Have you been to Epcot's Coral Reef? opinions needed!!

[mickeygirl14]

We ate there this past Sept. We were really looking forward to it because it had been such a neat restaurant when we'd eaten there a few years before. It was awful. The service was really slow, but okay, but the food was the worst we had all week. I got the steak and it had so much gristle and fat on it, it was totally inedible. I did not send it back because it was a late reservation anyway and it had taken forever to get our food. None of us felt like waiting to get another plate cooked. Won't be going back.

 

[Pixie Princess]

We've eaten here three times, with the last time being in Oct. in 2009. It is one of my favorite places to go. I always get the Mahi Mahi or Talapia. Yum! Very good. We've sat by the tank twice, which is nice. Just be prepared for the possibility of people stopping next to your table to take photos.

I will say this places has the slowest service of any restaurant we've been to at WDW. Consistently slow. We had a server with a less than happy attitude once, but otherwise the servers have been friendly and helpful. And did I mention the service was slow? If not, it is. I have decided the slow service must be by design. I think they want you to be able to soak up the scenery without being bothered with order taking, food arriving before you pass out etc. Now we make this work for us by doing a lunch reservation. We usually visit around 1:00 or 1:30 and have a leisurely lunch out of the heat. By the time we're done we're refreshed and the crowd in the park is starting thin out.

 

[bdcp]

Besides kids running up and trying to push their way to the tank while also pushing against our chairs, there was a child literally screaming the entire time. The waiter mentioned it, as did the couple at the table next to us. The parents apparently just sat in their seats while the child screamed because I guess they wanted to eat more than they wanted to parent. I think the child was about 2, but should have been removed to calm down. It was also as others posters said, just a noisy place. We were there for dinner, around 7 I think.

 

[mickey778]

I have gone there about 3 times. This last Nov SUCKED. They changed chef's and a lot of the food has changed. The waiter did tell us that many people liked the old lobster bisqe better too.

The staff and presentation has gotten bad. Food was slow coming out. No refills on coffee. The list could go on. They were also out of some of the entees and the little dolphin that goes on the kids drinks (my son waits for that each time)

We did candlelight processional were going to miss our time. The waiter brought us the check less than 30 min before the show was to start. People start lining up early and we had 9 people in the party including my 89 year old papa in a w/c. He knew this too. That is a long walk for anyone. When we said something he blew us off. I went to the manager and he thought the waiter was crazy telling us we could make it and he gave us the later seating.

 

[Daisy&Max]

My family did a walk in for lunch two weeks ago and the food was wonderful, the service was great, and our table faced the tank. I was able to order an app cesar salad that was not on the lunch menu and I had the NY steak. I ordered it very rare and it came out exactly as I had asked. My mother had the lobster soup and thought it was great and she loved her lobster ravioli. One of my sons is 10 but doesn't eat adult meals and he was able to order off the kids menu with no difficulty and my youngest who wasn't very hungry told the server he was sharing with me. When they brought out my lunch, they brought out an extra plate for him. Our server was fantastic and was quick with refilling drinks and answering questions.

We were up in the risers where the booths face the tank and even my kids commented on how it was nice to be up here because we could see the entire tank and not just a small spot right in front of us.

We were dining OOP and it was worth every penny we paid for it!

Daisy

 

[jjsoccermom]

My family has been there twice the first time the food/service was suppurb we were not seated next to the tank but you could still see it great. The second time we were there we were celebrating DD 16th Birthday we requested a seat next to the tank because that was when you could have a diver hold a sign when you were celebrating something. Service and Atmosphere was wonderful, the food was just mediocre. I do not think we will go back this time.

 

[foxtrotter]

Besides kids running up and trying to push their way to the tank while also pushing against our chairs, there was a child literally screaming the entire time. The waiter mentioned it, as did the couple at the table next to us. The parents apparently just sat in their seats while the child screamed because I guess they wanted to eat more than they wanted to parent. I think the child was about 2, but should have been removed to calm down. It was also as others posters said, just a noisy place. We were there for dinner, around 7 I think.

Your review is very similar to ours. We were all the way in the back corner so we didn't have to deal with the children wanting to look at the tank, but there were multiple children screaming the entire meal. I watched the parents of one just pretend that it wasn't happening, eating and chatting and ignoring their child. There were kids running around and throwing food.

It was so LOUD and chaotic I thought maybe we'd accidentally walked into Chef Mickey's--except that Chef Mickey's is calmer. Not a great choice for our anniversary dinner. The next day we had lunch at Sci-Fi and had a laugh at how nice and quiet it was and how we should have had our anniversary dinner there.

The food was okay. Nothing impressive. The service was very good but not good enough to override the atmosphere. We couldn't wait to get out of there and won't be going back.

 

[Rekenna]

Hi! Our family has been to CR mutliple times and we have always had good experiences. This past trip-DH, myself and DS12 all had the New York Strip, mashed potatoes and Chocolate Wave, a from all of us. DS5 had the kids pizza and DS3 had grilled chicken breast with mashed potatoes, another 2 ! The little boys had make your own sundaes and really liked them as well.

The boys actually ate there again that week with my sisters and once again loved their meals. This restaurant just works well for our family. We have always had decent service and we have sat next to the tank, a booth on the bottom tier and a booth on the second tier and have done well in all seats. We have had the regular DDP every time we have eaten there.

Please try it out, it's definetly worth checking out at least once. This was our favorite until we went to 'Ohana, so now CR is our 2nd fave.

Enjoy!

 

[telephoneman66]

Ate there with wife and 2 kids Nov-10. Had the NY Strip steak, I know, but read reviews about how great it was, and they were right. It was great. I wouldn't want a table right next to the tank for 2 reasons. 1) People let their kids wander and they'll crowd the table, I saw it happen to others. (My kids were not the ones wandering, if you're wondering) 2) The tank is HUGE !! and if you're close to it, you can't see as well as if you're back off of it some distance. The tables close had a great view of the fish swiming close to the glass and low in the tank, but there's a lot of fish swiming 15 feet above their heads they couldn't see from that close. There's really not a bad seat in the house with a view of the tank.

 

[Paging Tom Morrow]

On a scale of 1 to 10, I'd give Coral Reef a -50,000. Worst. Dining. Experience. Ever.

 

[Swalphin]

We had lunch at Coral Reef on 12/13, we also dined their last April. I really like it, I am not a fish or meat eater, DH enjoys both. Thee have one of my favorite veggie options in the park. It is a phylo dough dish with mushrooms, chesses, and red sauce. I absolutely love it. DH, has fish of some sort and is very pleased and he is pretty picky about fish. We had a great server last month, very professional yet friendly at the same time. I have noticed the folks next to the tank get alot of visitors while they dine, that would get on my nerves. Each table has a view so I prefer not to be next to the tank with someone coughing on me

 

[Ed J]

We ate there on our last trip. 3 adults and 1 kid, 4 seafood entrees plus the sampler appy. Food was good as was the service, the place needs a facelift though the seat (bench) where I sat was way beyond broken in.

I'd go back.

 

[honeybeeyellow]

We ate at the Coral Reef in 2009. The food was good, but not great. I think the problem was me though. My entree was a bit too spicy for me. We did, however, love the fact we got to order smooties as our drink at no extra charge!

Also, our reservation was for 11:00. I did not realize that this was there opening time for the day. When we arrived we were the only people in the waiting area(we always arrive early). I thought something was wrong! We were the first to be seated so we just asked for a tank side table. They let us pick the one we wanted! Any table there though is a good view due to the stadium seating.

Hope that helps!

 

[MommytoaSweetie]

I don't know if you still need opinions, but I'll type ours out anyway. We tried it last year (Jan, 2010). We got there 25 minutes before our ADR - at checkin, my husband mentioned that we'd love to be close to the tanks if there was a quick opening, but NOT if that delayed our seating. We waited 30 minutes (so 5 min after ADR)... DH checked at the stand and all their reasons were ridiculous (and we said just seat us ANYWHERE!... we waited another 15 minutes (with a toddler and infant)... saw tons of guests get there after us and be seated quickly... we waited another 15 minutes and finally got seated - so an hour after we got there, 35 minutes after our ADR. And nope, definitely not even close to the tanks. The server was good - we explained that we had waited forever, were very hungry, and pretty annoyed. He brought things out quickly - our girls did enjoy watching the fish (and especially the scuba divers!!!), the food was good, and our server was great. For dessert (we were on DDP), we explained that we wanted to get out in time for Illuminations and it was getting close (with a long walk), so he packed them up to-go. VERY nice. Overall, we're not going this trip... I'm not sure if we'd try it again... we liked the food and the atmosphere, but the wait was NOT AT ALL worth it and the front staff were just rude.

 

[jak07]

We have eaten at Coral Reef several times and really enjoyed it!!!

The last time the service was SLOW, but the food was good. We sat on the second tier and had a better view of the tank than if we were seated by the tank.

It wasn't too loud except when Diver Mickey made an appearance. Everyone jumped up and ran to take pictures.

We will definately be going back in the future.

 

[MickeyNicki]

We have been there twice..first time was in 2000 and I remember that the rest of my part (4 other people) had some type of fish and didnt like it...they all wished they ordered the filet like I had. We had a 2nd tier level roundish booth

The second time was in 2009 and we took our 2 nieces....we had a third tier table although I did request a table next to the tank but in hindsight I am glad we didnt get it because the view was sooo much better up higher.

Wish I could say the food was good but I was the only one that enjoyed it. The kids had the pizza and it was nasty, a pita shell with sauce and cheese. They ate bread and fries and then devoured the do it yourself sundae...they had a great time even though they didnt like the food.

DH had the NY Strip and said it was terrible, a very bad cut and no flavor. Very tough.

I had the sauteed grouper with risotto..the fish was fantastic but the risotto was a bit too salty for me.

I dont think we will go back unless there is a huge menu change.

 

[GeorgeG]

We've eaten at Coral Reef many times oer the years, but not in the last few. Even going to back a number of years, there has been inconsistency in the food, just okay to really good. The atmosphere and service was always good. I'm pretty sure all the tables against the tank are for two, or at least most of them are. We've been seated there a few times and prefer being back where you can actually see more. Never had a problem with kids, but would be annoyed if we did (parenting is not what it used to be).

There seems to be a lot of very negative reviews lately. I'll chalk at least some of that up to the dreaded DDP (hey, it's a given). I've become very synical lately and don't expect what we enjoyed for so many years. At least that way, if we get a really good meal we're very happy.

 

[alala]

We ate at Coral Reef in Oct. 2010 and had a pleasant meal. I don't have any complaints. DH had the NY strip, I had the grouper, and our 2 kids had the grilled fish from the kids' menu. For dessert, we had creme brulee, chocolate mousse, and 2 kids' sundaes. We were all happy with our meals; in fact I don't think I left a single bite of my entree or dessert on the plate! It was our first TS of the trip, and while it was a nice, satisfying, relaxing meal, it was not one of my favorites.

From reading others' comments, it sounds like service is really variable. We were seated within about 10 minutes of our ADR time. Our server was very polite and helpful, but it did take a while for our food to come.

We actually had one of the tables near the back of the dining room, farthest from the tank, and we still had a decent view of it. My kids were very impressed by the aquarium, fish, scuba divers, etc. (And no, they didn't run around up by the tank ) From reading the other comments, maybe it was a blessing to be far away from the tank and eat in peace!

I would say give it a try. I'm glad that we went, but we're not going back this trip. It's not a "must-do" for us, and there are so many other things that we still want to try.

 

[hammie59]

In 2008 the food was good. It was our first time there. We had a nice view of the tank, but were in the very back in last tier. I had snow crab legs, dh and son had mahi mahi. Both dinners were good. The bread was pretty tasty too. Dessert now is a blur, I have no idea what we had, but I don't remember not liking it so I hope that helps.

 

[michelleiada]

Thinking about trying coral reef in epcot for dinner...

How is the food?

Is there a way to guarantee we get a table right next to the aquarium?

How would this work on the disney dining plan as a table service credit-is an appetizer/desserts/drinks included? ?

We have eaten there and had a very good experience. Our server was excellent and we all had the sirloin which was excellent. As far as the dining plan goes, appetizers used to be included a few years ago but are no longer. Soft drinks and dessert are included though. There is no guarantee that you will get a seat in front of the aquarium however, it is so large that you can see it from no matter where you sit. Enjoy.