Spice Road Table ...or... Chefs de France?

[TiggerTrigger]

I'm making some last minute changes and I'm trying to decide between the two.

For Spice Road...I've never experienced it, but we've eaten at Tangerine and Marrakesh, plus the brie appetizer looks really appealing. I just worry because I've read a number of reviews that talk about long waits and poor service.

For Chefs...I've eaten here...but it was 1988, so it would be like going to a whole new restaurant and there are some appealing items on the menu, like the salmon flatbread and the escargot.

Thoughts?

 

[loves to dive]

I like them both but would choose Spice Roads if I had to choose. It is mediterranean food so has a great mixture of items from all up and down the spice road. We've never had any problem with the service, as a matter of fact have always had good service there. We tend to get a couple of things off the small bites menu and share.

 

[MHDTS]

We really enjoy Spice Road Table. It's a unique menu, and we have never had a problem with service there. Try the grape leaves!

 

[Hopefully]

DH and (adult) DS were so put off by the rude manner we were greeted in last year that they will not return. It didn't bother me nearly as much, but I am more easy going. It is too bad because I enjoyed the food and the setting.

 

[Axel]

Both are excellent for the category they fall into, IMO. I've always had outstanding service at both (though, I feel I should mention that I speak French and the servers at CDF generally love having a table they can speak to in their native language. Same with my experience at SRT when our server spoke French).

The meals are bigger and more filling and HEAVIER at CDF, but the fare is more varied and, IMO, interesting at SRT. Perhaps that's because French food is old hat for me now, but we tend to book CDF when we want a big meal (and we usually do the Prix Fixe menu at lunch), but SRT is becoming one of our go-to spots for a quick and light lunch if we just need something to tide us over until dinner time.

 

[TiggerTrigger]

DH and (adult) DS were so put off by the rude manner we were greeted in last year that they will not return. It didn't bother me nearly as much, but I am more easy going. It is too bad because I enjoyed the food and the setting.

And that's where I've seen the biggest complaints...hostess staff. But the food and setting look very appealing. Decisions.

 

[MaleficentRN]

DH and (adult) DS were so put off by the rude manner we were greeted in last year that they will not return. It didn't bother me nearly as much, but I am more easy going. It is too bad because I enjoyed the food and the setting.

At which restaurant??

 

[Hopefully]

Spice Road Table

 

[loves to dive]

Could be a matter of someone just having a bad night. I've had servers at just about every establishment have an off night every once in awhile. Like another poster who spoke french at Chefs, I speak a little Arabic and the servers at Spice Road always enjoy that. I had a server at Chefs once insist that I didn't want what I ordered and I would never be able to eat it all and I would regret it. I was paying out of pocket, my money and if I only eat 2 bites out of each dish and enjoy those two bites that's my choice. After I insisted I wanted to order what I did, the server went out of his way the rest of the night to avoid our table and only come over when absolutely necessary. We still enjoyed our meal and wouldn't hesitate to go back. I've never had bad service at Spice Roads but we may have just been lucky.

 

[ArmyVet80]

We (DW & I) would pick Spice Road Table. We have been to both multiple times and SRT is slightly better all around (food, service, views, etc..) in our opinion.

 

[JennyDrake]

Spice Road tables are not set atop one another like in Chefs. We had excellent service.

NOTE: I'm medium wimpy about spicy stuff and half of the spice road samples were WAY too much heat for me. Fortunately I was with a friend who enjoys breathing fire so we just swapped out.

 

[tsme]

My pick is for Chefs de France. We've eaten at both restaurants. We found the food at Spice Road not great, bland & the service was the absolute worse I have ever I had. It wasn't crowded while we were there. We had more than one server & each one was rude & disrespectful. Example, one on passing asked my DH if he was done with his food then took both of our plates, I was not done, he just grabbed it & walked away before I could recover from the shock of having my plate taken from me. And there were other things, but you asked for opinions not stories, lol. The tables at Chefs de France are close together but I've never been treated poorly there & I've enjoyed each meal there.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

Spice Road Table. We've always had great food and very friendly service there. Plus the atmosphere, right next to the water, is lovely.

We've always had good service at Chefs, but the food is incredibly salty and it feels loud and crowded in there.

 

[mckennarose]

We've eaten at both before and I would choose Spice Road Table over Chefs. The food is delicious (rack of lamb is a stand out!). We've not experienced rude service at either restaurant. Spice Road's chef and server went out of their way to accommodate me with a gluten free menu. The Chef's chef didn't bother to come out to talk to me.

 

[Babsy]

Chefs DE France. Just great food and service.

 

[TiggerTrigger]

Could be a matter of someone just having a bad night. I've had servers at just about every establishment have an off night every once in awhile. Like another poster who spoke french at Chefs, I speak a little Arabic and the servers at Spice Road always enjoy that. I had a server at Chefs once insist that I didn't want what I ordered and I would never be able to eat it all and I would regret it. I was paying out of pocket, my money and if I only eat 2 bites out of each dish and enjoy those two bites that's my choice. After I insisted I wanted to order what I did, the server went out of his way the rest of the night to avoid our table and only come over when absolutely necessary. We still enjoyed our meal and wouldn't hesitate to go back. I've never had bad service at Spice Roads but we may have just been lucky.

That's an excellent point. I know we've had bad experiences at places that normally get raves and have had friends come back with issues at places we normally love. That's also crazy about the server at Chefs.

We've eaten at both before and I would choose Spice Road Table over Chefs. The food is delicious (rack of lamb is a stand out!). We've not experienced rude service at either restaurant. Spice Road's chef and server went out of their way to accommodate me with a gluten free menu. The Chef's chef didn't bother to come out to talk to me.

That's good to know about Chefs. Our older one has serious food allergies, and while the kids won't be with us for this meal, I always get concerned when I hear stories of people's food issues not getting the proper attention.

 

[mckennarose]

.........
That's good to know about Chefs. Our older one has serious food allergies, and while the kids won't be with us for this meal, I always get concerned when I hear stories of people's food issues not getting the proper attention.

Because of my gluten free experience with Chefs de France, I won't be going back anytime soon. Aside from the chef not coming to see me, which I don't really expect at all restaurants, I felt like their response to me was more dismissive. The server told me they could make many of the dishes gluten free by eliminating or substituting the sauces BUT she told me in her opinion it would take away from the taste of the dishes. So that didn't leave me with many choices.

 

[TiggerTrigger]

Because of my gluten free experience with Chefs de France, I won't be going back anytime soon. Aside from the chef not coming to see me, which I don't really expect at all restaurants, I felt like their response to me was more dismissive. The server told me they could make many of the dishes gluten free by eliminating or substituting the sauces BUT she told me in her opinion it would take away from the taste of the dishes. So that didn't leave me with many choices.

What bothers me the most with this is that it sounds like they were focused on this as a taste issue vs. a health concern. Well, we know where you won't be returning for a meal! And I certainly don't blame you. We're trying a number of new spots this year with the kids and I always worry a bit since I really don't want have to break out the EpiPens while on vacation.