WHY do you like fine dining in Disney?

[LuluLovesDisney]

This is for the people for whom eating is part of the Disney experience and will spend the extra money for the truly standout dining experiences:

Why?

Are you a foodie who dines in special places often, or someone who rarely dines out and enjoys the ability to do so on vacation?

Are you a gourmand who cooks wonderful meals every day, or someone who eats convenience foods or quick meals at home and enjoys the opportunity to dine in Disney?

Just curious about this. Personally, I am trying a few of the more upscale dining places because this is a really special vacation and I very rarely dine out at home, I usually cook quick meals and I really want to "live it up" this time around.

 

[MissionMouse]

A trip to Disney is not only a vacation but a family celebration to bring us all together. A key component to any celebration is food and dining is a social occasion...not a hustle up quick - eat- lets go occasion.

We dine out occasionally at home but rarely fast food for health and other reasons. The finer dining options at WDW provides a relaxing break from the pace of the day, with food selections and services making a special day even more special.

 

[unixadm]

1. We enjoy good food, a nice atmosphere and trying new foods.

2. We have to eat no matter what.....If I have my choice of junk food, or a finer dining experience, the finer experience will win out most of the time.

3. My wife is a fantastic cook, so I am spoiled.

4. We are on vacation. Vacations for us involve enjoying good meals with the family. We have enough quick, rushed, and meals during the regular hustle and bustle of life.

5. Did I mention that my wife's a great cook, and I still want to enjoy good food when eating out??

6. Our kids actually stay seated and eat when we go to a nice restaurant. That is a huge plus!

7. Disney has so many places to eat, and I want to work my way around and eat at every single place!

8. We tend to dine out about once per week at home although not usually a fine dining experience. Fine dining in Disney gives us an excuse to eat a bit better than we do when we go out at home.

9. We like to introduce new things to the kids. New foods, nice restaurants, etc is a good experience for them.

10. My wife's an awesome cook....oh, I think I mentioned that before

 

[patsal]

1. With our busy schedules we rarely eat out during the regular year.

2. Dining is a part of special family occasions and vacation is a special family occasion hwere we can all share and reconnect without me having to cook!

3. While I enjoy wonderful gourmet meals it is not practical to cook that way nightly, financially, kitchen set up or calorie wise.

4. We are not really eat and run people, we enjoy good food, good drink and good conversation.

5. I'm on vacation It is nice not to always think of how much each item is, but to enjoy the whole experience.

 

[smraynor]

My wife and I are constantly surprised and delighted with the superb quality of the Disney fine dining experience. We've had a few duds over the years but we have a few places we consistantly enjoy.

We also enjoy the "smoke free" environment...coming from rural North Carolina where smoky restaurants are the norm.

We also feel good about the cleanliness of the Disney restaurants...especially after driving down I-95 to get to WDW and finding that most restaurants aren't the cleanest.

And of course we usually receive excellent service!

 

[ducklite]

Disney is a resort which happens to have theme parks. Regardless of the resort we travel to, fine dining is part of the experience.

I'm a fairly good cook, and dinners at my home range from simple to elaborate. (Tonight was a bowl of cereal for me and toast for my son who is abttling a tummy bug--so I guess my previous statement makes no sense LOL!)

I enjoy fine dining, and often have the opportunity to speak to the chef, get recipe's and creative ideas. I've successfully recreated several wonderful meals I've been served at WDW at home.

Anne

 

[LoveWDW]

We live in a semi-rural area, and there aren't many nice places to eat.

We don't have to drive after enjoying adult beverages.

Eating at a nice place on vacation is part of the vacation experience.

 

[Aimeedyan]

-We enjoy eating at nice places when we have the time to devote to it, and the opportunity. We live in an area that offers very little in way of fine dining, or even "finer" than Applebees.

-We've done the parks and don't feel the need to go-go-go anymore, but instead see the other parts of Disney - which include the wonderful restaurants they have to offer.

-And we just like good food.

 

[DeirdreTours]

Well, I am going to buck the herd here......

I don't think disney offers fine dining. Most of the food we have eaten at WDW has been exceptionally.....ordinary. But we pay for TS meals anyway-- mainly for the entertaining experience provided or the relaxing atmosphere away from the heat and the crowds. A meal wolfed down at counter service just isn't something I typically enjoy.

Which isn't to say that we haven't had good food at disney. We have (yummy cheeseburgers at the SciFi or interesting and tasty ethnic dishes at Boma's or Jiko, good buffet basics at the Crystal Palace, etc.) But we have never had great food or truly top notch restaurant service there.

 

[vanyel]

The dining experience at wdw is more than "fine dining"; it's a dining experience from ethnic foods at Epcot to upscale (V & A). For us, going to wdw is a total resort experience (Anne said it best!), and dining is part of the vacation.

We like trying different restaurants and types of food and eat out regularly. Often we try different restaurants (we use the entertainment book frequently). My dh is the cook in our hourse and he is always trying new recipes.

 

[ducklite]

Well, I am going to buck the herd here......

I don't think disney offers fine dining. Most of the food we have eaten at WDW has been exceptionally.....ordinary. But we pay for TS meals anyway-- mainly for the entertaining experience provided or the relaxing atmosphere away from the heat and the crowds. A meal wolfed down at counter service just isn't something I typically enjoy.

Which isn't to say that we haven't had good food at disney. We have (yummy cheeseburgers at the SciFi or interesting and tasty ethnic dishes at Boma's or Jiko, good buffet basics at the Crystal Palace, etc.) But we have never had great food or truly top notch restaurant service there.

Um, by the sounds of it you havne't dined at Citrico's or Victoria and Alberts, both of which have exceptional food and service. V&A's regularly earns the five diamons award. You do'n earn that by asking if they want fries with that burger.

Anne

 

[chamonix]

Yes, I agree with ducklite, "fine dining" at Disney doesn't just mean "TS" restaurants. Diedre, I think most of us on this thread are discussing other restaurants like Citricos, V&A, Jiko, Narcossees, etc. Just because somewhere is "table service" as opposed to counter service surely doesn't mean fine dining! I will say that overall the "TS" restaurants at WDW (and DL) certainly leave much to be desired. The truly "fine dining" restaurants, while always variable and open to personal experiences and tastes, of course, are on par with other comparable businesses in other places. I wish they had more of them, though!

I love trying new places, new food, new tastes--and agree with everyone upthread--we just like new tastes and experiences, etc. We will always make time for fine dining experiences while at WDW.

 

[MrMoodly]

I have worked in a fine dining restaurant and have eaten at many. Victoria and Albert's is simply the finest I have every eaten at.

 

[goofie4goofy]

We are not junk food or fast food eaters. I make home made pizza more often than bringing it home.

I love to cook actually I love everything about cooking....I am in Williams Sonoma all the time. Half the fun of cooking is the gadgets, knives and cookware.

We also go out for dinner twice a week. We are very lucky we have a huge selection of upscale restaurants where we live.

The food markets are wonderful too, so we are used to high quality food and produce...I get tired of cooking before I get bored of it.

So I guess we are food snobs, but we really love the entire dining experience. From getting dressed up, to the atmosphere, service and just savoring everything.

going out for nice dinners on vacation are a must! Food is part of the memory.

 

[DeirdreTours]

After my experiences at Jiko's and Citricos, I must say I have never been tempted to try V&A. The food at Jiko's and Citricos was good, but certainly not exceptional. The bills however, were quite exceptional! The service was also adequate but not what one would receive in a truly fine dining restaurant in New York, Paris or London (food has improved greatly in London in the last twenty years). The food at Boma's is very good- but it a buffet that doesn't claim "fine dining" (although it uses the same kitchen at Jiko)

But, I want to point out again that I still go to Disney restaurants because I do enjoy the overall experience. I just think calling it "fine dining" builds expectations that will probably not be met. Frankly, I think the term "fine dining" is way overused. Perhaps you are right and V&A really meets that standard. I will certainly argue that Citricos and Jiko do not.

 

[pbharris4]

I agree with some of the others as TS not quite being "fine dining." But I do like a lot of TS restaurants. We typically eat out once per week. Once in awhile we'll go to a more upscale restaurant in either No. VA/DC area or Richmond. Normally, I love to create new dishes or more gourmet type dishes, but when I had another child (whose 2 now) I pretty much threw that aside in favor for whatever is quick and easy. My kids are pretty well mannered in restaurants. We usually do 1 TS a day. It's part of the experience to try something new. We do eat CS usually for lunch. Besides I really think that most CS is salads, burgers, hot dogs, chicken tenders, maybe ribs, or a sandwich. I want more choices. It also gets us out of the heat. And a big plus would be is that I make advanced reservations and usually don't have to wait really long and in a long line. Our most expensive part of our trip is the dining.

 

[goofie4goofy]

After my experiences at Jiko's and Citricos, I must say I have never been tempted to try V&A. The food at Jiko's and Citricos was good, but certainly not exceptional. The bills however, were quite exceptional! The service was also adequate but not what one would receive in a truly fine dining restaurant in New York, Paris or London (food has improved greatly in London in the last twenty years). The food at Boma's is very good- but it a buffet that doesn't claim "fine dining" (although it uses the same kitchen at Jiko)

But, I want to point out again that I still go to Disney restaurants because I do enjoy the overall experience. I just think calling it "fine dining" builds expectations that will probably not be met. Frankly, I think the term "fine dining" is way overused. Perhaps you are right and V&A really meets that standard. I will certainly argue that Citricos and Jiko do not.

I would put Citricos and Cali Grill in the same category (never been to Jiko)..I would give them a 4 (out of 5) V&A's gets a 5. I would call Citricos and the like "upscale" and V&A's as "superior". I have some favorite 5 star restaurants that we frequent and compare it to ...le Bernadin in NYC and Picasso in Las Vegas. V&A's is right up there with them...it is an outstanding and memorable meal.

 

[ducklite]

I guess you haven't dined out in NY lately. My husband and I had dinner at a four star and four diamond rated restaurant in a NYC suburb about a month ago, and they totally messed up our meal. They literally forgot to take my order! We were trying to grab the server, he kept ignoring us, and then my husbands entree was brought out, and I told him to start eating--and still hadn't placed my order. What a kerfuffle! Our dinner bill was much higher than what we would have paid for a comparable meal (only in the quantity and quality of food) at WDW.

As far as the standard of service equating to fine dining at WDW, it truly depends on your server. There are a very few at certain WDW restaurants that offer an exceptionally polished service equivelent to any in any world-class restaurant. Regretfully there aren't enough like them.

Anne

 

[MissionMouse]

I think a real point here is that you can only do so much with preparing food.

When you talk about four and five start restaurants we are starting to focus on the other items like a changing menu and the level of service. Overall, the food quality of a five star restaurant is a given but then it comes down to the atmosphere, changing menu and the pampering service/details that accompanies the food.

 

[MrMoodly]

Hi Again,

Our meal at V & A's was very memorable. All the wait staff are either a Victoria or Albert. While being superior wait staff, they are also in character. They are attentive and fun if you want them to be or just extremely efficient as when they served the table to our right where nothing could possibly have been good enough for that couple. Too much money, not enough class. The menu's for the day were at your place setting, in caligraphy, folded in a black cover with your name in gold on the outside. The dinner offerings were all from fresh ingredients from the market that day. The choices were outstanding. We also were offered fresh rare truffles on our meals - we had them but as in some experiences we wouldn't spend the extra money again, but I am glad that we tried them. We picked the superior wine offerings. You have a choice of pairings - standard (which were great) and superior ( which were outstanding). I have never been able to train myself to pick wines and you have that stress taken away from you. You don't have to buy an entire bottle but are offered the best selection possible for that dish. Outstanding. The meals are unbelievable. The desserts that we picked were the soufle's and my chocolate one was great but my wifes apple was even better so I shared hers too. The coffee experience on the table was also a new wonderful treat. The ambience was lovely, the flowers in the giant vase in the middle of the room was so nice. The room was beautiful. I highly recommend this dining experience. We are going to have the chef's table when we next go.

Mr Moodly