So when people complain about the standard of food within the parks .........

[Phonedave]

See my prior post. I'm not sure what "real world" everyone lives in that I don't, but a bacon burger with regular fries from my local Five Guys is $12, which is actually MORE expensive than what I'd pay at Backlot Express.

A five guys bacon cheeseburge is also much larger than a WDW burger. Their little cheeseburger is more in line. Which comes out to about the 10 to 15 % less that I quoted.

I would also hazard to say that five guys is a bit better than WDW. Again, WDW is not bad, but its not great.

 

[Chef Mickey]

To be fair, I don't think anyone actually eats at Ruth's Chris unless they have a corporate expense account to charge it to.

Probably true because it's not even a good enough steakhouse to go on your own. There are FAR better places to get steak.

 

[Chef Mickey]

You are comparing WDW to Ruth's Chris? RC is an other overpriced chain that people like to eat at because it makes they feel important

Montville Inn, down the road from my house - and that is Northern NJ pricing.

12 oz Filet
$ 28
Cheddar Cheese Orzo, Grilled Asparagus, Red Wine Demi Glaze

And really, a filet is about the most overrated thing on any menu. Except for maybe surf and turf

You're right...RC is actually garbage compared to Jiko and offers nothing else besides their overrated food.

You also can't compare a restaurant in WDW to some random place serving a $28 filet. The food is the only thing that place has, so it can't be terribly expensive or it has to be absolutely outstanding (which I doubt because a perfectly cooked steak is really easy to do at home).

Where you really start paying for food is when there is actually cooking and technique involved. None of the places we are talking about have that, but at least WDW serves decent food and has an entire city of shows/rides to entertain you.

 

[correcaminos]

Right, and the price premium Disney charges starts to disappear when you get into the higher end restaurants, so people lose even more credibility when they complain about price. The filet at Jiko is $49 and served with macaroni and cheese and asparagus. A filet at Ruth's Chris is $45 and it doesn't come with any garnish whatsoever.

Lose credibility when we complain about price? We live in an area where food is not expensive. Sorry, it's a fact. We also live in an area full of farmland near by so we get top notch quality meats for low costs. If you think Ruth's Chris was quality steakhouse then you are missing out in my opinion. We found them to be overpriced and not good. They didn't last long in my area. We have significantly better steak houses for less.

Have you and @Chef Mickey ever thought that maybe we are just lucky with food quality where we live? I'm sorry but generally speaking food quality in FL is bad compared to the higher prices they charge. Not a big deal because we don't go to FL for food. We go there for other things.

I'm going to give Disney some credit. The last couple years there has been an uptick in food quality at some places. Some others? Not so much. You probably couldn't pay me to go to Chef Mickey's again, but I'm happy with the choices in QS now and some at the TS places we've been to that are newer.

 

[Phonedave]

You have to be somewhat careful when you say it's overpriced. I guess it's overpriced in that you could get a similar thing for cheaper, but you're not at Disney World when you're eating at Applebees. Furthermore, is the food at the comparable places really any better? For Example, literally everything served at Olive Garden is frozen and/or comes from a bag. A dinner for 2 is easily $65 without alcohol....and there is a Discount Tire next door, not Test Track.

I don't consider Olive Garden good food. Most of the stuff that is served at WDW comes in the same way - wholesale food suppliers. There are not many chain places that I eat at - really the only one is Chili's, and that is only on $5 margarita night. When I dine out around here, I eat at independent restaruants.

I posted an example from the Montville Inn in an earlier post.

Just so people have an idea of the places I compare WDW to, here are some local places and prices. When you look at these, dont just look at the prices (which are lower) but look at the ingredients used, and look at how intersting and non run-of-the-mill these dishes are. WDW is all about middle of the road, "safe" food.

Montville Inn - Compares to a WDW Signature
Asparagus Milanese
$ 12
Grilled Asparagus, Over Easy Egg, Parmesan, Crispy Bacon, Truffle Oil

Rigatoni Bolognese
$ 17
Veal, Beef & Pork Sauce

Stuffed Pork Chop
$ 27
Prosciutto, Goat Cheese, Sundried Cranberries, Apple Burgundy Reduction, Poached Pear

Calandra's Mediterrain Grill - Compare to a standard table service

Insalata di Polpo – 14.95
fresh octopus, boiled and chopped; served with garlic, onions, sweet peppers, celery, lemon juice, and olive oil


Veal Siciliano – 28.95

thinly sliced veal sautéed with black olives and capers; topped with melted fresh mozzarella in a white wine light marinara sauce

Wood Stack Pizza Kitchen\ - Compares to somethign like Via Napoli (which I like)

STRACCIATELLA CAPRESEV $12
soft stretched cheese, tomato soffritto, basil, evoo, sea salt, country bread

PIZZA BARESE $17
sausage, fior di latte & wisconsin dry mozzarella, pecorino romano, broccoli rabe, roasted tomatoes, garlic, evoo

 

[Phonedave]

You're right...RC is actually garbage compared to Jiko and offers nothing else besides their overrated food.

You also can't compare a restaurant in WDW to some random place serving a $28 filet. The food is the only thing that place has, so it can't be terribly expensive or it has to be absolutely outstanding (which I doubt because a perfectly cooked steak is really easy to do at home).

Where you really start paying for food is when there is actually cooking and technique involved. None of the places we are talking about have that, but at least WDW serves decent food and has an entire city of shows/rides to entertain you.

The why did you compare Jiko to Ruth's Chris? You just compared it to a random (and overpriced) place doing exactly the same thing.

The underlined nothing to do with the food. I already paid for that with my park admission.

If anyting, because WDW has so much foot traffic, and so much of a captive audience, they have an easier time at their restaruants. They don't have to compete to get business.

 

[Chef Mickey]

I don't consider Olive Garden good food. Most of the stuff that is served at WDW comes ni the same way - wholesale food suppliers. There are not many chain places that I eat at - really the only one is Chili's, and that is only on $5 margarita night. When I dine out around here, I eat a independent restaruants.

I posted and example from the Montville Inn in an earlier post.

Just so people have an idea of the places I compare WDW to, here are some local places and prices. When you look at these, dont just look at the prices (which are lower) but look at the ingredients used, and look at how intersting and non run-on-the-mill these dishes are. WDW is all about middle of the road, "safe" food.

Montville Inn - Compares to a WDW Signature
Asparagus Milanese
$ 12
Grilled Asparagus, Over Easy Egg, Parmesan, Crispy Bacon, Truffle Oil

Rigatoni Bolognese
$ 17
Veal, Beef & Pork Sauce

Stuffed Pork Chop
$ 27
Prosciutto, Goat Cheese, Sundried Cranberries, Apple Burgundy Reduction, Poached Pear

Calandra's Mediterrain Grill - Compare to a standard table service

Insalata di Polpo – 14.95
fresh octopus, boiled and chopped; served with garlic, onions, sweet peppers, celery, lemon juice, and olive oil


Veal Siciliano – 28.95

thinly sliced veal sautéed with black olives and capers; topped with melted fresh mozzarella in a white wine light marinara sauce

Wood Stack Pizza Kitchen\ - Compares to somethign like Via Napoli (which I like)

STRACCIATELLA CAPRESEV $12
soft stretched cheese, tomato soffritto, basil, evoo, sea salt, country bread

PIZZA BARESE $17
sausage, fior di latte & wisconsin dry mozzarella, pecorino romano, broccoli rabe, roasted tomatoes, garlic, evoo

I didn't say WDW was any different in terms of frozen/bagged supplier food. I said most chains serve the same kind of food for similar prices.

I already explained why you can't compare WDW to the local places you're quoting. ALL the local restaurants have is their food, so it had better be good.

My point with WDW is they do a solid job for the amount of people they serve, have a lot of options, and SOME of their restaurants are even better than many chains in the real world. I'd put California Grill up there as a solid option.

Honestly, who cares what Montville Inn has to offer in terms of food? Do they have Disney World in their backyard? If they charged more for their food, they'd be out of business...end of story.

 

[Chef Mickey]

The why did you compare Jiko to Ruth's Chris? You just compared it to a random (and overpriced) place doing exactly the same thing.

The underlined nothing to do with the food. I already paid for that with my park admission.

If anyting, because WDW has so much foot traffic, and so much of a captive audience, they have an easier time at their restaruants. They don't have to compete to get business.

I didn't...the other dude did and I just chimed in because we are talking about food quality. Disney does a GOOD job in food AND has a worldwide destination in their backyard.

Not having to compete for business also means their food quality could be a heck of a lot worse. They do a good job...better than many restaurants in the real world that ONLY serve food and you'd think would have to be better.

 

[Prince-1]

To be fair, I don't think anyone actually eats at Ruth's Chris unless they have a corporate expense account to charge it to.

Why would you think this?

 

[Raineman]

Let's be honest-if you're a major foodie who lives on the Food Network and has a sophisticated palate, I'm sure a good portion of the food offerings at WDW are going to be below your standards. For the rest of us, including those of us who just like to eat, almost all of the food that is served at WDW is satisfying. You will still get the occasional bad meal, cause every chef has a bad day once in a while. As for the prices, I am expecting a large markup on meals at WDW, so the prices don't shock me at all (and I use the DDP, but let's not go down that rabbit hole). Even at the worst, WDW food is comparable to your average family restaurant, and for me, that's good enough-especially when I am really hungry.

 

[Mickey5150]

The best thing I can say about how people review Disney restaurants is that I'm already hearing complaints about the food at the new space restaurant in Epcot. It hasn't even been built yet.

 

[JIMINYCR]

Both good and bad Reviews can only be a starting point and shouldnt be the end decision whether a meal or dining spot should be tried. Weve dined at Disney on every trip and have dined at pretty much all the sites, and rarely had a bad meal. At times the service has needed improvement but I can honestly say our meals were rarely an issue. And if there was something wrong, we mentioned it and got it fixed at the time. Peoples tastes vary and where Disney has guests coming from all different sections of the country, and abroad, they are bound to have a number of people who dont like the way their meal is cooked or flavored or spiced or plated. And its easy to complain when you are paying Disney prices for a meal on top of the Park tickets and resort costs. So I read the reviews, check things out myself and then give my opinion.

 

[correcaminos]

A five guys bacon cheeseburge is also much larger than a WDW burger. Their little cheeseburger is more in line. Which comes out to about the 10 to 15 % less that I quoted.

I would also hazard to say that five guys is a bit better than WDW. Again, WDW is not bad, but its not great.

I'm not a huge burger person but I was surprised when we went to Five Guys. The regulars are really just doubles which is a lot of beef.

I priced out an equal meal including drink. Disney burger, fries and drink $14.58. Five Guys $11.57. So $3 more at Disney. Not a huge mark up really and I'm okay with that, but I'll be honest I don't usually eat that much at a meal. So for amusement park fare, I do find Disney's QS to be okay. It's actually on par, if not cheaper, than what I pay at our local ones or the zoo.

I just find that the TS was lacking in quality and taste for a while. I get there will be a mark up, I just walked away from too many bland meals to be happy. Our trip last month was pretty darn good. In March though we did Beaches and Cream for the first time in a few years and walked away disappointed. So while some things are getting better, others are just the same average food to me.

 

[Jedi Stitch]

When you have a captive Audience. You are paying a premium price for standard food, I guess the average person expects for the cost to have it made right? Paying for a burger at premium prices, should get me a premium burger. That is all I expect when I dine QS.

 

[Rumrunner]

The burgers at Disney are excellent. I never order the fries-just the burgers.
The ribs at AK Flame Tree are as good as ribs anywhere. I look forward to that meal every time I go to Disney.
Pecos Bill's also has some good options and the food is decent.

 

[Minthorne]

In the 90's the food was horrible.

 

[Tony the Tigger]

I actually really like and appreciate the better restaurants on Disney property. To the OP: generally speaking, the better stuff is at the resorts vs. in the parks.

We gradually moved up from "cheap eats" to the better restaurants.

I remember our first few times going, they still had McDonald's, and we'd just eat that or something similar to save money (including the off property McDonald's for breakfast on the way in the morning.) Sheesh, that's a long time ago, I don't eat McDonald's anymore!

But our priority then was the attractions. Our biggest out of pocket expense was the tickets. We'd stay off property in whatever $30 motel on 192, and had no big meals other than the Chinese buffet near the hotel. (They're everywhere.)

As we got older, got a little more money, got AP's - there was no big rush to see everything anymore. We could see whatever attractions had no line, whatever was new, whatever we had a FP for, and we'd start having ONE on-property table service meal per trip, and balance that out by going to Cici's pizza buffet one night with a BOGO coupon from the hotel lobby.

From doing that, we realized how good some of the Disney restaurants are.

I don't like to waste money on food, but when it's worth it, it's worth it.

Two of the best meals we've ever had were at the Flying Fish (Cafe) on the Disney Boardwalk. The experiences were well worth the $150 to $250 for two people (including wine pairings with every course.) I'm not as crazy about it since the new chef took over, though.

You can read the menus online to see what's "standard fare" (even if it's upscale) and what is more creative/exotic. For example, to me the California Grill menu was kind of boring even though it's expensive and a favorite for many people. What I thought was the most interesting thing on the menu (I think it was an ostrich filet) was taken off the menu just before our reservation day.

Everyone's opinion will differ for various reasons and comparisons.

To the guy in Jersey (Montville) I used to work in Denville. There is no comparing most Italian food/pizza in Jersey to anywhere in Florida. Even pizzerias that moved here from NY mostly suck. (I live in South Florida now.)

And to the person who lives near a farm: the produce in South Florida is pretty bad, generally speaking. I lived in Tampa for less than a year and was bored out of my mind, but the produce was much better. Not as good as Jersey, but much better than down here. I'm assuming Orlando is more comparable to Tampa (I-4 corridor, truck route.)

Back to the OP, if you ever get into it where you end up getting discounts and points - like AP discounts and Disney Chase Visa points, that helps justify the cost a lot. I remember one of those Anniversary Flying Fish meals when the check was in that $250 range but we ended up paying like $50 out of pocket because we had a discount and Chase Visa points. It makes you feel like you're getting something you can't really afford. LOL.

Anyway, take reviews with a grain of salt - good ones and bad ones. Some people have an ax to grind, some want to sound snooty or like they know so much, some are cheerleaders.

But to (finally) address your initial question, from what I've heard (not necessarily experienced) portion sizes have gone down recently, and yes I think some menus have been tamed to appeal to the "meat and potatoes" crowd.

Like so many things in life, you get out of it what you put into it. Do a little research ahead of time, and you'll see what's worth it for you vs. what isn't - and that may or may not change over time!

 

[KBLovedDisney]

Note to self. Don't read a thread about food when hungry.

 

[jloucks]

You have to be somewhat careful when you say it's overpriced. I guess it's overpriced in that you could get a similar thing for cheaper, but you're not at Disney World when you're eating at Applebees. Furthermore, is the food at the comparable places really any better? For Example, literally everything served at Olive Garden is frozen and/or comes from a bag. A dinner for 2 is easily $65 without alcohol....and there is a Discount Tire next door, not Test Track.

Just reading that made me gag a little.

Mmmm.. bag food....

 

[KBLovedDisney]

I really only have one complaint and that is how the quality of high-end TS food has become, more specifically Be Our Guest. First opened, payed a hefty price for good quality food. Several years later, still pay a hefty price, but the quality of food is now about the same or less than a QS option. The only good that still exist for me in Be Our Guest food wise is the Gray Stuff. It's still delicious.

And I could seriously go for some right about now...