DisneyWorld - food horrible everywhere?

[Anonymous]

All three of the places at the Animal Kingdom Lodge were incredibly good. (Not cheap though.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Okay, pardon me for my "ridiculous sweeping statement" that evidently offended some. The food wasn't ALL horrible -- there were a few good items here and there. For example, the pork shank from the street vendor in Magic Kingdom was good. Also, the buffets usually had fresh bananas, apple slices for the kids...the apple cobbler at the Crystal Palace buffet was good. Breakfast at the hotel was pretty good, with a decent variety of cereals and fruits. But the rest was, well, pretty bad. Way over-salted, unflavorful, all slightly different variations of the same basic dishes of starches and meats, strange flavor combinations and unappetizing things that were clearly just invented as a way to recycle leftovers from the night before (e.g., "roasted plaintain salad")....we paid $44 per adult for the Crystal Palace buffet and for that price, I expected a decent meal. And I am really not a picky eater.

Sorry... For $44 you got to eat with Pooh and friends. I suggest using a guidebook to assist with a future disney trip. We used the unofficial guide to WDW and were always prepared. I knew the crystal palace food was generally sub par but we want the characters so we go anyway. (Other character meals such a chef mickeys for breakfast and the Garden Grill get better food ratings.)

[Anonymous]

We ate at the Brown Derby (Hollywood) 2x as it was excellent. Not cheap by any means but we were on the dining plan. Stayed at Jamba House in Animal Kingdom and the Boma restaurant is top notch as was their casual quick dining by the pool. My only gross meal was in Fantasyland in MK but I didn't expect much to begin with. You have to do your research before hand. I found tripadvisor to be a great resource.

[Anonymous]

Also try allears.net.

[Anonymous]

Cinderella castle meal was $$ but a nice break and surprisingly good compared to all the other places we spotted/considering inside the Magic Kingdom. Generally hear Epcot has better food selections.

[Anonymous]

I did hours of research before I went and had very few problems. The sit down restaurants are often pretty good but counter service is usually pretty bad. Pizzafari at Animal Kingdom wasn't bad at all. EPCOT has good food at most of the World Showcase restaurants. Brown Derby and 50s Prime Time Cafe are my favorites at Hollywood Studios. Magic Kingdom is the toughest. Columbia Harbour House is fine though. I think I had salmon and it was pretty good for a counter service restaurant. Magic Kingdom is usually a junk food day and then a nice dinner at the Contemporary or Grand Floridian. I think Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom are the toughest to find good food. Animal Kingdom Lodge has Boma - a wonderful buffet where everyone can find something they love. You can also arrive early and look out to see animals roaming around,

[Anonymous]

We didn't find the food terrible. The buffet at our hotel became boring but otherwise we were okay. We had a really good sit down lunch in the Italian Pavilion, but I can't remember the name of the restaurant now. Tony's was alright. Hollywood and Vine was ok too. We wouldn't go back to the Rainforest Cafe. Yak and Yeti in AK was pretty good despite some reviews.

I guess I didn't go expecting stellar food though. It IS an amusement park.

[Anonymous]

In the Magic Kingdom, we actually enjoyed the Liberty Tree Tavern family-style meal. The only condition is that you have to like the all-you-can-eat set meal (pot roast, turkey, pork roast/mashed potatoes, stuffing, vegetables, mac and cheese/apple cake). It wasn't cafeteria-style or shlocky at all -- excellent renderings of all of those items, even the mac and cheese. We took the reservation there just because it was available and wasn't expecting much but ho-hum, and we found it was really well done.

For the rest, the better meals are at the finer restaurants in Epcot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We just got back from a trip to Disney World. The food was horrible. At the hotel, character buffets, inside the Magic Kingdom, etc. Is this just how it is? Or did we miss the good restaurants?

Lots and lots of good food at WDW.

In the Magic Kingdom, the best places to eat are the Crystal Palace or the Columbia Harbor House. Casey's is good for a hot dog.

In Epcot, there are many good restaurants, including Japan, China, the Moroccan restaurant, Canada.

In the Studios, there's the Brown Derby, Prime Time Cafe or the Sci-Fi Drive In.

In the Animal Kingdom, all the restaurants are quite tasty.

Our favorites at the hotels are Jiko, Yachtsman Steakhouse, Artist Point, California Grill and Citrocos.