hollywood and vine still horrid?

[sunny_stace]

anyone had any recent experiences with hollywood and Vine? I'm just wondering if it's still horrid....I've heard so many negative reviews I'm worried about pondering it...but it would likely be good as a solo TS choice right?

 

[pumba]

we go each visit to MGM and I have not had any bad experiences.....My hubby likes it too.......One visit was 9 of us and one was a vegetarian.....one was 85 years old .....two kiddos, 2 diet conscious moms and the rest of us would eat anything ......so all of us had a good experience ..

 

[sjms71]

I never thought it was "horrid"! We go every trip. Not our favorite place however, I don't think it's bad.

 

[mm6mm6]

Some people drive me a bit nuts. "Horrid?" At Walt Disney World, something is "horrid?" I don't think anything is horrid at WDW? I think some Waffle Houses, Denny's, McD's, can sometimes be horrid (flies in the garbage cans, slimy uncleaned tables, noisy, terrible service messing up orders, poorly cooked food that tastes lousy).

But WDW?

We have eaten at the H&V the last five years in a row. We LOVE it!

The wait staff is always friendly in that gum chewing, 1950's style the way they are supposed to be.

The food choices are excellent. I usually don't like salmon but I went back for seconds of their sauteed salmon. My DW loved the chicken and the sliced beef. The shrimp and cocktail sauce was so good, I eat about 25 of them each time. Our DD loves the pizza, the chicken nuggets, hot dogs, etc.

Of course, you really can't screw up the "do it yourself" ice cream sundaes with the million topping choices!

Plus, the price is right. For the Fantasmic Dinner Package, I think the H&V is an excellent choice. The Brown Derby is expensive (and 2 table services if you're on the DP) and Momma Melrose's is okay if you like just pasta.

I love a great buffet and the H&V is the furthest thing from "horrid" I can imagine.

I have no idea what people are complaining about. Five years in a row, we've looked forward to it every time!

I also like that it's attached the the 50's Prime Time Cafe. I like to look around there at the 50's themed kitchen, living room and bar. Reminds me of my parent's house built in 1954....

-Steve

 

[sandybobandy]

Sheesh. I too read so many bad reviews about H&V and they always surprise me! We've had nothing but awesome food and service there and can't wait to go back again!

 

[katiebsmom]

We ate there during our last trip and we loved it. The food there was great (much better than a few of the other TS places we went while there. You have to look for the pluses and not the negatives .

 

[Lostgirlz]

We liked it. Food was good we did not have any bad results, and waitress was really nice.

 

[jenjersnap]

Yes, dinner is still bad.

We enjoyed the character breakfast though!

 

[RandiB]

I went to Play and Dine for lunch, and dI liked the food. It wasn't as good as CP, but such is life.

I wasn't thrilled with the service. My daughter fell off of her chair at CP though, so we had waiters and managers checking on us all the time there. I might have been spoiled.

That sounded weird, she was fine.

 

[raidermatt]

It was never horrid in the first place.

 

[G's mommy]

We have only eaten at H and V once and did not enjoy it at all. It was for dinner, had a long wait even with ADR and the restaurant was a mess! Granted it was a later seating, but there was food on the floor and the buffet was wrecked. Very basic food, about like Golden Coral but 3 times the price. We will not return, there are much better quality buffets on property for the same price. At MGM, we stick to the 50's Prime Time or even Brown Derby if we want to spend a little more.

 

[minnierocks]

H&V is a "can't miss" for us! We go every time and it has never been horrid...
I also am surprised by all the bad reviews it gets. While it is not gourmet dining, it is a great buffet!

 

[keishashadow]

We ate there during our last trip and we loved it. The food there was great (much better than a few of the other TS places we went while there. You have to look for the pluses and not the negatives .

agree 100%

None of the restaurants @ MGM float my boat. Haven't tried Brown Derby as limited menu doesn't appeal to my family.

H&V has basic food (they have serveral items that grace Chef Mickey's buffet) in a wide range of selections for picky eaters. Dinner is good here, esp. the inexpensive Fantasmic deal. Fine, relaxed dining it's not; of course unless i'm paying 2 TS credits @ WDW I don't even hope for it. IMO, overall Disney's food service is excellent for an amusement park.

unfortunately, due to sloppy guests & the unsupervised kids getting their own grub (even @ the adult serving line) food does get dropped. Sort of like sticking fingers in a dike when it's busy ; have observed staff tidying up frequently - not sure what else we can expect them to do.

 

[chop456]

Horrid?!!?!!??? I like H&V and plan on returning this summer!

 

[mill4023]

This is one of those places that gets such mixed reviews that I'd just say give it a try and decide for yourself. We booked it on our first trip because it was the least expensive FDP option. I was nervous about it because of the DIS, but we all thought it was great.

 

[penjen]

We went last September and I was scared from the reviews too. We did wait a bit even with an adr but it was an average buffet. We are not going there this year (trying Mama Melrose) but I thought it was a lot better than what I was expecting.

 

[BillyRayJimBob]

We've been there twice. The first time (2001) I thought it was great. The last time (2005) I thought it was pretty poor. I recall having to wait to get in both times, but the 2005 wait was much longer. One poster likened it to the Golden Coral. It's much better than that and I think its as good as any buffet at Disney. I don't remember anything about the service on either trip, so that means it wasn't bad -- I would have remembered. Like all buffets, they are a mess. There are kids serving themselves (and having kids, I know that they have to do it themselves -- so no criticisms of the kids) so there is some mess arount the food bars, especially the ice cream bar. Personally, if I had to pick a buffet to go back to, it would be this one, but I would have a difficult time articulating a reason. Maybe I just like the diner setting. I too have read many negative things about the restaurant and if I had experienced some of the things, I'd be calling it horrid too.

As for inattentive waiters, I've been known to fill my own drink at the soda fountain when it really gets bad. That seems to get the waiter over a bit more often.

 

[Praying Colonel]

I'm always a little amazed at the strong opinions about H&V. It seems to be a lightning rod of sorts.

Our family has eaten there on our last 2 trips and we enjoyed both experiences. We knew going in we weren't going to get Victoria & Albert's. But it's a nice buffet with several good options, the service has been good and we like the retro art deco atmosphere.

 

[anabelle]

We went in September. Our waitress was really nice and the food was fine. It was not exceptional, just fine. Nothing was yucky, it was just kind of plain. We are trying Mama Melrose this year instead.

 

[LPZ_Stitch!]

Is it just me, or does the DIS rhetoric/hyperbole seem to be stepping up, lately?

"Horrid" "Inedible" "Disgusting" ... all sorts of terms I see getting thrown around about WDW restaurants. I don't know what other people are experiencing, but we've never had a bad meal (well, there was Biergarten*) at Disney. Not everything was 5-star the-best-food-I've-ever-had ... but never bad.

To the OP: H&V was exactly what I'd expect for a buffet ... lots of choices, most of them good. The make-your-own sundae bar is the topper, though, being able to make a sundae as big as you want with all sorts of topping choices it a great way to end a meal ... but I guess if you don't like ice cream it's "disgusting"....



* I hated the experience, the food wasn't bad.