• Controversial Topics
    Several months ago, I added a private sub-forum to allow members to discuss these topics without fear of infractions or banning. It's opt-in, opt-out. Corey Click Here

Free Dining Plan Review From 2006

akaDaddy

"Thanks Charming, but my daughter's got this."
Joined
Jun 3, 2005
I am reposting because two friends who are going this fall can't seem to find my original post...no matter how many times I have given direction.

Anyway...here it is from last year....

Days of dining plan and my pants don't fit!
Just back from a 10 day trip to Walt Disney World with free dining. All I can say is WOW!!!

We consumed waaaaaaay too much food. I have always enjoyed the dining reviews so I thought I'd finally take a stab at one with a little twist. Here are the criteria for my reviews....
1) Service: how well we were treated as guests from beginning to end
2) Atmosphere: everything from décor to noise levels
3) Food: Quality, Quanity and most importantly Taste


Along with the above criteria, I will add a bonus catagory I have found missing in many of the reviews I've read recently. I'll call it Expectations. This "bonus" catagory will be used to level the playing field and treat foods fairly based on where they were prepared, how they were prepared and making a reasonable expectation for what the food should taste like. Thus, one should not expect the hamburger at Backlot Express in MGM to be the same as the hamburger at Le Cellier nor would one expect the cheese pizza at Pop Century to be on par with the Cheese Pizza at Wolfgang Puck's Express.


Also, just a note about the taste buds involved in this review. I'm a "red-stater" in rural America. I don't live down the street from a great Moraccan place, the Asian food I'm exposed to comes from a buffet and all the Mexican places have a Speedy Gonzales on the menu. I'm not easily impressed with different tastes but I'm not a snob who expects every meal to perfect either. Exspecially taking into context that the kitchens at many of the restaurants around WDW prepare enough meals daily to feed an army.


And yes, I am fully prepared for flames that will come from the above statements, so if you feel so inclined, start striking the matches.


Now, lets begin with the reviews.......


Thursday, September 14
Arrived at 4:00 pm and caught a quick dinner at Pecos Bills. Two Bacon double cheese burgers and fries for my wife and I. The daughters split a chilled chicken kids meal. (My oldest eat's like a bird and usually orders from the kids menu). The burgers were your run of the mill fast food burgers, good taste but nothing special. Fries were the same. The fix'in bar, with mushrooms, onions and hot cheese was great and made the burgers even better. My daughters didn't like the chicken at all. We wound up buying an extra order of fries for both of them with some snacks later in the evening. Overall for the adults it was a :thumbsup2 for the adults and :confused3 for the kids.


Friday, September 15
Breakfast was cereal bars in the room and off the Magic Kingdom. Lunch at Cosmic Ray'.
I hade the Chicken-Ribs combo and the wife had a burger. Daughters had chicken strips and nuggets. Wife enjoyed the burger which was the same as the on from Pecos Bills. I really enjoyed the chicken and the ribs were great, talk about tender, yum! The place was really loud and the show, the singing alien began to get old after a while. I thought my four year old would enjoy it but when we ate here later in our trip, she would only agree to eat here if we ate on the terrace. :thumbsup2
Dinner was at Liberty Tree Tavern for the Haloween Party. The character interaction was great. Lots of pictures and fun. The food was served family style and everyone enjoyed the meal. The turkey was a little dry, but the ham and the roast was very good. Veggies were great and the dessert, cobbler, was really good. Atmosphere was a little loud but its a party night and everyone is in costume so we should really expect a little more noise than on a normal night. Our waitress was great but the hostess was must have been taking the zombee makeup a little too seriously. She barely spoke and when we were announced, it was a real chore for her to get our names out. Overall :thumbsup2


Saturday, September 16
Again we had breakfast in the room recovering from the Haloween Party, then off the Epcot. Lunch was at Sunshine Seasons and the sandwiches were great. Both my wife and I got the ham sandwiches and chips and the daughters go the build your own sandwich meals. The kids loved making there own sandwich and even ate the leftovers. There was a great selection of desserts here as well, although the Key Lime pie I had was not very good. However, I don't believe any Key Limes were harmed in its preparation though. :thumbsup2 .
Dinner was at Alfredos and I was afraid this was going to be a omen for the rest of the week, thankfully this was an isolated problem. The food was OK, just OK. Here is where the expectations come into play. I assumed that a restaurant that had once been listed as a signature dining experience and labeled as the creator of the famous dish to be a little better than your run of the mill Italian Restaurant. But it wasn't, the lamb wasn't as good as what I've eaten at Olive Garden (and by the way I'm no big fan of the Olive Garden) and my wife said the Lasagnette was not very good at all. She said it almost tasted like a frozen entree. The desserts were good and the kids liked their spaghetti. Service was, well how can I say this nicely, awful! As soon as our waiter asked if we were on the Dining Plan and that we did not want alcohol he left for Neverland. He only returned to get our order and to tell us an assistant (a member of the bus staff) would be helping him tonight with our order. Now our waiter fell all over himself to help the tables on either side of us who appeared not to be on the Dining Plan as they did not order appetizers or desserts. I had read posts before about this type of service but have never experience it until now. We had to flag staff down for a refill and even to place a dessert order. I was so fed up at the end of the meal that I refused to flag someone down for the check so we just waited, and waited and waited. My wife and daughter got fed up with my stubborn attitude and decided to go out an shop. Another 7 to 10 minutes pass before our original waiter finally returned to the table to ask if there was anything else he could do for me. When I asked for the check, he actually made some comment under his breath that I couldn't understand. When I told him I was sorry I didn't hear him he just said "oh nothing" and returned with our check. Needless to say, no extra tip for this dinner and if I could have cut back on the automatic 18% from Disney, I would have. The score :confused3 .


Sunday, September 17
Breakfast again in the room with Lunch at Wolfgang Puck Express. I had the Chicken Aioli Sandwich, wife had the Turkey Sandwich and the kids both had cheese pizza. All had brownies for dessert. Everyone loved this meal. By far the best counter service place on the plan. Everyone gave it :thumbsup2

Diner at Le Cellier was as good as ever. Both my wife and I had the Mushroom Filet and it was great! Both of our daughters had chicken, one from the kids menu but the portions were almost identical. My wife had the Salmon Timbale as an appetizer and I had the cheese soup. Both were excellent. Service was great as well, with our waiter taking alot of time to explain the specials and other dishes and make several suggestions. Overall our second best table service meal. :thumbsup2


Monday, September 18
Breakfast again in the room, this was becoming a bad habit. Lunch was at the Backlot Express at MGM. I was sad to see that the Dipsite was no longer serving the sandwiches anymore. They were always great. Anyhow, the Backlot Express was nothing to write home about but then again it your run of the mill counter service. The hamburgers were the same as all the other counter service but with no fix'in bar they were just ordinary. Nothing special but what we had expected so it still gets :thumbsup2
Dinner was another subject all together. We ate at the Coral Reef in Epcot. This was the best table service we had all week. Food was excellent, atmosphere was excellent, service exceeded any expectation we might have had and everything was outstanding. Our hostess took extra time with our daughters to point our her favorite fish in "the sea". Our waitress informed us of all the specials and well as her favorites. My wife ordered the blackened catfish and I ordered the Mahi Mahi. The oldest daughter ordered a steak and my youngest ordered Mahi Mahi from the childs menu, which as a very large portion. When the meal arrived, the catfish was a little too spicey for my wife so we traded and boy I'm glad we did. The catfish was excellent, I would have never thought pepperjack cheese, grits and catfish would go together, but WOW. When our waitress discovered we had switched she made every attempt to get my wife to order another entree but she was very happy with the Mahi Mahi. The chocolate wave dessert was also outstanding. :thumbsup2

Tuesday, September 19
Morning came very early with an 8:00 am character breakfast at Hollywood & Vine with the Playhouse Disney Crew. The menu was very simular to what I remember Chef Mickey's breakfast to be: eggs, meats, danishs, fruits, and Mickey Waffles. The food was well prepared with an open kitchen arrangement so that the kitchen staff was usually visible. They were also quite inquisitive, always asking "is the food was good", "did the kids like the waffles" and such. The kitchen staff also seemed to be very vocal when it came to singing. Many times they would shout out the words to the songs. The wait-staff would stop everything when it was time to dance. Both of my daughter loved the breakfast and the character interaction was by far the best we've had at a character meal. However, this is probably because there were very few families in the restaurant. My guess is that the place wasn't even half full. Anyway, the food was better than expected and you couldn't beat the staff interaction so we give it a big thumbs up.:thumbsup2


After the buffet for breakfast we played around a little while at MGM and then headed back to the hotel to swim. Late afternoon we headed for Everything Pop for something to tied us over until dinner. My wife and I split a Flatbread Veggie with Bagel Chips and the Kids split a Cheese Pizza. The Flatbread Veggie was very good and the chips (a huge bag) were great. The kids said they liked the pizza but it looked terrible to me. Like an old frozen pizza from the very back of the freezer. But I didn't eat it so I don't get to review it. Overall another :thumbsup2

For dinner we were off to the Beach Club for the Cape May Clam Bake. Now this one was somewhat of a surprise to me, after reading all the bad reviews that seem to turn-up on this board concerning this buffet. The memu is really straight-forward; items to recreate a New England Clam Bake or an American Bar-B-Q. I've noticed from some responses, my wife is included in this, they expect this to be a seafood buffet, ie clam=seafood. WRONG. While clams and shrimp for that matter are considered seafood , don't go to this meal expecting anything else. There is no fish, nothing fried, no steamed Mahi Mahi or Salmon, just what you'd find at a Clam Bake (remember, its in the name). Along with the clams and steamed shrimp you'll find corn on the cob, roasted "taters", some link sausages and even a mussel or two. The Bar-B Q has ribs, mashed "taters", grilled chicken breast and a few other veggies and that's about it. The food was OK, nothing to write home about, but hey, here comes those expectations again, it's a Clam Bake. Anyone who has ever been to a real clam bake where all the food is dumped into a big pot, stuck out over an open flame and then dumped on picnic table or blanket (yes, that's what a real clam bake is) knows that the shrimp is always over-cooked and the taters are still hard in the middle. So while I wouldn't go back, I have to say it was as good as any clam bake I've been too as far as the food and therefore gets a :thumbsup2

Wednesday, September 20
Breakfast in the room again and off the the Magic Kingdom. Lunch was a return trip to Peco Bills. Never been a fan of the Columbia House or I can't take the thought of eating in a restaurant that overlooks It's a Small World so my choices in the MK were limited. Same burgers, same review, OK. :thumbsup2

Dinner was a different story all together. We traveled to the Animal Kingdom Lodge for a great evening at Boma . The buffet was excellent. Such a variety of foods to choose from and many exotic flavors. I had read that the food was somewhat spicy, but if you've read the previous review you know my wife couldn't handle the blackened catfish, but she had no problem with anything at this restaurant. The waiter was very helpful, but a little slow to come back to the table at times. The atmophere was beautiful but loud. I can't count the number of plates I heard drop. But all in all, the was really good, a definate must return. I'd be willing to pay top dollar for some ribs right now!:thumbsup2

Thursday, September 21
Breakfast again in the room with our return trips to our favorites from the week. We were lucky enough to score a lunch table at the Coral Reef at 3:00. The lunch menu is virtually the same as the dinner menu with the exception of the omission of the Tuna and another dish. I repeated the blackened catfish and my wife got the Lobster Salad Sandwich. My catfish was the same size as the dinner portion from a few nights before and every bit as tasty. The wife loved the Lobster Salad. The kids chose pizza, yeah pizza. The best restaurant in the place, the choice great items and they wanted a pizza from a box. Again, I didn't eat it, so I don't get to review it. The loved it! I have a DNA test scheduled next week, I still don't think they belong to me or my wife. Anyway, the food was again excellent all around. :thumbsup2

For dinner, we visited Downtown Disney again and returned to our favorite counter-service, Wolfgang Puck's Express. I had the spinach pizza and my wife had the chicken quesadilla, both were excellent. The kids both got cheese pizzas (again) with the oldest getting the adult version with tomatoes and goat cheese. Both of the kids said the pizzas were OK, like the rest of pizzas they had eaten all week. But I did notice they ate alot more of these than they did any of the others. Maybe they are mine after all. My oldest did leave one piece of the cheese pizza untouched and being the dutiful father I just had to finish it off. By the way, it was outstanding, even better that my spinach. :thumbsup2

Friday, September 22
No breakfast this morning and lunch was a repeat at Cosmic Ray's. Again, nothing special. Same old, same old but still decent. We did have to eat outside as my daughter refused to listed to the "stage show".

Dinner was the character buffet at 1900 Park Fare. This has become a tradition in our family for our last night and this time it was as good as ever. The character interaction was outstanding. The kids loved to talk with Prince Charming and Fairy Godmother. In my opinion this is the best character dinner at Walt Disney World. The food is always good, the staff is always cheerful, the bus staff even put on a show clearing the tables. All in all, another :thumbsup2

During the week, we found some great snacks on the DDP that I'll share as well....
Dole Whips and Dole Whip Floats at Aloha Isle
Apple Studel at Sommerfest
Smoothies at AuntieGravitys
Huge Box of Doughnuts at Everything Pop

Lastly, in keeping up with all the costs involved with the meals and snacks we consumed, the total would have been $1,504.21. While we would have not eaten all these meals had we had to pay out of pocket for each item, I will now seriously consider purchasing the plan in the future because it is a great value for the money.

PS Becca, if you can't find it now, don't even think of going to the airport!
 
Great review!!! Glad to see somebody else who really enjoyed Coral Reef. I live a little ways to the north of you. I can't wait to try Boma.
 
Glad to hear the great reviews! We'll be trying Boma & Coral Reef for the first time in August for free dining. Can't wait!
 
Thanks for the report!! We are going the last week in August for free dining. while I am not trying to "maximize" what we would have spent, I appreciate the "expectations" portion of your review!!
 


I enjoyed your review. I found it rather comical but helpful. I agree about the dining plan being worth the $$ and will be willing to pay for it when I go again next year so that I can eat at all those restaurants and not worry about price.
 
Great review!!! Glad to see somebody else who really enjoyed Coral Reef. I live a little ways to the north of you. I can't wait to try Boma.

We are dining at Coral Reef while we are there, so I'm definitely happy to hear good reviews about it.
 
great reviews - lots of details about places we're looking forward to going to in october - thanks!
 


Great review, very helpful! Looking forward to trying Wolfgang Puck Express whilst we're at SSR. :)

So how much did the DDP actually save you then?
 
Thanks for the reviews, we're going in August with DP and wondered how you got on eating so much with the heat?
 
As any good reporter knows the source is important and knowing who the person is that is giving the report is necessary in order to judge if it might be compatible with your own ideas. Thank you for introducing yourself. :thumbsup2

We have similar outlooks and backgrounds. I was much taken with your Cape May comment. I had never thought of it in just that way. I do not like the place but now realize that it is not their fault but mine for having the wrong expectations. Good to know. :)

Thank you for the reviews and I most sincerely hope that others follow your lead and introduce themselves. Not because some people are 'better" than others but come from a different place and sometimes time.

Looking forward to any other reports you might be inclined to add.

Slightly Goofy
 

GET A DISNEY VACATION QUOTE

Dreams Unlimited Travel is committed to providing you with the very best vacation planning experience possible. Our Vacation Planners are experts and will share their honest advice to help you have a magical vacation.

Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!





Latest posts







facebook twitter
Top