jrtoastyman
Purveyor of Fine Latex Products
- Joined
- May 22, 2011
- Messages
- 1,209
OK, about a year and a half ago, I posted this generally unfavorable assessment of Disney Dining:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2739476
Well, I took some of the ideas from that thread and I'm happy to report that the dining on my most recent trip (wrapped up 1/25) was much improved. I'm still not ready to build a trip around dining, but we made much better restaurant decisions and the food was much better, so perhaps my castigation of the Disney dining experience was premature. The lineup included:
TS:
Be Our Guest (x2)
Monsieur Paul
Hollywood Brown Derby
Kona Cafe
Akershus
1900 Park Fare
Rose & Crown
Tutto Gusto
T-Rex Cafe
CS:
Be Our Guest
Pecos Bill's (which we basically do as a matter of tradition)
Contempo Cafe
Flame Tree BBQ
We used Tables In Wonderland, so we were not shackled to the DDP. This will definitely be the plan going forward.
First of all, Be Our Guest was very good, particularly for the money, for both lunch and dinner. Had the thyme scented pork one night and the steak the other, they were both excellent, but the steak and the pomme frites were really top notch. For lunch, I had the braised pork, which seemed more like a TS dish than a CS dish. BOG had the best food in the MK of the places I've eaten by a wide margin, was a great surprise.
Monsieur Paul was likewise fantastic. Pricey, but fantastic. Did the pre fixe menu with the truffle soup and lamb and loved it.
At Hollywood Brown Derby, we weren't overly hungry, so we cobbled together, pun intended, a meal from a couple of small Cobb salads and a few appetizers. This was more than enough food, and gave us the opportunity to sample a number of different things, all of which was very good.
I'd be happy to eat any of these three places regardless of whether I was at a theme park -- really good food, and BOG seemed under priced, if anything.
Neither of the character meals (Akershus/1900 Park Fare) were anything special, but I was able to find food that I really enjoyed at both places. I could eat my weight in gjetost, so I'm happy with the cold bar at Akershus all by itself.
Kona and R&C were both good by theme park standards -- nothing special, but certainly good enough. I'd eat at both again if the opportunity presented itself.
Tutto Gusto was a nice surprise as a place to stop in for a quick bite. We were strolling around WS and popped in for a flight of wine and a cheese plate. The space is really well done, relaxing, and really transported us away from the parks for a few minutes as we relaxed in a couch in a dark corner. Particularly given how little I thought of Tutto Italia, we really liked this space as a place to hang out for a bit. Didn't really eat anything substantive, so I can't vouch for it there, but I've made many a meal of wine and cheese, so I see it being a place we frequent going forward.
Of the TS places we visited, T-Rex at Downtown Disney is the only one I wish I could take back. It was maybe up to the level of an Applebees for triple the price, and the meteor showers scared the bejeezus out of my DD3, so the atmosphere didn't really do it any favors either. Your mileage may obviously vary on that front, but the food was just meh.
All in all, the trip restored some of my faith in the dining options at Disney. Still not going to build a trip around ADRs -- part of the reason we did as many TS places as we did was that, with it being January, there was plenty of last minute and walk-up availability -- but very heartened to know that there are some places to go if I'm jonesing for some good grub.
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2739476
Well, I took some of the ideas from that thread and I'm happy to report that the dining on my most recent trip (wrapped up 1/25) was much improved. I'm still not ready to build a trip around dining, but we made much better restaurant decisions and the food was much better, so perhaps my castigation of the Disney dining experience was premature. The lineup included:
TS:
Be Our Guest (x2)
Monsieur Paul
Hollywood Brown Derby
Kona Cafe
Akershus
1900 Park Fare
Rose & Crown
Tutto Gusto
T-Rex Cafe
CS:
Be Our Guest
Pecos Bill's (which we basically do as a matter of tradition)
Contempo Cafe
Flame Tree BBQ
We used Tables In Wonderland, so we were not shackled to the DDP. This will definitely be the plan going forward.
First of all, Be Our Guest was very good, particularly for the money, for both lunch and dinner. Had the thyme scented pork one night and the steak the other, they were both excellent, but the steak and the pomme frites were really top notch. For lunch, I had the braised pork, which seemed more like a TS dish than a CS dish. BOG had the best food in the MK of the places I've eaten by a wide margin, was a great surprise.
Monsieur Paul was likewise fantastic. Pricey, but fantastic. Did the pre fixe menu with the truffle soup and lamb and loved it.
At Hollywood Brown Derby, we weren't overly hungry, so we cobbled together, pun intended, a meal from a couple of small Cobb salads and a few appetizers. This was more than enough food, and gave us the opportunity to sample a number of different things, all of which was very good.
I'd be happy to eat any of these three places regardless of whether I was at a theme park -- really good food, and BOG seemed under priced, if anything.
Neither of the character meals (Akershus/1900 Park Fare) were anything special, but I was able to find food that I really enjoyed at both places. I could eat my weight in gjetost, so I'm happy with the cold bar at Akershus all by itself.
Kona and R&C were both good by theme park standards -- nothing special, but certainly good enough. I'd eat at both again if the opportunity presented itself.
Tutto Gusto was a nice surprise as a place to stop in for a quick bite. We were strolling around WS and popped in for a flight of wine and a cheese plate. The space is really well done, relaxing, and really transported us away from the parks for a few minutes as we relaxed in a couch in a dark corner. Particularly given how little I thought of Tutto Italia, we really liked this space as a place to hang out for a bit. Didn't really eat anything substantive, so I can't vouch for it there, but I've made many a meal of wine and cheese, so I see it being a place we frequent going forward.
Of the TS places we visited, T-Rex at Downtown Disney is the only one I wish I could take back. It was maybe up to the level of an Applebees for triple the price, and the meteor showers scared the bejeezus out of my DD3, so the atmosphere didn't really do it any favors either. Your mileage may obviously vary on that front, but the food was just meh.
All in all, the trip restored some of my faith in the dining options at Disney. Still not going to build a trip around ADRs -- part of the reason we did as many TS places as we did was that, with it being January, there was plenty of last minute and walk-up availability -- but very heartened to know that there are some places to go if I'm jonesing for some good grub.
