This is our first time using the dining plan, just a quick rundown. We went May 14-20, 2007.
First off, use you snacks early and often. We ended up with snacks to burn at the end of the trip. In hindsight I would have used them earlier and paid for a few at the end. Beineights (SP?) at POFQ are a great snack, 6 of them for one snack credit. Good sugar rush for the morning!
Second, Many Adult counter services can easily be split between two people, stretching you meals. We did one breakfast CS and one lunch CS between the two of us some days and it worked out just great.
We brought Pop Tarts for the kids and Costco's huge Muffins for us for Breakfast in the mornings. With coffee and OJ in the room it made for a quick Breakfast waiting for the bus.
Port Orleans Riverside, at least Alligator Bayou, automatically came with a fridge in your room which was great. I don't think most resorts have them automatically.
Book your Dining reservations early as possible, we missed out on some character meals due to booking late. Disney Dining Reservation said that even in Mid May that TS would be fully booked at the Parks (which it was most nights) and by Summer you would need reservations for any TS you wanted to do, even at the resorts. Just a word to the wise, book your meals.
Some people book their main meal at lunch then CS for dinner. I will try that next trip some days.
Get the refillable mug at your resort the first day, you won't regret it.
Overall the Dining Plan worked out great for us. Probably wouldn't have ordered as much food as we got on the plan but still saved us money and grief.
On to the Restaurant/Food......
First we did the Hoop De Doo Revue. LOVED IT! Our family DH,DW 3 Boys 9,7,6 had a great time. The food was average fare but very tasty. The show was corny but fun. My nine year old was laughing the whole time. He cracked unbearable jokes the whole rest of the trip. Great, would do it again in a heartbeat. Best Dinnershow overall that Disney has to offer IMO.
Next night was Mama Melrose at MGM. Pretty good food, had the steak. Ambiance of the place was so so compared to Sci fi and Prime Time Cafe though. I had a better overall experience at Prime Time and will go there next time. The food was good but didn't wow me. Gelato was not up to Italian standards, if you have been to Italy you will know what I mean. The Tiramisu was excellent however.
Tuesday we did DTD and TL. Wolfgang Puck Express was AWESOME! Highly recommended and only a counter service. Very tasty food, I will have to try the table service restaurant next trip.
Wednesday we did AK and had breakfast CS at POR. Good but nothing to write home about. Went to Maya Grill for dinner and it was fantastic. Very nice surroundings, service and food. Highly recommended, every thing was great Appetizers, Entree and Desserts and Kid menu. Very underated in the reviews on the DIS board IMO. If there was a convention there, I could see it being very crowded so double check.
Thursday we did MK and had lunch at Pecos Bills. Actually pretty good food there, didn't hear much about it beforehand and was very satisfied with it. We could have done the extra bun with the Dbl Chs burger but went with it and a taco salad. Finished the night Wishes at Ohana's. Great night. Service was average and Food tasty but not too special. The view and the kids parade was worth the price however. Great way to see Wishes, would do it again. Plus you can see the Electrical Water Pagent too.
Friday was Epcot and did the Tangerine Cafe for Lunch. Absolutely fantastic food and surroundings, Highly recommended. One adult CS would be enough for two people. Definitely would eat there again, very fresh and tasty food. Morocco has become my favorite country at Epcot. Very cool overall feel to the whole place. Are the Tangerine frozen drinks good? I almost got one.
Le Cellier and Tepakanki were both shut done for remodeling which kinda stunk. Went to San Angel Inn and had dinner. Love the venue, had excellent service but the food was just ok. I have had better Mexican food here in Detroit, kinda disappointed in that. Great Nachos though as an App.
Saturday we did Lunch at Nine Dragons. Very good overall. Again though, I have had better Chinese food at home which is kinda weird to me.
Hope this review helps others in making their dining choices.
Maya Grill, Tangerine Cafe and Wolfgang Puck Express were by far the best of the trip foodwise. Three big thumbs up for them. Ohana's and HDDR get the thumbs up for overall experiance as well.
First off, use you snacks early and often. We ended up with snacks to burn at the end of the trip. In hindsight I would have used them earlier and paid for a few at the end. Beineights (SP?) at POFQ are a great snack, 6 of them for one snack credit. Good sugar rush for the morning!
Second, Many Adult counter services can easily be split between two people, stretching you meals. We did one breakfast CS and one lunch CS between the two of us some days and it worked out just great.
We brought Pop Tarts for the kids and Costco's huge Muffins for us for Breakfast in the mornings. With coffee and OJ in the room it made for a quick Breakfast waiting for the bus.
Port Orleans Riverside, at least Alligator Bayou, automatically came with a fridge in your room which was great. I don't think most resorts have them automatically.
Book your Dining reservations early as possible, we missed out on some character meals due to booking late. Disney Dining Reservation said that even in Mid May that TS would be fully booked at the Parks (which it was most nights) and by Summer you would need reservations for any TS you wanted to do, even at the resorts. Just a word to the wise, book your meals.
Some people book their main meal at lunch then CS for dinner. I will try that next trip some days.
Get the refillable mug at your resort the first day, you won't regret it.
Overall the Dining Plan worked out great for us. Probably wouldn't have ordered as much food as we got on the plan but still saved us money and grief.
On to the Restaurant/Food......
First we did the Hoop De Doo Revue. LOVED IT! Our family DH,DW 3 Boys 9,7,6 had a great time. The food was average fare but very tasty. The show was corny but fun. My nine year old was laughing the whole time. He cracked unbearable jokes the whole rest of the trip. Great, would do it again in a heartbeat. Best Dinnershow overall that Disney has to offer IMO.
Next night was Mama Melrose at MGM. Pretty good food, had the steak. Ambiance of the place was so so compared to Sci fi and Prime Time Cafe though. I had a better overall experience at Prime Time and will go there next time. The food was good but didn't wow me. Gelato was not up to Italian standards, if you have been to Italy you will know what I mean. The Tiramisu was excellent however.
Tuesday we did DTD and TL. Wolfgang Puck Express was AWESOME! Highly recommended and only a counter service. Very tasty food, I will have to try the table service restaurant next trip.
Wednesday we did AK and had breakfast CS at POR. Good but nothing to write home about. Went to Maya Grill for dinner and it was fantastic. Very nice surroundings, service and food. Highly recommended, every thing was great Appetizers, Entree and Desserts and Kid menu. Very underated in the reviews on the DIS board IMO. If there was a convention there, I could see it being very crowded so double check.
Thursday we did MK and had lunch at Pecos Bills. Actually pretty good food there, didn't hear much about it beforehand and was very satisfied with it. We could have done the extra bun with the Dbl Chs burger but went with it and a taco salad. Finished the night Wishes at Ohana's. Great night. Service was average and Food tasty but not too special. The view and the kids parade was worth the price however. Great way to see Wishes, would do it again. Plus you can see the Electrical Water Pagent too.
Friday was Epcot and did the Tangerine Cafe for Lunch. Absolutely fantastic food and surroundings, Highly recommended. One adult CS would be enough for two people. Definitely would eat there again, very fresh and tasty food. Morocco has become my favorite country at Epcot. Very cool overall feel to the whole place. Are the Tangerine frozen drinks good? I almost got one.
Le Cellier and Tepakanki were both shut done for remodeling which kinda stunk. Went to San Angel Inn and had dinner. Love the venue, had excellent service but the food was just ok. I have had better Mexican food here in Detroit, kinda disappointed in that. Great Nachos though as an App.
Saturday we did Lunch at Nine Dragons. Very good overall. Again though, I have had better Chinese food at home which is kinda weird to me.
Hope this review helps others in making their dining choices.
Maya Grill, Tangerine Cafe and Wolfgang Puck Express were by far the best of the trip foodwise. Three big thumbs up for them. Ohana's and HDDR get the thumbs up for overall experiance as well.
Enjoy your trip!! I know we are so looking forward to ours.!!
