So Foodies...How is quality now at WDW?

[shovan]

I have noticed the standardization of the menus, and a drop in quality at some of our favorites. The quality of service & the food at Yachtsman in particular was very disappointing. We did have an excellent high quality meal and outstanding service at Jiko. We were also pleased with the food quality at Flying Fish but the service was somewhat lacking.

We had always been pleased with the quality of dining in the resorts, but sadly this too seems to be on a downswing.

 

[QueueCT]

Quick note to PP, V&A is not on the dining plan

 

[wendy46001]

Ok, everybody's whining, but no one's making any sense.
What are we all disappointed in?
What has changed that you do'n't like?
Do we all want every restaurant to be the same and offer the same food? Does everyone want fried food and fries all the time?

Enquiring minds want to know.

I dont think its whining...i think its more disappointment...
Let me say I have to go to lots of business dinners around the area (those drug reps love to throw a dinner party)…so I have to admit I visit these establishments a lot more then the average tourist

Disappointment In what you ask...where do i start...

Cali grill and the BBQ sauce filet...why they moved away from the glaze and now serve a steak in a puddle of bottled BBQ sauce (oh that glaze was good)...i expect a bottle sauce at Steak n Ale (which is why i dont eat there)...but i expect something fresh at the cali grill
Artist point...poor salmon...it used to be the best think on property...and the bambi egg rolls (i know not the name)...over done and dry..plus you get fewer...
Boma...they once had two or three different types of carved meats...now MIA...plus buffet cost more
I can handle things showing up smaller (Cheese soup, that is smaller then my espresso for food and wine) but don’t charge me more for it….

and then there are the little things that just disappear from the menu...

while change is good …I’m all for updating options...nothing is replacing the quality of what has gone..that is saying down turn …the old menu in France…yes it was good…but what replaced it? More chicken dishes with the same sauce as the steak??

I dont want everything the same...i want everything different...If I’m in morocco i want to eat Moroccan (dont get me started on what they did to the lamb)...but if I’m at the concourse steak house you better be serving me a quality filet and I don’t want to be looking at the menu from the yachtsman

As for fried...give me good fish n chips any day...Raglan Road has a scallop forest that is out of this world …but if in the future the menu is reduced to chicken fingers then that is disappointment

Maybe it looks like a rant in the end…but slipping is how I like to describe it…will we still eat there…yes…can we find something to eat.…normally… we make the best out of things…but will we rave about it…No…we will recommend places at the Swan/Dolphin or off property

 

[MermaidsMom]

Is it possible that the sudden "drop in quality" since the dining plan started is more about the fact that the people on ithe DDP are not actually hungry when they sit down to eat anymore? When you are not hungry food does not taste good no matter how it is prepared. Everyone who is on that plan says there is too much food available with it and they are "stuffed". We have never been on the food plan and truly enjoy our meals when we sit down to eat them and they have been very good.

 

[bluwater]

In my case, I have never used the Dining Plan. I've sat down hungry. I've enjoyed the non-prepared foods more than the prepared....i.e. basic sliced salads, olives, cheeses, etc. Once we move to the prepared entree, that's where things go south.

 

[Ned Land]

MermaidsMom,

I think you hit the nail on the head.

We have been going every year for 10 years. I don't think the food has changed much over the years. The counter service places serve average theme park food (except for pizza which is a disgrace!). A buffet is a buffet - never a gourmet meal and usually mediocre at best. Most of the table service places serve pretty good food. A couple of these places serve mostly very good food. Of course every place is capable of screwing up a dish or having a bad night with quality or service. I crack up when people label a restaurant after only one visit. Additionally, chefs change so quick at the good spots that quality and service can be inconsistent. Right now, Disney is still able to attract big name culinary talent. With this said, I believe that they are capable of providing a very high quality meal at the top sit down restaurants. Being capable does not mean perfection at each and every meal.

Do I still occasionally eat at buffets even though I think the food at buffets is mostly bad? Yes. Why? Because it is quick, we generally enjoy the atmosphere, and the food quality is similar to the food your relatives might bring to your house for a holiday pot luck. If you don’t like Aunt Martha’s casserole, try Grandma Rose’s chicken dish. It is quick and you can pick through what looks like it may be fresh.

I think the biggest influencing factor on the opinions of people reviewing restaurants is their hunger level. If you are starving, everything tastes good - even Disney pizza!

You can quickly burn a ton of calories by walking around the parks in the hot sun. This can really increase your appetite. However, on the flip side, how many people are shoveling in appetizers and desserts when they normally would not just to get their money’s worth with the dining plan?

Bottom line: Eat when you are really hungry, avoid super fancy stuff, study the menus ahead of time, etc.

 

[wendy46001]

MermaidsMom,

I think you hit the nail on the head.

We have been going every year for 10 years. I don't think the food has changed much over the years. The counter service places serve average theme park food (except for pizza which is a disgrace!). A buffet is a buffet - never a gourmet meal and usually mediocre at best. Most of the table service places serve pretty good food. A couple of these places serve mostly very good food. Of course every place is capable of screwing up a dish or having a bad night with quality or service. I crack up when people label a restaurant after only one visit. Additionally, chefs change so quick at the good spots that quality and service can be inconsistent. Right now, Disney is still able to attract big name culinary talent. With this said, I believe that they are capable of providing a very high quality meal at the top sit down restaurants. Being capable does not mean perfection at each and every meal.

Do I still occasionally eat at buffets even though I think the food at buffets is mostly bad? Yes. Why? Because it is quick, we generally enjoy the atmosphere, and the food quality is similar to the food your relatives might bring to your house for a holiday pot luck. If you don’t like Aunt Martha’s casserole, try Grandma Rose’s chicken dish. It is quick and you can pick through what looks like it may be fresh.

I think the biggest influencing factor on the opinions of people reviewing restaurants is their hunger level. If you are starving, everything tastes good - even Disney pizza!

You can quickly burn a ton of calories by walking around the parks in the hot sun. This can really increase your appetite. However, on the flip side, how many people are shoveling in appetizers and desserts when they normally would not just to get their money’s worth with the dining plan?

Bottom line: Eat when you are really hungry, avoid super fancy stuff, study the menus ahead of time, etc.

Going to have to disagree...
I've never been on the dining plan (never will)...I make ADR for when i eat dinner (hungry)...and we normally arent spending the day walking the parks...we go just wanting to enjoy dinner...maybe have a glass of wine and enjoy the atmosphere...

 

[shovan]

Going to have to disagree...
I've never been on the dining plan (never will)...I make ADR for when i eat dinner (hungry)...and we normally arent spending the day walking the parks...we go just wanting to enjoy dinner...maybe have a glass of wine and enjoy the atmosphere...

I have to agree with wendy on this & disagree with MermaidMom & Ned Land.

We have been visiting WDW since the 70's, we had a dining add-on one time in the early '80's & have never done that since! Probably won't ever do it again. So the presumption that we are just too full to enjoy a good meal really doesn't apply. When we do WDW, we usually have a late breakfast, skip lunch & have a nice dinner scheduled. We go back to the room to rest & shower before dinner & if I'm spending good money, I expect to get a good meal! I realize that dining in WDW is going to be more expensive than the typical nice rest. at home. But just because I'm on vacation doesn't mean I should expect less & pay more!

Now, I'm not miserable or disgusted with the dining at WDW. We overall enjoy it & will continue to go & DINE. But we have seen changes & they are not good ones.

 

[gina2000]

I'll describe the meal that broke the proverbial camel's back for us.

We decided to eat at Chef de France. We were not on the dining plan. Our usual MO is to have a pastry type breakfast and a nice dinner. We had never eaten at Chefs before so it may have been an off night or it may not have been. But here's what we ate.

DH ordered escargot. He loves them and has eaten them wherever he can, whenever he can. They looked great. He chewed and chewed and chewed. And chewed some more. He told me that they were like chewing rubber tires. Okay, no biggie. One miss.

I ordered the charcuterie platter. Charcuterie should be garlicy, spicy and zesty. The pates were bland but edible. I didn't mind. I could live with it. The sliced meats were bologna type quality. No taste at all. NOT charcuterie quality at all.

DS had the lobster bisque. Fishy. Edible. Okay.

Now onto the entrees. DH ordered the tenderloin. It was the size of a golf ball. It was also $29. My husband just looked at it. He hadn't eaten since the morning and he was not pleased. He had been walking all day and was hungry. It didn't fill him up. And the quality was so-so.

DS and I ordered the seared tuna. The tuna itself was beautiful and was probably 3 times the size of the beef. The sauce (on the side-their choice, not ours) was insipid and bland. The french fries were brown, cold, oily and limp. They were truly disgusting. The vegetable was fine.

DH and I ordered creme brulee for dessert. Nice creme brulee though I could have done without the cinnamon dusting. DS order sorbet which was lovely.

Our bill including tip was $220. We had one small carafe of wine and 2 sodas.

Now, had we been on the DDP, the bill, max, would have been $120 if we hadn't eaten another thing that day and wasted the cs and snack. Quite frankly, the meal was worth closer to $120 than $220.

My husband took one look at the bill and asked me to cancel the remainder of our ressies for the trip. We ate offsite.

In hindsight, should we ever decide to eat at WDW again, we would do the DDP. The quality of the food reflects the price of the DDP, not the price of an OOP tab. We realize that food inside the park is marked up purely based on location, location, location but for the money spent on this meal verses the quality received, we should have been sitting on top of the Eiffel tower.

 

[hmp2z]

We definitely go hungry, and we've never, ever done the DDP. As far as how I know it's the DDP causing standardization & reduction in portions, I've spoken to upper-level restaurant management at WDW. That's how I know.

I've also made some personal observations, before and after the DDP and, in particular, free dining were implemented. But the reason I state it so positively is that I was explicitly told so, by several people whose job it is to know these things.

Cheers!
Heather W

 

[shovan]

Heather, Please give us the details on this "inside" info! Is it just the basic cost vs profit line or something else? Would love to know what upper management is thinking!

 

[chunkygal]

We too were very dissapointed by the chefs du paris. I think the chefs du paris would be disapointed. I guess its all about the experience and atmosphere. We have had better "french" food in las vegas at the paris hotel and on the celebrity cruise line. My steak has a brown gravy dressing that could have been right out of a bottle. the potatoes were like the boxed version. the bill close to 300 for 5. we also cancelled the rest of our ressies and cooked in the room (yeah DVC) for the rest of the vacation.

 

[MJS]

Thanks for all of the responses!

 

[jarrdisney]

We definitely go hungry, and we've never, ever done the DDP. As far as how I know it's the DDP causing standardization & reduction in portions, I've spoken to upper-level restaurant management at WDW. That's how I know.

I've also made some personal observations, before and after the DDP and, in particular, free dining were implemented. But the reason I state it so positively is that I was explicitly told so, by several people whose job it is to know these things.

Cheers!
Heather W

Ditto and Ditto. It doesn't take much to spark up a convo with a server or manager. I know a couple chefs/managers/servers that all have the same thing to say. On the flip side of the coin they are trying to hardest (at signature restaurants) to deliver an inspired and quality product. There have been a lot of changes over the past couple of months that have been for the better. FF has a new head chef as does CA Grill. Our meals easter week were suprisingly great. I believe FF is the most consistent restaurant on disney property. Our meal at Artist Pointe was great as well. We still find our best meals to be off property, but I'm hesitantly optimistic that quality will find it's way back.

 

[bluwater]

The quality of the food reflects the price of the DDP, not the price of an OOP tab. .

I think that sums up my feelings on it.


For some people, spending quite a bit on food while on vacation is normal and the expectation around quality might be flexible.

I think the Disney food standard will really stand out (poorly) for those of us from large , "Foodie" cities like NYC, Chicago, Philadelphia....the prices on the WDW menu seem normal, but the lack of quality, taste and imagination is a disappointment.

 

[write2caro]

I don't often visit the restaurant board, but I'm so surprised at how a discussion about food can get contentious at times! SAHM/WOHM I expect that, but food??? I have been fortunate enough to eat at some of the best restaurants in the world - love a fantastic meal and experience. Is it possible here that we lose sight of the fact that this is a THEME PARK? For a theme park, I think the food at WDW is just fine. Perhaps I haven't been often enough to note a decline, but we have generally enjoyed our meals at WDW and are not complaining. We check out the menus ahead of time, read some reviews on DIS and pick accordingly. I just have to say that I am not expecting The Inn at Little Washington or Alain Ducasse when I sit down at Bistro de Paris!! JMHO!

 

[TheRustyScupper]

1) Unfortunately, WDW is giving the public EXACTLY what it wants
. . . gobs and gobs and gobs of food
. . . medium quality
. . . more standardized plating instead of uniqueness

2) I personally believe the average person wants to pig-out at the trough
3) They don't care too much about excellence, as long as it takes good
4) And, that is what they are getting.
5) Most restaurants can't afford to give excellence and uniqueness in food.
6) The reimbursement from DDP doesn't allow it.
7) After all, restaurant managers have to watch the budget, too.

 

[gina2000]

I don't often visit the restaurant board, but I'm so surprised at how a discussion about food can get contentious at times! SAHM/WOHM I expect that, but food??? I have been fortunate enough to eat at some of the best restaurants in the world - love a fantastic meal and experience. Is it possible here that we lose sight of the fact that this is a THEME PARK? For a theme park, I think the food at WDW is just fine. Perhaps I haven't been often enough to note a decline, but we have generally enjoyed our meals at WDW and are not complaining. We check out the menus ahead of time, read some reviews on DIS and pick accordingly. I just have to say that I am not expecting The Inn at Little Washington or Alain Ducasse when I sit down at Bistro de Paris!! JMHO!

Neither am I. And I'm also not paying that sort of money for my meal. But I am paying substantially more than I would pay at a Bennegins and I'm getting Bennegins quality food. I know location, location, location means a premium on food but we're talking much more than a standard 20% premium for location.

 

[bluwater]

The "it's a theme park" argument would be more valid if WDW was serving food like a theme park. But, when you have menus that include escargot, lobster, wild boar, etc, then that tells me that Disney is trying to "dress up" like a specialty venue (in those cases). I just say, if you're going to offer me those items, at prices similar to what I pay at my local Philadelphia restaurants, then give me what the menu tells me I'll get.

I'd be fine if Disney said "Hey, we're a theme park!!.....enjoy our burgers, chicken, fries, buffets, etc". I'd be fine with that. I wouldn't expect anything more and I'd dine off-site if I wanted anything finer.

Maybe the solution would be for Disney to take some of the supposedly better places OFF of the dining plan and let us pay OOP for better food, a la Victoria and Albert's.

Personally, I don't want gobs and gobs of food. If people want that, they can go to buffets.

I'm not at all surprised that the dining options at WDW get so much attention from this forum. WDW is a vacation destination. In many cases, guests do not have transportation to dine off site, Disney really pushes for us to dine on-site, so why wouldn't we place a great deal of focus on attention on what we eat on vacation?

In many cases, WDW is like an island. You are stuck with whatever is there. Frankly, the thought of going someplace where I HAVE to eat theme park food for more than 4 days is a nightmare and is not a vacation I would look forward to!!

 

[jarrdisney]

I don't often visit the restaurant board, but I'm so surprised at how a discussion about food can get contentious at times! SAHM/WOHM I expect that, but food??? I have been fortunate enough to eat at some of the best restaurants in the world - love a fantastic meal and experience. Is it possible here that we lose sight of the fact that this is a THEME PARK? For a theme park, I think the food at WDW is just fine. Perhaps I haven't been often enough to note a decline, but we have generally enjoyed our meals at WDW and are not complaining. We check out the menus ahead of time, read some reviews on DIS and pick accordingly. I just have to say that I am not expecting The Inn at Little Washington or Alain Ducasse when I sit down at Bistro de Paris!! JMHO!

IMO V&A's rivals The Inn at little Washington. Furthermore most themeparks I know of don't serve Foie Gras at 3 of their restaurants.