Dec. Dining Report

[JanetMegan]

Hey guys, I thought I would do another lengthy dining write up for my trip last week since that is always my favorite part of the trip and also because we had vastly different experiences in Dec. than we had in Sept (poor service etc on the dining plan.)

A little background this was me (33) and dbf (47 and his first trip ever to WDW.) We stayed the first night at the Poly and then 5 nights at WL. We were not on the dining plan, but our package did have a $500 Disney gift card that we used for meals and drinks as we wished. I'll say up front this worked out VERY well for us over the dining plan, we could use it for appetizers, drinks, tips etc. We didn't feel as tied down (even though I had made dinner ADRs almost each night.) I loved having the dining card over the dining plan.

Arrival night after the drive down was the only night we didn't have ADRs (sort of a mistake). We planned on eating at the sushi bar at the Poly but the whole Poly Lobby was mobbed with people waiting to eat at both Ohana and Kona and people waiting in line for the monorail for the MVMCP. This sort of makes the sushi bar a loud crowded area. We also eat sushi at home a good bit (homemade) so we decided to try for Kona instead. It was about a 45 min wait, but that was really the worst wait of the trip and we found out later the luau had cancelled so all those people were at Poly looking for something to eat as well. We had not checked in on our package at WL yet so this meal was out of pocket. I had the Chef's menu including the nice salad, pan asian chicken and the torte. I shared the salad and dessert with dbf who had the ribeye. It was all tasty, service was pretty good, it was just late by this time and we were tired and it was very busy. Not a bad time or anything just all those factors to consider.

As an aside. While waiting for dinner we were in the couches area by Ohana and I saw a man chewing out one of the managers saying they had been waiting over 2 hours for Ohana with ADRs (I was REALLY worried when I heard this as we had Ohana ADRs later in the trip.) Well come to find out his ADR was for like 7:30 and they had showed up at 5:30 to get an earlier time so they could make it to MVMCP. The manager tried to explain that the place was fully booked and that they were only running 5 mins past ADR times on the night. Sure enough at 7:35 this guys' pager went off. I felt bad for the manager.

I'm going to save here and continue so I don't lose anything...

[JanetMegan]

I continue...oh and btw we are not breakfast people but do like an early lunch which worked out well to avoid crowds at QS locations.

So first full day lunch was at Restrauntosaurs (sp?) nothing super special, just slightly overpriced burgers and fries but they have such a nice fixins bar and we ate around 11:30 to avoid the crowds.

Dinner that night was an ADR at the new La Hacienda in Mexico. This is the new Table Service location that is actually across from the Mexico pavillion. Our ADR was for 7:15 and we arrived a couple minutes early and were shown to our table right at 7:15 I would say. It was pretty busy in there but service was very good. We both had margaritas, they brought chips and salsa (2 kinds) and we had the queso fundito to start and share. We had to ask for some extra tortillas but it was a great tasty starter. We shared the mixed grill for two with the beef, chicken, sausage and veggies and asked for flour tortillas instead of corn. I also had another margarita (sooo yummy!) I may have felt a little rushed but honestly we were hungry, sort of tired and already to me service was so much better than what I had run into in Sept that we just thought the whole evening was great. Not cheap, but very good and a great meal. We were not there for Illuminations but I bet it would be a killer view!

Next Day-Wedding Day
We had a wedding to go to in Epcot in front of the Italy pavillion at 9am with a breakfast/brunch reception afterwards in a private area at the Living Seas. So we actually didn't have any table sit down meals today other than the one at the reception. The food by the Disney folks for the reception was very good, lots of nice breakfast choices, an omelet station, crepes station, fruit, potatoes, pastries, bacon, sausage you name it. We certainly didn't need lunch. Later in the day we were back in Epcot and had QS in the Land (both selecting from the Asian station and it was good, hot and plenty.) As part of the wedding we also went to a dessert reception outside of the England pavillion for the Illuminations fireworks, it was super cold but great desserts and a wonderful view and great time.

To be continued...

[JanetMegan]

We spent most of the day in the Studios (dodging rain and very cold temps.) We did QS lunch at Pizza Planet at around 11:30 before the mobs hit. I actually like the QS, I think the pizza is tasty, I like the little salad and it's a nice change from burgers.

We went back to the hotel mid-day, rested, etc. and got the truck and took it and dropped it off at the Yacht Club for our 8:45 ADR at Capt. Grille and then we took the boat back to the Studios for the Stunt show (missed earlier due to rain) and to check out the Osborne lights. We ended up walking back to Yacht Club (man that was a LONG COLD walk.) We were seated very close to our ADR time which I think was one of the last ADRs of the night. We were pretty hungry and I got the Chef's menu with the Crab Cakes, Pork Chop with mushroom polenta and the profiteroles. DBF had the salad and a ribeye and shared my dessert. Our service there in Sept was SOOO slow but the food was great so I wanted to give it another shot. Home run this time, food was great, service was FAST and even though we were tired it was another great meal. (Boy were we glad to have the truck there waiting for us that late though.) I could even see a tiny bit of Illuminations from the window of the restaurant right at 9:30. All food cooked perfectly and our server was wonderful!

Next up was Magic Kingdom Day! We had lunch (again around 11:30) at Columbia Harbor House and even though it was early, it was mobbed. I think people were just looking for any way to get out of the freezing cold temps outside. I waited maybe 20 mins for food? We each had the fish and chips and we split a clam chowder (I could have eaten a ton of it, maybe some kind of IV that on that cold day?) Food was good but I personally think the portions here are kind of small. Is that just me?

Again we took a mid-day break and since the boats were not running due to high winds and the cold most of the day we again took the truck over to our dinner spot for the night (Ohana) mid-day and dropped it off and took the monorail back to MK for the rest of the evening. The crowds had been heavy all day but really cleared out after dark and my plan to watch Wishes and then get back to the Poly for the 9:30 Ohana ADR worked perfectly. We arrived back at the Poly around 9pm and had a drink at the bar while waiting for our table. Again food and service was all excellent! We were probably a little more tired than I would have liked but we do like to eat late and I made all of the these late ADRs to hopefully avoid some of the more "family" dining times and it really worked out well in that respect. One little thing at Ohana sort of bugged me though...

They brought us TONS of the dumplings and wings to start (just for the two of us maybe ten or more each?) Maybe this was because it was almost closing time? Well I decided I wanted them for breakfast the next day so I ate a few of each and saved the rest. When I asked for a box for them to take back to my mini fridge at the WL they refused. I could see if I has asked for more of anything, but I hadn't. This was what they had served me and they admitted it would be thrown away...odd. Still mourning my dumplings and wings-cold the next morning would have been GOOD!

[JanetMegan]

On the last full day we tried a lot of park hopping to catch some things we missed and re-do some favorites. We actually ended up between AK and the Studios at that large McDonalds on property for lunch and you know what? It tasted pretty darn good. I'd been dieting and hadn't had fast food in a long time ;) It was cheaper than park food, plenty of it, fast and it was nice and warm in there!

For dinner I had 8pm ADRs for Whispering Canyon Cafe, I wanted our last dinner to be at our "home" hotel so we had time to pack and relax. We made it back to the hotel from all our park "mis"adventures (long story) around 5:30 and I stopped at the check in at WCC to find out if we could come a little later than 8 if possible. She said no problem and basically put me on a "hold" list for a little later time, I told her we were pretty tired and maybe a quiet table would be great. Last Day and all and dbf had been so patient but I was a little worried about the shennanigans of WCC when we really just wanted long hot showers, a bottle of wine in the room and time to chill before dinner-oh and time to pack!

Well we went down about 8:30 and they basically sat us right away at this very private table in front of a fireplace, it was SO nice. I didn't even know it was there. The service was WONDERFUL, attentive, no funny business which is just what we needed. The skillet was GREAT as always and our server took basically the only picture of the two of us together from the trip. Kudos to the manager/hostess and waitress for making our last Disney meals a HUGE success!

Overall our service this trip was SUCH a turn around from my Sept trip. Now in Sept we did have big parties at each meal (7-9 people) and we were on the dining plan but I just don't know if that is what made the difference or if it was luck or what? We ate at 3 of the exact same places for dinner so really it is a mystery.

Hope you enjoyed my long foodie postings-it's always my favorite part of the trip!

[KylesMom]

Janet, I'm so glad that dining service was of a totally different caliber this trip - especially since it was DBF's first visit. Now does he understand your delight with Disney Dining?! Thanks for sharing! :mickey:

[MississippiDisneyFreak]

Sounds like a great experience