Pop Food Court

[chrisb26]

On my other thread most that said they go to the pop all said they loved the food court. What makes it so great? I'll be going and want to know what is the best thing I should get when I go :)

[HndrdPrcnt]

The most popular thing there is the tye-dye cheesecake. I have to admit, when we went I had it and I was less than impressed!! However, maybe I just got a bad batch. The other great thing about this food court is all of the variety of choices. It is a good food court and we found ourselves visiting pretty much every morning.

[mulderxcoltrane]

In our opinion - the pop food court in terms of quality is very similar to the AS food courts. There is a better/bigger selection at Pop however. We had noticed that the serving sizes our last time at POP (Aug 2006) were larger than we had expected. It made our DDP CS credits stretch further than we anticipated.

[tiaramom]

quality is ok
lots to pick from
tye dye cheescake ok

what was ok , was parmasean crusted chicken breast. ( that was pretty good)

the giant cupcake was super frsh and pretty good too

lomein was terrible
calzone was terrible
hummus ok
chicken nuggets ok
pancakes ok

its all ok and fine like a step up from mc donalds
better than though...
plenty to choose from-
and not bad at all for a quick snack or meal on the go.

[madenny]

Shrimp Lo mein was great and so much there that my daughter and I split it.
Waffles or any b-fast was good.
Turkey dinner was very good also.
Liked the cheesecake more than the twinkie tiramisu.
It's a nice place to eat and they have a big selection plus a special each night (like fried chicken, turkey or meatloaf)

[Speedy1998]

funny the food court/ gift shop was the major reason that we decided not to go back to Pop on our next trip. We liked AS Movies way better. Though we only eat one or two meals at the food court, we prefer to eat our counter service for lunch in the park. We usually bring cereal to eat in our room for breakfast, while everyone gets ready.

[SandmanGStefani24]

i think what impressed us was the fact that it was mid-July when we were there, it was jam packed, and it never took long to get our food and sit down. Granted, the tables weren't the cleanest since it was so busy, but it always seemed there was a table waiting for us.

There was a good selection, quick lines, and plenty of space to keep us from being Sardine'd in there. We thought the gift shop was pretty good too.
:thumbsup:

[luvdiznee]

Chicken Parm and Tye Dye Cheesecake :cloud9::thumbsup::mickey:

[tnpoohbear]

Although I did not like the Pop Resort - the Food Court is really good! There is a greater variety than the other value resorts. The food court itself seems bigger. The tie dye cheesecake is fantastic!!! DD favorite is always the Mickey Waffles. I also love their gift shop.:mickey:

[A Big Kid]

The food court is my nemisis. We stayed at the Pop in January and were miserable. Part of the reason was the food court. It was a madhouse with little or no respect for anyone.

People seem to loose are respect for their fellow man in the value resort food courts.

[JerseyDad]

....It was a madhouse with little or no respect for anyone.

People seem to loose are respect for their fellow man in the value resort food courts.

....although I've never experienced any situation that was as bad as the mayhem you've described...the Food Court can...and does...get really busy some times. We've stayed almost exclusively at Pop Century since '04 and I've had nothing but good experiences with the Food Court.

The variety is good...and food tasty. Our meals have pretty much have been the breakfasts and snacks type...but did a few dinner meals too with no complaints (my daughter loves the noodle soup!)

....sometimes the stars will line up just right, and you might just get "lucky" enough to have a less than stellar group of people all check in at the same time ;)

[Disneypixie513]

We loved Pop's food court and to this day we think it's the best one..Out of all the resorts! There are alot of choices and although we didn't eat there too much, we had good food and always had a place to sit. On our last night there, me and my mom had the Lo mein(i had shrimp too) and to tell you the truth, it really didn't look too good..Boy were we wrong..The lo mein was so good and you get such a huge portion you can easily split between 2 people..We had breakfast there a few times and it was yummy :)

[crazeedizneefinatic]

I liked the food court. I do think they had different choices than some of the other places I stayed. We especially liked the frozen cokes you could get in your refillable mug!!

[pixiegoose]

We were not a huge fan of Pop's food court. The tye dye cheesecake everyone seems to love we found "eh" at best- in place of a typical graham cracker crust it just had regular cake and the consistency was just off. Maybe we're too used to cheesecake from The Cheesecake Factory but we were really disaapointed after all the rave reviews. The other items we ate were okay but nothing to write home about.

[Flower]

We just spent 10 nights at POP and I honestly think the worst part of our stay was the food court. By the end of our trip everything was the same, they hardly offer any variety.

I enjoyed the chicken parm & pasta, but one can only eat that so many nights in a row. I REALLY was missing Coronado and the Pepper Market.

I also do not like the cafeteria style set up where you get your hot food and then have to stand in a huge line to pay, so by the time you get to the table everything is cold.

[CaptainJessicaSparrow]

Having worked at Pop, I'm a bit defensive about how people tend to judge it. Most people seem to expect more for what they are paying, but I can say stay at any other non-Disney resort for the same price and see just how much you'll get. I can pretty much guarantee most of the other $100/night hotels in the area are a lot more limited and won't even have a food court.

Pop Century is a value resort and a limited service hotel, so it's going to be minimal on variety. It's not going to be like the moderate resorts, most of which are also cafeteria style, or the deluxe resorts which features full service restaurants. But it has more food variety than PO (med), CR (small), WL (small), Poly (small), AKL (med), CB (med), SSR (small-med), BC (small), and GF (small). The only other set close to it in size would be the AS resorts, but they also offer the same thing pretty much every night.

Coronado is a bit different, as it's pretty much all you can eat if I am not mistaken. It's a moderate so the food is a bit better but their menu really doesn't change all that often either so in that sense, it's the same as Pop.

You don't have to eat the same thing there everyday and if you do, that's your choice. However, there is more than enough variety of very delicious food if you stayed for 10 days.

Chicken Parm Alfredo (or Mariana), Parmesean Crusted Chicken with Arugula Salad, Chicken Caesar, Greek Salad (AMAZING), Ham and Havarti Flatbread (AMAZING), Mediterrean Flatbread, Cheesesteak Wrap (pretty good), Meatball Sub, Salmon Dinner with Orzo Pasta and Green Beans (pretty good), Turkey Dinner with Stuffing and Potatoes (AMAZING), Pulled BBQ Pork with Cornbread and Beans (pretty good).

Not to mention the other traditional stuff of burgers, chicken strips, personal pizza, nachos, lo mein and sloppy joes. And I can say I've eaten every single item offered at Pop Century and the ones above this bit are the best.

Pop is also almost always at 90-100% occupancy and when the parks all get out within an hour of each other (common mostly in summers - 8, 9, 10 and 11 typically) then it's going to be busy as everyone is going to come back to the resort at the same time.

And not because I worked there, but because I've eaten at pretty much every QSR location on Disney, I can say Pop Century is the best (although one of the AS resorts has Stuffed Shells, which are really good).

[wjrhw]

Asian Chicken salad was great. Variety was great. All salads made to order.

[Disneytravels]

I agree with you Captain Jessica!

The rush is there but we have always gotten through there fast. I would have to say that other places we haven't gotten through the lines that fast. The choices are nice also to have. My mother loves the piza there...lol. She says something is differernt there then anywhere else...lol... I know its the same but you can't tell her that....lol.
I agree- you are paying for a $100.00 a night- you are not going to get a deluxe dining. I have been to many of the different resorts and out of the values I like this food court better than the other values.
Hey Captain Jess- I would have to say that the check out ladies for the food court could be a bit more cheerful~ smile a little. Most of them--- I said most not all ---are looking so stressed they forget to smile and greet is the DISNEY way. :):marg:

[JPL]

I have to say staying at Pop for my last 5 short trips to the World including the 10th Anniversary Party. I have found that food court has a nice variety and is usually fast and the area is kept reasonably clean considering the volume of people that go through in a short period of time. I usually only grab breakfast or a late snack since most of my time is spent in the parks but it definately serves it's purpose.

[emfleck]

We love Pop. I think the food court is great and has a lot of variety. We even had the chance to switch to AS and save a little on our rooms but decided to spend the extra and stay at Pop.

[Disneytravels]

Emfleck... you are from Kalamazoo!! We live in Portage...
Small world it is!
Nice weather we are having huh?

[goofysbabe]

I like the variety they have and the way it's set up. Oh, and the tye-dye cheesecake is really good. Just keep in mind it does tend to get really crowded at the usual eating times.

[big blue and hairy]

Pop Century is a value resort and a limited service hotel, so it's going to be minimal on variety.


I have to disagree with you on that point. I actually think the variety is quite good. Like you said, go to a hotel outside WDW in that price range and see what you get.

The food at Pop is actually quite good, at least everything I've had has been. The difference to me is the setup and decor of the food courts. The All Stars are just very boxy. Pop has much more visual interest, and great booths, too.

:sulley:

[CaptainJessicaSparrow]

Oh I didn't mean to say that it had no variety, but the Guests seem to expect a different item every night. I agree that Pop has the biggest variety of foods, so I don't see why everyone says it doesn't. When I said minimal, I meant that the menu isn't going to change everyday. Finanically speaking, the costs would be extraordinary if they changed the menu every night because foods can only be held for so many days and you never know what the day will bring. There have been times where we've been prepared for 110% occupancy and had to throw away about 15 lbs of chicken because everyone has eaten at the parks.

And to be honest, no restaurant is really like that. They have a set menu and you choose what you want to order. Fridays, Carrabba's, Olive Garden, Denny's - they all have the same thing, it never changes. You choose to order what you want, no one makes you order it and like I said, if you order one item every night, then that was your decision, not Pop Century's.

Disneytravels, I smiled....sometimes. I smile a whole lot more now that I am at Emporium. I <3 Emporium. :thumbsup: You can only smile after getting yelled at so many times for the way the DDP works. Please, if you want faster lines and less wait, please please please please do not get an adult meal for a child and make sure you have everything that comes with it - drink, dessert/side item and entree. This is one of the reasons we have so many hold ups, because every other Guest has the DDP and we have to explain so many times why they cannot get an adult meal for a child and why the regular pizza isn't the child's pizza. Or if someone has to run back and get the missing items, it takes time. Having everything ready and as it's supposed to be makes things move a lot smoother.

At Pop, the dessert is already included with the child's meal and the adults can choose not to get a dessert and to get a side item instead such as mac and cheese, breadsticks, side salad, etc or a healthy dessert such as fruit. Or at least, that's how it was back in August.

Busy times aren't exactly measured by time of day, as it is for when the parks close. For summer, if AK closes at 7, and the others are all after 9, then we will be busiest between 10-11 because of the time it takes for the buses to get back to Pop.

[emfleck]

Emfleck... you are from Kalamazoo!! We live in Portage...
Small world it is!
Nice weather we are having huh?

It is a small world after all!!!

At least the rain as stopped momentarily!

[SurferStitch]

DH loves the tie dye cheesecake (and he's a pretty big cheesecake snob)...Still talks about when he ate it on our trip last December. He had at least 2 or 3 pieces of it. The pieces are large, and he said it was a lot creamier than it looked, and very rich.

I love the shrimp lo mein. Very tasty, and a huge portion. I also LOVE the breakfast pizza. Sooooooo good.

We never had dinner there, but did do some late snacks (okay, lo mein isn't exactly a snack, but). Breakfast items are really good.

Some mornings were crowded, but we got through the lines very quickly, and never had a problem finding a table, even at peak times. Most of the time it wasn't that terribly busy.

[TBY2225]

We ate at Pop Century Food Court 6 out of 8 days September 23-September 30th 2007. We were on the dining plan. Most times it was between 7:30 and 8:30 am. This was definitely the busiest time to go. There were very long lines in each of the stations as well as the check out lines. Sometimes check out lines had as many as 15 people in each one! Seating was also an issue and more than once we had to walk around and search for someone leaving to have a seat. Even the outside seating was full! The drink stations were a joke as well. People pushing, shoving, not watching what they were doing and filling up anything and everything with drink (old mugs, paper cups, water bottles, etc.). Long lines to use microwaves, toasters, to get ice and such were the norm. It was also always a mess around the drink station, and lots of people would get up and leave their food and trays on the table and not throw their trash away. Another dining option or food court at Pop Century would greatly improve some of these problems. My kids love breakfast and they can’t wait to eat until we get to the parks so we had no choice but to eat at the resort. One morning I tried to go and get breakfast for everyone and bring it back to the room. This proved to be too much for one person to carry, so we had to eat in the food court the remainder of our trip. I dreaded it each morning! Overall, the food was ok. We usually got breakfast platters which was enough food for all of us to share. DH and I got mugs and we would get the kids juice which came with the platters. DD also got Mickey waffles a few times and we also shared a couple of sausage, egg, and cheese croissants. I did like the fact that with the adult platters you could get 2 drinks, so I was able to get juice for the kids to have later in the day. The only meal other than breakfast that we got was a chicken nugget, fries, and pudding meal for DD one night when DH and I got dinner to go somewhere else.

[big blue and hairy]

If you're a breakfast eater, Everything Pop is great. The omlettes are terrific and there are lots of other choices.

:sulley:

[Disneytravels]

Disneytravels, I smiled....sometimes. I smile a whole lot more now that I am at Emporium. I <3 Emporium. :thumbsup: You can only smile after getting yelled at so many times for the way the DDP works. Please, if you want faster lines and less wait, please please please please do not get an adult meal for a child and make sure you have everything that comes with it - drink, dessert/side item and entree. This is one of the reasons we have so many hold ups, because every other Guest has the DDP and we have to explain so many times why they cannot get an adult meal for a child and why the regular pizza isn't the child's pizza. Or if someone has to run back and get the missing items, it takes time. Having everything ready and as it's supposed to be makes things move a lot smoother.


I understand this oh too well...
See if they would have a good travel agent to explain to them how it works before they go down it would make it easier on you guys. I know that is why.. truly I do! I make sure all my clients know it good so they don't waste time or get confused. Then you have the few who know it all..lol.

[Disneytravels]

It is a small world after all!!!

At least the rain as stopped momentarily!

Yes it has! Finally!
but looks liek the next couple day aren't looking good!
When do you go next to Disney?