No kids group, a couple "food snobs" also superbowl question.

[PMC0849]

Hi, my family and I will be taking a trip to WDW at the end of January. I am curious if there any dining options we NEED! to check out. There are 7 of us, no kids, all over 21. There are a couple of us who are "foodies" and can be difficult to please. I don't think a 7 person trip to Victoria and Albert's is feasible, so I am looking for other options. One person in our group wants to go to Coral Reef, which I have been seeing lukewarm reviews of, but I think it is more for the shtick than the food there. Anyway, just want to see if I am missing anything I should look into. Thanks for the help.

P.S. - Our trip seems to be happening the same weekend as Superbowl; I am wondering if anyone has experience with watching the Superbowl at WDW. As of right now, we have reservations at Shula's, which I assume shows the game, but I am not certain. Any advice for this would also help. It is also much less important if the Lions, Packers, or Titans are not playing, and it looks like that is probable.

 

[Bparso87]

Have not seen Super Bowl but was there for the Confrence championship. Espn would be cool but most likely crazy. I liked corral reef good food great experience. It would be a fantastic restaurant if there was not so many better restaurants in Epcot.

 

[KeithVH]

Narcoosees. Definitely. Truly not the equal of V&A but very consistent in good food. Probably moreso than most any other dining on property. Selections change depending on what is fresh available so don't put too much stock in posted menus unless they're very recent.

Maybe Fulton's. But it's fairly standard fare, nothing exotic. If you like seafood, it's a comfort kind of place. And they handle large groups well.

 

[NiarrNDisney]

Some of the best "Foodie" restaurants in WDW:

__Parks__

Be Our Guest (Dinner)
Hollywood Brown Derby
Le Cellier
Les Chefs de France
Monsieur Paul
Tutto Gusto

__Around the World__

Artist Point
Blue Zoo by Todd English
California Grill
Citricos
Flying Fish
Il Mulino New York Trattoria
Jiko
Sanaa
Victoria & Albert's
The Wave
Wolfgang Puck (The Dining Room)

 

[PrincessNelly_NJ]

Some of the best "Foodie" restaurants in WDW:

__Parks__

Be Our Guest (Dinner)
Hollywood Brown Derby
Le Cellier
Les Chefs de France
Monsieur Paul
Tutto Gusto

__Around the World__

Artist Point
Blue Zoo by Todd English
California Grill
Citricos
Flying Fish
Il Mulino New York Trattoria
Jiko
Sanaa
Victoria & Albert's
The Wave
Wolfgang Puck (The Dining Room)

X2!

 

[Marijil]

Some of the best "Foodie" restaurants in WDW:

__Parks__

Be Our Guest (Dinner)
Hollywood Brown Derby
Le Cellier
Les Chefs de France
Monsieur Paul
Tutto Gusto

__Around the World__

Artist Point
Blue Zoo by Todd English
California Grill
Citricos
Flying Fish
Il Mulino New York Trattoria
Jiko
Sanaa
Victoria & Albert's
The Wave
Wolfgang Puck (The Dining Room)

Well done that pretty much covers it

 

[Gabe1]

And for a group of 21+'s I'd make sure to work in a few entertainment hours at Jelly Rolls. Liquid food.

 

[cjlyon]

When we went in October we had one of our best meals at Coral Reef and our worst meal at The Wave. My husband got the maple-ancho glazed short rib that he said was amazing at Coral Reef he says when we go back we are definitely going there again.

 

[PrincessNelly_NJ]

Hi, my family and I will be taking a trip to WDW at the end of January. I am curious if there any dining options we NEED! to check out. There are 7 of us, no kids, all over 21. There are a couple of us who are "foodies" and can be difficult to please. I don't think a 7 person trip to Victoria and Albert's is feasible, so I am looking for other options. One person in our group wants to go to Coral Reef, which I have been seeing lukewarm reviews of, but I think it is more for the shtick than the food there. Anyway, just want to see if I am missing anything I should look into. Thanks for the help.

P.S. - Our trip seems to be happening the same weekend as Superbowl; I am wondering if anyone has experience with watching the Superbowl at WDW. As of right now, we have reservations at Shula's, which I assume shows the game, but I am not certain. Any advice for this would also help. It is also much less important if the Lions, Packers, or Titans are not playing, and it looks like that is probable.

I personally use a combo of Disneyfoodblog (mostly for photos), All ears (menus), tripadvisor and yelp (for reviews) to determine where to eat. I also rely on these forums for input.

 

[Disney Shib]

P.S. - Our trip seems to be happening the same weekend as Superbowl; I am wondering if anyone has experience with watching the Superbowl at WDW. As of right now, we have reservations at Shula's, which I assume shows the game, but I am not certain. Any advice for this would also help. It is also much less important if the Lions, Packers, or Titans are not playing, and it looks like that is probable.

I've been in the world for a couple Superbowls. Two of which I watched at ESPN Club at the Boardwalk which was awesome. They has specialty apps and drinks for the game. I would call and see if you can make reservations ahead of time. Also, if you don't mind traveling too far right outside downtown disney there is a Buffalo Wild Wings on vineland ave... the address is 12511 Vineland Road Orlando,FL. Awesome crowd everytime we go. We've gone a bunch of times for Boston Bruins and Patriots games as well. They always have great drink specials and you are never rushed out.

 

[DisneyDebNJ]

Being a family of HUGE football fans, my first suggestion would be ESPN Club, (pub food, not bad but not 5 star) Our best meal this past November was at Yachtsman's Steakhouse. I am a MAJOR foodie and in my very honest opinion, beat out Le Cellier and Narcoossee's by a mile. You could always do an earlier dinner at Yachtsman's then try to get a good table at ESPN

 

[71jason]

Re: foodies. Citricos, Jiko, California Grill. I hear good things about Blue Zoo, as well, tho have never been.

Re: Super Bowl. ESPN is an option, if you feel like lining up at 11:00 a.m. It goes to capacity early.

Many of the hotel lounges set up viewing areas, with big screen TVs rolled in. Mizners, in the Grand Floridian, even has a one-day only menu of wings and other traditional "bar food." Most of these will be packed by 5:00 p.m.

There are some off-site options as well, but some do the Super Bowl like a hard ticket event. Alehouse, for one, gets like $60 (for an unlimited buffet and I think open bar). Splitsville did something similar last year. So call or Google ahead of heading out anywhere.

 

[Gabe1]

ESPN tends to fill early on for major sporting events. If that is your choice, get there early and don't plan on getting up and your stool still being there. There is often a queue on those days to enter that doesn't budge.
ESPN seems to be everyone's first thought.

 

[NiarrNDisney]

To add for the Superbowl you could also try the Espn Wide World of Sports restaurant, Big River Grill, Crew's Cup (YCR), River Roost (PORS), Rix Lounge (CSR) Scat Cats (POFQ), Territory Lounge (WL) and even the Wave (CR) would be a great spot.

 

[luv]

Most bars show the Super Bowl. Even Disney bars, I'm sure. I don't like football and don't pretend to understand why people do, but the Super Bowl is always a big deal, everywhere. Nobody notices this more than people who would rather avoid it entirely. (But do enjoy a little of the Puppy Bowl.)

 

[The Incredible Schmulk]

On the food front, I'd recommend Jiko and Sanaa in the Animal Kingdom area, Flying Fish and virtually everything in the Swan and Dolphin Hotels in the Epcot/DHS area, and California Grill and Citricos in the Magic Kingdom area.

Now on to Coral Reef...

Coral Reef is certainly an experience of ambiance, but don't let the reviews of the food necessarily dissuade you. We've eaten there on our annual trip almost every year for the last six years, and I've yet to have a bad dish. The caveat being that I always order seafood, so I have no idea how good their non-fish selections are. A month ago on our latest trip, I thought that their octopus appetizer was actually better than the octopus I had at Victoria & Albert's the night before, if you're willing to believe that. I say, if you stick to the seafood, you probably won't be disappointed in your meal.

As far as the noise level in the restaurant, I will guarantee that it will be dire. The layout is essentially set up so that all sounds reverberate around the room in such a way that the din becomes a coliseum-like roar even at half capacity. There's also the behavior of other diners with which you will have to contend, and we've found that at Coral Reef, more than any other restaurant that we have visited more than twice, that's a crapshoot. The noise-level contributes to some abhorrent displays of shouting fits from both parents and their kids, and the over-stimulation of said kids that is inherent in the theming of the restaurant will cause more meltdowns and seemingly rogue children than you will see in any restaurant on property, outside of a character breakfast. If you are seated near the glass the view will be awesome, but you will likely have to contend with tiny elbows jostling for a better look at the sea turtles swimming by. I think it should probably go without saying that these issues make it pretty difficult for your poor server to be as attentive as he or she may like to be, but I'll mention it anyway. Your service might be slow and your server may look haggard. If you go into the experience fully expecting these possible situations, I think you may actually be pleasantly surprised with the quality of the food and come out with an overall positive experience. Just know that you're walking into the lion's den.

Go to the Wave for the Super Bowl. They wheel TVs into their lounge seating areas and have TVs on either side of the bar area. It's not ideal, but you will have a better chance of finding a safe port in the storm of football fans there than most places.

 

[dreamfinder]

In park? Eh, nothing really to write home about from a "foodie" perspective. The list mentioned above is usually pretty solid food, but I wouldn't say its outstanding.

Out of park? The list above is pretty much it. Any deluxe resort TS or signature will be a good meal, but the ones listed are the better choices. Yes, V&A for a party of 7 might be tough, but it is the best dining experience on property. A multi course, multi hour meal served in a venue where you can hear yourself think and properly enjoy your food. Outside of that, Jiko is outstanding, any my DW loves blueZoo.

 

[Mrs.Toad]

I can say without fear of kicking myself in the pants….Flying Fish. The place is amazing.

Check out the menu. It is just as great as it sounds. I'm a foodie, my husband is not. We were both still raving about it and we ordered a bunch of things at dinner. We could, however, kick ourselves for never giving this place a shot earlier on WDW trips.

 

[stevehousse]

Narcossees and Jiko are great for what u r looking for!

 

[EvilQueen-T]

Well done that pretty much covers it

love this list too. with an all adult trip we add things like a stop at la cava, tutto gusto wine cellar etc...for a drinking/tapas style lunch.