Why Don't People Like Brown Derby? Should I Dump it for another Signature?

[DisneyFamily123]

Booked Brown Derby for the Fantasmic dinner package because we wanted to try different signature restaurants. On Deluxe DDP. Was this a good choice? Thanks for your opinions!

The menu looks great: crab cake and sashimi tuna appetizers, loch daurt salmon, filet of beef, the original grapefruit cake... I tend to ignore negative reviews about service unless there's a lot of them because service can always vary.

If we cancelled Brown Derby, we would do the Mama Melrose package. Mama Melrose was good in 2009 when we went but nothing interesting... just a restaurant. Or might do Sci Fi and skip the package.

Then, we would pick a different signature restaurant another night -- Artist Point or Yachtsman.. in place of a different 1 credit meal.

We already have ADRS for the other signatures - California Grill, Narcoosees, Citricos, Flying Fish. Went to Jiko last year. If I were to do any one twice in this trip, it would be Flying Fish because we love seafood.

 

[Debbie Jean]

We love BD and for DD (23) and I it's a must do... by far the best TS at HS.

However, I can understand folks who don't want to use 2 TS if they have regular DDP. When we do DDP we generally go Deluxe so it isn't such an issue. Otherwise, we pay cash.

We were there last month and DD had the tuna appetizer which she proclaimed the best she ever had and I had the pork chop which was fabulous! I'll be there again in a couple of weeks and really looking forward to it!

If you have the credits, then I say go for it

 

[OllieDannyandMe]

I am thinking about giving the Brown Derby a try again, so I am interested to see what people say. During my 2002 and 2003 trips, I had two of the best meals ever at the Brown Derby. I do not see the exact dish that we ordered on the menu now, but it was ahi tuna. Currently, there is an appetizer that looks very similar.

Then, I went in December 2008 and the food was lousy. My sister ordered the noodle bowl and I ordered the filet of beef. The noodle bowl tasted like a packaged mix (blech!) and the filet was tough and over-cooked. I sent the filet back and the second one was not any better. I am sure the server noticed that we did not eat our entrees, but she did not comment. I think she was trying to avoid the problem.

We were on the deluxe dining plan, so we just let it go. If I had been paying out of pocket, though, I would have been really disappointed. Even the dessert (grapefruit cake) was dry and lackluster. It was the week before Christmas and they were busy, so maybe it was just an off night?

We were so disappointed, though, that we didn't try it again in 2009.

 

[goodferry]

We were there in June and had a great meal! We were on the DXDP too, didn't mind spending the two credits at all. I would definitely pick it over Mama Melrose.

 

[Mary T in PA]

DH & I tried it many years ago and didn't care for it, so we always avoided it. On our last trip, we booked lunch and really enjoyed it. The food was good, but our server was ok.

 

[PatriciaH]

That tuna app is great! Love the cobb salad and their desserts too. We go every trip.

 

[daisygirl902]

We loved BD - 5 of us ate there and every meal was fantastic. And the grapefruit cake....mmmmmmmmmm - SO good.

 

[pooch]

esp if you are on DxDDP & credits aren't an issue. DD and I ate there last year and had a perfectly nice meal although I do not like the grapefruit cake - too sour for me. Service was impeccable and everything was prepared well. Being on the reg DDP, I would not use 2 credits to eat here (only F! pkg available last year). It wasn't signature dining good but, again, if credits aren't an issue, I'd keep this ADR.

 

[patsal]

Love Brown Derby, but it is totally not worth 2TS. I pay cash and am always happy!

 

[ElizabethB]

The grapefruit cake used to be delicious. It made BD a must-do restaurant for us. They would even provide the recipe on a derby-shaped card, if asked.

A few years ago, they quit making it on site and out-sourced it to some third party frozen food bakery. The cake is now frozen rather than fresh and has some kind of nominally edible covering around the outside edge, which no doubt helps to keep it fresh but does not taste good at all.

Since then, the grapefruit cake hasn't been worth the bother. The other things on the menu are not interesting enough to lure us back.

 

[TDC Nala]

People "don't like it" because 1) it's expensive and 2) it takes longer and doesn't serve "park food."

I never liked the grapefruit cake no matter who made it but I had a great seared salmon there in December. If I had the time I'd go whenever I could.

 

[MrsLS]

We went there in April and have another reservation this November. The food was excellent and the waiter was very good. The were on the deluxe plan and the pasta app was excellent. I forgot what my DH had for an app. I had the chicken dish for an entree which was good, and my DH had the steak and it was excellent, we hated all the steaks on this trip including Le Cellier & Jiko and this one was outstanding. Although we're use to good real steakhouse quality steaks and this one was up there. The desserts were okay but nothing special. I think this time I will try their signature dessert. Overall it was very good and I recommend. I think maybe people don't like the prices, but compared to local good places near me (NYC/NJ area) they are the same

 

[Simba22]

OK I'll be the nay-sayer for once!

First, you have to understand that we are not "foodies." We usually LOVE the places that every one else hates (Planet Hollywood, Nine Dragons, San Angel Inn, etc).

So for our trip that past October, we made an ADR for dinner at Brown Derby. We had heard good things and we were not on the DDP so we went for it.

I ordered herb marinated roast chicken and my BF had the steak.

He ordered the steak well done. It was burnt on the outside and still red on the inside. I wish I was exaggerating, but I'm not. We sent it back and it came back medium rare. He dealt with it at that point because he was hungry but he was upset about paying that much for a steak that wasn't cooked to his liking.

My chicken was a disaster in every aspect except the skin. The skin is where all the flavor was...leaving me to believe that it was basted and not marinated. Once the skin was gone, the meat was bland and extremely dry. And there was a giant lump of fat on one side that was the length of the whole piece of chicken. The rice it was served on was over cooked and bland.

Our server was non existent. He took our orders and we never saw him again until we got the bill. We had to ask another server that passed to please bring the steak back and for drink refills.

The cheesecake that we ordered for dessert,however, was great.

 

[carps09]

We had dinner at the BD during our honeymoon and loved it. The service was phenomenal, and they made sure we had a quieter table in the Bamboo Room for a more intimate feel. I think I had the grouper dish, which was delicious, and we of course loved the cobb salad. We are planning to go there again on our anniversary. It's no Cali Grill or Citricos, but BD is pleasant in its own right. I definitely would give BD a try!

 

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

I'm glad you asked about the Brown Derby because we plan to try it for the first time next trip as well. We have exhausted all the other TS at DHS we want to try.

Does anyone know if you can order the Cobb salad without some of the ingredients? I would love to try it minus the avocado.

 

[Pakey]

We've eaten at HBBD many times, the most recent was 6 weeks ago and I have an ADR here for my October vacation. I think it gets a lot of negativity because for 2TS credits on the dining plan, it's not as good of a "value" as the other signatures. And for park food, it is expensive. The service is at a slower pace, similar to what I expect at any expensive restaurant, but for a park restaurant, many complain that the service is too slow.

We do not do any sort of dining plan (we have AP's and use the TIW) and we have always been happy with the food here. I'm a little upset that they removed the scallop/pork belly appetizer and the seared ahi entree but there are still plenty of good things to have here. Also, the bar drinks are excellent; they really know how to make a martini, an old fashioned, etc.

 

[wildirishrose]

We truly enjoy the BD and go every year (have used DP, DXDP and OOP) and have loved it everytime, its a nice break from all the other places and I think its the only decent place to eat at HS. Have a dinner ressie this Oct, I love the cobb salad and have even got one to go.

 

[princessmom29]

We ate at BD for our fantasmic package in Nov and it was the best meal of our trip. DH had the mango salmon appy and a fish entree which he loved. I had the crab cake andthe fillet, both of which were fab!! I order my steak medium and it was perfect. The deeserts were great as well. I had cheesecake and it was good too. I asked Dh what he had and he said, "I don't know I just remember the salmon and it was GOOD."

 

[TDC Nala]

I'm glad you asked about the Brown Derby because we plan to try it for the first time next trip as well. We have exhausted all the other TS at DHS we want to try.

Does anyone know if you can order the Cobb salad without some of the ingredients? I would love to try it minus the avocado.

I have ordered it without the egg, no problem.

 

[GrtWtNorth]

Hmmm... It looks like the Brown Derby is losing the battle for consistent quality dining experiences. I've enjoyed a couple great meals there, including one during the same time period as a previous poster's terrible meal (December 2008).

In December 2008, we waited 20 minutes for a table (3:00 pm, no ADRs) and sat out on the patio on a sunny afternoon. Our entrees were good -- my wife had the fillet and I had the fish. We also ordered wine flights, which were delicious. Our DD fell asleep in the high chair and we just sipped wine and people-watched for an hour or two. It was a very relaxing meal -- we were not in any rush, and our server had a great sense of timing.