How to find Best Resteraunts?

[heychadwick]

Hi All,

I'm at the point that I need to make reservations and I'm trying to find info online about resteraunts. It's like trying to drink from a fire house! Too much information.

I'll state that I've got a 15 year old who thinks she's above standard food. She loves french food. I've got a 9 year old that is somewhat adventuerous and likes seafood. I don't like seafood. We like things that are different and interesting, as well as just plain good. We have zero interest in character meals.

We have the meal plan.

I hope I don't come across as too negative for things. I just know what I don't want. I have some parameters. I'm just trying to find an amazing place that we will love.

We have been before and loved the Morrocan Resteraunt. The entertainment was good, as was the food. Ohana was amazing! Tons of food and it was all delicious. We love the counter place at Mexico. The pure amount of fries at some of these counter places was enough to turn me off french fries for a month, and I love fries!

I'm not really interested in a generic Italian place that is the equivelant of Olive Garden (chicken nuggets a la spaghetti). I don't want a place I can just get back at home. I don't want to go off campus.

I would LOVE to have some suggestions. I saw that Disney food blogger and his web page, but it's hard to find examples. I can search through a ton, but not really figure out what's good. I'm hoping to avoid spending the $20 on his e-book. Isnt' there just a list of top resteraunts? I search and can find user rated ones, but they tend to be boring and unoriginal.

I'm not planning on going to Animal Kingdom as there wasn't really anything we are interested in there. I don't want to go for a meal there.

I've heard that there is a great cajun place at one of the resteraunts (somthing Orleans?). I'd love to try their jumbolya. I'm also looking at the Tortuga place in Adventureland.

Where do people recommend? I'm particularly having a hard time with the Magic Kingdom. Everything looks like a character meal, something boring, or something with fries.

Thank you for your time and any assistance you might provide!

 

[PMC0849]

There is a cajun place, Boatwrights, which is at the Port Orleans Riverside hotel, my wife and I both enjoyed. I don't know about their jumbolya, but if you get the catfish ettouffe, you can probably share it, it was huge.

The Animal Kingdom is very close to Animal Kingdom Lodge, which has 3 excellent places, Boma, Jiko, and a 3rd I can't remember the name, but everyone raves about it on here. On our most recent trip we went to Boma, which is a very good buffet, for a late breakfast/brunch, then went back to Animal Kingdom.

Magic Kingdom, Be Our Guest is probably the best in park sit down meal, but it is one of the hardest reservations to get. The Beast walks around, but I would call it a character meal, and it isn't billed as one.

 

[heychadwick]

Be Our Guest is booked. No chance getting in.

We did Boma about 5 years ago and didn't find it exceptional. Not bad, but not exceptional. I know that people are going to recommend the ones in Animal Kingdom as those seem popular on the rated reviews, but I don't really want to head to the park that I have no interest in going in.

 

[DisneyRoy]

I will say that Tortuga Tavern is very hit and miss in that it is open only seasonally. We have been three times (December, January, and February) and every time we have been, it is closed. So I don't know that I would count on that one. As far as the rest of it goes...I enjoy Garden Grill at Epcot. A lot of the ingredients are grown from on site in the Land Pavilion. It was very tasty. Nothing too fancy but still delicious. If you want some French food then go to Chefs de France in Epcot. Not my cup of tea but the rest of the family enjoyed it.

 

[Hakunamatata]

Good luck!

 

[heychadwick]

Thanks guys.

I've heard that about Tortuga. We are going in March, the week before everyone's on Spring Break. So, it's not the busy period by a week. Maybe it will be open? I hope so, as just looking at the Magic Kingdom resteraunts is a bit disheartning. I can't believe there aren't many interesting places there.

Garden Grill sounds good. I also read about Sunshine Seasons since I posted this and everyone seems to love it. The reviews seem good and have a good variety. Too bad it's in the park that seems to have all the best resteraunts.

I'd love for some suggestions for Magic Kingdom. The Liberty Tavern sounds OK, but just after the holidays is not the time I want to think about Thanksgiving food again.

 

[Pax]

I'll plug one of our favorites: The Wave at the Contemporary. It's not a signature restaurant, but I've consistently had better meals there than at some of the signatures. And it has a full range of main courses-- beef, pork, chicken and seafood along with a pasta selection or two.

 

[Gomer]

You’ll never find a consensus list of top restaurants because the people who eat there are too varied in their taste to ever pin that down. Case in point, I avoided Restaurant Marrakesh (Morocco) for years because I heard it was bad. Turns out the people telling me that just didn’t like Moroccan food.

So, to that end I’d ask a little more about you and your trip.

Where are you staying? The best restaurants on property are usually found at the hotels. As was mentioned above. Animal Kingdom Lodge is a popular favorite for people who like bold flavors. Grand Floridian has some highly recommended restaurants if you are more interested in traditional Western foods. From your comments on Animal Kingdom, I’d guess you don’t want to travel too far out of your way to dine, so where you are staying would be helpful in determining that.

What is your preferred flavor profile? Traditional European? Asian? Spicy or Mild? Avid Carnivore or health nut? You mentioned your daughter likes French food. So, perhaps one of the two table Service locations n France might fit your needs. I’ve heard great things about the food at both. Only complaints I’ve heard come in terms of price (Monsieur Paul) or atmosphere (Chefs de France). Looking for something a little more traditional? Brown Derby gets good reviews. A little more bold? Spice Road Table (new restaurant in Morocco) or Hacienda de San Angel may be more your speed.

If you don’t want to get that granular about it, its relatively safe to pick anything in World Showcase or at one of the Deluxe Hotels that has a menu that excites you. With the exception possibly of 9 Dragons in Epcot’s China ( gets very poor reviews across the board) any negative reviews of those types of restaurants are usually around the value and not the food quality.

 

[jakeman]

Also, you can check out the menu section of the website here:

http://www.wdwmagic.com/dining.htm

Menus will be with each location. So you can determine where you are going to be and then narrow it down to what looks good on the menu.

 

[SnarkyMonkey]

Honestly, I find the best thing to do is to look at the menus over on allearsnet and then to ask questions about anything specific once you've narrowed down your choices.

Magic Kingdom is difficult. Liberty Tree Tavern might be worth a try but I hear that's going down for refurb. Half the time, we end up leaving the park and going to dinner at one of the monorail resorts for dinner. Kona and the Wave are interesting, delicious choices.

The other restaurant at AKL that was noted above but not by name is Sanaa and that is an amazing experience. It's at the resort, not the park.

Your family might enjoy Teppan Edo at Epcot. The Land food court is sagood choice for fast food. I like Pinnochio's In MK for CS. The brown derby and 50s Prime Time are good choices at DHS.

At DTD, I'm a big fan of Raglan Road and Wolfgang Puck's. You can always get a good sandwich at Earl of Sandwich.

Which resort are you staying at? That could help.

 

[heychadwick]

Thanks so much, guys. I appreciate it.

I'm staying at the Carribean. We fly in Monday and will stay at the hotel. I'm sure the food at that place is fine. After that, it is going to be:
Tuesday: Magic Kingdom
Wed: Epcot
Thur: Hollywood
Fri: Epcot or Magic Kingdom
Sat: Epcot or Magic Kingdom

I think there are enough awesome places at Epcot that I won't have a problem especially with the suggestions here. Moroccan & French place for sit down and counter is Mexico and Sunshine Seasons.

I think the real kicker will be Magic Kingdom. That Friday and Saturday it starts to get busy with Spring Breakers. I think those days we might be a bit worn down and more willing to skip the lines and head off to a hotel. Otherwise, though, I'm not sure how much we want to travel to eat dinner. One of those nights will be Ohana. I love that place.

That leaves one dinner at/near Magic Kingdom and counter places for there. Well, I'll try Tortuga. Counter places might just be near whatever we are at at the time. Sometimes you go with the flow.

Also, what about Hollywood? Price isn't a bother due to meal plan. I'm thinking we will probably do the 50's cafe for lunch. Maybe that would be a decent night to head out? Maybe go cajun at the Orleans place that night? Hmmm... other suggestions? Other places to eat at Hollywood?

What do we like? Well, everything, I guess. The 9yr old will be happy with any kid's menu. We like americana, euro, asian, or whatever. Just something interesting. I don't want to eat something I can get at Cracker Barrel or Olive Garden.

Thanks again!

 

[Gomer]

You are definitely in a tough spot. With Liberty Tree closed for refurb and BoG out of the running there isn’t a whole lot in the MK park for TS I’d recommend. Plaza is good if you are looking for something lighter. Tony’s gets poor reviews, (Disclaimer: I’m trying it myself for the first time in a decade on my upcoming trip, but I’m not optimistic from what I’ve been reading). If I were you I’d either stick to counter service at MK or just pick whatever monorail resort restaurant appeals to you the most. They are all good. (My suggestion is Kona, but if you are also doing Ohana, you may want to change it up a bit and hit a different hotel).

As for Hollywood Studios? This is the never ending question. Brown Derby is your best bet for good and interesting food. Prime Time and Sci-Fi have safer but decent (not great) food, but fantastic theming and atmosphere. I usually lean towards just getting a burger/Reuben and a milk shake at Sci-Fi in order to soak in the theming, But, if food is your primary concern, Derby is your best bet.

Note: Depending on when you plan on eating, you can also consider the crescent lake hotel restaurants or another WS restaurant on a DHS night. It’s a quick walk or boat ride to the hotels and the back entrance of Epcot from DHS and you’ll find a much better variety and quality of restaurants available if you go that route.

 

[officialtom]

Two recommendations:

Boatwrights at Port Orleans Riverside. We always stay at POR and make a point of eating at Boatwrights every trip. The jambalaya is delicious! And they always bring warm, delicious corn bread for the table. It could be a meal on its own. Lastly, the service is always A+++.

Boma at Animal Kingdom Lodge. Even if you don't spend a day at AK, it's worth the trek. The buffet has a massive selection and variety of everything you could ever want. The curried pasta salad is a definite favourite of ours.

 

[SnarkyMonkey]

I wouldn't plan to eat out of park on the night you do Hollywood. Since you only have one day there, you'll want to allow yourself as much time as you will need. And DHS has decent food offerings.

I would plan to go out of park on one of your MK nights. It really doesn't take long at all to hop a monorail, eat dinner and get back.

Someone just mentioned the Plaza and that's a great table service option, especially for lunch or a lighter supper. You are right. The variety at MK sucks. For counter service at MK, try Cosmic Rays. It might look like your typical burgers and fries but the toppings bar changes things up and is quite impressive. Again, I would highly recommend Pinocchi's Village Haus.

 

[sxeensweet]

There is soooo many delicious choices!! I could go on for a while. Lol. Just wanted to add for a quick service if you like seafood Columbia Harbor House in Magic Kingdom is really good and has a lot to choose from. Like others have mentioned look on Allears.net at the menus (usually pretty current) and decide what looks appealing to you and your family. Hope you have a wonderful trip!!

 

[Tuvalu]

RESTAURANT. Sorry....couldn't help myself.

 

[unkadug]

Sometimes you just have to eat.

 

[heychadwick]

RESTAURANT. Sorry....couldn't help myself.

Ugh.....I'm a terrible speller, but usually use Firefox of Chrome with auto corrector. I am using IE at work and it's my bane.

Lots of great advice! Talked with the family and here's what we will try:

Tuesday (half day) will be Epcot will do Moroccan for dinner and one of the counters (Sunshine or Mexico)
Wed will be Magic Kingdom. I think we will just do counter for lunch and maybe dinner.
Thur is Hollywood. Derby if we can get in and counter.
Friday is Epcot again. Daughter will pick sit down (probably French) and the other counter not taken above.
Saturday will be Magic Kingdom. counter for lunch and Ohana for dinner.

I think it leaves one sit down and we are thinking of a breakfast somewhere outside of the parks on the last day. This way we get a good breakfast. Might have to buy a counter meal not on meal plan that way, though. Might skip a counter mean on the first day.

The Mrs shot down the cajun food.

For the counter food at Disney, we might just play it by ear with what we are near at the time we are hungry. 15 yr old might want to do a character meal with Pooh. If the teenager wants to embrace a last gasp at being a kid, I'm all for it. That means Crystal Palace.

 

[SnarkyMonkey]

Sounds like a good plan.

I always play the CS by ear, depending on where we happen to be at lunch time and what we feel like eating. It's good to know which places are good and which are not-so-good though so that it will make the decision easier at the time.

 

[heychadwick]

We are changing our times as we decided to go Mon-Fri. The Spring Break crowds show up on Saturday and we want to miss them. Finalized everything and went to make our reservations last night. We couldn't get Ohana for our first night at MK. We want to do a sit down somewhere close to Magic Kingdom, but not sure where.

Any suggestions since Ohana is booked? OH, and I plan on checking for cancels.