Just got back from a trip Sept 29-Oct 5. We stayed at the Dolphin so no dining plan on this trip. It was myself, DH (for 3 days ) and 3 kids ages 4, 8 and 9.
Day 1- Epcot and MK
Tutto Italia lunch- We had a 1:10 reservation & the restaurant was half empty. Service was fantastic. Food was delicious. Started with the kids mozzarella sticks. My DD said they were the best ones she ever had. I had the pasta & chicken in a cream sauce & split it with my DS. It was very filling & very good. Other DS had the spaghetti & DD had the pizza. Everyone really enjoyed their meals. My Ds had his B-day button on & the waiters came over & sang happy birthday to him in Italian, he loved it.
CRT dinner- we had an 8:25 reservation. It was great to see the castle all lit up. We waited just a few minutes for our picture & they actually called our name for our table while we were in line for the picture. Our table was nice but we were on the upper level so it felt like we were a little away from the action. The fireworks went off outside but we were really too far from the windows to see anything. I had the beef & it was really good. Kids enjoyed their meals, especially the make your own cupcake at the end. Character interaction was very brief. Each princess just stopped by for a quick picture, they definitely weren't into chatting. Definitely worth once in a lifetime (even my DS8 thought it was pretty cool) but probably wouldn't go back.
DAY 2-MK & HS
Peco Bills lunch- this was okay, not great. It was our first time eating here. Burgers were fine, nothing spectacular. Its really a nice atmosphere though.
Garden Grove dinner- seafood character buffet. We did this totally on a whim & loved it. The food was really good. They had crab legs, mussels, chicken, beef, etc on the buffet. They also bring you a baked stuffed lobster. Not sure if the lobster was all you can eat or not as we didn't need any more than they gave us. Character interaction was great. I think it was Chip & Dale, Pluto & Goofy. They all came around multiple times and were really fun with the kids. The place wasn't crowded at all. I would do this again over just about any other character meal (and we've tried almost all of them previously). Only complaint was that service was a little slow.
DAY 3- HS & Epcot
Pizza Planet lunch- this was terrible. The pizza here is so bad, I don't know how people can recommend this place. Atmosphere is cute but didn't love all the video games.
LeCellier dinner- we had a 4:30 ressie & were seated quickly. Service was really good. Food was delicious for the adults, not so much for the kids. I had the beef medallions & my DH had the strip. Both were delicious. The french fries that came with mine were so good, I even asked the waiter how they cook them. Kids had the meaty macaroni & it was gross. They changed the kids menu about 6 months ago but its not reflected anywhere on line. Their choices were steak, fish, or macaroni, none of which really appealed to my kids. MY DS4 has a feeding tube & can eat very few foods (we had planned to order him the hot dog). The waiter basically said there was nothing they could do which was pretty frustrating but at least we didn't pay for him.
DAY 4-MK
Crystal Palace lunch- Food was really good as usual. Had to wait about 25 minutes to be seated. Service was okay. Real standout was the chef. Nothing on the buffet worked for my DS. We spoke to our waitress & she got the chef out. He actually left the restaurant & went over to Casey's to get my DS a hot dog. Came back with 2 dogs & an order of fries. It was SO nice! He also gave us a special fastpass for our group to use on 2 rides.
Wolfgang Puck express dinner- everything was really good. I had the pasta & chicken, and the kids had spaghetti and pizza. Service was quick.
Day 5- AK
Pizzafari for lunch- same terrible pizza as at Pizza Planet. Just really went here because it was convenient but regretted it. Lines for Flametree were so long even at 11:30.
Overall we enjoyed our TS meals very much, our CS ones not so much. Did not really like paying OOP because it seemed SO expensive! I think I just like having everything paid for up front.
Day 1- Epcot and MK
Tutto Italia lunch- We had a 1:10 reservation & the restaurant was half empty. Service was fantastic. Food was delicious. Started with the kids mozzarella sticks. My DD said they were the best ones she ever had. I had the pasta & chicken in a cream sauce & split it with my DS. It was very filling & very good. Other DS had the spaghetti & DD had the pizza. Everyone really enjoyed their meals. My Ds had his B-day button on & the waiters came over & sang happy birthday to him in Italian, he loved it.
CRT dinner- we had an 8:25 reservation. It was great to see the castle all lit up. We waited just a few minutes for our picture & they actually called our name for our table while we were in line for the picture. Our table was nice but we were on the upper level so it felt like we were a little away from the action. The fireworks went off outside but we were really too far from the windows to see anything. I had the beef & it was really good. Kids enjoyed their meals, especially the make your own cupcake at the end. Character interaction was very brief. Each princess just stopped by for a quick picture, they definitely weren't into chatting. Definitely worth once in a lifetime (even my DS8 thought it was pretty cool) but probably wouldn't go back.
DAY 2-MK & HS
Peco Bills lunch- this was okay, not great. It was our first time eating here. Burgers were fine, nothing spectacular. Its really a nice atmosphere though.
Garden Grove dinner- seafood character buffet. We did this totally on a whim & loved it. The food was really good. They had crab legs, mussels, chicken, beef, etc on the buffet. They also bring you a baked stuffed lobster. Not sure if the lobster was all you can eat or not as we didn't need any more than they gave us. Character interaction was great. I think it was Chip & Dale, Pluto & Goofy. They all came around multiple times and were really fun with the kids. The place wasn't crowded at all. I would do this again over just about any other character meal (and we've tried almost all of them previously). Only complaint was that service was a little slow.
DAY 3- HS & Epcot
Pizza Planet lunch- this was terrible. The pizza here is so bad, I don't know how people can recommend this place. Atmosphere is cute but didn't love all the video games.
LeCellier dinner- we had a 4:30 ressie & were seated quickly. Service was really good. Food was delicious for the adults, not so much for the kids. I had the beef medallions & my DH had the strip. Both were delicious. The french fries that came with mine were so good, I even asked the waiter how they cook them. Kids had the meaty macaroni & it was gross. They changed the kids menu about 6 months ago but its not reflected anywhere on line. Their choices were steak, fish, or macaroni, none of which really appealed to my kids. MY DS4 has a feeding tube & can eat very few foods (we had planned to order him the hot dog). The waiter basically said there was nothing they could do which was pretty frustrating but at least we didn't pay for him.
DAY 4-MK
Crystal Palace lunch- Food was really good as usual. Had to wait about 25 minutes to be seated. Service was okay. Real standout was the chef. Nothing on the buffet worked for my DS. We spoke to our waitress & she got the chef out. He actually left the restaurant & went over to Casey's to get my DS a hot dog. Came back with 2 dogs & an order of fries. It was SO nice! He also gave us a special fastpass for our group to use on 2 rides.
Wolfgang Puck express dinner- everything was really good. I had the pasta & chicken, and the kids had spaghetti and pizza. Service was quick.
Day 5- AK
Pizzafari for lunch- same terrible pizza as at Pizza Planet. Just really went here because it was convenient but regretted it. Lines for Flametree were so long even at 11:30.
Overall we enjoyed our TS meals very much, our CS ones not so much. Did not really like paying OOP because it seemed SO expensive! I think I just like having everything paid for up front.
