San Angel vs Coral Reef vs Le Cel?

[Tigerlilypad]

Okay, need help in deciding one last ADR. We have eaten at San Angel twice before and LOVE the ambience and love the food. Struggling with whether to keep with tradition or branch out Have never tried Coral Reef or Le Celier. Travel dates 18 - 25 SEP, two adults, DDP. Thanks!

 

[Brook1099]

LeCellier is my familys favorite, love the filet w/ mushroom risotto, pretzel bread and cheddar soup.


We are trying Coral Reef for the first time this year (lunch) because I want to try the lobster ravioi.This restaraunt always seems to have mixed reviews but giving it a try.

San Angel Inn my DH will not eat any kind of mexican authentic or not. So we have never been.

have a great trip I am sure it won't go wrong w/ either choices.

 

[Pakey]

We hate San Angel (only 1 of 2 places at WDW we will not return to) so I'm probably not the best at giving comparisons.

I would say that we prefer Coral Reef over Le Cellier (eaten at both multiple times). Both of these places are very noisy. Le Cellier tables are close together because it's a small restaurant and the tables for two are close enough to the table next to it that you can easily converse with the neighboring couple. Coral Reef offers a bit more space between tables but the noise level can be loud enough that you have to shout to hear one another. We have found the service to be better and friendlier at Le Cellier.

Le Cellier portions are bigger, the meals are heartier. Coral Reef, especially appetizers, have much smaller portions. We like the fish tank and cool dark underwater theme at Coral Reef plus my husband and I both prefer to eat fish over red meat. The meals are lighter, something else we prefer. And if you hit a time at Coral Reef where it's not crazy noisy, it can be a very nice meal.

 

[JoePa4Ever]

If you really love San Angel, then I would recommend you keep it. Both Coral Reef & Le Cellier are good, but you may find them to be a disappointment and end up wishing you had went to San Angel. I would be upset with myself if I gave up a favorite restaurant of mine to try something new and felt that it wasn't as good as my favorite restaurant I had given up.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

Never been to Coral Reef, but everyone in my family loves Le Cellier.

 

[Pugmalion1]

Coral Reef, easily. Even when the clientele isn't as conducive to a peaceful eating environment as they could be, the food is still excellent. I've never had a bad meal at Coral Reef and I've been there for lunch and dinner both several times. It's also evil fun to eat fish while fish watch you.

I like Le Cellier, but I don't think it's good enough to have to struggle as much as you have to in order to get a good ADR.

If you're looking for something new, I think Coral Reef may be a happy medium. You still get a fun atmosphere, and you get better food than San Angel.

 

[kstinw19]

We are also big fans of San Angel, despite most of the reviews on here. The food is decent, not great, but we love to feel like it's nighttime and love to watch the boats go by.

We also liked Coral Reef. The food was pretty good and the tank is very cool to look at. We really enjoyed it.

After reading so many great reviews on here about Le Cellier, my dh and I decided to try it. We had a pretty late reservation so I don't know if that is what contributed to our opinion, but we thought it was SO overrated. The pretzel bread was the only thing we liked. We thought that their famous cheddar cheese soup was oily and gross, and the steaks were soooo fatty. Combine that with the rude waiter and the drunk girl vomiting in the bathroom and we couldn't get out of there fast enough!

I would stick with what you like. Or possibly try Coral Reef. IMO skip Le Cellier...you can get the same meal at your local steakhouse for a lot less money.

 

[catne]

like all three of these places. You may have more trouble getting reservations at Le Cellier & Coral Reef, especially since people will be booking in anticipation of free dining. Both Le Cell & Coral Reef book up fast - small restaurants & very popular. Crowded and noisy at both, though - tables are very close together. San Angel was much more relaxing when we went there last September...not nearly as crowded or noisy, even considering the shopping area is right there.

 

[Huff]

San Angel all the way! I know it gets mixed reviews here but we love it and make it one of our must do's. The ambience is nice and filet is excellent.

Le Celliar has very good food but ambience is just ok, nothing fancy.

Coral Reef has decent ambience with the large aquarium to view while dining. Food is good but not great.

For our upcoming trip we'll be there 7 days and plan to eat at all three restaurants but if I had to pick only one I'd pick San Angel.

 

[goofy4prez]

San Angel all the way! I know it gets mixed reviews here but we love it and make it one of our must do's. The ambience is nice and filet is excellent.

Le Celliar has very good food but ambience is just ok, nothing fancy.

Coral Reef has decent ambience with the large aquarium to view while dining. Food is good but not great.

For our upcoming trip we'll be there 7 days and plan to eat at all three restaurants but if I had to pick only one I'd pick San Angel.

I have to agree with you here. The only thing I would change with my own personal experience is the food at Le'Cellier is "good" instead of very good. As a pp stated, it is not worth my time to fight like mad to get an ADR. In my opinion, there are other 1ts restaurants serving a better steak.

 

[MickeyDisneyFan]

i you can get le celier def book it.It took us 4 trips in one year (we were on the ddp for each trip) to book le celier...4 seven day trips and we got lucky on our Sept trip and I know now why it took us 4x's before we were able to get a ressie

 

[jacksmom]

we enjoy SAI, esp the atmosphere and drinks! But, think the food is lots better at Coral Reef! The food at LeCellier is very good, but dislike how close the seating is! we always feel like we are eating with strangers!

 

[Toluca Legs TurkeyCo]

Le Cellier hands down. #5 restaurant in Orlando (tripadvisor).

 

[honeydiane1953]

Le Cellier hands down!!!!!

 

[Tigerlilypad]

Thank you all for your input!! Am processing all the info now

 

[tarheelmjfan]

Le Cellier hands down. #5 restaurant in Orlando (tripadvisor).

That's pretty funny. Le Cellier isn't even one of the top 5 restaurants at WDW, much less all of Orlando. You've got to wonder how they come up with those rankings. Obviously, the people voting have never eaten at some of the better restaurants in Orlando.

No offense to TLTC or those who love LC, but I couldn't help but laugh at that one.

 

[chocovrdmicears]

We have eaten at all 3 several times.

San Angel: Atmosphere is wonderful. It is my favorite place in WS. Food is good to very good (depending on what you order). I had red snapper over a bed of spicy artichoke hearts and it was fabulous. DH had the chicken mole and he thought it was good. Our kids love it.
Coral Reef: This is one of our families favorites. The food has always been excellent. I had the best steak there (even better than LeCellier) and I adore the creamy lobster soup. Dh would eat the Mahi-Mahi with the cashew-jasmine rice 7 days a week. Our kids love it.
LeCellier: Atmosphere is 'meh'. Service is excellent. The mushroom filet with risotto is excellent but definately not a 'light' meal. We also love the cheddar cheese soup. Our kids like it but don't love it.

 

[MSSANDRA]

We have also done all three more than once.

We rank them in this order:

Coral Reef
Le Cellier
San Angel

Food was good at San Angel but service was just ok,ver rushed. Food was pretty good at Le Cellier and service was great. Food and Service were both GREAT our last trip to Coral Reef. We did have a bad experence once there but the more recent trip more than made up for it.

 

[hannaconda]

To me Coral Reef is an over priced apple bees

 

[sunny04]

We have had good experiences at all 3 places, but you need to be prepared for what each place is.

San Angel Inn does not serve what a lot of places in the US are familiar with as mexican, so be aware that depending on the area you live in, it may not be what you expect. For us (from middle TN) it was not what we are used to, but we still enjoyed it. The atmosphere is really awesome.

Coral Reef tends to be a hit or miss if you read dining reviews. A lot of people say it's all about the atmosphere, but we had really great food, as do a lot of others. It is a great place to go to at least once, but we will probably go back sometime again.

LeCellier is my husband's favorite, but I have never been blown away by it. I'm not a big eater, so it's hard for me to find anything on their menu that appeals to me. On the other hand, DH loves going there and getting their steaks. Just realize that a little of the excitement about this place is just being able to get in! Then, for some it's just another restaurant, and for others it's the most wonderful restaurant ever.

So bottom line, be prepared for each one, and choose the one that is the most appealing to you. I don't think you can go wrong with any of them if it's truly the experience you want.