PDA

View Full Version : Buffet & Menu changes at Storyteller Cafe



Pages : [1] 2 3

testrack
07-25-2008, 08:41 AM
What is up with all the changes at Storyteller Cafe. For months we have seen a decline in the buffet items with mostly in regards to the desserts.

Recently they have decided to take items off the menu and add new ones. No more hamburger, no more chicken sandwich and now the BBQ ribs are an appetizer instead of an entree.

As an Annual Passholder my husband and I always enjoyed Storyteller Cafe and dined there quite often (that is certainly going to change) but we feel guests are getting ripped off with the higher priced menu items and less food choices especially at the buffet.

Bytebear
07-25-2008, 09:17 AM
The corporate big wigs decided they wanted to change the menu, and the head chef didn't want to so he quit. It hasn't been the same since.

mjmcnns
07-25-2008, 09:25 AM
Does Storyteller's offer a lunch AND dinner buffet?

jeffthechef
07-25-2008, 09:38 AM
As a chef, Storytellers had the best hamburger and fries in the resort, imho. Is the roast chicken dinner gone too? It was a great deal for $15 and very filling.

That are they going to screw up next?

Does anyone else have a recomendation for a great burger? And don't even mention Whitewater Snacks... I was disappointed big time. Rainforest is decent, but did not compare to ST.

foolishmortal
07-25-2008, 09:55 AM
Is all this part of the new"healthy" menus that they are trying to force onto everyone?
Or is Disney just going back to it's "old" ways in the late70's and early 80's when they almost kill off the park with bad food, lack of park care and tickets that cost too much? That's way my parents/me/bro stopped going to DL from 1984 till 2003!

I hope enough people complian that they start bringing back what we all liked and were willing to pay the $$ for!

wow sorry this sounds more like a vent...

Bytebear
07-25-2008, 09:57 AM
Does Storyteller's offer a lunch AND dinner buffet?

Yes, but as was mentioned, the menu has changed, and is not nearly as good as it was.


As a chef, Storytellers had the best hamburger and fries in the resort, imho. Is the roast chicken dinner gone too? It was a great deal for $15 and very filling.

That are they going to screw up next?

Does anyone else have a recomendation for a great burger? And don't even mention Whitewater Snacks... I was disappointed big time. Rainforest is decent, but did not compare to ST.

The Roast Chicken is still on the menu, but from what I understand, it is considerably smaller portioned.

Try ESPN Zone for burgers, they are pretty good. If you are willing to go to the Gardenwalk, you might try the restaurants there... maybe Cheesecake Factory.

nursemelis374
07-25-2008, 10:37 AM
Well, this stinks! Storyteller's is one of my favorite places to eat. That burger is fantastic and a great thing to share.

I guess I will have to stick with breakfast only there!

Matterhorn Yodeler
07-25-2008, 10:41 AM
Does anyone else have a recomendation for a great burger?

I second the ESPN Zone for a good burger. I went recently and my three friends each had the burger. They all liked them very much. I had the half chicken which was also very good.

Now, of course, I am a huge fan of the In-N-Out burger! I know it is different than a burger at a sit-down restaurant, but they really hit the spot for me and are inexpensive too! There is an In-N-Out about 3 miles north on Harbor near the Disney Character Warehouse. There is an OC Bus that goes straight up Harbor or if you have the transportation, I suggest you try it. :)

testrack
07-25-2008, 10:58 AM
I was told that the 1/2 chicken dinner is different then what was on the menu. Lots of changes for Storyteller.
I know the last time we were there the table to the right of us (large party-AP Holders) were complaining to management.
Yes the burger was excellent and so was the chicken sandwich. It's a shame that they had to make so many cuts and my favorite chocolate cake dessert is gone from the buffet ARGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHh

biolabetty
07-25-2008, 11:14 AM
If I didn't eat the buffet, the only other thing I ever ordered was the burger. After going to WDW for the first time this year, I can see how poor our selection of decent restaurants are. I don't understand sometimes how or why decisions are made at DL concerning food. If they want people to spend their money eating at the resort, they need to give you decent food.

mjmcnns
07-25-2008, 01:11 PM
So are the concerns with Storyteller's largely based on it going to a healthier approach, or is the overall quality simply down?

Bytebear
07-25-2008, 01:54 PM
From what I understand, the changes were purely financial. The head chef who left bascially was told what the new menu would be and it was not up to his standards. I also hear they have been through several managers as well, which may be why the standards are so poor.

testrack
07-25-2008, 02:40 PM
The quality of the Buffet, lack of choices on the menu and the quality. The buffet has been lacking in quality for sometime but now that they have taken away ribs, burgers etc. the choices are not great. To me it seems like they have added HIGHER priced dishes for alot less food and quality.

olegc
07-25-2008, 02:45 PM
maybe they have to use the plaza inn prep kitchen too!

i know, not really, but it seems to be a standard excuse on the west side of the Park when the issue of menu selection comes up these days.

it could be they are trying to cut back on costs overall - and maybe having high quality items on the buffet line that tend to sit very long was not what the bean counters wanted. so they are making changes. I don't know the details but I expect lots of this to occur.

Funny, though, with attendance supposedly not down as much as expected (according to some industry watchers) and yet the parks not being overwhelmed. I think many don't know the true picture of the theme park economy right now.

either way -it's too bad about Storytellers. I use it a lot for celebrations. I may have to start heading over to Gardenwalk instead..

jeffthechef
07-25-2008, 03:28 PM
I think that once again, the head cheeses @ TDA are going to be in for a rude awakening. The bottom line is that they have to please their customer. I grow more and more fed up with their poor service to us. I already gave up on their hotels, now it's their dining. If tickets get any higher, we will be unable to go to DL on a semi-regular basis:crying:

In the meantime, I'm going to Rainforest, ESPN Zone, Mimi's and Tony Roma's for my meals.

foolishmortal
07-25-2008, 03:31 PM
Does disney own garden walk?

cstephens
07-25-2008, 06:38 PM
I don't remember there being burgers on the buffet, but it's been a while since I've been to Storytellers for dinner. We were at breakfast a couple months ago, and it was still as good as ever, but we never go for lunch because I'm not fond of their lunch menu. Didn't know they had a lunch buffet.

testrack
07-25-2008, 06:54 PM
Nope no burgers, chicken sandwiches or ribs at the buffet just the menu and they are gone, well the ribs are now an appetizer.
Just discussing how they have downsized the menu and the buffet items

10-97
07-25-2008, 07:05 PM
Or is Disney just going back to it's "old" ways in the late70's and early 80's when they almost kill off the park with bad food, lack of park care and tickets that cost too much?

My memory of Disneyland in the late 70's and early 80's is just the opposite. I thought the food was great, and the ticket prices were very reasonable.

I still have an old Birnbaum guide from 1987. A single-day ticket for an adult was $17.95. And once inside Disneyland, you could eat at the Town Square Cafe, Carnation Ice Cream Parlor, Tahitian Terrace, and Big Thunder Ranch Barbeque.

I had some of my best vacations at Disneyland from 1972 to 1987.

Stichy626
07-25-2008, 07:55 PM
Oooh Big Thunder Ranch BBQ! I LOVED that palce:D

janell
07-25-2008, 08:00 PM
Storyteller's is one of my favorite places to eat. Its sad to see they are letting it go down. I didn't like it when they hiked th ecost of breakfast and made it a charchter breakfast. Haven't been back for breakfast since. I did notice they no longer have the cookies, which is what I went for.

Guess we wont be going there if it keeps going down. I know the service has really gone down. There still some old CMs there that are really good.

This is so Disney, they have a good thign and they mess it up. Did the same thing at Pizza Port. And to make it healther, you don't take things off the menu, you add a few new things and/or offer some different kinds of salad. That way your guest can choose what they want. People are on vacation and may want to eat non-healthy things and there are people who want healthy things, so offer both.

cstephens
07-25-2008, 09:01 PM
Nope no burgers, chicken sandwiches or ribs at the buffet just the menu and they are gone, well the ribs are now an appetizer.
Just discussing how they have downsized the menu and the buffet items

Ahhh, ok, then I misunderstood. Thanks for clarifying.

foolishmortal
07-25-2008, 10:19 PM
My memory of Disneyland in the late 70's and early 80's is just the opposite. I thought the food was great, and the ticket prices were very reasonable.

I still have an old Birnbaum guide from 1987. A single-day ticket for an adult was $17.95. And once inside Disneyland, you could eat at the Town Square Cafe, Carnation Ice Cream Parlor, Tahitian Terrace, and Big Thunder Ranch Barbeque.

I had some of my best vacations at Disneyland from 1972 to 1987.

I was a kid at the time, and just rem. the t-shirts being the iron on stickers that wore off the first time you washed it, mostly i think it was my parents comments on the park not being kept up that brought those memories back.
They spent thier honeymoon there in 1962 so maybe they noticed things i didn't. We went only 3 times as a kid and last trip with parents was 84 , then grad night 87.
The first time I went back with my own kid in 2004 the park looked in bad shape (the tiki roof was rotting and the old AP place(carnation) had missing and rotting gingerbread work,and a lot of the food places I remebered were missing Ie carnation , terrce.I miss the tiki food and show!

I don't know why Dl seems to be cut back,it is in need of more places to eat, as WDW is always adding dining exp. and good food!
Maybe the heathly thing should be blamed on Arnold!LOL:p;)the new no transfat law! :|

well here is to hoping that it gets better:D
kat

ginap73
07-25-2008, 11:52 PM
I had my birthday at Storytellers cafe and ordered the burger cause I am limited to what i can eat and that is mild. I am glad i went when i did.

There was nothing else on the menu that I could eat safely. so now I guess I wont be going anymore. :mad: Cause I liked the place.

Drince88
07-26-2008, 04:49 AM
I didn't like it when they hiked th ecost of breakfast and made it a charchter breakfast.

I think it's always been a character breakfast, or at least HAD characters at breakfast. My sister and I stayed there in September 01, just a few months after it opened, and there were characters there.