What are your restaurant picks (good value)? one per theme park, pls

[BigBeardie]

Hi everyone,

Could you suggest some of your favorite restaurants at each theme park? My husband & I don't have children. We are looking for yummy food (good selection at reasonable prices).
Thanks
Bigbeardie

 

[erikthewise]

I'll assume that you mean sit-down restaurants rather than counter service. And I'll just ignore that remark about "reasonable prices"!

Magic Kingdom: I'd have to go with Cinderella's Royal Table (in the castle). It's just about impossible to get into the character breakfast, but lunch and dinner are much easier. We had a great lunch there that was actually one of our less expensive sit-down meals (well under $50 total for 2 adults, 2 children). I've heard very good things about Plaza Restaurant having good basic food at reasonable prices.

Epcot: Garden Grill. Somewhat pricey but excellent American food. No "selection"; there's just one preplated meal, but it's a good one. There are a lot of interesting restaurants in World Showcase but it's hard to pick just one, and many of them are even more expensive than Garden Grill. Akerhaus (buffet) in Norway may be the best value; Le Cellier is probably the "safest" choice.

MGM: 50's Prime Time Cafe. Great "comfort" food and the nostagic decor is lots of fun. Again not cheap, but not too unreasonable by Disney standards. If you like buffets, Hollywood & Vine is a reasonably good one.

Animal Kingdom: Pass. As far as I know the only sit-down restaurant is Rainforest Cafe, and we've not eaten there.

 

[Aprille's Mom]

Hi BigBeardie,
I'm posting mostly so your question will get bumped up and maybe someone else can help you more than I can. When I see "reasonable prices", I tend to shy away from posting as I have conditioned myself to "Disney prices". But I will be happy to share with you some of our favorite places for what we consider "yummy food".

In Epcot, we like the Garden Grill in the Land Building in Future World. This is a character meal (lunch and dinner) and is pricey.There is a food court in the same building that is good too. Lots of choices and the food isn't bad.

In the Studios, we prefer Brown Derby for a sit down meal - again pricey but usually good. As a side note, we have eaten at Mama Melrose 3 times and were underwhelmed each time. But others love it.

In the Magic Kingdom, our favorite place is Cosmic's Rays (fast food but we like it). We plan to try Columbia Harbor House (also fast food) in June after reading many glowing reviews about it.

Choices in AK are limited to fast food unless you want to eat at the Rainforest Cafe. We prefer Tusker's. It's fast food but good and plentiful. Flame Tree Barbecue is pretty good too.

I also suggest you go to the Discussion Boards Home Page, scroll down the right side and click on "Dining info". It will give you menus and prices at most of the eating places in the World.

Welcome to the Boards and I hope you will get some more responses.

 

[jx3smom]

At Magic Kingdom we enjoy the Crystal Palace. We usually have a late breakfast there and it holds us over until dinner. I would recommend taking the monorail to the Poly for dinner at Ohana or Kona Kafe or for a very nice meal I'd take the boat to Wilderness Lodge and eat at Artist Pt.

At EPCOT we really enjoyed the Chefs de France for lunch. Or for a fast food lunch we love Norways counter service. I would suggest walking or taking the boat to the Boardwalk area for dinner. We love Flying Fish but it can be price. ESPN is a fun place for burgers or DH says the best wings anywhere. Cape May Buffet at the Beach Club is a nice seafood buffet.

At MGM we liked Mama Melrose for lunch or dinner.

At AK we usually just have lunch at the Tusker House. It is very good for counter service.

 

[lissawynn]

MK - Cinderella's Royal Table - My DH and I ate here during our honeymoon trip in Sept. '02. Lunch was very good. We both had the beef barley soup. I had the ham and turkey on foccica, and my DH had the chicken ceasar salad.

MGM - 50's Prime Time Cafe - The food was good, but I felt rather rushed. Cousin Mark was our server, and I think he took his role a little too far at times. Not a bad place if you're in the mood for some antics while you dine.

 

[Eeyore1954]

At MK -- I like the Crystal Palace. The buffet is good and plentiful; there's enough there to please almost anyone.

At Epcot -- Love Restaurant Marrakesh (Morocco). Wonderful food that is not all that exotic; belly dancer (!) and wonderful atmosphere.

At Disney Studios -- 50's Prime Time. Terrific comfort food -- love the meatloaf or pot roast; good veggies and desserts that are to die for. It is a MUST DO on any visit.

AK -- no great choices here which is a real tragedy. Rainforest is OK, but service there is hit or miss (unless you sit near the kitchen and then it's more like getting hit! ) When at AK, I usually settle for Pizzafari or Tusker. Not great, but it's at least edible and filling.

 

[crisi]

Combine good selection with good value and you'll have it tough.
Fast food places usually specialize on one or two things (it keeps the line moving and is brilliant from a logistical standpoint). Sit down places are themed - so you can get variety within the theme, but if by variety you mean fajitas, stirfry, pasta and burgers on the same menu, it gets tough.

I'll take the counter service aspect:

At MK we like Cosmic Rays. Their sandwiches are huge and can be split between two people (especially two people saving room for a Mickey Bar or Dole Whip) for around $7. (Selection isn't much burgers at one window, chicken at another, sandwiches and salads at a third and your sandwich choices are a Philly or a Sub).

At Epcot, try the Food Court at the land for both selection and value. You can also snack your way around the World Showcase - you'll have lots of selection, you'll just have to walk from sushi to burgers to tabouleh to tacos.

Tusker House at AK.

I haven't found a good meal yet at MGM, but I haven't spent much time there.

See www.wdwig.com for menus.

 

[AmyA]

I also vote for CRT for lunch at MK--DH and I really enjoyed this. Another thought is to hop on the monorail and head to the Poly for lunch at Kona Cafe. That will definitely be a great meal and "reasonable" (for Disney, lol).

MGM--we always eat at HBD. Pricey but delicious and worth it!

Epcot--a good reasonable meal if you are somwhat adventurous is Akershus. This is a must do for us.

AK--our first choice is Flame Tree Barbeque. It's counter service so the selection is rather limited, but we have never had a bad meal here.

 

[TexasErin]

MK- Crystal Palace for breakfast. It is a buffet so it is not exactly cheap. However, we like to make a late breakfast PS and we are full enough that we can skip lunch and just have a snack and then dinner later. I love the french toast and breakfast potatoes. This is my very favorite meal anywhere. If you like breakfast foods, I would highly recommend it. This place has a great selection.

Studios- 50's Prime Time. I really like the atmosphere since I used to watch the old shows (like Donna Reed and I Love Lucy). The food is good and is big enough to split. I think next time DH and I will get the cheese fries, split lunch, and split dessert. The P B & J shake is a must for me.

Epcot- This is a hard choice for me. We really like San Angel Inn (great nachos) and Teppanyaki. Both have excellent atmosphere and food, IMHO.

Rainforest Cafe- We are trying Donald's Breakfastasaurus (did I mention I like breakfast). This place gets a lot of good reviews on this board.

Have fun. The only place I would skip is Rose and Crown, although a lot of people really love it. If a place sounds good to you, I say you should try it for yourself and not let a few negative comments sway you away. Every restaurant has people who hate it and people who love it.

 

[skuttle]

MK: Cindy's for lunch or dinner. We've always had great meals here. The food is really good and the atmosphere can't be beat! It's so magical being in the castle.

MGM: 50's. We've had two great meals here, too. The food is pretty good and if you get an outgoing aunt/uncle/cousin, it's LOTS of fun!

Epcot: That's a tough one...so many restaurants. We've eaten at San Angel, Le Cellier, and Teppanyaki. I would go back to San Angel and Le Cellier...we really enjoyed both. We're trying Rose and Crown and Garden Grill in a couple of weeks!

AK: Hmmm...I'd leave AK and run over to AKL and go to Boma. LOVE Boma!!

Resort: O'hana!! YUM! YUM! YUM!!!!!!

 

[BigBeardie]

Thanks for your suggestions!!!!

I printed your messages ... my disney trip is only one week away - can't wait!!!

Bigbeardie

 

[eeyore0062]

I think I would have to choose Cinderella's Royal Table at the MK, even though I haven't eaten there, I have heard good things. None of the rest of the restaurants in the MK at which we have eaten have had any appeal to me. We do like Pecos Bills for a quick bite... their fixin's bar is the best!

At Epcot, we like Le Cellier for dinner. Yes, a bit pricey, but well worth it.

At MGM we like so many of the restaurants, it is difficult to only choose one. For fun, good home cooked food and humor, we would go to 50's Prime Time Cafe ( we do this every trip), for a more sedate sitdown meal I would choose Brown Derby, at lunch... get an early PS. For something middle of the road, Mama Melrose is our choice.

At Animal Kingdom other than Rainforest Cafe, there really aren't any sitdown restaurants, unless you are looking for a character meal at Restaurantosaurus ( which I have heard is good). Our favorite place to eat is Tusker House, which has great chicken dishes, indoor, or outdoor seating and it very reasonable.

As far as eating at the resorts, one of the best values we have found is Cape May Cafe at the Beach Club for dinner.

Bon Apetit!

 

[jamsmom]

I HAVE to do 50'2 Prime Time Cafe every time I go to MGM (or at least once a trip) I always order the pot roast.