In the old days of Mousebuzz (aka DisneyCentral) there used to be a Rate & Review section which I really liked. I used to sum up my reviews in the Trip Report and then write a longer review in Rate & Review. So, with R&R a thing of the past, I'll write longer reviews in the Restaurant section and keep my summaries here like "normal."
We did Tables in Wonderland (20% off meals and alcohol at select restaurants). I didn't think the DDP was going to save us much based on our selections, and I liked the flexibility of TiW.
Restaurants are listed in the order we ate. I'm using the old R&R 1-5 Mickey rating scale, but I added in a .5 increment. For the first time, I'm including ratings for everyone in the family at the end. All meals are dinners unless indicated.
Cinderella's Royal Table lunch (3 Mickeys): We've eaten here once before when I really enjoyed it, so I was disappointed. The Check-in process was a complete mess. Appetizer was good, but the entree (Major Domo's for all of the adults) were cold. Of course the big attraction is the characters. It was here where we realized that 9 year old Mo was less enthusiastic about the characters than the 7 year old Mo.
That was unexpected. Sandy went 3.5
, Mags 3
, and Mo stil went 4
.
Nine Dragons (3 Mickeys): This was our first time eating at 9D. We thought the food was good - not great - but the atmosphere was a dissapointment. We were sitting on top of other tables, and the noise level was crazy. Sandy and Maggie agreed with my 3
rating, but Mo really loved the food and gave it 4
.
Biergarten (3 Mickeys): One important note is that we live in a very Germanic area, and we often notice that we're not easily impressed with German restaurants outside the area. That said, we all rated Biergarten with a 3, and that's not bad. One issue for us is that we sat at a table for 8 with 2 other couples (who didn't know each other), and all attempts at converstation (when it was quiet enough) completely failed.
Tokyo Dining (5 Mickeys): We had a Noon ADR, the first of the day. We were there early and got to see the welcome demonstration. We love sushi, and thought the food was delicious, the service impeccable, and we loved that the tables were well spaced and even at it's loudest we could still have a conversation. The only negative is that while they are on the DDP, they aren't on TiW. Everyone in the family went 5
.
Tony's (2.5 Mickeys): Well all went with 2.5 Mickey's except for Mo who went with 3. Honestly, 2.5 might be generous. Appetizers were good, my wife liked her dessert, but the entrees were very bland except for Mo's Shrimp Scampi which I quite liked.
Rose & Crown (4 Mickeys): We got an Illuminations table; the food was really good, but I thought the service could have been a touch better and the viewing tables could be nicer. We all went with 4
except Maggie went with 4.5. A really nice meal.
Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue (5 Mickeys): Hoop is one of my favorite things to do at WDW. The food is merely good (very good in some cases), but it's not about the food. Excellent! Sandy also went with 5
; the girls went with 4.5 (so picky!).
Chef Mickey's (2.5 Mickeys): Wow. What a disappointment for me. The food was okay, but the selection wasn't to my liking. Seriously, what is up with the buffet bacon?!? Weird stuff! The characters flew by at breakneck pace. Sandy: 3
; Mags 2.5
; Mo still gave it a 5
rating, but I have no idea why.
Artist Point (5 Mickeys): Yes! My favorite restaurant is back on track. The best server that we had on the trip (Diana), fantastic appetizers, entrees, and wine. Everyone agree except Sandy who went with 4.5
. She was disappointed with the dessert selection and was bothered by the prices (remember the 2 year gap!).
Chefs de France (3.5 Mickeys): Okay, my rating is probably lower than it should be... because I'm dumb. I ordered some items not recommended by the server, and they were merely okay. Great desserts! Sandy: 3.5
; Mags and Mo: 4
.
Crystal Palace (4 Mickeys): This was our final meal of the trip, and we very nearly canceled it. My wife assumed that we were going to have a repeat of Chef Mickeys. Well, it was great. Great quality, great selection, and the characters were better paced. Sandy: 4.5
; Mags 4.5
; Mo 5
.
We didn't do many counter service meals. Breakfast at the resort and dinner with some snacking worked best for us. There were 2 food items outside of sitdown restaurants that deserve mention...
Dole Whip: In the 1980's, for some reason, our local grocery had a self-serve Dole Whip machine and we could get it every Saturday. So... Dole Whip was never anything special to me. Mags, though, decided she wanted one... so for 2 days we heard nothing but "I want a Dole Whip!" She finally got one, and even though I thought it could live up to the build up, she loved it (and we got another one later in the trip!).
Casey's Hot Dogs: I love a good dog, and Casey's spicy relish is one of my favorite things. I can't even resist them at basically $5 a pop. I had 1.5 on the trip. On my second stop on our last day - with huge crowds - my bun was nearly in 2 pieces and eventually broke apart, the dog broke through, bounced off my tray and on to the floor. Bah!
At that point, no way I was going to wait in line to tell them my tale of woe. Watch your buns folks!
