Storybook Dining at Artist Point Watch Thread!

xlsm, amazing pics and review. Thanks for taking the time to post them! 35 more days and we'll be there. Your review has really got me pumped for it.

I really enjoyed reading everyone else's experiences, and wanted to help others out in the same way...usually I'm TERRIBLE at remembering to take photos of food for dining reviews, but I was determined to do this one justice. We really did have a good time, everyone in the room seemed to be enjoying themselves as well - which is the real test in my opinion!

I LOVE that interaction you had with the Evil Queen!! That must have been so fun.

It was so fun! She was perfectly in character.
 


We cancelled a reservation for 2 on June 26th after moving our vacation back a week to get the free dining. (We are now going July 5th instead.)
 
What are the chances I can get the Veal with mashed potatoes (as served w /prime rib) instead of the celery based side?
 


My family was very excited for this meal!! We went on 12/30 at 6:15pm. I did a DisBound as Snow White and carried a Danielle Nicole Dopey purse, lol...I fit in with the little girls in their outfits, and met another adult decked out in evil queen wear. Overall most people were dressed pretty casually, in jeans or shorts and t-shirts.



Service was slow - our waiter had a ton of tables. I believe they were understaffed for the evening, because there were a lot of manager looking types (i.e. not in traditional server costuming) coming out to clear tables and things. When we were able to snag our server, he was accommodating, but I didn't end up with a single refill. My other family members did, b/c they drank at a speed that worked out with his timing. I'm slow I guess!!




Food was excellent!! The chicken pies were good, sort of tasted like an egg roll, which was odd but tasty. The shrimp was great! Plump and juicy, and the sauce was spicy but not *too* much, just enough for flavor, and whatever the other sauce in the jar with it was was really good (is it avocado cream? i can't remember, but it was good). Make sure you get all the saucy stuff in the jar onto your bite of shrimp! The butternut squash soup was the star app. I could have eaten a gallon of it, holy cow.






Oldest DS and I had the veal, and it was delicious. DH had the gnocchi, and it was the second best dish of the night. Youngest DS had the snapper, and while fine, it wasn't as good as the other two dishes. If we hadn't tasted the veal or gnocchi, our opinion may have been different.







Character interaction was pretty good, but we didn't engage quite as much as we do other places (weird, I know, since I was thrilled for these particular characters and dressed for the occasion). Snow was fine, and the dwarfs were both very fun. The queen was the real winner of the night. As we were being seated for dinner she was leaving for a break. She saw my purse and stopped me, and said thank you for bringing me the head of the dwarf, LOL!! When we met her officially as we were leaving, she said, "Ah yes, you are the one who brought me the head of the dwarf...next time bring me the WHOLE dwarf. You have three huntsmen with you, it shouldn't be too hard". She was gorgeous and perfect and amazing!







I'm not sharing the group photo with the queen, I look awful, LOL!!

Dessert was probably the weakest part of the meal, but definitely the most attractive. The little sour apple things were underwhelming after reading such positive reviews. I mean, they were fine, but sort of blah. The cake/frosting cup things were gross. The real winner was the gooseberry pie, and I'd have happily eaten all four of them myself! The popcorn/heart thing was dramatic and fun!! The chocolates were soft, with a creamy filling. The popcorn was...popcorn. The kind from Karamell Kuche in Germany is better in our opinion.







All four of us agreed we would return with no complaints. We were full but not miserable, the food was excellent as a whole, and the ambiance was so much fun. They did a nice job keeping Artist Point's signature look, but elevated it with the addition of the branches on the trees. It works, and doesn't look hokey or tacky - which it very easily could have!!

I would definitely recommend this meal, especially if they keep the food at this level of quality. Dessert was the only real weakness, but they sure were pretty.

Thank you for such a detailed review! I have an ADR for June and I’m looking forward to it. My oldest daughter and I both experienced the late, lamented Club Villain. Your Evil Queen experience reminds me of that.
 
I've had a reservation finder going for at least a week for our party of 5. Someone around here posted that AP is one of the restaurants that they seem to have a much harder time getting an ADR for an odd party than an even one. So on a whim I added a second reservation finder, same day, same time, party of 6. That one popped twice tonight. I tried to get it the first time it popped and someone beat me to it - the same time popped again so I think they grabbed it and then changed their mind. I managed to get it the second time. :flower1:

But both finders should have alerted me - only the party of 6 version did. I didn't check to see if both would come up on MDE because I didn't want someone else to get it ahead of me again, but if you're looking for an odd party, you may want a reservation for the next highest even number.

Thanks everyone for the reviews. I know they're mixed, but we really want to see WL and the menu sounds good to us so we'll give it a try.

Thanks for this! I was looking for an earlier time for our dinner (have an 8:45) for 3. I put in a request for 4 and got alerted within 1/2 an hour. Never received an alert for the 3, only the 4.
 
I’m still somewhat new to the Disney way so my apologies if I’m not understanding but I’m a little confused by all the sub discussion going on in this thread. It’s a prix fixe menu, if you dont like the offerings why not go elsewhere, or just skip that one thing you don’t like, or just try something new? I know Disney is accommodating but some of this just seems like taking advantage to a point. Actual allergies not included of course!

My family and I are a party of 3 vegetarians. As far as I am aware, I was the first DISer to eat here and report back, and I wanted to provide information for other DISers who might have a vegetarian in their party.

FWIW, we always seek out restaurants that have vegetarian items (or items that at least on their face would seem to be vegetarian) already on the menu. As my username would indicate, I'm not big on drawing any extra attention to myself or having any fuss made over me. I would much rather order something that's already labeled on the menu as vegetarian than have to ask a bunch of questions that would draw attention to me and embarrass me. Indeed, I'm not one to suggest eating at a steakhouse, and then get angry and demanding when the restaurant doesn't have anything vegetarian on the menu, lol! (Although, as an aside, I've had to eat at steak and seafood restaurants in the past due to work/family obligations, and I can usually find at least a garden salad and some bread...and I try to not to make a big deal about it, knowing it's my choice to not eat meat, and that most Americans do, so I accept that I won't necessarily be able to be accommodated at every restaurant.) That night I felt that I was "taking one for the team" and asked the waiter if it was possible to just get the soup for the appetizer instead of the other meat items (2 of the 3 appetizers obviously contained meat). I was very surprised when he said, "Oh, the chef has a special selection prepared for you." I didn't ask for that and never would have expected that...but I appreciated the effort, and the waiter actually didn't even ask me if I wanted that, he just brought it. I even would've been ok with it if I'd been brought just the one little bowl of the soup and nothing else as the appetizer (I just didn't want meat to be brought to our table and wasted). I also never asked for any alternate desserts -- when they were brought out it was a complete surprise.

The reason I inquired about the appetizer was because this restaurant clearly seemed to want to cater to vegetarian diners, as it does indeed offer a vegetarian main course (the gnocchi), so it would seem odd to me if there was no vegetarian appetizer to go along with it.

If my request could not be accomodated, I have lost nothing, and have not placed anyoen in jeopardy.

The same holds true for desserts. They are preplated and therefore there is no choice. I found all but the gooseberry pie atrocious. If I returned with my family we would ask for a substitution if possible, again prepared for the possibility we would not be accommodated.

I agree...I was absolutely prepared to be offered one little bowl of soup as the appetizer and nothing else...and I was ok with that, or I would've never booked the ADR in the first place. Again, my thought was that I was "taking one for the team" and asking on behalf of all my vegetarian DIS friends. :)

This is what Disney is known for and also why parents of kids with special needs (like myself) feel so safe and comfortable here... because Disney accommodates when they can. I don't think subbing the kid veggie plate for one of the appetizer items or an adult sized portion of a kid meal is remotely taking advantage of anything. And discussion of it on these boards helps people prepare so that they CAN keep their requests and expectations reasonable and realistic.

Absolutely. Disney is kinder and more accommodating to vegetarians, vegans, and people with food allergies or other special needs (including my D, who had food allergies when she was younger that she has fortunately outgrown) than most restaurants I've been to, and certainly more accommodating than any resort or vacation destination that I've ever been to. And as Lisa F said, I scour the boards here for vegetarian info so that I can be sure before I make an ADR that there will be something for me to eat so I can avoid making a fuss or any unreasonable or impossible requests. So this was my way of paying it forward. :)

WDW is a vacation destination for people from all over the world, many of whom are vegetarian or vegan, for many different reasons, including religious reasons. I am so appreciative of how much Disney has expanded their vegetarian offerings since I first visited in 1994 -- indeed, sometimes I think one of the reasons I so often choose Disney for a vacation is because they make it so easy for vegetarians to be able to eat so well! :)

Hereforthechurros, I hope this explanation makes sense and helps. Hopefully people don't think the questions I asked, or the substitutions I received, were in any way taking advantage of Disney or "gaming the system."
 
I was very surprised when he said, "Oh, the chef has a special selection prepared for you." I didn't ask for that and never would have expected that...but I appreciated the effort, and the waiter actually didn't even ask me if I wanted that, he just brought it. I even would've been ok with it if I'd been brought just the one little bowl of the soup and nothing else as the appetizer (I just didn't want meat to be brought to our table and wasted).
What was the special selection that the chef had prepared for you? And, how did you like it?
 
We dined here on 1/5 and it was one of the highlights of our trip! The food was delicious—our party had the veal, prime rib, and gnocchi. They accomodated my son’s request for a side substitution graciously. The server was very good and the characters were fun. Great experience!

Edited to add—their wine list is also good. They even had a red Zinfandel which can be hard to find by the glass.
 
Hi there...I wrote a mini review and posted pictures a few pages back in this thread. :)
Thanks for your response! Sounds like you dine very responsibly which is very respectable :) your sort of situation is in no way what I was commenting on as I would consider vegetarian a dining restriction not just a ‘I like this better’ type thing. As a passionate home cook I also spend a lot of money dining out and traveling to eat and I like taking dishes at their face value. Some of the best things I’ve ever tried are things I didn’t think I would like. Sometimes it seems like people can have a little more chill and enjoy the meal the chef has developed as is. Restrictions and allergies aside! But to each their own. I am not the Disney police and have no bearing on anyone else’s dining decisions :)
 
We dined here on 1/5 and it was one of the highlights of our trip! The food was delicious—our party had the veal, prime rib, and gnocchi. They accomodated my son’s request for a side substitution graciously. The server was very good and the characters were fun. Great experience!

Edited to add—their wine list is also good. They even had a red Zinfandel which can be hard to find by the glass.
Great to hear! Very much looking forward to our dining experience later this month.
 
I have a reservation for Feb 20 for 8 people at 4:30 that I will be cancelling at the end of this month if anyone interested we can arrange the date I release it.
 
Thanks for your response! Sounds like you dine very responsibly which is very respectable :) your sort of situation is in no way what I was commenting on as I would consider vegetarian a dining restriction not just a ‘I like this better’ type thing. As a passionate home cook I also spend a lot of money dining out and traveling to eat and I like taking dishes at their face value. Some of the best things I’ve ever tried are things I didn’t think I would like. Sometimes it seems like people can have a little more chill and enjoy the meal the chef has developed as is. Restrictions and allergies aside! But to each their own. I am not the Disney police and have no bearing on anyone else’s dining decisions :)

Me too! :) And I'm a passionate home cook as well. :)

Thanks so much for your kind response! And I wish everyone had your attitude about my choice to be a vegetarian...I've been vegetarian for almost 30 years, and my mom still tells people that it's only because "she didn't ever want to eat the meals I cooked and only wanted to eat french fries!" :rotfl2::confused::sad2: What can I say? She's very old school and just doesn't understand.
 
Me too! :) And I'm a passionate home cook as well. :)

Thanks so much for your kind response! And I wish everyone had your attitude about my choice to be a vegetarian...I've been vegetarian for almost 30 years, and my mom still tells people that it's only because "she didn't ever want to eat the meals I cooked and only wanted to eat french fries!" :rotfl2::confused::sad2: What can I say? She's very old school and just doesn't understand.

I cannot understand why there is ever an issue about how one eats, and why anyone feels the need to either ridicule, question, or explain away someones else's decision. My DD has not eaten beef since she was 16, and at 42 I think she is pretty comfortable with that decision. My poor DH is still trying to figure out why. One day she told him "Because" and he has not said a thing since. LOL!
 
I would consider vegetarian a dining restriction not just a ‘I like this better’ type thing. As a passionate home cook I also spend a lot of money dining out and traveling to eat and I like taking dishes at their face value. Some of the best things I’ve ever tried are things I didn’t think I would like.

But why shouldn't someone get what they like better if they are paying a fortune for their meal? Is there really a reason why they shouldn't be able to sub and swap around sides?

I am also a passionate home cook (just look at my fb feed. I live in what is an ethnic culinary wasteland... if I want something other than seafood and steaks I have to make it myself. I make indian, chinese, mexican. I endlessly test and tweak recipes. FB is sick of me, lol.

I know what I like and I know what I don't like. I have certain flavors that I can tolerate but know I don't much care for. I don't care for celery but I do use it in certain things where it doesn't make the dish taste like celery but it does need it to maintain the complexity about it that I like. I usually cut back on it though. I tweaked my stock for months finding the right amount of celery where I didn't taste "celery" yet it didn't taste like something is missing. I just don't much like celery flavor and I do want to get the veal so I am going to ask for potatoes to sub and if they don't do it, I will live with it and try a few bites of the celery root but I don't like celery flavor. It might be fine all together but for $55 I'd rather enjoy my whole meal and I have cooked enough and eaten enough to be pretty confident that any kind of unctuous braised meat and gravy is a pretty good match for mashed potatoes, and I love horseradish with that kind of stuff too.

I have been surprised by things I didn't think I'd like but I have never suddenly had an epiphany about a flavor I know i don't like.

My son is on the spectrum and not a very adventurous eater. Textures are big for him. He does like ribeye so I am hoping I can trim up this prime rib enough for him to have a good dinner because he doesn't like the fatty parts. He does not like anything "spicy" and is very sensitive to it and also not a fan of mashed potatoes really texturally, but he does like roasted potatoes. So I'm going to ask to sub the kid's roasted potatoes. He won't eat any of the veggies. For $55, why shouldn't he enjoy his meal if Disney will accommodate? If Disney wouldn't accommodate and I would have to decide if I wanted to pay that much for him to eat the meat and nothing else and then give him a snack after.... but for what they charge and the fact that ARE very accommodating, what good reason do you have that people should NOT be able to eat what they like to eat? You ask why but I ask why not? :)
 
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