No "Stay out of the damn lakes today"...?

Haha, I have watched for roughly a year now and have not seen Pete that fired up about anything. And to be honest, I agree wholeheartedly with what he was saying. O'hana is a place that my family MUST do on our vacation and the last time it was not the greatest service/experience. It needs to be fixed. I think it really set him off when Craig basically said everyone should just find somewhere else. Amazingly, people who visit once a year or less can't just "find somewhere else" like people who live there. Happy Pete stood up for the majority of the listening audience.
 


Haha, I have watched for roughly a year now and have not seen Pete that fired up about anything. And to be honest, I agree wholeheartedly with what he was saying. O'hana is a place that my family MUST do on our vacation and the last time it was not the greatest service/experience. It needs to be fixed. I think it really set him off when Craig basically said everyone should just find somewhere else. Amazingly, people who visit once a year or less can't just "find somewhere else" like people who live there. Happy Pete stood up for the majority of the listening audience.
There are close to 90 restaurants on property... maybe more? I think there are plenty of restaurants that offer meat and salad at the same price point around property that has better service and better quality of food. So yeah, they can find somewhere else.
 
There are close to 90 restaurants on property... maybe more? I think there are plenty of restaurants that offer meat and salad at the same price point around property that has better service and better quality of food. So yeah, they can find somewhere else.
Completely agree. We haven’t been there in roughly ten years due to allergies, but even back then it was overpriced for what it was. There are many other places to find really good food—at more affordable pricing with a better guest experience.
 
‘Ohana used to be our favorite restaurant there. Was a must do on every trip. I remember when it was a paced meal, where the courses there came separately, and there was constant attention at our table. I haven’t reserved it on my last several trips due to one reason.....the rushing! I don’t know exactly when it changed, but they were still good on my 2010 honeymoon trip. My first rushed trip was at least five years ago. After that experience, and the subsequent one, I swore that I would never go back again. My whole family agreed...it had completely changed.

That’s the tricky part for me. I would love to go back and hope that I could demand better service out of ‘Ohana. However, I am choosing my battles and not reserving again until I see better and more consistent reviews. I’m not feeling encouraged because:

1) They’ve gone the way of the one skillet meal...but with an expected dessert. I honestly hate the skillet outside of breakfasts. They say you can ask for more, but they’re going for turnover...and it’s hard to ask for more when you’re bread pudding has already been plopped in front of you
2) They’re keeping the meal as a one Dining Credit meal experience. This gives them a lot of leverage in expectations. I think a whole lot would improve if they upped it to two....and I think they should
3) New diners don’t know what they’re missing. The ambiance and location are still on point. Unless you grew to love what once was, it probably still is a pretty cool dining experience.

Sooo....I guess what I am saying is that I see both Pete’s and Craig’s perspectives. As a local, I would have no problem reserving there again and kicking up some Twitter fuss (trust me, I have no problem there!). As a traveling vacationer, I can find other restaurants that provide a much better experience until they can get their act together.
 


While I don't travel to WDW on vacation anymore, I do travel other places regularly that this same theory can apply to. My favorite restaurant when I travel home to visit my family used to be a "staple" restaurant. It was my favorite. The menu hasn't changed the last 3 times I've been home and it regularly changed based on season before. While I know I could still have a great meal with the dishes that had remained, I opted to choose a new restaurant that was actually different and a unique experience.

At the same time, there is a Western PA diner that I only eat 4 different items off the menu and it hasn't changed since I can remember and I would be up in arms if it ever did change. But, it's a diner, and I can fault it when it doesn't live up to expectations in food or service.

The point being, flagship meals shouldn't be repetitive. In my opinion, they should change and evolve. It should be the restaurant that stays the same in terms of service and invention, but they don't ever let anything become sterile or repetitive, save for a selection of "signature" dishes. 'Ohana hasn't changed in any way from the first time I've been there. As a culinary experience, it's about as boring as a diner that's been serving the same food for 50 years. If they are going to treat it like that then it should be the same price and it should be avoided when it's at its worst. If it wants to live up to its reputation, then it needs to do something else.

And yes, you can argue a place like Hoop-Dee-Doo hasn't changed up the menu at its place in forever nor the show, but it still has repeatability. I factor in a minuscule amount of improv and a heavy supply of beer, wine and sangria to make up the difference. So... maybe Ohana should have unlimited booze?
 
While I don't travel to WDW on vacation anymore, I do travel other places regularly that this same theory can apply to. My favorite restaurant when I travel home to visit my family used to be a "staple" restaurant. It was my favorite. The menu hasn't changed the last 3 times I've been home and it regularly changed based on season before. While I know I could still have a great meal with the dishes that had remained, I opted to choose a new restaurant that was actually different and a unique experience.

At the same time, there is a Western PA diner that I only eat 4 different items off the menu and it hasn't changed since I can remember and I would be up in arms if it ever did change. But, it's a diner, and I can fault it when it doesn't live up to expectations in food or service.

The point being, flagship meals shouldn't be repetitive. In my opinion, they should change and evolve. It should be the restaurant that stays the same in terms of service and invention, but they don't ever let anything become sterile or repetitive, save for a selection of "signature" dishes. 'Ohana hasn't changed in any way from the first time I've been there. As a culinary experience, it's about as boring as a diner that's been serving the same food for 50 years. If they are going to treat it like that then it should be the same price and it should be avoided when it's at its worst. If it wants to live up to its reputation, then it needs to do something else.

And yes, you can argue a place like Hoop-Dee-Doo hasn't changed up the menu at its place in forever nor the show, but it still has repeatability. I factor in a minuscule amount of improv and a heavy supply of beer, wine and sangria to make up the difference. So... maybe Ohana should have unlimited booze?
It couldn’t hurt. If they could serve it on skewers, all the better!
 
I think both Pete and Craig where both right in different ways.

As if you’re on the boards and listen to the show you have a good idea of what’s good/bad.

As my one and only experience with Ohana was really good so ideally I would like the same experience again, but now I know about the issues I can do my research and find somewhere else to spend my dining dollars.

Although if I wasn’t on the board and based on my last experience I’d want to go there again and as I can only go once every two years a bad experience can really dent the holiday, especially for the price you pay to get there and the the cost of dinner.

So Pete is also right as you really should have a great experience at all restaurants on property.

I Still find it fascinating the major difference in service in restaurants in Disney - glad I’m on the board so can avoid some shockers.

You all provide a great public service :goodvibes
 
Okay I am not crazy. Pete literally just called this one of the absolute best restaurants in WDW.

If the problems haven't been fixed, then people have already been complaining and reporting this for well over a year, so I don't feel like Pete's advice is well grounded in this case and people need to move on. They are WELL AWARE people are unhappy about this. I think fans keep getting pulled back in because of a reputation associated with the name, a hype maybe? I think Craig was the bucket of cold water this calls for to find a better option elsewhere on property.
I don't think we should spend our travel dollars on some kind of warped mission to save Ohana from itself, by going as martyrs and then tweeting about. If a burger place in my hometown has issues, I just stop going.

I completely, 100% agree with Craig, sorry Pete.
 
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While I don't travel to WDW on vacation anymore, I do travel other places regularly that this same theory can apply to. My favorite restaurant when I travel home to visit my family used to be a "staple" restaurant. It was my favorite. The menu hasn't changed the last 3 times I've been home and it regularly changed based on season before. While I know I could still have a great meal with the dishes that had remained, I opted to choose a new restaurant that was actually different and a unique experience.

At the same time, there is a Western PA diner that I only eat 4 different items off the menu and it hasn't changed since I can remember and I would be up in arms if it ever did change. But, it's a diner, and I can fault it when it doesn't live up to expectations in food or service.

The point being, flagship meals shouldn't be repetitive. In my opinion, they should change and evolve. It should be the restaurant that stays the same in terms of service and invention, but they don't ever let anything become sterile or repetitive, save for a selection of "signature" dishes. 'Ohana hasn't changed in any way from the first time I've been there. As a culinary experience, it's about as boring as a diner that's been serving the same food for 50 years. If they are going to treat it like that then it should be the same price and it should be avoided when it's at its worst. If it wants to live up to its reputation, then it needs to do something else.

And yes, you can argue a place like Hoop-Dee-Doo hasn't changed up the menu at its place in forever nor the show, but it still has repeatability. I factor in a minuscule amount of improv and a heavy supply of beer, wine and sangria to make up the difference. So... maybe Ohana should have unlimited booze?


But on the other hand, what percentage of guests are repeat guests at places like Ohana?
 
There are close to 90 restaurants on property... maybe more? I think there are plenty of restaurants that offer meat and salad at the same price point around property that has better service and better quality of food. So yeah, they can find somewhere else.

I wholeheartedly agree. Heck, if I really want to be served endless meat on a skewer, I can go to the Brazilian steakhouse within walking distance of my office right here in Atlanta, and for slightly less money and better quality service. Why would I waste time and money on a supposedly similar yet subpar experience.

I can have a fantastic meal over in Disney Springs and have a great experience as an alternative.

(This said, a Brazil pavilion at Epcot would be great for this reason.)
 
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There are close to 90 restaurants on property... maybe more? I think there are plenty of restaurants that offer meat and salad at the same price point around property that has better service and better quality of food. So yeah, they can find somewhere else.
Also, if people stop going to Ohana and find other places to eat, maybe the lack of patronage would have the servers going back to NOT rushing folks in the restaurant. If there's no one to eat there, what's the point of trying to get folks in and out as fast as possible. I agree 100% that there's plenty of better choices around property. We love to try new places each trip and usually revert to favorites for quick service. If something is terrible or the service is bad I don't need to go back.
 

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