Tess
DIS Veteran - 1997
- Joined
- Aug 19, 1999
- Messages
- 5,606
We are a family of four--Mom (45), Dad (43), Son (16), and Daughter (nearly 14). Our habit is to have our breakfast in the concierge lounge at our resort (Polynesian is our favorite) and then a 12:30-1:00 p.m. lunch. We seldom eat dinner while at WDW because (a) we're still full from lunch; (b) we aren't big dinner eaters; (c) the lounge appetizers are MORE than enough for a light evening snack; and the #1 reason (d) it's too warm in the summer for a late, heavy meal! 
That said, we usually reserve a night or two for a character dinner or other favorite. All of the meal totals include tips.
Our kick-off the vacation lunch was at Teppanyaki in Japan at EPCOT WS. We are not fortunate enough to have a Bennihana's nearby, but there is a decent Japanese steak house near us. We have always enjoyed Teppanyaki and this meal was no exception. We chose the following meals:
Dad: Steak, Shrimp, and Lobster
Mom: Scallops, Shrimp, and Lobster
Son: Chicken and Shrimp
Daughter: Children's Chicken meal.
The meals were served with and complemented by steamed rice and grilled vegetables. Our daughter also received ice cream with her meal. My husband and I enjoyed a Kirin Light while the kids had sodas. All of us thoroughly enjoyed our meals although this restaurant, even at lunch, has become quite expensive (entrees for my husband and I were $34.99 and $32.99, respectively, while the kids' meal is up to $11.99, and our son's meal was $16.99. Our total bill, less a 10% AP discount, $138.91.
Service was very good. The chef was pleasant although a bit inexperienced in the entertainment portion of the presentation. This was not a drawback for us and we used her more quiet presentation time to inquire about her tenure at Disney and her homeland. It's interesting to learn about the CMs working from other countries.
Le Cellier was the next restaurant on our must do list. As usual, it did not disappoint. Once again, we dined at lunch. Our server was very attentive and friendly. She was at the end of her stay here, but wasn't looking forward to her return home. Our order consisted of:
Dad: Steak and a regional beer
Mom: Cheese Soup, Mixed Greens Salad, and beer
Son: Cheese Soup, Chicken Sandwich, Soda
Daughter: Cheese Soup, Kids' meal Pasta/Marinara, Soda
The kids and I LOVE the pretzel bread and soup while Dad favors the sourdough bread. We ate way to many pieces of bread to want or need a dessert. Total bill, less AP discount, $72.82.
In order to hit Chef Mickey's, we needed to have dinner (my husband hates paying nearly $100 for breakfast and so won't even entertain the notion any longer). I'm sad to report that this is probably our last year for Chef Mickey's.
We have always enjoyed this restaurant but for the past two years things have seemed to steadily decline. The food was, at best, mediocre and we were all but ingnored by our server and Mickey and crew. I realize that we no longer have little tots, but c'mon, we're paying like everyone else--show us some love Mick!
To add insult to injury, we had a PS (7:00 p.m.) and still waited over half an hour to be seated after check-in. The place wasn't being cleaned with any consistency and plates had accumulated everywhere. Our total bill for this lackluster meal was $127.72--money that would have been better spent elsewhere.
On a couple of occasions we grabbed a quick bite on the run from Captain Crook's, er, I mean Cook's at the Polynesian Resort. As everyone reports, this fast food spot has limited offerings, but my husband swears it makes the best chicken strips. He's never been a chicken strip fanatic, so that must say something. I pronounce them just "OK" and the fries are just substandard frozen commercial food variety--ick! Anyway, I suppose the chicken strips fit the bill for around the pool and prior to Chef Mickey's and on our way out of the resort on check-out day for a quick bite. I would, otherwise, give Crook's a pass. It's overpriced, not very tasty, AND the CMs working there would rather be anywhere but! Total price: $21.70
Nine Dragons was next up on our dining adventure at WDW. This restaurant is, in my opinion, underrated. We have enjoyed the food here over our past 3 visits and the service is quite good, too. While we miss the old "Lunch Sampler", there is a new version "Lunch for 4" (or 2). This consisted of beef and peppers, General Tsao chicken, sweet and sour pork, and cashew shrimp, choice of soup (we had wonton), rice, egg rolls, and vegetables. The portions appeared small, but I can assure you were large enough to completely fill our four tummies AND have leftovers! More rice, etc. was offered and declined. My husband and I enjoyed a Yanjing beer while the kids had melon juice over which they raved! Be warned, however, those melon juices are expensive ($16.25 for 2
)--more than the price of 2 beers! What the heck, they are on vacation too! Total price of this wonderful meal: $115.58
A side note about Nine Dragons. Our server was brand new to the U.S. and was being trained by a gentlemen we recognized as a prior server (two years ago). His name was distinctive as is his very serene appearance (Pak). Oddly enough--he also remembered us without our prompt. When our server left to retrieve our drinks, he asked if we had been before to which we replied yes. He then said I know I must have served you because you are very familiar to me! Our kids, during the prior visit, had questioned him at length about his country, home town, culture, etc. This must be why he recalled our family despite the length of time since he had served us. We did go last year, but he didn't wait our table. When he approached us with the new CM, his face clearly registered a recognition--I thought I was misreading him, but apparently not. What memories these folks have. It's one thing for us to remember a particular CM, but with the sheer number of people they see day in and day out--it's amazing when they recognize us. Now, back to the reviews.
Peco's Bill's served our purposes for lunch on day. We had really wanted to dine at Pirata y el Perico, but it appeared deserted. When we left Peco's, and much to our consternation, it was open. If you're interested in this fast food, it appears that it doesn't open until nearly noon--we were ready to head back to our resort early and wanted a quick bite before swimming. We grabbed lunch right around 11:15 a.m.
We ordered:
Dad: Burger/fries
Mom: Chili Cheese Fries (shared with daughter)
Son: Chicken wrap
Daughter: Chicken Salad (shared with me)
and sodas all around. Nothing spectacular here, but not substandard either. It is what it is--fast food. What was to be hot was hot and what was not--was not. Total bill $33.25
Since we had fast food for lunch, and we really wanted to hit DD and DQ early (it was going to storm this day), we had made PS at House of Blues. The kids had never eaten at HoB and we really thought they'd enjoy it. Wrong, the ambience went unappreciated by our two--guess they would have preferred Planet Hollywood. Our son did enjoy his meal as did my husband and I, but our daughter found her choice lacking (or so she said at the time).
Dad/Mom: Split a Jambalaya/Bass for both
Son: Jambalaya/soda
Daughter: Kids' meal--Macaroni & Cheese, which she now says was great.
We all split the rosemary/jalapeno cornbread, too. It was wonderful as always!
Our server was attentive if a bit over the top sugary sweet--although, she did seem genuine. My husband and I appreciated the atmosphere and enjoyed a beer on the porch after we had enough of DQ. It was a nice spot to get out of the mini-shower preceding a larger storm later that night. Total bill at HoB was $76. HoB does offer a 20% AP discount now, but only before 6:00--our PS was for 6:00 so we just missed the cut-off.
I will continue the reviews later. . .it's taking a bit longer than I expected!
That said, we usually reserve a night or two for a character dinner or other favorite. All of the meal totals include tips. Our kick-off the vacation lunch was at Teppanyaki in Japan at EPCOT WS. We are not fortunate enough to have a Bennihana's nearby, but there is a decent Japanese steak house near us. We have always enjoyed Teppanyaki and this meal was no exception. We chose the following meals:
Dad: Steak, Shrimp, and Lobster
Mom: Scallops, Shrimp, and Lobster
Son: Chicken and Shrimp
Daughter: Children's Chicken meal.
The meals were served with and complemented by steamed rice and grilled vegetables. Our daughter also received ice cream with her meal. My husband and I enjoyed a Kirin Light while the kids had sodas. All of us thoroughly enjoyed our meals although this restaurant, even at lunch, has become quite expensive (entrees for my husband and I were $34.99 and $32.99, respectively, while the kids' meal is up to $11.99, and our son's meal was $16.99. Our total bill, less a 10% AP discount, $138.91.
Service was very good. The chef was pleasant although a bit inexperienced in the entertainment portion of the presentation. This was not a drawback for us and we used her more quiet presentation time to inquire about her tenure at Disney and her homeland. It's interesting to learn about the CMs working from other countries.
Le Cellier was the next restaurant on our must do list. As usual, it did not disappoint. Once again, we dined at lunch. Our server was very attentive and friendly. She was at the end of her stay here, but wasn't looking forward to her return home. Our order consisted of:
Dad: Steak and a regional beer
Mom: Cheese Soup, Mixed Greens Salad, and beer
Son: Cheese Soup, Chicken Sandwich, Soda
Daughter: Cheese Soup, Kids' meal Pasta/Marinara, Soda
The kids and I LOVE the pretzel bread and soup while Dad favors the sourdough bread. We ate way to many pieces of bread to want or need a dessert. Total bill, less AP discount, $72.82.
In order to hit Chef Mickey's, we needed to have dinner (my husband hates paying nearly $100 for breakfast and so won't even entertain the notion any longer). I'm sad to report that this is probably our last year for Chef Mickey's.
We have always enjoyed this restaurant but for the past two years things have seemed to steadily decline. The food was, at best, mediocre and we were all but ingnored by our server and Mickey and crew. I realize that we no longer have little tots, but c'mon, we're paying like everyone else--show us some love Mick!To add insult to injury, we had a PS (7:00 p.m.) and still waited over half an hour to be seated after check-in. The place wasn't being cleaned with any consistency and plates had accumulated everywhere. Our total bill for this lackluster meal was $127.72--money that would have been better spent elsewhere.
On a couple of occasions we grabbed a quick bite on the run from Captain Crook's, er, I mean Cook's at the Polynesian Resort. As everyone reports, this fast food spot has limited offerings, but my husband swears it makes the best chicken strips. He's never been a chicken strip fanatic, so that must say something. I pronounce them just "OK" and the fries are just substandard frozen commercial food variety--ick! Anyway, I suppose the chicken strips fit the bill for around the pool and prior to Chef Mickey's and on our way out of the resort on check-out day for a quick bite. I would, otherwise, give Crook's a pass. It's overpriced, not very tasty, AND the CMs working there would rather be anywhere but!
Total price: $21.70Nine Dragons was next up on our dining adventure at WDW. This restaurant is, in my opinion, underrated. We have enjoyed the food here over our past 3 visits and the service is quite good, too. While we miss the old "Lunch Sampler", there is a new version "Lunch for 4" (or 2). This consisted of beef and peppers, General Tsao chicken, sweet and sour pork, and cashew shrimp, choice of soup (we had wonton), rice, egg rolls, and vegetables. The portions appeared small, but I can assure you were large enough to completely fill our four tummies AND have leftovers! More rice, etc. was offered and declined. My husband and I enjoyed a Yanjing beer while the kids had melon juice over which they raved! Be warned, however, those melon juices are expensive ($16.25 for 2
)--more than the price of 2 beers! What the heck, they are on vacation too! Total price of this wonderful meal: $115.58A side note about Nine Dragons. Our server was brand new to the U.S. and was being trained by a gentlemen we recognized as a prior server (two years ago). His name was distinctive as is his very serene appearance (Pak). Oddly enough--he also remembered us without our prompt. When our server left to retrieve our drinks, he asked if we had been before to which we replied yes. He then said I know I must have served you because you are very familiar to me! Our kids, during the prior visit, had questioned him at length about his country, home town, culture, etc. This must be why he recalled our family despite the length of time since he had served us. We did go last year, but he didn't wait our table. When he approached us with the new CM, his face clearly registered a recognition--I thought I was misreading him, but apparently not. What memories these folks have. It's one thing for us to remember a particular CM, but with the sheer number of people they see day in and day out--it's amazing when they recognize us. Now, back to the reviews.
Peco's Bill's served our purposes for lunch on day. We had really wanted to dine at Pirata y el Perico, but it appeared deserted. When we left Peco's, and much to our consternation, it was open. If you're interested in this fast food, it appears that it doesn't open until nearly noon--we were ready to head back to our resort early and wanted a quick bite before swimming. We grabbed lunch right around 11:15 a.m.
We ordered:
Dad: Burger/fries
Mom: Chili Cheese Fries (shared with daughter)
Son: Chicken wrap
Daughter: Chicken Salad (shared with me)
and sodas all around. Nothing spectacular here, but not substandard either. It is what it is--fast food. What was to be hot was hot and what was not--was not. Total bill $33.25
Since we had fast food for lunch, and we really wanted to hit DD and DQ early (it was going to storm this day), we had made PS at House of Blues. The kids had never eaten at HoB and we really thought they'd enjoy it. Wrong, the ambience went unappreciated by our two--guess they would have preferred Planet Hollywood. Our son did enjoy his meal as did my husband and I, but our daughter found her choice lacking (or so she said at the time).
Dad/Mom: Split a Jambalaya/Bass for both
Son: Jambalaya/soda
Daughter: Kids' meal--Macaroni & Cheese, which she now says was great.
We all split the rosemary/jalapeno cornbread, too. It was wonderful as always!
Our server was attentive if a bit over the top sugary sweet--although, she did seem genuine. My husband and I appreciated the atmosphere and enjoyed a beer on the porch after we had enough of DQ. It was a nice spot to get out of the mini-shower preceding a larger storm later that night. Total bill at HoB was $76. HoB does offer a 20% AP discount now, but only before 6:00--our PS was for 6:00 so we just missed the cut-off.
I will continue the reviews later. . .it's taking a bit longer than I expected!
