Just returned from a week long trip, Disney Dining let down

[miss0033]

Overall, had a wonderful trip in the parks. It was my almost 5 year old's first trip and she had a blast. So I am skipping over a lot of good things, and concentrating on a couple bad things... Like most things on the internet...

This was our first on-property stay in over 10 years, and first stay that wasn't a value resort.

We stayed at the Boardwalk on (rented) DVC points.
- Do all Disney resorts have extremely hard water? The water in the shower beaded up on my skin better than my car does after 2 coats of carnauba wax.
- My wife thought her hair was going to just fall out from the hot water, and used up 2 tubes of conditioner herself. I used 1 as well. We requested a 4th and it never came.
- Also, I thought all resorts had gone to the bulk dispensers for body wash, shampoo, etc. We still had individual containers...
- They picked up trash on day 2. On day 4 we got some extra towels. I cannot confirm, but I don't think housekeeping ever came again, as we never got more
towels and trash wasn't picked up again. At no point during our stay did we get new sheets. I thought day 4 was a full housekeeping when staying on points. Does that not include new sheets?
This is also the first time we have done more than one Table Service meal during a trip.
- There is no way to contact a restaurant to tell them you are running 10 minutes late because your Disney Bus is stopping at 2 resorts (Yacht, then Beach) and unloading an ECV at one, and Reloading an ECV at the next. Then being scolded for being late isn't really that fun.
- We had reserved 6 table service Dinners, and 1 character breakfast; we were never seated earlier than 20 minutes after our reservation time, even when we made a point to show up 10-15 minutes early.

Our first meal at Hacienda San Angel was really good. Service was a little slow, but good overall and the food was fantastic. Sadly it went downhill from there. We had previously eaten at Jiko, Sanna, Le Cellier, and Kona great service and great food each time that we remember, but only one per trip. So we hoped for a few meals that were hopefully as good as those, or at least came close.

At Via Napoli the Chicken Pharm, which was the server's recommendation, is quite possibly the worst example of the dish I have ever had; way too much cheese, flavorless chicken and almost no sauce on the chicken or the 7 spaghetti noodles on the side. The burger at Ale & Compass was only marginally better than the in-park quick service burgers, even ordering it medium it was dry and over-cooked. I was frustrated with those 2 meals taking over an hour an a half, and costing $120+ after tax and tip while being only marginally better than the in-park quick service food that was half that or less.

At Trattoria Al Forno, in particular, we waited almost 45 minutes for a table after being scolded about being 10 minutes late due to the busses (listed above). The dinner itself took almost 2 hours...
It took about 20 minutes for a server to come by and we ordered our beverages and meals. I asked to substitute real beef for the "impossible meat" on the Rigatoni Bolognese, our server said no problem. My wife ordered a side salad as a starter and the lasagna. We asked for a kids cheese pizza for my daughter. 15-20 minutes later our server brought bread, and said it would be a $9 up-charge for the beef instead of the plant-based "impossible meat". I laughed and said I have seen that go the other way, but never that way and said to just make it how it is on the menu. Wondering why it took 20 minutes to figure that out. After another 15 minutes, we flag down the server and ask if she could bring the kids meal ASAP as our daughter was getting hungry. (Yeah, I probably should've brought a snack or something). Was told no problem. So almost an hour from sitting down, (close to 2 hours from original reservation time) and we only have bread and drinks.

Shortly after my wife was bought a large dinner salad, not a side salad. And no kids meal early whatever, we will get by. Shortly there after our meals came out, but still no kids meal. My meal also had mushrooms on it, which weren't listed as an ingredient on the menu. I inquired, and was told it was part of the plant-based meat dish. Ugh, I hate mushrooms but also hate sending food back (no idea they were included) and am starving. We asked for the kids pizza to be brought out ASAP. I picked out mushrooms and we both shared parts of our dish with our daughter, who wasn't interested in what we ordered but was starving. The server never checked in and the kids meal didn't show up until we were both done eating.

A person dressed differently than the servers brought our daughter's meal out. We asked if they were the manager, which they said yes. As we started to explain, the manager said they would be right back after they checked on something "real quick". Our daughter picked at her cold pizza with a burnt underside and we never saw the manager again. The server came back and we asked for included kids meal gelato and the check. Those 2 items came quickly and I about lost it... We were charged for a full dinner salad that we didn't order (but did receive). I was charged the $9 "fennel sausage" upgrade but had told them to make it with the impossible meat, which I was told I received (mushrooms and all). We were charged full price for the kids meal and gelato. A) the gelato was supposed to be included. B) When I worked at a restaurant and you repeatedly forgot a meal, ESPECIALLY a kids meal, that took that long to deliver to a table, you comped it. My wife took our daughter back to the room and I asked for the manager. I waited about 20 minutes, at this point is well after 9:00 and my patience is GONE. The manager never came, and the server was avoiding my table completely. I went to the front desk and paid our full bill, and still left a 10% tip. When I got back to the room I cancelled our remaining table service dinners. I was worried I might get charged for it, but we weren't (at least yet).

Is this typical right now? We both said next time we go, we wouldn't bother with sit down meals, and just do quick service for half the price, or ever less. Not to mention I don't need or want to spend over an hour and a half at a restaurant. The brisket sandwich at Woody's Lunch Box - surprisingly really good. The pulled pork at Regal Eagle Smokehouse - delicious. Burgers and chicken tenders in the park - pretty standard. Casey's Corner Hot Dog and Chili Cheese fries - exactly what you expect. Overall, no complaints about the quick-service food.

We had a great trip in the parks, my daughter loved most of the rides had a blast at the shows and meeting the characters. Her parents loved seeing her joy! We were just let down by the dining experience overall.

The Character Breakfast at Toppolino's was good. Service was excellent, food was good, character experience was great. Yeah it was pricey, but we got characters and a good breakfast. Sadly, that was the exception and not the norm for our trip.

 

[Timandalicia]

Love Lunch Box.
I feel like Disney upped their game with food over the last 15 years but then to a point these last couple of years where ok this is good for Disney but I can get better for cheaper in… any other place. On top of that, the service was really affected by the pandemic and whatever this worker shortage thing is going on. I’ve changed back to, ok why am I really here? Cmon, it ain’t the food.

San Angel never disappoints though.

 

[tigerlilly]

Wow! I am so sorry. I probably would have lost it too. You were actually very nice.

We had Trattoria on our short list for our September trip but you have me thinking we may just try Il Mulino at the Swan/Dolphin.

Glad you had a nice trip otherwise.

 

[RoseGold]

I have only one table service booked for my next trip, the Snow White dinner. I don’t think Disney food is that great, and people seem to blow up restaurant mistakes into a big deal. Disney service is struggling right now, and table service just takes too much time IMO, even if everything goes perfectly. I don’t go to Disney for restaurants.

The boardwalk toiletries are the same as the cash side. I’m not a big fan of the Disney toiletries in general and have my own in my owners locker. DVC doesn’t do housekeeping or replace sheets. Before Covid, you used to be able to pay for extra housekeeping, but not now. This is how all DVC operates.

 

[Miffy]

Our experience in the last year with TS restaurants at WDW has been hit-and-miss, with a lot of miss. Not because the food at Disney has never been Michelin-star quality (I don't even want that) but because--and this is just my impression--the staff is new, from the waitstaff to the chefs. Formerly fine-by-me entrees have become odd, cooked poorly, or just plain what-the-heck-did-you-do-to-this?

We ordered a side salad at MM last May and got a teeny little bowl--the kind you'd get maybe an extra helping of ketchup in, if they served that sort of thing--with about 3 lettuce leaves, 2 giant slices of cucumber, and a grape tomato, along with some vinegar on the side. Not vinaigrette, but vinegar. Unbelievable and something I've never experienced there before, and we eat there every trip. It was as though the kitchen staff had no idea what a side salad was or could be.

This wasn't the only subpar TS experience we've had in the last year, but it was the most memorable. And, of course, the prices are vastly higher than they were prepandemic. More money and worse service and food is not a good combo.

Perhaps when staffing returns to normal, things will get better. I hope so.

 

[cedricandsophie]

Personally I like Trattoria but in March we waited quite a while after our reservation time for a table and there were lots of empty tables but not enough servers. Our reservation was 830 and we ended up not eating until almost 10. We had a personable server and food took a while but at least she kept checking in with us. And the food was decent. There is no excuse for the food and service level you experienced. I’m not a complainer ususlly but I would have waited as long as possible to see a manager. For Italian food on the boardwalk, Il Mulino is the place to go. Great food and excellent service.

 

[Meglen]

Man you have the patience of a saint. After not seeing a server for 20 min I would have walked out. Your already checked in so no fee for no show. Than would have messaged customer service on the app (they tend to be faster than other methods). Wish you didn't tip there horrible service. I am glad you had a good trip after that.

 

[lowlight]

After the pain of getting the reservations and the sub par everything last trip, we’ve decided to only do quick service in the parks and eat most meals at resorts or DS or Uber eats. It just Isn’t worth the money and hassle, there is not a single in park restaurant I would eat at regularly if it was down the street in my town.

 

[DeeBee3]

I agree- patience of a saint. If my kid was waiting that long I would have started walking around demanding someone stay at the table and discuss. Not acceptable at all. I wouldn't have paid until someone explained all the mistakes. 0 tip

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

There is no way to contact a restaurant to tell them you are running 10 minutes late because your Disney Bus is stopping at 2 resorts (Yacht, then Beach) and unloading an ECV at one, and Reloading an ECV at the next. Then being scolded for being late isn't really that fun.

Normally I'd think it be slight overkill for the majority of times but Disney has said for a long time to allow 90 mins to get to places including ADRs when using their transportation options. This is me assuming you didn't allow for that. It isn't your fault a bus is late however just that hopefully extra time was built into your plans there.

Our first meal at Hacienda San Angel was really good. Service was a little slow, but good overall and the food was fantastic.

Glad to hear it was good. We've got reservations for that with some friends in a week.

When I worked at a restaurant and you repeatedly forgot a meal, ESPECIALLY a kids meal, that took that long to deliver to a table, you comped it.

I think those days have long been gone, like many years gone like long before the pandemic. I couldn't tell you the last time something was comped (or a discount) without prompting.

When I got back to the room I cancelled our remaining table service dinners. I was worried I might get charged for it, but we weren't (at least yet).

So long as you canceled at least 24 hours in advance of your reservation you wouldn't be charged.

Is this typical right now? We both said next time we go, we wouldn't bother with sit down meals,

It's typical for many places at this point. From short staff to supply issues to employees run down and tired and sometimes ineptitude (even as much latitude as one can give) are all fairly commonplace IME.

We went out about a week and a half ago in my home area and the waitress took a long time in between requests. My beer and my sister-in-law's beer arrived about 15 mins after ordering but she forgot my husband's beer. It took about 15 more mins to get that one. A decaf coffee for my mother-in-law took 25 mins (even making fresh shouldn't take that long). 5 out of 6 people's food arrived with hot spots and then warm to lukewarm spots. A coke refill took 20 mins for my step-father-in-law. Then when the bill came she charged us $1.99 for asparagus...when my meal came with that..her excuse was "oh when I input it it just adds it"..nope it does not but I could see her in error pressing the button for an extra side of asparagus rather than inputting that I want how the meal comes on the menu.

We do try to be patient but it's not exactly the best experience these days unfortunately. Not all places we've eaten at at home have been bad, we just had a normal good experience yesterday early evening at a place that seems to deliver quite consistently (although for the most part most of us who have gone say the food is a tad overpriced for what it is), but I'd say the majority are running quite slow, more errors than in the past and service more up and down.

- Also, I thought all resorts had gone to the bulk dispensers for body wash, shampoo, etc. We still had individual containers...

I think they did or had done that to a good many but covid reversed things on that. There are hotels that I'm sure still do the bulk dispensers but with covid suddenly it was all about less contact between guests so small (previously the norm) containers became more prevalent again.

 

[miss0033]

Thanks for the replies.

I did not build 90 minutes into my schedule to get to/from places. We usually gave ourselves an hour, so for Trattoria, we tried to be at the bus stop 60 minutes before our dining reservation time. It still wasn't enough... Hadn't seen the 90 minute recommendation before, and had we known even that, I probably would've done fewer sit down meals. 60 minutes almost always go us where we needed to go 15 minutes early, sometimes a little more, sometimes less. (Although getting to Typhoon Lagoon to over 90 minutes given the current bus situation and waiting our turn, but that was our rest day so it didn't matter as much to us)

We knew this trip was going to be expensive, and "worth it" is always subjective. I just cannot stomach the quality of food and service we received, with the price of the TS meals. It felt like a waste of Money AND time, and time is money, so I was just not happy with it.

The point made about everyone being new; wait staff, cooks, etc. sounds probably about right. We got recommendations from friends and coworkers who had all been Pre-COVID closure about meals and locations where they had memorable meals of good food and service. Via Napoli was so highly recommended by our friends. That was likely part of the problem too, we built our own hype around it. Ale and Compass people were telling us "The best burger on property", "Juicy, mouth watering burger", etc. and we got an applebees level burger honestly. At least that was only $20 and not as overprice as some of the other things we ordered for dinners.

Having worked in restaurants for 6 years of HS and College, I try to be as lenient and understanding as possible, and try to never send back a meal. This trip tested my limits in that. I sure hope it improves, I just don't see us doing any TS meals on our future trips without some changes.

Normally I'd think it be slight overkill for the majority of times but Disney has said for a long time to allow 90 mins to get to places including ADRs when using their transportation options. This is me assuming you didn't allow for that. It isn't your fault a bus is late however just that hopefully extra time was built into your plans there.

Glad to hear it was good. We've got reservations for that with some friends in a week.

I had the Alambre de Res at La Hacienda and it was fantastic, my favorite meal of the trip. My wife had the Chile Relleno and also said it was quite good, possibly her favorite of the trip. And I am not saying fantastic compared to the rest of the mediocre food on the trip, I am saying I would search out this dish again.

Quite honestly at the parks I was expecting worse based on all the negative stuff I had been reading recently. The parks were crowded, but not crazy. Possibly a slight lull after Spring break crowds. I also really didn't witness any appalling guest behavior. The worst thing I saw was people constantly cutting in line to get to their families/groups further ahead. I just rolled my eyes and didn't let it affect me. The parks experience was great, and still magical for my kid and us. Our last day at the parks was Friday and we did Magic Kingdom and ended with the fireworks. I walked out of the park with my kid on my shoulders who is singing her favorite Disney songs at the top of her lungs and waving her arms around... I had to put on my sunglasses to hide my tears from leaving and knowing my little girl is probably going to be not so little the next time we can make it back. It was a really great trip, even with my annoyance with the TS Dining Experience. I hope to be back sooner than later, but need to find ways to save up the money again as the cost of everything around us continues to rise.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

had the Alambre de Res at La Hacienda and it was fantastic, my favorite meal of the trip. My wife had the Chile Relleno and also said it was quite good, possibly her favorite of the trip. And I am not saying fantastic compared to the rest of the mediocre food on the trip, I am saying I would search out this dish again.

ooohh I'm getting hungry just thinking about those Both of those looked good when I saw the menu and so did the cochinita pibil

Quite honestly at the parks I was expecting worse based on all the negative stuff I had been reading recently.

I'm happy to hear that! I know it was getting pretty rough there for a while with the "I'm back" experiences

 

[SG131]

Wow, that experience at Trattoria is unacceptable. The manager should've done anything the could to make it right, not avoid you. If I were you I'd at least send an email to Disney now that you're back. As far as the DVC stays, you only get a full cleaning on day 4 if your stay is 8 or more nights. So if you stayed 7, you only get trash and towel during the stay.

 

[FunnyLady1966]

Overall, had a wonderful trip in the parks. It was my almost 5 year old's first trip and she had a blast. So I am skipping over a lot of good things, and concentrating on a couple bad things... Like most things on the internet...

This was our first on-property stay in over 10 years, and first stay that wasn't a value resort.

We stayed at the Boardwalk on (rented) DVC points.
- Do all Disney resorts have extremely hard water? The water in the shower beaded up on my skin better than my car does after 2 coats of carnauba wax.
- My wife thought her hair was going to just fall out from the hot water, and used up 2 tubes of conditioner herself. I used 1 as well. We requested a 4th and it never came.
- Also, I thought all resorts had gone to the bulk dispensers for body wash, shampoo, etc. We still had individual containers...
- They picked up trash on day 2. On day 4 we got some extra towels. I cannot confirm, but I don't think housekeeping ever came again, as we never got more
towels and trash wasn't picked up again. At no point during our stay did we get new sheets. I thought day 4 was a full housekeeping when staying on points. Does that not include new sheets?
This is also the first time we have done more than one Table Service meal during a trip.
- There is no way to contact a restaurant to tell them you are running 10 minutes late because your Disney Bus is stopping at 2 resorts (Yacht, then Beach) and unloading an ECV at one, and Reloading an ECV at the next. Then being scolded for being late isn't really that fun.
- We had reserved 6 table service Dinners, and 1 character breakfast; we were never seated earlier than 20 minutes after our reservation time, even when we made a point to show up 10-15 minutes early.

Our first meal at Hacienda San Angel was really good. Service was a little slow, but good overall and the food was fantastic. Sadly it went downhill from there. We had previously eaten at Jiko, Sanna, Le Cellier, and Kona great service and great food each time that we remember, but only one per trip. So we hoped for a few meals that were hopefully as good as those, or at least came close.

At Via Napoli the Chicken Pharm, which was the server's recommendation, is quite possibly the worst example of the dish I have ever had; way too much cheese, flavorless chicken and almost no sauce on the chicken or the 7 spaghetti noodles on the side. The burger at Ale & Compass was only marginally better than the in-park quick service burgers, even ordering it medium it was dry and over-cooked. I was frustrated with those 2 meals taking over an hour an a half, and costing $120+ after tax and tip while being only marginally better than the in-park quick service food that was half that or less.

At Trattoria Al Forno, in particular, we waited almost 45 minutes for a table after being scolded about being 10 minutes late due to the busses (listed above). The dinner itself took almost 2 hours...
It took about 20 minutes for a server to come by and we ordered our beverages and meals. I asked to substitute real beef for the "impossible meat" on the Rigatoni Bolognese, our server said no problem. My wife ordered a side salad as a starter and the lasagna. We asked for a kids cheese pizza for my daughter. 15-20 minutes later our server brought bread, and said it would be a $9 up-charge for the beef instead of the plant-based "impossible meat". I laughed and said I have seen that go the other way, but never that way and said to just make it how it is on the menu. Wondering why it took 20 minutes to figure that out. After another 15 minutes, we flag down the server and ask if she could bring the kids meal ASAP as our daughter was getting hungry. (Yeah, I probably should've brought a snack or something). Was told no problem. So almost an hour from sitting down, (close to 2 hours from original reservation time) and we only have bread and drinks.

Shortly after my wife was bought a large dinner salad, not a side salad. And no kids meal early whatever, we will get by. Shortly there after our meals came out, but still no kids meal. My meal also had mushrooms on it, which weren't listed as an ingredient on the menu. I inquired, and was told it was part of the plant-based meat dish. Ugh, I hate mushrooms but also hate sending food back (no idea they were included) and am starving. We asked for the kids pizza to be brought out ASAP. I picked out mushrooms and we both shared parts of our dish with our daughter, who wasn't interested in what we ordered but was starving. The server never checked in and the kids meal didn't show up until we were both done eating.

A person dressed differently than the servers brought our daughter's meal out. We asked if they were the manager, which they said yes. As we started to explain, the manager said they would be right back after they checked on something "real quick". Our daughter picked at her cold pizza with a burnt underside and we never saw the manager again. The server came back and we asked for included kids meal gelato and the check. Those 2 items came quickly and I about lost it... We were charged for a full dinner salad that we didn't order (but did receive). I was charged the $9 "fennel sausage" upgrade but had told them to make it with the impossible meat, which I was told I received (mushrooms and all). We were charged full price for the kids meal and gelato. A) the gelato was supposed to be included. B) When I worked at a restaurant and you repeatedly forgot a meal, ESPECIALLY a kids meal, that took that long to deliver to a table, you comped it. My wife took our daughter back to the room and I asked for the manager. I waited about 20 minutes, at this point is well after 9:00 and my patience is GONE. The manager never came, and the server was avoiding my table completely. I went to the front desk and paid our full bill, and still left a 10% tip. When I got back to the room I cancelled our remaining table service dinners. I was worried I might get charged for it, but we weren't (at least yet).

Is this typical right now? We both said next time we go, we wouldn't bother with sit down meals, and just do quick service for half the price, or ever less. Not to mention I don't need or want to spend over an hour and a half at a restaurant. The brisket sandwich at Woody's Lunch Box - surprisingly really good. The pulled pork at Regal Eagle Smokehouse - delicious. Burgers and chicken tenders in the park - pretty standard. Casey's Corner Hot Dog and Chili Cheese fries - exactly what you expect. Overall, no complaints about the quick-service food.

We had a great trip in the parks, my daughter loved most of the rides had a blast at the shows and meeting the characters. Her parents loved seeing her joy! We were just let down by the dining experience overall.

The Character Breakfast at Toppolino's was good. Service was excellent, food was good, character experience was great. Yeah it was pricey, but we got characters and a good breakfast. Sadly, that was the exception and not the norm for our trip.

I actually like the hard water because my hair dries quicker; as for the food, it's always been overpriced and I've come to accept it. I'm sad to hear that the service is also going down. That is the ONE thing Disney as always prided itself on...sad

 

[Miffy]

OP, you should consider writing to WDW about your experience at Trattoria. Not so you can get some kind of compensation for what happened there (although, actually, you should) but because Disney should be made aware of the situation there.

I don't have the email address offhand, but if you ask here or in another thread, I'm sure someone who can access it quickly will let you know.

One of the reasons I go back to WDW so often is that their customer service has always been above-and-beyond. Post-reopening, it's not as good as it once was. There's a lot of new staff and, from what I gather, many of the new CMs aren't given the same training that formerly every CM got. And it shows. That's not to say there aren't great CMs still at WDW. There are. But the quality of services like food and housekeeping has definitely suffered.

 

[kc51570]

Overall, had a wonderful trip in the parks. It was my almost 5 year old's first trip and she had a blast. So I am skipping over a lot of good things, and concentrating on a couple bad things... Like most things on the internet...

This was our first on-property stay in over 10 years, and first stay that wasn't a value resort.

We stayed at the Boardwalk on (rented) DVC points.
- Do all Disney resorts have extremely hard water? The water in the shower beaded up on my skin better than my car does after 2 coats of carnauba wax.
- My wife thought her hair was going to just fall out from the hot water, and used up 2 tubes of conditioner herself. I used 1 as well. We requested a 4th and it never came.
- Also, I thought all resorts had gone to the bulk dispensers for body wash, shampoo, etc. We still had individual containers...
- They picked up trash on day 2. On day 4 we got some extra towels. I cannot confirm, but I don't think housekeeping ever came again, as we never got more
towels and trash wasn't picked up again. At no point during our stay did we get new sheets. I thought day 4 was a full housekeeping when staying on points. Does that not include new sheets?
This is also the first time we have done more than one Table Service meal during a trip.
- There is no way to contact a restaurant to tell them you are running 10 minutes late because your Disney Bus is stopping at 2 resorts (Yacht, then Beach) and unloading an ECV at one, and Reloading an ECV at the next. Then being scolded for being late isn't really that fun.
- We had reserved 6 table service Dinners, and 1 character breakfast; we were never seated earlier than 20 minutes after our reservation time, even when we made a point to show up 10-15 minutes early.

Our first meal at Hacienda San Angel was really good. Service was a little slow, but good overall and the food was fantastic. Sadly it went downhill from there. We had previously eaten at Jiko, Sanna, Le Cellier, and Kona great service and great food each time that we remember, but only one per trip. So we hoped for a few meals that were hopefully as good as those, or at least came close.

At Via Napoli the Chicken Pharm, which was the server's recommendation, is quite possibly the worst example of the dish I have ever had; way too much cheese, flavorless chicken and almost no sauce on the chicken or the 7 spaghetti noodles on the side. The burger at Ale & Compass was only marginally better than the in-park quick service burgers, even ordering it medium it was dry and over-cooked. I was frustrated with those 2 meals taking over an hour an a half, and costing $120+ after tax and tip while being only marginally better than the in-park quick service food that was half that or less.

At Trattoria Al Forno, in particular, we waited almost 45 minutes for a table after being scolded about being 10 minutes late due to the busses (listed above). The dinner itself took almost 2 hours...
It took about 20 minutes for a server to come by and we ordered our beverages and meals. I asked to substitute real beef for the "impossible meat" on the Rigatoni Bolognese, our server said no problem. My wife ordered a side salad as a starter and the lasagna. We asked for a kids cheese pizza for my daughter. 15-20 minutes later our server brought bread, and said it would be a $9 up-charge for the beef instead of the plant-based "impossible meat". I laughed and said I have seen that go the other way, but never that way and said to just make it how it is on the menu. Wondering why it took 20 minutes to figure that out. After another 15 minutes, we flag down the server and ask if she could bring the kids meal ASAP as our daughter was getting hungry. (Yeah, I probably should've brought a snack or something). Was told no problem. So almost an hour from sitting down, (close to 2 hours from original reservation time) and we only have bread and drinks.

Shortly after my wife was bought a large dinner salad, not a side salad. And no kids meal early whatever, we will get by. Shortly there after our meals came out, but still no kids meal. My meal also had mushrooms on it, which weren't listed as an ingredient on the menu. I inquired, and was told it was part of the plant-based meat dish. Ugh, I hate mushrooms but also hate sending food back (no idea they were included) and am starving. We asked for the kids pizza to be brought out ASAP. I picked out mushrooms and we both shared parts of our dish with our daughter, who wasn't interested in what we ordered but was starving. The server never checked in and the kids meal didn't show up until we were both done eating.

A person dressed differently than the servers brought our daughter's meal out. We asked if they were the manager, which they said yes. As we started to explain, the manager said they would be right back after they checked on something "real quick". Our daughter picked at her cold pizza with a burnt underside and we never saw the manager again. The server came back and we asked for included kids meal gelato and the check. Those 2 items came quickly and I about lost it... We were charged for a full dinner salad that we didn't order (but did receive). I was charged the $9 "fennel sausage" upgrade but had told them to make it with the impossible meat, which I was told I received (mushrooms and all). We were charged full price for the kids meal and gelato. A) the gelato was supposed to be included. B) When I worked at a restaurant and you repeatedly forgot a meal, ESPECIALLY a kids meal, that took that long to deliver to a table, you comped it. My wife took our daughter back to the room and I asked for the manager. I waited about 20 minutes, at this point is well after 9:00 and my patience is GONE. The manager never came, and the server was avoiding my table completely. I went to the front desk and paid our full bill, and still left a 10% tip. When I got back to the room I cancelled our remaining table service dinners. I was worried I might get charged for it, but we weren't (at least yet).

Is this typical right now? We both said next time we go, we wouldn't bother with sit down meals, and just do quick service for half the price, or ever less. Not to mention I don't need or want to spend over an hour and a half at a restaurant. The brisket sandwich at Woody's Lunch Box - surprisingly really good. The pulled pork at Regal Eagle Smokehouse - delicious. Burgers and chicken tenders in the park - pretty standard. Casey's Corner Hot Dog and Chili Cheese fries - exactly what you expect. Overall, no complaints about the quick-service food.

We had a great trip in the parks, my daughter loved most of the rides had a blast at the shows and meeting the characters. Her parents loved seeing her joy! We were just let down by the dining experience overall.

The Character Breakfast at Toppolino's was good. Service was excellent, food was good, character experience was great. Yeah it was pricey, but we got characters and a good breakfast. Sadly, that was the exception and not the norm for our trip.

So sorry to hear. I had a very similar experience at Topolino’s. It was so disappointing. Had to send a filet back which I asked for medium and came out well done. It was brought back when the rest of my family was almost done with their meals. It still wasn’t medium, but medium well and a little dry. Had to ask repeatedly for a drink refill and ketchup to go with my kids fries. No compensation offered for the badly cooked meal and inconvenience of eating after everyone else. This was also delivered by the manager. To add insult to injury, we were then charged for the 2 gelatos that came with the kids meals. That set me off because at a bare minimum I should have been offered a free dessert because of my meal mishap not charged for ones that were already included. 2 hour experience with no apps and we placed our meal order at the same time we ordered cocktails which we only had one each of other than the kids coke which we had to keep reminding about a refill. Other places this was automatic without even asking one time never multiple. I’ve had a great meal and service there so I know it can be done. I complained at the hostess stand and told them I was cancelling my breakfast the next day due to the very poor experience.
Service at HBD lounge was also not great. Waitress never cleared our dirty plates (even when we attempted to hand them to her) but asked for our cloth napkins back. When we were first seated a couple of servers walked by pointed at us, left for another ten minutes and then made us move to a different table-apparently the host seated us at a dirty table although the top was cleaner than the new table. They could have just moved the place settings and menus over Or asked us to move earlier instead of pointing and ignoring.

 

[Praying Colonel]

The last time we did TS was our 2019 visit. We decided we'll just do CS from now on. I know we're grading on a curve for theme park food, but I can't justify paying those crazy TS prices for mediocre food and hit/miss service.

 

[Meglen]

We mostly do breakfast table service now due to it being cheaper and quicker service. Yak n Yeti has been our go to take service at AK service always great and fast. But other than that we stick to qs.

 

[Tatum20]

That sounds so awful, especially about the manager just refusing to deal with you. I can't believe you had to pay for stuff you didn't even order.

I am not really interested in table service at Disney. We did the Ohana breakfast last month and I was disappointed. Service was fine, food was okay, but for what it cost, totally not worth it.

 

[cdobert]

for our 7 day trip in June we have 4 table service reservations, set for mid-afternoon. Coming from Colorado we're trying to come to the parks mid-afternoon and close them. Hopefully eating during an off time we won't have the OP's problems.