Garden Grill -The good, the bad, the indifferent

[BebopBaloo]

It's been a looooong time since I've been to Garden Grill and I really don't remember a whole lot. For those that have been in the past year, I'd love to know your thoughts on the food, service, atmosphere, character interaction, etc. Thanks DIS-ers!

 

[mom2val]

We ate there Dec 12, 2009. We had an ADR for 7 pm and got there 15 mins earlier. We were seated within 5 mins. We enjoyed watching the scenery change as we ate. We were on the top row. Characters were great. They came around quickly and we did not feel rushed. We enjoyed the calm and quiet of the meal. The food was ok. Not the best but I have had way worse. The fish was dry. I enjoyed the salad, bread and roasted root vegetables. Dessert was huge and we were really full by the time it came.

 

[Bitsmommy]

We were there September of 08. The character interaction was great. The food was good. I really liked the salad. It was so fresh!!! The bread was great too. I was a fan of the meat, but not the fish. All in all, it was great for the character interaction and atmosphere and good for the food. It kind of reminded me of a "Disney Cracker Barrell." DH loved the way that the place rotated and that there was really no rush. I plan on going back with DS this year as we are going to Disney before DH and it will be a nice place for the two of us to eat with the characters without me having to try to fill plates for both of us and keep him contained by myself.

ETA: sorry I know that you asked for people that had been there in the past year, but I wanted to give you my two cents.

 

[MJAJmom]

We went to Garden Grill for the first time with my boys in June09. It's a neat place because it rotates very slowly, so you can get a view of Livin with Land scenery. The booths are fun to sit in, we sat on the outside lower row. The character interaction was excellent, all the characters were very playful and not rushed, they came around twice. The food is a fixed menu which is just OK, the dessert was very yummy. We all enjoyed it so we will be going again in April 2010.

Have a wonderful trip!!

 

[mickey2minnie1]

We were there the last week of October. I had heard that the food was not great, but my one son loves chip and Dale. We had eaten at Le Cellier for lunch so I was not that hungry.

The food was actually super fresh and good. We were pleasantly surprised.

The character interaction was fabulous. the restaurant is not that big so we saw each of them about 4 times. I have so many pics. Service was super as well.

I would not go for the food, but would go for the character interaction. the food was a bonus.

 

[ElizabethG]

This is my favorite character meal. It was quieter than I expected. The food was good. The characters came by our table twice. My DD fell in love with Chip, who is now her favorite.

 

[BebopBaloo]

Thanks everyone! I think I've decided to add this one to our list

 

[Dawn68PA]

We just decided to add this to our list of restaurants for our next trip. I'm so glad to read about the freshness and good characters!

 

[iteachlit]

We ate there in November. We really enjoyed the food. It wasn't busy at all. Most of the characters stopped two times. I think Chip and Pluto came by three times each.

The salad, fish and dessert really stood out for me.

 

[monica23535]

We ate dinner there on 11/17 and we really enjoyed it, the characters were great and my 3 year old son loves Chip & Dale so he had a blast.

We enjoyed the food, all very fresh. My favorite was the salad and the turkey and my husband loved the mahi-mahi.

 

[3Gs4Me]

This question has been very helpful to me as well. I have an add on question since I am confused by the seating level comments. Can you pick your seating and if so, where is the best seating for both character interaction and view located?

 

[BebopBaloo]

Next September is seeming so far away! Although, I'm sure it'll be here before we know it. Does anyone have pictures from Garden Grill of the restaurant itself, food, view?

 

[pixarmom]

This question has been very helpful to me as well. I have an add on question since I am confused by the seating level comments. Can you pick your seating and if so, where is the best seating for both character interaction and view located?

We are Garden Grill fans! We have three boys (pre-school through pre-teen) and they all love it. It's our first-night tradition for every trip. The food is good (certainly not the best at Disney, but good) and it's a very relaxed atmosphere for meeting Mickey and Chip and Dale. If my kids had to pick just one TS restaurant in all of Disney, this would be it. They love how the restaurant rotates, the characters never seemed rushed, the food selection is good for all of us (even our pickiest eater!) and the make-your-own-cupcake dessert for kids is very fun.

As for table selection, unless you have particular needs that dictate otherwise, I generally recommend asking for a table in the booths on the bottom level. (The upper level has regular tables and chairs, and rotates past the servers' station - just seems busier.) The semi-circle booths are great for family conversation and character interaction, and provides a little barrier from the other tables so even if GG is busy, it doesn't seem busy. The only downside to the lower level booths is that if you have more than two kids who really want to interact with the characters, it would be harder for little ones to get in and out of booths than the chairs on the upper level.

Hope that helps - hope everyone enjoys it as much as we do!