LeCellier or Coral Reef

[kadanty]

We have reservations for LeCellier for lunch and Coral Reef for dinner for the same day. I am thinking we will not be able to eat that much food in one day, so which would you pick? It is me, my husband and 2 year old DD. We are on free dining and can only get these two restaurants on the same day.

 

[Danemom]

I'd do both, but I'd just get cheese soup and pretzel bread for lunch.

If I cut one, it would be Le Cellier, but I know I'm in the minority - most people love it and a lot of people really don't like Coral Reef. I liked the steak at Coral Reef better.

 

[Wild4Walt]

I agree with the above poster - keep both. Do something light for lunch or something that you can share. Neither is an experience to be missed.

 

[TwingleMum]

We really like both. Le Cellier is very difficult to get and seats only a few. If you want to eat a bigger meal at one and appys and dessert at the other . Look at the menus here or on allears.net

 

[qanita92]

I ate at CR on our last trip and did not enjoy anything (except for the bread and butter).

 

[cheshire1013]

I know Im also the minority on this one....We usually do one ADR a day, b/c we hate to waste our precious time eating and feel lethargic if we eat too much. If it was me, I would keep Coral Reef. We go to WDW alot and this past april was the 1st time we ever got a seat at Le Cellier. Well, we were not impressed. Its very dark, and the food was only ok. Also the kid at the table next to us choked on his steak, poor kid....he was ok though.
But...............if you have never eaten there, I would keep the reservation just to make your own opinion. You may love it, lots of people do!
WE love Coral Reef, and would eat there in a heartbeat....Its a great atmosphere and the food is great.
There is so much to see at Epcot that its already tough to see in one day. If you have 2 ADRs you may not see everything you want. But thats MHO.....Goodluck!

Oh I just noticed you have a 2 yr old DD....We also have a 2yr old DD, and she loved Coral Reef....the "fishies" kept her entertained for most of the meal. and Le Cellier is dark, which may not be great for DD

 

[gk90]

qanita92, sorry to hear you had a bad CR experience. I was worried about this ressie myself because I'd seen so many bad CR reviews like yours but it turned out to be one of the highlights of our trip.

kadanty, we were in the same situatiion last year, wanted to go to both but could only get them on that 1 day. We had a light lunch at CR. Looking at the menu reminds me again of how good it was--DH and I had appetizers, the lobster soup (wonderful!!!) and a sea & land combo, BBQ beef and shrimp on skewers. The kids had the full kids' meals, one of them the grilled mahi-mahi and the other the grilled chicken. They both loved it. Then after 5 hrs in the park we were more than ready for a full dinner at Le Cellier. The cheese soup, the steak, the smoothies...yum!

 

[habg1]

We have ressies for both on the same day in Nov. Coral Reef for lunch & Le Cellier for dinner. We just plan on something"light" for lunch. There's no way I would cancel either of my ADR's. I would keep them both if I were you!

 

[Danemom]

It is me, my husband and 2 year old DD. We are on free dining and can only get these two restaurants on the same day.

Well, free dining changes things a bit. You probably don't want to "waste" credits by not eating a full meal or pay OOP for a light lunch. You're lucky to have gotten both of these restaurants! I think they are possibly THE two hardest to get into during free dining.
If you want to experience both, you probably could - neither of these restaurants serves the huge portions that most Disney restaurants do. They have the "upscale" restaurant portions, KWIM?

If you are really light eaters and want to cancel one, I agree with the other posters, Coral Reef's atmosphere is a lot more kid friendly.

 

[tkddad]

We did just that on Aug 26, LeCellier for lunch and CR for dinner.

We were on the dinning plan as well. I had the mushroom fillet
at LeCellier and it was truly delicious. The chocolate moose
was good. I had the salmon at the CR and it was ok. The
chocolate wave though was outstanding.

My two boys had the NY strip at both places and they gave
the edge to CR. I think they like the ones at CR because the
cut was bigger . Wife had the Mahi Mahi at CR and thought it was
great. She had the Halibut at LeCellier and thought it was a bit
overcooked.

I would do both again. The portion is just right for me so I
don't think you will be overwhelmed with being too full.
We had lunch at LeCellier at 12:15 and dinner at CR at 8:10.
I didn't need any snack in between.

My boys did ask for extra bread sticks at LeCellier. They were
delicious.

 

[Paul in CT]

I never thought I would say this because LC has always been a favorite of ours, but if you decide to do only one, I suggest Coral Reef. My DW and I had lunch there in December and really enjoyed it. The view of the fish tank is wonderful. All the tables and booths face it. The service was outstanding and the food was delicious with very nice presentation as well. It is definitely better than the "old" Coral Reef IMHO. I hope you find it to be the same!

 

[sherreis]

DH and I both suggest Le Cellier. It was one of our favorites when we were there and it was DH's one request for restaurant to return to.

It's 2 different atmospheres and either way you can't go wrong.

 

[BigGoofyFan]

I would do both. I love Coral Reef for the atmosphere. It is a beautiful restaurant and the kids will love it. Coral Reef's fare is a lighter if you stick to seafood. We have done Coral Reef for lunch (usually no appetizer or desert) and LeCellier for dinner and we have been fine. We usually though would do an earlier lunch and later diner. They both are great restaurants for different reasons.

 

[ppan77]

Beware...we ate at CR for lunch and were very disappointed and it was our most expensive meal of the trip I couldn't even finish my meal...I like the soupl...lobster bisque ....but my caear salad with grilled shrimp was not good at all...my husband ordered fish and hated it...go with Le Cellier even though we've never had it..you are just paying for the fish tank at CR.

 

[Paul in CT]

I should have added to my post that since Le Cellier ADR's are so hard to get now, I would try to keep both. When I tried to cancel a LC ADR for our last vacation, the CM convinced me to hold on to it until I was SURE that we did not want it.

 

[Cookie Princess]

We like both...but would pick Le Cellier if we could only do 1. We like the food better. We have had both good and bad dining experiences in the past at CR, but have had only great dining experiences at Le Cellier.

 

[Mouse511]

DH and I love LeCellier. The cheddar cheese soup and pretzel bread are soooo good. Almost forgot the mushroom filet......yummy!!! We do like Coral Reef, more for the atmosphere than the food. We would definitely pick LeCellier.

 

[MissionMouse]

Keep them both. They both provide inconsistent experiences, so you will read a mix of opinions. We found Le Cellier to be over hyped and Coral Reef to have improved-slightly.

 

[catho72]

We did both...LeCellier for lunch and Coral Reef for dinner. For lunch, I had cheese soup with my pretzel bread, a salad and the chocolate moose for desert. Loved it all! For dinner, I had the lobster bisque (fantastic), shrimp pasta (which they've taken off the menu ) and creme brule' (also off the menu ). I would keep both and just have a lighter lunch OR you and DH could share something at LeCellier. Although, if your ADR is at Coral Reef on 9/22 or 9/25, cancel so I can take your ADR! Oh wait, you are a party of three and I need it for five!