We were lucky (or not) to stay first at the Yacht Club. Awesome experience, it was brand new - the trams ran to Epcot and the BW was not built. We learned that staying on-site was the way to go for the service, the transportation and the incredible atmospher compared to the Holiday Inn

. We couldn't afford YC again, so we tried PO(FQ). Totally random, I think. We totally fell in love with that and went back multiple times. We tried ASMu once to save a few bucks, and although I didn't like the size of the resort compared to PO, I didn't have a bad time - I was at Disney World!
If I had been able to research the way you can now on the internet, I would have been frozen with indecision I think. So now that I can, I never take anyone's opinion, only facts into consideration. What's in the room, how often do the buses run, etc. The rest of the magic we can make ourselves and a towel animal or crowded bus isn't going to matter.
Eating is the least of our concerns, other than making sure we get a Rice Krispie treat on Main Street and a Dole Whip. Everything else is really just fuel, although I can see where some restaurants are worth experiencing.
Too much information can be too much of a good thing.