The Wave - best kept secret! YUM!

[jpeden]

Our Ratings of Wave Lunch & Dinner: (*rev 10/06/2016*)
. . . food price value: C
. . . food quality: B
. . . food quantity per serving: B
. . . food prep speed: B
. . . food selection: C
. . . seating quantity: B
. . . seating comfort: B
. . . eatery atmosphere: B
. . . eatery convenience: C
. . . staff friendliness: B
. . . staff attentiveness: C
. . . character interaction: n/a
.
Our Recommendations:
. . . appys:... Lump Crab-Florida Rock Shrimp Cake
. . . entree:.. Griled Pork Chop, Seared Sea Scallops
. . . dessert:. Trio Dessert(s)
.
NOTE1: On the check-in level of Contemporary, past Front Desk, then left. The dining entrées are a bit overpriced; service can be spotty, but food quality was above average. One problem is food doesn't always come out as ordered, or hot. The restaurant is a quiet place to eat as it doesn't seem to draw the loud kids or uncouth adults until much later into the dining hours. To us, it is an OK place to eat dinner, but nothing that rates a rave. The menu has American-type dishes versus something abstract or exotic. We thought the Pork Chop and locally-sourced Pork Tenderloin were very good, but were displeased with Oven Roasted Chicken and Beef Tenderloin. Trio Desserts, with three samples on same plate, are pretty tasty and recommended. The good side is that the bar/lounge is comforting-inviting-welcoming; a nice place to throw a few (or more) back. The eatery doesn't exude "Disney", but atmosphere is pleasant.
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NOTE2: Above-average for dinner, but the breakfast buffet is one of WDW's best kept secrets for both price and quality, the other breakfast deal being Trails End in Fort Wilderness.

In all seriousness with no snark intended - do you give anything at Disney an A when it comes to dining? I've seen this format of yours many times and I feel like everything is B/C/D.

 

[RMOM352]

OK I will put The Wave on my list for January.

 

[kniquy]

Already have my April reservation!! -- The menu (and prices) at the California grill didn't impress me. The Wave seems like it is a great spot to eat and then head up to the TOWL for wishes fireworks. (If you are DVC or staying at BLT or CR)

 

[GreatLakes]

I've never had a bad experience there and also have never had a long wait. I'm hoping it stays busy enough to remain opened and also slow enough that it remains an easy walk up to get.

 

[Pluto80]

Totally love The Wave. My son got to be their 'young farmer' a few years back, which was a brilliant experience. Great food, super atmosphere and wonderful service.

 

[WDWNY]

We tried it in Feb thought it was eh. Not horrible, not amazing. Went back in November ugh so good!!!
We split a cheese plate and some salads but can i tell you how amazing the cheese was. There was honey on it and the cheese went soo nicely with it. AMAZING. get the cheese.

 

[karly05]

I had the breakfast buffet here last trip and enjoyed it so much, I booked dinner for later the same week. Loved that so much, I've booked lunch (and breakfast again) for the next trip.

 

[Dis703]

We just got back from a trip last week and decided to dine here for lunch. DH had a burger which he really enjoyed. ODS liked the kid's pizza (which is served on pita bread not actual pizza crust) but I had a hard time getting my twins to eat their pork. It was very dry and had a strong charred taste to it. I ordered the chicken sandwich which might have been good if you like that kind of flavor but the tomato jam and chevre cheese was not a good combo IMO. Of course, it would have helped if I had known what chevre cheese was because I can't stand goat cheese and apparently that's what it is. It was also a rather small piece of chicken for the size of the bun.

Service was also extremely slow. Mind you we do have allergy concerns, but I also discuss these issues with the chefs in advance of our trip to try and make it a smoother process. They had to get the dessert (preplanned) from private dining and I confirmed at the start of the meal that they were able to get it, but they apparently waited until after we were ready to order dessert before getting it because it took forever to be served and the server said it was because they had to run to private dining to get it. I think we were here for at least an hour and 45 minutes for lunch and it wasn't even busy.

All that said, we would likely give them another chance and try dinner at some point. Especially, now that they don't do custom cakes in MK so we need another restaurant option, preferably served by the Contemporary bakery, if we want to do a custom cake again.

 

[ShelbyWagon]

The Wave Lounge is one of my favorite spots to escape the heat and crowds for a bit. If you go at lunch, there's rarely anyone in there! I've always enjoyed the food and the service has been excellent. Plus, after traipsing around MK all morning, a cold refreshing beer really hits the spot! Of course, now I'll be able to get that inside the MK but I'll probably still escape over to the Contemporary for a bit.

 

[bumbershoot]

Went there last night. Gnocchi was OH so good. Tamara noodles were almost as good. Split the cheese plate among four people and it was terrific. DS had the German chocolate cake (doesn't look like a cake) and said it was awesome. The pre-dinner bread was delectable.

Grade A.

And the servings were bigger than they seemed and we all took some entree to go with us.

 

[domesticking]

We really like the wave for bfast. Quiet, reasonably priced, good selection and easy to get into on short notice. Thumbs up! Keep wanting to try it for dinner.

 

[gemax]

We ate at the Wave Tuesday night for dinner after spending all day at Epcot. Our server Redouan was excellent, very patient with us. We had the scallops, cioppino, and the ribeye. Everything was great. It was also the quietest restaurant we ate at the entire trip.

 

[DizDaD7]

We had some of the best Disney Dining on our recent trip (just got home Monday night). By far the best, though, was dinner at The Wave at The Contemporary. Everything we ate was DELICIOUS. I would highly recommend adding it to your ADRs for a future trip. I've also heard tht the breakfast buffet is one of the best on property - and one of the least expensive. YUM.

AGREED!

 

[Accident]

I ate at the wave for the first time back in Septemberish and not sure if they improved since then but I have no plans to ever go back there.. While I wasn't dissatisfied, for the price I did not find it anywhere near the same excellent quality as tiffins, flying fish and several other new locations that opened up during 2016. It's not a bad choice if you need something in that area, the quality didn't fit the pricetag to me and I would go elsewhere unless I was with a group that was going there.

I also get that things have an off day so please don't read this as an avoid it place, just saying for the money I'd prefer to spend it at places with what I consider even higher quality for marginally more money.

 

[DisneyStarWisher]

Already have my April reservation!! -- The menu (and prices) at the California grill didn't impress me. The Wave seems like it is a great spot to eat and then head up to the TOWL for wishes fireworks. (If you are DVC or staying at BLT or CR)

We have eaten at the Wave for breakfast and loved it. My DH is not really a breakfast person, but he has asked to go back to this breakfast. We are thinking of trying dinner on our next trip in October. It would be on an MNSSHP night. Wondering about eating at the Wave, then heading up to TOWL for HalloWishes and dessert. (Off topic--We aren't drinkers though. Is that weird to go to TOWL and not drink?) Unlike Accident, we have found that many table-service restaurants are just as good as the signatures. We used to only do signatures, but now we do several table-service restaurants.