Via Napoli, Yak & Yeti or Coral Reef?

[MickeyMinnieMom]

Maybe they meant the World as in WDW? Heaven knows it's not hard to beat the other Asian options at WDW

I’m an idiot! Didn’t even think of that this time for some reason! LOL!!

I’d still pick the restaurants in Epcot’s Japan if we’re talking just WDW. And those in the Swan. And Morimoto.

 

[BK2014]

We went to both Yak & Yeti and Coral Reef in January. Coral Reef was only memorable for the view of the fish. Yak & Yeti, which we had booked as a "maybe we'll cancel it" ADR, ended up being the surprise great meal of the trip. We shared fried rice and lettuce wraps. Both were plentiful and delicious. Not only was the food great, it was our cheapest table service meal since we were sharing appetizers/sides. But we still had leftovers.

Only downside was the constant talk about becoming a Landry's member whenver our waiter was at the table. We had nice table on the second story with a window where we were able to people watch.

 

[AngiTN]

We went to both Yak & Yeti and Coral Reef in January. Coral Reef was only memorable for the view of the fish. Yak & Yeti, which we had booked as a "maybe we'll cancel it" ADR, ended up being the surprise great meal of the trip. We shared fried rice and lettuce wraps. Both were plentiful and delicious. Not only was the food great, it was our cheapest table service meal since we were sharing appetizers/sides. But we still had leftovers.

Only downside was the constant talk about becoming a Landry's member whenver our waiter was at the table. We had nice table on the second story with a window where we were able to people watch.

That is an annoyance but the membership does totally pay for itself. Literally. Costs you $25 to join but you are given a $25 credit to use on your first visit. And no yearly membership fee or anything like that. Really, anyone anticipating eating there when at Disney (or elsewhere since they have a huge list of properties) should join. If for no reason other than you will always have a place to eat without an ADR.

 

[piccolopat]

We like Coral Reef and usually go every two or three trips. We've never had a bad meal there but we do go for a very early lunch when it's still pretty quiet. Since you've been there I suggest Yak & Yeti. We've gone there many times, also at non-peak times, and enjoyed every meal. Via Napoli is too loud for us and since we have plenty of good Italian restaurants near home, we prefer to go other places.

 

[BK2014]

Costs you $25 to join but you are given a $25 credit to use on your first visit.

I could be wrong, but I think our waiter said that the $25 credit expires at some point in time, and we didn't know when we would be back. Unfortunately, Landry's only has one restaurant in the entire state of Wisconsin. Now that we have scheduled another trip, we might consider joining before hand so we can use the membership at the Boathouse and Yak and Yeti.

 

[AngiTN]

I could be wrong, but I think our waiter said that the $25 credit expires at some point in time, and we didn't know when we would be back. Unfortunately, Landry's only has one restaurant in the entire state of Wisconsin. Now that we have scheduled another trip, we might consider joining before hand so we can use the membership at the Boathouse and Yak and Yeti.

Boathouse in Disney Springs is not Landry though.

I don't know about the credit expiring. It well may. It does make sense to join when you are going, vs. when you are not planning to go.

 

[maltdizzy]

They have me hooked with the Ahi Tuna Nachos or I'd be willing to skip them myself. I'm not a big fan of Landry properties in general. I will not eat at Rainforest or T-Rex for instance, they are just awful and over priced even when not at Disney property. (in the case of Rainforest).

This is an interesting caveat to see, we've always avoided Yak and yeti because we generally find Landry chains are subpar (T-Rex was easy the worst meal/experience we've ever had around WDW), and reviews are often very polar on Y&Y.

We liked Coral Reef when we did it a few years ago but I’ve heard the food quality has gone down.

It's not that it has "gone down," it's that it's been wildly inconsistent for decades now. There was never an era (and I go back to the '80's) where it was hit or very, very miss.

 

[AngiTN]

This is an interesting caveat to see, we've always avoided Yak and yeti because we generally find Landry chains are subpar (T-Rex was easy the worst meal/experience we've ever had around WDW), and reviews are often very polar on Y&Y.

I've dined at the following Landry owned establishments in various cities.
Bubba Gump
Aquarium Cafe
Rainforest Cafe
Claim Jumper
Yak and Yeti
Joe's Crab Shack

Out of all of them the only ones I actually cared for are Joe's, for land locked cities without a lot of other seafood choices and Yak and Yeti. Yak and Yeti our favorite by far. One item to note, no idea if this makes a difference or not, it's one of their locations that is not a chain, it's a single entity. The only Yak and Yeti is the one at AK. The others are multi location restaurants. That may well be the difference.

 

[maltdizzy]

I've dined at the following Landry owned establishments in various cities.
Bubba Gump
Aquarium Cafe
Rainforest Cafe
Claim Jumper
Yak and Yeti
Joe's Crab Shack

Out of all of them the only ones I actually cared for are Joe's, for land locked cities without a lot of other seafood choices and Yak and Yeti. Yak and Yeti our favorite by far. One item to note, no idea if this makes a difference or not, it's one of their locations that is not a chain, it's a single entity. The only Yak and Yeti is the one at AK. The others are multi location restaurants. That may well be the difference.

I can't remember ever being happy with a trip to Rainforest Cafe (even 25 years ago when we had a local one), and I haven't been in a Bubba Gump, Claimjumpers, or Charthouse since Landry's bought them, so can't compare before and after (but we didn't like Bubba Gump and Claimjumper before). I can say, however, the Morton's Steakhouse has suffered under Landry's ownership, at least from my comparisons.

But, we digress...

 

[malissa99]

We were so disappointed in Via Napoli. We didn’t think it was anything special. Very expensive pizza and it’s very loud in there. But we loved Yak & Yeti, the ahi tuna nachos were amazing! I’m not sorry we tried Via Napoli, you never know until you go for yourself!

 

[AngiTN]

We were so disappointed in Via Napoli. We didn’t think it was anything special. Very expensive pizza and it’s very loud in there. But we loved Yak & Yeti, the ahi tuna nachos were amazing! I’m not sorry we tried Via Napoli, you never know until you go for yourself!

That's how we ended up trying Coral Reef, despite it's reputation as one of the worse TS restaurants on property. We figured we'd try for ourselves rather than take the word of others. Turns out others knew what they were talking about. Still, I'm not sorry we tried it.

 

[robinb]

We were so disappointed in Via Napoli. We didn’t think it was anything special. Very expensive pizza and it’s very loud in there. But we loved Yak & Yeti, the ahi tuna nachos were amazing! I’m not sorry we tried Via Napoli, you never know until you go for yourself!

Now I have to try the nachos!

FWIW, I actually like Via Napoli's pizza but I wouldn't waste a TS credit on it. Just share a pizza instead. I also really like the atmosphere at Coral Reef but the food is just "meh".

 

[BK2014]

Boathouse in Disney Springs is not Landry though.

Thanks for this clarification. Evidently Landry's has "The Boathouse" restaurants in Canada. I don't know if I just misunderstood our server at Yak & Yeti or if he thought The Boathouse at Disney Springs was included, but we definitely walked away with the impression that it was part of the Landry's group. Though it makes sense why the whole Landry's thing was never mentioned when we actually ate at The Boathouse in 2016.

 

[Momma_Lanier]

Now I have to try the nachos!

FWIW, I actually like Via Napoli's pizza but I wouldn't waste a TS credit on it. Just share a pizza instead. I also really like the atmosphere at Coral Reef but the food is just "meh".

Thank you! We are doing free dining (bounceback offer) so we thought we’d try the pastas or other dishes at Via Napoli instead of the pizza. Have you tried any of the dishes? Or is the pizza that good where we need to pay OOP for it?

 

[_Kristi_]

Yak & Yeti was a pleasant surprise. It was one of our more enjoyable table service meals.

 

[MainMom]

I could be wrong, but I think our waiter said that the $25 credit expires at some point in time, and we didn't know when we would be back. Unfortunately, Landry's only has one restaurant in the entire state of Wisconsin. Now that we have scheduled another trip, we might consider joining before hand so we can use the membership at the Boathouse and Yak and Yeti.

What side of WI are you on? Bubba Gumps and Rainforest Cafe are in the MOA.

 

[robinb]

More on those tuna nachos ...

Lou Mongello of WDW Radio wrote an article for People Magazine about the
"Best Hidden Gem Foods" at WDW and guess what made the list?

http://people.com/food/best-disney-world-restaurants-food-lou-mongello/lou-mongello_magic_kingdom