So sad abt Le Cellier:((((

[DisneyKevin]

Boy Kevin- pretty sarcastic for a mod - doesn't that go against the TOS?

But to answer your post, yes, I have eaten at more than one venue that had a (sometimes prix fixe) price of over $160 a head, which was approximately the cost of our meal for 3 people. And comparitively the meal was lackluster, overreaching, and underwhelming.

Unfortunately some people mistake being a foodie with being a snob. A very "mundane" (to quote another poster) menu can be have well thought out and balanced dishes, perfectly prepared, excellently presented, served by knowlegeable and attentive staff. Rarely do we find a place that has all of that, with an ability to satisfy me (a vegetarian), my husband (omnivore), and, importantly, my son ( a 6 year old).

Some chefs equate good real estate, trendy food pairings and unique china with a good meal - it just isn't, though plenty of the snobs will be fooled. Some of my other top 10 meals were at a roadside clam shack, as well as The French Laundry. Price and venue are not a requirement.

And please don't take this so personally, I don't mind debating you, but if all you are going to do is rolleyes and be sarcastic there is no point.

I apologize if you thought I was being sarcastic. I wasnt. It was an attempt at humor, maybe a failed attempt, but an attempt.

As an employee of this website, I am asked (by the owner) to review Disney restaurants. I do this every week for the DIS Unplugged podcast.

I am asked to base my review on what the "average" traveler might experience and report on that. I believe this is a different experience than that of the "professional" reviewer. I try to do nothing to alter or impact the experience.

I think if you go back and re-read my review, I described the entrees as "fair to good with nothing bad to note" and I stand by that. I also said that my $29.00 entree was good but for that price should be great. I stand by that as well.

I had a much bigger problem with the appetizers. One soup was luke warm when it should have been hot, one soup was inedible (and there have been posts that this happened the day after as well), one was a spicy sausge cooked hard and one has had the portion size dropped to a such ridiculous point that the menu description is no longer accurate.

I feel I can judge this accurately as I eat in Le Cellier regularly and have for years, which was stated in the review. I even let you know that I was there on one of the busiest nights of the year.

There have been threads on this board and others about people who feel that there vacations will be "ruined" if they dont get an ADR at Le Cellier. My point, which again was stated in the review is that I dont believe this restaurant deserves this reputation. It's an ok restauarant with an overblown reputation.

The review was based on one experience but it was difficult to keep the information that things have changed at Le Cellier out of the review.

You state that your meal was phenomenal, fantastic and incredible. Your review might be shorter than mine, but it was a review none the less and what is a review but one's opinion? You also dont mention how many visits your basing your review on. Could you have had the exception to the rule?

I guess after re-reading my review I am uncertain as what conclusions you disagree with. Do you feel that a "fair to good" is not good enough?

And again....I apologize for coming across as sarcastic. Humor doesnt always translate to the written word.

Kevin

 

[robinb]

well, you have some company in the "not a big fan" club (& this from repeated visits........we thought perhaps we were missing something )
service has always been good to very good , but the food is too mundane and uninspired for our tastes. we agree, it is worthy of a visit (never found the food actually bad, just boring), but certainly not even close to being one of the best restaurants on property.

opinions are just that........& thank goodness we have different ones, it leaves more ADRs for restaurants each of us does enjoy.

I agree with everything you have said and I have been to Le Cellier a number of times. Like you, I went back again and again hoping that maybe I was missing something. Nope. For me, mundane and uninspired sums it up. I LOVE steak and order it fairly often. Yet, the only fabulous, tail waggin' steak I have had at WDW was at Shula's. And yes, I have had steak at Jiko's, California Grill and YSH.

 

[maxiesmom]

If you let some bad reviews keep you from making a reservation, you won't be able to eat anywhere at Disney. Or sleep anywhere, either.

Honestly, every place on Disney property gets bad reviews. People are more prone to post bad reviews than good ones too, so it just seems like there are more people unhappy than happy. If you really want to go to Le Ceiller, then go. You will most likely have a great time!

PS--We ate at Le Ceiller in October, and it was yummy!

 

[LSchrow]

...........A very "mundane" (to quote another poster) menu can be have well thought out and balanced dishes, perfectly prepared, excellently presented, served by knowlegeable and attentive staff.

since you were referring to my post, i just wanted to clarify that i said the food was "mundane", not the menu. (we prefer more creativity in our food, rather than the menu. ).

btw, on a recent visit to a restaurant, complete with attentive staff (we had 3 waiters dedicated to our party of four), fine china, linens & silver, stunning water views, food beautifully prepared and presented, still fell flat when it came to taste. yet a small neighborhood italian restaurant visited on a whim, had amazing food, where we savored each mouthful. for us, the atmosphere, staff, presention should simply form a backdrop for superior food, and while nice, not the main reason we visit a restaurant.

& simply because we don't care for LC doesn't mean we don't enjoy good food, we just don't have the same tastes as you. as others have said, ....why does it matter what kevin, or anyone else, thinks if you enjoy it?

btw, robin ~ where is shulas? sounds delicious

 

[hipchickie]

I apologize if you thought I was being sarcastic. I wasnt. It was an attempt at humor, maybe a failed attempt, but an attempt.
I am asked to base my review on what the "average" traveler might experience and report on that. I believe this is a different experience than that of the "professional" reviewer. I try to do nothing to alter or impact the experience.
.....
You state that your meal was phenomenal, fantastic and incredible. Your review might be shorter than mine, but it was a review none the less and what is a review but one's opinion? You also dont mention how many visits your basing your review on. Could you have had the exception to the rule?

I guess after re-reading my review I am uncertain as what conclusions you disagree with. Do you feel that a "fair to good" is not good enough?

Kevin

I am sorry if I took your post the wrong way, but it did sound sacastic

Since I have a way of getting too wordy, here is problem I had with the review:
I don't think it was based on an "average" guest experience since it was one visit, on what is probably one of the busiest days of the year for the restaurant. I actually don't have any problem with it being a bad review, but it did sound tainted by existing preconceptions especially concerning a reputation you felt was undeserved. Celebrity backlash you could say.

While you may feel this review is different than a "professional reviewer", I don't agree - people are giving a lot of creedence to your word (see this thread title for example ) As such, your word is much more powerful than a lowly anonymous poster like me

LShrow, I didn't mention you by name because it wasn't meant as an attack on you or your taste, just as an example of a poster that agreed with Kevin. I have to admit though, I am not seeing the distinction between mundane food vs. mundane menu.

 

[MissionMouse]

Actually the DIS Roundtable are frequent guest of Le Cellier. Their comments are based upon years dining there and their tradition of dining on this particular night. They identify portion sizes getting smaller with specific dishes and inconsistency in quality (i.e., temperture, etc). Service was adequate. Dishes adequate, not great, not bad, but for the price of $28 an entree they should be great-fantastic. Their review identifies shortcomings that do not differ from our experiences. Consistency through each day a restaurant operates is key to any restaurant that wants to be claimed as being great.

 

[Disney Ella]

I agree with the review. Le Cellier is good, not great, and IMO, not deserving of the raves it gets.

 

[Stinkerbell317]

Well, now I am eager to see what I think after our lunch on 2/9. It has been one of my favs at WDW, so we'll see how it holds up under the new chef. The last time we ate there in June 07 we received wonderful food and service.

 

[LSchrow]

LShrow, I didn't mention you by name because it wasn't meant as an attack on you or your taste, just as an example of a poster that agreed with Kevin. I have to admit though, I am not seeing the distinction between mundane food vs. mundane menu.

LC's menu does have an interesting variety of dishes (with mouthwatering descriptives) listed, so not mundane.
however, the food itself (again, in our personal opinions only ) was not as creative ~ the steak was average at best, without distinctive flavoring (i.e., unusual or different), hence "mundane".

on a side note: i see you have only 15 days to go ~ hope you have a great trip with lots of "good eats"!

 

[robinb]

btw, robin ~ where is shulas? sounds delicious

It's at the Dolphin: http://www.donshula.com/locations.php?l=1&restid=10&ext=1 and http://www.allearsnet.com/menu/menu_ssh.htm. I don't recommend it for kids as there is no kids menu. However, kids under 12 can visit the Dolphin Club for 2 hours for free while their parents dine at Shula's. Be aware that it's probably double the price of Le Cellier and it does not take the DDP . But the steaks kick butt.

 

[disneytraveler]

I was there last month before Christmas and the meal was outstanding. I ordered the mushroom filet. The cheese soup was great to.

 

[hipchickie]

on a side note: i see you have only 15 days to go ~ hope you have a great trip with lots of "good eats"!

Thanks - I'M SO EXCITED!!!
We are trying a couple new ones this trip - Boma is the one I am most looking forward to

 

[DisneyKevin]

I am sorry if I took your post the wrong way, but it did sound sacastic

Since I have a way of getting too wordy, here is problem I had with the review:
I don't think it was based on an "average" guest experience since it was one visit, on what is probably one of the busiest days of the year for the restaurant. I actually don't have any problem with it being a bad review, but it did sound tainted by existing preconceptions especially concerning a reputation you felt was undeserved. Celebrity backlash you could say.

While you may feel this review is different than a "professional reviewer", I don't agree - people are giving a lot of creedence to your word (see this thread title for example ) As such, your word is much more powerful than a lowly anonymous poster like me

LShrow, I didn't mention you by name because it wasn't meant as an attack on you or your taste, just as an example of a poster that agreed with Kevin. I have to admit though, I am not seeing the distinction between mundane food vs. mundane menu.

You never did let me know....how many visits did you make to Le Cellier before you came to such a high opinion of the place?

 

[Goofymum]

I was there last June with my family for my mom's 50th birthday dinner. I had never been to Le Cellier before, however, my mom had been there and raved about how wonderful the food was and it was her wish to have dinner there for her 50th birthday.

I found the atmosphere to be quite charming and perfect for a nice romantic dinner. Things were going pretty well until our waiter became a bit of..well quite a jerk. He had quite the attitude. On one occasion when someone asked for a drink refill after the 5th time, he reminded us very bluntly that HE had other tables to attend to and we were not the only ones.

There were some problems with some steaks not being cooked to order. Mine was one of them, however after it came back and had stopped mooing it was quite delicious. I got my dessert (YUMMO!!) to go, after the waiter had ruined my mom's dinner and made her cry on her birthday everyone had pretty much had their fill of Le Cellier for the night. The manager attempted to bandaid the situation by offering us Fast Passes and since we were on the Dining Plan I'm sure the waiter still ended up with his nice big fat tip.

Overall, even with the awful service..I loved the atmosphere and the food was probably the best meal I had on the trip. I don't want to hold the whole restaurant responsible for one waiter being a jack ***. I'm planning to go back there and give it another whirl on my next trip. I just hope I don't get the same waiter!

 

[hipchickie]

You never did let me know....how many visits did you make to Le Cellier before you came to such a high opinion of the place?

did I miss that? I don't think you ever asked...
I have only been once, and as I have mentioned repeatedly, I don't mind giving my opinion of it as a random poster on a message board. But a reviewer with a platform, whether you consider yourself to be one or not, should base a review on something more substantial - several visits within a certain time period (generally within a couple weeks)

It is a tacit industry understanding that health inspectors and reviewers not show up on holidays either

 

[DisneyKevin]

I apologize if you thought I was being sarcastic. I wasnt. It was an attempt at humor, maybe a failed attempt, but an attempt.

As an employee of this website, I am asked (by the owner) to review Disney restaurants. I do this every week for the DIS Unplugged podcast.

I am asked to base my review on what the "average" traveler might experience and report on that. I believe this is a different experience than that of the "professional" reviewer. I try to do nothing to alter or impact the experience.

I think if you go back and re-read my review, I described the entrees as "fair to good with nothing bad to note" and I stand by that. I also said that my $29.00 entree was good but for that price should be great. I stand by that as well.

I had a much bigger problem with the appetizers. One soup was luke warm when it should have been hot, one soup was inedible (and there have been posts that this happened the day after as well), one was a spicy sausge cooked hard and one has had the portion size dropped to a such ridiculous point that the menu description is no longer accurate.

I feel I can judge this accurately as I eat in Le Cellier regularly and have for years, which was stated in the review. I even let you know that I was there on one of the busiest nights of the year.

There have been threads on this board and others about people who feel that there vacations will be "ruined" if they dont get an ADR at Le Cellier. My point, which again was stated in the review is that I dont believe this restaurant deserves this reputation. It's an ok restauarant with an overblown reputation.

The review was based on one experience but it was difficult to keep the information that things have changed at Le Cellier out of the review.

You state that your meal was phenomenal, fantastic and incredible. Your review might be shorter than mine, but it was a review none the less and what is a review but one's opinion? You also dont mention how many visits your basing your review on. Could you have had the exception to the rule?
I guess after re-reading my review I am uncertain as what conclusions you disagree with. Do you feel that a "fair to good" is not good enough?

And again....I apologize for coming across as sarcastic. Humor doesnt always translate to the written word.

Kevin

As I stated in my written review...this is a yearly tradition for us. We've had Christmas Eve dinner at Le Cellier for many years.

And from what others have written...the soup was inedible on following days as well and you still get two small marble sized pieces of mozzerella with the supposeed tomato stack. There is even a photo of it on another thread.

I'm not sure being a holiday had anything to do with the problems I have noted as they continue to happen.

 

[LindyN]

Actually the DIS Roundtable are frequent guest of Le Cellier. Their comments are based upon years dining there and their tradition of dining on this particular night. They identify portion sizes getting smaller with specific dishes and inconsistency in quality (i.e., temperture, etc). Service was adequate. Dishes adequate, not great, not bad, but for the price of $28 an entree they should be great-fantastic.

So above we had an OK entree in a park restaurant for $28, and I had a great entree for a dollar more at Jiko. That's one of the reasons why I'm not worried that I'm missing something at Le Cellier. I don't want to knock LC as it does have its fans. It will probably always be full too as it is a small restaurant with relatively decent food for a theme park. I've been a frequent disney visitor since 2002 and have never seen the place accept a walk up, except for lunch. Even when we were the once a year family (1998-early 2001) I was never able to book a reservation once we were at Disney, this was before I became an uber planner and had things booked months in advance. Always thought I was missing something, which is why I've tried lunch, which is the wrong meal to eat there. But how hard is it to make a salad dressing, or cook a piece of chicken so its not hard? I grill chicken all the time and mine tasted a lot better than what we got that day. I was very disappointed as I was all set to love LeCellier, but couldn't find anything to love about it. (The pretzel bread is the same stuff they serve at the Biergarten, which is fun and decent and cheaper.)

My scallops at Jiko last week were $29 and were great, as usual. There were four large large, sweet, and perfectly seared mollusks with just the right amount of brown edges on a slice of mealy pap with spicy tomato-onion chaka-laka sauce. The sweetness of the scallops along with the spiciness of the sauce that was soaked up by the Pap was just perfect and quite harmonious to the palate. (Had I not been driving a glass of wine would have been perfect.) The dish could have been a bit blah to look at but there was a bunch of watercress (I think!) and the red sauce gave the dish some interest. My son (age 13) ordered the beef shortrib after sampling some of the sauce (he said it sounded "weird" and our excellent server got some for him to try--and he ate it all) with sweet potato mash ($35) and while he polished it off and said it was really good, he gazed longingly at my scallops. We traded plates (and I picked at his fabulous potatoes) and he finished the rest of my meal which by then was half of the pap and one and a half scallops. My daughter--age 11--had a kids meal (Filet) which she really enjoyed. We arrived at 5:40pm and were seated immediately and left without being rushed out the door at 7:30pm. A nice leisurely meal in a beautifully decorated restaurant with fabulous service by three people for not much more than what I would have paid for the so-so steak at LeCellier. (I do not do the dining plan: I have an AP and the DDE card.) We also had the chicken flatbread with apples which rather than just being another flatbread it was quite interesting. Kids thought it sounded "weird" but they didn't have any problem having their 1/3 portion.

The meal I had at Jiko is the main reason why I don't want to pay similar money for "just OK" at Le Cellier. Disney is all about choices--and there really is something for everyone whether it be a restaurant or a resort. All restaurants are going to have an off night upon occasion. I've had three bad meals at disney, and two were at LC. I don't want to pay $150 for a dinner for my family that may not be "worth" $150 to me. I'll go to Jiko or Artist Pointif I'm going to part with that much money. Or I'll get a good CS meal somewhere. Nothing wrong with a good burger or flavorful sandwich. Heck, I had a good chicken taco at the Cantina during my trip too and they make some yummy salads to order at the beach club marketplace. And we really like Spoodles too; had the most tender steak there in a long time on the kebab, and I loved the rice pilaf. (We skipped the Harissa sauce--which is "weird".)

If you've booked LeCellier you will probably have a decent meal there--it most likely will not be bad. If you're on the dining plan you will be thankful that you're not paying out of pocket as there are better steaks and atmosphere to be found for similar money at Disney.

 

[DisneyKevin]

Hi LindyN,

I would agree with every word you have written. Well said.

Kevin