I'm never taking WDW for granted ever again

[DLgal]

Award Wieners is always a solid choice, and the "Filmstrip Fries" are fantastic!

It also is a frontrunner for best Disney restaurant name, along with it's tagline, "Best Wiener in a Supporting Roll." Good stuff.

The Carne asada fries are pretty great too.

 

[DLgal]

I enjoyed it this summer when I tried it but it is like 2% Mac & Cheese and 14,000% bread bowl.

The secret to the bread bowls is to ask for the filling, soup in a separate cup. They will give you a full portion that way. I got gumbo from Harbor Galley in the bread bowl and it was like 3 spoons of gumbo, seriously. I won't go back there for a bread bowl again. I want the gumbo to go back to Royal St. Verandah. They were generous there.

 

[BrianL]

The Carne asada fries are pretty great too.

Yeah, but those are the same fries, just with toppings. The long, flat fries just turn out so good!

 

[DizMe]

The secret to the bread bowls is to ask for the filling, soup in a separate cup. They will give you a full portion that way. I got gumbo from Harbor Galley in the bread bowl and it was like 3 spoons of gumbo, seriously. I won't go back there for a bread bowl again. I want the gumbo to go back to Royal St. Verandah. They were generous there.

I always do this the shortly before I'm flying home. I get the soup/salad separately and take the bread bowl (you also get more bread that way). They put the bread in a plastic bag with a zip tie and throw in some butter pats and a plastic knife. I eat the filling with the bread lid for lunch and have the rest of the bread on the plane

 

[DLgal]

I always do this the shortly before I'm flying home. I get the soup/salad separately and take the bread bowl (you also get more bread that way). They put the bread in a plastic bag with a zip tie and throw in some butter pats and a plastic knife. I eat the filling with the bread lid for lunch and have the rest of the bread on the plane

You get the same amount of bread. They pull from the pre cut bowls and give you one with the cut out lid on the side. They usually stick the cup of soup onside the hole in the bread.

 

[DizMe]

You get the same amount of bread. They pull from the pre cut bowls and give you one with the cut out lid on the side. They usually stick the cup of soup onside the hole in the bread.

Oh, ok. That maybe changed at some point? Or else I just remember it wrong, which is a distinct possibility.

 

[DisneylandFan22]

I always do this the shortly before I'm flying home. I get the soup/salad separately and take the bread bowl (you also get more bread that way). They put the bread in a plastic bag with a zip tie and throw in some butter pats and a plastic knife. I eat the filling with the bread lid for lunch and have the rest of the bread on the plane

We did this last trip because I was taking the food back to GCH for the kids to eat and it worked out really well.

 

[alleighboo]

Oh man. We went the second week in October for the first time. We (my fiancé and I) are East Coasters and have only been to WDW in the past.

After this trip we decided we are now officially "Disneylanders" and don't see ourselves going back to WDW for a long while. I am already loosely planning our trip back to Disneyland in the next year and a half.

We just loved it. Disneyland felt so much more intimate and truly "Disney" to me than WDW. I don't know if it's the history or the fact it's the original park or the size, but it felt more magical. WDW feels more corporate to me. I do like the "Disney bubble" in Florida but the fact that everything in DLR is walking distance and you can get from DL to DCA in 60 seconds...sold!

We took advantage of our own fall break, as a TON of other people were doing the same week, so the crowds were moderately heavy at some points. We stayed at Paradise Pier and did 3-day park hoppers with Genie+ and one night of Oogie Boogie. My non-Disney adult fiancé who said prior to our trip "I'm excited for you...but this is not my top vacation choice" was talking about adding an couple of days to our next trip by the end of it. The food was great, the atmosphere was magical, the weather was just perfect, and when the crowds got heavy we were perfectly happy just walking around and taking pictures and people watching while snacking.

All that to say...I love that we all have such differing opinion but they all make sense. I just had to chime in since I was the complete opposite from you, but totally understand what you're saying!

 

[LizzyS]

Another casualty of the October curse.

OP, you picked the absolute worst time to visit DL as a first timer. Sorry about that.

It would be like someone visiting WDW for the first time during the height of spring break.

This is it, I refuse to visit during Halloween time.

 

[chezcurrie]

Sorry that it was such a bust. I'm one of the people who loves Disneyland because the two parks are much smaller. It's a lot less walking and much easier to park hop (before the stupid 2pm rule).

This right here. Just back from an awesome 5-day WDW trip with my sis (adults only) and while we had an absolute blast we both agreed we won't be back to WDW with our kids anytime soon.

Especially for my sis with a 3-year old - the intimate nature of DL means taking a more relaxed pace. (For reference she is in Michigan, so much easier for her to get to WDW, yet she is planning a Deb DL trip with her DH and DS instead. ) I found more FOMO at WDW, even for repeat travellers like us, cause its just SO MASSIVE.

My only real complaint about WDW from my trip last week was the guests - I have never seen so much desperation, bad manners and forced fun. Most of the guests seemed miserable and at times it was frenetic - like you had to "get your money's worth" for every single second. I could go on and on about why I think that is there right now, but as this is comparing the 2 parks I find there is less of that at DL, even during this crazy October we've had. This is likely because DL has a more local audience vs a "once in a lifetime this trip just cost us 5 figures" vibe.

I hope if you give DL another try your experience will be better. And if you don't please ride Cosmic Rewind and Flight of Passage as many times as you can for me.

 

[Morieris]

I'd probably be annoyed too if I had to deal with (not you, but others, locals) know it all Guests and the paycheck I was getting didn't cover basic living necessities in SoCal.

Cussing someone out, that's too far.

 

[CodeGoddess]

Former Midwesterner, 20 times WDW vet and one DL visit last week - both WDW and DL are good but I think we're firmly in the we are now DL lovers group.

1. DL shorter walking distance. WDW is really spread out and park hopping is a nightmare. I loved being able to walk over quickly, grab a bite somewhere or ride a ride with a fastpass and then go back to the other park.

2. NO BUSES! Bussing at WDW is slow and not super reliable at times. Also most of the negative interactions I have has with cast members have been busy drivers. They seem burned out and exhausted.

3. Web Slingers, HM and Mike and Sully's ride were wonderful! HM has always been a favorite of mine but DL's far exceeds WDW.

4. Easier to maximize Genie+. Yes I am one of those people who paid for fastpass. Since the rides are closer together we were able to really maximize the number of passes, especially with being able to easily park hop.

5. Cast member interactions. WDW cast members post covid seem to be burnt out and just don't seem to want to even talk to anyone. At DL the cast member interactions, especially in Bantu, made my son's trip. I mean it's still not to the level of interaction pre-covid but still good.

6. Hopping quickly out of the park for a meal to save some money. We hit Panera almost every morning for breakfast.

7. Quick service food is very good compared to WDW. DL has a wide variety and none of it feels like the cafeteria style deep fried food you find all over MK and HS at WDW.