Recent trip reviews

[mark smith]

Just back 7 nights at GF-heres our dining report:

Arrive FRi night: GF room service-Prime Rib for me, Salmon for wife, Mickey cheesburgers for DD-very good(we were pleasantly surprised, as we have not been pleased w/ Gf private dining in the past)-B+

Sat.-CRT-actually the food was fine and DD loved the princess' of course
Sat. night-Citricos(our favorite), it was very good,but not as great as past visits. My veal shank was very tender; wife had salmon(she loves salmon), again good but kinda flat(not inspired).If anyone has questions on appetizers,wine,etc. will be happy to respond.B-

Sun-Wife and DD went to Tea party w/ sleeping beauty at GF they both loved it(food avg.)and thought even at $200 it was well worth it. No Dinner-Superbowl at Mizzners w/ appetizers from Citricos and a huge bar bill. And my eagles lost to boot.A+

Mon-LTT tavern dinner w/ characters(great interaction);food was fine-b-

Tue-room svc. bkfst-solid B;dinner-Bistro De Paris, we have never eaten here and I was looking forward to it. The famous consommee and souffles, were big disappointments;oyster and scallop apps. were great; beef entrees were avg at best. c- at best.

Wed.-Dinner at Narcoosee- we have at good meals here before but not great. We were planning on JIko(which we love),but grabbed a last minute PS here. Saw the fireworks from the deck(narration/music and all) and walked into the best meal of the trip. Details upon request, but a definite A+ from start to finish.

random notes-Did sci-fi for lunch(stayed w/ burgers and shakes)-loved the atmosphere, glad we did it. Used DDE($50 AP) saved over $250 for the trip. Dont go ti WDW without it. Nothing spectacular in the parks/counter service,although wife seemed to enjoy several chocolate covered Mickey ice cream bars.

Any questions, I'll be happy to respond!

 

[tigerlilly]

Sounds like a great trip. We really enjoyed Narcosees on our trip oh so long ago. What did you end up eating...as it was the best meal inquiring minds want to know :lol
Sounds like you enjoyed the GF...is this true? Sorry about your Eagles....

 

[BCV23]

I'd love to hear more about Narcoossee's and Citricos. Citricos is one of my DH's favorites and Narcoossee's is my daughter's so I love hearing what's new. Too bad about Le Bistro.

And too bad about the Eagles . My DH is a PA boy, so we were rooting for them as well. At least it was a good game.

 

[mark smith]

Citricos-ME-Pan seared Quail-excellent,Braised Veal shank w/parsnip Puree-very tender,but lacking something,Cream Brulee(my wife ate most of it, because she did not care for her warm chocolate banana torte,but my taste was good);wife-Sauteed shrimp w/lemon,wine and feta-very good,Sauteed salmon fillet-again good but uninspired;DD-kids fillet very good(she ate it all). Vodka &white wine to start and a bottle of pinoy noir w/dinner. Again, we liked our meal but it did not blow our socks off as Citricos has in the past. Service was uneven-occassionally attentive, but slow at other times and it seemed no real interest. It did'nt seem like there was really any specials per se and perhaps this is why the menu,etc. seemed a little flat.

Narcoosee'-Now the opposite occured here. We had eaten here prior, and it was ok. This time outstanding. Me-Narcoosee chowder and a ceasar salad-both relly great for basic straightforward type of dishes,AHI tuna(catch of the day-perfect;Wife-Langostino&crab cakes w/honey truffle oil,arugala and pine nuts-delicious,grilled wild salmon-another special of the day(not the salmon listed on regular menu)-she loved it,in fact so much I did'nt even get a taste,key lime cream brulee-very good. In-laws joined us for one night-Fillet and lobster choices, both seemed very satisfied.DD-kids fillet again-very happy. Pinot Noir after cocktails,went well with all of the above. Even though they were very busy, the service was responsive and timed very well. We loved it and I quess is our new(Old) favorite Gf restaurant until next year any way.

PS-we did love our stay at the GF(4th trip in five years)Any questions I would be happy to respond. As mentioned-room service(for a change at the Gf, was actually very good all three times we ordered,particularly the prime rib,definetly not the buffett cut from 1900 Park Fair)

 

[pirateofthecarolinas]

Mark, thanks for your reviews. We too thought that GF room service was very good. I appreciate your detailed reviews.

Lori

 

[lmhall2000]

Great reviews...a very discriminating taster! Gotta pick your experience a minute....have you stayed at any other resorts? We are trying to decide between GF and a couple of others...right now on the top of my list is the comfort of the beds...are they nice? And I really want to treat my husband to a great steak...he's all meat/potatoes...well actually you could leave off the potatoes and go all meat...have you ever been to Yachtsman's or Flying Fish? Any suggestions? You're quite the regular so I figured you've tried a few places. Our children are 5,6, 9 ...will they like GF? They did the Tea Party there and seemed to like it..just wondered how your daughter liked it.

Thanks!
Tara

 

[mark smith]

Thanks for you reply. We have only stayed at AKL(other than GF-4times) for 2 nights. It was neat,but after a couple of days enjoying the animals, it seems isolated from the rest of WDW and is avery large resort. I think almost twice as large as GF-lots of people and not near the ameneties or convienences of GF. GF w/kids your age(and mine) is so convienent to MK especially w/monorail and boats. As my daughter gets older I may try to persuade my wife to try a couple of nights at a deluxe EPCOT resort, but I think we will always stay at the GF. Our whole family loves it, especially my 7 year old DD-it is very magical to look up from many points on property and see the castle, monorail , fireworks, nightime water parade, etc. We have never had a bad stay at the GF.

Things we love at the GF-character dining/experiences at the hotel. My wife and DD, did love the sleeping beauty tea party. They have also enjoyed The Alice tea party prior, and we think both the bkfst. and dinner character meals at GF are very convienent w/ great character interaction. We also love the 2 pools(so easy to jump back in the pm);My DD,also really enjoys, the little things-Gasparilla for soft ice cream and games, hair wraps at the pool,etc. And of course the dining and shopping options at the Gf cant be beat at other WDW resorts, I think.

The beds are pillow tops, I believe(this may be relatively new) and were very comfortable. Your family will love the Gf. We always try for value season(AP rate if you have) and it becomes a super value. We stay garden view and have never had a bad room/view. We lone conch building. We have been luckily upgraded twice to lagoon view and is great, if you get lucky or want to spring for the extra bucks,but I dont think it is a neccessity unless you are going to spend aloy of time in your room.

We have tried meat entrees at both Citricos and Narcoosee and hve never been disapointed. I have not tried Flying Fish or Yachtsman(i have heard has very good beef). I have alsoheard Le Cellier(canada) has outstanding steak. We also love the meat entrees at JIko, but may be a little adventurous, if your DH is a straight up meat and potatoe guy. As an aside On our last trip I had the prime rib from GF room service twice-absolutely great! Have a great trip!

 

[mark smith]

bump....

 

[mark smith]

bump!

 

[DisneyMomx7]

We also love GF. Every year we say we're going to split our stay and try something new, but we never do. We'll be there in July. Actually we enjoyed GF private dining last summer. This year we'll be trying Narcooses (sp?) for the first time - glad to hear you enjoyed it. My kids love GF and I wish people would stop saying that it's stuffy. I think people who have never been there have that impression but if they went they would see how many kids are swimming in the pools and enjoying Gasparilla's. Thank you for your report.

 

[Minniespal]

Thanx for sharing.

 

[Beth E. (NJ)]

Thanks for sharing your reviews. You've tried some restaurants that I have yet to go to so I found the reviews very educational -- and fun too.