Must Eat Restaurants

[grapefruitjellybean]

We (2 kids, 3 adults) are going for 2 weeks in September. I don’t want to waste money/time on dining so I want to book only a handful of sit down places. What are the top 5 restaurants? What are the must do experiences? What should we avoid?

 

[EmilyGahr]

You're going to get a lot of responses I'm sure - but here are my top 5 keeping in mind you have kids traveling with you!
Hoop de Doo
Beaches and Cream
Topolino's
Whispering Canyon
Space 220

 

[grapefruitjellybean]

Thanks!
Topolino’s is a strong contender! I’m not too worried about my kids, they are very adventurous eaters and love trying new things.

 

[jppeek]

My five must do places I book every trip are

Sci Fi (love the theming, prices aren’t bad and I just have fun here)

Via Napoli (I haven’t been to Italy, but my wife said it’s pretty spot on to authentic Italian pizza)

Ohana (love the tropical feel, the flavors and I always grab a drink downstairs before dinner)

Boathouse (I’ve had some of my best meals here, not cheap but this is where I splurge)

For me my other would be a character meal for the kids (if they are into it) I enjoyed garden grill my last trip.

Honorable mentions
Boma or Kona both have great breakfast if your looking for a breakfast.

As far as avoid I haven’t had too many bad meals but Coral Reef wasn’t great both times I tried it (cool theme though). Also chef mickeys food left me feeling not so hot this last trip and I typically avoid all magic kingdom restaurants. They are ok, but not great to me.

Hope this helps and have an amazing trip!

 

[Minniesgal]

We only have two beaches and cream and flying fish

 

[BroadwayHermione5]

Ok my top five in no particular order (and I’m considering the kids even though I haven’t been one in ages yours truly still does not eat a handful of things)


Homecomin (Disney Springs)
Via Napoli (EPCOT)
Teppan Edo (EPCOT)
Cinderella Royal Table or Be Our Guest (specifically breakfast for both-Magic Kingdom)
Sci Fi Drive In (DHS)


If it opens magically soon: 1900 Park Faire (Grand Floridian)

While I recommend it regardless of character breakfast, trattoria al forno at the Boardwalk might be too much for kids but it’s amazing food!

And in terms of quick service:
ABC Comissary (DHS)
Flame Tree BBQ (AK)
Columbia Harbor House (MK)

And I have never once complained about offerings at any of the resorts. There is something for everyone in terms of Quick service.

 

[jacknsally19]

My favorites are Garden Grill and Tiffins.

 

[Axel]

With kids, I highly recommend Hoop Dee Doo if you can get it. I also loved 50's Prime Time when I was a kid because it was comfort food and it felt cool to me to eat in a "retro" environment. I also loved international foods, so working my way through the Epcot restaurants was what started me on my journey to eat at every restaurant on property. My personal favorites there that appeal to a wider audience are Spice Road Table and Chefs de France.

 

[gharter]

It all depends on the type of food and how much you want to spend.
Our favorites:
California Grill
Flying Fish
Topolinos
Tiffins

Would add Sci Fi if you haven't done it as its so unique.

 

[goferrarif1]

My Top 3 restaurants at the moment are these, in no particular order:

Boma (Our traditional last day meal. Breakfast buffet can't be beat, and dinner is amazing as well.)
Topolino's (Wood-fired butcher's steak is to date the best meal I've had on property. Characters are amazing here too.)
Sebastian's Bistro (A new favorite, food is unique and outstanding, and it's maybe the best value on property.)

After those 3, my mind changes a lot, but these are always favorites of my family:

Whispering Canyon Cafe (Fun and food is always great, especially the cornbread)
'Ohana (A family must-do every trip, mostly for nostalgia. Not as great as it used to be, but still good.)
Biergarten (Another family staple, and something different than what we can get at home.)
Kona Cafe (Breakfast is great, but if you're going for Tonga Toast just go downstairs and save $6)
Steakhouse 71 (Went for the first time last trip and loved it)
Geyser Point (Bison. Burger.)
Garden Grill (Food was great but not exciting. However, best character interactions I've ever had at Disney.)
Via Napoli (Best pizza on property.)

 

[rcgal2]

Here are a few of my favorites in no particular order...

Chef Art Smiths's Homecomin' - Disney Springs
Via Napoli - Epcot
Hoop Dee Doo - Wilderness Lodge (corny fun)
'Ohana - Polynesian (although I haven't been there in a while)

 

[stace1214]

Hard to pick just 5! My top choices with kids are: Homecomin', Sci Fi, Boma, Garden Grill, San Angel Inn (I know it gets a lot of hate, but we've always had good meals there and the atmosphere is fantastic!)

 

[TheSouthernBelle]

We (2 kids, 3 adults) are going for 2 weeks in September. I don’t want to waste money/time on dining so I want to book only a handful of sit down places. What are the top 5 restaurants? What are the must do experiences? What should we avoid?

How old are the kids, are you picky eaters and do you want to see characters? We have two teens, some what picky, don't really care if we do/don't see characters, we prefer casual and some what unique dining experiences, good food/service.

Wine Bar George @ Disney Springs--- we don't even drink wine but love the food, if you drink wine, eating there is a plus for you. Consistently great food/service
Le Cellier
Via Napoli
Boma *breakfast
Homecomin'
Ohana *breakfast
Topolinos

no ADR needed for the lounges----
Hollywood Brown Derby (lounge also good but has limited menu)
Nomad Lounge (AK- also limited menu but really good)

more fun/casual- food is hit or miss, but just unique dining experiences that's fun for all

50s Prime Time
Sci Fi Dine In
Beachs and Cream
Be Our Guest
Liberty Tree Tavern
Chef Mickeys
Teppan Edo
Tonys Town Square

 

[MICKIMINI]

Toppolino's is our new favorite! We ate there twice within 2-3 weeks ago. Dinner and then the character breakfast. Both were fantastic with both service and food excellent. It is a great value all things considered at WDW.

Our second favorite is Steakhouse71. Breakfast or dinner, all good

Boma is #3. We eat there every time we are at WDW and especially enjoy it when we are staying at AKV Jambo House. We had breakfast a few weeks ago and it was "okay", not nearly as good as dinner.

We have taken Le Cellier off the list. In May, we celebrated a 40th and a 4th anniversary with not so much as a "congrats". Three of the four filets were not cooked correctly. Mine was to be medium and it was raw. We've had lovely, perfect meals there, but they were more than "off" that day. Chef's de France and O'Hana are also off the list. Four adults at $300-450 is serious business and once we have a bad meal that is it...no second chances.

Good luck getting your selections!

 

[sewingmolly]

I've got to agree with everyone about Topolino's. It was the best meal we had. Steakhouse 71 was also great. We had both lunch and dinner there - sandwiches at lunch and steak for dinner.

 

[grapefruitjellybean]

How old are the kids, are you picky eaters and do you want to see characters? We have two teens, some what picky, don't really care if we do/don't see characters, we prefer casual and some what unique dining experiences, good food/service.

Wine Bar George @ Disney Springs--- we don't even drink wine but love the food, if you drink wine, eating there is a plus for you. Consistently great food/service
Le Cellier
Via Napoli
Boma *breakfast
Homecomin'
Ohana *breakfast
Topolinos

no ADR needed for the lounges----
Hollywood Brown Derby (lounge also good but has limited menu)
Nomad Lounge (AK- also limited menu but really good)

more fun/casual- food is hit or miss, but just unique dining experiences that's fun for all

50s Prime Time
Sci Fi Dine In
Beachs and Cream
Be Our Guest
Liberty Tree Tavern
Chef Mickeys
Teppan Edo
Tonys Town Square

The kids are 5 and 7 and their favourite foods are sushi and big salad bowls. I mean proper sushi not just California rolls.
We are very adventurous and the one thing we don’t eat are mushrooms. I don’t want to waste time or money on fancy sit downs just for the vibe. We live in a city with amazing restaurants so if I’m dropping $100per person on dinner it better be amazing.

Topolino is on my list for brunch because that looks like the best menu and it’ll be our only character meal. Although, the Snow White dinner looks tasty and the vibe looks cool so maybe we’ll do two character meals.

I’m curious about SciFI, is the hype for the food or the vibe or both?

 

[Wayland10]

Our top five are:
Boma
Jungle Skipper Canteen
Homecomin’
Nomad Lounge
San Angel Inn (I keep reading that it’s hit or miss, but we’ve always been very lucky)

Very excited to try Citricos this August.
We’re fairly adventurous and value good food and drinks first, but atmosphere and theming are on the list as well!

 

[sewingmolly]

SciFi is about the vibe. It's a lot of fun. I've only every had the burger which has always been good. I think the burger is the only thing to get. You're at a drive-in movie, so ordering the pasta has never made sense to me.

 

[PalmettoPath]

We (2 kids, 3 adults) are going for 2 weeks in September. I don’t want to waste money/time on dining so I want to book only a handful of sit down places. What are the top 5 restaurants? What are the must do experiences? What should we avoid?

How old are the kids?

 

[Bitbe]

Sanaa is a top restaurant for me. The Indian/North African cuisine is good, and the large windows to watch animals as you dine is amazing. They have a spot the animal guide available for the kiddos while you eat. We have a few indian spots we frequent locally, but nothing compares to the bread service here (you get about a dozen chutneys and several varieties of naan and paratha for the table). The challenge is still being hungry once your mains arrive. The only skip here for me so far is the Mango Lassi, which is more mango smoothie than lassi.

Jungle Skipper Canteen is a continuation of the Jungle Cruise in MK. The food is consistently good and more adventurous than other MK fare. We dine here at least every other time we visit Magic Kingdom.

As for SciFi, they've recently revamped their menu, and I can't testify to that. But, for us, it was standard diner food. Actually, it was drier than standard diner food. The experience was very cool, but it seemed to be resting on it's unique layout rather than providing tantalizing eats.