Picky Eater Garden Grill

[tigger30066]

So here is my question. I am a really picky eater and do not care for the adult food at Garden Grill, but love the character's. IMHO some of the best at a character meal. There will be 2 adults no children, do you think they would bring the kid plate out if we asked. I know I would pay the adult price, that is not the issue I just hate to pay that much money and not eat at all. Do you think this is possible or should I just plan on something else.

Thanks

Becky

 

[LuvLuvLuv]

i got the kids mac n cheese and the kid's dessert.... they were awful too. i know many love it... but this was the worst meal we ever had at disney... ever.

 

[irishtigger]

this was hands down the worst meal I have ever had home or at the world with the rose and crown coming in second. Regardless of the characters we will never go back here

 

[doclegler]

I am very picky, as are my 3 boys, and they were begging me to make a reservation at GG when they found out we were going to WDW. They really enjoyed the food in general, and they kids choices were great for them. The characters were also VERY friendly and even came around twice.
I really liked most of the adult platter (minus the fish!) and had no complaints. I wasn't a huge fan of the apple cobbler dessert though...but I ate some of the kids leftover dessert anyway!
Its really a personal decision that no one can make for you. We were able to get a pin for free dining this trip, so its going to be nice to try new places we wouldn't otherwise do without spending lots of $$$. Of course, we're adding some old favorites like GG and 'Ohana for old times sake!
I don't have an answer for your question about them bringing out a kids platter, but I would assume they would try to accommodate your request. (since its really not asking that much anyway!)
Best of luck with your choice!

 

[Mamu]

Ever notice you plan and read, read and plan, and try to pick a restaurant that get good reviews, so you book it.

Then 3 week before your trip you start to read bad reviews. I've had some bad meals at Disney. I'm hoping Garden Grill will not be one of them.

 

[tigger30066]

The previous time I went to Garden Grill, everyone in my party enjoyed the food. I did not think the food was prepared bad, it is just that I did not like the menu. So no worries you will have a blast. Watch out for that sneaky Chip or maybe it was Dale.

 

[RMulieri]

Ever notice you plan and read, read and plan, and try to pick a restaurant that get good reviews, so you book it.

Then 3 week before your trip you start to read bad reviews. I've had some bad meals at Disney. I'm hoping Garden Grill will not be one of them.

Dining tastes are SUBJECTIVE...We love Garden Grill and happen to despise some of the more populr places .Everyone should try something at least once to form their own opinion

 

[Angeni11]

When we were there last September our sons didn't like the kids food so our server actually went and got them chicken nuggets and normal french fries (he noticed they weren't eating the food and offered). So that might be an option too.

I figure the worst they could say is no although if you ask nicely they seem to be very good at getting what you would like if they are able to.

Hubby and I really enjoyed the food there but I can see why some people do not like it.

 

[Eastern]

Like most Disney restaurants, Garden Grill was better in years past. We have gone there every trip over a long time period (15 years?) so I see how the menu has evolved.

Currently, the negative for me is that they bring very little food out. We were a family of 4 (2 teen boys) and they brought out enough food for 2 people. Yes, you can order more, but it is tiresome to keep asking for refills (we got 2 full platters then 2 partial refills of things we liked).

The turkey, steak and fish were a bit dry (sitting under lamps maybe?) although the sauces provided (we asked for them on the side) did help. The salad at the beginning was very good but they gave you barely enough for each person to have a half bowl. Dessert was on the small side as well.

The characters were great and our meal was very pleasant but I do not think it is a great value. We paid $38.99 pp plus tax and tip during Easter. My TIW card kept me from going into full shock but I did not know the price til we arrived and it was quite surprising.

I would do it once for the experience but there are better values, for sure.

ps yes, definitely order the kids' meal if that's what you like but you might want to try at least the turkey on the adult platter: it was fairly bland and you can get gravy and mash on the side.

pps veg served was swiss chard. I mean really, how many people eat swiss chard! It was ok but I would have preferred almost any other veg except kale.

 

[mommytocalliesue]

I just booked a reservation here for me and my daughter. I just checked out the menu but am not impressed by the adult meal....so just to clarify....can we just order the kids meal and I can eat that?!?! If not...I think I'll cancel!!

 

[disneymegs]

I loved GG when I was little and I go back for that kids food! They usually let us pay the adult price. The adult food is good too though, nothing strange.

 

[redc]

I've had some bad meals at Disney. I'm hoping Garden Grill will not be one of them.

From my experience at GG..you've made that bad decision again. When we had the choice of catfish or flank steak...my kids asked, "What's a flank?"

 

[MikeP22]

We thought the food was basically good, not great but not bad.

I think the main problems most people have with GG have mostly been hit upon so far... The limited scope of the menu (which can impact quality; if something is bad on a given day it's likely to be bad for many diners), and the perceived value of the meal (combined with portion size).
It's definitely expensive for what you get though, especially so if the limited scope of the menu doesn't appeal to you.
While we liked the food overall, for us the value was in the entertainment. The character interaction was REALLY good, and the restaurant rotating was a lot of fun. Service wasn't bad at all, either.

For our next visit come October, it's not on the lists of restaurants we will definitely return to but it is on the maybe/probably list.
Anyone know if they'll do the reverse, regarding kid's meals? IE, let our 3yo daughter eat from the adult menu at the kid price?

 

[clanmcculloch]

Anyone know if they'll do the reverse, regarding kid's meals? IE, let our 3yo daughter eat from the adult menu at the kid price?

The food is served family style so anybody of any age can eat anything that's put down on the table. You can ask for refills of any foods that you want so if your DD3 is a big steak eater and eats up all the steak then you just ask for more of that item.

 

[squirrel]

From my experience at GG..you've made that bad decision again. When we had the choice of catfish or flank steak...my kids asked, "What's a flank?"

So it is flank steak. The menus I could find called it something else. I thought that's what it was. That is the one kind of steak I won't eat.

I would love to go to GG again. Last time I went was 1999, I recall we had great Character interaction, but the food wasn't my favorite. I guess I won't be heading back anytime soon.

 

[lesabrowning]

Different strokes for different folks : )

My family loves garden Grill and we find they just keep bringing the food. (we leave off the fish as we have two that are allergic) We love the turkey, flank steak, potatoes, salad and bread... Yum. My youngest always asks for and get mac n cheese and chicken nuggets too. It is my favorite character venue by far.

 

[Eastern]

Different strokes for different folks : )

My family loves garden Grill and we find they just keep bringing the food.

Have you been there recently? In past visits we had the same experience, but this latest one (Easter week) we felt the food served was sparse. As an example, we asked the waiter for more steak for my husband, and he came out with ONE small piece of meat. It was tiny! It seemed like they did not want to realize the least little bit of waste.

 

[lesabrowning]

You have definitely been there more recently that I have. We have gone once or twice a year for the past 10 years maybe, never felt they were stingy. I do hope you just got someone's bad day : (