darthmacho
09-10-2012, 03:53 PM
I've decided to combine my daily reviews of QS and TS dining from my recent vacation, because I don't want to inundate the boards with my reviews. Therefore, here are my reviews from Day 2:
Pinocchio Haus
Fantasyland, Magic Kingdom
Meal: Lunch
Food: 3.5/5
Though it has a German name, the food at Pinocchio Haus is Italian style. With the generally poor reviews of pizza at WDW, and me being Italian, I was genuinely surprised by the quality of the food. I ordered the Caprese Flatbread, which was quite delicious. The crust was crispy, the cheese perfect, and the balsamic glaze sweet. Both DW and I had this with the mango gelato for our dessert. DD1 had chicken strips, fries, and chocolate gelato, and DD2 got mac & cheese from the kid’s menu. It all was good, though surprisingly, no one ordered the Figaro Fries.
Service: 3.5/5
The service here was above average for the trip. The place was already busy when we arrived, and we got our food fairly quickly. The help was mostly friendly too.
Atmosphere: 4/5
We were lucky enough to get a seat by the window overlooking the It’s a Small World queue, which is always a treat. I love the interior of this quaint little establishment, and always get amused by the various murals depicting scenes from the movie Pinocchio.
Overall: 3.5/5
I think this was our third trip eating in Pinocchio Haus. Our first was back when it was still serving burgers, which was in 1998, our honeymoon trip. We also ate there in 2003, when we had the Figaro Fries. Overall, I like Pinocchio Haus, especially the atmosphere, and I was happy to find something I liked on the menu, which was that Caprese Flatbread.
Crystal Palace
Main Street USA, Magic Kingdom
Meal: Breakfast
Food: 4/5
Crystal Palace serves your basic WDW breakfast fare, buffet style, but they do it really well. My favorite items are the Mickey Waffles, which always seem to be made to perfection. Other items I enjoyed were the grits, sausage gravy, sausage frittata, and the breakfast lasagna. Don’t ask me what was in the breakfast lasagna, but just know that it was delicious! Of course, the more standard items like eggs, bacon, toast, bagels, fresh fruit, and pancakes were all available. I love breakfast on vacation, and I’m always happy with the food at Crystal Palace.
Service: 4/5
Our waitress was Cathy, and she was friendly, helpful and attentive. On a trip that I felt lacked in truly quality service in some areas, I felt that Cathy was one of the best we encountered.
Atmosphere: 5/5
The location in the hub and gorgeous dining room make Crystal Palace worth the price of admission, but add Pooh and his friends visiting your table, and you’ve got one of the best places in WDW to dine. I even love the bathrooms and the area just outside them! For this visit we had a table with a good view of the castle, though it was a little sunny over there in the morning. Ducklings and bunnies frolicking in the grass outside were an extra treat.
Overall: 4.5/5
Crystal Palace is one of my favorite restaurants in all of WDW. It is definitely my favorite place to have breakfast, and now eating there on the first full day has become a tradition that I’d sorely miss if we didn’t do it.
Well, that’s my review. If anyone has more specific questions, I’ll answer them to the best of my ability.
Pinocchio Haus
Fantasyland, Magic Kingdom
Meal: Lunch
Food: 3.5/5
Though it has a German name, the food at Pinocchio Haus is Italian style. With the generally poor reviews of pizza at WDW, and me being Italian, I was genuinely surprised by the quality of the food. I ordered the Caprese Flatbread, which was quite delicious. The crust was crispy, the cheese perfect, and the balsamic glaze sweet. Both DW and I had this with the mango gelato for our dessert. DD1 had chicken strips, fries, and chocolate gelato, and DD2 got mac & cheese from the kid’s menu. It all was good, though surprisingly, no one ordered the Figaro Fries.
Service: 3.5/5
The service here was above average for the trip. The place was already busy when we arrived, and we got our food fairly quickly. The help was mostly friendly too.
Atmosphere: 4/5
We were lucky enough to get a seat by the window overlooking the It’s a Small World queue, which is always a treat. I love the interior of this quaint little establishment, and always get amused by the various murals depicting scenes from the movie Pinocchio.
Overall: 3.5/5
I think this was our third trip eating in Pinocchio Haus. Our first was back when it was still serving burgers, which was in 1998, our honeymoon trip. We also ate there in 2003, when we had the Figaro Fries. Overall, I like Pinocchio Haus, especially the atmosphere, and I was happy to find something I liked on the menu, which was that Caprese Flatbread.
Crystal Palace
Main Street USA, Magic Kingdom
Meal: Breakfast
Food: 4/5
Crystal Palace serves your basic WDW breakfast fare, buffet style, but they do it really well. My favorite items are the Mickey Waffles, which always seem to be made to perfection. Other items I enjoyed were the grits, sausage gravy, sausage frittata, and the breakfast lasagna. Don’t ask me what was in the breakfast lasagna, but just know that it was delicious! Of course, the more standard items like eggs, bacon, toast, bagels, fresh fruit, and pancakes were all available. I love breakfast on vacation, and I’m always happy with the food at Crystal Palace.
Service: 4/5
Our waitress was Cathy, and she was friendly, helpful and attentive. On a trip that I felt lacked in truly quality service in some areas, I felt that Cathy was one of the best we encountered.
Atmosphere: 5/5
The location in the hub and gorgeous dining room make Crystal Palace worth the price of admission, but add Pooh and his friends visiting your table, and you’ve got one of the best places in WDW to dine. I even love the bathrooms and the area just outside them! For this visit we had a table with a good view of the castle, though it was a little sunny over there in the morning. Ducklings and bunnies frolicking in the grass outside were an extra treat.
Overall: 4.5/5
Crystal Palace is one of my favorite restaurants in all of WDW. It is definitely my favorite place to have breakfast, and now eating there on the first full day has become a tradition that I’d sorely miss if we didn’t do it.
Well, that’s my review. If anyone has more specific questions, I’ll answer them to the best of my ability.