barnstormers
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Sep 30, 2004
- Messages
- 3
We have watched and read these boards and posts for awhile now. After several trips over the past few years, we decided to post our own thoughts and observations. We just returned after staying five nights from September 20 25 at the Grand Floridian.
We did notice that the restaurants were rarely busy or full during this time. We often arrived 15 minutes before our priority seating and walked right in. Here are some samples of where and what we ate:
Dinner at the Grand Floridian Café The last couple of times we had stayed at the Floridan the Café had been closed for dinner. We were surprised to see it open for dinner this time but we quickly found out why Gasparilla Grill, the 24-hour counter service restaurant, was closed for renovations the month of September and October. Had we known that, we probably would have spent the extra money and stayed in a concierge room. You dont realize how much you miss a 24-hour counter service until it is closed. The Floridian did have the SummerHouse open from 6 a.m. until 10 p.m. but the menu was very limited. Anyway, back to the Café. We had ordered two glass slipper desserts a couple of days before our arrival to have after dinner. After a couple of snacks at the park and the desserts looming, we ordered light. We tried the spinach artichoke dip (one of the best anywhere according to my wife), a Caesar salad (very good as well) and a Café Signature Sandwich (which turned out to be a plain-looking club sandwich). Im not sure why they dont have the Earl on the dinner menu as well as the lunch. We also had a kids macaroni and cheese, which seemed satisfactory. Now to the main event the glass slipper desserts. To be honest, we were disappointed. The presentation was nice and they were tasty but there was just something lacking. They were not worth $14 each, they are not very big and there was nothing real different about their presentation when compared to other desserts at other tables. The glass slipper dessert is unique but we think its one of those things to try once and then move on.
Lunch at the toy Story Pizza Planet at MGM Nothing special here, just good quality pizza. We have eaten here about every trip. We have had better meals here and worse meals here. It was average this time.
Dinner at Garden Grill at EPCOT We usually plan a stop here. Our daughter is three now and it just beginning to really enjoy the characters. Once again, a nice meal at a reasonable price with outstanding service. Our server actually seemed disappointed when we could not eat any more food. This is an all-you-can-eat skillet dinner similar the Whispering Canyon at the Wilderness Lodge. We saw a couple of new items on the skillet this time around, and our server told us they change the items every three to four months. We had catfish, flank steak, pork roast with pineapple sauce, a nice cabbage, potatoes with onions, dressing, vegetables, salads and rolls, The kids skillet had macaroni and cheese, chicken fingers and French fries. The characters were great with lots of interaction. Once again, a cant miss stop on the Disney restaurant tour.
Dinner at Harbour House at Magic Kingdom We ate here for a quick dinner one night because we wanted to stay and see the parade that night. We had the usual items fish, chicken strips, fries, cole slaw. Everything was fresh and tasted good. My wife really enjoys this place, and it is probably the best of the casual restaurants in the Magic Kingdom.
Lunch at Flame Tree Barbecue at Animal Kingdom We hadnt been to Animal Kingdom in a few years. We saw a feature on the Flame Tree Barbecue on the Travel Channel a few months ago and decided to give it a try. We were very impressed. We usually prefer baby-back ribs and were worried how the St. Louis style ribs would taste, especially on a hot day. They were wonderful, the ribs were slow cooked and had a nice rub on them that had a little bit of a kick. They offer two sauces on the side a regular Flame Tree sauce along with a sweet sauce. I preferred the regular sauce. My wife had the pulled pork sandwich which was very good as well. Each item comes with baked beans and corn on the cob. We added an order of cheese fries and some cole slaw. Overall, a very good meal. The downside there is no indoor seating. It always seems 10 degrees warmer at the Animal Kingdom than at other parks. Id rather eat a slab of ribs in an air-conditioned room like the Tusker House on the other side of the house but like with anything else you take what they give you.
A special note here We continue to be impressed with the condiment bars at the parks. They offer everything you need and more. Whereas fast-food restaurants now seem to ration every ketchup packet, its all here. Granted youre paying for it somewhere along the line but its nice to be there.
Dinner at Yachtsman Steakhouse Our biggest disappointment of the entire trip. We had eaten here before, recommended it to others and never had or heard a bad experience. The last steaks we had here were two of the best we had ever eaten. This night was different. The appetizers were wonderful an outstanding heirloom tomato and mozzarella salad, a first-rate shrimp cocktail that was skimpy on sauce (we asked for more and it was delivered promptly) and a very interesting corn chowder with shrimp. Our three year old daughter loved them all so they must have been good! We should have stopped there. We ordered a New York strip medium well and a Prime Rib medium well. The accompaniments were fine a baked potato and garlic mashed potatoes. The New York strip was very overcooked no sign of pink at all, half of it too done to even eat. We watched the manager visit every other table and inquire how their steaks were cooked. He did not visit our table. By the time our server inquired, it was too late to save the meal. He did offer to have another one cooked (not an option with a three-year-old in tow). To the credit of the restaurant, we received a $32 credit on the final bill but I would much rather have a well-cooked steak than a few bites of a poor steak and a refund. The prime rib was average at best, little flavor, not much texture, just an average piece of meat. Overall, a big disappointment given our past experience and huge expectations. Our daughter did enjoy the kids dessert. We will probably return to the Concourse Steakhouse next time rather than here.
Lunch at Grand Floridian Café With Gasparilla Grill closed, we opted for lunch at the Café one day. The Florida Burger is one of the best around and the cheese steak is equally as good. Overall, a very nice and simple lunch.
Dinner at Kona Café at Polynesian We had never eaten here, and we were glad we decided to give it a try. A Caesar salad starter was excellent. The Asian rubbed prime rib was great with just enough spice. It was and I take a long pause here before saying this a better prime rib than the one at the Yachtsman Steakhouse for half the money. We also tried the Asian Noodle Bowl which was excellent as well. The desserts are on display at the Kona Café with a pastry show kitchen in the middle of the restaurant. We opted only for a kids ice cream a dipped oversize cone with two scoops of ice cream, chocolate sauce, surrounded by a rung of cotton candy and M&Ms. The thing about the Kona Café was that our kids meal cost almost as much as ours serving the strawberry banann smoothie in a fresh pineapple bowl brought the cost of that drink to $8. A wonderful late-night meal that would merit a return visit.
Add to these restaurants the usual snacks along the way hot dogs and fries at Caseys in the Magic Kingdom, McDonalds fries, Rice Krispies treats with chocolate and others and we ate well. Everyone had his or her absolute favorite item at Disney World ours are the chocolate chip cookies at the Floridian. Needless to say, we had several and took an order of a half dozen home on the plane.
We did notice that the restaurants were rarely busy or full during this time. We often arrived 15 minutes before our priority seating and walked right in. Here are some samples of where and what we ate:
Dinner at the Grand Floridian Café The last couple of times we had stayed at the Floridan the Café had been closed for dinner. We were surprised to see it open for dinner this time but we quickly found out why Gasparilla Grill, the 24-hour counter service restaurant, was closed for renovations the month of September and October. Had we known that, we probably would have spent the extra money and stayed in a concierge room. You dont realize how much you miss a 24-hour counter service until it is closed. The Floridian did have the SummerHouse open from 6 a.m. until 10 p.m. but the menu was very limited. Anyway, back to the Café. We had ordered two glass slipper desserts a couple of days before our arrival to have after dinner. After a couple of snacks at the park and the desserts looming, we ordered light. We tried the spinach artichoke dip (one of the best anywhere according to my wife), a Caesar salad (very good as well) and a Café Signature Sandwich (which turned out to be a plain-looking club sandwich). Im not sure why they dont have the Earl on the dinner menu as well as the lunch. We also had a kids macaroni and cheese, which seemed satisfactory. Now to the main event the glass slipper desserts. To be honest, we were disappointed. The presentation was nice and they were tasty but there was just something lacking. They were not worth $14 each, they are not very big and there was nothing real different about their presentation when compared to other desserts at other tables. The glass slipper dessert is unique but we think its one of those things to try once and then move on.
Lunch at the toy Story Pizza Planet at MGM Nothing special here, just good quality pizza. We have eaten here about every trip. We have had better meals here and worse meals here. It was average this time.
Dinner at Garden Grill at EPCOT We usually plan a stop here. Our daughter is three now and it just beginning to really enjoy the characters. Once again, a nice meal at a reasonable price with outstanding service. Our server actually seemed disappointed when we could not eat any more food. This is an all-you-can-eat skillet dinner similar the Whispering Canyon at the Wilderness Lodge. We saw a couple of new items on the skillet this time around, and our server told us they change the items every three to four months. We had catfish, flank steak, pork roast with pineapple sauce, a nice cabbage, potatoes with onions, dressing, vegetables, salads and rolls, The kids skillet had macaroni and cheese, chicken fingers and French fries. The characters were great with lots of interaction. Once again, a cant miss stop on the Disney restaurant tour.
Dinner at Harbour House at Magic Kingdom We ate here for a quick dinner one night because we wanted to stay and see the parade that night. We had the usual items fish, chicken strips, fries, cole slaw. Everything was fresh and tasted good. My wife really enjoys this place, and it is probably the best of the casual restaurants in the Magic Kingdom.
Lunch at Flame Tree Barbecue at Animal Kingdom We hadnt been to Animal Kingdom in a few years. We saw a feature on the Flame Tree Barbecue on the Travel Channel a few months ago and decided to give it a try. We were very impressed. We usually prefer baby-back ribs and were worried how the St. Louis style ribs would taste, especially on a hot day. They were wonderful, the ribs were slow cooked and had a nice rub on them that had a little bit of a kick. They offer two sauces on the side a regular Flame Tree sauce along with a sweet sauce. I preferred the regular sauce. My wife had the pulled pork sandwich which was very good as well. Each item comes with baked beans and corn on the cob. We added an order of cheese fries and some cole slaw. Overall, a very good meal. The downside there is no indoor seating. It always seems 10 degrees warmer at the Animal Kingdom than at other parks. Id rather eat a slab of ribs in an air-conditioned room like the Tusker House on the other side of the house but like with anything else you take what they give you.
A special note here We continue to be impressed with the condiment bars at the parks. They offer everything you need and more. Whereas fast-food restaurants now seem to ration every ketchup packet, its all here. Granted youre paying for it somewhere along the line but its nice to be there.
Dinner at Yachtsman Steakhouse Our biggest disappointment of the entire trip. We had eaten here before, recommended it to others and never had or heard a bad experience. The last steaks we had here were two of the best we had ever eaten. This night was different. The appetizers were wonderful an outstanding heirloom tomato and mozzarella salad, a first-rate shrimp cocktail that was skimpy on sauce (we asked for more and it was delivered promptly) and a very interesting corn chowder with shrimp. Our three year old daughter loved them all so they must have been good! We should have stopped there. We ordered a New York strip medium well and a Prime Rib medium well. The accompaniments were fine a baked potato and garlic mashed potatoes. The New York strip was very overcooked no sign of pink at all, half of it too done to even eat. We watched the manager visit every other table and inquire how their steaks were cooked. He did not visit our table. By the time our server inquired, it was too late to save the meal. He did offer to have another one cooked (not an option with a three-year-old in tow). To the credit of the restaurant, we received a $32 credit on the final bill but I would much rather have a well-cooked steak than a few bites of a poor steak and a refund. The prime rib was average at best, little flavor, not much texture, just an average piece of meat. Overall, a big disappointment given our past experience and huge expectations. Our daughter did enjoy the kids dessert. We will probably return to the Concourse Steakhouse next time rather than here.
Lunch at Grand Floridian Café With Gasparilla Grill closed, we opted for lunch at the Café one day. The Florida Burger is one of the best around and the cheese steak is equally as good. Overall, a very nice and simple lunch.
Dinner at Kona Café at Polynesian We had never eaten here, and we were glad we decided to give it a try. A Caesar salad starter was excellent. The Asian rubbed prime rib was great with just enough spice. It was and I take a long pause here before saying this a better prime rib than the one at the Yachtsman Steakhouse for half the money. We also tried the Asian Noodle Bowl which was excellent as well. The desserts are on display at the Kona Café with a pastry show kitchen in the middle of the restaurant. We opted only for a kids ice cream a dipped oversize cone with two scoops of ice cream, chocolate sauce, surrounded by a rung of cotton candy and M&Ms. The thing about the Kona Café was that our kids meal cost almost as much as ours serving the strawberry banann smoothie in a fresh pineapple bowl brought the cost of that drink to $8. A wonderful late-night meal that would merit a return visit.
Add to these restaurants the usual snacks along the way hot dogs and fries at Caseys in the Magic Kingdom, McDonalds fries, Rice Krispies treats with chocolate and others and we ate well. Everyone had his or her absolute favorite item at Disney World ours are the chocolate chip cookies at the Floridian. Needless to say, we had several and took an order of a half dozen home on the plane.
This is one restaurant that we will definitely not return to. IMO, FF is a much better choice on the Boardwalk. 
