Coral Reef

[Duchess99]

I have read a mix of reviews on Coral Reef on other sites...some being terrible! I've always wanted to try it due to the atmosphere, but is it really worth it if the food and service are terrible? I was planning on going for dinner for my honeymoon trip in September.
Any feedback or thoughts on the experience??

[DreamFinder2]

We've eaten at Coral Reef twice. Both times it's been for lunch, so the menu may be slightly different...but we thought the food was OK. Not the best seafood we've ever eaten, but pretty good.

It's been several years, so I don't have any specific menu suggestions for you, but I'd say make the ADR. Like you said, the atmosphere's definitely worth at least one trip.

[Backslidingturkey]

Like you said, the atmosphere was awesome, our waiter was top notch (told us stories about full house filming there and Hulk Hogan being the nicest celebrity he has ever waited on) the food was middle of the road at best, but the lobby area and wait was rough (it had rained right before and was filled with soaked guests.) Everyone in our party agreed on 2 things, 1) we were glad we ate there and 2) that we would probably wait a few more trips before we did it again. That was a pretty mixed review huh. All in all, id tell you do it, if just for the experience

[Seasonscraps]

Even though I am not a seafood eater, I thoroughly enjoyed my meal at the Coral Reef. We received great service - we were never looking for the waiter but didn't feel rushed either.

I do agree with Backslidingturkey about the wait - it was long (well past our ADR time) and a bit uncomfortable since there's very limited seating.

[DisneyGlutton]

Coral Reef is one of my favorites and always a must do. I've eaten there three times (May 05, May 08, Dec 08) and have always had good experiences. The wait times have always been under 15 mins, the staff great (even when they were training a new waiter), and needless to say, the atmosphere is one of a kind. Where else can you watch fish, turtles, sharks, and divers swim by you? The food isn't great...though I would recommend the Land and Sea appetizer as well as the Chicken Breast of all things (it was memorable and great, and how often can that be said of chicken?). I would say give it a try!

[PixieMagic]

I don't know if it's changed....but we went for our Honeymoon in 2006 and LOVED IT - it wasn't my first time there (I ate there when I was little) but it was DH first time... we got a seat by the looking glass...both loved our food (I had Prime Rib, DH had mahi mahi I think...) and service was perfect....wear your bride&groom ears!! :cloud9:

[PixieMagic]

I should add something - we have never been there for dinner...always for lunch - and never have to wait....maybe that might help with service and table selection........

[deedeebee]

We have been there twice and the atmosphere is great, the food is ok. I would also do it at least once. We also have only been for lunch and had almost no wait. Hope this helps.

[disneyfan328]

I may in the minority here, but we ate there in 2007 (Free Dining) While the food was very good (we had dinner) and the atmosphere was great (there were divers in the tank and lots of cool fish) and our server was also top notch (Jeff) I don't know that we would eat there again. The reason being that for a family of 5 (with appetizers as they were still on the basic dining plan then) our meal was over $250.00:jaw::eek: and thats before the tip(which was also included at that time.) While the steaks were good, there were 3 adults and 2 kids at this meal and I just think its an absurd amount of money to spend on one meal. The kids meals were less that 10.00 so the majority of the cost was for the 3 adults.

It was a great expeierience to do it once and the steaks were all very good as was the shrimp but I just think it was very overpriced.

We did get the personalized menus that they did back then and they were a nice touch and a great free souvenier but I hear that they don't do those anymore :(.

Just my :twocents:

[Charlee]

Despite the Coral Reef often getting bad reviews it is one of my favorite places to eat and is a must do for me and my family.
We always do lunch (we always tend to do lunches as we never do dining plan so lunch is cheaper) but have always found the service, food and atmosphere excellent.
We have never waited beyond our ADR time, we have been seated next to the tank without requesting and the staff have always been polite and informative. None of my family are fish eater so we have had the pork chops and the strip steaks and these are very nicely cooked and delicious.
We all love dessert especially the Chocolate Wave and the Key Lime Tart.
I'm getting hungry now... least its under 7 weeks til I go!

[MississippiDisneyFreak]

Opinions vary so greatly, that its really hard to judge. So, if its something you really want to try, I say go for it....BTW, we've never been but would like to try it too:)

[SBETigg]

Opinions vary and restaurants do have off nights. It happens to be the one place where I had the worst meal of my life. Would I tell you to avoid it? No. Some people have had incredible meals there. If the atmosphere interests you and you want to try it, you should try it. Don't let bad reviews intimidate you. I've been to places that get consistently great reviews only to be let down. I've tried places that draw bad reviews and have been pleasantly surprised. And sometimes, places live up to expectation, good or bad. But you never know until you try for yourself.

[Nini5055]

I think you should go ahead and give it a try.

We went for dinner (during free dining last year) and it was good.:thumbsup: Our waiter was fine...not overly attentive, but not MIA either. We were seated right next to the tank and my dd7 was thrilled as a diver came and held up a sign to welcome her back to WDW (that was last year when you could arrange for that).

The atmosphere is very nice and relaxing with the huge aquarium. All in all it was a nice and enjoyable restaurant with good food. :thumbsup:

[MOJoe]

My family has eaten at Coral Reef twice. The first time was fantastic. One of the best meals i have had, anywhere. Last time it was good, but not great. I was somewhat disappointed that the menu had changed and the entree i had the first time was no longer there. My family, however, still gave it a thumbs up, and has requested to go again this year.
So if you want to experience dining with the fishes, go ahead. Don't be deterred by a few bad reports. Many people enjoy the Coral Reef.

[LarryBoy]

We ate there 2 years ago and it was the best :thumbsup: meal of our trip. The food and service were both great. We are going back in July, and I hope things are just as good again,

[MickeyandTink]

While the atomosphere can be really awesome (when we ate there in Sept. 07 we were seated right next to the fish tank), be prepared for a wait to get seated and slow service. We had ADR's for 5:40 and didn't get out of the restaurant until just a few minutes before 8. We had intentionally made early ADR's so we would have plenty of time to eat and get over to the concert playing at the American Pavillion (Eat to the Beat series), since the last show was at 8. By travelling at a very brisk walk (basically, race-walking speed) we caught the last 10 minutes of the show.

And as previous posters have stated, it is outrageously expensive for the quality of food and service. (our server was nice enough, just very, very slow). I might consider going back again, but it won't be anytime soon.

[fabfundisney]

We all love dessert especially the Chocolate Wave and the Key Lime Tart.
I'm getting hungry now... least its under 7 weeks til I go!


While the food was good, the Chocolate Wave has to be the reason that I have just secured my ADR at Coral Reef. My first visit to this restaurant was in 06. Due to the bad reviews, I started to back out. I am happy that I didn't! IMHO, try it! You may like it and if you don't, no love lost! You can move on knowing that you gave it a solid effort! Have fun!!

[yjgirl32]

I would say if your really want to try it then go. It's the only way you will truly now if you like it or not. Everybodies tolerance for things is different along with everyone taste buds. I personally thoroughly ejoyed my experience. Good luck with your decision.

[Minnie97]

Mom said all the bad talk about it kept us from going but when we tryed it,it became an all time favorite.:dory::nemo::shark::

[Duchess99]

Thank you everyone for your comments!
You've convinced me that I need to go to Coral Reef. A lot of you are right, if I want to go for the atmosphere, it will be worth it. We'll be eating at a bunch of 2TS restaurants, so one mediocre meal won't kill us. :thumbsup:
But hopefully it will turn out to be fantastic!

[thatkindofday]

My husband and i went there while we were on our honeymoon and LOVED it so much, we went there again last trip and were willing to wait three hours to get a table. The mahi is absolutely awesome and the service both times was really great. We will probably go back everytime we go there.

[GrmGrninGost]

We avoided Coral Reef for a long time because of other peoples opinions. We finally went for the first time in 2005 ( I think) and it was the best meal of our trip! We have been back several times. It has been our best meal each trip. The food has been fabulous and the service has been exceptional! At this time, it is probably my favorite restaurant at WDW. :mickey:

[ThanxForNoticin]

Opinions vary so greatly, that its really hard to judge. So, if its something you really want to try, I say go for it....BTW, we've never been but would like to try it too:)

I agree with this statement 100%. You will get many different opinions. I can tell you honestly that we happened to have 2 very poor experiences at CR and our family won't go back anytime soon. But I can also tell you that we have friends who love it. You'll probably need to find out for yourself!

[Hull-onian]

We are going to the Coral Reef for the first time ever. We had ADR's in 05', but couldn't make it back to EPCOT in time. Now we are all set for a fun fantastic evening. Then onto Illuminations after we dine. Can't wait.