Woody's Lunch Box

flyerjab

flyerjab

Well-Known Member
Casper Gutman said:
What is the QS restaurant nearest to the Lunch Box... the ABC Commissary? The farmers market on sunset? It seems like that side of the park really, really needed a more substantial dining option then Woodys. And it would have helped with the crowds at SWL dining locations. Woodys is emblematic of just how inadequate and underwhelming TSL is.
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What is funny is that my expectations for TSL were measured compared to other things that are on the way (SW:GE) or that had just opened (Pandora). Now having been there several times on this trip, the land is much more crowded than how it appears from a helicopter. It in know way feels empty at all. What I enjoy is the kinetics in this area. I have said this before about how I love seeing rides moving. It creates this feeling of energy and amusement that I think many guests find inviting. This land has that in excess. The slinky dog coaster cars flying around the tracks with the characters adding their voices, along with the alien cars churning and whipping through their course adds something to this land that other parts of WDW are missing. There is a sacrifice to be had as you will be giving up ride time when storms come through, but this land looks and feels alive. The green army men (and women) are also everywhere, interacting spontaneously with guests or doing choreographed shows, again adding and giving life to the walkways. There is a feeling created here that goes beyond the concept art or photos. And it is enhanced even more with the lighting effects at night.

Where I feel they messed up is the lack of shade. Going through standby for SDD is absolutely brutal (which we did). Also, it is clear along the coaster path where the budget ran out. And the transition into TSL is weak - again a budget cut.

Regarding Woody’s Lunchbox, the food is excellent. I can’t even begin to describe how delectable totchos are. IMO, the miss here is the space to eat is not large enough by any stretch. It is woefully small with some standing tables having no umbrella. I was sent a survey about TSL and I gave poor ratings for shade and the eating spaces, as well as minimal theming at the entrance.

All this being said, the entire land is great. We did all three rides and ate there and in total spent over three hours in TSL. It was a great time.
 
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Lensman

Lensman

Well-Known Member
Since the food is getting almost universally good reviews, I wonder if this will inspire them to refresh the menus at a lot of the QS locations?

Or is the margin at Woody's Lunchbox too small and so this is just a dream? I hope not!
 
Lensman

Lensman

Well-Known Member
WDWFanDave said:
Both. Thought they were being fussy as usual until I tried a bite. Tater tots were good though!
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Thanks. I'm a big grilled cheese fan so I appreciate the adult perspective as well as the kids one (though my kids are nearly adults so maybe they'll appreciate the adult perspective too). Hmm. When *do* kids get a more sophisticated palate? Or is it a continuous process?
 
AEfx

AEfx

Well-Known Member
Casper Gutman said:
It seems more likely it will eventually be torn out for more SW. In general, hoping for a phase 2 from WDW almost always proves futile.
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Honestly, that's why it seems so odd to me that they built it right there. That's all I can think of, too, even though it seems unlikely.

Lensman said:
Since the food is getting almost universally good reviews, I wonder if this will inspire them to refresh the menus at a lot of the QS locations?

Or is the margin at Woody's Lunchbox too small and so this is just a dream? I hope not!
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Personally, I think most of the excitement is because the counter service food options at the Studios are so poor to begin with that people are oohing and aahing over something a tiny bit different. I lost interest at the focus on "potato barrels" - I'm just not a fan of tater tots. It really isn't changing my strategy of eating as much off-site as possible, because the prices versus what you get at Disney has been getting out of hand for awhile now, and this place is clearly in that same direction.
 
TheDuke

TheDuke

Well-Known Member
The seating is definitely a nightmare. Fortunately I found room at one of the standing spots but even that was tough. They didn't really seem to think through the amount of people who would be there.

I liked the food, though. Got the grilled cheese with tomato soup and liked it, good crispy bread with a bit of a garlic flavor and strong cheese. Loved the raspberry box tart for dessert. Maybe the best low cost dessert in the parks.
 
Biff215

Biff215

Well-Known Member
Casper Gutman said:
If there’s one thing TSL had, its room. The land wastes huge amounts of space. They could have fit a great deal more in the area.

As for a Phase 2, I would be very surprised if there are any additions to the area. It seems more likely it will eventually be torn out for more SW. In general, hoping for a phase 2 from WDW almost always proves futile.
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I honestly don’t notice wasted space, it’s shoehorned in there pretty good, partly because TSMM was already there. The paths around the attractions are nice but not super wide.

I agree that a larger indoor QS would have been nice but again I don’t see the space. Something like the old Pizza Planet but actually themed correctly would have been perfect next to Aliens. We didn’t bother eating in TSL due to the lack of seating and shade. It was actually one of our 5 year old’s only regrets as he wanted to try it based on videos he had seen.

Overall we were very impressed with TSL. It fulfills its purpose quite well IMO and should have been built years ago. The kinetic energy and the decorations are great, particularly at night. Sure it used an existing attraction, but it created an entire land that has most of what it should. Again a bigger QS, indoor M&G, and legitimate store would certainly help.

My biggest gripe is the wait times and FP situation, but that’s not the land’s fault, it’s the lack of attractions throughout the park. It should be much more enjoyable once SWL and Mickey open, or at least once the initial insanity wears off some.
 
networkpro

networkpro

Well-Known Member
In the Parks
Yes
There's not much space in the table corral, but people insist pushing thier double wide strollers into it which makes less seating available. My wife and I ate there last week and really enjoyed the brisket sandwich even though we thought adding cheese to it was a bit strange. We also had the tomato soup and raspberry pastry. . We'll be back ;)
 
C

crawale

Well-Known Member
Lensman said:
Thanks. I'm a big grilled cheese fan so I appreciate the adult perspective as well as the kids one (though my kids are nearly adults so maybe they'll appreciate the adult perspective too). Hmm. When *do* kids get a more sophisticated palate? Or is it a continuous process?
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We ate there in early September. Grilled cheese had a little cheese in the middle and barely grilled empty bread at the edges. For a great grilled cheese try Beaches and Cream. Tomato soup was thin and strangely colored. Brisket was inedible - fat and gristle. Plus eating outside with a 107 degree heat index. No shade. Horrible. Will never eat there again.
 
flyerjab

flyerjab

Well-Known Member
Lensman said:
Thanks. I'm a big grilled cheese fan so I appreciate the adult perspective as well as the kids one (though my kids are nearly adults so maybe they'll appreciate the adult perspective too). Hmm. When *do* kids get a more sophisticated palate? Or is it a continuous process?
Click to expand...

Just for a different perspective, my family of five ate there over the summer and thought that the food was excellent. Will definitely be eating there again on future trips. The seating area, however, was abysmal. Not nearly enough seats and too many had absolutely no shade. For Florida that is just unacceptable, especially when they serve items like soup! If this area was scaled back due to Chappie's cuts, he should be forced to eat lunch there everyday at high noon at a table with no umbrella. That is just common sense.

We thought that the food was really good though, especially the totchos.
 
ToTBellHop

ToTBellHop

Well-Known Member
flyerjab said:
Just for a different perspective, my family of five ate there over the summer and thought that the food was excellent. Will definitely be eating there again on future trips. The seating area, however, was abysmal. Not nearly enough seats and too many had absolutely no shade. For Florida that is just unacceptable, especially when they serve items like soup! If this area was scaled back due to Chappie's cuts, he should be forced to eat lunch there everyday at high noon at a table with no umbrella. That is just common sense.

We thought that the food was really good though, especially the totchos.
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Agreed. Especially for DHS, where the QSR almost uniformly sucks, we enjoyed our food. It's just the seating area that was a problem.
 
TheDuke

TheDuke

Well-Known Member
With the raspberry box tart being switched out for the apple one does this mean we might get seasonal fruit ones? That would be cool. It would be interesting to see what there is for spring and summer if that is the case.
 
TheDuke

TheDuke

Well-Known Member
I know I keep bumping this thread to talk about box tarts, but I heard that the raspberry ones are now back. Can anyone confirm?
 

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