Our opinion is avoid California Grill

[mickeynut1]

Artist Point was the best meal we had the whole trip.

I would go back there before any other place! Hands down!

We LOVE Artist Point. It doesn't surprise me that you had a great experience there as we think the atmosphere is nice, the waitstaff is amazing, and the food is phenomenal. I'm sorry you had such a horrible experience at CG. I agree with the pp that I would write a detailed letter to the manager. Like I mentioned in my other post, we've never eaten there but it has been on our list to try; however, I have read nothing but negative things about it since the refurb and with numerous bad reviews, I have less of a desire to give it a try.

 

[MisterGoofy1]

You know what's going to happen to your food? It's going to be the best it can be because they are going to bust their butt to make you happy. I get so tired of people saying "something" might happen to their food. I've been in the food service industry for most of my life and not once EVER have I seen, experienced or been a part of ANYTHING that anyone should be scared of with their food. Especially at WDW. CMs that work in restaurants at WDW are for the majority, professionals. They aren't teenagers, these are career food service workers. They can't risk doing anything that might jeopardize their jobs or reputations.
Speaking up about a food/service issue both good and bad only makes the food/service better
Jumping down off my box now...carry on

So, just b/c you have never seen it, means it doesn't happen? That is a pretty naive thing to say. I know someone who got sick from someone doing something to her food that should not have been done. So, yea, it happens, and it is a valid concern. Sorry you don't think it is.

Rant off....carry on.

 

[DISdiningFan83]

I ate at CG in November right after the refurb and had a wonderful meal. Service and food was excellent as always. Still one of my favorites in Disney.

 

[Uncleromulus]

Mine as well.

Sorry that the OP had such a bad experience.

We're going back again in late April.

 

[Mike2023]

We, DD-8, DW, me flew home today and I will elaborate.

This was our first time eating there, I had read a good bit of information and we had looked over the menu. My DW has celiac, and is lactose and soy intolerant. We were on the deluxe dining plan and all dining credits were used for table service restaurants. We ate breakfast in the room a few times, and used 2 credits at the Castle, Artist Point, and Cali Grill.

At Every other restaurant, the chef came out soon after we were sat and discussed the menu with my wife and then He or She brought DW's food out. We arrived 10 minutes before our 6:55 adr and went up the elevator. We were given a pager and sat and looked over the menu. We were shown to our table at 7.

At 7:18 (I looked before I got up) I got up to find a server. After a few steps, what turned out to be our waiter made a beeline and caught me before I got too far. He asked if we had been there before, the answer was no, and we told him we were eating our last table service meal and going to use the last of our credits since we were leaving in the morning and had heard good things about the Cali. He said we were in for a treat and everything would be great. He handed DW a listing of sushi appetizer options and she handed it right back and let him know that should would not have sushi, no way no how. He then insisted on telling her all the lovely sushi options she could have on that menu and she again reiterated that there was no way she was having sushi. He then pointed out some sushi options to me, I was going to try the spicy kazaan (sp) going in, but listened to all the options. He took our drink order then. I ordered a bottle of wine for us from the regular menu (after disregarding him twice trying to hand me the wine book with the more expensive bottles) and a beer for me to start, DD ordered pineapple juice.

After a bit the chef came over and while he was unsure of a few things (if a few items has soy) he gave a good impression. The waiter came back with the wrong juice, apple (which we corrected), and asked if I had made a beer selection.

I said yes, the one I ordered. He looked blankly, then saw on his notes I had ordered. He left and after a bit came back to take entree orders. My wife had ordered through the chef, but as with the other places, needed to tell him what she was having so everyone was on the same page. She ordered a chicken dish with the chicken prepared 2 ways, I believe it was pan roasted and then a selection made into a chicken sausage. I ordered a simple filet, medium rare.

A different server (not the chef as in every other restaurant) brought out DW's gluten free rolls. While this may seem like a small point to some, get cross-contaminated sometime and then we can talk. DW is very sensitive. Our waiter came back with the wrong beer for me and after I pointed this out, asked if I wanted to try that one. I said no thanks, I'll take what I ordered.

As an aside, our server had 2 other tables. A 6 top, that had been cleared soon after we arrived and re-sat a bit after and a 2-top. I saw him at no other tables. The table in front of me was a 2 top that got seated after us, and another 2 top was behind us that also was seated after. They both had different servers.

After a bit, a different server brought out appetizers (not the chef for DW like every other restaurant, even the Plaza and Liberty Tree). Our server then brought the correct beer for me and a plate that he said was "in case I wanted to share my sushi with DW". Really?

The projection show was going on at the castle and we ate and watched what we could see from there. He cleared the plates and Wishes started. ALL the tables around received food during Wishes, we did not. Wishes ended. The table in front and behind were eating their entrees. The 6-top had their appetizers cleared and we sat. My DW meals sometimes take a little longer, but the chef had assured us that in this instance, this would not be the case, since very little modification was needed.

At 9:10 I was getting up to find a manger, since our server was a ghost, and saw a person in a suit, along with another server bringing the 6-top their entrees. As he started to walk away from the table, I said excuse me. He came over and I asked him if he could check if we were going to get our food tonight. The 2-top in front and behind, that were both sat after us, were finishing dessert. We were all very hungry at this point and getting pretty frustrated.

He went into the kitchen, came back to the expediter station, went back in the kitchen, came back to the station and he and another server, not ours, grabbed our plates and came over. (Again, not the chef who was standing nearby in the kitchen). He said sorry and they put the plates down and walked away with not even seeing if we might need anything else.

MY DD had ordered pasta and marinara sauce. It was very dry and after we dug to the bottom, we found some she could eat. My filet had a one time been cooked to close to the proper temperature, but had been sitting so long that most of the moisture was gone. One part of DW's chicken was ok at best, the sausage could barely be cut it was so tough and dry.

The other 2 tops were long gone at this point. The 6-top was close to done and a few of them were looking at dessert menus.

I was not about to send back my filet when it had already taken an inordinate amount of time to even get what I had, who knows how long a replacement would have taken. DW found enough decent chicken to eat and DD ate some rolls which I asked another server to bring her and I.

At this point, the two-2 tops are gone and tables reset, the 6 top has placed dessert orders and I was cutting steak up and making sure I took a drink each bite to wash it down. Server has not been seen and it's 9:40. He eventually came over after I had stacked plates and took them away. He came back to talk dessert and since DD wanted to have something I also ordered, DW was offered no options other than sorbet. (At Be Our Guest, The Plaza, Artist Point, and Raglan Road, she was offered other options).

I ordered a strawberry shortcake type dessert and the strawberrys and ice cream were fine, the biscuit was a hockey puck. DD had cookies and cream and the cookies were fine. I had included that we were celebrating her b'day on this trip so the server brought over a creme brulee with a candle in it. That was nice, but the brulee tasted box made to me. (We have a local fine dining place where she always gets that and loves it.)

The server came over and said they were going to take off 4 dining credits for the meal and only charge us 2 since we had such a wait. I told him, as I had said twice at the beginning, that this was our last night and last meal onsite so that does us no good and not to bother. We were offered no other compensation, which at that point would have been to take off the wine or 1 beer.

What other questions do you all have?

Seems like you had an off night or a new server. We have eaten there every year for the last 7 years. Food has almost always been the best of the trip, services without a doubt best I have ever had year after year. I will admit that we eat with the same server each year, so I can't really say that all the service is up to that standard.

I hope you give them the opportunity to change your mind on a future trip.

 

[ChipnDaleRule]

You should send a letter to CG with exactly the same depth of info as you've given us, not because your after compensation but because I'm sure you would hate someone else to have the same experience.As a pp said if you don't complain loud enough they can't address the problem.

 

[3pletprincesses]

Yikes what a story. It's so disappointing to hear such thing as it's one of our favorite restaurant. I would write a letter to the manager to advise of what went on. I can guarantee they have no idea about it and they can't fix it if they don't know about it.

I too would be fuming if I was in your situation.

 

[North of Mouse]

With 'every' restaurant (no matter where it is) there will be off nights, negligent servers, etc. That doesn't mean it's not a good restaurant.

'Every' restaurant at Disney has had 'very' negative reviews at one time or another, but we have never been turned off but will try them for ourselves and form our own opinions.

We have had very good experiences at most of the restaurants there, and only one that we really have no desire to go back to - Coral Reef. It wasn't 'terrible' but the experience over all was enough to cause us to choose elsewhere over going back there.

 

[Imhere]

This is a previous post I made about my September trip to CG.

We will not be returning:

We went to CG this past Thursday evening.

Our anniversary, which was Friday night but we couldn't get an ADR that night, was noted on our reservation.

When we arrived we waited for just a couple minutes before the host met us, wished us a Happy Anniversary, and led us to our table. We walked thru the main dining room to the back, small dining room. Then we went to the far right corner of this room where there was a table for 2. Now, this wasn't your typical 90 degree angle corner, this was a 45 degree angle corner. It was claustrophobic. The view for one person was mostly the roof right outside the window, the view for the other person was a wall and a portion of the roof. This table was right next to a servers station.

We sat down, the host walked away, and we just looked at each other and laughed.

When the waiter came I told him we would like to be moved to another table. When one of the hosts came back he asked if we were unhappy with our table. I told him we aren't usually too picky about where we sit, but, in my opinion there shouldn't even BE a table here.

We waited a few minutes and they came and led us to a nice table in the center of the main dining room. It was decorated with Mickey confetti for our Anniversary.

We ordered drinks and perused the menu.

When the waiter returned we ordered a couple appetizers to share, the meatballs and the prawns.

We continued to look at the menu and decide on an entree. There were like 8 entrees listed.

The appetizers arrived and we began to sample them. To be honest, I make better meatballs at home and the shrimp was about as bland as it gets. With all we had heard about this place we were a little suprised.

The waiter returned to take our entree orders. My wife asked for the ravioli. The waiter informed her that they were out of the ravioli. She thought the menu was a tad limited to begin with so said she'd need a few more minutes to choose a replacement and we ordered another round of drinks.

Our drinks were brought out and I told the waiter we were ready to order now. I started this time and told him I'd like the short ribs.

He told me they were out of the short ribs. I kind of looked at him and chuckled and said something like "yeah, right" while handing him my menu. He said, "No, really, we're out of short ribs too." I said you have to be kidding me. At that point I told him we again needed a minute.

There wasn't really anything left on the entree menu that stood out to us and when the waiter returned I told him that we would just forget the entrees and take the check. He seemed shocked and asked if there was anything else we wanted, I told him yes, why don't you send the manager by the table.

5 minutes later the manager stopped by and asked why we were unsatisfied. I told him that with only about 8 entrees it's a little unusual to be out of 2 of them and we were just going to settle our check and forgo the rest of our dinner. He said, "This is fine dining and there is nothing unusual at all about running out of entrees throughout the night, these are the kinds of things you have to expect at a restaurant like California Grill."

I just kind of looked at him with my mouth open and said, "Thank you for the lesson on fine dining, but with the popularity of your restaurant I might expect you to be running out of multiple entrees at 8:00 or 9:00, but most definitely not 7:00."

He was a little shocked that I actually spoke back to him and he excused himself. He came back a few minutes later and told me that our check had been taken care of, gave me his card and told me to ask for him next time we came in. I told him that I didn't want him to take care of my check, I am more than happy to take care of the bill for what I was already served.

He said there was no check anymore as it was already voided out.

I told him I appreciated this and I consider that matter closed, but, I just wanted to mention one more thing to him. "Running out of entrees happens and I realize that. I really don't know why I asked for you to come by the table and thinking about it now I wish I hadn't. I will say, though, just for your future reference, it's not the unavailability of 20% of your entree menu that will keep me from returning here, it's your condescending attitude in telling us how fine dining works that will keep us from coming back."

Oh, and we had the BEST meals of the week at both Brown Derby and Narcoossee's.

 

[bumbershoot]

You should send a letter to CG with exactly the same depth of info as you've given us, not because your after compensation but because I'm sure you would hate someone else to have the same experience.As a pp said if you don't complain loud enough they can't address the problem.

Definitely. And include the cm's name in the letter.

Since the reopening of this place every single negative review I've read has included a male server whose attitude and concept of service has sounded exactly the same. We can't give cm names here when we speak negatively, which I understand ,but it makes mysteries like this more difficult, but IF its the same person CG needs I know.

 

[d-r]

Artist Point was the best meal we had the whole trip. Chef Manny took great care of DW and even went so far as to make her a special dessert that they are trying and may add to the menu for gluten-free needs. My DD loved her meal also.

I would go back there before any other place! Hands down!

Thanks, I ask because we go there every year. Some years have been incredible, some years have been so-so, we're going on our next trip so I was hoping for a good year. We've been through three or four chefs so it is interesting to see it change. I'm looking forward to it now, thanks.

 

[Imhere]

Thanks, I ask because we go there every year. Some years have been incredible, some years have been so-so, we're going on our next trip so I was hoping for a good year. We've been through three or four chefs so it is interesting to see it change. I'm looking forward to it now, thanks.

For a restaurant that puts itself at a certain price point, I don't give them many 'so-so' experiences.

 

[d-r]

Well the reason we do is that my wife and I honeymooned at wilderness lodge and ate there. It was a great meal and have went back every year for our anniversary meal. When we started Annette was the chef and we adored her. We had the same server many times. Some years it was nonstop pixie dust. Some it was hurried and impersonal. On good years we went more than once. On bad years we waited for anniversary to come around. Now my son loves copper river salmon and my daughter paint a cookie. No way out lol.

 

[Vincent405]

Yikes what a story. It's so disappointing to hear such thing as it's one of our favorite restaurant. I would write a letter to the manager to advise of what went on. I can guarantee they have no idea about it and they can't fix it if they don't know about it.

I too would be fuming if I was in your situation.

Any idea on the correct e-mail address to use? Thx.

 

[JZCubed]

For a restaurant that puts itself at a certain price point, I don't give them many 'so-so' experiences.

THIS.

Other than Victoria & Albert, CA Grill has the most expensive food (besides the lobster at Narcoossee's).

$35 pasta and $45 scallops should come with better service.

I posted about my own problems at CA Grill.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3195246

Posts, like the many on this Thread, should get CA Grill management working to increase the level of service that is provided to each and every customer.

Had I been the person who started this Thread, I would have walked out long before two hours had I not received my entree. I recall another Thread with a person doing the same.

As a former Expeditor at a NYC restaurant in the Theater District with food comparable to what CA Grill is supposed to be preparing, waiting more than 30 minutes for food is unconscionable. Of course, not seeing a Server during this period only compounds the insult. CA Grill patrons continue to report these problems. I am looking forward to dining at Artist Point.

 

[OKW Lover]

I'd like to thank the OP for coming back and giving us more information on the CG dining experience.

It certainly sounds like you had a really bad experience there, and it doesn't seem like any of it was because you didn't communicate your needs/desires. I second the suggestion to write to Disney telling them of your poor experience. You might just copy what you wrote here as it does a pretty good job of explaining the situation. Just add the servers name (if you remember) and the date/time you were there.

One more suggestion; don't judge the restaurant by one experience. Please give them another try on your next visit.

 

[Vincent405]

I did e-mail Disney and will post if I get anything other than the canned/automatic e-mail response.

To be honest, if we ever do go back to Disney, the experience at the Cali Grill was so bad, we would not eat there again. But, I hope others have a good experience.

 

[budafam]

I hate reading these bad reviews of CG. We had an excellent meal there a little over a month ago. Our server was on point with everything and our food was served quickly (and hot). I wish they would've taken a little longer so we would've been able to see the Christmas Wishes from there. It sounds like it was primarily the server that was the problem though. I've had bad service at Ohana but I still went back again (and again.. and again.. lol)

 

[momof2disprincesses]

OP, I'm so sorry about your horrible experience. I do hope you hear something from Disney, even if just to know you were listened to.

We've been to WDW 33 times now and eaten at almost every restaurant. I would say 90-95% of our meals have been amazing and wonderful.

However, the other percentage includes some very bad servers, bad food and bad experiences too. It really can ruin a restaurant for you and make you not want to go there again.

The one that stands out for me is WCC. We went there for our DD's 15th birthday and ordered a gift from Disney floral and a cake (spent a bundle on both!). I even mentioned it when we checked in again and they said it was all set. Our server was grumpy from the git-go and seemed like we were a bother. Our food was so slow coming out and she never brought the gift or cake or even said happy birthday. She simply dropped the check and left. I had to go in search of a manager for the gift & cake. It took almost an hour after we were done eating to get it. It was supposed to be a fun surprise but it wound up being so upsetting instead. We still have no desire to eat there anymore. It just soured us to that place.

On a positive note though, we just ate at CG on Christmas night. I was nervous about it because of all the bad reviews. I have to say though, it was one of our best meals (we did the ddp for 13 nights). Our server was attentive and friendly and professional. Our food came out timely and it was all delicious. We loved watching the fireworks after on the balcony.

 

[3pletprincesses]

Although I have been to CG twice last year it was before the remodel and menu changes. I hope this is not what CG has become. I have a reservation for next week and I'm a bit worried.

OP, I bet you will hear back from Disney. I've sent them emails 3 times... once to ask a recipe, once to complain and the 3rd to compliment a CM for her excellent job and heard from them in all instances other then the automatic email. I took a few days before the replied. I hope you hear back from them.