Ohana, Is it overpriced garbage or the best meal?

[Tiger926]

just a general comment, no flaming to poster...

if I had this crappy of a meal & service i'd certainly request speaking to mgmt @ the restaurant

i'd like to think the mgr would want to know about such an experience & continued feedback would help raise the bar.

I keep seeing people mention this - perhaps that poster did do this?

We have done it several times at 'Ohana, and it didn't do any good. I come from a restaurant family, so I can tell you that some restaurants do not want to raise the bar, as they are happy with the way things are. This is the case with 'Ohana, IMHO. You see the same continuous inconsistent reviews about 'Ohana. Why is that? Some of it can be attributed to different expecations from guests, but in this case, I truly believe 'Ohana is happy with the way they are.

It seems to be working, and they are full all of the time, as there are only 2 TS restaurants at the Poly, and it's a big resort. Not to mention the amount of people who visit from MK or other resorts.

If 'Ohana wanted to change, they would have changed by now. We went 3x over 3 different trips, during different months and years apart, and we encountered the same thing. That tells me they operate the way they wish to operate, and no amount of speaking to management (which needs to overhauled, IMHO), will change it.

Tiger

 

[keishashadow]

I keep seeing people mention this - perhaps that poster did do this?

We have done it several times at 'Ohana, and it didn't do any good. I come from a restaurant family, so I can tell you that some restaurants do not want to raise the bar, as they are happy with the way things are. This is the case with 'Ohana, IMHO. You see the same continuous inconsistent reviews about 'Ohana. Why is that? Some of it can be attributed to different expecations from guests, but in this case, I truly believe 'Ohana is happy with the way they are.

It seems to be working, and they are full all of the time, as there are only 2 TS restaurants at the Poly, and it's a big resort. Not to mention the amount of people who visit from MK or other resorts.

If 'Ohana wanted to change, they would have changed by now. We went 3x over 3 different trips, during different months and years apart, and we encountered the same thing. That tells me they operate the way they wish to operate, and no amount of speaking to management (which needs to overhauled, IMHO), will change it.

Tiger

then for u it's time to move on if things haven't lived up to ur expectations

they may be operating under a 'if it's not broke, don't fix it mentality' & if the bottomline is great there really is no need to change.

 

[BelleChick]

We loved it...have only been for dinner though! Everyone's tastes are different and are just opinions...the only way to find out for yourself is to try it for yourself. What is the worst thing that could happen? You don't like it and you never go back...I don't think it would ruin your vacation. I say...go for it!

 

[BayouMickey]

It's basically meat on a stick, if you can get passed that it's good.
We like it, but it's not the end all of the other restaurants.
We usually alternate with Ohana every other trip because kids like meat on a stick and sometimes I can do with some grilled shrimp.

 

[ROEDISNEY]

We went cause everybody says how great it is but we didn't like it at all. The food is smoked and we don't care for smoked food. Now if you like smoked food you will like it.

 

[padmo]

I honestly wouldn't go again. We were staying at PR, and made the reservation because of the raves. Our waiter just didn't seem to like us, and that just set the tone of the meal for us. The food was good, not great. VERY noisy, even at the first seating, which we had (5:10).

 

[laluna]

Had breakfast there a couple of weeks ago. Really lovely experience. Good service, plentiful food of good quality, fun character interaction.

 

[jdisnut]

I'm still firmly on the 'Ohana bandwagon, but I concede that group appears to be shrinking by the day. I have had dinner there about five times and have had nothing but phenomenal experiences. It is one of my absolute favorite restaurants on property. I fear that my next meal at 'Ohana will validate the dozens of negative reviews I have read on the boards. I hope that day doesn't come.

 

[sconnell]

We LOVE Ohana when we are on the dining plan, but I'm not sure I want to pay out-of-pocket this weekend. Debating that now with DH.

 

[johamna]

my bf and i both LOVE ohana..we cant wait to be back in may!

 

[youcansmellit]

I honestly wouldn't go again. We were staying at PR, and made the reservation because of the raves. Our waiter just didn't seem to like us, and that just set the tone of the meal for us. The food was good, not great. VERY noisy, even at the first seating, which we had (5:10).

This seems to be a common complaint. I think we might go to chef mickey instead.

 

[youcansmellit]

I'm still firmly on the 'Ohana bandwagon, but I concede that group appears to be shrinking by the day. I have had dinner there about five times and have had nothing but phenomenal experiences. It is one of my absolute favorite restaurants on property. I fear that my next meal at 'Ohana will validate the dozens of negative reviews I have read on the boards. I hope that day doesn't come.

I feel like people had a good experience 4-6 years ago and have not gone more recently. People that have been in the last couple of years have not liked it.

 

[youcansmellit]

Everything at Disney is overpriced. That being said, I have eaten there and I would not call it garbage. It is the same quality as a Chili's, or Outback Steakhouse, etc. as far as the food goes, nothing terrible, nothing amazing. We thought our dinner was fun, and we had a good time. It wasn't fine dining, and there were A LOT of kids running around (we found it to be one of the more kid heavy dining establishments) even at 9 pm, which was our ADR time. I would say give it a chance if the menu appeals to you! Good luck!

I feel like you have sold me on not going. I can't think of something more annoying then spending 2 hours, $200 in a chili's with kids running around. I could go to chili's off property for $50. I don't know. I'm going to have a car so we might just eat off property for the days we don't eat in the parks.

 

[jdisnut]

I feel like people had a good experience 4-6 years ago and have not gone more recently. People that have been in the last couple of years have not liked it.

I have noticed the same trend with the posts on the board, but my last meal at 'Ohana was in January, and my entire family loved it. All the food was cooked perfectly and delicious, and our server was one of the best we have ever had at Disney. She took initiative, immediately corrected any mistake and exceeded our wildest expectations.

I guess I have just been lucky.

 

[notaclue]

We were there for dinner in Sept and found the meats to be overcooked and dry and the service was lousy. I asked our server 2 times for the wet cloth to wipe our hands and never got one; he seemed like he just wanted to rush us out. The noise level was unpleasant also. Even tho we're staying at the Poly again in June we won't go back to 'Ohanas. It wasn't nearly as bad at breakfast but it's basically the same food you get at the counter service place but with characters and a much higher price tag.

 

[amshowers]

We love Ohana and it's on our must do list. The salad, bread,potstickers are very good.The noodles, broccoli are okay sides, sometimes the turkey, pork can a little dry so I usally skip it. I also order my steak mid-rare so the steak is aways good. I wings, shrimp and dessert so that really makes the meal for me.

 

[Bummbok]

For what its worth our last trip was June 09, and we loved it.

 

[lucas]

We were last there for dinner in January 2010 (never been for breakfast). We love it there and think everything is delish. There is so much, if you don't like one thing, just go on to the next - it really is way too much to eat. I do have to order the steak well done as that is the only way I eat steak. But, if I just had the salad, shrimp and dessert, I would be in heaven. I think it is one of the best deals at WDW.

P.S. I wish more people hated it so I could get reservations more often.

 

[Jetta8300]

I feel like people had a good experience 4-6 years ago and have not gone more recently. People that have been in the last couple of years have not liked it.

Never been there, but does anyone else think that they hype might be the reason for this? that it might NOT be that the restaurant has gotten worse in 4-6 years, but they expectations have gotten HIGHER because of the hype? I don't know but that's what it seems like about all the reviews on the DS board. They are usually negative about the popular restaurants, and positive about the less frequented places. Just an observation from a newbie

 

[Bummbok]

I feel like you have sold me on not going. I can't think of something more annoying then spending 2 hours, $200 in a chili's with kids running around. I could go to chili's off property for $50. I don't know. I'm going to have a car so we might just eat off property for the days we don't eat in the parks.

I feel the comparison to Chili's may be a bit misleading too, I assure you the overall experience is nothing like either of those restaurants unless you have a different type of Chili’s or Outback than we do here in Alabama . The only type of restaurant that I know of that compares in type of food/presentation of said food is the Brazilian steakhouses that are starting to pop up now and I don't think you can eat there for 4 people at $50