Having a hard time staying excited after reading so many terrible reviews on here

My family enjoys San Angel Inn, we adore the Poly stayed here last several trips, everyone has their own taste I wouldn't worry if you do the things you planned you'll always wonder if you would have liked it, if you don't well you know next time you'll do it differently.
 
We will be at WDW for five nights this June. We have plans to go to San Angel and Sci Fi while we are there. I know that neither of these restaurants get amazing reviews here on the board. But OUR family likes them. So that's a part of our plan ! Hope you enjoy your trip.
 
I've only eaten at CRT but it was honestly the best breakfast I've had in my life. I'm not a picky eater though and I wouldn't describe myself as a foodie but it really was great.
 
Like other posters have said, it'll be fine. take all the reviews with a grain of salt. That being said, I think your trip sounds great.
Poly is a fantastic resort to stay at, especially with kids. You'll be so close to the parks, the rooms give you enough space that you won't be tripping over each other and I personally love the theming, the onsite dining and the pools (highly underrated quiet pool) the balconies are also huge, and you can see the castle from the lobby. It's great.
As for your meal choices, I've never done Chef Mickey, but it's got the characters and kids seem to dig it. I really like Ohana, and CRT, I've not eaten at in a few years, but half the fun is that you're dining IN the castle. My parents took me there in 1985, I was 4, I was all in on Cinderella at the time, it was lunch, there were no characters, and to this day, I still remember everything about that meal because it was IN A CASTLE. (also they gave me coke in a stemmed glass. I was SO adult.)
San Angel Inn is not the greatest Mexican food I've ever had, but is tasty, and the ambiance is great, I love that you are eating under the stars except inside, climate controlled and away from bugs, that is SO my version of al fresco dining.
 


Just when I'm super excited about getting some hard to get ADRs for our April trip, I keep coming across horrible rants about all of the restaurants and our resort (polynesian). It's hard to stay excited because no matter what I research it seems everyone says the food is horrid.

I don't care if the food at CRT is bad, we're there for the magic of the castle since it's our 6 yo dd's first time and she loves princesses. We're also doing Ohana dinner when we arrive at Poly, Chef Mickey which literally everyone on this board hates but it's fab 5 and super early breakfast so fits our schedule well and a trip on the monorail from poly to con. which will be fun for dd. Ohana best friends breakfast on departure day which people seem to think is ok.

But one dinner I was looking forward to was San Angel Inn (the atmosphere looks so cool) and the consensus here is that it's so so to terrible. We're on the dining plan and using 2 credits on CRT and spent the rest on Ohana dinner and breakfast and Chef Mickey so we don't have hundreds to spend on high priced dinners the rest of the time. It's just frustrating because since booking the Poly I'm having doubts there too because people are saying it's overdue for a renovation, worn down, not super clean, etc. We're spending so much money on this trip and I'm going to work hard on managing my expectations. I don't need incredible food, but don't want terrible food either (especially for the meals we will be paying out of pocket for like San Angel Inn). I'm trying to snag a BOG lunch via res finder.

I'm not a complainy person but it's annoying me that WDW is so expensive and has the know how to build such great rides, but they can't seem to get it right with their deluxe resorts (except maybe the floridian) and what seems to be 99% of their dining (and their MDE app is glitchy and sounds like their whole ADR ressie system sucks too). I mean, how hard can this all be for them? A deluxe resort at disney should be equal to a deluxe hotel in Chicago or NY. Disney has the money and resources to do it right, so why don't they?

This is what I need:
I LOVE good atmosphere, beautifully themed
Good service (doesn't have to be amazing but can't suck either)
Good food (doesn't have to be amazing but can't suck either)

What are your absolute faves in MK and Epcot for a family of 3 with a 6 yo daughter?

You have the right attitude. Disney is mostly about the experience, but the food is good too. San Angel Inn was an awesome lunch for us. Keep in mind, its more authentic Mexican food, which isn't for everyone, but I loved it. The atmosphere can't be beat. My kids loved the cheese quesadillas (which is common tex-mex here in TX, and I loved that they served green beans with it!). I had chicken enchiladas and they were really good. BUT I'm from TX and I kind of know what to expect. Our service was wonderful. Margaritas were delicious. We had ZERO issues with all our ADRs this past Spring.

Other restaurants I loved with a great theme -
Garden Grill - we've done bfast here several times and it's my fav! love the scenes! and you get to see the characters several times since it's a small restaurant.
50's Prime Time - the wait staff is funny and the food is yummy. the decor is such a great conversation starter!
Liberty Tree Tavern - probably the BEST service we've ever had (and there are few that weren't good) and the food is delish. I love the colonial theme!
Raglan Road is so great - no characters but it's good ole Irish fun! Live music and dancing and they bring all the kids up on stage! Such a fun dinner!
Le Cellier is our favorite date night. We love it there and have always have had great service. Steaks are delicious, the cheese soup is SO good.

Remember, 90% of people writing a review do it because of a negative experience. I worked several years for a company moderating online reviews. :)
 
Here's the problem: One group can have a great meal and experience but another doesn't. I run into so many people who love 'Ohana. We hated it. We loved BOG but there is a lot of hate for it. Stop reading reviews! Go, enjoy yourselves! Let your experience that day determine whether it was good or not.
 
My family LOVES the Polynesian and it is the reason we bought into DVC several times over :) People "complain" about each of the resorts, and it really comes down to personal preferences and what people are willing to spend to find the value they are looking for. Even with older children, we find the convenience of the monorail or the boat to MK to be an excellent perk of the Polynesian, along with the larger rooms and overall layout of the different longhouses.

If the Polynesian suits your personal tastes, you will not be disappointed!
 


ChicagoJ, I can completely relate to why you are concerned...I have sooo been there myself!

I don't know your exact situation, but as for me, I am a SAHM to one now-16 year old daughter who we've been taking to Disney World for a week every year since she was 2. As a SAHM and "planner in chief" for my family (and because I am type A perfectionist), for some reason I would always put a burden on myself of making the vacation perfect -- the perfect ADRs, the perfect hotel, the perfect schedule (using a crowd tracker from one of those Touring guides), the perfect time of year, etc., etc. I would be so stressed out every year by the time we got to WDW that I would be cranky for the first several days of the trip because I would be so worried that something would go wrong, or that we'd get off schedule, etc.

I have no idea if you're like me with respect to the stressing out/type A/perfectionist thing, but I shared all that to just reassure you that I think you have made great choices and that it will all work out very well, and here's why.

When our D was that little (yours is 6, yes?), all the walking/traveling from park to park was a HUGE deal. And I can tell you as someone who has stayed at all the Deluxe resorts that I think the Poly is the best choice in your situation. The fact that you can walk to the TTC to take a Monorail directly to Epcot, and can catch a direct Monorail to MK, is priceless. Is the Poly my favorite resort in all of WDW in terms of the actual hotel rooms and accommodations? No. But it is lovely, relaxing, the grounds are lush, the quick service food offerings are fantastic, the service is great, the rooms are very nice, and when you have an exhausted 6 year old at the end of a park day (or who desperately needs a mid-day park escape back to the hotel), that quick monorail ride and/or short walk from the TTC to your room is, once again, priceless. In my opinion, it provides the easiest, quickest, most hassle-free transportation options to MK and Epcot...and when our D was little, that mattered more to us than anything else (those monorail lines can get long if you get unlucky and hit them at a bad time!). Plus, there are so many extra little fun things to do at the Poly for kids, as others have mentioned, that I think you will be very happy with your choice. Now, is it as nice as, say, the Four Seasons or some other high-end resort that you'd find in a non-Disney destination? No (and I know that stinks because the Poly is so expensive). But I have learned over our many trips to WDW that different things will take priority on a go-go-go type vacation like WDW as opposed to one, say, in Hawaii or some other "relax on the beach" type destination. Truly, I think you will end up being very happy with your choice of the Poly.

And then, with respect to your restaurant choices -- again, I think you will be very happy with them in light of your daughter's age and what you are looking to get out of those experiences. I can't speak to Ohana because we've never been (we are vegetarians and one of us is allergic to soy, so we couldn't make the tofu substitution work), but I've been to all the other restaurants you booked and I think they will work out great. We have absolutely priceless photos of our D as a 4 year old at CRT...the princesses made such a fuss over her, she loved eating in a castle, and she still mentions that meal to this day...and the food was good! Is it overpriced? Yes. But has so many other posters have mentioned, pretty much everything is overpriced at WDW, so you just kind of have to have amnesia on that point (and honestly, for us, the dining plan makes that easier). Very similar experience at Chef Mickey's -- D loved the fuss the characters made over her (and it saved us from waiting for hours in line to meet them at the parks), and the food was fine (although I will say that I think the breakfast there is better than dinner...but that's just my opinion, and the opinion of a vegetarian at that, lol). And as for the San Angel Inn, call me crazy, but I really like the food there...and I've lived most of my life in So Cal, where we have incredible Mexican food! We first went there on our honeymoon in 1994, and yes, the menu/ownership/etc has changed over the years, but we've never had a bad experience there, and the service has always been fine. Is it the best Mexican food I've ever had in my life? No...but it has always been more than satisfactory...and we think that the setting is just gorgeous and the river with the boats floating by always managed to entertain our daughter too. :)

I believe you also asked about favorite restaurants at MK and Epcot...again, I will answer that question with an eye towards your D's age. At Epcot, I ditto the recommendations of those who mentioned Biergarten...I really worried about that one the first time we went, but they have a ton of kid-friendly choices on the buffet, and my D loved the band and sitting at the big communal-style table with other families (and H and I actually thought the food was really good and had a surprising amount of choices for vegetarians). At MK, LTT is also very kid-friendly (can't go wrong with mac and cheese and mashed potatoes, right?), and my D loved seeing Mickey and Minnie and the gang in their colonial attire. I think your D would love BOG, but it's such a tough reservation to get that I wouldn't sweat not going since you're doing CRT. I'd keep checking to see if a lunch reservation happens to pop up...but again, no biggie if you miss it...at age 6 your D won't remember that you didn't get to go there...she'll remember that she ate in Cinderella's Castle with the princesses! :)

I just asked my H if there was any restaurant that we absolutely would never go to again, and we could only come up with one...Hollywood and Vine at the Studios...and I know that there are plenty of people who really love it! For us, we had a lot of trouble with the noise factor there...it has been probably 8 years since we've been, but at the time their decor was very "shiny metal surfaces-looking", so all the sound bounced off that and there was nothing to absorb it, and we left with terrible headaches. But despite that, our D remembers it as one of her favorites, because at the time they were the only TS that had the Little Einsteins, and that was her favorite show (and the Einsteins led the kids in a parade, which greatly contributed to the noise factor, which D loved but H and I hated, haha)! I also remember there being not many vegetarian choices on the buffet...but that sort of proves the point that several people have made, that reviews are so specific to the reviewer...and sometimes people don't elaborate on why they don't like a particular restaurant/hotel. So if noise and veggie options don't matter to you, my opinion of H&V would be pretty useless!

One last thought I will leave you with...I specifically remember being stressed the first time we booked at the Poly because the resort was supposedly undergoing renovations, and somebody had mentioned in a review here on the DisBoards that the decor reminded them of the Brady Bunch's trip to Hawaii episode! I remember freaking out at the very high holiday rate we were paying to stay at what someone had called a "tacky Brady Bunch" resort! But I can assure you that when we got there the decor was neither tacky nor Brady Bunch-ish. And I never even noticed the renovations that were supposedly underway! It ended up being the first of several wonderful stays at the Poly...and I'm betting yours will be the same. :)

Best wishes for a fantastic trip!
 
Let me start out by telling you that we are a world of billions of people and we all have different tastes. I have a favorite eating spot here at home and I have friends who hate it. I don't stop going because someone else doesn't like what I like. You will have to earn your experience. Try what looks like fun to you. You can look online at the menus for every restaurant. Se what they have to offer and make your choice. I had a great meal at Coral Seas last year, and yet the people next to me who had what I had complained the whole time. I have found that I am responsible for my own enjoyment and I am not going to let anyone tell me different. My wife and I love the character meals. Others detest them. It's all what floats your boat. Good luck and trust your yourself to make the right choice. And remember this it's only one meal and one meal never ruined a whole vacation. If it did, you are expecting way too much from your meals.
 
Just when I'm super excited about getting some hard to get ADRs for our April trip, I keep coming across horrible rants about all of the restaurants and our resort (polynesian). It's hard to stay excited because no matter what I research it seems everyone says the food is horrid.

I don't care if the food at CRT is bad, we're there for the magic of the castle since it's our 6 yo dd's first time and she loves princesses. We're also doing Ohana dinner when we arrive at Poly, Chef Mickey which literally everyone on this board hates but it's fab 5 and super early breakfast so fits our schedule well and a trip on the monorail from poly to con. which will be fun for dd. Ohana best friends breakfast on departure day which people seem to think is ok.

But one dinner I was looking forward to was San Angel Inn (the atmosphere looks so cool) and the consensus here is that it's so so to terrible. We're on the dining plan and using 2 credits on CRT and spent the rest on Ohana dinner and breakfast and Chef Mickey so we don't have hundreds to spend on high priced dinners the rest of the time. It's just frustrating because since booking the Poly I'm having doubts there too because people are saying it's overdue for a renovation, worn down, not super clean, etc. We're spending so much money on this trip and I'm going to work hard on managing my expectations. I don't need incredible food, but don't want terrible food either (especially for the meals we will be paying out of pocket for like San Angel Inn). I'm trying to snag a BOG lunch via res finder.

I'm not a complainy person but it's annoying me that WDW is so expensive and has the know how to build such great rides, but they can't seem to get it right with their deluxe resorts (except maybe the floridian) and what seems to be 99% of their dining (and their MDE app is glitchy and sounds like their whole ADR ressie system sucks too). I mean, how hard can this all be for them? A deluxe resort at disney should be equal to a deluxe hotel in Chicago or NY. Disney has the money and resources to do it right, so why don't they?

This is what I need:
I LOVE good atmosphere, beautifully themed
Good service (doesn't have to be amazing but can't suck either)
Good food (doesn't have to be amazing but can't suck either)

What are your absolute faves in MK and Epcot for a family of 3 with a 6 yo daughter?



I'm far a from a food snob but I enjoy cooking and living in NYC I have dined in many great restaurants. I can be happy at a high end steakhouse or Outback. I'm flexible and open minded.

That said, there has only been one meal at WDW that I have truly disliked in the last 5 years.

I don't know why people crap on the food at CRT, it's actually pretty good and the entire experience from start to end is great.

Chef Mickey's is a breakfast buffet. It's not going to blow your mind but it is what it is. Again, you're paying for the character experience. It's hard to mess up Mickey waffles and bacon, to be perfectly honest. I don't eat eggs so I can't comment on that.

The food at San Angel Inn is good. The restaurant is a little tight as far as seating is concerned. The atmosphere is great. Service can be hit and miss there though.

The only meal I haven't liked is Ohana dinner. Lots on here seem to love it but I was thoroughly disappointed with all of it. YMMV

We have never stayed at Poly but did a bunch of exploring of the resort before and after our dinner at Ohana last year and we thought the resort was fantastic.

Other recs from a family of 5 with 3 currently 9 year old triplets. Have been to WDW 6 years in a row.

Garden Grill in Epcot is a great character experience. We have done it for lunch and dinner. Lunch can be less crowded and character interactions are less rushed.

Akershus is a nice alternative to CRT. We have done it for lunch 2x over the years.

We all enjoy both Skipper Canteen and Liberty Tree Tavern in the magic kingdom. Crystal Palace is a good character buffet w/ Pooh and friends.

We enjoyed Narcoose's at the Grand Floridian very much last year.

My personal favorite character meal is 1900 Park Fare breakfast. Mad Hatter is the best character on property.

There are loads of great restaurants at Disney Springs as well, the Boathouse being our current favorite.
 
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There is no place on property that everyone will agree is wonderful/terrible. It's all about individual tastes and experiences. There are, however, places that tend to get better reviews and places that don't.

MK favorites:
With kids, I think Crystal Palace is a great option for a pretty atmosphere, characters, and decent food. I really like the roasted corn spoon bread on the buffet.
For lunch, BOG is our go-to. It feels more expensive than it is and the food is wonderful. That seared tuna salad with a strawberry cupcake for dessert is fantastic.

Epcot favorites:
My family enjoys Biergarten (tomato basil salad! entertainment during dinner! beer!)
Tokyo Dining and Teppan Edo (wonderful sushi at Tokyo and fun Hibachi cooking at Teppan, would be a hoot for kids. Incredible service at both)
La Hacienda (the seafood platter is so good, especially the corn. I swear there's crack in it. :-) Plus, you can see Illuminations if you time it right)

Pick places that suit your appetites and sound fun. I'm sure you'll have a great time!
 
Try not to read too much into reviews for dining. There are so many out there that you are bound to get a mixed bag. Additionally, people on the internet like to complain more than praise (generally), so it's pretty standard to feel like you are reading more negative than positive. And even more so, all the people that enjoyed it, had a nice meal with good service (not extraordinary or horrible) will never write a review at all.

So with all that being said, to answer the OP question on faves in MK and EP based on cool atmosphere and good food/service here are my picks:

MK: My fave here is Skipper's Canteen. It's fun, service is good and the food is a little different than any other option in MK. I will add that with a 6 yo girl, CRT is a no brainer. She will love it.
EP: My DS (now 10) has always loved Coral Reef because he's blown away by the aquarium and it's always a must do on his list. Garden Grill is also fantastic and our favourite character meal in all of WDW. In the WS, Biergarten is a fave of ours, the food is good and the entertainment is fun. We have not tried San Angel Inn yet, but it's on our list for our upcoming trip.
 
Everyone has different tastes. I read reviews of a restaurant that we hated, bad food, terrible service, and the reviewer had a totally different experience. Great food and service. Did we catch them on a bad day, or they caught them on an unusual good day?
For any resort or restaurant, I can find reviews that love it and those that hate it. All you can do is gather information, go there with your best guess and see it in person and make your own judgement for the future. Some place that is generally panned by all, I would avoid.
 
I wouldn't let the reviews get you down. You have to experience it all for yourself. You may come away with a completely different opinion. Folks have all different tastes
 
People have made some pretty good points here. I am generally of the mindset to use reviews simply as a frame of reference. I try not to let emotionally charged, one sided reviews swing me. Like others have mentioned it’s your vacation and you have to do what works for you. I’m a fan of trying things out for yourself. A side note about Chef Mickey’s. You would think the place should be shut down based on a large percentage of the reviews here but my family loves breakfast there so much (the food, atmosphere, and character interaction) that it is our Disney trip tradition and we’ve had breakfast there on our past three trips.:thumbsup2
 
Your selections are some of my faves. I LOVE Ohana dinner and San Angel Inn. I put off trying San Angel Inn for years based on so many bad reviews. Had it in May and we loved it! We are picky with Mexican food ( from Texas and lived in California so we like several styles).

I am not a fan of Chef Mickeys anymore, but I can see that small kids would absolutely love it for the Fab 5.

I think you should try everything once and make up your own mind.
 
The POLY is my very favorite resort. You can't go wrong there. Even when I do not stay there, I have to visit and have a Dole Whip or a drink at the bar.
 
The only way you’ll know is to find out for yourself. I read reviews and took information from them as a whole to make choices as to which places I wanted to try. Some criticisms are applicable to me, others aren’t. I was happy with all of our food choices. Some I don’t feel the need to do again, some became must-dos, but I don’t regret anything we did.

But I understand what you mean. The negativity can get to you. I’m easier to please than most, I guess, so everything suited me fine.
 
We all have varying opinions and you must take each with a grain of salt. I will do the same, share my thoughts and opinions, but will say this, you are going to the most magical place on Earth, so therefore, go with good thoughts, don't let the naysayers scare you off.

I have only stayed at Poly once. I love the theming and always enjoy walking into the lobby. Hope to return someday:thumbsup2

I don't care if the food at CRT is bad, we're there for the magic of the castle since it's our 6 yo dd's first time and she loves princesses. We're also doing Ohana dinner when we arrive at Poly, Chef Mickey which literally everyone on this board hates but it's fab 5 and super early breakfast so fits our schedule well and a trip on the monorail from poly to con. which will be fun for dd. Ohana best friends breakfast on departure day which people seem to think is ok.
CRT to me is a wonderful way to experience time with the princesses and we did this twice for breakfast with our DD and DS. Now is a good time for you folks, your DD is at a prime age. The food to me was good. Ohana dinner was our must do 1st meal for years. It was a great way to kickstart a trip, eat a tasty meal and see the fireworks from the windows. Magical! But it became a past thing as time went on, one, its a lot of food for us old folks:D, and two, after awhile, doing anything over and over becomes redundant, and after 30 plus trips under our belts, well, you see where this is going. But I like the idea of you folks doing this. Chef Mickey is fun, food is not bad with lots of choices, and having Mickey and Goofy in the same room, well, it don't get much better than that. We did Ohana AM meal once. The meal is basic breakfast so not exciting, but I say go. You may love it.

But one dinner I was looking forward to was San Angel Inn (the atmosphere looks so cool) and the consensus here is that it's so so to terrible.
SAI has been a must do for us for the last 30 plus trips. The atmosphere is wonderful, and the food equally good. I have been at times when it was less than stellar, but after at least 30 times there, more times I have enjoyed it than not. Go!!

My faves in MK...Skipper Canteen, food and atmosphere both very good, and great, very entertaining service. Liberty Tree Tavern, lunch is my favorite since you have smaller portions, where dinner is served family style, way too much food.
Epcot faves, got lots...SAI as mentioned, Nine Dragons, Honey Sesame Chicken is a must do here. Talk about not getting any love, ND gets a shaft by naysayers all the time. Im sure if you live in a big city and have vast amounts of chinese places too choose from, then ND might not appeal to you. But me being from a small town, ND is way better than any chinese place in my town:rotfl2:Rose n Crown is another great atmosphere place where the food is equal to it. Biergarten is my final place I name in Epcot, reason why, its over the top in atmosphere, the band makes it even more appealing and the food is drop dead good.

Please, please, please don't change plans according to what others say. Stay with your plans, do what is best for you and your family, and get yourself to some happier forums and posts. They are here on the DIS, just seek them out.
 

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