What’s Wrong With Disney World Restaurants...

[Disnutz311]

Now don’t get me wrong, Disney World has some great restaurants but I wanted to open up a topic asking a few simple questions. What things would you change in the restaurants? Is it quality, experience, variety? Are they perfect in your eyes? What would you like to see next?

For this excersise in opinion, let’s keep it to full service restaurants...

I am in the Food & Beverage industry and I like to explore peoples thoughts to help improve said industry overall. Anything you are willing to share is intriguing and helpful.

Cheers!

 

[Bartledvd]

Quality for the price is not great and i feel at table service restaurants the servers are looking after to many tables takes very long time to get drinks and if there is an issue hard to find your server to get it fixed, signature restaurants are much more attentive but out side of Disney the service i have experienced is consistently of a higher standard.

 

[lostpro9het]

D...D...P

 

[BoarderPhreak]

I've generally had very positive experiences with Disney (table service) restaurants; especially at Epcot - I haven't done too much of that at MK. Sanaa at AKL was nice, but Boma was tedious at best, all around (slow to queue up and get food, slow to order/receive drinks). The quality varied, but generally pretty good across the board. Were the prices justified? Of course not - this is Disney, after all. It is what it is.

 

[rob0519]

I have a love/hate relationship with the DDP and the ADR system. I feel the DDP gives management a free pass to keep raising the prices and lowering the quality of the food over the last 15 years. I know they needed the DDP to bring people back into the parks at one point, but with record attendance it's no longer needed. Unfortunately, the outcry would be a public relations nightmare if they tried to stop it. The ADRs unfortunately are a necessity. For us, we cant plan a trip 6 months in advance based on personal situations let alone decide where we want to eat on any particular evening 180 days in advance. However, its seems the only way to handle a hundred thousand people a day across the parks.

Depending on the restaurant, the service while generally acceptable can be extremely slow and sometimes unprofessional. I's not in the restaurant industry, but to me it appears management is putting fewer waitstaff on the floor than in years past making the service slower and less attentive.

 

[jaklgreen]

I think a lot of it has to to with the crappy American palate. They have tried over the years to get more of a variety and better types of foods but people complain all the time how they just want typical American crap. Look at how many people say that they will not even try someplace like Boma(which is very very good), because they don't want anything "adventurous" in their words. One of our favorite quick service places is Tangierine cafe's shawarma plate. But the place is rarely full. They do struggle with food quality at places but those are mostly the mass produced counter service restaurants, which I can kind of understand. If you want better quality food then stay away from the American style and venture out into some of the other places.

 

[aladdin2007]

I have a love/hate relationship with the DDP and the ADR system. I feel the DDP gives management a free pass to keep raising the prices and lowering the quality of the food over the last 15 years. I know they needed the DDP to bring people back into the parks at one point, but with record attendance it's no longer needed. Unfortunately, the outcry would be a public relations nightmare if they tried to stop it. The ADRs unfortunately are a necessity. For us, we cant plan a trip 6 months in advance based on personal situations let alone decide where we want to eat on any particular evening 180 days in advance. However, its seems the only way to handle a hundred thousand people a day across the parks.

Depending on the restaurant, the service while generally acceptable can be extremely slow and sometimes unprofessional. I's not in the restaurant industry, but to me it appears management is putting fewer waitstaff on the floor than in years past making the service slower and less attentive.

That right there is one of the main reasons for some of the downfall of what use to be the best restaurants on property. Kona, Le Cellier, Rose and Crown, all of the Magic Kingdom, Chefs de France and the list goes one. They no longer have lunch menus only dinner, charging $25-30 a head or more for meager portions and cheap ingredients. (an example would be the terrible cold hard green beans they are serving at the majority of locations, because they are cheap, bought for property wide, and dont want to spend on quality or more ingredients. ever notice its just about the only vegetable available at table service locations? At the Liberty Tree they refuse to substitute). Rose and Crown did away with bread service, and the portions and selections are world war two style rationing. It use to never be that way. Essentially they are a rip off now. The bean counters ruined Kona recently with its awful new menu so thats another one we dont go to anymore. We have found that the ones with outside management like Tutto Italia and Marrakesh are much better service and food and portions and are more worthy of a higher price.
Brown Derby is another example, while still being really nice there with good food (one of my favs still), the prices are ridiculous for what you get, and the service seems to have a slow non caring attitude as of late. All of this is just my own opinion of course from being there often and noticing first hand. Regarding service it all depends on who you get, many are super fantastic, others just don't want to be there. That can be anywhere really not just dining, (emporium looking at you, yikes some mean ones work in there).

 

[TheGuyThatMakesSwords]

D...D...P

Thank you. Spot on .

 

[Diablo]

I have been a fine dining chef & private country club chef my entire career. I'd say that most would label me as an extremely adventurous eater with a taste for global fare.
There are inevitably minor hiccups while eating every meal & snack out over the course of a week or two. Having said that, I feel that Walt Disney World has remarkable food, incredible variety, quality service & above-par food quality. They are able to weave through dietary restrictions with award-winning precision, please the palate of guests from around the globe & cater to every budget in a way that doesn't leave anyone at any price point feeling slighted. I have dined at their finest tables & I've enjoyed their corn dog nuggets while resting on a trash can.
And, if the new offerings like Satu'li Canteen and the Food-Court-to-the-Stars "Disney Springs" is the indication of the quality & diversity they're aiming for, I would almost forego the Parks for the food feasts.

 

[Disnutz311]

D...D...P

Has lowered the quality to stay profitable and driven prices higher to compensate.

 

[Disnutz311]

I think a lot of it has to to with the crappy American palate. They have tried over the years to get more of a variety and better types of foods but people complain all the time how they just want typical American crap. Look at how many people say that they will not even try someplace like Boma(which is very very good), because they don't want anything "adventurous" in their words. One of our favorite quick service places is Tangierine cafe's shawarma plate. But the place is rarely full. They do struggle with food quality at places but those are mostly the mass produced counter service restaurants, which I can kind of understand. If you want better quality food then stay away from the American style and venture out into some of the other places.

I can agree with this statement as well. Wasn’t there major outcry about Skipper’s canteen and the food. I for one will say it’s the best food in MK. Jiko, Victoria & Alberts, Trader Sams, Monsieur Paul, Tiffins are all great restaurants as the are new and current except V&A. There are so many that need a revamp, more emersive theming, and higher quality.

Same goes for the entire world’s beverage program. Barely any true craft cocktails, low quality ice, and inexperienced bartenders.

 

[DznyGrlSD]

free dining: This is why we can't have nice things
Free dining has wal-marted most, if not all, of Disney's TS restaurants. I remember going as a child and a teenager and the dining was so much better. They got rid of prime rib on the buffets, there was molded butter (hey it's the little thing), stuff like that.

 

[DznyGrlSD]

D...D...P

This.

I feel the DDP gives management a free pass to keep raising the prices and lowering the quality of the food over the last 15 years. I know they needed the DDP to bring people back into the parks at one point, but with record attendance it's no longer needed.

THIS

That right there is one of the main reasons for some of the downfall of what use to be the best restaurants on property. Kona, Le Cellier, Rose and Crown, all of the Magic Kingdom, Chefs de France and the list goes one. They no longer have lunch menus only dinner, charging $25-30 a head or more for meager portions and cheap ingredients. (an example would be the terrible cold hard green beans they are serving at the majority of locations, because they are cheap, bought for property wide, and dont want to spend on quality or more ingredients. ever notice its just about the only vegetable available at table service locations? At the Liberty Tree they refuse to substitute). Rose and Crown did away with bread service, and the portions and selections are world war two style rationing. It use to never be that way. Essentially they are a rip off now. The bean counters ruined Kona recently with its awful new menu so thats another one we dont go to anymore. We have found that the ones with outside management like Tutto Italia and Marrakesh are much better service and food and portions and are more worthy of a higher price.
Brown Derby is another example, while still being really nice there with good food (one of my favs still), the prices are ridiculous for what you get, and the service seems to have a slow non caring attitude as of late. All of this is just my own opinion of course from being there often and noticing first hand. Regarding service it all depends on who you get, many are super fantastic, others just don't want to be there. That can be anywhere really not just dining, (emporium looking at you, yikes some mean ones work in there).

T.H.I.S.!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[DznyGrlSD]

That right there is one of the main reasons for some of the downfall of what use to be the best restaurants on property. Kona, Le Cellier, Rose and Crown, all of the Magic Kingdom, Chefs de France and the list goes one. They no longer have lunch menus only dinner, charging $25-30 a head or more for meager portions and cheap ingredients. (an example would be the terrible cold hard green beans they are serving at the majority of locations, because they are cheap, bought for property wide, and dont want to spend on quality or more ingredients. ever notice its just about the only vegetable available at table service locations? At the Liberty Tree they refuse to substitute). Rose and Crown did away with bread service, and the portions and selections are world war two style rationing. It use to never be that way. Essentially they are a rip off now. The bean counters ruined Kona recently with its awful new menu so thats another one we dont go to anymore. We have found that the ones with outside management like Tutto Italia and Marrakesh are much better service and food and portions and are more worthy of a higher price.
Brown Derby is another example, while still being really nice there with good food (one of my favs still), the prices are ridiculous for what you get, and the service seems to have a slow non caring attitude as of late. All of this is just my own opinion of course from being there often and noticing first hand. Regarding service it all depends on who you get, many are super fantastic, others just don't want to be there. That can be anywhere really not just dining, (emporium looking at you, yikes some mean ones work in there).

I refuse to eat at Le Cellier anymore because of the increase in cost, and decline in quality. Remember King Steffans before it was princess central? The food was Ah-maz-ing! Heck, Cindy's was pretty good until post-9/11.

 

[winstongator]

I have a love/hate relationship with the DDP and the ADR system. I feel the DDP gives management a free pass to keep raising the prices and lowering the quality of the food over the last 15 years. I know they needed the DDP to bring people back into the parks at one point, but with record attendance it's no longer needed. Unfortunately, the outcry would be a public relations nightmare if they tried to stop it. The ADRs unfortunately are a necessity. For us, we cant plan a trip 6 months in advance based on personal situations let alone decide where we want to eat on any particular evening 180 days in advance. However, its seems the only way to handle a hundred thousand people a day across the parks.

Depending on the restaurant, the service while generally acceptable can be extremely slow and sometimes unprofessional. I's not in the restaurant industry, but to me it appears management is putting fewer waitstaff on the floor than in years past making the service slower and less attentive.

There are online tools to snag reservations well inside 180. I've used them for Be Our Guest, CRT, Trattoria al Forno breakfast.

 

[MikeyK72]

Same goes for the entire world’s beverage program. Barely any true craft cocktails, low quality ice, and inexperienced bartenders.

I agree with the cocktails/bartenders comment. Of course some bartenders are great...others, well...not so much. Ordering a cocktail from the "standard" drink menu I'd expect it to be pretty much consistent across property because I also would have assumed the bartenders had training. Sadly not always the case as it seems. Take the Rye Manhattans that often come shaken with foam and ice chips at the top for example. I've learned to order them as "stirred, not shaken please".

 

[Tall Todd]

Same goes for the entire world’s beverage program. Barely any true craft cocktails, low quality ice, and inexperienced bartenders.

Help me out with this one. Low quality ice?

 

[Bartledvd]

Help me out with this one. Low quality ice?

I am guessing it is about the small ice chips they use rather than decent sized ice cubes like you would get in a higher quality place

 

[aladdin2007]

I refuse to eat at Le Cellier anymore because of the increase in cost, and decline in quality. Remember King Steffans before it was princess central? The food was Ah-maz-ing! Heck, Cindy's was pretty good until post-9/11.

Not only that with le cellier but they have crammed so many tables in there its not even enjoyable.....and Yes! I remember king stefans and cindys shortly after, it was fun and for everyone, now its strictly a princess cafeteria at bloated prices. Same goes for Akershus which I have commented on many times in other threads....but they have ruined what use to be amazing experiences. The castle was never meant to be a princess tent nor was Norway. Remember the neat shops inside the castle?

 

[Disnutz311]

I agree with the cocktails/bartenders comment. Of course some bartenders are great...others, well...not so much. Ordering a cocktail from the "standard" drink menu I'd expect it to be pretty much consistent across property because I also would have assumed the bartenders had training. Sadly not always the case as it seems. Take the Rye Manhattans that often come shaken with foam and ice chips at the top for example. I've learned to order them as "stirred, not shaken please".

Anybody who shakes a Manhattan should be taken out back and hit in the head with a hammer. There are some pretty low quality drinks made on property by people who need more training. How Disney hasn’t caught on to batch cocktails, cocktails on tap, or proper bar layout is a curious thing.