restaurants NOT TO MISS

[jillhou]

We have been to WDW several times, but may be taking friends who have NEVER been. I want to know what you think are the 3 character meals that are NOT TO BE MISSED and the 3 restaurants that are NOT TO BE MISSED! I know the ones we like and the ones the kids like, but after going to several of them over and over, not sure if they still hold the same charm for us....wanted some other opinions!

Thanks!

 

[pinkminnie]

Well, this may be less fancy than what you are looking for, but we really love Sci-Fi for lunch. You can't beat the burgers and shakes and the atmosphere is so much fun. We also really enjoyed the Kona Cafe when we stayed at the Poly. I also think that you can't go wrong with any of the restaurants at the Boardwalk, and it's a neat place to walk around during the evening (entertainment and fun).

 

[Kae]

What are the ages of the kids, where are you staying?

Kae

 

[Lewski709]

I can't miss the Smoked Turkey Legs at MK and AK.
I can't miss Ohana's.

 

[jillhou]

We will be at the Poly - not sure where they are going to be yet. We generally have not done a LOT of dining outside of the parks....a little, not a lot.

We almost always eat at the Crys Palace and used to do Chef Mickey's quite a bit.

I like Ohana's and 50s Prime Time - just kinda wondered what you would REALLY want to show first timers......

My kids are 16, 13, and 10.....their kids will be 16, 14 and 11.

Thanks!

 

[DepCor0311]

Ohana
Ohana
Ohana

 

[enchantedpixiedust]

Boma for Dinner
CP for Bfast
Not sure if this counts, but the Afternoon Tea is a not-to-be-missed for me!
Also - Spoodles has become a favorite of mine for breakfast.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

3 Character meals:

1. CRT
2. 1900 Park Fare (breakfast)
3. Chef Mickey's (breakfast)

Dinners:
1. Artist Point
2. Flying Fish (DS-12 & I disagreed on this one. He thinks that Le Cellier & Les Chefs De France are better. With FF coming in 4th)
3. Le Cellier & Les Chefs de France - Tie

 

[Eeyore2003]

For character meals, I think it depends on what characters the kids like. I think the neatest 3 kids meal combo is...
Chef Mickey
Cinderella's Royal Table
Ohana's

As far as our favorites so far....

Le Cellier
Artist Point
Sci Fi
ESPN Club
Big River Grille and Brewing Co.

 

[mickeycw]

Whispering Canyon Cafe is fun also

 

[PneumaticTransit]

Here are my favorites:

Character:
Cinderella's Royal Table Character Breakfast - beautiful restaurant, good food, and princesses (what more can I say?)

Chef Mickey's Breakfast - large buffet selection, great photo ops, and a little more room for over-excited children

1900 Park Fare Dinner - it's been awhile, but I remember it having a good selection of "adult" food (like seafood). Picky younger eaters have the standard hot dogs, chicken nuggets, mac & cheese available

Non-Character:
Mitsukoshi Japan Lunch - prepared at your table, very fresh and tasty, insiders tell me this is one of the *cleanest* kitchens on property. I recommend this for lunch - dinner has pretty much the same menu but costs 40% more

Ohana's Dinner- served at your table family style. Food was better than the luau (in my opinon). They now bring out the jumbo shrimp last in hopes that you've filled up on the other meats, but my husband isn't shy to let them know he wants the shrimp & he wants it NOW!

Whispering Canyon Cafe Dinner - fun atmosphere (not a quiet dinner place by far). Plenty of great food for the price, and all you can drink milkshakes!!! Mmmmm

I have been to other, more expensive restaurants, like Artist Point - even though the food is great; I have trouble justifying paying that much money for a meal so it's not on my favorites list.
I've actually only been to two restaurants that I wasn't happy with:
Donald's Restaurantasaurus Character Breakfast - Dining room layout was a little strange and the food wasn't that great or warm- I've had better free continental breakfasts at the Days Inn
Coral Reef - we went for lunch hoping the price would be reasonable, but it was very high. The cucumber salad I ordered tasted like it came from a grocery store, and the entrees my husband & I had were very bland.

 

[Jynohn]

We wouldn't consider a trip complete without a visit to 'Ohana's. Wish I were there right now!

On our last trip we tried the Hoop-Dee-Doo for the first time since I was a kid. It's expensive, but worth every penny. It's now on our must do list too!

 

[rcraw45425]

Dinner definitely O'Hana. My family has to eat there every time we visit. Since we missed it during our last minute, off site spring break trip, DD7 asked if we could do it twice this trip! We ate there in June and as always the food and service were great. For quick in the park food we like Cosmic Ray's in Tomorrowland for the burgers and The Backstage Canteen (think that's the name) that's right by Indiana Jones in MGM. Again, big burgers and large orders of hot fries. Reasonable prices too. We ate dinner at Tony's Town Square in June, while the service was great I felt that the food was a little bland. Quite pricy for dinner too, but huge portions. The Concourse steakhouse in the Contemporary serves a really good steak. Large portions too. Good luck and enjoy your trip.

 

[RachelTori]

Garden Grill @ The Land - EPCOT has a wonderful character meal. The restaurant revolves (very slowly) so the scenery constantly changes. (They also have a mid-afternoon ice cream social with the characters.) We also love the character breakfast @ Ohana; Chef Mickey's; Crystal Palace. We've heard many raves for dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern so that's on our list for our December trip.

Always fun at PrimeTime - I'll bet 1st timers would get a kick out of it, especially if they don't know what to expect!!

 

[hulabird]

We tried two new ones this trip (we just got back 9/1) and they moved to "favorites" status very quickly, they are:

Hollywood & Vine Dinner Buffet
Whether you get the Fantasmic package or not, this buffet is delicious, kid friendly and very high quality. Every person in my party raved over it, especially and surprisingly my hard-to-please DH who never likes anything! There is something for everyone here and the desserts are to die for. The kids loved the ice cream bar because they have those tall plastic tubes (like in a candy store) filled with every kind of topping imaginable: nuts, sprinkles, candies etc...I never saw so many toppings! The prime rib was melt-in-your-mouth good and the turkey potroast had the most delicious flavor and was fork tender! I highly recommend this buffet, it is well worth the price ($21.99 adults and $9.99 kids)

Trail's End Buffet
We ate here before trying H&V and thought this was just a cut under H&V, the food here is very good, the fried chicken was my favorite. The night we went they had carved buffalo, fried chicken, chicken cacciatore, pizza, meatloaf in gravy, fresh shrimp, and a variety of sides such as mashed potatoes, gravy, salads, mac ' cheese and lots of other stuff. The desserts and breads were also delicious and for $15.99 adults and $6.99 kids, you can't beat it. Plus we were able to go to the petting zoo and pony rides as an added feature, it was really fun.

 

[disneylovr1]

Don't miss Boma, it's wonderful! Don't let the African theme scare you off, my dad is the worlds pickiest eater and he loves Boma!

 

[polkadotminnie]

We like these.
1. Chef Mickey's
2. Cape May
3. Crystal Palace

1. Whispering Canyon
2. Ohana
3. Boma

Off-site: Tony Roma's Ribs

 

[marcyinPA]

Chef Mickey's on their first night in Disney. To me, there is no better way to kick off a Disney trip!!

And with your group, and all of the ages represented, I'd go to the Hoop De Doo....especially since your friends are first timers. The food isn't spectacular, just a heads up. But the entertainment is priceless!! It is just such a fun time!!

 

[stemikger]

I recently had very good meals at BOMA and Brown Derby. I ate dinner at both.

However, I had the worst meal of my life in the Sci-Fi Diner. I went for dinner and all across the board this place was awful. Sure the atmosphere is something else, but the food is horrible. It was the worst place I have ever eaten in my entire life.

BOMA was a great meal and so was Brown Derby. Both of these restuarants were first rate.

 

[robsmom]

1900 park fare (charactor breakfast) - best food for a charactor breakfast and always nice to walk through the Grand Florldian

50's prime time cafe - good food

ohana's - we actaully liked this laid back charactor breakfast, not as upbeat/exciting as chef mickey's but the food was really good. We enjoyed dinner as well.

VOTE AGAINST - sci fi dinner - agree with stemikger this was one of the worst measl i have ever had. we didn't even like the atmospher.