Just back! (Sci-Fi, CA Grill, Trail's End, and more)

Rhonda

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Hi everyone! We just got back -- and we have a few mini restaurant reviews:

Sci-Fi Dine In Theater: This was our first visit there in many years, and we were very pleasantly surprised! The food is much better than it used to be! We were there for lunch. DH and I split the Smoked Turkey sandwich and and order of onion rings. It was very good - and the sandwich was huge! We were surprised that when we split the sandwich, they gave us double of the cucumber-melon salad! It was very nice of them, and the salad was delicious!

Trail's End Buffet: We ate there for breakfast and lunch and it was good both times! At lunch, they offer BBQ pork, fried chicken, baked beans, vegetables, huge salad bar, pizza, fruit, muffins, and desserts. For breakfast, they have scrambled eggs, cheese omelette, bacon, sausage, corn beef hash, mickey waffles, oatmeal, grits, biscuits, breakfast pizza, variety of pastries, and fruit and yogurt. I'm sure there's more, but that's all I remember! The prices are lowest of the buffets in WDW, and the food is all very good!

California Grill: This was our first time here, and it wasn't what we expected. We got a perfect table by the window, with a fantastic view of the Magic Kingdom! But, the restaurant was much brighter and noisier that we expected. It was definitely a family-type place, with lots of kids running around and people yelling. But, everyone was dressed nicely. Most men were in polo or button-down shirts, and the ladies were in skirts or dress pants. We didn't see any t-shirts or shorts (except on the children). I guess we expected this to be more of an adult-type restaurant, with dim lights, etc. We were there to celebrate our anniversary, and were hoping for something a little more quiet. But, the food was good -- not fantastic, just good. I had the filet, which was huge, but not a lot of flavor. It came with asparagus, again with not much flavor and very overcooked. The au gratin potatoes tasted like the ones you get from the box. DH had the chili-rubbed chicken. Good flavor, but nothing special. All-in-all, we thought the prices were high and the food was just ok. The atmosphere was loud and bright, but the view of the fireworks was great! (We wish they would have lowered the lights so we could have seen them better--there was a glare in the windows)

Olivia's (OKW): We had breakfast here this morning. We both had the Fruit & Pastry plate. It was very good! It came with a blueberry muffin, cheese danish, and a cup of fruit. It also came with juice and coffee. $7.99. The pastries were very fresh and their coffee was very good!

Wolfgang Puck Express: DD Marketplace. As usual, their pizzas were very good. We had the BBQ Chicken pizza, and the Spicy Chicken pizza. The Butternut Squash soup is also very good!

Pecos Bill's Cafe (MK): We ate here 3 times! LOL! The burgers are very good - and they had a fantastic build-your-own burger bar! DH and I sometimes split the bacon double cheeseburger, and ask for an extra bun to make two burgers out of it. They charge 80 cents for the extra bun. The chicken salad here is also the best salad I've had in WDW!! It comes with a key-lime dressing that's delicious! You can also get it without the chicken for only $4.99.

We also snacked our way around the world at Epcot!

Any questions? :)
 
Sci-Fi Dine In Theater: This was our first visit there in many years, and we were very pleasantly surprised! The food is much better than it used to be! We were there for lunch. DH and I split the Smoked Turkey sandwich and and order of onion rings. It was very good - and the sandwich was huge! We were surprised that when we split the sandwich, they gave us double of the cucumber-melon salad! It was very nice of them, and the salad was delicious!

I'm soo happy to see a good review, my dh & I always wanted to go there when we saw the decor but were worried that was the only thing we would like.

California Grill: This was our first time here, and it wasn't what we expected. We got a perfect table by the window, with a fantastic view of the Magic Kingdom! But, the restaurant was much brighter and noisier that we expected. It was definitely a family-type place, with lots of kids running around and people yelling. But, everyone was dressed nicely. Most men were in polo or button-down shirts, and the ladies were in skirts or dress pants. We didn't see any t-shirts or shorts (except on the children). I guess we expected this to be more of an adult-type restaurant, with dim lights, etc. We were there to celebrate our anniversary, and were hoping for something a little more quiet. But, the food was good -- not fantastic, just good. I had the filet, which was huge, but not a lot of flavor. It came with asparagus, again with not much flavor and very overcooked. The au gratin potatoes tasted like the ones you get from the box. DH had the chili-rubbed chicken. Good flavor, but nothing special. All-in-all, we thought the prices were high and the food was just ok. The atmosphere was loud and bright, but the view of the fireworks was great! (We wish they would have lowered the lights so we could have seen them better--there was a glare in the windows)

CG was top on our list of have to's but now I'm reconsidering...like you I thought it would be more romantic, dim lights, great ambience.

Pecos Bill's Cafe (MK): We ate here 3 times! LOL! The burgers are very good - and they had a fantastic build-your-own burger bar! DH and I sometimes split the bacon double cheeseburger, and ask for an extra bun to make two burgers out of it. They charge 80 cents for the extra bun. The chicken salad here is also the best salad I've had in WDW!! It comes with a key-lime dressing that's delicious! You can also get it without the chicken for only $4.99.

Great! looking forward to trying the bacon double cheeseburgers!!!!

Thanks for the reviews!!!
 

Enjoyed the reviews!!
You're so right-- nothing quiet about the California Grill--that open kitchen is quite loud, and the "fireworks factor" practically guarantees a ton of kids each evening.
 
Thanks for the reviews. Sci Fi is one of our favorites, a must-do every family trip, so I'm glad to hear you liked it! :)
 
Thanks for the reviews!! We love CG but like you, the first time we went I was expecting a quiet adult type atmosphere....we still love it there though!
 
HockeyGoddess said:
CG was top on our list of have to's but now I'm reconsidering...like you I thought it would be more romantic, dim lights, great ambience.


One place we visited (but did not eat) was Narcoosee's at the GF. It was very nice - dimmer lights, more romantic atmosphere, and also a great view of the fireworks! If you're looking for a quieter atmosphere, like we were, you might want to consider it, as an alternative to CG! :)
 
Enjoyed reading your reviews ~ Thanx for posting.
 
Thans for the reviews. We always enjoyed Trails End, although we haven't been in years. CG is still a favorite, but it is anything but quiet & romantic unless you are in a mental place of no one matters but you & your spouse. Too many kids there who are cranky from sitting so long waiting for the Fireworks....
 
Trail's End Buffet: We ate there for breakfast and lunch and it was good both times! At lunch, they offer BBQ pork, fried chicken, baked beans, vegetables, huge salad bar, pizza, fruit, muffins, and desserts. For breakfast, they have scrambled eggs, cheese omelette, bacon, sausage, corn beef hash, mickey waffles, oatmeal, grits, biscuits, breakfast pizza, variety of pastries, and fruit and yogurt. I'm sure there's more, but that's all I remember! The prices are lowest of the buffets in WDW, and the food is all very good!

So glad to read about this. We are discussing trying it but weren't sure, now I'll lean toward trying it. Thanks for the report.
 
Thanks, I enjoyed your reports. I definately agree that the Sci Fi has gotten better than it used to be. It's one of my favorites - and I LOVE the onion rings!
 
Thanks for the reviews. I don't see Trails End and Olivia's reviewed very often.

Glad to hear about the SciFi. We love it there and always hit it for lunch. Not exactly gourmet, but we like the burgers, fries and shakes. One word of advice about SciFi. We always do lunch and get basics. I have always wondered if the bad reviews are based on the dinner menu. Here's the advice: Always ask for the lunch menu. We went there last time around 3:30 and the menu didn't even have burgers on it. We asked if there was a different menu. There was.

I have to put this in every SciFi related post just in case Disney Mgt is reading: Please, for the love of God, change the movies. I swear they are the same clips from when it opened.
 


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