Romantic Dinner Suggestions

[aurora19]

I need to make our PS for our vacation in December (I know, I'm slacking a bit but I was on vacation...)

On Sunday 12/8, my DH and I would like to go out (sans kids) for a romantic dinner. I would like your input as to which you would pick and why. We have only been to the Cali Grill previously. This will be a non-park day for us so we are only considering RESORT restaurants.


Choices:

Jiko (we are staying at AKL - already plan to go to Boma)
Flying Fish Cafe
Citricos
Narcoosees
California Grill (LOVED it the last time - it's MVMCP night so there will be fireworks!)

Won't do:
Artist Point (liked it a lot the last time but very similar to a restaurant we frequent near home)
Victoria & Albert's (DH refuses to get that dressed up on a Disney Vacation)


Thank you all in advance for your insightful advice!

 

[hmp2z]

Hi! My husband postd several reviews of restaurants, from our wedding/honeymoon trip this month. If you search under amw5g as the author, you'll be able to read detailed recaps of our experiences there.
In a nutshell, Citrico's was pretty good, with a view of the fireworks (but no music piped in), and had a very quiet atmosphere.
Jiko was absolutely disgusting. My fish was full of bones (every bite, not just 2 or 3 bones), and when I asked the waiter if the sauce was spicy, telling him I'd prefer to have it on the side if so, he told me it wasn't spicy at all. Then, when he brought the entree out to me, he told me that he'd "made a mistake" and it was spicy - not sure why he only figured it out as he was bringing it to me. Andy's food was fairly good, he said, but it's not a place we'd go back to. The atmosphere was quiet, though.
Narcoossee's is AWESOME! Kind of loud, but the food is always amazing, and it has a great view of the fireworks. I love that they pipe in the music, too - it definitely makes the fireworks more enjoyable. Plus, we always get a castle view table, which is fun to watch during dinner.
The Flying Fish Cafe was fine - the food was good, but it was a little too bustling for us to consider romantic, and it doesn't have a view anything like Narcoossee's.
If you want to read more about what we ate, with details on the food, service, and atmosphere, like I said, look under amw5g's posts for Andy's dinner reviews.
Cheers!
Heather W

 

[Andy123]

I would go with Citrico's for a few reasons. First, it tends to be quiet and for the most part is only adults. Second, the food is outstanding. The service the times we've been there was wonderful. Flying Fish is our favorite restaurant in WDW right now, but as Heather said, tends to be a little more bustling, but at the same time I feel as though it can be romantic. All I remember about Narcoossee's is how LOUD it was (we went at 9:30PM and it was like rush hour!). So, I would go with Citrico's first, and Flying Fish second.

 

[disneydom]

We had just got back in June from the BWV and were able to try the Flying fish alittle disapointed in the service and food,don't get me wrong it was still very good but not up to our expectations
The next night we ate at the Yachtsman steakhouse and had a truely fantastic meal.
But our all time favorate dinning experiance has to be Bistro de Paris for an in park meal,already planing reservations when we go down in November for the Wine Fest
Well a great meal where ever you decide to go,and have fun
Brett

 

[Keeplaughing]

Disneydom and I have similiar tastes. On Friday, we ate at the restaurant under Bistro de Paris called Chefs de France. I wanted to go a bit more casual, and I like to window watch. This is the ground floor restaurant. On Sunday we ate at the Flying Fish. Mikhael (?) waited on us. AWESOME service!!!!!! The food was great too..I had Red Snapper....but as far as atmosphere......my kids were with a sitter, and I expected a smaller restaurant with a bit more atmoshere. It was definitely not romantic, though if you sit up front, the tables are smaller and it seemed like there were less kids. Now, last night at the last second.....because my kids liked the Sandcastle Club so much, we "allowed them time there" and we went to Yahtsman's Steakhouse. Wow!!! It was again bigger than I expected it to be, but we first were seated under a vent that was blowing way to much cold air. We then were seated in the "Private Dining Area"....a small room off the big room. This could be nice and quite for a romantic dinner. I was with my husband, mother and mother-in-law! I had the beef tenderloin with spinach. My husband had the 24 oz. T-bone. The food was fabulous, and so was the service. Any questions, just ask.

 

[TammiMcMan]

My top two choices for a romantic dinner are Jiko's and California Grill. My experience at both, is that they seem to be primarily adults. (I'm a bit snobbish when it comes to spending quality time at a restaurant with my DH) For ambience, I would go with Jiko's. The lighting is very dim and definitely provokes a romantic feeling. DH and I both had the oak grilled tenderloin with mac & cheese. I have never had such an incredible meal. A little of the romance slipped away as I was licking my plate clean though. I was a bit disappointed with the desserts, but the coffee was delicious. As for California Grill, well you just can't beat that view. I enjoyed dinner there, but thought it a bit louder and brighter than Jiko's (although they did dim the lights during the fireworks). Who could argue with the chocolate souffle though? Yummy. Okay, so my ultimate evening would be dinner at Jiko's, followed by coffee and dessert in the lounge at California Grill while watching the fireworks. Best of both worlds if you don't mind travelling around a bit.

Tammi

 

[Uncleromulus]

"Romantic" is the tough call in your post. Any of the spots you indicate are fine restaurants--the most "romantic" (ie quiet) of the group being Citrico's, followed by Jiko. I should note that we always had fine meals at both places.
Have you considered Palio? It is a resort restaurant, quiet, with strolling muscians who play requests tableside.

 

[Mike in NC]

Ditto Uncleromulus. My wife and I had our anniversary dinner at Palio (Swan hotel) two years ago and were not disappointed. The atmosphere was dim and quiet except for the musicians. After dinner, it was only a short stroll to the fireworks at Epcot. Good luck and have a great time.

 

[aurora19]

to all who have posted so far.

To clarify - by "romantic" I really mean adult oriented. As much as I love children - when my DH & I can get away from our boys (5 & 8) for a dinner alone, we don't want to be surrounded by other peoples kids - no matter how cute or well behaved they may be!

So instead of Romantic - think adult oriented.

Also - I'm not really interested in Italian (so Palio is out) and we are only interested in RESORT restaurants for this meal.

So anyone else have ideas??

 

[fireplug]

How about Artist Point in WL ? The food is fabulous and the atmosphere spectacular. We have been three times and loved it. The salmon on cedar plank and Buffalo were just wonderful. The WL is such a nice resort for a stroll after dinner too.


Steve

 

[TammiMcMan]

I'm totally hearing you about your desire to have a completely kids-free dining experience. Unfortunately, if you're not keen on V&A's then you are going to run into kids where ever you choose. Have you considered a moonlight cruise out of GF, Poly, Contemporary, or WL? You could arrange a picnic dinner on board and be guaranteed of some quality alone time together. Pricing starts at $120 and does not include food. It does offer spectacular views of the MK fireworks and water pageant. You can call Disney's sports and recreation line at 407-939-7529 for specifics on time and food offerings.

Hope this helps and gives you something different to try.

Tammi

 

[antnee]

I say California Grill is the best choice especially if you can a view during the fireworks.

PS the also have an observatory that you can go out on and see all of WDW

 

[Cousin Orville]

My first choice would be CG, but since you've eaten there I'll suggest Jiko. Flying Fish is another good choice, especially if it's a busy weekend when the Boardwalk atmosphere is at it's best, but I wouldn't call it romantic considering the strong lighting and the windows full of people going to and from the Boardwalk.

One thing to think about is, MVMCP fireworks are a bit different than normal fireworks. We ate at CG the last MVMCP night this past Christmas and not only did they have the usual fireworks going off behind the castle, but they had fireworks going off from the Poly and GF hotels. I have no idea if that was just for the last night of MVMCP or every MVMCP, but maybe something to ask around about.

 

[GOODFELLA]

yo antnee
that was great i love DENIRO we need that scene in the great movie ride!!!!
WELL THEN YOU'LL LIKE THIS ONE......

MY MACHINE SHE'S A DUD ,STUCK IN THE MUD SOMEWHERE IN THE SWAMPS OF JERSEY

 

[eebear]

See if you can get your husband to reconsider Victoria & Albert's. It's truly an experience and well worth getting dressed up for the evening! The food was incredible and the atmosphere so romantic. And I think you can pretty much guarantee it will be short on little ones, so you'll really be able to enjoy an evening away from the kids. My husband and I ate at Artist's Point last December, the food was great, but the atmosphere wasn't anything to write home about ... lots of kids. I guess that's to be expected just about anywhere in the World.

 

[Tigger2]

CG is one our favorites (we're actually using our romantic choice feature there the last night of our honeymoon), but if your looking to try someplace new, I'd have to recommend Narcossee's. My FH and I have eaten there several times and never had a bad experience (that's where we're eating the first night!) If you make your PS for around the time of the fireworks be sure to ask for a table by the window when you check in, you'll have a great view!

Whatever you choose, I'm sure it'll be romantic...you'll be together!