Hollywood & Vine or Mama Melrose?

[jpolak]

WE usually eat at 50's prime time, but we are looking to try something new at MGM. We are traveling with dd who will be almost three and is a pretty good eater. Which would you pick?

 

[kabbie]

Can't go wrong with their flatbread pizza!!! Very yummy!! For kids they also have pasta (pick your own pasta/sauce) and a mini-calzone.

H&V has standard buffet style fare. I believe they will be adding a Toy Story theme character breakfast/lunch in the next few months.

 

[NC State]

Both are good, you can't go wrong.

 

[DebIreland]

I thought the food at Mama Melrose was far superior to Hollywood & Vine.

 

[MikeWD]

I didn't like H&V -- some of the buffet food was tiresome at best. Haven't been to MM -- going in July, though.

 

[Wendy31]

Of all the restaurants we tried last May, Hollywood & Vine was our least favorite.

The retro-Hollywood decor is cute, but that's about it. The restaurant was extremely crowded & noisy (but not in a fun way kind of noisy like somewhere like Chef Mickey's).

We had to wait about 30 minutes past our ADR time before we were seated. However, once we were seated, service was okay.

The tables were so close we might as well have been sitting w/ the couple next to us. Although I was trying not to eavesdrop, I could hear every word of their conversation. Consequently, I felt very "self-conscious" throughout our meal - everything you said was shared w/ the tables next to you. We have 2 young children, and I also felt like I was constantly on edge, making sure they were extra quiet & still so as not to disturb the tables on either side of us.

The buffet consisted of typical buffet items & was very mediocre. DH thought the food looked like it had been left out all day long, &, for the rest of the evening, he felt sick - which kind of ruined Fantasmic for him later that evening. Normally, I like buffets because I can always find something for the kids to eat, but this buffet was just too ordinary (and even sub-par) for a Disney-dining experience in my opinion. I felt like I could have gotten the same things at our local Golden Corral or Ryan's. However, I also realize that buffets are "hit & miss", and, perhaps, we were just there on a bad day.

This year, we're trying Mama Melrose's for our Fantasmic Dinner Package.

 

[alyssa810]

I think that MM doesn't always get a fare shake, we've eaten there twice and I've liked it both times. We ate at H&V just once, and like most buffets, it wasn't worth it, IMO. MM gets my vote!

 

[DonnaDuck]

Ate at H&V twice now as part of the Fantasmic Package. The first time 3 years ago, was pretty good. This last time (3 weeks ago) wasn't good and we had awful service. So...I have heard great things about Mama Melrose and I think we will be giving it a try this time too.

 

[byoung]

Liked them both.

 

[kathy320]

We ate at H&V in 2004 and my family liked it. This MArch we are trying MM for a change. I hope we enjoy it as much.

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

We ate at H and V for the FDP. It's good solid food, but nothing spectacular. Everything was well prepared and tasted quite good. Service was efficient, but at a buffet all they really need to do is keep the soda glasses full and clear the dishes.
It was far better done than say a Ryans or a Hometown buffet. Not even close. But it wasn't anything special as Disney standards go. The decor is faux 50s diner and the noise level is about what you'd expect at a crowded Disney restaurant. You won't come away wowed, but it will get the job done. It certainly wasn't a bad meal. It was indeed quite good. But compared to the other buffets we had, we found it just a tad below them as far as the food selection went. The Variety was about the same or better, but the others all had 3 or 4 signiture items. H and V's was flank steak. Now mind you it was very very good. But H and V had Flank steak while CM's and Boma had prime Rib. H and V had peel and eat shrimp while CP had shrimp penne pasta with a creamy garlic and butter sauce. H and V had baked white fish, while CM's had a delicious salmon with the fancy mango sauce. H and V had tuna and chicken salads (which were quite good) while some of the others had seafood salads. That's what I'm getting at.

We were quite pleased with the meal there. All in all a solid meal and a fair price considering, but don't expect to be wowed off your feet.

 

[BadgerBruce]

We've had really good meals at Mama Melrose. We had lunch once at H&V, & it was a character meal. Seeing Minnie & Goofy dressed up in evening wear & dancing made up for the food being just okay.

 

[joshsmom]

We did MM a few years ago and unfortunately, it was a bad experience for all of us. The service was great; my family just didn't like the food. My mom is REALLY picky about sauces, etc. She's a bland, no dressing on her salad kinda gal. So she did not appear to appreciate MM. Now, at H&V, she got what she wanted and so did DS. Both were extremely happy with it, so we've got ADR's for this May for H&V. I would like to give MM another try though.

 

[jpolak]

Thanks a bunch. i knew I could count on my "friends" at the DIS for advice. We will probably end up MM.

 

[Mister Disney]

I vote for Momma Melrose.

Had lunch there once while on a Backstage Tour. I thought the food was outstanding.

 

[Cmbar]

Mama Melrose! Not that I LOVED mama Melrose, but it was a good restaraunt. H&V was Awful and I just ate there two days ago. I absolutely hated this buffet. Yucky choices and everything was cold or stale. I was so dissappointed I picked this even though I had read some bad reviews. We won't be going back.

OH yeah, I agree with one of the other posters. TOO close to the next table and we were seven people shoved behind a pole and those chairs are aluminum or something and they tip and scrape. Not good for a buffet where your up and down. Unfriendly service and the table utensils were dirty - I mean yellow/orangish saucy stuff on my spoon and napkin. Trust me I don't complain too much, but this was gross.

 

[Honeybehr1]

We chose MM when we were there last becasue of the selection. But we ended up having the Fantasmic package and the selections were not that great. The food was aweful and we will never, ever go back. on the other hand, the service was very good.

It seems MGM doesnt really have a great table service restaurant. I think next time we will stay there and have a snack but go to another park/hotel for dinner. We did this with AK since we couldnt find one we liked and I made res. for Chef Mickey which was awesome.