Why, why do people have problems with WCC? Why??

[Lorelai]

I don't get it. We are about to have our first meal at Whispering Canyon Cafe next month. But it seems to be a love it, or hate it, place. Why is this? Maybe I won't understand until we go there for ourselves.

 

[tiggergirlinMI]

I know what you mean, but personally I never get why people don't like it. Maybe they don't like the interaction. We hardly interact when we go, we like to watch the people around us, and the servers respect that. The food, honestly? is some of the best we think. But we love BBQ and their roasted chicken is delicious! We love this place but I agree with you, we decided to try it for ourselves over a year ago. And the first thing I said to my sons was "Why didn't we do this alot sooner?" Enjoy!

 

[Cleokitty]

The food was good but the noise level was too much for my younger daughter (six at the time we went). She didn't like not knowing when folks were going to start yelling. She's not shy by any means but is prone to migraines when stressed and that place did it for her on our first night! Too much commotion at dinner time. Too bad too because like I said, the food was good.

Guess we know better than to try 50's Prime Time Cafe on our December trip, huh? I'm sure she would not see the humor in being scolded by a complete stranger!

 

[Aimeedyan]

I think it's the hype. Really. SOOOO many people come and rave and rave about it and it just can't live up to the expectations. That happened to us with breakfast at Kona.

 

[phyllis1966]

We love it, too! It seems as though your enjoyment depends a lot upon your server. Quite a few posters have reported indifferent and/or inattentive servers, which would certainly put a damper on your dining experience.

Also, many folks do not like the noisy atmosphere. The first time we went, DD had just turned 5 and had a great time (fun, female server). The next time, 6 months later, we had BJ as our server (fun, boisterous guy) and DD was very unhappy and shy and couldn't wait to leave. She didn't even want dessert, which is unheard of ! She was going through an "afraid of men" phase and we felt really bad for her, but we weren't about to leave (and drag Grandma and Poppy with us) in the middle of dinner! She was OK when we left, but you just never know how some kids (and adults) will react to the shenanigans there.

 

[LoriLea]

We ate at WCC our first night in Aug 2004. We were seated in a quiet section of the restaurant, away from all of the action. I had not 'forewarned' DH and DS10,DD7 about what goes on there so I was the only one that was a little bit disappointed. We really enjoyed the food (had the skillet) but I decided that I wouldn't go out of my way to eat there again.

We are staying at WL for our upcoming trip and guess where we have 2 ADR's?
WCC - one for our first night's dinner and one for our last breakfast! I know we'll all enjoy it!

I don't love it but I don't hate it!

 

[Angiepea]

Dont go there if you want a quite dinner If you are up for a lot a fun, and noise then go for it. Be prepared to take part and ask for the restroom, or a straw. Even if you are only visiting the world for 5 days, you can have quite meals all the other days, Go Enjoy, have fun and if you dont like dont go again.
We will be going again on our next visit
Angie

 

[PartyOf5]

We love going here for dinner and we enjoy the interaction with the waiter/waitress. However, if you don't have a "fun" waiter/waitress, it really makes all the difference.

This past trip, we went for lunch and it was a disappointment for us...there was no interaction by anyone. It was like it was a different restaurant.

So I would highly recommend dinner over lunch.

 

[PattnFmly]

This is DH's favorite restaurant! He just loved the skillet and can't wait to go back - it's his only request for our upcoming fall trip! When we went last year, we picked this restaurant for the food that was there, not particularly for the interaction. Just as we pick certain character meals for the interaction rather than just the food. But that being said, our interaction was just great, not too over the top, the boys (6&4 at the time) loved doing the Pony Express around the restaurant. We didn't notice the noise level, but then dinner at our house with just the 4 of us isn't exactly quiet either! We often have the CD player playing Disney tunes during dinner and have been known to get up in the middle of dinner to dance to the Playhouse Disney theme song ......

 

[patsal]

I know a ton of people love this place, For us it isn't that WCC is a bad place, the restaurant atmosphere is great, we enjoy watching the antics and heck we'd even participate if the situation presented itself, for me it was the food--tried it twice and really didn't enjoy it. The first time I chalked it up to bad luck, the second time I figut\red there were other places I could go and enjoy myself more.

 

[mommykds]

I think a lot of it depends on which server you get. That friendly, attentive servce can make all the difference.

We unfortunately had a horrible server last October so we will not be going back..and the skillet was yucky.

 

[Luvamouse]

if this will be a place my family will enjoy or not. My side of the family is wild, crazy and noisy! I don't imagine WCC will top our family get togethers. But DH's family is reserved and pretty quiet. The word boring even springs to mind at times... So I am not sure if he will like it, tolerate it or hate it when/if it really gets going. I plan on doing it for our first night's ADR since we'll be coming in that afternoon at WL. Like previous posters have said, I think a lot depends on the server and the amount of interaction at the time you go. If you are looking for lots of wild fun-- you may get it or be disappointed when it's quieter. If you are hoping it isn't a circus, you could be pleased when it is toned down. I just hope the food makes it worth it whichever scenario plays out! I know many really enjoy the food and some are disappointed, but that happens at every restaurant. I don't expect a quiet 2TS dinner and I think I'll get just what I expect!

Let us know what you think of it!

Heidi

 

[Servants of Evan]

I agree with one of the earlier posts: It's the hype and resulting expectation levels. Through this board and others, people come to expect a certain level of "magic" at each and every moment and feel cheated if they don't get the same "magic" that someone else has experienced. Every single dining experice is a bit different -- the food, the service, interaction -- let alone our particular taste likes and dislikes. This makes every experience unique, yet we take for granted that everyone will love Tonga Toast or Parmesian Mashed Potatoes ... or the goings on at the WCC/1950's, etc.

Maybe I'm just a realist, but I prefer to set my expectation levels a bit low and be pleasantly surprised when they are exceeded rather than set them high and be disappointed when they're not met.

 

[anny_c_99]

We are a family of 3..DH, myself, and DD who is 22....DH loves to interact with people...Will DD, and myself like it too? Or is it mostly for adults with younger children?

We have ADR's here for May.

 

[sm4987]

I like it there. It is loud and rowdy, but that's o.k. for me and my family. We are going back o nour next trip. It is a place for anyone of any age, and the food is good too!

 

[katiesmom2]

Definitely rowdy, but we enjoyed our meal. There seems to be a quieter part of the restaurant at the back on the right side. We had the skillets and bottomless milkshakes and all of it was delicious. Definitely try it for yourself. If you don't mind some noise (okay, quite a bit of noise!) you will probably really enjoy yourself.

 

[Stan Kelley]

We went to WCC for DS's birthday a couple of years ago. We loved the BBQ and tolerated the "fun" (esp all the attention for the 22 yr old "birthday boy"). It is intense in there and I understand why some folks are put off.

Funny though, I think a number of other WDW restaurants are just about as crazy, and they don't get picked on quite as much... Prime Time ("Finish your peas or no dessert"), Chef Mickey ("Sing to the birthday people!"), Ohanas ("Chefffffffff!- this guy asked for ketchup!!!!!!"). Nice quiet meals are not always the order of the day at WDW.

 

[Vijoge]

I know what you mean, but personally I never get why people don't like it. Maybe they don't like the interaction.

The thing that disappointed us was that there was no interaction. All I had heard was how much fun this place is but we got there, our meal was served, and that was the end of it. It's not just that our server didn't do anything fun but that none of the servers did anything fun. DEAD! DEAD! DEAD! It was kind of like going to see Phantom of the Opera because the music is so beautiful but when you get there no one sings and the orchestra doesn't show up.

 

[sleepydog25]

It was kind of like going to see Phantom of the Opera because the music is so beautiful but when you get there no one sings and the orchestra doesn't show up.

Well put, Vijoge. Perhaps more than any restaurant other than Coral Reef, WCC seems to bring out the most debate among restaurants. I'm solidly in the "it's just okay" camp. We've been twice (DW, DD, me), and both times the food was bland (along the lines of cafeteria food), the service extremely slow and non-responsive, and the interaction negligible (which could be overlooked if the first two items were better). Sure, sometimes expectations do create false hopes, but often Disney is their own worst enemy. They trumpet WCC as being a fun place full of rowdy antics, so when it doesn't happen, it's natural folks feel short-changed.

On our second trip to WCC, for example, we decided to engage our server. She was pleasant, but not into all the frivolity despite it being my wife's birthday. Nothing happened. We got more response from a CM on Main Street than we got from our server. Again, that wouldn't have been so bad had the food been better (we've had both the a la carte and skillet meal) and the service good. We had to flag down our server for drink refills, had to remind her twice about bringing the corn bread that is supposed to come with the meal, and had to wait over 15 minutes for the chance to wave at her to bring our check.

Any restaurant has its bad days, but since we've experienced two mediocre days on two separate visits, we just think that there are too many other options to try before patronizing WCC again even though we usually stay at VWL. That being said, your own particular experience may be completely different than ours, and you won't know what you think of WCC until you try it. So, go for it, then share your experiences with us.

 

[Luv4Disney]

I thought it was okay. The food didn't make me go "wow" or anything, but it certainly wasn't bad. Plus, we had no idea that WCC is not whispering at all. I guess if you go there and don't expect the...umm...loudness of it, you could wind up hating the place. I can understand why people don't like it. I guess I'm impartial to it.