Magic is gone-disappointing 3rd DDP experience

[Small Town Princess]

We just returned (GG party of 13) from our disappointing Jan 15-22 trip.

Thankfully we were aware of the changes (no appetizer or gratuity) from reading these boards. Our AAA agent did not inform us when we booked the trip. This was the 3rd trip for my family of 4, my parents and my brother's family of 4 in four years time. We had all become so adicted to Disney and the DDP that we convinced my sister's family of 3 to join us. This trip was VERY disappointing and we will not be returning any time soon.The magic is definately gone!

We stayed again at the POP. The food court did have SOME items labeled for DDP in coolers but we still found it confusing. We ate ate the food court several times during the trip but the quality of the food had really gone down hill. The chocolate chip pancakes were so-so, french toast and combo platter were both hard as a rock! We thought maybe it was just a bad day so tried it again another day and same thing. The chicken noodle soup was some chicken and veggies from one pot with CLEAR (like water) broth laddled over it. YUCK! My grape container also had several spoiled ones in it. The chicken strips and fries were ok but not much meat, mostly breading. The only bright spot was the chicken alfredo pasta which was very good.

Our other meals were at:
Prime Time Cafe- Food was ok at best. Our group had steak (about the only TS on our trip it was available), chicken and meat loaf. Servers had no Umphhh. The last time we were there they played with the customers and other staff, they yelled across the room, made people eat their veggies, tattled to momma, etc. We saw very little of this on our visit. Nobody smiled. They asked if you were on the DDP and barely spoke after that.

Sci-Fi- The best thing I had here was the appetizer artichoke dip that I paid for OOP. Awesome! The rest of the food was alright. Burgers, ribs, chicken penne. Kids had hot dogs. You could get a shake as your drink which was good. It was VERY busy and they were turning many away outside.

Ohana- My brother had LOVED this place on his last trip but complained that the food quality was not good this time. He questioned the waiter and was told they are in transition right now. Several menu items are being changed including the sausages removed and replaced with a very bland shrimp. They also brought some kind of dry bread for the sauces instead of chips.

Biergarten- New to us and pretty good. Large buffet with very good desserts. Fresh and hot meats and sides. Quick service with a smile from a young girl returning to Germany this week.


1900 Park Fare Breakfast- The only place we loved! Yummy, hot breakfast. Large variety, made to order omletes. Soft serve ice cream bar for dessert! We only saw a serve 2 times during our meal though- once for drinks and then to take our payment. No drink refills and we were there way over an hour.

Liberty Tree Tavern- Gross. The meat was very dry. We never got any gravy. The ice cream on the bread pudding was all melted and soupy. The potty is tiny and up several flights of stairs. The decor is old and blah. I realize it's suppose to be colonial but just not DISNEY to us.

Whispering Canyon Cafe- Our BIGGEST disappointment! We have always dined here at Dinner, but they were full months ahead of time so we had to do lunch. Only one server "Albert" was great! The rest were blah. When my son asked for ketchup he was snarled at " it is already on the tables." Our older waitress (I won't mention names) really did not like her job. She waited on us and got confused MANY times. Three times she was told we were on the dining plan and which families were together. At the end of the meal she gathered our cards and took off. It would be 45 minutes before we saw her AGAIN! We went to the front desk to have them track her down. We stopped a manager in a suit to find her. He said she was figuring our tickets. When she finally returned (reeking of cigarette smoke) her only response was "what can I say, we HATE the dining plan"!!!!

For snacks we were able to get Dole whips and filled pretzels. The rest was pretty much gone back to the way the DDP was in the beginning.

Counter service burgers and fries just tasted bad this time. We had Cosmic Rays and Electric Umbrella which were favs in the past but not very good this time. Flame tree ribs are still tasty but not much meat.

All in all it just didn't seem like we got our money's worth. These are just our opinions of course. But to us, the Disney magic has really slipped. It's all about the $$$ now and how many people they can serve with low quality food.
P.S. The entire time we were there, not one of us ever saw ANY dreams issued to anyone! On previous trips someone was always getting a free dessert or something.

We won't be planning another trip to DisneyWorld any time soon.

 

[loco4dis]

That sounds terrible. I have been in the position of hyping Disney for other people and then having it turn out badly and they're looking at you like, "You like this place?!" The WCC report is especially bad. I would write to Disney and tell them everything you told here. Maybe they'll make it "worth your while." It makes me so glad I'm skipping the DDP on the June trip. I am the kind of person who gives waitresses like that a piece of my mind, and then my husband and kids worry all night that their food has been spit on.

 

[eliza61]

Sorry you had such a disappointing trip. It stinks when you don't enjoy your vacation. I quess we are pretty luckky that overall we are still having wonderful vacations at the world. Do we have a few bad apples now and then? Sure, but I get treated far worse at the Jersey shore from the college students working for the summer and its just as much money. I tend to let annoying people roll off my back, not worth ruining my vacation over. I do have tips removed from my bill if the service is atroucious. No way am I tipping for lousy service.
I wish Disney would stop the promotions, it seems to bring out the worse in people. now it seems if you don't get a dream item or don't see them handed out, every one is mad. Definitely write disney as the previous poster suggested. they can't fix what they don't know is broken.

 

[Small Town Princess]

Ya know, that's just it. I have "sold" SO MANY families on going to Disney World and the DDP from our community that everyone said I should get a job at Disney. I lived and breathed it! Now I feel like they are going to be so disappointed.
I am going to write to Disney too. I do not expect anything but I do want them to know that they did ruin something wonderful and it is definately "broke".
To be told how much the servers HATE the DDP made us feel like they hated us- the customers. My brother shook his head in disbelief and looked at me "Did she just say what I think she said?"I realize it is definately more paperwork for them because you get a pile of receipts when you pay. It is really confusing as to which is the customers to keep and which is to sign and what you are actually signing for!
On our previous trips we never had a single complaint. Like the previous poster mentioned, every once in a while you'd get a server who was just so-so, but for the most part the servers and food were amazing!

I really do miss the appetizer and gratuity being part of the plan too. It was so nice not to have everything paid for up front and not worry about any extra charges. I disliked carrying around tip money and all those receipts. Also with the food not being very good I felt hungry after a couple of the meals. The appy was a nice way to feel like you were splurging and satisfied that the DDP was such a good value. Plus at several of the restraunts it took a very long time to get our meal. An appy would have helped satisfy and occupy impatient children and Grandpa!

 

[VacationDad]

Whatever happened to Disney only hiring folks who genuinely loved the environment? If I want a chain-smoking hag who hates her job for a waitress I will eat at Denny's.

 

[SpaceRangerEric]

I realize it is definately more paperwork for them because you get a pile of receipts when you pay. It is really confusing as to which is the customers to keep and which is to sign and what you are actually signing for!

That is the first I heard of a "pile of receipts". Why are there any more receipts than you usually would get at a restaurant?

 

[pickles]

I think the DDP has little to nothing to do with your poor exp this time around.

Poor job performance and hating of job is not DDP related

It doesn't take a genius to figure out how to use the plan, as evidenced by the very fact I understand it!!

It does sound like you had several different people/rooms/tickets which may have confused things or slowed them down and added to the pile of receipts you got

I find it very hard to believe that all across the board you had such a miserable exp. I was just there in Sept and used the DDP as I have every trip, and I did not have the same exp as you. I could see certain places maybe being bad or lacking, but everywhere you went?

 

[disneyjunkie]

I find it very hard to believe that all across the board you had such a miserable exp. I was just there in Sept and used the DDP as I have every trip, and I did not have the same exp as you. I could see certain places maybe being bad or lacking, but everywhere you went?

I have to agree with pickles.


The OP says the snacks has pretty much gone back to the way they were.
If that's the case, how do you explain this thread?

http://disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1683477

 

[disney queen]

let's play nice......

 

[TLSnell1981]

I noticed the decline in the quality of food on my last two trips to WDW. I was not on any dining plan. It was very disappointing.

 

[Dorisk3]

I can't help but wonder whether the lack of enthusiasm from the waitstaff is due to their tips being changed. I think it was probably pretty nice to be certain of an 18% tip- and now they are probably getting stiffed left and right. Also, I think there must be quite a bit of competition in the job market in Orlando and maybe Disney really isn't getting the best help anymore.

As to the posters that didn't quite believe the OP's complaints- I think the term rose colored glasses applies- particularly to these boards where everyone worships at the altar of Disney .

 

[Mermaid02]

Sorry you didn't enjoy the ddp. I really don't go to WDW for the food though- I'm about rides and attractions....

 

[maxiesmom]

Whatever happened to Disney only hiring folks who genuinely loved the environment? If I want a chain-smoking hag who hates her job for a waitress I will eat at Denny's.

Orlando has a very low unemployment rate. It is hard to be choosey when you have so little to pick from. Disney can't even fill all the positions they have open. Add to that a very high cost of living in Orlando, and you have some CMs who are there just to get a dollar.

 

[MAGGIED]

I find it unfortunate that the OP had a bad dining experience... my question would be how was the rest of your time... did you have fun at the attractions, fun hanging out with your kids and family, fun in the pool or at the fireworks??????????? There is so much more to the trip than just the food..... I guess if I let every bad experience I have with someone in the "service" sector stop me from going someplace I would never leave home.,... as I have had nasty folks at the grocery store, the car dealreship (where some idiot actually told me to go get my husband so he could explaix the financing to him.... went to the dealship next door and bought my car),dining, and more..... sometimes you just got to roll with it and have fun despite the unhappy people.

 

[Tiger926]

What was it about the DDP that you and your family were "addicted" to? Also, if you are basing your entire trip's happiness on food (what about attractions, shows, resorts, etc?), then you need to be eating at better restaurants as LTT, Sci-Fi and food courts are not it!

I too am not convinced that the OP's experiences, or anyone else's for that matter is all because of DDP. Disney is a corporation whose sole purpose is to make a profit; therefore, they serve Stouffer's food out of a box at LTT (consistently bad reviews), Sci-Fi is about atmosphere and not food (again bad reviews) and counter service is mostly bad as it's fast/quick food, and all of this adds up to better profits for Disney.

Please don't think I'm saying I agree that Disney should serve rotten grapes or bad quality food, but counter service burgers and fries are bad, period. This is why we eat only table service, and we choose our restaurants carefully (although we have pretty much eaten everywhere except for a few bad places like Sci-Fi as we don't want to waste or time there). Plus, you aren't going to get gourmet food at Value resort food courts, or any other food courts, as that is not what guests want who dine at food courts - it's all about getting in quick and leaving, just like at a mall or airport food court.

Sorry the OP had a disappointing time, but I don't think it's the all evil DDP as many people on this board might like us to believe - it's a combination of factors, of which the DDP may be one of them.

Tiger

 

[TLSnell1981]

I think it's more than the bad dining experience. I think OP kind of felt like a Dis ambassador and was embarassed by the experience. I also don't think many would be pleased to spend thousands of dollars on dining and then say oh well that was awful, but the rides were good.

 

[Tiger926]

I think it's more than the bad dining experience. I think OP kind of felt like a Dis ambassador and was embarassed by the experience. I also don't think many would be pleased to spend thousands of dollars on dining and then say oh well that was awful, but the rides were good.

If that's the case, then one needs to carefully choose the restaurants that he/she will be dining at if in fact this is what is at issue. Some of this was in the OP's control and some was not. The OP shouldn't feel guilty that Disney served bad grapes, as that was not her deal, but, perhaps look at this as a learning experience if there is a next time in regards to reasonable expectations (fastfood burgers & fries aren't good) and better choices of restaurants. This might then alleviate some guilt on the part of the OP.

Tiger

 

[TLSnell1981]

If that's the case, then one needs to carefully choose the restaurants that he/she will be dining at if in fact this is what is at issue. Some of this was in the OP's control and some was not. The OP shouldn't feel guilty that Disney served bad grapes, as that was not her deal, but, perhaps look at this as a learning experience if there is a next time in regards to reasonable expectations (fastfood burgers & fries aren't good) and better choices of restaurants. This might then alleviate some guilt on the part of the OP.

Tiger

I went to WDW with some first timers last year. Chefs de France had always been a favorite. I was very disappointed in the food and the service. I keep hearing the restaurants are becoming a hit or a miss WDW. It's kind of hard to be assured of a good experience.....and yes the dining is part of our Dis experience. That's why I make my ADRs 180 out....I want to make sure I dine at my favorites.

 

[Tiger926]

I went to WDW with some first timers last year. Chefs de France had always been a favorite. I was very disappointed in the food and the service. I keep hearing the restaurants are becoming a hit or a miss WDW. It's kind of hard to be assured of a good experience.....and yes the dining is part of our Dis experience. That's why I make my ADRs 180 out....I want to make sure I dine at my favorites.

That's funny you mention Chefs de France as our experience was horrible as well - food (except my lamb was great) and service were a disaster and we paid out of pocket using our DDE card.

It seems that WDW restaurants are becoming inconsistent, so for us as regulars, we speak by not frequenting certain restaurants in the hopes that things will improve. We also speak to managers, leave less tip for subpar service and email Disney as well. They can only improve and make postive changes if they know about negative experiences.

Tiger

 

[maxiesmom]

All in all it just didn't seem like we got our money's worth. These are just our opinions of course. But to us, the Disney magic has really slipped. It's all about the $$$ now and how many people they can serve with low quality food.

We won't be planning another trip to DisneyWorld any time soon.

I don't understand letting some bad meals keep you from Disney. If you want fine dining at the World, you need to do some more research, and make differnet choices. The food at the Liberty Tree is the same dinner after dinner. Turkey, stuffing, and mac n cheese. Filling food, but it could never be called fine dining. And the burgers at the Ellectric Umbrella are ok, but not what I would call fine dining either.

If you want fine dining, you really need to look at places like the Blue Zoo, California Grill, and the Chef's table at Victoria and Albert's. For the most part everything else is theme park food. Good and filling, but not 4 star haute cuisine. But with all of the people Disney feeds on a daily basis, what can you expect?

I will give you the rotten grapes though. That is just gross!