Dining review for my stay this past week

[MuchLovedMama]

We just got back from a week long stay & was on the free dining plan. Wanted to share my thoughts on everything that we had.

9/18 HS

QS lunch at Rosie's All American Cafe. The food was just above average. Nothing special but it wasn't bad either. DH & I had burgers & fries with chocolate cake & DS had chicken nuggets & fries. DD had chicken nuggets also & this was where she decided that she didn't like Disney's chicken nuggets. She didn't eat much.

TS dinner at Sci-Fi. We Loved it. Kids didn't. DH & I both got milkshakes for our drinks & ribs for our meal & ice cream sundaes for our dessert. DS got a hamburger w/ fries & a salad. He took maybe 1 bite of his hamburger & salad & that's about it. DD got the macaroni but didn't like it. She helped DH with his ribs & he helped her with the macaroni. They both got sundaes for their desserts & liked it. Our server was great.

9/19 Epcot

QS for lunch at Liberty Inn. I had a Bacon Double cheeseburger w/ fries & Rice Krispie treat dipped in chocolate (yum!) & liked it. The topping bar was great. DH had chicken nuggets or strips & I can't remember what came with it but I do remember he didn't have fries because there wasn't much chicken & he commented that he should've got a burger so he could've had some fries. I gave him some as did my DS but his meal was small. DH also got the rice krispie treat & fell in love. DD had PB&J & DS had Chicken nuggets again. They ate everything & seemed to like it.

TS for dinner at Rose & Crown. WORST dining experience we have ever had in our lives & we eat out a lot. We were a party of 8 & we got in pretty quick but the food & service were awful. It took over 2 hours from start to finish because they were soooo slow. Our server took our drink order & our food order & we flagged her down for the bill but other than that we never saw her. Somebody else brought the drinks & the food. Many of us got the Fish & Steak meal. We all ordered it well done & it seemed that they didn't even cook the steaks. They were bloody & very red. The fish was gross. DH & I got the Baileys Irish Coffee Trifle which we loved. We wated 45 minutes after our drinks were empty to get refills & by that time I had to tell another server that we needed refills around the whole entire table. DD & DS got the potato leek soup & although DD loved hers, DS didn't like it but I helped him out on it because it was yummy. Both kids got macaroni but neither one liked it. They ate some of our fish though & their sundaes. By the end of the meal I flagged down a manager & he apologized & issued us back 2 TS meals to make up for it. I just think that it's wrong to have to pay the 18% tip to a person that does nothing for you. I think some of the servers just don't care about pleasing you because they know that they are getting that tip regardless & I think it's so wrong. Thank heavens though that she was the only real bad one during our stay but she made it bad enough.

9/20 MK

TS at Crystal Palace for Character Breakfast. We really enjoyed our breakfast here for the most part & 3 of the 4 characters made it to our table. Everything was good up until DH, DS & I walked through somebody puke right up next to the buffet. Ruined our appetite after that. Couldn't get the smell out of our minds. Yucky! Other than that though everything was great.

TS at Plaza for dinner. We LOVED this place. I had the grilled chicken sandwich that had ham & swiss on it with fries. The sandwich was awesome. DH had the cheese steak sandwich & wasn't thrilled with the bread but he still liked it. He had a banana split for desert & I had the brownie sundae. They were excellent. DD had grilled cheese & enjoyed it & DS had Grilled Chicken on a stick. He didn't really each much chicken but did good on his fries & salad & both kids had the Mickeylodeon for dessert which was really cute. DD's bday was on 9/13 & we choose to wear her birthday button on this day & they also sang happy birthday to her & brought her a cupcake. I highly recommend this place.

9/21 AK

QS lunch at Pizzafari. DH & I got pizzas which were just o.k. DD & DS really wanted pizza as well but of course it's not on the kid's menu. They ended up getting spaghetti which was just o.k. as well.

Off the dining plan we paid out of pocket for Rainforest for dinner. We love this place & can't ever pass it up. We really enjoyed it. I had the lava nachos & they were pretty good. Can't remember what DH got but he liked it. Both kids got pizza & really liked it.

9/22 MK

QS for lunch at Cosmic Rays. Wow! Great options. DH & I got the Ribs & Chicken combo with green beans & mashed potatoes. The chicken & potatoes were so yummy. The Ribs were quite fatty but still all right. The green beans were way to salty. Almost couldn't eat them but still this was a great meal for the plan. DS got Chicken nuggets again (getting quite bored of them by now but he's picky) & DD got PB&J again. We liked this place though.

TS was supposed to be at Tony's but we got rained out this day & headed back early & traded our TS for QS + 2 snacks a piece at the resort. We were staying at POP & realized that our dessert could be a really yummy Brownie Sundae which they sell for $4.99 that you can choose any 3 scoops of ice cream + whipped cream & nuts & sprinkles & cherries & any fudge you'd like. The kids also got to enjoy this with their snack credits. DH was hooked on the penne alfredo with chicken at our resort & I really enjoyed the pizzas. I truly didn't mind eating at the resort.

9/23 HS

TS character breakfast at Hollywood & Vine. This place was really good. They had some really yummy make your own breakfast burritos here & the cinnamon rolls were so good. We got to see all 4 characters here. This place was really REALLY loud though. There's a lot of singing & dancing.

QS at Wolfgang Puck Express in DTD. WOW! Talk about good food. This place was so great. Can't believe what you get for a QS credit. I had the Spicy Chicken pizza & it was fabulous. DH had Pepperoni & Mushroom pizza & loved it. DD had pizza & DS had linguini & they both had clean plates. We all had chocolate chip cookies for our desserts & they were probably the best I've ever had. I would sure like some more. :thumbsup:

Final thoughts:

Would've loved to have done Wolfgang Puck express & the Plaza a 2nd time.

Will never EVER do Rose & Crown again.

[ojeilatan]

I'm so sorry to hear you didn't enjoy Rose & Crown. We ate there on our trip, and I absolutely adored it - I had Tea Time Chicken and it was great. However, I can echo the slowness issue. Our server was more attentive, but they were still slow. We were originally seated outside, but as a few of us were pushing heat stroke symptoms, we asked to be moved inside. The waiter (and his delicious Scottish accent:D) promptly got us moved, and so we gave him an extra tip.

It stinks that one server can ruin a whole meal. And you are correct - you should not have to pay such a large tip for someone who does nothing. Overall, I really liked the atmosphere and experience. Or perhaps it was that waiter with the accent..... ;)

and puke?!?!?!!?! Yuck! :sick: There's a quick way to throw the magic out the window.

At least your other meals turned out well. Thanks for the info and reviews - I'll be kepping them in mind for our next trip!:thumbsup:

[mickeytravel]

We did wolfgang express also on our last visit and couldn't beleive it. It was great. i had a pasta and it came with a cesear salad and dessert. Best QS around. We are going in Dec and can't wait to go there again!

[pdrlkr]

Thanks for the review! :smickey:

[princessgirls]

Thanks for sharing, the good, the bad and the ugly!

Glad you had a nice trip.

Julie:mickey:

[KatMark]

Thanks for the reviews. We too love Plaza. We have gone the last three years and it has become a staple for us. We also love Crystal Palace--sorry about what happened there--I can't say that I blame you for losing your appetite. We used to love Rose & Crown and would alternate every year between that and Biergarten. We were very disappointed in our lunch this year (all except DH). We had the Fish & Chips and the fish was extremely greasy this year. However, our service was excellent. But I don't think we'll go back any time soon.

[mouseketeer mom]

Oh yes! We agree about Wolfgang Pucks express being amazing. Also, you got me thinking about the Plaza, a place we've never really considered before, thanks! I might try to add it to our Thanksgiving trip. Sorry about the Rose and Crown, our experience there was terrific.

[MississippiDisneyFreak]

Thanks for the reviews, sorry about R&C

[7swans]

We also loved Pucks Express on or last dining plan trip. They were a bit slow with my sandwich, and offered us any salad we wanted while we were waiting, the food was fresh and delicious with large portions.

I wonder with your children's smaller appetites, did you feel you got your moneys worth out of the dining plan?

[Mackflava99]

Excellent report- thanks alot for sharing-
I have 2 questions;
1.) i am drawing a blank- where is the Plaza?

2.) what characters are at hollywood and Vine breakfast /

Thanks!!

[MuchLovedMama]

I wonder with your children's smaller appetites, did you feel you got your moneys worth out of the dining plan?

Well, since we were doing the "free" dining offer I'd say we ceteratinly got our money's worth. :thumbsup:

[MuchLovedMama]

Excellent report- thanks alot for sharing-
I have 2 questions;
1.) i am drawing a blank- where is the Plaza?

2.) what characters are at hollywood and Vine breakfast /

Thanks!!

The plaza is in MK. You walk to the end of main street & make a right. It's basically right there on the corner. They actually have an ice cream store only that is actually on main street & just around the corner is the restaurant.

At Hollywood & Vine it's a playhouse disney breakfast with Jojo & Goliath from Jojo's Circus & 2 of the Little Einstines (I belive they are June & Leo). They play many different songs non-stop from that channel though.

[Goes4FastPass]

9/21 AK

QS lunch at Pizzafari. DH & I got pizzas which were just o.k. DD & DS really wanted pizza as well but of course it's not on the kid's menu. They ended up getting spaghetti which was just o.k. as well.
We need to keep hammering about how insufferably idiotic it is for a Walt Disney World restaurant named Pizzafari not to have pizza on the children's menu.

[ibelieveindisneymagic]

I'm glad you generally had good meals. I'm really sorry about R&C, it is one of our most favourites at the World!

[pixiesmimi]

I second your opinion of the Rose and Crown. We had the same type of experience and I was very upset about the service and food. Won't go back there again. That is the good thing about the DDP now, you can leave any kind of tip you want or not leave one at all. Before the 18% was figured in the cost of the plan.

We love Crystal Palace but that happened to us the last year too and totally ruined our meal. We weren't on the DDP then and it was a lot of money to waste.

WP Express was very good and almost more food than we could eat.

Thanks for your report. We know who to steer clear of next time.

[tinkerbell04]

Thanks for the great reviews!! I love to hear about first hand dining experiences.:mickey:

[VWL Mom]

Thanks for sharing, I was unaware of the Plaza Restaurant even though I probably walked past it on every trip. Sounds like something we will try. BTW, when I looked at their menu here and scrolled down it says "how to lose 90 pounds". Got a giggle on that one.