Where to eat?

[EnnEss]

Allo!

We're going to WDW for the first time and are taking advantage of the free dining offer. I've read a number of posts saying that many places book early and be sure to reserve ahead. When I went to do so though I realized there are SOOO many restaurants I just don't know where to even begin.

We're not big into food and we wont be making reservatios for more than a couple places during our 7 day stay, having said that does anyone have any suggestions or favorite places that are likely to require reservations? I've only been to DLR before and loved the Blue Bayou (located in the Pirates of the Caribean attraction).

Thanks!

 

[byoung]

Don't throw away your free dining book the restuarants now.

 

[Hope73]

Make your res not expecially if you have kids and want character meals. Maybe buffets are for you. Just eat at your owwn pace a lot or little. You may find Dining is part of the whole experience.

 

[Disney Crazy Debbie]

If you made ressies to take advantage of the free dining then do so. If you don't eat much then save the TS and use 2 TS for Cinderella's Royal Table, the atmosphere and theming is great and the kids will love it. They will fill very special there. Or try the buffet at Crystal Palace. Just have fun and pass don't pass on the opportunity but do plan and make ADRs soon because they do fill up fast.

 

[LISAMWDW]

Tell us what when, what days, which parks, how many kids and ages. Perhaps we can help you with more detail. You really need to make your ADR's now! You basically get one snack, one counter service meal and one table service meal per day per person. You WILL need to make your reservations for your table service meals ASAP!

 

[superdiz]

While I prefer to "fly by the seat of my pants" on vacation, on our vacation last September using the dining plan for free deal, we were so glad we had ADRs. There were people being turned away at literally every restaurant we went to because they were booked solid. And I saw a couple arguments over it. I would book your reservations.

I recommend:

Ohana (1 TS) at the Polynesian Resort
Le Cellier (1 TS) in Epcot/Canada Pavilion (you need a res. ASAP books fast)
BOMA (1 TS) at the Animal Kingdom Lodge.
Coral Reef (1 TS) Living Seas in Epcot
Whispering Canyon Cafe (1 TS) Wilderness Lodge
Le Chefs de France (1 TS) Epcot/France Pavilion
Biergarten (1 TS) Epcot/Germany Pavilion
ESPN Club (1 TS) Boardwalk Resort

 

[Jrabbit910]

Allo,
Is it just the two of you going on this trip or is there children involved?? and when are you going to Disney? What part of Sept?
Sorry for the questions but it really depends.. the first week in Sept is busy and another thread was posted about the end of Sept ADR and she was having a hard time booking any or changing them.
If its just two going then the standby lines for some restaurants will not be bad but doesnt gaurantee your getting in.

 

[MrShiny]

Reservations are a mustfor character meals. It's often a good idea for any sit down dinner, too. Especially in the parks, restaurants can often fill.

My favs:
'Ohana - Polynesian
Beaches & Cream - Beach Club
Le Cellier - Epcot
Coral Reef - Epcot
Teppanyaki - Epcot
Prime Time - MGM
Sci-Fi - MGM
Liberty Tree - MK
Whispering Canyon - Wilderness Lodge
California Grill - Contemporary
Cape May Cafe - Beach Club
Princess Storybook - Epcot
ESPN Zone - BoardWalk

 

[msgrimm23]

some of the places i eat at all the time when i go down is liberty tree tavern that has char (minnie goofy chip and dale)mk, biergaten in germany, the garden grill epcot, and the castle at mk, mama melroses in mgm is good too.

 

[Thinktinknpixiedust]

A close friend of mine was just given a wedding gift early... the lucky couple got a 7 day vacation to the World!! Even though she was excited she didn't get it at all!! She said things like "How far is the beach?" "we'll probably go to a couple of "other" parks." and the worst one of all... "I think we'll get bored if we don't rent a car and go other places!" I know that I had failed her at some point by not keeping her more informed ... After I calmed down and collected my thoughts I gently explained that she needed to at least make her ADR's so that she was guaranteed to eat at least one sit down meal a day. After rolling her eyes sure that I was crazy she agreed to sit down with me for a couple of hours one eveing and we would go over things... needless to say by the time I was done she got it!!! all thoughts of beaches and "other" places have left her head and she dreams in Disney now!!

The moral of the story... yes, make your ADR's. Free dining=full restaurants=hungry people=not magical vacation!!

 

[MagicMe]

You really should make your ADR's as soon as possible. You can always try to change them later (although you may not find anything available) or decide to skip one or two when you are down there (but please make sure to notify the restaurant so they can let some poor non-ADR person in your place). I was there last year from 9/11 through 9/18 and although I made ressies about 4-5 months out (you will note that I missed the 180 days since no one could make up their minds - except for the Hoop De Doo which we paid for), we had trouble getting times we would like (I tried to make a ressie for my oldest son and his friend for Norway for dinner and the earliest they could give them was like 9:40).

Some places you can make that day but some places are hard to get.

Food wise (for dinner) - we loved:

O'Hana's (at the Poly)
Liberty Tree Tavern (in MK - character)
PrimeTime (MGM)
Mexico (Epcot)
Le Cellier (Epcot)
The Garden Grill (Epcot - character)
and really so many more...

We've already booked many of these for our trip to MNSSHP (although LTT was already difficult to get and we had to settle for an early time).

Bottom line - I would definitely look at the menus (allearsnet.com) and select at least a few TS and make those ADR's!