, I'd probably send it back.

I took an 8-year old to Chef Mickey's for breakfast and she absolutely loved it. But she was loving the chaos - I doubt either of us can remember what we ate. I don't have it on the schedule for my next trip - with another adult. But I wouldn't actively avoid going there either.

 

[bluejasmine]

Another easy pleaser here.. We love places like Ohana, Sci Fi, Le Cellier, Nine Dragons, Beirgarten, Mama Melrose, Capt Cooks, Coral Reef.. The ones that everyone seem to rave about where the ones I didnt care for.. CP and Kona Cafe, Tangerine Cafe. LOL

 

[disnut8]

I'm with you. Our wants and needs are very simple. We place our order and get what we want (my husband will usually ask for a substitute for a side item but always asks first what is available), and then we are usually fine. About the only "special" request we might have is for extra ketchup or other sauce. Other than that, check us once during the meal, then leave us alone until we're done and the bill is ready.

I've dined with people who have tons of special needs and requests and they get aggravated with service very quickly. Guess what - we don't eat with them anymore. Too much of a hassle and ruins the meal for me.

 

[Local_Girl]

I'm with you. Our wants and needs are very simple. We place our order and get what we want (my husband will usually ask for a substitute for a side item but always asks first what is available), and then we are usually fine. About the only "special" request we might have is for extra ketchup or other sauce. Other than that, check us once during the meal, then leave us alone until we're done and the bill is ready.

I've dined with people who have tons of special needs and requests and they get aggravated with service very quickly. Guess what - we don't eat with them anymore. Too much of a hassle and ruins the meal for me.

I agree with this! We're another easy to please family. I often wonder when folks vaguely say they received "bad service" at a restaurant what exactly that means. If I have to wave down a server for a drink refill, it's not the end of the world!

We never even ate at the place where we received the absolute worst service (not WDW). We were seated at a table and ignored for 25 minutes. No water, no contact. There were only about 4 tables of diners in an empty restaurant, and the servers were standing around chatting and looking, it seemed right through us. We must've had our invisibility cloaks on, lol. We finally got up and left, and no one said anything. And yes, we lodged a complaint with the corporate office.

 

[lilwhiterabbit]

As long as it's edible and fairly tasty, I'm good.

The things that will really turn me off and make me leave a negative review are cold food, actually bad food (like, spit it out bad) and really bad service. So far I've never had bad service at a Disney World restaurant, but I've had cold food (Crystal Palace, Cosmic Rays), and bad food (Salmon at Yachtsman so overcooked it was un-chewable and tasted like carbon). Oddly, the places I've experienced the worst meal are places that consistently get good reviews, so I may just have gone on a bad day.

I love Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater. It's a little pricey for the simple fare on the menu, but it's always been well-cooked and tasty and I love the atmosphere. I adore Whispering Canyon. We stayed at Wilderness Lodge one year and ate there three or four times during our stay because the food was so good and the service so friendly.

 

[PixieDustandEeyore]

I'm with ya! I'm not expecting 5 star food im just expecting something satisfying to my not overly picky tummy (after hardcore dieting for 9 months to lose 100 lbs Im going to enjoy even the not so amazing cheeseburger buns haha)

We are going to marrakesh, sci fi, whispering canyon, tony's town square to name a few of the often negatively reviewed restaurants. ive only ever been to Sci fi and Tony's and I love both so much ! Then again my only complaint last year was of the tye dye cheesecake at POP and it wasnt that it tasted bad (it tasted good) it did some interesting colouring changing of a TMI fashion

 

[calngavinsmom]

Add me to your EZ 2 please list. We are going on our 5th year of free dining dining and we only had one experience that was "bad" at Hollywood and Vine. Other than that, everything has been quite enjoyable!

So much so that it has been hard to tear ourselves away from our favourites and try something new.....which I want to do too cuz you never know if you will find a new favourite unless you try!

Man I cannot wait to get some yummy Disney fare

Take care

 

[Withacy]

I actually had the best ribs I've ever had at the Sci Fi Drive In. About 7 years ago, I had CocaCola Ribs - they were incredible.

I go there every trip. Sometimes I like what I have, sometimes I don't so much (it could be me - it could be what I ordered - it could be them...who knows?). Sometimes the service is right on, sometimes it's not. But I look at it like going to a friend's house. Maybe they're a good cook, maybe they're not - but whether or not I go back depends on how much I like my friend, not on one bad meal.

 

[Nadjalu]

Well I am hard to please, yet I have not had a bad food at any of the restaurants.
We love WCC and Chef Mickey's which both get bad reviews all the time.

So I can join in with saying I take all the reviews with a grain of salt. I imagine many reviews are based on unreal expectations so therefore they are disappointed.
But I go with the thought "I liked the menu, so I will most likely like the food".

 

[Mousemom]

We're also a family that is Easy to Please. I enjoy eating out, so a week at WDW where I get to choose what I want to eat and not have cook or clean, I'm thrilled. My husband and I are not real picky but our kids are. We have not eaten anywhere that we all can't find something that we like. Never miss eating at Sci Fi - enjoy the food and theming. Wilderness Lodge - YUM! Love the Coral Reef, Ohana's fun and a great atmosphere. I'm even happy eating at any of the counter service areas.

 

[DonaldTDuck]

I tried LTT dinner because of all the bad reviews. People kept saying the mac'ncheese tasted like Stouffers. I love Stouffers. Others complained about the dressing, the lack of choices, etc. I loved everything I ate. I don't do fruit(I know), so asked for a scoop of a la mode for dessert. Our server brought me a bowl of ice cream that could have been a meal to itself. The only place I won't go back to is the ever popular Boma. I'm sure it's just mu unsophisticated taste buds. I would never have gone there, but there was a Dismeet there and I got to meet about 25 Dissers, so it was still worth it.

 

[HunnyJar]

Add my family to the easy to please group! We have only had one experience that left a pretty bad taste in our mouths and that was at the Tangierine Cafe. The food just wasn't good (to us - thought it was completely tasteless/bland) and the service was really rude, but other than that we haven't had an experience or meal that would keep us from going back to another restaurant. Of course some servers are much better than others, but that's true with any restaurant you go to. And even your local favorite restaurants have days where their menu items are a little off, so why can't that happen while you are on vacation?

We happen to really enjoy the food at WDW and planning our meals is something I happen to really enjoy. While I do read some of the reviews, if the menu sounds like something my family would enjoy that's what we base our ADR's off of. Everyone has different tastes, so while someone might find something "totally gross," we just might like it.

 

[vicki_c]

Your title caught my eye right away! We always feel that way. We have never had a bad meal at Disney. Now some are less memorable than others - I don't think I've ever had what I would consider an AMAZING meal at WDW (maybe Artist Point once), so my expectations are really reasonable.

I don't go to Disney for gourmet dining and I have never been disappointed ever, except for 1 meal with an absolutely horrendous waitress at the Turf Club. But I will still go back there if I'm staying at SSR and hope we don't get the same waitress.

I think the high prices drive higher expectations, but I don't look at it that way - I know I'm paying more because of the experiences, convenience, because you are a captive audience in many ways, etc.

 

[dixonsontour]

I like the food pictures thread on here - if it looks good to me then it's worth a try.

Also the dining reviews on here - over a few days of a report you get an idea if the poster enjoys eating like you do.