San Angel Inn

[deltadisney]

I was excited about trying this for our upcoming December trip. We have a reservation in the evening and are on the dinning plan. I have read some negative reviews since booking, one of which is a very reliable source. Anyone have any good or bad experiences here, food wise. Seriously thinking about finding another venue.

Anyone have any thought on a new Epcot location to try? We tried Spice Road last year and absolutely loved it. Trying to make our trip this year, more about dinning in Epcot. Thanks for any thoughts or advice.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Even reliable sources can be poor sources if their tastes are not exactly your tastes. I would be flexible with reviews at Disney.

 

[lady_hlh]

We really enjoyed La Hacienda the new Mexican place on the lake.

 

[mommycrawford]

I had stayed away from San Angel for 10 years because of poor reviews. My DD was newly gluten sensitive, so this was good for accommodating that need, so we tried it last year for dinner and really were nicely surprised!...We are from NYC, so that gives you an idea of what we are expecting in Mexican food.

 

[USCAnna]

I've eaten at La Hacienda as well as San Angel. Both were good, but my vote goes to San Angel. The seating is very cramped, but I love the ambiance and the food has been very good in the past. I've eaten at the majority of World Showcase restaurants and San Angel is still my personal favorite.

 

[rosiebean]

Ambiance at San Angel Inn was great, and our food there last year was really, really good.

I went with a party that included two people who'd gone to San Angel years before and had a subpar experience, but they came with us because they were going with the flow of the larger party; those two people said San Angel was one of the best meals of last year's trip. It was really good. We loved the setting, and we had fun taking the nearby indoor boat ride after our lunchtime ADR.

That said...San Angel is traditional, authentic Mexican. It's not Tex-Mex, which is one reason I think some reviews are 'so-so' (from people who expected their local Mexican fare or Chipotle vs authentic Mexican, which is very different). Take a look at their menu. If you see things that appeal to your palate, from my experience, you'll really enjoy the meal!

 

[arcticdisneylovers]

well we've eaten there numerous times and the food was ok but the service was always lacking.

 

[SGMCO]

We love San Angel Inn and we live where there is good American Mexican food and that is where it differs, the food choices are different than Tex-Mex which has smoothed everything, the choices seem to be more clean, grilled not smoothed with sauces. I've always ordered a Fish dish here, there are several choices and they have all been very good and cooked to perfection. We had stayed away from San Angel Inn until 3 trips ago, when we tried it for the 1st time and loved it.
We have eaten here every trip since then. If you decide to try it, just remember not to compare it to Tex-Mex Americanized Food, it is more authentic Mexican Cuisine. And you can't bet the Beautiful Theme and Decor.

 

[Nancyg56]

We had dinner there in December as part of our CP package. It was so good!! The atmosphere is pretty darn cool, and the service and food was also very good. The only deficit is teh table spacing. We were fine, but the server was kind of cramped, squeezing between tables that are quite close.

 

[AngiTN]

Another fan of San Angel. We've eaten there twice and loved it both times. Most recent was April this year.
It's closer to traditional Mexican food than most Americans are accustomed to and I think those going in looking for what they order at their local Mexican restaurant come away disappointed when they can't find something that looks familiar to them. I think that drives a lot of the negative reviews. The tastes are different. Not in a bad way or anything, but different. So if you can go and remove your preconceived thoughts on what a menu at a Mexican restaurant should be I think you'd enjoy it.

 

[sullyfam]

As others have said, it's not your traditional tex-mex restaurant that many people are used to. We went in knowing that but still weren't overly crazy about the food. The ambience can't be beat though and the margaritas and chips & salsa were definitely a hit. A side note that the tables are very close together and we found the service to be a little lacking. We had our 2 young kids with us and wanted to get in and out but the waitress kept disappearing for long bouts of time. Could have been a fluke but I have heard others note that the service there can be slow. Check out the menu and make sure there are things you think you would like. We tried it and are glad we did but we aren't in any rush to go back.

 

[heidijanesmith]

We ate at San Angel Inn once and it was horrible. Horrible food, terrible service and way expensive. We had a group of 10 and no one liked what they ordered. One of the worst experiences in or out of WDW.

We really like Via Napoli's, Biergarden, Teppan Edo, Rose and Crown and Le Cellier.

 

[travelbug]

I've eaten at San Angel Inn numerous times with quite a few different people, and I (and those with me) have always been happy with the experience. Great food, charming atmosphere, and no issues with the service. It's truly a favorite place for me to eat in Epcot.

You will always find a mixture of reviews on ANY place you consider. If you were excited about it to begin with, maybe it would be good to go ahead and give it a try and decide for yourself.

Best wishes with your planning! I've been working on ADRs for our upcoming trip in early January too. Almost set, but just 1 or 2 more to decide!

 

[awalker1015]

We had a fantastic experience at San Angel Inn in 2013. Going back in October. I say take the negative reviews with a grain of salt.

 

[ggdvc]

After debating over the menu for several prior trips, we are finally trying it for the (kind of) first time in September. I say "kind of" because my mom and I ate there in 1990 with one of her co-workers when I tagged along on a work conference for them. Neither of us remember much from that meal, so we are both treating it as new. I'm interested to hear recommendations of what to try, and what to stay away from (and why).

 

[Jgeauxmo]

We went in February and loved it! I was nervous about the reviews as well. This is one of only a few ADRs we are repeating in November. My dh had the pork dish with the plantains and I had a beef dish. We asked the waitress for recommendations and both were wonderful!

 

[loves to dive]

Keep in mind a review is just one person's opinion, it's not right or wrong just how they felt. Having said that, we used to eat there every trip. The service was always kind of slow and hit and miss and yes, the tables are very close together but the food was o.k. When my son was little he loved sitting by the rail and seeing how many people he could get wave at him on the boats. The atmosphere is great. The last few times we ate there, we noticed the service seemed to be getting worse and the food was hit and miss. We actually skipped it our last trip in March and ate La Hacienda instead. As others have said the food is closer to real Mexican food than Tex Mex so not everyone is going to like it, I've lived in the southwest and my son was engaged to a Hispanic girl for awhile and ate at her house all the time so both of us are used to the more authentic food so that wasn't an issue for us. I think you should try everything once and form your own opinion so go for it and enjoy.

 

[Shanti]

I was excited about trying this for our upcoming December trip. We have a reservation in the evening and are on the dinning plan. I have read some negative reviews since booking, one of which is a very reliable source. Anyone have any good or bad experiences here, food wise. Seriously thinking about finding another venue.

Anyone have any thought on a new Epcot location to try? We tried Spice Road last year and absolutely loved it. Trying to make our trip this year, more about dinning in Epcot. Thanks for any thoughts or advice.

We liked San Angel Inn and are returning there during our trip next week. ALL restaurants get some negative reviews. Don't let a stranger's opinion keep you from trying something new.

 

[travelbug]

I'm interested to hear recommendations of what to try, and what to stay away from (and why).

My favorites are the Enchiladas Verdes de Pollo and the Pollo A Las Rajas. Yum!

 

[ChimCher-ee]

I'm going on Tues with my mom (who lived in Mexico for 10 years) - - the first time for both of us. While the food is important, of course, we're really looking forward to eating next to that volcano! We can't wait for the whole experience, and food is just one part of it.