networkpro
Well-Known Member
- In the Parks
- Yes
This is how bad California Grill has become...this is for tomorrow.
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TWO RESTAURANTS GOING DOWNHILL
- Thread starter gsansone
- Start date
Chi84
Premium Member
Who want to eat dinner at 5:30 or 9:00?
networkpro
Well-Known Member
- In the Parks
- Yes
530 for folks that don't commute daily, and 9 for Christmas party fireworks.
Chi84
Premium Member
Well they’re in luck then!
zurgandfriend
Well-Known Member
I have to agree with your opinion of the California grill. This was a must for us every trip. On our last visit in October my DS and I had dinner there and really did not enjoy it at all. I had a salad as part of the fixed menu and started with a salad which had green tomato slices in it. I wanted to ask my server if they had any ripe ones. I really didn't enjoy the entrée. I prefer my beef cooked, medium well most have been interpreted as medium rare.
My DS and I are going back in the spring and The California Grill will not be on our list.
My DS and I are going back in the spring and The California Grill will not be on our list.
John park hopper
Well-Known Member
What we have found there is no consistency we went to Coral Reef one trip it was very good went back next trip it was horrible
Tons of people with kids..... It's always packed... Who the hell wants to wait until 7:30
Chi84
Premium Member
I guess that’s why we never see all those kids.
jaklgreen
Well-Known Member
We would happily eat earlier than 5:30. Many people eat their big main meal earlier because it is healthier than having a huge meal later in the evening. Most people mix up how you are supposed to eat, bigger meals earlier in the day for the energy, and a light meal in the evening is how it is supposed to be.
Disgruntled Walt
Well-Known Member
- In the Parks
- No
Has anyone else had a similar experience at 'Ohana? This used to be one of my family's favorites and we noticed decline in in our trip during 2013...then we visited again in 2017 for the last time and it was still the same as 2013, which wasn't great. But they were still doing skewers. Have they actually stopped during skewers permanently?
AkiraRaptor
Meega, nala kwishta!
On our last trip in early November, we did four restaurants, and I decided to do a food comparison this trip and I got a steak at each one. I've eaten at all four before, so I had some expectation, but was a little shocked by my ranking at the end of the week. In order of best to meh:
1. California Grill
2. Narcoosee's
3. Le Cellier
4. Yachtsman
CG was by far the best. One of the best meals I've had at WDW in a while. Steak, and the rest of the meal was perfect, so was my wife's. Service was great too. As for price, Narcoosee's was the most expensive, but I did the surf and turf meal (steak and lobster). Was perfect, but they have raised the price on that one meal far more than necessary after the remodel.
Yachtsman was by far the worst. Service was sloppy from walking up to the restaurant, to paying the bill, and everything in between. The steak was bland. The wait staff was nice and all, but she unfortunately had a bit of a BO problem that was a bit off putting.
But Le Cellier pleasantly surprised us. Eaten there many times over the decades visiting the parks. Every meal there was just OK. Nothing to rave about. But this trip, it was great. It almost beat out Narcoosee's.
Been going so long there, and have eaten at almost every place, I have to say that while some places I always seem to have an issue with the food (I'm looking at you Coral Reef and Space 220). But Disney has opened a few fantastic places in the last few years like Topolino's Terrace and Toledo that show they can keep the quality up.
And on price again, I know what it's going to cost before I go, so no shock there for us. But yes, Disney has raised a few of them beyond insanity, like Monsieur Paul and Takumi-Tei. Monsieur Paul price is getting up to Victora & Alberts pricing, but I've eaten at both multiple times, And Monsieur Paul is no V&A, not even close.
In the end, I put the costs to the back of my mind and just try to enjoy the food and service.
1. California Grill
2. Narcoosee's
3. Le Cellier
4. Yachtsman
CG was by far the best. One of the best meals I've had at WDW in a while. Steak, and the rest of the meal was perfect, so was my wife's. Service was great too. As for price, Narcoosee's was the most expensive, but I did the surf and turf meal (steak and lobster). Was perfect, but they have raised the price on that one meal far more than necessary after the remodel.
Yachtsman was by far the worst. Service was sloppy from walking up to the restaurant, to paying the bill, and everything in between. The steak was bland. The wait staff was nice and all, but she unfortunately had a bit of a BO problem that was a bit off putting.
But Le Cellier pleasantly surprised us. Eaten there many times over the decades visiting the parks. Every meal there was just OK. Nothing to rave about. But this trip, it was great. It almost beat out Narcoosee's.
Been going so long there, and have eaten at almost every place, I have to say that while some places I always seem to have an issue with the food (I'm looking at you Coral Reef and Space 220). But Disney has opened a few fantastic places in the last few years like Topolino's Terrace and Toledo that show they can keep the quality up.
And on price again, I know what it's going to cost before I go, so no shock there for us. But yes, Disney has raised a few of them beyond insanity, like Monsieur Paul and Takumi-Tei. Monsieur Paul price is getting up to Victora & Alberts pricing, but I've eaten at both multiple times, And Monsieur Paul is no V&A, not even close.
And my wife would 100% agree. She asked again on our last trip...nope...they took it away during Covid, and never brought it back.
In the end, I put the costs to the back of my mind and just try to enjoy the food and service.
It is by far the worst signature place... It's incredible how bad it has become after being a very nice steakhouse a decade ago... The last two times we went the service was awful... People in swim wear... Horrible food.....
AkiraRaptor
Meega, nala kwishta!
Yep, 100% agree, we seem to have the same history. with the place. This was the third, and probably the last for a long while we've been there, in the last 15 years. It has steadily gone downhill. The first time we went it was very good. Food, service, everything. We really enjoyed it. Now, it's Golden Corral with a high price. The food is not signature anymore, the room is tired and crowded, and the service feels more like fast food then signature. We'll be giving it a pass till after 2035 unless they redo the entire place (room, staff, and menu).
Fortunately, we have multiple steak places available at Disney that far surpass it. So I won't miss it.
HouCuseChickie
Well-Known Member
While it's been several years since we've had a traditional WDW vacation visit, I wholeheartedly agree that dining has been on the decline for a while. What's funny is that DD16 and I popped in about a month ago and had dinner at 'Ohana. It definitely wasn't nearly as good as it was in our first handful of visits, but it was actually significantly better than our last visit in 2017. I was honestly kind of shocked that it was this good. It leads me back to one of Disney biggest dining issues... consistency. They are so inconsistent with providing a good dining experience that it's hard to have faith in anything you book.
Centauri Space Station
Well-Known Member
Ive never had a bad meal at the following places:
Skippers Canteen, Biergarten, LeCellier, Space 220, Via Napoli, Brown Derby, Tiffins, Yak and Yeti, Il Mulino, Flying Fish, Topolinos, Steakhouse 71, Topolinos, Morimoto Asia, Homecomin, Boathouse, Raglan Road.
Skippers Canteen, Biergarten, LeCellier, Space 220, Via Napoli, Brown Derby, Tiffins, Yak and Yeti, Il Mulino, Flying Fish, Topolinos, Steakhouse 71, Topolinos, Morimoto Asia, Homecomin, Boathouse, Raglan Road.
AkiraRaptor
Meega, nala kwishta!
Topolino's is so nice, you named it twice! I agree, that place is fabulous! I think we like a lot of the same places. In a trip in 2023 we went to the following places: Trattoria al Forno, Toledo, Yak & Yeti, Kona Café, Steakhouse 71, Brown Derby, Topolino's, Homecomin', Ohana, Via Napoli, Space 220, Boma
Every place was great that year, except Space 220. Food was downright terrible, I couldn't finish it. While the service was good, the atmosphere around us was out of control. Kids running around, actually going up to our table and others people's tables, the adults that should have been watching them were busy getting drunk. They sat their kids at one table, and the adults at another, then ignored the kids for the entire dinner while they drank and were exceptionally loud. They finished just before us, and I overhear the staff talking about it as they cleaned up the area (that was a mess) and even they were appalled at how those parents acted. I don't know if they ever said anything to them though. Imagine Chef Mickey's in a fine dining restaurant.
If I'm going to a place like Chef Mickey's or Storybook Breakfast, it's OK, it's part of the deal and you expect the loudness and the kids having fun. But not acting like that at a place that costs $80 a person plus drinks. As for the food, maybe it was just me and my choices that night as my wife said her meal was OK, but not great. Or the whole kids out of control soured me on the place, but for me, everything was off that night.
We'll give them a try again in 5-10 years, but not anytime soon. Plenty of other places to go. This is our possible list for our spring trip: Steakhouse 71, Tiffins, La Hacienda de San Angel, Liberty Tree, Jiko, Toledo, Flying Fish. I have to get it down to 4 though
So hard to choose.
Tom P.
Well-Known Member
My family, with our numerous young children, have dined at Chef Mickey's many times. And even in that environment, we've never witnessed the kinds of behavior you are talking about at Space 220. Yes, of course, it's loud and boisterous. And the kids get up and interact with the characters and so forth. But just running loose around the restaurant, going up to total stranger's tables, and so forth? I don't care how kid-friendly the restaurant is, that's unacceptable.Topolino's is so nice, you named it twice! I agree, that place is fabulous! I think we like a lot of the same places. In a trip in 2023 we went to the following places: Trattoria al Forno, Toledo, Yak & Yeti, Kona Café, Steakhouse 71, Brown Derby, Topolino's, Homecomin', Ohana, Via Napoli, Space 220, Boma
Every place was great that year, except Space 220. Food was downright terrible, I couldn't finish it. While the service was good, the atmosphere around us was out of control. Kids running around, actually going up to our table and others people's tables, the adults that should have been watching them were busy getting drunk. They sat their kids at one table, and the adults at another, then ignored the kids for the entire dinner while they drank and were exceptionally loud. They finished just before us, and I overhear the staff talking about it as they cleaned up the area (that was a mess) and even they were appalled at how those parents acted. I don't know if they ever said anything to them though. Imagine Chef Mickey's in a fine dining restaurant.
If I'm going to a place like Chef Mickey's or Storybook Breakfast, it's OK, it's part of the deal and you expect the loudness and the kids having fun. But not acting like that at a place that costs $80 a person plus drinks. As for the food, maybe it was just me and my choices that night as my wife said her meal was OK, but not great. Or the whole kids out of control soured me on the place, but for me, everything was off that night.
We'll give them a try again in 5-10 years, but not anytime soon. Plenty of other places to go. This is our possible list for our spring trip: Steakhouse 71, Tiffins, La Hacienda de San Angel, Liberty Tree, Jiko, Toledo, Flying Fish. I have to get it down to 4 though
Chi84
Premium Member
We’ve been to Space 220 three times. It was fairly quiet. Never experienced anything like what was described. I think it may have been an anomaly.
Tom P.
Well-Known Member
I hope so. I can't imagine that kind of experience even in the loudest and craziest Disney restaurant. We've not yet dined at Space 220, so I don't know that one personally. As I said, though, we are very familiar with Chef Mickey's, having most recently dined there in September, and we've never experienced anything like that. Even dining in "food court" type restaurants at Disney, I've never seen that kind of behavior.
Chi84
Premium Member
Honestly, we've been to just about every TS restaurant in WDW and Space 220 was one of the most sedate. I don't know what happened - maybe a rogue family. It was our favorite of the trip.