Is the food at CRT really that bad?

[bangzoom6877]

I have been reading some negative reviews about the food at CRT lately, particularly the dinner. We are definitely going to dinner there in July on our next trip. It will be me, DH, our 2 boys (they will be 3 and 5 when we go), my sister, her BF, her daughters (they will be 6 and 9 then), and my parents. My sister and nieces ate dinner in the castle back in the winter of 2007. My sister has excellent taste in food, and she raved about the food at the CRT dinner.

Now, being very aware that things could have (and most likely have) changed since February 2007, I would like to know some people's opinions here about the actual food at the CRT dinner. We will definitely be going there since my boys (especially the older one) express interest in eating in the castle, and my older one was disappointed that we did not eat there last year. We originally were going to do breakfast there but since my parents and sister decided to join us, we thought it would be much more fun to eat in the castle together. They are only staying for the first 4 days of our 10-night trip, and the day we go to MK they requested it to be on an EMH morning (which is fine with us). None of us is willing to give up that EMH hour to sit in a restaurant, and since my sister said such great things about their experience with the dinner before, we all decided dinner there would be great.

I am not expecting 5-star quality for the food, as I am well aware that people go to CRT for the experience, not so much for the food. However, I do expect the food to at least taste good, be edible, and the service to at least be nice, even if it feels a bit rushed (this is probably the most sought-after theme park meal in the world, I am aware that it will feel at least somewhat rushed ). Are my expectations realistic? Is the food really any worse than the buffets would be?

 

[Tricia's mom]

Its not all that bad..just don't expect that the $$$ you spend is going to show in the meal. The money is for the experiance. The food is like something you would get at a wedding. Figure the worst and it could only get better thats what I do. Have a wonderful time and enjoy it all !!!

 

[Pumbaa_]

you have a very long time until you will be there. I would suggest making the ressie you want when your window opens, then watch the reviews closer and make a final decision closer to your july trip. lots of things can change in a year

 

[tankernav1]

We were there a few weeks ago and really enjoyed it. Everyone has their opinion. I wouldn't base your decision on others. Just go and enjoy if that is where you want to eat.

 

[bangzoom6877]

you have a very long time until you will be there. I would suggest making the ressie you want when your window opens, then watch the reviews closer and make a final decision closer to your july trip. lots of things can change in a year

True! I am definitely making the reservation in January when our 180-day window opens up. We're also definitely going there, because of the experience and for all of the kids, I just wanted to see what opinions people have on the food recently. I do plan to keep checking as the trip gets closer.

 

[WhateverLolaWants]

Just ate there on 10/6 and it was okay. Like someone else said, you're paying more for the experience than the food. Food was not fancy at all, and I wouldn't bother with the crab cake appetizer (more cake than crab). The chicken was decent.

 

[tony67]

Most the restaurants in Disney have a lot of negative reviews.
I probably agree with most of them.
That being said people are a lot quicker to come and complain about a bad meal then a good meal, myself included.

As for CRT it is more about the experience and the food if decent.
If you are on the DDP it is a good deal since the app and tip are included as well as the photo.

I think everyone should do it at least once so you can say you ate at the Castle.
If you like it then do it again, it you don't while at least you tried it.

 

[juniper27]

We were there for dinner this past June. We thought the food was good. Not "signature" good, but really I consider that's the price you pay for eating in the castle and the character interaction (which is less at dinner than breakfast/lunch but that was fine with us). I am not a fan of buffets in general, and I liked this food. IMO, it was better food than Crystal Palace dinner, which is the only buffet on property where I've eaten.

We both had the BLT salad which was excellent! The bread and butter was good, I had the lavender chicken which I liked, don't remember DH's entree but he liked it, and we both had the cream cheese buckle which was kinda dry and bleh.

The service was a little rushed, but honestly I didn't really notice at the time, only looking back. Our entrees arrived before we'd finished our salads, but the desserts were timed better and came after they'd cleared our entrees away.

The dinner show is cute; your kids will get a kick out of it. And with it being less interactive than the princesses all stopping by each table, I think that helps the meal feel more relaxed. I can see where breakfast and lunch would feel very rushed if you are popping up and down taking pictures constantly instead of having time to enjoy your meal and your surroundings.

I would happily go back, though there are so many places we haven't tried yet that it might be awhile before we do.

 

[NewmanFamily6]

As with anything else I believe you should try yourself and form your own opinion. I have found that sometimes I enjoy places when others don't or vice versa

 

[Good Morning Dewdrop]

We had lunch there in January of this year and really liked the food. It wasn't gourmet but it was very good.

One thing to note - the Princesses (with the exception of Cinderella) aren't at the dinner (at least they weren't when we booked). It's just Cinderella and the Fairy Godmother. That may or may not matter to your family but I thought it was worth a mention.

To us lunch in the castle was fun, food was good, Princesses seemed rushed. Overall a good experience (well worth doing once) but probably not one we'll repeat any time soon - just not worth the 2 TS.

 

[DisneyGrampa]

I've never had a bad meal at Disney. Having said that, the food at character meals is generally mediocre, relative to the price. The food isn't what the character meals are about! If you don't set your expectations too high, you'll have a good time!

 

[Justsyd2]

DH and I had lunch there in June. We both had the Salmon. We loved our meal. It was wonderful.

I read many negative food reviews on here, and I find that the more expensive the meal is, usually the more bad reviews there are. I think it really has more to do with the money than the quality of the meal.

As for us, we thought the whole experience was priceless, and will certainly do it again.

 

[B-Ride]

We were there a few weeks ago and really enjoyed it. Everyone has their opinion. I wouldn't base your decision on others. Just go and enjoy if that is where you want to eat.

I agree completely. The opinions on almost every restaurant vary greatly.

Worst case, even if the food isn't great, you are there for the experience.

 

[gracie1]

I have breakfast booked and was going to cancel because of menu changes and reviews but decided to keep it. My expectations are high but I hope its good!

 

[ibela]

I sure hope not! I know 2 families that have gone for dinner within 6 months and both said it was pretty good. My dd3 has been looking forward to eating here since our previous (first) trip in May 2008 so we're going and definitely keeping my ADR, she gets too excited anytime she sees a castle so I'll keep my fingers crossed.

 

[bangzoom6877]

We had lunch there in January of this year and really liked the food. It wasn't gourmet but it was very good.

One thing to note - the Princesses (with the exception of Cinderella) aren't at the dinner (at least they weren't when we booked). It's just Cinderella and the Fairy Godmother. That may or may not matter to your family but I thought it was worth a mention.

To us lunch in the castle was fun, food was good, Princesses seemed rushed. Overall a good experience (well worth doing once) but probably not one we'll repeat any time soon - just not worth the 2 TS.

Thanks for the info about less character interaction at dinner. I already knew this though. My sister told me. DH and I actually prefer that because we have boys, so they are not so into princesses, but my older son really wants to eat in the big castle at Magic Kingdom, so we are really going there for him. If he did not care about eating there we probably wouldn't. In fact, my sister was surprised that we decided to go there with them but of course she understood that it's because my son really wants to eat there. I also think that it will make the dinner more relaxed, not having to stop to take photos every time a character comes to the table. I think seeing Cinderella and taking a picture with her, plus the little show the Fairy Godmother and mice do will be a lot of fun!

DH and I had lunch there in June. We both had the Salmon. We loved our meal. It was wonderful.

I read many negative food reviews on here, and I find that the more expensive the meal is, usually the more bad reviews there are. I think it really has more to do with the money than the quality of the meal.

As for us, we thought the whole experience was priceless, and will certainly do it again.

I agree with you...many people judge a restaurant based on the money they spend there. A lot of people think that Le Cellier is very overrated considering that it is so hard to get an ADR there. But, talk to people on the DDP and they will tell you it is top notch. They feel that they get more for their money because of the price of the steaks there and it is only 1TS. Now, we are DDP people, but we will not order something or eat at a restaurant just because it is the most expensive. I have crunched numbers so many times and we always come out ahead on the DDP before we add in snack credits, even eating at cheap places and ordering the cheapest items on the menu. People review many services and products outside of Disney World as well, based on the money they spent. And fewer people are likely to take the time to post a review that is 100% positive than they would to post one that has at least one negative aspect to it. Same thing with contacting a company based on service you receive...people are more likely to lodge a complaint than they are to praise someone for exceptional service.

 

[Cafeen]

Those displeased with a location (especially as passionate as people are on here) will tend to be more vocal than those pleased. Thus, there will typically be more negative reviews than positive. Plus, the range of negative reviews is generally larger, as a little below expectations tends to get negative, while it has to be pretty amazing to get a good review.

I'd estimate that for every negative review on here, there have been at least two equally good experiences that go unposted. It's just the way of the internet along with the subjective nature of what you're looking for.

For myself, I'm glad we did it on the recent trip. I wouldn't do it again, as I felt that I didn't get the value for the price we paid, but that's me and it could have easily just been an off day that tainted the experience.

Good luck and have fun .

people are more likely to lodge a complaint than they are to praise someone for exceptional service.

Which is why I try and praise superior service whenever I can. I've worked in customer service and technical support before and know how it is. You get numb to various complaints, but a single word of praise can easily make someone's day. (Of course, if the service is exceptionally bad, I'll speak up about it as well so they can address it and hopefully correct it).

 

[Toddler Mommy]

We ate lunch at CRT this past Monday and it was delicious! I had the salmon and it was fantastic and DH really enjoyed the Major Domo. After reading so many bad reviews here, we were really surprised. Although we will agree with the reviews of the character interaction, the interaction at the Princess Storybook meal in Norway was much better (DD agrees).

 

[Korileigh]

We just got back and went to dinner last week and were very happy with it! I was worried the character part wouldn't be as fun but the Fairy Godmother and Mice were wonderful - my girls LOVED it. They got magic wands and the boys there got swords. It was awesome to be there as the sunset and enjoy being in the castle. Also - the food was good - the BLT salad and Prime Rib were great. We were all very happy and thrilled we got to go. Also - the tip was included and I was not aware that would be the case.

 

[C&OsMommy]

We got our ADRs this morning!!!! We are going 1/10 for lunch! My neighbor just texted me yesterday from WDW to tell me that their lunch was wonderful and magical for her 4yr and 6yr old girls!!!

I am just going in knowing that the lunch isn't going to be "gourmet" and it is more all about the experience for my DD!

So excited we got it!!!!!!!!!!