Michelle2
Visited every Disney park in the world :)
- Joined
- Jul 23, 2003
First of all, we LOVED the Disney Dining plan!! Yes, we did go during free dining and my party just loved it. We were able to try such great places! It was myself from Boise, my 2 sisters (24, and 22) from Boise and Las Vegas, my mom from Las Vegas, and my cousin (mom of 4 like me) from southern Utah. I am going to just do dinners (TS) now, and when/as I remember the CS I will add them in a little later.
Here is a list of the TS places we ate:
Kona Cafe--dinner
Mama Melrose (FDP)--dinner
Cinderella's Royal Table--dinner
Crystal Palace--breakfast
Wolfgang Puck Cafe--dinner
Boma--dinner
Le Cellier--dinner
Sci-fi drive in--lunch
Hoop Dee Doo Revue--dinner
Whispering Canyon Cafe--dinner
9/8: Just my sister and I arrived pretty late, and there was a mix up with our room that we had to get straightened out, so we did not have anything this day.
9/9: Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe: CS My sister and I went to MK, and grabbed this as our counter service. Wow, probably one of the best values of CS. I had the chicken and ribs combo with mashed potatoes, and could only finish about half. My sister had the burger and fries. Mine alone was 13.99, and so I thought it was a really good value for my CS credit!
Kona Cafe: TS The rest of my family arrived at about 5, so I wanted a nice relaxing (and GOOD) dinner to kick things off. So we went to Kona Cafe for dinner. Our reservations were at 6:20, and we were there on time, and were seated right away.
They all absolutely loved this place. My mom and cousin loved the Macadamia Mahi Mahi, my sister loved the Beef Terriyaki, and my other sister loved the filet mignon. The biggest hit was the Kona chowder. My cousin went nuts over it. Desserts were really good too. My mom was not too thrilled with the banana creme brulee....This place was definitely one of the favorites of the trip! Two thumbs way up!
9/10: Pizza Planet: CS We had the assorted individual pizzas, and I for one, really liked it. Some of us had the pepperoni, some had plain cheese. We had no wait, and grabbed a nice table upstairs. Most of us got the mickey crispy treat for dessert.
Mama Melrose for the Fantasmic Dinner Package: TS Our reservation was an early one at 4:40. We were seated right away, which usually means 5 minutes or less to me. We had an awesome server! Her name was Holly, and I would definitely request her if we went again. She was very nice and attentive.
I love italian, so I loved this place. I also love pizza, and since we were a party of 5, they brought us out 2. The garlic chicken was my favorite!! I LOVED it. The four cheese was really good too! Did I mention that I LOVE pizza??? It was hot and fresh, no complaints from me!
I do not remember how the salad was, I am pretty sure it was like a typical salad....
I cannot remember what everyone ordered, but I had the chicken parmigiana...really good. My sister had the Spicy sausage one, and it was good, but she didn't sound blown away though. The others had the wood grilled chicken pasta. That was the other toss-up for me, and I tasted it, and it was really good.
Alot of my party really liked the spumoni gelato. I had the chocolate truffle cake...I don't remember much about it, so I guess it was just ok???
9/11: Cantina de San Angel: CS I warned my party that this was just average....normal fast food taco bell type fare, so that no one would be disappointed. It was just fine for us, and fit the bill for my mexican food craving. We were disappointed that the churros were not fresh, or even warm. They were a little tough and too chewy....
Cinderella's Royal Table: TS This one I was pretty pleasantly surprised. I had read negative reviews up the wazoo, but my sister especially wanted to eat there for the atmosphere. Our reservation was for 5:15. We had a very frustrating experience initially with the seating hostess. The guy downstairs gave us another party's seating ticket. To make a long story short, the seating hostess upstairs made me go on a wild and crowded goosechase for nothing. Once we were seated, it was wonderful. Our server was good, and everyone seemed to like the food just fine.
We basically had all of the appetizers. They loved the corn and crab soup, they loved the vegetable spring rolls. I hated my blt salad. There was no LT in it....just lettuce, and no dressing. I think there was a mistake, and I would have told them, but our dinners came out.
We had the prime rib, the grilled pork tenderloin, and the pan seared salmon. They were all really good. My sister said the prime rib wasn't too fatty at all, and they all really raved about the dinner, so I guess we are either really unpicky eaters, or CRT had a great night that night!
They all LOVED the blueberry buckle and especially the sorbet!! I had the chocolate mousse cake, and it was kind of dry. I don't remember being too thrilled with it, but the others loved theirs!
9/12: Crystal Palace: TS We had breakfast here today. Our reservations were at 8:05, but we did not get there until about 8:10 due to only one monorail running in the morning, and us not taking that into account. I should have known better and been there alot earlier....Grrrrr!
We still had a wonderful breakfast, and were seated immediately when we got there. Our waitress did not seem to be having that great of a day. We did not see her much at all. I never got a refill for water or my chocolate milk at all. Saw the characters multiple times though, and the breakfast itself was wonderful as always. I make this a must every visit!
Wolfgang Puck Cafe: TS Wow this was a train wreck. Our reservation was at 6:20 and again, we were seated immediately. The menu was great....nice variety! When the 2 appetizers of the spinach dip came out, they were stone cold. Our waitress (very nice) said it happened to alot of other tables at the same time, and said there was a problem with the ovens. Next time they came out, they were nice and hot, but my mom said the parmesan flatbread tasted stale and tough. My BBQ chicken quesadilla was awesome!!! I loved it! My sister got the butternt squash soup, but everyone said it reminded them of baby food. She did not eat much of it.
But the final mistake was they kept getting the steaks totally wrong. One was totally too done, the other was totally too raw. Even coming back a second time, they were wrong. Finally the third time, they just ate it.
My sister and I had the Wolf-fredo fettucine. It was really good. So I think the problem was just with the steaks that night. The manager heard about it and was very nice and did not take our credits for it. My sister and I---our meals were fine, but the steak eaters were not too happy with the place. I would definitely go there again though. I will give it a second chance!
9/13: Boma: TS My 2 sisters ditched us and went to the Shakira concert this night, so my mom, cousin and I went to Boma--reservations at 5:30. We only waited about 5-10 minutes and were seated. This place was pretty busy and seemed very popular! We really liked it. I don't know if we will go again, but it sure was a nice different change of pace. I loved the spicy ribs and the pasta salad!!! The prime rib was really good too. My cousin LOVED the seafood stew. I was nervous hearing things were too sweet, too spicy, that things tasted like coffee, etc etc. And although some things had kick and spice to it, I was able to handle it pretty good. My DH who LOVES spicy things would have loved it!
And....drum roll please!.....I LOVED the zebra domes!!!! I was nervous to try them, but I really liked them. We thought they did not have a coffee taste, but a caramel taste to them. I also loved the chocolate mousse crunch, and the cookies were so good too! The cherry cobbler was a little too spicy (cinnamon, etc) for me, but it was ok....
9/14: Le Cellier: TS We were lucky this night because not only did we have the best seating (4:00 when it opened), but had a really good server too. We were seated right away (best thing about the early seating), and my party absolutely loved this place.
We all loved the cheddar cheese soup and the pretzel bread!! We loved all of the breaksticks they brought though.
My mom said that the prime rib was the best she has ever had, and she has had alot of prime rib in her life. My sister said she had the best filet mignon in her life. My sister and cousin really enjoyed the mushroom filet mignon--they substituted the mushroom risotto for the mashed potatoes. I also had the regular filet mignon, and loved it. I also LOVED the cream cheese mashed potatoes. The maple BBQ sauce was to die for.
Although this place has been getting some bad reviews lately, we really really really loved it. I think it was the hit of our dining. I was very relieved.
9/15: Sci-fi Dine in: TS Since we had MNSSHP that night, and did not know what to expect with the new changes, we just did a bigger lunch earlier in the day. I had called earlier at the MGM rope and changed our reservations to an earlier time. We got the first seating at 11:05, and got seated immediately. Our server was very attentive too.
I really loved the 7 bean chili. My sister had the BLT soup, and it was really good. The spinach and artichoke dip was ok, but they liked others (namely Wolfgang Pucks) better.
My cousin did not like the Reuben sandwich. My sister said the burgers were ok/average, and I liked the ribs. My other sister got the chicken sandwich and said it was fine. We all got shakes either as our drinks or as our desserts. They were ok, but I make homemade milkshakes all the time, and they were comparing them to those. I had the cheesecake with the caramel, cracker jacks and m&ms. It was really good, and I am not even that crazy about plain cheesecake or caramel.
The thing that really made this a fun restaraunt was the atmosphere. We had so much fun watching the clips and dancing in our seats to the music. I think the other cars around us thought we were pretty strange, because we can get really silly. Being front and center did not help either. I don't think this will be a super priority on future trips with so many other places to try, but for some fun and laughs with a high spirited group, you can't beat it!
9/16: Hoop Dee Doo Revue: TS We loved this place. We were seated in the third row on the very side. We would have had better seats, but my sister decided to join us, and I had to make a new reservation a few months later. Just kidding. We were at the 5:00 show.
The food this time seemed alot better. My DH remembered the ribs being pretty dry (2003), but this time they were VERY moist and really good. I was a little disappointed that the strawberry shortcake was brought out in dishes that were split up and shared. Last time my DH and kids went, we each got our own big goblet-ful. I wish that they would have been individual instead of divided out.
For the most part, I love this kind of food (country/BBQ), so I am pretty easy to please. All of us really enjoyed the show, and considered it a highlight.
9/17: Whispering Canyon Cafe: TS One of my sisters headed home a day earlier than the rest of us. Tonight was WCC. Our reservation was at 5:50, and we were seated pretty promptly about 5-10 minutes later.
The 4 of us totally loved it! We loved the rowdy and loud atmosphere. The food (see yesterday) was right up my alley. Even the others who weren't sure about having BBQ 2 days in a row, were able to find plenty that they liked. I like this restaraunts' variety. We loved the antics with the pony races, anniversaries, and birthdays.
I was really debating between the all you can eat skillet, or choosing an entree and appetizer. Those nachos were calling my name!!!! My sister got the chicken tortilla soup (awesome!!) and my mom got the nachos and gave me a little (YUM). My cousin and I got the skillet. It was wonderful. The potatoes were good, ribs were good. We really loved it. My mom and sister both had the chicken pasta dish. They liked it, but I could tell at the beginning that they were so full, they could not come close to finishing it! The appetizers and cornbread really filled us all up!! My cousin and mom LOVED the banana and ice cream dustbowl dessert. My sister liked the apple pie, but was already so full. I liked the happiest celebration dessert which was a smore's type cheesecake, but was so full, only took about 2 bites.
Just an example of the fun, there was a little girl who turned 6 that day, and she had just been to the Bippidy Boppidy Boutique. She was made over from head to toe in a beautiful Belle dress. She was so happy, she was just going out into the aisle just twirling her dress back and forth. She felt like a princess!
A waitress walked by on the way to a back room, noticed the little girl twirling and said, "Can I do that too?" and she twirled around really fast and then rushed off to whatever she was doing. It was so funny!
We were so taking our time so that we could just enjoy the antics. This one was my ultimate favorite. It is a must do on my trips from now on!
That's about it...I hope this helped anybody. Any questions feel free to ask!
Best ranked restaraunts to us: Each one ranked the #1 restaurant differently.
Le Cellier
Kona
Cinderella's Royal Table
Whispering Canyon Cafe
Ones that we probably won't do next time, but still liked:
Boma
Sci-fi
Wolfgang Puck's (I will give it another try, but doubt my mom will.)
Here is a list of the TS places we ate:
Kona Cafe--dinner
Mama Melrose (FDP)--dinner
Cinderella's Royal Table--dinner
Crystal Palace--breakfast
Wolfgang Puck Cafe--dinner
Boma--dinner
Le Cellier--dinner
Sci-fi drive in--lunch
Hoop Dee Doo Revue--dinner
Whispering Canyon Cafe--dinner
9/8: Just my sister and I arrived pretty late, and there was a mix up with our room that we had to get straightened out, so we did not have anything this day.
9/9: Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe: CS My sister and I went to MK, and grabbed this as our counter service. Wow, probably one of the best values of CS. I had the chicken and ribs combo with mashed potatoes, and could only finish about half. My sister had the burger and fries. Mine alone was 13.99, and so I thought it was a really good value for my CS credit!
Kona Cafe: TS The rest of my family arrived at about 5, so I wanted a nice relaxing (and GOOD) dinner to kick things off. So we went to Kona Cafe for dinner. Our reservations were at 6:20, and we were there on time, and were seated right away.
They all absolutely loved this place. My mom and cousin loved the Macadamia Mahi Mahi, my sister loved the Beef Terriyaki, and my other sister loved the filet mignon. The biggest hit was the Kona chowder. My cousin went nuts over it. Desserts were really good too. My mom was not too thrilled with the banana creme brulee....This place was definitely one of the favorites of the trip! Two thumbs way up!
9/10: Pizza Planet: CS We had the assorted individual pizzas, and I for one, really liked it. Some of us had the pepperoni, some had plain cheese. We had no wait, and grabbed a nice table upstairs. Most of us got the mickey crispy treat for dessert.
Mama Melrose for the Fantasmic Dinner Package: TS Our reservation was an early one at 4:40. We were seated right away, which usually means 5 minutes or less to me. We had an awesome server! Her name was Holly, and I would definitely request her if we went again. She was very nice and attentive.
I love italian, so I loved this place. I also love pizza, and since we were a party of 5, they brought us out 2. The garlic chicken was my favorite!! I LOVED it. The four cheese was really good too! Did I mention that I LOVE pizza??? It was hot and fresh, no complaints from me!
I do not remember how the salad was, I am pretty sure it was like a typical salad....
I cannot remember what everyone ordered, but I had the chicken parmigiana...really good. My sister had the Spicy sausage one, and it was good, but she didn't sound blown away though. The others had the wood grilled chicken pasta. That was the other toss-up for me, and I tasted it, and it was really good.
Alot of my party really liked the spumoni gelato. I had the chocolate truffle cake...I don't remember much about it, so I guess it was just ok???
9/11: Cantina de San Angel: CS I warned my party that this was just average....normal fast food taco bell type fare, so that no one would be disappointed. It was just fine for us, and fit the bill for my mexican food craving. We were disappointed that the churros were not fresh, or even warm. They were a little tough and too chewy....
Cinderella's Royal Table: TS This one I was pretty pleasantly surprised. I had read negative reviews up the wazoo, but my sister especially wanted to eat there for the atmosphere. Our reservation was for 5:15. We had a very frustrating experience initially with the seating hostess. The guy downstairs gave us another party's seating ticket. To make a long story short, the seating hostess upstairs made me go on a wild and crowded goosechase for nothing. Once we were seated, it was wonderful. Our server was good, and everyone seemed to like the food just fine.
We basically had all of the appetizers. They loved the corn and crab soup, they loved the vegetable spring rolls. I hated my blt salad. There was no LT in it....just lettuce, and no dressing. I think there was a mistake, and I would have told them, but our dinners came out.
We had the prime rib, the grilled pork tenderloin, and the pan seared salmon. They were all really good. My sister said the prime rib wasn't too fatty at all, and they all really raved about the dinner, so I guess we are either really unpicky eaters, or CRT had a great night that night!
They all LOVED the blueberry buckle and especially the sorbet!! I had the chocolate mousse cake, and it was kind of dry. I don't remember being too thrilled with it, but the others loved theirs!
9/12: Crystal Palace: TS We had breakfast here today. Our reservations were at 8:05, but we did not get there until about 8:10 due to only one monorail running in the morning, and us not taking that into account. I should have known better and been there alot earlier....Grrrrr!
We still had a wonderful breakfast, and were seated immediately when we got there. Our waitress did not seem to be having that great of a day. We did not see her much at all. I never got a refill for water or my chocolate milk at all. Saw the characters multiple times though, and the breakfast itself was wonderful as always. I make this a must every visit!
Wolfgang Puck Cafe: TS Wow this was a train wreck. Our reservation was at 6:20 and again, we were seated immediately.
The menu was great....nice variety! When the 2 appetizers of the spinach dip came out, they were stone cold. Our waitress (very nice) said it happened to alot of other tables at the same time, and said there was a problem with the ovens. Next time they came out, they were nice and hot, but my mom said the parmesan flatbread tasted stale and tough. My BBQ chicken quesadilla was awesome!!! I loved it! My sister got the butternt squash soup, but everyone said it reminded them of baby food. She did not eat much of it.But the final mistake was they kept getting the steaks totally wrong. One was totally too done, the other was totally too raw. Even coming back a second time, they were wrong. Finally the third time, they just ate it.
My sister and I had the Wolf-fredo fettucine. It was really good. So I think the problem was just with the steaks that night. The manager heard about it and was very nice and did not take our credits for it. My sister and I---our meals were fine, but the steak eaters were not too happy with the place. I would definitely go there again though. I will give it a second chance!
9/13: Boma: TS My 2 sisters ditched us and went to the Shakira concert this night, so my mom, cousin and I went to Boma--reservations at 5:30. We only waited about 5-10 minutes and were seated. This place was pretty busy and seemed very popular! We really liked it. I don't know if we will go again, but it sure was a nice different change of pace. I loved the spicy ribs and the pasta salad!!! The prime rib was really good too. My cousin LOVED the seafood stew. I was nervous hearing things were too sweet, too spicy, that things tasted like coffee, etc etc. And although some things had kick and spice to it, I was able to handle it pretty good. My DH who LOVES spicy things would have loved it!
And....drum roll please!.....I LOVED the zebra domes!!!! I was nervous to try them, but I really liked them. We thought they did not have a coffee taste, but a caramel taste to them. I also loved the chocolate mousse crunch, and the cookies were so good too! The cherry cobbler was a little too spicy (cinnamon, etc) for me, but it was ok....
9/14: Le Cellier: TS We were lucky this night because not only did we have the best seating (4:00 when it opened), but had a really good server too. We were seated right away (best thing about the early seating), and my party absolutely loved this place.
We all loved the cheddar cheese soup and the pretzel bread!! We loved all of the breaksticks they brought though.
My mom said that the prime rib was the best she has ever had, and she has had alot of prime rib in her life. My sister said she had the best filet mignon in her life. My sister and cousin really enjoyed the mushroom filet mignon--they substituted the mushroom risotto for the mashed potatoes. I also had the regular filet mignon, and loved it. I also LOVED the cream cheese mashed potatoes. The maple BBQ sauce was to die for.
Although this place has been getting some bad reviews lately, we really really really loved it. I think it was the hit of our dining. I was very relieved.
9/15: Sci-fi Dine in: TS Since we had MNSSHP that night, and did not know what to expect with the new changes, we just did a bigger lunch earlier in the day. I had called earlier at the MGM rope and changed our reservations to an earlier time. We got the first seating at 11:05, and got seated immediately. Our server was very attentive too.
I really loved the 7 bean chili. My sister had the BLT soup, and it was really good. The spinach and artichoke dip was ok, but they liked others (namely Wolfgang Pucks) better.
My cousin did not like the Reuben sandwich. My sister said the burgers were ok/average, and I liked the ribs. My other sister got the chicken sandwich and said it was fine. We all got shakes either as our drinks or as our desserts. They were ok, but I make homemade milkshakes all the time, and they were comparing them to those.
I had the cheesecake with the caramel, cracker jacks and m&ms. It was really good, and I am not even that crazy about plain cheesecake or caramel.The thing that really made this a fun restaraunt was the atmosphere. We had so much fun watching the clips and dancing in our seats to the music. I think the other cars around us thought we were pretty strange, because we can get really silly. Being front and center did not help either. I don't think this will be a super priority on future trips with so many other places to try, but for some fun and laughs with a high spirited group, you can't beat it!
9/16: Hoop Dee Doo Revue: TS We loved this place. We were seated in the third row on the very side. We would have had better seats, but my sister decided to join us, and I had to make a new reservation a few months later.
Just kidding. We were at the 5:00 show.The food this time seemed alot better. My DH remembered the ribs being pretty dry (2003), but this time they were VERY moist and really good. I was a little disappointed that the strawberry shortcake was brought out in dishes that were split up and shared. Last time my DH and kids went, we each got our own big goblet-ful. I wish that they would have been individual instead of divided out.
For the most part, I love this kind of food (country/BBQ), so I am pretty easy to please. All of us really enjoyed the show, and considered it a highlight.
9/17: Whispering Canyon Cafe: TS One of my sisters headed home a day earlier than the rest of us. Tonight was WCC. Our reservation was at 5:50, and we were seated pretty promptly about 5-10 minutes later.
The 4 of us totally loved it! We loved the rowdy and loud atmosphere. The food (see yesterday) was right up my alley. Even the others who weren't sure about having BBQ 2 days in a row, were able to find plenty that they liked. I like this restaraunts' variety. We loved the antics with the pony races, anniversaries, and birthdays.
I was really debating between the all you can eat skillet, or choosing an entree and appetizer. Those nachos were calling my name!!!! My sister got the chicken tortilla soup (awesome!!) and my mom got the nachos and gave me a little (YUM). My cousin and I got the skillet. It was wonderful. The potatoes were good, ribs were good. We really loved it. My mom and sister both had the chicken pasta dish. They liked it, but I could tell at the beginning that they were so full, they could not come close to finishing it! The appetizers and cornbread really filled us all up!! My cousin and mom LOVED the banana and ice cream dustbowl dessert. My sister liked the apple pie, but was already so full. I liked the happiest celebration dessert which was a smore's type cheesecake, but was so full, only took about 2 bites.
Just an example of the fun, there was a little girl who turned 6 that day, and she had just been to the Bippidy Boppidy Boutique. She was made over from head to toe in a beautiful Belle dress. She was so happy, she was just going out into the aisle just twirling her dress back and forth. She felt like a princess!
A waitress walked by on the way to a back room, noticed the little girl twirling and said, "Can I do that too?" and she twirled around really fast and then rushed off to whatever she was doing. It was so funny!
We were so taking our time so that we could just enjoy the antics. This one was my ultimate favorite. It is a must do on my trips from now on!
That's about it...I hope this helped anybody. Any questions feel free to ask!
Best ranked restaraunts to us: Each one ranked the #1 restaurant differently.
Le Cellier
Kona
Cinderella's Royal Table
Whispering Canyon Cafe
Ones that we probably won't do next time, but still liked:
Boma
Sci-fi
Wolfgang Puck's (I will give it another try, but doubt my mom will.)
Thanks for sharing!
) we never even needed to use our Fantasmic Dinner package vouchers for the reserved seating. We were able to go in at about 7:45 and get great center section seats to the only show at 8:30.
