Need Advice on CORAL REEF - is it worth it?

[Carlyzmom]

Let me start by saying my 4 year old son is a NEMO freak!!!

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• his bedroom is done in NEMO
• his 3rd and 4th birthday parties were NEMO
• When he introduces himself he says "Hi, my name is Jace and I LOVE fish!!"
• If he sees anything NEMO, we HAVE to get it!!

So, that being said - would the Coral Reef be a good place to take him to dinner? He LOVES any kind of sea life and is fascinated by it. We are not huge seafood fans, but we could deal with it if it is a great dining experience. Any opinions??? Thanks!!

 

[Carlyzmom]

Sorry my bullets turned out kind of freaky....

 

[Aimeedyan]

We had a nice time there, I don't see why not to give it a shot. He'd enjoy watching the tank.

 

[paintnolish]

We really enjoyed it! It is a very unique dining environment and the food was great, although we are seafood eaters! The chocolate wave dessert is fabulous!

 

[Dancermomof1]

Coral Reef was one of our favorite places at Epcot to eat. When we went we sat right next to the aquarium and a scuba diver came around with funny signs. It was my husband and my anniversary and somehow the scuba guy knew and held up a "Happy Anniversary" sign. The food was wonderful and even though our son was only 5 months old he was intrigued by the fish. I would say it is definitely worth a try.

 

[septbaby]

Your little guy can get a good pizza at Coral Reef.

Our family left nothing on the plate, including our 6yo (quite a feat). Wonderful show and really good meal too.

I'd definitely book this one. Its right next to the Nemo area so convenient too.

 

[JoePa4Ever]

We really enjoyed our meal there this past Sept. I got the steak and it was excellent. The atmosphere was nice with the aquarium - your son will probably love being able to watch all the fish, rays, sharks etc. swim by during your meal. We liked the food, service, and atmosphere of Coral Reef and are going back this year.

 

[justintime]

We ate dinner there in May and loved it. The steak was excellent. The kids loved being able to look at the fish. I think your son would really like it - my kids did.

 

[HonnyDipp]

If your little one loves fish, it would be a good choice. If you are not seafood lovers, they also have steak and chicken on their menu. We were there back in 2003 and our children loved it. Its our first meal there this November!

 

[LuvMickey36]

We normally go for a lunch seating & have dessert. That way you still get the atmosphere. It works out well for us. My ds & I don't care for seafood & the portions they serve leave my dh hungry.

 

[Pirate Me]

He would definitely enjoy watching the fish in the surrounding tanks.

 

[RumpleMom]

The steak at the Coral Reef was very good. Desserts are too.

 

[Carlyzmom]

Is there a way to just go in and look at the fish tanks without eating (I mean like another separate aquarium entrance)? Just in case our ADRs don't work out?

 

[bytheblood]

I will share my experience with you by poasting my TGM review.

Coral Reef - Candlelight Processional/8:15 Show


Pros:
Ambiance


Cons:
Poor service
Hair in food
Unintelligible server
Long wait for drinks and food
Very noisy restaurant


Saturday, December 8
5:30 PM


We arrived at 5:15 and were finally sat at 6:15. The wait was okay with us, we were in no hurry. The only thing that made it bad was the couple in there with us that had 5 kids all under the age of 5 screaming and crying. I felt bad for the kids, but felt equally bad for the guests. Their kids were tired and miserable. My guess is that their nap was neglected.

After we were sat it took our waiter 15 minutes to come and take our drink order. After 10 minutes we received our tea and placed our appetizer order. He also asked for our entree and dessert order at the same time.

Our appetizers came out about 10 minutes later and then our entrees only 5 minutes after that. For an appetizer I ordered the sea and land. The meat was very tough and impossible to eat. The shrimp was good. My sister ordered the ceasar salad. She said that the ceasar dressing was very fishy and she was unable to eat it.

I ordered the pasta and shrimp, which was not too bad. There was a lot of shrimp and they were big. My sister ordered a steak which was cooked correctly and tasted pretty decent. My daughter ordered a kids pizza which came with a complimentary hair on it. Once she found that, her appetite was ruined, as was mine.

For dessert we all had the chocolate cake. It was decent, but a bit dry.

The ambiance was nice. I enjoyed the tanks and saw the divers a few times. I thought looking at fish while I was eating would gross me out, but it was actually relaxing. There was one huge fish with big bulging eyes that was gross, but the rest were okay.

Our server was not good. He was from Turkey, his accent was VERY VERY thick and he was impossible to understand. He was also very slow and it was impossible to get a refill of tea.

I would like to try Coral Reef again some time, but probably not any time too soon.


Overall, I score the Coral Reef as a C-. These people are lucky that Anton Ego did not visit or they would be out of business.

Scores
Cleanliness: A
Food: C
Service: C
Wait: C-

 

[Princess_Dot]

Coral Reef, for my party, was not worth it. We were a group of 12 and the whole meal was a disaster. From the server who yelled at the children for sharing their entrees (they both got mac & cheese) to the drinks that never got refilled, to our server literally CHASING us in Epcot because she forgot to charge us for a drink. (Yes, one drink, and with a party of 12 it was an expensive meal and we did not notice the drink error) The food was awfull. Appetizers vertually inedible and the service was initentive. My entree was brought out 3 different times, and the server never did give me the right meal. (No special order, she just couldn't remember) All in all it was a disaster.

I would go in the Living Seas and see the aquarium from that side and do the Nemo ride/Turtle Talk show.

 

[suzy724]

Yes! It is definitely a very cool experience, especially if he is so into sea creatures. Sitting up close with all the sea creatures is unlike any other dining experience at Disney. Made me want to go swimming after we ate!!

 

[roselark]

I love Coral Reef! One of the top 3 for me at WDW. Everyone in my party last December (7 of us) loved it. The steak was fabulous and my DF said that the grilled pork chop was the best she ever had. This was the one TS request my DM has for our trip next May. She had the mahi mahi and still talks about how good it was.