What Are All These Posts About Food Quality/Selection Going Down? Got me worried.

[proteus]

When we booked we were not informed about the free dining so I will be paying oop. We will be eating a lot in Epcot (Japan, France, England, Canada, Italy, Coral Reef, etc.) at the table service restaurants as well as Artists Point in our resort.

Now I'm reading posts that since WDW is giving free dining for the entire stay that they have cut back on the quality and selection of the dishes. One person even said that the Olive Garden is better than a lot of the restaurants in WDW. I don't see paying $50-$70 per meal for two if this is all true. Can someone enlighten me?

 

[quixoticvalue]

I can. People like to complain more than compliment. Just an observation, so I really am not out to be a troll.

I still love Disney Dining. Dbf and I do not need filets at every restaurant to still be happy with our entree's. I understand that we are not the norm and their are many who disagree with me, but the abundance of choices at Disney are still there--you just have to be more inclined to look for it and accept different tastes and cuisine.

And honestly, I am also a little down over the sudden negativity going on (just my personal observation and opinion). In fact, yesterday I was pondering on starting a thread like this too.

So here to disney dining--I still can't wait for ya in 24 days!!!

 

[asmit4]

When we booked we were not informed about the free dining so I will be paying oop. We will be eating a lot in Epcot (Japan, France, England, Canada, Italy, Coral Reef, etc.) at the table service restaurants as well as Artists Point in our resort.

Now I'm reading posts that since WDW is giving free dining for the entire stay that they have cut back on the quality and selection of the dishes. One person even said that the Olive Garden is better than a lot of the restaurants in WDW. I don't see paying $50-$70 per meal for two if this is all true. Can someone enlighten me?

Back in 'the day', DW used to have many great restaurants with chefs that made unique food, unique sauces etc. The food was designed and created by the chefs and the price attached to it was whatever the restaurant/DW felt appropriate.

Now with the DDP (many people say) and the increase in food costs, things that were once highlights on menus are disappearing. You will probably not notice, as the average traveler would have no idea, but us DISers who have done DW since the 90s do recognize the loss.

The latest news is that 3 or 4 restaurants (don't have the list but it's somewhere) have either removed steak from their menu or downgraded the type of steak on the menu. Many of us steak lovers are a bit upset over this issue as it appears to all have happened at once- like in the past few weeks.

DWs food is on par with Olive Garden (TS places that is), or nicer than Olive Garden IMO. I don't expect 5 star high end dining, after all, I can show up in shorts and a t-shirt! LOL! I go in with the assumption that I will be getting a meal that is slightly better than your average chain restaurant. I haven't been sorry yet.

Now, if they keep removing items? I might have to change my tune.

 

[mickey mommy]

I don't think the quality is down. The menus are often changing and at times some of the more popular items are being replaced or dropped off the menu. My daughter was upset that crab legs were taken off the coral reef menu, but we are still going there. She looked again at the new menu, and said, I guess I'll just get the steak intstead. Not sure why they do what they do, but I'm sure Disney has their reasons. Just keep in mind that it's a resort, obviously, the prices are high and if you compare a $70 meal back home to a $70 meal at Disney, it probably won't be comparable. I don't think the quality has gone down, but I'll be able to report back on that in a couple of weeks. Last weekend we took the kids to Wildwood, NJ for a quick overnight stay. Talk about lousy expensive food. All we could think about was how we couldn't wait to get to Disney. The food's expensive, but at least it's good. Free Dining is even better, so we don't even have to worry about that! Sometimes, people get on a negativity kick and it seems like Disney is terrible and out to get everyone. Take a look at the positive side of things and for goodness sake, we're going to be in Disney World again! I know that food is an intricate part of the whole vacation package and my DH thinks I'm a little OCD when it comes to planning out all the ADR's, he just doesn't realize that we wouldn't eat at all if it weren't planned out like that. But the magic of Disney, to me, isn't the food. It's knowing that I'll probably tear up when my little one sees Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella. And when my son finds out that he's tall enough to get on some of the rides he's been hoping to get on. Things like that are what makes a vacation.

 

[MickeyNicki]

I have never been during free dining, we are going this Aug 22-24 so I hope the food is still yummy

We did Italy, Germany and France in April, all three were awesome. We did Spoodles and MM in June and again it was great!

 

[MainStMandy]

I have to disagree...I know there are a lot of "foodies" that are dissapointed by the homogenized menus. And I can see that...but I don't see the quality of the food that IS still there doing down...and I don't agree that it is on par with Olive Garden. I have had very few BAD dining experiences at Disney. I am looking forward to my ADR's for my upcoming trip.

Don't sweat it until you try it!

 

[asmit4]

I think it also depends on where you go. For instance, 50s prime time, is exactly what it sounds like- a 50s diner type place. You can't and don't expect 4 star dining. Beaches and Cream is an ice cream place that makes decent burgers- once again, it's not gonna be on par with fine dining.

Raglan Road IMO- ranks a notch or two above an applebees. It has a varied menu with some higher end items but still very much in line with a burger place plus it has a nice atmosphere. Reminds me of Irish Pub food- as it should

ESPN is ESPN- it ranks just the same as a Planet Hollywood or a Hard Rock IMO. I would put Raglan Road a notch above both of these.

A place like Narcoossees ranks up there with fine dining. Is it the BEST meal you will ever eat in your life? Probably not, but is it a top quality meal with top quality service? Sure is! It ranks up there with many 4 star fine dining options in our area. It has a magnificant wine list, a sommelier that truly KNOWS his wines, and servers that are friendly and know high end service.

 

[proteus]

Back in 'the day', DW used to have many great restaurants with chefs that made unique food, unique sauces etc. The food was designed and created by the chefs and the price attached to it was whatever the restaurant/DW felt appropriate.

Now with the DDP (many people say) and the increase in food costs, things that were once highlights on menus are disappearing. You will probably not notice, as the average traveler would have no idea, but us DISers who have done DW since the 90s do recognize the loss.

The latest news is that 3 or 4 restaurants (don't have the list but it's somewhere) have either removed steak from their menu or downgraded the type of steak on the menu. Many of us steak lovers are a bit upset over this issue as it appears to all have happened at once- like in the past few weeks.

DWs food is on par with Olive Garden (TS places that is), or nicer than Olive Garden IMO. I don't expect 5 star high end dining, after all, I can show up in shorts and a t-shirt! LOL! I go in with the assumption that I will be getting a meal that is slightly better than your average chain restaurant. I haven't been sorry yet.

Now, if they keep removing items? I might have to change my tune.

Slightly better than the average chain restaurant? That is way below what I experienced before in 1999-2007, so the quality drop started in 2008?

So if we go to Bistro de Paris in the France pavilion we can expect food that is just a tad better than something like Appleby's? We don't even eat at Appleby's the food is so bad there, the last time we went DD got sick and vomited.

Here is a dish from Bistro de Paris:

Grilled beef tenderloin with morels, potatoes, and shallot confit $36.00

If what everyone is saying is true then this is a joke. I don't know how WDW can justify a $36 entree and it is comparable to the Olive Garden.

 

[asmit4]

Well- here are 2 things on the Olive Garden menu-

Tender boneless beef short ribs slow cooked in a chianti wine sauce. Served with portobello mushroom risotto and steamed vegetables.

Grilled 14 oz choice center cut Strip steak brushed with Italian herbs and extra-virgin olive oil. Served with Tuscan potatoes and bell peppers.

Here is the description from Longhorn steakhouse-a popular steak restaurant-

A tender 9 oz. Filet cooked the way you like and topped with melted bleu cheese. Served atop a bed of red-wine glazed portabella mushrooms.

I do feel that you pay for the DW atmosphere and I am 100% fine with that. As stated above- it also greatly depends on where you choose to dine. A place like Chef de France is going to be nicer than ESPN Zone. I also feel that Olive Garden is a much nicer place than Applebees- applebees is a lower end chain restaurant. Olive Garden- I'd put as a moderate chain.

I figured this would cause an upset, but overall- I do feel that most DW TS places rank on the high end for theming and interiors, but tend to rank more in the moderate level for food quality. Many of the 2TS places however, do fit what I consider to be a high level on all accounts.

 

[LisaInNc]

I am disappointed with some of the menu changes. If this is your first time dining you should be fine. A lot of us are complaining because we have been eating at these restaurants for years and have seen them get worse and worse. They seem to keep changing but not in a good way. Prices keep going up, portions might be smaller, menus are a lot more limited.

I don't think your meals will be bad. They might not be memorable but in my option ANY meal in Disney is better than a meal someplace else.

Coral Reef is disappointing food wise compared to what is used to be I have noticed a steady decline in the food quality while being quite expensive but the atmosphere is really nice. It's an enjoyable meal even if the food is not memorable. I have eaten here a number of times and I have enjoyed the atmpsphere but in the been there done that philosophy I will not be returning even WITH free dining.

Le Cellier is a steak place it's like any steak place you have been to. People rave about it because it's still 1 Table Service credit. The food isn't any better than any other place that serves a good steak. The atmosphere is nothing special. In the future if I want steak I am going off Disney and finding someplace else to eat it.

Teppan Edo is your typical Japanese Steak House, it's overpriced for what you get and they don't do friend rice. You can find this type of meal just about anywhere.

Tutto Italia is overpriced Olive Garden, in all fairness it's a little better than Oliva Garden. The atmosphere is nicer but not on par with Coral Reef. Spaghetti and meatballs for 24.00 ! BUT it is served by real Italian waiters with those dreamy accents and that always added something to the experience for me

You are paying for convenience. It's nice to be able to tour the parks all day and then sit down for a nice meal in air conditioning.

I am going during free dining so I am eating at the typical places. For future trips I will be planing about half of my meals off site. There is a Macaroni Grill right near Downtown Disney and their food will be just as good and a whole lot cheaper than the restaurant in Italy. It's not a big inconvenience to go there because it's not far away. If I want Japanese I will find a place outside of Disney same with Steaks.

 

[Katiebell]

Now with the DDP (many people say) and the increase in food costs, things that were once highlights on menus are disappearing. You will probably not notice, as the average traveler would have no idea, but us DISers who have done DW since the 90s do recognize the loss.

Just a side note...I really appreciate that you included the qualifier "many people say" It does amuse me that so many people continue to blame the DDP for the decline in quality, quantity, and variety at the WDW restaurants. DL doesn't even have a dining plan, and the same thing could be said about the DL restaurants over the years -- prices have shot up, portions are smaller, quality has gone down. The DDP did not cause the changes -- the DDP is part of Disney's overall strategy to increase profit in the food service division:

- standardize menus, at least to some degree (cheaper to buy the same main ingredients in larger quantities and distribute to all the restaurants)
- base the value of the DDP on all of the food the guests could possibly order and eat, not what they will actually end up ordering (how many people leave WDW with unused credits? Or say after 2 or 3 days that they don't even want the CS desserts and ask for bottles of water or a piece of fruit instead?)
- encourage guests to stay on property for their whole vacation, to make sure they get to every one of their daily ADR's -- and eliminate the need for a rental car that would take them off Disney property with the ME and WDW buses and boats

Disney is in business to make money, and they are very successful at doing that But even though Disney prices have inched up and up, it's not really any more than the inflation we are experiencing everywhere else. Disney still has to pay wages, gas for all those vehicles, the electric bill, the water bill, and the wholesale food costs for everything that ends up on our plates -- and all those prices have gone up for them, too. So if they can take the filets off some of their menus, and replace them with less expensive steaks and save $X per diner, while still serving good steaks, and not raising prices so high that guests will balk and stop eating at the TS restaurants...

 

[inkkognito]

We're foodies for what it's worth, and we've used the purchased version of the DDP in various forms ever since we started visiting WDW (late 1980s for me/early 1990s w/DH). I'm sad to say that we have indeed noticed a steady decline which seemed to accelerate with the free dining. But that's not to say that ALL WDW dining has declined. The signature restaurants are still excellent...we live in Celebration now and run over to eat at Jiko, Citricos and Artist Point all the time.

Probably the biggest slide I've seen is at Brown Derby (not sure, but I wonder if that's a one-credit restaurant...if so, that makes sense). That used to be our all time favorite at DHS and one of our favorite all-around WDW restaurants but we only go once in a while now (the cobb salad is still exellent, thank goodness). Many of the buffets have become more limited too over the years. Oh well, you're still definitely not going to go hungry at WDW, and foodies do still have good options among the signature places.

And interestingly enough, the restaurant in Mexico tends to get awful reviews but in my estimation is has actually improved lately.