Adventureland Veranda - Skipper Canteen restaurant

hpyhnt 1000

hpyhnt 1000

Well-Known Member
I'm hoping the re-worked menu is a compromise of sorts. Skipper Canteen had 10 entree options; why couldn't 5 of them be fairly generic (Jungle Burger, Taste Like Chicken Nuggets, etc.) and 5 of them be a bit more "exotic" (pick the top 5 selling items from the current menu and tweak 'em a bit).

I know you could argue kitchen limitations, but I find those to be phony reasons. This is the company that builds concrete mountains and fiberglass castles; surely they can cook more than burgers and nuggets in their kitchens.
 
habuma

habuma

Well-Known Member
Nmoody1 said:
Why? Not everyone wants to book dining 180 days in advance. Vacations an be spontaneous.... don't tell disney that! ;)
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As I said, I'm not a big fan of 180 days in advanced ADRs...but...

Given that it's the norm for all of the other table service restaurants, it makes it difficult to spontaneously choose Skipper Canteen when you've already scheduled something else in advance. This may be even more true for the casual Disney vacationer who is being told by friends and travel agents that they need to book ADRs early and don't even know about Skipper Canteen because it's not on the list of options 180 days out. By the time they find out about it, it's too late.

It'd be nice if you could be more spontaneous with all of the restaurants, but given that you can't, I'd hope for some consistency in the process for deciding where to eat.
 
Ransom

Ransom

Well-Known Member
When we were in WDW the first two weeks of this month, we stopped by Skippers Canteen and looked over the menu. There was nothing there particularly interesting...it just seemed like more of the same ol' Disney table service restaurant stuff. So we didn't even try to get a reservation.
 
bethymouse

bethymouse

Well-Known Member
I'm sorry if someone has already asked this, but why doesn't Skipper Canteen take ADRs? If it's a table service restaurant, then it should IMHO! It's more like quick service if you ask me.:(
 
FerretAfros

FerretAfros

Well-Known Member
I ate there last weekend, and the waitress actually discouraged my dining partner from ordering the soup because many diners that day had sent it back because it was too bland. She said that the soup used to be a pho, but ever since it was switched to the new recipe, it had been really hit-and-miss from one day to the next. There may be problems with the menu, but I don't think that overly-exotic cuisine is one of them

In all, I thought the restaurant walked the line just about right (similar to what I thought after eating there in January). The seasoning and sides were exotic enough that I felt like I was getting something a little special, but not so crazy that I felt like I was going to regret it during the half marathon the next morning. It seemed like a perfect way to be a little adventurous, yet still familiar enough to appeal to the Magic Kingdom audience.

I suspect that the lack of advance reservations is hurting them more than the realize; how did the same-day only experiment work out for Spice Road Table, again?
 
ABQ

ABQ

Well-Known Member
So Spice Road does take reservations now? Though I think I recall reading they did switch, the use of an X versus a check mark on @wdwmagic 's page here confuses me.
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Wikkler

Wikkler

Well-Known Member
Nmoody1 said:
Great... just what the kingdom needs.... more dumbed down food for dumb people.

I can't wait to dive into a skipper burger with jungle fries.

Admittedly I did think the menu was a bit out there... but it's nice to have something different. I give Tiffins 3 months!
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Meanwhile at Universal you can get things like yucca fries, oxtail stew, toad in the hole, pad thai, etc...
 
Kman101

Kman101

Well-Known Member
Sorry to see them change the menu. I can't say it surprises me. Maybe it won't be as generic as we think, or do we already know what the new menu will entail?

I still plan to get in there, as long as it remains slightly unique. If it's just going to end up generic burgers or barbecue I may take a pass.
 
prfctlyximprct

prfctlyximprct

Well-Known Member
habuma said:
As I said, I'm not a big fan of 180 days in advanced ADRs...but...

Given that it's the norm for all of the other table service restaurants, it makes it difficult to spontaneously choose Skipper Canteen when you've already scheduled something else in advance. This may be even more true for the casual Disney vacationer who is being told by friends and travel agents that they need to book ADRs early and don't even know about Skipper Canteen because it's not on the list of options 180 days out. By the time they find out about it, it's too late.

It'd be nice if you could be more spontaneous with all of the restaurants, but given that you can't, I'd hope for some consistency in the process for deciding where to eat.
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Couldn't have said it better myself. I am paying for the dining plan and want to eat at nice restaurants when I am in Disney. I don't want to take a chance and save up a TS credit for the day before use. Just doesn't make sense. I wouldn't even know it were same day ressies only if it weren't for this site, my best friend tried for months to get an ADR there and didn't realize until I informed her that you cannot. Disney doesn't do a very good job of explaining this.
 
RSoxNo1

RSoxNo1

Well-Known Member
The flavors on this menu weren't bold at all, they were bland. If they go to a vanilla menu, shame on them but the menu they had wasn't good and it wasn't adventurous.

Moreover, they did a lousy job of theming the mess hall. They need to add a loop of announcements like the Jungle Cruise queue and they need to make it look like the Skippers use the mess hall. Instead they have masks and artifacts arranged neatly along the walls and two small shelves that indicate the Skippers were there.
 
R

rricks26

Member
The issue is, is that, the guests that want this menu and level of themeing are the guests that want to book out in advance. The guests that come to mk without a dining reservation don't want the unique food nor do they care about a jungle cruise themed dining experience. If you understand Disney enough to appreciate the jungle cruise, chances are you are a Disney veteran that knows you need your tsrs booked ahead of time.
 
deeevo

deeevo

Well-Known Member
RSoxNo1 said:
The flavors on this menu weren't bold at all, they were bland. If they go to a vanilla menu, shame on them but the menu they had wasn't good and it wasn't adventurous.

Moreover, they did a lousy job of theming the mess hall. They need to add a loop of announcements like the Jungle Cruise queue and they need to make it look like the Skippers use the mess hall. Instead they have masks and artifacts arranged neatly along the walls and two small shelves that indicate the Skippers were there.
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Yup, no Wow! factor at all and people walk by it without even knowing it's there. I mean I walk by it all the time and forget it's there.
 
habuma

habuma

Well-Known Member
deeevo said:
Yup, no Wow! factor at all and people walk by it without even knowing it's there. I mean I walk by it all the time and forget it's there.
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Having not seen it yet (again, hoping to see it this Friday), I don't know what to expect other than what I've read. But yeah, it sounds like it could benefit from more theming. I really like the idea of doing music/announcements in the mess hall similar to what they do in the JC queue. (I listen to that loop at work and in my car...love it.)

That said, I really dig the books that I've seen people post pictures of form the Skipper Canteen. I especially like the subtle references to attractions of the past in those book titles and authors. That may be the thing I'm looking most forward to seeing when I'm there on Friday.
 
matt9112

matt9112

Well-Known Member
hpyhnt 1000 said:
I'm hoping the re-worked menu is a compromise of sorts. Skipper Canteen had 10 entree options; why couldn't 5 of them be fairly generic (Jungle Burger, Taste Like Chicken Nuggets, etc.) and 5 of them be a bit more "exotic" (pick the top 5 selling items from the current menu and tweak 'em a bit).

I know you could argue kitchen limitations, but I find those to be phony reasons. This is the company that builds concrete mountains and fiberglass castles; surely they can cook more than burgers and nuggets in their kitchens.
Click to expand...

That's not what the masses want. They want basic food for there basic lifestyle.
 
A

Absimilliard

Well-Known Member
habuma said:
Having not seen it yet (again, hoping to see it this Friday), I don't know what to expect other than what I've read. But yeah, it sounds like it could benefit from more theming. I really like the idea of doing music/announcements in the mess hall similar to what they do in the JC queue. (I listen to that loop at work and in my car...love it.)

That said, I really dig the books that I've seen people post pictures of form the Skipper Canteen. I especially like the subtle references to attractions of the past in those book titles and authors. That may be the thing I'm looking most forward to seeing when I'm there on Friday.
Click to expand...

The theming is rich and so low key it feels like a restaurant that belongs at Tokyo Disney Sea, not the Magic Kingdom. In the dining room where the bathrooms are, look at the various awards for a reference to Harrison Hightower III (bonus point if you know who he is in Disney park lore). There is a frame referencing the S.E.A.

The library is where you will want to spend time. I found references to Alien Encounter, Temple of the Forbidden Eye, Temple of the Crystal Skull, Tower of Terror (Tokyo Disney Sea), Haunted Mansion, Pandora, Alien Encounter Pirates and many others after 15 minutes of searching. The message board near the reference has a reference to the Temple of the Forbidden Eye...

As an old school Disney theme park fan (last Disney movie I saw was Toy Story 3), this restaurant was a gem and the greatest thing to open in a US Disney park since 1995.
 

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