First timer help needed!

[Suzie88]

Hi All,
I’m a first timer as an adult and as much as I love organisation feel like a bit of help wouldn’t go amiss!
Heading to WDW next June so ADR date is fast approaching. I’m going with my boyfriend (party of 2) and I sold it to him through the food...so good food choices are super important! Especially if I want any chance of returning .

I’ve been researching but would like to see if i’m missing any hidden gems. We’re on the DDP so will have 9TS credits each for our 9 night stay.

My preferred restaurants are as follows

Sana - lunch on arrival day - we fly in the night before so would have a leisurely morning after the ME. (We’d both love to go on safari so thought this may be a strong start).

Space 2020 - hoping ADRs will open soon and although no menu I feel like this is going to have to be a must get.

Ohana (early dinner) - torn on this as reviews do seem mixed, is there a better alternative?

Boma dinner buffet - ROL package

Fantasmic dining package (Hollywood and Vine?)

California grill brunch - is it worth the 2 credits? Will mean skipping a TS another day which is fine if it’s worth a visit.

Beaches and Cream - I remember walking past this as a little girl and dreaming of eating there, so for nostalgia more than anything for this one.

BOG (breakfast)

Crystal Palace Brunch (a Winnie fan!)

Then torn between Tusker House or Garden Grill breakfast/lunch...

I also had Yak N Yeti and La Hacienda on the short list too but not sure where I’d fit them in!

Any advice on this would be great, what would you keep or swap?

 

[3 Hobbits 2 Disney]

I would ditch Ohana - food is all over the map.

If you want a Monorail dinner, consider The Wave in the Contemporary.

For Fantasmic, Brown Derby is a much stronger choice for both atmosphere and food.

Cali Grill brunch - yes, definitely worth it.

BOG breakfast is expensive and no longer the value it was; unless you are going for atmosphere I would drop and consider doing Crystal Palace breakfast in its place and use Skippers Cantina (if you want to stay in MK) or hop the Monorail to GF and have brunch/lunch at Grand Floridian Cafe.

I would sleep or grab a light snack and do Yak and Yeti in lieu of Tusker House in AK. For EPCOT consider Spice Road Table.

You don’t have anything in Disney Springs — Morimoto is 1 TS at lunch, I believe - and fab. Raglan Road is worth a look as is Enzo’s (though I don’t know if it is on DDP).

 

[ilanakan]

If you're on the dining plan, then BOG breakfast is great. Price not worth it if PPO.
We loved Ohana. Did it first time in Jan, and will be returning there on our next trip in Sep.
Garden Grill amazing breakfast.
We loved Yak & Yeti, but also loved Tusker House. Will be doing both next trip.
Cali Grill, well, mixed feelings. Very very expensive. The buffet was great, but didn't love the Entrees. It's nice, but not sure it's worth the price.
Did The Wave, and didn't love it.
We will be passing on TS in HS. Will get QS on that day and use the TS credit for Tiffins at AK.
Disney Springs I can recommend Homecomin' and Raglan Road. Both amazing food.
Have a great time

 

[Aj1129]

We loved CG brunch and will be returning for our next trip. We didn’t live Ohana. The meat was dried out and service took forever. I really wanted to like it because past trips had been so good.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

Hi All,
I’m a first timer as an adult and as much as I love organisation feel like a bit of help wouldn’t go amiss!
Heading to WDW next June so ADR date is fast approaching. I’m going with my boyfriend (party of 2) and I sold it to him through the food...so good food choices are super important! Especially if I want any chance of returning .

I’ve been researching but would like to see if i’m missing any hidden gems. We’re on the DDP so will have 9TS credits each for our 9 night stay.

My preferred restaurants are as follows

Sana - lunch on arrival day - we fly in the night before so would have a leisurely morning after the ME. (We’d both love to go on safari so thought this may be a strong start).

Space 2020 - hoping ADRs will open soon and although no menu I feel like this is going to have to be a must get.

Ohana (early dinner) - torn on this as reviews do seem mixed, is there a better alternative?

Boma dinner buffet - ROL package

Fantasmic dining package (Hollywood and Vine?)

California grill brunch - is it worth the 2 credits? Will mean skipping a TS another day which is fine if it’s worth a visit.

Beaches and Cream - I remember walking past this as a little girl and dreaming of eating there, so for nostalgia more than anything for this one.

BOG (breakfast)

Crystal Palace Brunch (a Winnie fan!)

Then torn between Tusker House or Garden Grill breakfast/lunch...

I also had Yak N Yeti and La Hacienda on the short list too but not sure where I’d fit them in!

Any advice on this would be great, what would you keep or swap?

Sanaa - solid choice. One of the better 1 TS on property and really nice atmosphere

Space 2020 - looks totally cool! Who knows what the food will be like, but if the atmosphere lives up to the hype, who cares?!

'Ohana - it's a mixed bag. Our last dinner there was terrible. Horrible service and really greasy food. For a solid 1 TS meal in the MK area, consider GF Cafe or the Wave. If you want something with more theming and atmosphere, consider Whispering Canyon at WL.

Boma - it's great, but there is no ROL package there. I would book Tusker House (over Garden Grill) and do the ROL package there.

Fantasmic dinner package - I would pick anything over Hollywood and Vine. The food there is gross and every time I've gone it's been dirty with dirty dishes piled up, etc.

Cali Grill brunch - yes, worth 2 credits

Beaches and Cream - cute, but really greasy food. If it's just for nostalgia, go for it.

BOG breakfast - good use of a QS credit on dining plan to get into the Beast's castle

Crystal Palace - go for Winnie, but not for the food. Other than TH and 1900 Park Fare, I find the food at character buffets to be mediocre at best.

 

[_19disnA]

Honestly, online restaurant reviews for virtually anywhere tend to be all over the map. A lot of it seems to depend on personal preference and tastes. If we don't like sushi (for example), we don't go to a place that only serves sushi then write a bad review.....LOL. Some online reviews tend to be posted by people who probably criticize anywhere they go, you just never know the background of those writing reviews. Also seems that people are more likely to complain and write a bad review vs someone who had a good (or even average) experience and doesn't bother being the 136th person to write a good review.

For a first time Disney experience, probably better to scan the menus to see what if offered and make your own decisions based on your budget and what seems appealing to you.

 

[Orionreplay]

Fantasmic dinner package. We did this once and really enjoyed our meal at Mama Melrose's!

 

[1GoldenSun]

Cali Grill brunch is most definitely worth the two credits. Don't miss out on this if you can get the ADR, but it's not always easy.

Maybe make your non-table service day an AK day and try Satu'li Canteen; it's one of the better QS.

While I don't really think Beaches and Cream is all that great, it's a cute experience and it's certainly not bad. If you dreamed of going here as a child, you should definitely do so! You could always go just for ice cream; in fact, it would be hard to eat a full meal AND a sundae or other dessert here.

Sanaa and Boma are both great choices. I also love the Boma breakfast--it's my favorite breakfast on property.

BOG breakfast is kind of meh but I really like their dinner.

I guess I'm one of the few who really enjoyed Hollywood & Vine. It's not "foodie" food but there were some excellent choices and I thought the food was very tasty. But to be fair I've only been once--at Christmas--and most of what I loved was the ambience of Minnie's Holiday Party. I also enjoy the Brown Derby except I seem to always find the food a little too salty there--especially the Cobb salad. Mama Melrose is also very good.

I've never tried O'hana; it just never appealed to me.

Yak & Yeti is awesome! Tusker House is also very good but very similar to Boma except Boma is way better.

I think you have some excellent choices--let us know how your ADR day goes!

 

[Specter]

We have not been to Sanaa or Boma but would be interested in trying them, though we couldn't make it work for our upcoming trip. (Extended family trip, too many non-adventurous eaters, too few meals that will be just DW, DD, and myself).

Space 220 sounds like it would be a lot of fun and we are hoping that it will be open when we go in March of 2020 but even if it is I am betting it will be walk-up only.

Ohana...the first time we went it was fantastic, the second time we went because we enjoyed it so much before and...well, it will be a while before we head back though we would consider it if DD really wanted to try it when she is older.

California Grill brunch is one of our ADRs for this upcoming trip. I have seen far more positive reviews than negative and the menu just sounds great to DW and I. This was the first reservation we grabbed, followed by BOG for dinner, because we were 100% set on trying it.

In my fairly limited experience with buffets at Disney, I am just honestly not that impressed, especially for lunch or dinner. If you are trying to sell the trip based on food to your BF I would personally suggest fewer of them, or mostly breakfast buffets. Maybe it's because breakfast is "simpler", but I feel like the food is better than it is for the later meals. Just my opinion, though.

That said we did book Tusker House for dinner for the ROL package because their menu had some more unique items.

As others have mentioned, The Wave is very good for breakfast and we enjoyed dinner there too. And Raglan Road in Disney Springs has, thus far, never disappointed.

 

[Suzie88]

Wow, thanks so much for all of your input.
I’ve had another rearrange - really feeling as much as I want to try Ohana it’s maybe not for us.

1)Sana still seems like a safe option
2)Space 220
3)Switching ohana for GF cafe - the menu looks delicious!
4) Boma - I’ve heard there’s some unusual things so feel it could be a good place for us to be more adventurous than the usual buffets.
5/6) California Grill brunch (if we can get it)
7) Crystal Palace (he won’t mind humouring me here).
8) Beaches N cream (don’t worry we’ll aware this is diner food)
9) Seems like Raglan Road or Tusker House erring towards Raglan to minimise the buffets but should we not be able to get California brunch can probably add in Tusker too.

Now to see if I can actually get any or all of the wish list

 

[DisneyWishes14]

Wow, thanks so much for all of your input.
I’ve had another rearrange - really feeling as much as I want to try Ohana it’s maybe not for us.

1)Sana still seems like a safe option
2)Space 220
3)Switching ohana for GF cafe - the menu looks delicious!
4) Boma - I’ve heard there’s some unusual things so feel it could be a good place for us to be more adventurous than the usual buffets.
5/6) California Grill brunch (if we can get it)
7) Crystal Palace (he won’t mind humouring me here).
8) Beaches N cream (don’t worry we’ll aware this is diner food)
9) Seems like Raglan Road or Tusker House erring towards Raglan to minimise the buffets but should we not be able to get California brunch can probably add in Tusker too.

Now to see if I can actually get any or all of the wish list

Another thought - Beaches and Cream is not terribly expensive and, perhaps, not the greatest use of a TS credit. Perhaps consider paying OOP there and saving that leftover credit for TH or Raglan Road dinner which would be a better use of the credit? You could even just have a dessert there OOP and have your TS credit meal elsewhere.

 

[crazylady]

Are you staying at AKL? If not, I wouldn't plan to meals there. We love Jiko there but it is 2 credits. You can get some fabulous meals at the Signature restaurants.

I agree with others that reviews can be all over the place. In general, while Disney food is ok/good, I don't usually think it lives up to the hype. I'd think about a schedule and pick restaurants near where you'll be based on the menus.

 

[Suzie88]

Are you staying at AKL? If not, I wouldn't plan to meals there. We love Jiko there but it is 2 credits. You can get some fabulous meals at the Signature restaurants.

I agree with others that reviews can be all over the place. In general, while Disney food is ok/good, I don't usually think it lives up to the hype. I'd think about a schedule and pick restaurants near where you'll be based on the menus.

Good point - no we’re at Coronado Springs - so from the looks of it not the most food options there that really make me excited.

 

[Suzie88]

Another thought - Beaches and Cream is not terribly expensive and, perhaps, not the greatest use of a TS credit. Perhaps consider paying OOP there and saving that leftover credit for TH or Raglan Road dinner which would be a better use of the credit? You could even just have a dessert there OOP and have your TS credit meal elsewhere.

I like this thinking - is possible to just have dessert with an ADR though?

 

[DisneyWishes14]

I like this thinking - is possible to just have dessert with an ADR though?

Yes, you can make an ADR and just order dessert!

 

[Heather07438]

Any advice on this would be great, what would you keep or swap?

Sorry I didn't read the whole board so forgive if I'm repeating. IMHO-

Sanaa - lunch on arrival day
Great choice! It's worth showing up early for ADR (15-30mins) and letting them know you don't mind waiting for a window table. And you can walk the Safari before/after meal.

Space 2020 - My #1 TS interest. Sometimes they'll wait a few months after open to take ADRs. If it's first come first serve and high demand (likely), I'd get on line about 20 minutes before it opens for lunch. We did this at BoG and it worked well.

Ohana - Forget; we went looong ago.

Boma dinner buffet - ROL package
Good variety, quick buffet style and convenient when staying AKL, but we try not to do too many buffets. ROL pkg is nice to have but not 100% necessary. If you're already resort hopping to visit AKL/Sanaa, I'd suggest picking another resort to TS hop for exploring.

Fantasmic dining package (Hollywood and Vine?) Quick decent buffet and Characters. Not a bad choice, we have ADR next trip but we like Sci-Fi a little better overall as unique & fun.

California grill brunch - Never tried Enjoy if you go!

Beaches and Cream - Go for it, even if just to get desert.

BOG (breakfast) - 100% yes. Won't disappoint, especially as QS credit.

Crystal Palace Brunch (a Winnie fan!) - 100% too for the atmosphere. It's lovely between the characters and if you're lucky enough to catch castle views on a sunny day.

Then torn between Tusker House or Garden Grill breakfast/lunch...
We're trying Tusker for the first time next trip (haven't tried GG yet either). I try not to plan too many buffets on a trip, so it doesn't become monotonous and we can mix it up more. Tiffins in fabulous in AK but being 2 TS credits, hard to justify.

I also had Yak N Yeti and La Hacienda on the short list too but not sure where I’d fit them in!

Bold I think deserve being priority. Add another resort TS to explore, 1900 Park Fare or the Cafe at GF both sound awesome, or the Wave at Contemporary because that resort is exciting to explore the 1st time, etc. Pick 2 or 3 buffets you like best that fit nicely in plans. With the remaining few credits fill gaps by considering your park days schedule, that should make choosing easier.

MK - BOG breakfast (QS credit), CP for Pooh lovers I'm a piglet myself.
EP - Space220, B&C possibly just dessert
HS - Sci-Fi (or toss-up between Hwd&Vine / Boma)
AK - Tusker
AKL - Sanaa

 

[Nancyg56]

Wow, thanks so much for all of your input.
I’ve had another rearrange - really feeling as much as I want to try Ohana it’s maybe not for us.

1)Sana still seems like a safe option
2)Space 220
3)Switching ohana for GF cafe - the menu looks delicious!
4) Boma - I’ve heard there’s some unusual things so feel it could be a good place for us to be more adventurous than the usual buffets.
5/6) California Grill brunch (if we can get it)
7) Crystal Palace (he won’t mind humouring me here).
8) Beaches N cream (don’t worry we’ll aware this is diner food)
9) Seems like Raglan Road or Tusker House erring towards Raglan to minimise the buffets but should we not be able to get California brunch can probably add in Tusker too.

Now to see if I can actually get any or all of the wish list

I think you will be happy with GFC over 'Ohana. The setting is lovely and the food is good.

CP is a fun meal, no matter which one you choose.

B&C: I would order dessert, but honestly, it is Edy's ice cream and you can get that on Main Street in the MK. If you want dinner on the Boardwalk, consider Tratorria al Forno. It is delicious food, 1 TS credit.

If you book Tusker House you really could skip Boma. It is similar, but is a character meal. Personally, I would just choose CS in DAK and go to Flame Tree. It is our go to meal in Animal Kingdom.

For the Fantasmic Package I would choose Mama Melrose. The meal is good, and it is not buffet. If you want characters, Hollywood & VIne is fun. The characters are all gussied up in their seasonal finery.

Buffet at DIsney is decent, but if you sold your BF on the food, I would minimize them as much as possible.

 

[Ellie Webbs]

I would book cali brunch first, we got this adr 180 days out at the time we wanted (booking as soon as availability opened) but when I went back in later to check other times they were all gone!

 

[Deploraboo]

California Grill (fireworks view)
Jiko @ AKL.

Everything else is less than.

 

[mzpoirot]

Wow, thanks so much for all of your input.
I’ve had another rearrange - really feeling as much as I want to try Ohana it’s maybe not for us.

1)Sana still seems like a safe option
2)Space 220
3)Switching ohana for GF cafe - the menu looks delicious!
4) Boma - I’ve heard there’s some unusual things so feel it could be a good place for us to be more adventurous than the usual buffets.
5/6) California Grill brunch (if we can get it)
7) Crystal Palace (he won’t mind humouring me here).
8) Beaches N cream (don’t worry we’ll aware this is diner food)
9) Seems like Raglan Road or Tusker House erring towards Raglan to minimise the buffets but should we not be able to get California brunch can probably add in Tusker too.

Now to see if I can actually get any or all of the wish list

I love the idea of switching from Ohana to GF Cafe. We've done Ohana many times and the last two times the service was rushed and the food wasn't great. We made a last minute decision to add GF Cafe during our last trip and it was great! Great service, great food.
I like the idea of the other poster above who said maybe pay for Beaches N Cream out of pocket and use your TS credit elsewhere.