First Night at the Boardwalk - where to eat?

[Pig Pen]

I am beginning to plan the itinerary for our December trip. DH prefers that I NOT plan every minute this time as he feels sticking to a schedule cramps his style, but I really want to make sure we have an ADR for our first night.

We will arrive at MCO about 4:15 pm, so I am planning that our check-in at BWV will be accomplished by 7:00 pm. I am thinking about a dinner ADR for 7:30 pm - something nice, but light.

My choices have been narrowed down to the Big River Grille or Yacht Club Galley. We stopped at Big River once for a snack and a beer. Had breakfast once at Yacht Club Galley. We enjoyed them both.

Any preferences or suggestions?

 

[kldmom2000]

Good choices..... we love the Yacht Club Galley and fortunately it's not usually very crowded and if you don't have an ADR, you can sometimes get in... I was also going to suggest Cape May Cafe as well

 

[byoung]

Spoodles no BRG.

 

[Paul in CT]

Big River Grille varies a lot, but the beer is good. We have had both good and bad meals there. We haven't been to Yacht Club Galley since before it closed and reopened, but we did like it then. The menu is a lot more ambitious there. I would vote for the latter if you have more time to cross the lake.

My DW and I will be going in December, too. Our favorites at BW are Flying Fish and Spoodles.

 

[3princesses4us]

Are you on the dining plan? If so, then definately Spoodles. It's one of the best values per TS credit around.

 

[CoolDisneyCat]

I would have to go with Spoodles over either Big River or YC Galley.

Don't forget to stop by the bakery for some yummy snacks to take back to your room! That's a first night tradition for us.

 

[Pig Pen]

Thanks for the suggestions. We will not be on the dining plan as we don't seem to eat enough to make it worthwhile. We like to eat a big lunch and graze the rest of the day. We do have the DDE card though.

I haven't been able to locate a very complete menu for Spoodles on any of my favorite sites. I know it serves Mediterranean food....I am Italian and very picky about it! Didn't they used to serve tapas?

If anyone has a current menu link, I would appreciate looking at it.

 

[Alice Sr.]

http://www.allearsnet.com/menu/menu_spd.htm

last updated 04/06

 

[slcmkh]

We are DVC and our home resort is at the Boardwalk. We have tried the Big River Grill a number of times on our arrival, and have never been pleased with the meal or service. We won't be going back there any time soon.

Sorry for being so negative, but this is the only restaurant at Disneyworld where we have a strong negative opinion based on several experiences there.

 

[marciagms]

http://www.allearsnet.com/menu/menu_spd.htm

You can find the menu to any place at Disney. This is so helpful when planning. We are staying at the Boardwalk Villas for the first time at DVC members, and we are so excited. We have been staying at the All-Stars each time and I know this is going to be a nice upgrade. We tried Spoodles last March and it was great. I hope this helps!

 

[disnut8]

Big River Grille doesn't take ADRs. My choice for a first night dinner at the Boardwalk would be either Big River Grille (usually no line) or the ESPN Club (sometimes a line, depending what game(s) is/are on the TVs). Yacht Club Galley would be nice as well and you can get an ADR for it.

 

[slcmkh]

As I said previously on this thread, I apologize for being negative here, but I will make one final comment.

My family isn't all that finicky when it comes to going out to eat, especially at DW. We have enjoyed several restaurants on multiple occasions that often get bad reviews on this site (Tony's, Coral Reef, SciFi, San Angel Inn, etc.) -- not always great experiences, but worth going back for another try at another time.

We have eaten several times at BRG upon arrival at BWV, out of convenience and not much of a wait, and have not been impressed. No plans to return.

There may be a hidden clue in those short wait times.