Short reviews of our 13 day Disney Dining Adventures - Complete!

[Mom2Elliot]

We just got back from a wonderful, fun trip to WDW. We stayed at BC, BLT and then the Poly and were OOP for all except the BLT part where we were on the DxDP. I haven't dared to get on the scales yet, but my clothes are definitely tighter. My DH gained 6 lbs! We took our three kids DS(12) who tried and liked things out of his usual comfort zone, DD(9) who is extremely picky, and DS(2) who developed a habit of screaming at a high pitch at every non character restaurant we went into. I hereby apologize to those of you sitting around us, although we desperately tried to keep him happy we gave up after a couple of restaurants and split up. If you were subjected to the high pitched screams, just know that it was even worse on the airplane ride home and I was so beside myself I let him color his face with my lipstick to distract him.

But I digress. I am going to break up our meals into sections and do short reviews. First up Character Meals!

Places I will review:

Character Meals:
Tusker House BF
Crystal Palace BF
CRT Dinner
'Ohana BF
1900 Park Fare Dinner
Chef Mickey's BF
Hollywood & Vine BF

Quick Service:
Contempo Cafe
Pecos Bills
El Pirata y el Perico
Sand Bar at the CR
Captain Cooks at the Poly
Kona Coffee Bar

In room Dining:
Bay Lake Towers at the CR
Polynesian

Table Service Meals:
Grand Floridian Cafe (dinner)
Le Cellier (lunch)
Liberty Tree Tavern (lunch)
Beaches 'n Cream (lunch)
Sci Fi Drive in (lunch)
Tutto Italia (dinner)
Rose and Crown (lunch)
'Ohana Dinner
Kona Cafe (dinner)
Citricos
The Wave (dinner)

 

[Mom2Elliot]

Character Meals – listed from Best to Worst:

Tusker House BF – As everyone says, an outstanding character buffet! From the trays of Krispy Kreme donuts to the yummy unusual fare, we all were stuffed to the gills happy. A definite do again experience!

Crystal Palace BF – seated immediately at 8:05 and were out at 9am. We enjoyed this buffet, lots of choice (including donut holes), and good character interaction! A very solid choice and a do again.

CRT Dinner – A zoo in here where the picture is taken with Cinderella and a 30 minute wait for our table. The crab cake appetizer was tasty. I had the salmon and it was very boring and the rice pilaf was unappetizing. The other adults had the roast beef and enjoyed it. Dessert was nothing to write home about. But the character interaction was great! We discovered that my DS(2) is a ladies man and loves the princesses. He left CRT with a face full of lipstick kisses. It was delightful and we would certainly return for the experience if we were on the deluxe plan again and had credits to spare.

‘Ohana Breakfast – A fun atmosphere and a pleasant change that the food is brought to the table family style. I enjoyed the food, but it didn’t suit my picky DD. She barely ate a thing (where were the donuts?!) I actually did this meal twice as we were staying at the Poly, once with everyone and then once just with my DS(2). I would do again if we were staying close by, but wouldn’t make a trip if we were not at a monorail resort.

1900 Park Fare Dinner – the only reason to come here is for the stepsisters. They really make it fun! The food however, ughh. I tried to eat the beef, very chewy. I did eat lots of mozzarella and tomato salad though. My DS(2) ate 2 bowls of the strawberry soup (I never tried it) but my oldest were disappointed that the softserve icecream machines were broken. One finally got fixed and the kids got their icecream. I had plenty of the little tartlets to make up for the other food I didn’t eat. Wouldn’t make a return trip here for dinner unless the kids begged, but I’d try breakfast.

Chef Mickey’s BF – the food is truly atrocious, but where else can you see the Fab 5 all together? It was a fun place, but one I will happily never return to for the food. My DD at least got some donut holes though !

And the bottom of our list:

Hollywood & Vine BF – this place was a ghost town at 8 am. Only one side of the buffet was open and I made all 3 of the kids get up and do the sing and dance bit with the characters because I felt so sorry for them that no one else was there. The food. Yeah, not worth mentioning at all. No donuts in sight. Would I return? Only if the rumor of Special Agent Oso coming is true and there is no other place to meet him. Apart from that, I’d rather eat at Chef Mickey’s than here!

(Tusker House - Krispy Kreme!)

(CRT ladies man)

('Ohana)

(1900 Park Fare)

(H&V- Notice there is no one else in sight!

Up Next: A review of the few counter service meals we ate.

 

[loveysbydesign]

Great reviews! Waiting for more ;o)

 

[Mom2Elliot]

Counter Service, in no particular order:

Contempo Café - hello, yummy marinated beef flatbread! So delish, I had it twice. Disappointed that Contempo has stopped doing the yummy cupcakes they had last year. Now they just have the boring yellow and chocolate ones everywhere gives out. I like that the Contempo Café is pretty well organized, although seating can be limited at peak times. I shared the table with some conventioneers. Would I return? Only if I was staying at CR or BLT.

Pecos Bills – My kids had cheeseburgers and fries. Regular WDW fare, nothing to write home about, but just fine.

El Pirata y el Perico - I only ended up here because my DS(2) did his high pitched screaming thing at Pecos Bills, so I had to leave. I saw that they offered a cheese quesadilla and that stopped the squaling and he wanted to eat it. It was a cheese quesadilla, again nothing to write home about. I had a chicken burrito out of hungry desperation, and you know what? It was pretty darn tasty! I really liked the cilantro rice and the chicken wasn’t rubbery. I’m not sure I would go out of my way to eat here again, but I wouldn’t turn my nose up at it either.

Sand Bar at the CR – This might be strange, but we had to come here for the chicken nuggets. There is something about the nuggets here that are super yummy. We all got a kids meal of 4 nuggets. Probably should have asked if they could do an adult size portion! One of the most humorous (not really) part our trip occurred here. As I was lifting a chicken nugget to my mouth, a bird swooped down and snatched it right out of my hand! As I yelped, my kids looked at each other and slowly placed their chicken nuggets back on their plates! Unfortunately, my DS(2) has now developed an overwhelming fear of birds. If you were in WDW last week, you probably heard his high pitched squeals anytime a bird got close. Not that there are a lot of birds in Disney, or anything. So would I go back? Yes, but only if I was taking my Chicken Nuggets inside to eat.

Captain Cooks at the Poly - there is something about this place that didn't make me want to eat there. It was dirty, smelled funny, and was super crowded. I did stoop to buying a bag of potato chips and a cupcake for my DD and DS(2). Unfortunately, there was nowhere to sit inside, so we headed out to the patio. What did we find outside? Birds. I'm sure you can imagine how well that went over with my DS. Would I ever return to Cpt Cooks again? Only in my worst bird nightmare.

Kona Cafe Coffee Bar - good decent coffee! Got basic breakfast things as well and we didn't have to eat with the birds. Would return if I was staying a the Poly again, which I won't be, but that is another story on the resort board. http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2526088 in case you are interested.

My DH frequented the bars at both BLT and the Poly frequently and brought me back plenty of alcoholic beverages (hey, I was dealing with high pitched squeals all day!) He particularly liked the bar at the CR because they let him bring me my drink in a glass instead of a plastic container So would we return? As often as possible.

Up Next: Reviews of our many table service meals

 

[Mom2Elliot]

The Most Surprising Disappointment: Grand Floridian Café

I told my DH that everyone called this place a “hidden gem!” and we were excited to try it. Unfortunately, my DS started his high pitched squealing in full force tonight and my DH and I took turns standing outside the restaurant while the other one ate. For an appetizer, I had the French Onion Soup. It was fine. My DH and DS had the shrimp appy for 2. DH said the shrimp was rubbery, but they ate it. For the main course, I had the salmon. It was very dry, overcooked, and tasteless. But you know what wasn’t tasteless? The vegetables. They were so overly salted they truly were inedible. Both DH and DS had the New York Strip and it was the same thing. They could eat the steak, but the sides were atrocious. The server was on the slow side of things, but nothing to complain about. She remarked that we were not very hungry, and I explained that it was much too salty. There was no response. If the salt had been a normal level, the meal would have been okay. For dessert, I had the chocolate fondue, which I enjoyed. DH and DS shared the sampler and they both thought there was nothing special about any of the desserts. DH said the key lime tart had very little key lime taste. Would we return? Definitely not. I’m sure it was just an off night for them, maybe a salt container got knocked over , but we wouldn’t spend our money here again.

 

[Mom2Elliot]

The second most disappointing meal: Le Cellier

We had never eaten here before, and were excited to try it before it turned into a 2 credit restaurant. Unfortunately, it wasn’t for us. We tried to take DS with us, but as soon as we walked into the restaurant the squealing began, so DH took him home and ordered room service. For app, DS and I shared the appetizer trio. The soup was very creamy, but wasn’t really appealing to either of us. The lump crab custard thing was just weird. I didn’t really like the vinaigrette on the tomato stack either. Most everything was left, not because it was bad, it just didn’t suit us. For main course, we both had the mushroom filet. It was good, but it wasn’t as amazing as some of the reviews around here suggest. Plus we had just had the best steak of our entire trip the night before, and Le Cellier just couldn’t compete. For dessert, my DS and I both ordered the S’mores. My DH later asked me why I would order such a thing, and I was embarrassed to tell him it was because I had seen a picture of it on a review on the Disboards. Needless to say, the picture was better than the S’more. It was very hard to eat and tasted strange. Overall, none of us were impressed with Le Cellier. It just didn’t float our boat. But at least I know that before we booked it for 2 credits!

 

[sly1971]

Character Meals – listed from Best to Worst:

Tusker House BF – As everyone says, an outstanding character buffet! From the trays of Krispy Kreme donuts to the yummy unusual fare, we all were stuffed to the gills happy. A definite do again experience!

Crystal Palace BF – seated immediately at 8:05 and were out at 9am. We enjoyed this buffet, lots of choice (including donut holes), and good character interaction! A very solid choice and a do again.

CRT Dinner – A zoo in here where the picture is taken with Cinderella and a 30 minute wait for our table. The crab cake appetizer was tasty. I had the salmon and it was very boring and the rice pilaf was unappetizing. The other adults had the roast beef and enjoyed it. Dessert was nothing to write home about. But the character interaction was great! We discovered that my DS(2) is a ladies man and loves the princesses. He left CRT with a face full of lipstick kisses. It was delightful and we would certainly return for the experience if we were on the deluxe plan again and had credits to spare.

‘Ohana Breakfast – A fun atmosphere and a pleasant change that the food is brought to the table family style. I enjoyed the food, but it didn’t suit my picky DD. She barely ate a thing (where were the donuts?!) I actually did this meal twice as we were staying at the Poly, once with everyone and then once just with my DS(2). I would do again if we were staying close by, but wouldn’t make a trip if we were not at a monorail resort.

1900 Park Fare Dinner – the only reason to come here is for the stepsisters. They really make it fun! The food however, ughh. I tried to eat the beef, very chewy. I did eat lots of mozzarella and tomato salad though. My DS(2) ate 2 bowls of the strawberry soup (I never tried it) but my oldest were disappointed that the softserve icecream machines were broken. One finally got fixed and the kids got their icecream. I had plenty of the little tartlets to make up for the other food I didn’t eat. Wouldn’t make a return trip here for dinner unless the kids begged, but I’d try breakfast.

Chef Mickey’s BF – the food is truly atrocious, but where else can you see the Fab 5 all together? It was a fun place, but one I will happily never return to for the food. My DD at least got some donut holes though !

And the bottom of our list:

Hollywood & Vine BF – this place was a ghost town at 8 am. Only one side of the buffet was open and I made all 3 of the kids get up and do the sing and dance bit with the characters because I felt so sorry for them that no one else was there. The food. Yeah, not worth mentioning at all. No donuts in sight. Would I return? Only if the rumor of Special Agent Oso coming is true and there is no other place to meet him. Apart from that, I’d rather eat at Chef Mickey’s than here!

Up Next: A review of the few counter service meals we ate.

So donuts are an important part of your food plan at Disney? Just asking.

 

[Mom2Elliot]

So donuts are an important part of your food plan at Disney? Just asking.

Ha ha, only for my DD(9) who is beyond picky. Just trying to inject a little humor here I'll try to avoid any donut humor from here on out. I can't promise the same about the birds. And just wait until you read about the ducks ;-)

 

[Mom2Elliot]

Great reviews! Waiting for more ;o)

Thanks!

 

[Mom2Elliot]

Up now: Solid Choices for a Lunch Time Burger, otherwise known as three meals I missed due to squealing kid

Liberty Tree Tavern - I got all the way to the table with DS(2) before the squealing started this time! I took him out to the liberty square market and fought the birds for a hot dog while the rest of the family enjoyed lunch at LTT. DH had the Tri-Corner roast beef sandwich and said it was a solid lunch choice. DS(12) had the cheeseburger and declared it good. I would have ordered the tavern fried cheese and the toffee cake, but alas, it wasn't meant to be. DH said we should go back for lunch next time we are in the MK.

Beaches 'n Cream - I'm sure you are not surprised to hear my 2yr old was not feeling on his best behavior here. The server was so great trying to get him to stop squealing (it didn't work, I left and she packed up my lunch and even my drink to take to go!) She was awesome! We all had burgers and fries and I had onion rings as well. Really good! We arrived at 11:45 and had just a 10 minute wait. The tables were crowded together and the place was small, but the food was very good. If I am ever in the BC area again, we would definitely go.

Sci Fi Drive In - yes, another lunch I missed out on due to DS(2) - we had room service instead DH and kids had the onion rings, burgers, shakes, and then sundaes for dessert. They all really liked it and my oldest has mentioned he definitely wants to return

Up Next: Our room service orders!

 

[mermaid764]

Enjoying your reviews!

Looking forward to more

 

[Mom2Elliot]

BLT Room Service:

I ordered the grilled chicken panini with brie, granny smith apples and honey mustard on focaccia with fries. Very tasty sandwich! Would order again.

Another time I tried the Contemporary Club Sandwich with grilled pasta salad. Sandwich was good, but I wish I had ordered the fries instead of the so so pasta salad.

Polynesian Room Service:

Love that the Poly in room dining is pretty much the Kona Cafe menu! My DH ordered from here when I took the older kids to 'Ohanas. DH ordered the coconut almond chicken breast which he said was delicious, but he especially enjoyed the salad that came with it. It is listed as Asian greens tossed with honey lime dressing, golden pineapple, strawberries and toasted almonds. Does sound pretty tasty! For dessert he had the white chocolate cheesecake, which was pretty much exactly as it sounded and nothing special, but decent.

DS(2) had kids stuff at each of these. Nothing to write about.

Up Next: Some favorite repeats

 

[Mom2Elliot]

Tutto Italia! We really enjoyed our meal here again. This was before my DS decided to start the noises, so we all got to enjoy the meal.

I had the buffalo mozzarella, tomatoes, basil and olive oil as my app. Delicious. Followed by the lasagna which I have every time. The noodles are so soft, but I really like the taste of this dish. For dessert I had the cheesecake, also good but not great.

DH had the prosciutto de parma ham and melon app which he enjoyed, but there was an awful lot of. He then had the steak offering which was topped with a basil pesto. He said it was very good.

DS(12) had the same parma ham and melon app and ate every bite. For his main course, he had the short ribs which he devoured. I haven't seen this listed on any of the menus, so if it is new, hopefully it will stick around! He chose an ice cream dish for dessert.

DD(9) started with a strawberry and feta salad, she picked the greens and left the rest. She did eat all of her cheese pizza and icecream dessert.

For my DS(2), they brought him a complimentary cheese pizza which I thought was great. We paid for his ice cream sundae.

Overall, we all enjoyed our meal and will definitely return.

 

[Mom2Elliot]

Enjoying your reviews!

Looking forward to more

Thanks for reading!

 

[ShelleyLynn]

Great reviews, thanks for taking the time to write them! I so understand about your 2 yo. My youngest daughter went through a brief similar behavior at that time.....very trying to deal with...especially on vacation!!

 

[Mom2Elliot]

Great reviews, thanks for taking the time to write them! I so understand about your 2 yo. My youngest daughter went through a brief similar behavior at that time.....very trying to deal with...especially on vacation!!

I'm not sure where the squealing came from - I suppose all of our trying to shush him the first time he did it resulted in a positive association for attention so he decided to keep doing it! He wasn't crying at all, just being ear deafeningly loud I am glad we are not the only ones to go through it!! He really is a little sweetie most of the time. Thanks for reading!!

 

[vinotinto]

Sorry to hear about having to take turns!

For his main course, he had the short ribs which he devoured. I haven't seen this listed on any of the menus, so if it is new, hopefully it will stick around! He chose an ice cream dish for dessert.

DD(9) started with a strawberry and feta salad, she picked the greens and left the rest. She did eat all of her cheese pizza and icecream dessert.

Hi! Those are indeed items not listed in many of the online menus. Was this lunch or dinner? Do you remember what other non-pasta dishes were on Tutto's menu (fish, beef, lamb, etc.)?

 

[Mom2Elliot]

Hi! Those are indeed items not listed in many of the online menus. Was this lunch or dinner? Do you remember what other non-pasta dishes were on Tutto's menu (fish, beef, lamb, etc.)?

This was the dinner menu. There was a red snapper fish dish, but I don't recall if there was lamb on the menu, sorry! The beef was the last thing listed and it didn't have the english translation underneath it (the only one like that) I had to ask what it was, so I wonder if they did that in preparation for free dining?

 

[kimgof]

Love reading your reviews. We also loved Tutto during our last visit and will certainly do it again our next visit. I may try Tusker House too this time....we love doughnuts also!

 

[Mom2Elliot]

Love reading your reviews. We also loved Tutto during our last visit and will certainly do it again our next visit. I may try Tusker House too this time....we love doughnuts also!

Thanks for reading! I will try and add more at nap time And definitely try to get a reservation at Tusker House, all of the food was great! We were so enthralled with it, we thought about trying it for lunch as well but couldn't fit it into our schedule.