Is there any restaurant (full service or counter) "In the Parks" that provide value ?

[Hockey89]

As I said before, my comment about it being garbage was harsh. It is edible. But it is no more quality than your average chain restaurant. When you factor in the pricing, any talk of value goes right out the window, even considering theme park pricing.

Just to comment on a few of your examples

California Grill - CG used to be one of my favorites. But protein quality has gone down and prices through the roof. $75 for a 19oz ribeye. $51 for a filet. Even if it was exceptional beef (which it is not) those prices are downright robbery.

Ohana - This place jumped the shark a long time ago. We used to enjoy eating here. Continuous price increases, coupled with reductions in offerings and some downright poor service has taken it off the list.

V&A's - OK< i will give you this one. The value is there. Every time I have eaten at V&A I walk out feeling as if I got value for my money. It is expensive, but the food and service justifies the price. So I guess the solution is to eat at V&A every night.

Hollywood Brown Derby - I used to love this place. Then they started to follow the CG model of operations. They have reversed the trend lately and food quality has gone up, but not to where it used to be. Meanwhile prices have gone up

Biergartens - Biergarten is a close call. Food is good (even if mass produced) and there is entertainment. But still it is $59 for what amount to a buffet. So, ok, the food here is not garbage. But it is a buffet, and despite the best efforts of anybody working there, it is still held on a steam table, mashed around by other guests, and you are serving yourself your own food. To me, paying $59 for that, even in a theme park, is not value. I can go to a local place, be served a variety of American/German dishes by a wait person, and walk out for about $30-$35 per person, drinks included. If WDW was charging $40 for Biergarten, then I would say it is a good theme park value, but not at $59

Teppan Edo - Maby it has changed since I last ate there, but it was so bad I refused to go back. The chef was horrible as entertainment, the food was underseasoned. As for the sushi, my opinion is, if you can't be bothered to make it in your kitchen, and instead have it pre-packaged, then don't even put it on the menu. Really, it's pre-packaged.

Via Napoli - Again, I will concede some of this. The pizza is a good value. It is very good pizza, and priced in line with theme park prices. Most of their other dishes not so much. They also seem to have a problem with service in this place. Very friendly, but orders are wrong, drinks go missing, and servers disappear for long stretches of time - every time I eat here. But still, this is one of the places in WDW that I do eat at on a regular basis.

Yak & Yeti - They have upped their game lately. The place always seems to be a shambles, but maybe that is part of their theme - not just the decor, but tables and chairs are shoved around, etc. They have improved their food. My understanding is also that while they honor the DDP, they are pretty strict about it. This helps to keep menu pricing aligned with actual food costs, which gets back to the whole value question. Y&Y i also a place that I will frequent. Oddly enough, it is a chain, or well sort of - it's owned by Landry's - which owns a load of chains. When they first opened, they were horrible, really horrible, but they have really improved. I think their prices are high, but theme park high, not highway robbery high. So mea culpa on this one, I would consider Y&Y a good value (especially on your birthday month- then it becomes an even better value with $20 off)


So, yes, I was wrong to paint all of WDW with a broad brush. As I said, my garbage statement was harsh. Food at WDW is not garbage, but it is not high quality / mid-tier restaurant quality either. WDW used to have good dining, with prices that were in line with the park premiums. I could eat at just about any WDW table service restaurants, and come out feeling that the prices were a little high, but the food was good, and I am in a theme park so I expect to pay a bit more - that is value (at least to me).

Ever since the DDP came into its current incarnations, and table service restaurants have become something you have to book months in advance, three factors have happened, which has driven value down. One - restaurants are packed, and because of sheer volume, prep times have to be reduced. This results in less complex preparations and to creating food that can be par-cooked, or held for service. Two - DDP has played havoc with pricing. Chefs are hamstringed by having to work to a specific ceiling for food cost per dish across all dishes. This requires cheaper ingredients - especially with proteins. Finally - the powers that set pricing at WDW restaurants just keep pushing the limits on the upper level of pricing. Higher prices equal less value.

There are a few stand outs - Via Napoli, Yak & Yeti, Trattoria Al Forno, and until recently Artist Point. Yes, AP. It was one of my favorites for a long time (as was CG) and then both went way down hill. AP turned it around in recent years, and I truly enjoyed dining there, even with the pricing. But now its a character dinner

Korean Beef
Wok-fried beef, peppers, onions, pineapple, Korean BBQ sauce.... I got to say at Yak.... That dish was pretty darn good... Place is pretty good

 

[larryz]

Korean Beef
Wok-fried beef, peppers, onions, pineapple, Korean BBQ sauce.... I got to say at Yak.... That dish was pretty darn good... Place is pretty good

X2 on Yaking Yeti.

 

[Phonedave]

Korean Beef
Wok-fried beef, peppers, onions, pineapple, Korean BBQ sauce.... I got to say at Yak.... That dish was pretty darn good... Place is pretty good

Never had it there, but pineapple - not exactly what I would call a traditional Korean ingredient. It does sound good though. However, I think I would miss it being cooked in front of me at the table.

 

[Hockey89]

Never had it there, but pineapple - not exactly what I would call a traditional Korean ingredient. It does sound good though. However, I think I would miss it being cooked in front of me at the table.

yeah, it adds some sweet to counter the spice... Very common flavor profile in the regard, but you are right now a typical Korean ingredient...

 

[Phonedave]

yeah, it adds some sweet to counter the spice... Very common flavor profile in the regard, but you are right now a typical Korean ingredient...

Yep, even long running Korean places like this one

http://koreanbbqnewjersey.com/index.php

Stick oranges, pineapple, or other sweet stuff in their dishes. Can't say I don't like it either.

 

[wdwfan757]

i don't THINK I missed it in any of the posts here, so i'm going to add...

Trail's End. If your appetite will allow it, Trail's End can be a good value. It depends on your party though. I've gone with people who go to TE, get a salad and some sides, a couple pieces of chicken, and call it a day. Those people get robbed. I've also gone with a very hungry filipino guy from grad school and when we were done, an older lady beside us said that she had never seen an eating display like that before. I always feel like I get my money's worth there.

 

[Crazydisneygirl]

Excellent point! Convenience can and does have monetary value, given that one's vacation time is limited.

As for restaurants where you get the most bang for your buck (even if it's less bang than you'd get off-property), some of the better values in my opinion are the Plaza Restaurant at MK (for a la carte - entrees cost just a little bit more than counter service), Via Napoli in Epcot (if you order a pizza to share, rather than individual entrees, you can feed the whole family for less than a typical CS meal) and lunch at the Biergarten in Epcot (for a wholesome buffet with live entertainment that will keep you feeling full for hours). For CS, my biggest recommendation is still Pecos Bill. DH and I split a fajita platter ($15; add $3-$4 if you want extra tortillas) and a couple of free iced waters between the two of us, and by the time we've finished adding things from the toppings bar, there's so much food we can't finish it. Not bad for less than $10 per person.

I agree with Peco Bills, we split 2 meals between 3 people including a hungry teen age boy and we left full. Gotta love the fixin bar.

 

[Maeryk]

Personally, I love the buffets. If you time your meal to be midday-ish, and can eat, you can (IMO) get more than your money's worth and supplement with a smaller (snack) in morning and evening.