An AP holder's 42 days of Disney dining review

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

We've been so blessed to have been Premier passholders for the last year and have taken 4 trips to WDW and 1 to Disneyland during that time. I counted up and realized I have spent 42 days of the last year on Disney property!

There's been a lot of great meals and some mediocre ones. I won't go into any of the Disneyland reviews here just to say that you should try Steakhouse 55 when you visit there.

Sadly I didn't have the foresight to take any pictures.

I'm only going to discuss TS places and will start with our meals at the Magic Kingdom...

 

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

Okay, starting with the MK-

Liberty Tree Tavern lunch- We had lunch here 3 out of our 4 trips. I like that it is a retreat from the park pace, but you don't have to go far to retreat since it is in the park. We've never had bad service here and also, lunch is fairly economincal for Disney. (that's an oxymoron isn't it?) Oddly, the only thing I've eaten here that I didn't much like is their signature dish, the turkey. I thought it looked pressed and tasted processed. My favorite was a vegetable soup that was off menu last winter, but DH would argue for the salmon. Ooey gooey toffee cake is one of our favorite desserts.

Crystal Palace breakfast- I love the character meals but I think DS is beginning to outgrow them. We only saw 3 of the 4 characters this trip because he didn't care to wait to meet the last one. I think this breakfast buffet is probably our favorite for the food and setting. I was thrilled to see the stuffed french toast was back on the buffet since our last visit there. I literally almost jumped out of my chair I was so happy. I asked our server about it and he said they took it off the buffet for a time because it was so unhealthy. Ironically they have put on the children's buffet. I guess it is okay for the kids to be unhealthy. Anyway, unhealthy or not it is definitely tasty. Service at the buffets can be lacking I think. Our server was okay, but let the juice glasses go empty a couple of times.

The Plaza- I counted and was suprised to see we had eaten at the Plaza all 4 of our trips. While the service has been hit or miss, I love the location and the price is not bad. I'm in love with the strawberry chicken salad. The strawberry vinagrette is absolutely delicious. I've also tried the philly sub and can recommend it. DS gets the club or the hamburger and declares them both good. I steal a few of his fries and really enjoy them. They are not the typical Disney CS fries. We've had the sundae and the brownie sundae for dessert. While the ice cream is good, we'll skip the brownie next time. I like my brownie warm and this one was cold and a little stale.

Next up I'll be parkhopping over to Epcot, my favorite park to eat in.

 

[buckeev]

Yummy...sounds like this is gonna be a tasty thread!
Thanks for sharing!

 

[SSRJen]

Looking forward to your reviews! There Premiere Pass is such a wonderful thing! We were so happy when they introduced them. I have to agree with Steakhouse 55. The food and service there is top notch...our favorite Disney restaurant! The rib-eye is the best I have ever had!

 

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

Yummy...sounds like this is gonna be a tasty thread!
Thanks for sharing!

Thanks for reading!

Looking forward to your reviews! There Premiere Pass is such a wonderful thing! We were so happy when they introduced them. I have to agree with Steakhouse 55. The food and service there is top notch...our favorite Disney restaurant! The rib-eye is the best I have ever had!

We also had the ribeye at Steakhouse 55 and it was so wonderful. Did you try the creme brulee? I don't even like creme brulee very much but theirs could change my mind.

 

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

I'll continue on with our 42 days of Disney dining in Epcot in Future World.

Coral Reef lunch- We've eaten at several restaurants in aquariums before, but this one has one of the best set ups to eat and view the fish. We had a table on the second tier and didn't have any problems seeing the tank. I felt a little guilty ordering fish while looking at their relatives while I ate. Maybe that's why I chose the land and sea appetizer. (I'm not sure it is on the menu anymore). It was 3 good size bites. One was shrimp, one was beef, and the third I'm thinking might have been another shrimp. I enjoyed the sea and not so much the land. I guess that's what I get for ordering beef in a seafood restaurant. We also had the chocolate wave dessert. This dessert is really good. I loved the gooey vodka filling. I was concerned about the quality of service here after reading some reviews, but I can report that our service was excellent. I'd go back just for that chocolate wave.

Garden Grill- They were so nice here to take us an hour after our ADR since our flight had landed late. Unfortunately we were seated on the upper level of the restaurant and I didn't like it much up there. There was only room for one person to walk between the tables and the wall up there and I felt a little claustrophobic. We had been to GG before and I'm sad to report I think the food quality has gone down. I didn't enjoy the salad this time, the dressing seemed different. The stuffing that I loved in the past was a mushy mess. I've never been a fan of the flank steak but did enjoy the fish and turkey. I actually think the turkey here is much better than at LTT. Luckily the characters saved the day. They spent a lot of time with our DD and she actually got to see some of them twice.

Next up will be the WS. We had some really good meals there.

 

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

I will continue on. Doing this review helps get my mind off the kids. I have one that started high school this week and one that started kindergarten.

Anyway, up next is...

Le Cellier dinner- I was looking so forward to finally trying out the illusive Le Cellier. As everyone here knows it can be so hard to get a reservation here so I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. We were supposed to have eaten here on a previous trip and DH got sick. Not to appear unsympathetic, but I was really annoyed that he had to be sick on that day because I had searched high and low for that Le Cellier reservation only to not get to use it. So I knew exactly what I was going to order, the 2 foods that get most of the hype at Le Cellier- the mushroom risotto filet and the cheddar cheese soup. I was so disappointed that I really didn't like either of these dishes. I love mushrooms but the flavor overpowered the steak. I found the soup to have a sour taste. DH got the strip steak and his was very good. My favorite thing I tried was DD's french fries. They were really good. Since our service was so good we decided on a future trip to try...

Le Cellier lunch- I booked here for lunch thinking we would try the sandwiches and burgers. DS who wasn't with us on our previous trip really wanted to go here. I was skeptical since I didn't enjoy my meal last time so I decided to split the burger with DS with the promise of ordering his favorite dessert, creme brulee. This was one of the best burgers I have ever eaten. The meat so juicy and cooked just right. DH got the sausage appetizer and the roast beef and peppers sandwich. He said both of these were just okay and he probably wouldn't get them again. DS wasn't such a fan of the maple creme brulee. I tried it and thought it was a little cold. I'm very glad we tried Le Cellier for lunch and will come back for the burger and the warm Canadian hospitality.

Next we'll keep traveling around the WS.

 

[Denamac]

Just letting you know I'm enjoying your reviews. We are getting AP's in September. I was just able to score a Le Cellier lunch for 6 with 2 weeks til our trip.

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

Sorry to hear you didn't love your dinner at Le Cellier. I'm not a huge fan of the cheese soup either. Sounds like the burger is great, though - I really have to try it soon.

 

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

Just letting you know I'm enjoying your reviews. We are getting AP's in September. I was just able to score a Le Cellier lunch for 6 with 2 weeks til our trip.

Congratulations on getting APs and scoring that Le Cellier lunch with so little time left until your trip. Hope you have a good time.

Sorry to hear you didn't love your dinner at Le Cellier. I'm not a huge fan of the cheese soup either. Sounds like the burger is great, though - I really have to try it soon.

I probably should have known I wouldn't like the soup since I'm not a fan of anything that has a sour cream flavoring. It's good to know I'm not alone since most people love that soup. The burger was awesome. The best I've ever had at WDW.

 

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

Traveling right to left around the World Showcase, next I'll tell you about our dinner at-

Rose and Crown- I booked dinner here around 7:45 one evening in May with the idea to see Illuminations. We were seated inside but were escorted to the viewing area around 9:00 pm. A CM from Rose Crown let us in this area with a key. I really enjoyed seeing Illuminations from this perspective. I'm typically too impatient to stake out a good spot and wait around an hour so this was a good plan for us. Especially since we also enjoyed our dinner. DS had been wanting to come here just to try the fish and chips. He very much enjoyed them. The fish was light and crispily fried, not soggy at all. DH got the potato and leek soup along with some kind of English coffee that he hoped would help a sore throat he was getting that night. He really liked the soup and the coffee and they did seem to make him feel better. I persuaded him to split the Sunday roast with me. It was a generous portion. The roast was very tender. The only thing on the plate I didn't enjoy was the Yorkshire pudding. I still don't know exactly what it was or what was in it. For dessert we had the Sticky Toffee Pudding. Very rich and yummy! We also enjoyed talking to our server, who happily filled us in on what it is like to be a Disney employee. It is a pleasure to meet someone, especially in Customer Service, who really enjoys their job.

 

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

Le Chefs de France lunch- A couple of years ago we had dinner here and it was a mixed bag, some enjoyed their food and others didn't. I was in the latter group but I knew that DS really wanted to try the creme brulee so I made the reservation. So on a hot day in August we decided to split the ham sandwich. This was a great sandwich! It was hot with lots of gooey cheese. We subbed the salad for fries and the fries were excellent, the little shoestring ones fried crisp. I got a side salad but I wouldn't waste stomach space on this again. DS got his beloved creme brulee and seemed to enjoy it. We had a very nice waitress who tried unsuccessfully to teach us some French, but our country drawl was getting in the way. But my favorite part of this lunch was our table. We were seated by the window near the path where the characters go in and out for their breaks. Marie, Belle, and Aurora all gave us a little wave as they passed by and I'm such a kid at heart I just loved it.

 

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

Tokyo Dining dinner- We were blessed to have a window seat while dining. This is a gorgeous view of the lake and WS from this second floor restaurant. Our lovely Japanese waitress gave us hot towels and she had to explain this Japanese custom of washing your hands with the towels before you eat. You can tell we don't get out much, and when we do we just use hand sanitizer. Anyway, DS was not wanting to eat here so I told him that if he split the panko crusted chicken with me I would get him something else later. I didn't get to eat very much of this chicken because he enjoyed it, but for me it was kind of tasteless. The rice, vegetables and miso soup we didn't like at all. DH got a shrimp and scallop tempura and this was very good, especially the shrimp.

Next we will travel to Italy...

 

[Disneymama5816]

Love the reviews. Thanks!

 

[Dizneydaz]

Great reviews so far! We have Premium AP at DLand and I'm seriously thinking about getting the Premiere AP. Just have to justify the extra $315/each. If only I knew I could squeeze in a trip before they expire Dec. 23rd.

We lucked out 2 years ago and got the corner window at TD. Great view of Illuminations and we really enjoyed our food. It was a nice choice to celebrate my DD's and my DM's birthdays.

 

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

Love the reviews. Thanks!

Thanks for reading!

Great reviews so far! We have Premium AP at DLand and I'm seriously thinking about getting the Premiere AP. Just have to justify the extra $315/each. If only I knew I could squeeze in a trip before they expire Dec. 23rd.

We lucked out 2 years ago and got the corner window at TD. Great view of Illuminations and we really enjoyed our food. It was a nice choice to celebrate my DD's and my DM's birthdays.

We have really enjoyed our Premier passes, but aren't going to renew since going to Disneyland is not easy for us since we live close to the East Coast. The extra perks you get for being a passholder are so much better at DL than WDW. If you're planning a trip to WDW I would bet you would spend more than $315 per person on tickets. Also you get to go to the Water Parks and Disney Quest with the Premier pass. Good luck deciding. It is quite an investment.

We didn't stay long enough at TD to see Illuminations but I bet it is a great viewing spot.

 

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

Via Napoli- I admit that we weren't very daring with our choice here. We got the large pepperoni pizza to share. We thought it was good, the crust was thin and crispy like I like it and not burned. This is a nice change from the usual pizza that you find at Disney albeit much more pricey. I thought this restaurant was unusually noisy but that may have been due to our seating which was nearly in the front door. Also I was disappointed with the dessert menu. Nothing looked appealing and we aren't ones to usually pass on dessert while vacationing. I think if we return we might try lunch or a less busy time of day.

 

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

Tutto Italia- Tutto's is DS' favorite restaurant in the WS. He always eats the same thing, the farfelle minus the ham and peas. This is a bowtie looking pasta with an aflredo sauce on top. He attempted to lick his plate. I wasn't feeling very adventurous so I decided on the spaghetti with meatballs. This was an excellent choice. Just the right amount of sauce with plenty of meatballs. I also had the salad with the citrus vinagrette, but at $9 ended up being way overpriced. The service here is also spot on, and this trip was no different. We are looking forward to eating here again and again and again...

 

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

San Angel Inn- I booked this restaurant when DH and I took a childless trip last fall. I've admired the setting and the smells of this restaurant many times. This could have been a romantic dinner, but the tables are so very close together. But still I loved the feeling that we were eating outdoors at a Mexican cantina. DH ordered the chicken dish with the sauce with peppers and onions. This was hotter than Florida in August! Really it was almost inedible it was so hot. I got the ribeye tacos. These were good, but maybe a little dry. I added some of the salsa that we had with the chips and it helped moisten up the tacos. Really the best thing that we had here was the mango margaritas. These were very tasty.

 

[Schoolbread]

I like SOME spice but not tons. I have read that the chicken dish is super spicy more than once, so I think I'll try something else.