Seven Nights, Seven Restaurants by Steve Russo
Steve attempts to answer the question, 'Where should we eat?'
Read it here!
Seven Nights, Seven Restaurants by Steve Russo
Steve attempts to answer the question, 'Where should we eat?'
Read it here!
I'm surprised that you went ahead and made your recommendation without consideration of a few logistics issues namely NO RESERVATIONS and LARGE PARTY.
Since this group is heading to the parks next week, ask them what have they already planned. If nothing, then go ahead.
Recommend some restaurants that don't require advance reservations or can be booked on short notice. Ask them to take advantage of the reservations system immediately.
Only recommend 2 or 3 restaurants, not 7 full days of reservations. They are unlikely to take advantage of fine dining for all 7 days.
You recommended restaurants in resort locations. This is plainly inconvenient. If the large party is at a theme park, they should not resort hop. Resort hopping is a time waster. Time is better spent at the parks and not waiting a long time to get a meal, despite the advantages that come with such dining experiences.
Guidelines:
1. If at park, eat at park.
2. If at resort, eat at resort, or short commute to another nearby resort.
3. Reservations if possible.
4. No Reservations? Eat early or later, between crowds. Or select alternative, but equivalent.
5. Short or reasonable queue if standby wait is only choice.
6. No more than 2 or 3 highly recommended restaurants.
7. Nothing unusual or exotic. (Most of your choices are not unusual, but I decided to throw this in.)
Jimbo,Originally Posted by Jimbo996
Once again, I probably should have spent more time setting up the premise. I used the semi-fictitious encounter to demonstrate what has become a common question. Your comments and suggestions are dead-on for handling the last minute requirement.
What I attempted to convey (obviously quite poorly) was a simple list of seven WDW restaurants that might provide a good cross-sampling for anyone looking for suggestions.
I will take exception to one of your guidelines - the "if at a park, eat at a park" one. We will often set up an Advance Reservation and allow that to dictate what we'll do before/after that meal. I might book dinner at 'Ohana and plan to head to the MK after we dine. Otherwise, I'm with you all the way.
Steve
Steve: Thanks for responding. I would like to amend my previous response. I don't want to exclude Resort dining just because you're at a theme park. If the restaurant is nearby the park, then it would be an excellent idea to visit the Resort restaurant if the travel time and wait isn't significantly long.
The Flying Fish Caf on The Boardwalk is right next door to EPCOT. I hope the walk isn't long. They have to exit from the World Showcase entrance.
The California Grill and The Ohana is on the monorail route from the Magic Kingdom. The commute from EPCOT could be too long with the long walk thru the park, depending on where you're at, and an extra monorail transfer.
The only out of the way place is the Boma – Flavors of Africa at the the Animal Kingdom Lodge. Not sure how many people will figure out how to get there and back. It is probably best to go to a buffet for lunch especially since Animal Kingdom is hottest at noon to 3pm. Cheaper too.
Thanks.
Is anyone able to write up the same type of article for Disneyland? We are six months out and besides for character breakfast and Blue Buyou I am not sure where else we should reserve.
There are other writers on MousePlanet that deal more specifically with Disneyland but I have no idea if there are any planned articles on restaurants. In the meantime, please visit the Disneyland Planning forum (http://mousepad.mouseplanet.com/foru...-Trip-Planning). There are threads dealing with dining and you can ask questions of folks with tons of DL experience. Good luck.
Steve
I agree, search/ask away in the DL Trip Planning Forum.
Personally, I think Blue Bayou is overpriced for the food and much prefer Cafe Orleans for in-park dining (and they have YUMMY pomme frites - yes, they're just garlic french fries, but they're super yummy - get an order as an appetizer for the table to share (and then order another if some don't like to share them as much as they should).
And I'm looking forward to trying the new Table Service restaurant in DCA on my next trip.
Dining, in general, doesn't have the focus at DL like it does at WDW.
Cathy
Thanks for the great article which I found to be very enjoyable and informative. I think you made your intention clear that it was not literal advice for the large, ADR-lacking, hypothetical party!
You included many of our favourites and some good suggestions for future visits. Your argument for the Boardwalk was pretty convincing and we have never actually visited the resort! It looked lovely in the pictures. We have completed our ADRs for our next trip (3 weeks at OKW leaving on Saturday). Would you still recommend a visit to the Boardwalk without a sit-down meal?
Thanks again for all the entertainment and information!!
Thanks for the kind words and you're welcome.
I'm a huge fan of the Crescent Lake area (Boardwalk, Yacht and Beach Clubs). What I might suggest for a visit is to stroll out of Epcot via the International Gateway some evening and take a walk around Crescent Lake. I think the area is particularly nice after dark when everything is lit up. You can sample some desserts from Beaches & Cream, the Boardwalk Bakery or Seashore Sweets; try a few carnival games; take in a magician or juggler's show; or just stroll around and enjoy the ambiance. It's only my opinion but I think you'd enjoy it. You can then walk back into Epcot in time for Illuminations.
If you try it, let me know how it turns out.
Steve
Steve,
An excellent list! We have eaten at all of them except Flying Fish Cafe, and would add our hearty recommendation to all of your suggestions. I will say that if you go early to some of them, you might be able to snag a table. My wife and I would go to 50's Prime Time at opening time for lunch, ask if Mom has room at the table, get a smile from the CM, and always get in. Sometimes you have to play! Even just the two of us greatly enjoy the cast interactions there, since we always play along. If we get a CM that just isn't into it that day, we play around with some of the other servers in our area. They seem to enjoy it as much as we do! Loads of fun, and we really like the food!
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