Talk me into trying some new places

[exwdwcm]

We just bought into DVC after our recent pre Christmas trip in December! now heading back again first week of Dec 2010. Can't wait! We've had free dining the last few trips, and always enjoy the dining that WDW offers. We have a hard time trying new places because we always want to go back to our favorites. Guess it is a good problem to have. lol

We will be in a one bedroom at BLT this trip and have a full kitchen and so we don't plan to do the dining plan this time (especially since free dining won't be an option as DVC). We plan to eat maybe 5-6 sit down meals instead of one every single day.

Convince me to try something new.....

so far we have:

• O'hana dinner- a must!!! will be our third time, but i was sick with a sinus problem last trip and coudln't taste my favorite meal, so must repeat!
• Le Cellier- another fav, again, was sick and couldn't really enjoy my food and DH requested this as his one and only must do
• Crystal palace breakfast- DS2yo is a huge Pooh fan and we actually love the breakfast selections here

others to consider
Teppan Edo- heard great things about it- think we might have to try- how is it?

Chef Mickey's breakfast (we've done dinner, but never breakfast)- figured a good chance for my son to see Mickey. how is the food?

JIKO- been dying to try it- so this would be a new one for us.

Yak & Yeti- i at least want to try the fast food here if not sit down.

Tutto Italia- never tried, looks interesting.

The Wave- since we are staying at BLT, this is easy and convenient- thoughts?

We struggle at HS- anything here to recommend? We've done Sci Fi and enjoy the atmosphere, but we all knwo the food is only so-so. We just did in Dec. We had a horrible service experience at 50s prime time last trip, so not doing it. not sure the other two table service interest me there. any decent FF to recommend? I used to work at hollywood and vine, so i have no interest in going back there. LOL plus haven't heard great things about it.

any recommendations are greatly appreciated- trying to expand our horizons a bit. We enjoy eating outside the parks at the resorts too.

 

[beachgirl2000]

We absolutely love Chef Mickey and its a must every time we are in Disney - we have only done breakfast and it's really good -- lots of choices and lots of fun.

We also do Tusker House at AK too -- again, lots of fun and really good (not as good as Chef Mickey but decent - we only do breakfast.

We also did Tony's Town Square in MK and it was horrible - stay away from there and Mama Melrose in HS - althought we do really enjoy Sci Fi too - for lunch and because my son thinks that a drive in is the coolest thing ever,

We have gone to Chefs de France in Epcot and we weren't impressed.

Also, we ate at Capt'n Jacks at DTD and it was decent but Planet Hollywood was the worst!

We also did BOMA at AKL and I was not impressed but my husband and son loved it -- plus that resort is just insane - I love it there.

Hope this helped some -- Chef Mickey is one of my favorite places - its a decent place for breakfast and it just gets you totally in the Disney set of mind -- we always like to start our vacation here!

 

[beachgirl2000]

Can I ask you a totally different question: as DVC members now, can you bring your dogs with you? or are they not pet friendly?

 

[everythingALICE]

Places that I really like are...

Boma at AKL. Been to both breakfast and dinner and found both to have a great selection. They have a lot of different flavors, but you definitely won't go hungry if you are not an adventurous eater. At breakfast, they have really tasty unlimited juice and made to order omelets.

Tusker House in AK. Haven't done breakfast there yet, but liked lunch a lot. Some spices similar to Boma, but more mainstream I would say. I probably wouldn't do the same meal at both Tusker and Boma, but maybe do one for breakfast and the other for dinner. Depending on the time you book Tusker for lunch you can also get priority seating for the Nemo show, which often has a long wait.

Akershus in Norway. I think a lot of people may stay away because they think they won't like the food, but I got a veggie pasta and my mom got some chicken dish at lunch and neither were exotic for our tastes (and my mom is pretty conservative about what she's willing to try). They also have a cold buffet to start. The character interaction is the best that I've experienced at a WDW buffet, and you even get a free picture with a princess to keep!

Le Chefs de France - I actually liked this place a lot. We went during a slower time, so the place wasn't packed - but the service was very good. The food was very good (it seemed freshly made, nice portion, and everything was served at the right temp) and like some other places they have a chefs menu so that you can get a soup/salad with your meal even if you are on the DDP. I have read some mixed reviews, but I enjoyed my meal there very much.

As for DHS, Mama Melrose is pretty OK in my book. It's definitely not bad (or wasn't in my experience), but not really memorable enough to make it a favorite. I may go back again only if I can get a Fantasmic Package. We're also planning to do Tutto Italia our next trip (hopefully it's good), but if you're planning on that as well you may not want to do another Italian meal.

Good luck & have fun!

 

[charron]

Yummmm!

 

[kamikazecat]

I would definitely check out The Wave. That was one of our favorites last trip and it will be very convenient for you. I can also recommend Chef Mickey's for breakfast. We had a great time!

We are trying some new places this trip as well and are really excited about Boma for breakfast. I have yet to see a bad review and I am on here all day.

 

[CindyIsMyFave]

Teppan Edo- heard great things about it- think we might have to try- how is it? We were pleasantly surprised by this. It's your "standard" hibachi Japanese steakhouse fare, but it was very good. We were happy to find that it was good.

Chef Mickey's breakfast (we've done dinner, but never breakfast)- figured a good chance for my son to see Mickey. how is the food? It's . . . average, well, above-average to be fair I think. Some things - like the Mickey waffles - are always good and fresh. Eggs can be hit or miss. To me, it's worth it for the characters and to be close to MK to hop on over there.

Tutto Italia- never tried, looks interesting. Alfredo's was always my family's and my fave - my mother just went to Tutto last week and didn't like it as well as Alfredo's. Or maybe we're just bitter.

We struggle at HS- anything here to recommend? We've done Sci Fi and enjoy the atmosphere, but we all knwo the food is only so-so. We just did in Dec. We had a horrible service experience at 50s prime time last trip, so not doing it. not sure the other two table service interest me there. any decent FF to recommend? I used to work at hollywood and vine, so i have no interest in going back there. Honestly, Toy Story's Pizza Planet isn't awful. We wound up twice there.

See thoughts in red above!

 

[pattyw]

How about the Cape May Cafe? It's a non-character buffet for dinner, and they have seafood. I heard they have crab legs now, too. I guess the price went up, but if you have the dining plan, no worries!

 

[SuzieN]

In the Magic Kingdom I have eaten at Crystal Palace (dinner), Liberty Tree Tavern (lunch and dinner - lunch blows dinner out of the water!), The Plaza (love it!), and Tony's. I honestly enjoyed all of them very much. I was skeptical about Tony's but had a really good experience there.
In Epcot I've eaten at San Angel Inn, Le Cellier, Rose & Crown, Akershus (breakfast), and Biergarten. My favorite of them all was San Angel Inn!! I know it used to get terrible reviews but if you read more recent reviews you'll see that most of them are very positive. My husband LOVES Biergarten (I think it's because of the HUGE beers!). Rose & Crown was the only one I didn't enjoy very much.
In DHS I've eaten at 50's Primetime and Sci-Fi and LOVE both of them!!
I've eaten at both Yak & Yeti and Tusker House in AK. I LOVED Yak & Yeti - one of the best meals of my last trip (the other stand out being San Angel Inn)!!
Have also eaten at 'Ohana (YUCK!!), California Grill, Hoop De Doo, and Spirit of Aloha, as well as numerous CS places. Hope you get something from this and good luck planning!!

 

[IAMaGR8DISMOM]

We plan on trying the Wave next trip. Never been there and it looks great.

 

[TheLittleMermaid:)]

You should definitely try restaraunt Marakesh. We did it when we were on the dis dining plan, and it's one of the best meals we've had at the dis. The whole experience is totally different from anything else in disney. The food is great, the entertainment is really cool (the belly dancer), the wait staff is friendly and very good at what they do. The food was amazing, if your not a fan of moroccan cuisine, they have many common meals that you may be comfortable adjusting to such as Lemon chicken for dinner and fruit salad for dessert. And, I don't know if this applies to you, but I have food allergies and they were great with handling them, very few items on the menu contained what i was allergic to (tree nuts), and they even offered to make specialized meals.

 

[exwdwcm]

Can I ask you a totally different question: as DVC members now, can you bring your dogs with you? or are they not pet friendly?

No, you must board your pets or leave them at home, even in the DVC resorts, pets are not allowed. of course that doesn't go for service pets. They might allow them in your own private trailer/camper at fort wilderness, but I am not sure.

Places that I really like are...

Boma at AKL. Been to both breakfast and dinner and found both to have a great selection. They have a lot of different flavors, but you definitely won't go hungry if you are not an adventurous eater. At breakfast, they have really tasty unlimited juice and made to order omelets. Done both and just not that impressed, won't be going back soon.

Tusker House in AK. Haven't done breakfast there yet, but liked lunch a lot. Some spices similar to Boma, but more mainstream I would say. I probably wouldn't do the same meal at both Tusker and Boma, but maybe do one for breakfast and the other for dinner. Depending on the time you book Tusker for lunch you can also get priority seating for the Nemo show, which often has a long wait. I've done breakfast here and enjoyed it, might be worth another shot in a future trip for sure.

Akershus in Norway. I think a lot of people may stay away because they think they won't like the food, but I got a veggie pasta and my mom got some chicken dish at lunch and neither were exotic for our tastes (and my mom is pretty conservative about what she's willing to try). They also have a cold buffet to start. The character interaction is the best that I've experienced at a WDW buffet, and you even get a free picture with a princess to keep! we did this on our most recent trip in Dec and the food quality was much worse than the last time we ate there. It was cold, service was poor and I am not a fan of a lot of the items on the cold buffet, so that didn't do much for me. maybe hte problem is me, i am picky! lol We will be passing on norway for a while since we just did it and weren't that happy with it.

Le Chefs de France - I actually liked this place a lot. We went during a slower time, so the place wasn't packed - but the service was very good. The food was very good (it seemed freshly made, nice portion, and everything was served at the right temp) and like some other places they have a chefs menu so that you can get a soup/salad with your meal even if you are on the DDP. I have read some mixed reviews, but I enjoyed my meal there very much. I enjoyed Chefs and hope to go back soon- plus would be fun to see the Ratatouille animatronic they have now at lunch.

As for DHS, Mama Melrose is pretty OK in my book. It's definitely not bad (or wasn't in my experience), but not really memorable enough to make it a favorite. I may go back again only if I can get a Fantasmic Package. We're also planning to do Tutto Italia our next trip (hopefully it's good), but if you're planning on that as well you may not want to do another Italian meal.good to know- thanks!

Good luck & have fun!

I would definitely check out The Wave. That was one of our favorites last trip and it will be very convenient for you. I can also recommend Chef Mickey's for breakfast. We had a great time!Thank you- i've read good things on the WAVE and think it might be worth doing!

We are trying some new places this trip as well and are really excited about Boma for breakfast. I have yet to see a bad review and I am on here all day.

CindyisMyFave- thank you for all the input!!! I've had breakfast at Cape May cafe - lol just in May this year before hte DIS podcast cruise. it was fun, but nothing spectacular, standard breakfast. We were in such a large gropu with other DISers that it was hard to get good character interaction. never tried dinner- but i am not a seafood fan. although DH might enjoy it.

Suzie- thanks for all the feedback! I've eaten at San Angel many times, but not since they changed the chef and menu as of late. We do usually eat the fast food outside though. lol- i've had an ADR for BIergarten, but ended up cancelling it two trips ago. We've yet to eat there, but i do want to try it!

We plan on trying the Wave next trip. Never been there and it looks great. Yes, i think it is on our to do list now!

Thanks for all the great feedback guys. I think we know for sure now:
Chef Mickey's breakast
Crystal Palace breakfast
O'hana dinner
Le Cellier (lunch or dinner- whatever we can get!)

still considering JIKO, Wave, Cali Grill, Teppan Edo and maybe Chefs for this trip. Gotta narrow it down.

We also plan to hit several of our favorite quick service places- Earle of Sandwich, Cosmic Ray's, eat around the world at Epcot (ham and cheese croissant and choc mousse in bakery in france!) and the food court at the Land. i've heard such great things about Wolfgang puck's too at DTD for a quick bite. anyone done that?

 

[DisneyJen0504]

We LOVE Teppan Edo and highly recommend doing the hibachi dinner.
We have been to Chef Mickeys for breakfast and find Crystal Palace to serve much better food. However, CM is good for meeting those great characters!
As for DHS, Mama Melrose is horrendous! Don't eat there. Anywhere else in DHS is better as far as I'm concerned.
Have fun!

 

[Pakey]

When we stay DVC, we dislike eating breakfast out as it's so much more convenient to just eat at the villa before heading to a park. The only breakfast we like to eat is Tusker House because it offers some food that is different than what we can fix in the villa for ourselves.

We also don't make ADR's for lunch because we often find outselves going back to the villa for pool time and we either do counter service or snack at the villa.

For dinner, I recommend Ca Grill.