A restaurant you weren't expecting much from but were pleasantly surprised

[Jennasis]

To ping off of the other thread where disappointment abounds, what restaurant have you eaten at that you weren't jazzed about trying or expecting much from but were pleasantly surprised or even blown away?

 

[ENJDisneyFan]

I wouldn't say I was blown away by any means, but we were pleasantly surprised by Hollywood & Vine. It doesn't get great reviews, but we wanted to see the characters in Halloween attire and it was also a good value on DDP with the F! package. We went in with low expectations food wise, but actually really enjoyed it. The food was hot, fresh, and flavorful and we all left happy and full.

 

[shh]

I have nothing to contribute, but I like this thread! Looking forward to following

 

[DisneyHardin]

A QS that was the main one for me. My DH is a boring eater and mostly likes burgers for lunch. We were in Epcot a few years ago and I could not convince him to try any of the QS from the countries, so we ended up at Liberty Inn. We both got burgers and they were really good. They used Brioche buns which were a great change from the dry buns at most of the QS spots.

 

[olwyngdh]

I'm another one pleasantly surprised by Hollywood and Vine. Our Christmas trip in 2016 was crazy with people dropping out and having to do new reservations constantly and we ended up with Minnie's Christmas Party. I have always heard how terrible the food was there, how loud it was, how it was kids running amuck... Ok, it was loud. With the size and the type of floor and furniture, it would be loud if there were only a few families there. Kids were no worse than they are anywhere else, and probably better than at Chef Mickey's. The food was WAY better than I expected. I still dream about the butternut squash soup. Everything was hot, fresh, constantly replenished--and we had a late ADR. It was after Jingle Bell, Jingle Bam. Character interaction was among some of the best I have had at any character meal. I am a huge Donald fan, and after I tried to get Donald to leave Daisy for me, she kept an eye on me the rest of the meal and wouldn't let Donald near our table again. They both had us laughing the entire time.

 

[10MoreMinutes]

Yak & Yeti. We just wanted a table service meal while we were in AK to rest our feet and get into some AC (this was on our May 2016 trip...and it was HOT), so I booked the ADR and we went in knowing next to nothing about it, other than a general idea of the type of food they served. We all ended up loving the food, and our server was fantastic.

 

[nco91590]

The Wave! I saw it had some good reviews and it fit in nicely with our plans. I'm so glad we tried it! Was probably my favorite meal of our trip.

 

[Araminta18]

Flying Fish! We went on our trip in September and adored it (the food, the service, the whole thing), but I'd seen so many recent reviews where they didn't like it, or compared it unfavorably to what it used to be before a renovation. So I was tempering my expectations, but it was probably my favorite meal of the trip.

 

[Jadyreen1282]

Spice Road. Good food. Great view.

 

[kiramay]

Coral Reef. I hadn’t planned to eat there because I don’t like seafood, but our flight was canceled so my sister and I were hanging around Epcot, tired, and starving. We looked to see what ADRs were available ASAP and booked Coral Reef. Ended up having a slow cooked beef dish on polenta that was AMAZING! And we sat right next to the aquarium. It was a great ending to our trip (aside from the stressful hours of trying to find another flight home).
I’d absolutely go back for that dish, and my sister and her husband did go back just a few months later.

 

[MomOTwins]

Tony's -- it's now our favorite MK eatery!

 

[gharter]

Pinocchio Village Haus - were looking for a QS for lunch and had tried the others. Wasn't expecting a lot, but their flat breads were very good. My wife had their seasonal one and was really happy with it.

 

[Farro]

Honestly, Morimoto.
It was a last minute substitution and I thought it was going to be some cheesy, food network celebrity chef type of place. Nope. It was EXCELLENT.
Beautiful ambiance, great cocktails and spectacular food!

 

[married2mm]

I actually tried to reply to the 'other 'thread first with a conversely clause included and my tablet had other ideas...

So now I'm positivity first!

CRT breakfast-we loved it
The food
The service
The character interaction...
Everything.

Coral reef
Booked & cancelled too many times to count
Rebooked on living with the land one day as I felt hungry; hangry follows!
Instantly seated
Service not outstanding
But surroundings were lovely
And food was marvellous.

Hollywood & vine breakfast
Attended years ago & not the greatest experience
Decided to try again
It's now my fave
Love it!
Food,staff & characterers are amazing.

 

[sbrost13]

Maya Grill at Coronado Springs! It was soooo delicious! I dream about that queso fundido and shrimp tacos.

 

[Newsies]

Grand Floridian Cafe breakfast and The Wave dinner.

I didn't like dinner at GFC, but the breakfast seemed nice and fit into our plans, so I booked it and I absolutely loved it. The Wave was a last-minute ADR when plans got cancelled day of, so we weren't expecting much-- we loved our meals!

 

[Disneylover99]

Hollywood and Vine lunch

A couple of trips ago when we were on the ddp, we went buffet crazy! Surprisingly, we enjoyed H&V more then our Boma dinner.

 

[Oneanne]

CRT really surprised me. I had never had an interest in doing it, due to the consistently bad reviews at the time. Then it came up as available during a trip about 5 years ago and I thought I'd try it at least once. The food had obviously been pre-plated and sitting under a heat lamp, but other than that it was good and it was a delight to watch the Princesses work the room.

 

[AimeeAurora]

The Wave breakfast was wonderful! We were staying at the CR in the Garden Wing, and I got a last minute reservation, figuring it was easy to just walk over. It was close to empty at first. Very peaceful, the restaurant was clean, the food was SO good. I would definitely do it again.

 

[tinkerhon]

Spice Road. Good food. Great view.

This x 100 ! Became our new fave after one meal !