Exactly How Bad Is T-Rex?

[DadLightyear]

So, we have reservations for T-Rex for our first night of our trip. We picked T-Rex because we are celebrating our 2 year old's birthday, and he LOVES dinosaurs. I've read a lot of reviews, including the Unofficial Guide (ding), and I realize that we aren't going to the California Grill. It's over priced, loud, and the food isn't anything special...right?

Does anyone have any experience here? Any suggestions?

 

[xxliz28xx]

I enjoyed it. I mean I'm 25 and I thought it was so cool!

The food was good as was the cotton candy martini!

See the link in my signature for the food pictures!

 

[FINNS]

We ate there last August and enjoyed it very much. My boys ( 7 year old's b-day and an 11 year old) loved the atmosphere. Yes, it was very noisy, but I think wolf gang puck's is louder! No kidding! The noise in there was unbearable, at least you kind of expect that at a place themed with dinosaurs!

We enjoyed the food ( better than or at least on par with "Rainforest Cafe" IMO) and we had really great service, but I can't remember her name now...

Seems like even when personal taste is figured in, most of these places are either good or bad depending on the night!

Good luck, hope you enjoy it!

 

[Lynne M]

It's over priced, loud, and the food isn't anything special...right?

Spot on. The food isn't bad, just typical chain restaurant stuff. No different than you'd get at a Red Robin or TGIFridays, just way, way more expensive. A friend and i had one dinner salad, one order of fish tacos, and two sodas, and it came to $50 with tip.

But, you're paying for the theming. And if your little one is crazy for dinos, he'll love it. Be aware that it's VERY loud, especially during the meteor shower, so if he has trouble with loud noises, you may want to take that into account.

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

T-Rex's food is average. IMO overpriced for the quality.

HOWEVER, the experience is really cool.

Since you have decided to go for your 2 yr old, why not consider picking up food somewhere else in DTD (Earl of Sandwich, etc) and go to T-Rex to share one of their colossel (sp??) desserts??

We went last year and I was okay with the place. Our bill was $70 for 1 entree, 1 meal, 1 kid's meal and 2 drinks. The service was slow and yes, it was loud. DH and DS(2.5 @ the time) really liked it so we will be returning on this trip. However, we will be a lot more careful with how we configure our meal. I don't want to spend that much again! We are going at an off time (around 3:30p) so hopefully it will be a much better service experience than the beginning of lunch.

If you do go at a peak time, be prepared to wait for your food. The place is massive, and if the restaurant fills up quickly, the kitchen gets slammed and leads to the long food ticket times.

Best of luck.

 

[Princess&CowboyMommy]

We've eaten there twice. The first time we were seated closer to the figures and my kids (then barely 4 and 6) were a little scared because it was sooo loud. When the roaring, movement stopped, they were both fine and eventually got used to it - it was just the first 15-20 minutes or so that they had to get used to it.

The second time was about a year later and we were seated more in the "middle" of the rows and not "next" to the animatronics. My kids were about a year older and did much better that time. So, given your son's age, you might ask if there is any way to have more a "middle" row table and not next to the speakers/animatronics.

As far as food - we thought it was almost identical to Rainforest Cafe, but with just different names of the items. We always love the nachos on the appetizer menu, but as a main dish, but usually can share them among 2-3 people and still have leftovers....it's HUGE and a great value for $10.

Also, they used to give a 10% discount for AAA, I think, not sure if they still do though...you might check though if you have a AAA card

 

[MickeyHereWeCome!]

We just ate at T-Rex on Saturday and LOVED it. Ds6 is already asking to go back next time. We thought the food was pretty good. Yes, it's super expensive, but good enough. Plus, you get a good amount, so you could share. The theming is awesome! It is loud and cold! If your little guy loves dinos, it will definitely be worth it. If you have a Safari card from Rainforest Cafe, use it here, as well, and get 10% off of your meal (or a free app.). We got the chocolate extinction......YUM!!

 

[Hootch]

say it's bad at all. We went last summer and thought it okay. Not a waste of money at all and we'll consider it the next trip.

 

[ZuZugal]

If you join the rainforest cafe safari club you also get the same discounts at t-rex. I think it is $15 to join, and you get a $10 voucher towards a meal. You also get a free app or 10% off entrees, and the card also get you priority seating. Here is the link on the mousesavers page: http://www.mousesavers.com/dlmeals.html#rainforest

If your ds loves dinos I think it will be well worth it. May not be the best meal of the trip but if you are going for the atmosphere you know before you walk in that it will be an average meal. We enjoy taking ds7 there.

 

[jlk806]

We loved it! Our son was 13 months at the time and he loved the dinos, the aquariums of fish, etc. The food was decent dont really remember what we had but we enjoyed it. We are on the dining plan this year but still have a ressie for TREX and will pay OOP because we liked it soo much.

 

[Tricia1972]

We enjoyed it. We went with our 1 1/2 year old, 4 year old, and 7 year old and all were fine with the noise. They all loved the theming and it was on their list of "Must Do" restaurants for 2011.

I was very pleased with my meal. I had the Paleonzoic Chicken Sandwich. With the fried pizza dough shell it felt much more like a meal than a sandwich. It was $12.99, and about right for what Disney charges for things like sandwiches. (Just a plain grilled chicken breast sandwich is $10.49 at Beaches and Cream)

I think if you go in with reasonable expectations, because you're right it's not California Grill, you'll be pleased with T-Rex.

 

[SnowWtch]

DH considers this a must do. We get an appetizer sampler and meteor bites dessert every time. The food is really good and the portions are amazing. It's extremely noisy but the overall place and food I would recommend.

 

[arielmomma]

We went when DS was 5 and he loved it. Even DH and I were impressed with the atmosphere. It is loud, but that is part of the experience. The food was good. If you've ever eaten at a Rainforest Cafe its the same foods with different names, basically. The portions were huge! We only ordered 2 meals and shared with the kids and we were full before we'd finished. The only reason we haven't gone back is because it is not on the dining plan.

 

[Tbasko]

My son is 18 and he asked to eat there when we go in December. He loves it, especially dessert!

 

[BuenaVistaBound]

It's a bit expensive, but is there any such thing as a cheap meal inside WDW? It gets very loud during the periodic meteor shower, but if your kids like dinosaurs they'll love the atmosphere. It's a HUGE place so it can be a little slow on the service end of things, but the upside is that you can walk around the different themed areas and explore the many animatronic dinosaurs that roam the dining perimeter. My kids walked around for 10 minutes while I waited for and paid the bill.

 

[ChildAtHeart82]

It's good to read all the positive reviews for T-Rex. We have an ADR there for the first night of our trip in December.

 

[bluejasmine]

We realy enjoy it! Its a bit loud but I thought it was neat and we all thought the food and drinks were great! A bit more than your average place like applebees but DH and I shared the chicken fried steak and it was very very good, big portion, steak was tender and outside was crisp and flavorful, mash potatos were great too! We have Trex Adr for our 1st night arriving in FL before we check into our WDW resort the next morning. IMHO I thought the food was better than Rainforest even tho its owned by same company, RFC food just seemed bland

 

[Jen0504]

I agree with everyone! It's all about the atmosphere. The food isn't horrible, but it's not the best I've ever had either. My nephew LOVES it there (he's 4), and both my teenagers (DS 15 and DS 16) think it's cool. I would definitely go for the experience.

 

[HunnyJar]

My family ate there in February and it looks like it is going to be a new family favorite for us. The food was very good (a lot better than we were expecting) and the service was excellent. The portions were also HUGE! We seriously considered getting a box to go.

It is very loud inside the restaurant and there is a meteor shower every 15 minutes. But the atmosphere is awesome and everyone enjoyed themselves, especially my husband who is a dinosaur nut! We will be asking to sit in the ice caves next time - they looked like a lot of fun!

Have a great time!

 

[LMO429]

We thought the food at the t-rex was very good. we were surprised we were not expecting much