Jiko & Boma questions ????

[urchin]

1. Am I correct in assuming that they only way (beside staying there) to get a peek at the Animal Kingdom Lodge & hopefully some of their animal viewing areas is make a dinner ressie at Jiko or boma ?
2. Which is the better dining experience, Jiko or Boma ?
3. Is it difficult go get a dinner ressie, would lunch be better for a March visit ?
4. Do they allow you to time to wander around a view the animals before or after you meal ?
5. When is animal activity at it's highest ?
Thanks for any help.

 

[whalewatcher]

We just got back from the AKL so I'll try to answer your questions:

1. You can just take a Disney bus over there. Anyone can get on the bus and look around the resort. The security gate out front stops cars but you could give your PS info if you come by car.

2. We didn't eat at Jiko but it looked very nice inside and they have an extensive children's and adult's menu. Jiko wasn't very crowded at all but you definitely will want PS for Boma. It gets crowded around peak breakfast and dinner times. We loved Boma and highly recommend it for the variety of african and american foods and great service.

3. Neither restaurant is open for lunch that I know of. I made PS for lunch and dinner 4 days before we left and had no problem getting them.

4. Wander around all you want. No one would have a clue that you're not staying at that resort.

5. We saw the most animals during feeding times early in morning around 8 am and late afternoon around 5 pm although that may just have been when we weren't in the parks. At night on Arusha rock they have night vision goggles you can use to see animals.

 

[Ajax]

We ate at Jiko on 1/2/03. We were staying at POFQ, and took the bus from the AK park to AKL about 1 1/2 hours before our 5:30 PS.
Nobody asked any questions, and we wandered all about the place, checking out the pools, shops, savannas, etc. I understand that for a while after the AKL opened, access was restricted to guests and those with restaurant reservations. That's no longer the case.
After we looked the lodge over, I sat in the lobby and read while my wife & daughter shopped.

I wasn't impressed, either with the hotel or Jiko. The lodge is too dark & drab for my taste. I guess I don't grasp the concept of understated elegance. I was in Disneyworld, not Monaco.
As for Jiko, the beef filet was not nearly as tender or tasty as the one I'd enjoyed at Le Cellier on 12/31, and the red wine reduction resulted in an acid stomach that plagued all three of us through the performance of La Nouba that evening. And to top it off, the servers seemed to be universally surly.

If I did it again, I'd eat at Boma. The place was packed, with a long line for walk-ups, by 5:30pm. The smells emanating from the buffet were wonderful!

 

[aprilzw]

Ditto what whalewatcher said. AKL is one of our very favorite resorts. We always try and stay there at least one night on our trips. I woudl highly recommend going for dinner - the lodge is amazing at night. They also have storytelling around the fire and there's lots of really neat African art and artifacts.

Also, I just thought I'd add my two-cents about the two restaurants. I have eaten at both places and have enjoyed them both. They are very different dining experiences - so which one you choose should be easy depending upon what you like and are in the mood for. Boma is a large, open (and noisy) 'gathering place.' It has atmosphere, but is by no means 'intimate.' The buffet is large and has a wide selection of great food - and you will hear people rave about the desserts. Jiko is more of a gourmet restaurant. It has a more quiet and intimate setting. The food is amazing. It is also a bit more expensive (but well worth it in my opinion!)

Either way - you can't lose. Have fun!

 

[JimC]

Boma is probably the best buffet on property. Noisier and more open than Jiko. Jiko is fabulous, but probably a restaurant enjoyed more by the adults. I believe the head chef came over from Artist Point, so if you enjoyed that restaurant you are in for a treat because Jiko is just as good.

There are lots of viewing areas at AKL to see the animals, including a walkout area one level down from the lobby where there are CMs from Africa who can answer your questions about the animals or their culture.

 

[urchin]

Thanks for the info. I did eat at & enjoy Artist Point about 5 yrs ago. I definitely think I will plan to dine at Jiko or boma this trip & check out the AKL, I enjoy touring the resorts almost as much as the parks.

 

[CPM]

I think Jiko is one of the best restaurants on Disney property! The filet I have had is as tender as it gets. They have a very nice menu selection, great flat bread appetizers. Amazing wine list also.I love that they have a more extensive children's menu as mine like Salmon & steak but i don't like getting adult portions for them. I also think it's more reasonable then most of the Disney upscale restaurants. I have dined there several times and the service is my only complaint, spotty at times. Flying Fish is my favorite, never has let me down yet! Had NYE dinner there & stayed nice & dry! <G>

 

[Uncleromulus]

We always eat at Jiko's and never had a bad meal or poor service. In fact, we're eating there yet again in May.
You won't mistake the animal veiwing area for a trip on the safari at the AK itself. Take the advice about feeding times, etc. We usually eat at Jiko around 6:00PM and wander out for a look at the animals just before. All we've ever seen are a few tired looking cattle and lots of birds.

 

[Ajax]

Our dining experience at Jiko lacked in several areas.

We ordered the African Sampler Platter for two and the Acorn Squash Soup for starters.
The Duck Firecracker Spring Rolls, Spiced Beef Rolls, Lentil Pastilla and soup were very good, and turned out to be the high points of the meal. The Maize Tamale was a cornhusk containing a tasteless dollop of pabulum.

The filets with mac & cheese that all three of us ordered for an entree couldn't compare with the one I had at at Le Cellier on NYE, nor the filet I can purchase at our local restaurant for $15. Our server also did not provide steak knives, and when we prompted him, he needed to gather three from the kitchen as we sat staring at our plates. He was polishing them on the way to our table when he dropped one, and had to make the journey back for another.
The macaroni and cheese that was served with the filets was so bland it could have been Kraft Deluxe. It didn't come close to the fabulous mac & cheese prepared at Artist Point.
The red wine reduction sauce was very acidic; after dinner we had to return to our resort for a round of Gaviscon before we continued on to La Nouba, and even that wasn't enough to beat down the unpleasant aftertaste.

I ordered a glass of wine from what I thought was bin 489. Our waiter returned with a smirk and told me that bin 489 didn't exist. He also seemed to find it amusing that I had to remove my bifocals in order to read the wine list. I then saw that the selection I wanted was bin 409. The '0' had a dot in the middle of it that made it look like an '8' to me. I pointed that out to him, and he said 'Maybe' and walked off.

For desert my daughter and I had the Chocolate Symphony, and my wife had the Afrikaanse milk tart. My desert was served minus the banana-caramel sauce and was returned. None of the components of the Chocolate Symphony was memorable to either of us, but my wife did enjoy her tart.

All in all, on our last trip to WDW, Jiko finished a distant fifth behind Artist Point, Le Cellier, The Brown Derby, and Chefs of France in terms of an overall dining experience. Our waiter was cold and smug compared to his peers at the aforementioned restaurants.

Maybe we just happened to land at Jiko on an off night, but our evening there was one that I don't care to repeat.


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[ILUVDXL]

Isn't funny how peoples experiences can be so different. We ate at Jiko on December 6 and Sally, our server, couldn't have been more lovely or helpful. We also had the African Sampler Platter and the filets with mac & cheese. Our steaks were so tender we didn't need steak knives and we both raved about the creamy mac & cheese. When It came time to select a wine with dinner, Sally brought us 3 different bottles and gave a sample taste of each so we could make our decision. I thought this quite amazing. We've been in restaurants that carried a high price tag, and this service was never offered.

We are returning to WDW in October to celebrate our wedding anniversary, and dinner will be a Jiko, for sure.

 

[CPM]

Maybe we just happened to land at Jiko on an off night, but our evening there was one that I don't care to repeat.

You really should give Jiko another try. I'm in the restaurant business and anyone can have an off night. I've had plenty of bad experiences at some of the others you mentioned. I'm sure it had to be an off night. I have never had to ask for a steak knife and I ask for my mac & cheese on the side so the red wine sauce doesn't get in it, I think it's great. Try the mashed pot with it.
I thought the butternut squash soup was excellent, very savory & great presentation. Try the olive flatbread next tie, I did like the duck firecrackers.
I think I may have had your waiter last time, he was so smug & pushy I couldn't stand him. We asked for a great waiter we had a previous time his name is Hassan but he didn't have a large table that night.

 

[Ajax]

CPM- I'll have to look at my receipt when I get home and find out our waiters name. He knew his menu, but he sorely needed a charm school refresher.

To add insult to injury, the table next to ours was occupied by two grandparents and their two under-5 grandchildren. Grandma was drinking martinis and grandpa was demolishing a bottle of Merlot, oblivious to the near out-of-control antics of the grandkids.

A hostess had to request that the kids refrain from running in the restaurant lest they collide with a server. That didn't seem to set very well with their grandparents, but they did rein them in.

It could have just been 'one of those nights'.


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[Uncleromulus]

Ajax:
In your case the food wasn't up to snuff and that makes it a "bad" meal in and of itself.
But isn't it interesting how a good or bad server can make such a large difference in the enjoyment of a meal?
If you had a top of the line server that evening, wonder if your overall perception of Jiko's would have been any different??
It's one of the reasons why, when we do run across an exceptional server, we always make the attempt to get him (or her) again. At Jiko's that is always Ron...

 

[urchin]

Jiko seems to have a mixed review.
Personally, I do not like beef/red meat.
Has anyone eaten other dishes there, poultry, fish, vegetarian ? Any other opinions ?
The other 4 in my party though all like filet.
I usually rate a restaurant by it's salads and breads & deserts, are they good there ? I am leaning toward Jiko because though Boma sounds interesting I have never been impressed with the quality of buffets, even the popular Cape May buffet which my family loves. As a mother, who is used to waiting on kids, I also prefer a sit-down dinner where I am waited on for a change.

 

[d-r]

We ate at Jiko last September and thoroughly enjoyed it. I had the steak - which I thought was excellent - Chef Annette suggested that I mix some of the red wide redcution with the mac-n-cheese (kind of like eating wine with cheese) - she was right!

DR had the seabass (I think) and he loved it! I had the olive flatbread and we also ordered the african breads and dips - everything was excellent.

We sat at the bar which may have made a difference in service - we thought it was cool to watch the sous chefs prepare the appetizers and loved speaking with Chef Annette. If you like Artist Point it may be worth a try - she was at AP before she came to Jiko - I think she may be been at Flying Fish before too.

Melissa

 

[Uncleromulus]

Urchin:
You can check the menu site for yourself..for the total picture.
They do have some excellent "flatbread" selections. I can personally vouch for the Berbere Braised Lamb Shank (melt in your mouth good!!) and last time out Mrs. Uncleromulus had a monkfish entree which was quite good as well.

 

[AmyA]

We also love Jiko (we ate there this last September), and now it is a must-do for us each trip. We can personally vouch for the Olive Flatbread, the Pan Roasted Monkfish, the Buttermilk-Curry Shrimp, and the "purses" for dessert. In addition to the scrumptious dining, we really enjoyed the ambiance of the restaurant. We had a window seat overlooking the "stream" and it was very romantic. Our server had just recently arrived from Russia, so there was a bit of a language barrier, but she was attentive and friendly.

Ajax--your experience with Jiko mirrors ours with Flying Fish Cafe. We had to wait over 30 minutes with a PS (in September!!!) and by the time they got us to our seat they were no longer serving the potato wrapped red snapper. Our waiter was incredibly cold and condescending, and our food was cold and improperly prepared when it arrived. Then the waiter got nasty when we declined to order dessert ---by that time we just wanted out of there. It was so disappointing, FFC gets about 95% rave reviews and it was by far the worst meal we had in our 12 days there. I won't try and convince you to try Jiko again, just because they were having an off night---because off night or not, there is no way on Earth anyone will ever convince us to give the FFC another try.

 

[ghidorah97]

I'm always amazed when I see reports of sub-par service at one of the resort restaurants. I can honestly say that there are only two places I have ever received less-than-stellar service, and they were Bongos and Fulton's (both of which, I think, aren't technically Disney restaurants, right?).

 

[Beachangel]

I've always loved Jiko's because the menu is unique & the food fabulous, but since the chef from Artiste Pointe took over the menu got a little more mainstream (boring)and my last time there was truly uneventful.