Reviews of Disney Junior Play ‘N Dine at Hollywood & Vine
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Menus at Hollywood and Vine
Reviewed by kellylsmith Review Date: 03/17/2017
Rating: (7) Recommended
The hand-carved turkey was great - very moist. Also enjoyed the vegetable soup. Other food was average at best. Desserts were enjoyable and varied and the soft ice cream always a hit. Stressful making sure you don't miss a character interaction while getting food at the buffet.
Pros:
CharactersCons:
PriceReviewed by jluck Review Date: 10/04/2014
Rating: (7) Recommended
Went here for the character breakfast end of September 2014. Got an 8 am reservation so we could have a chance to sign up for Jedi Academy. You check in at the gate and wait in line until they lead you (and everyone else in that line) through the park to the restaurant, then you again wait in a long line to check in again.
The food was good, maybe not quite as good as Crystal Palace. The server made sure we knew the route the characters take so we could be sure they weren't on the way before we went up to the buffet.
The line was a bit chaotic.
Cast members start singing and dancing in the restaurant at various times through your meal and this clogs the way to the buffet... You are trying to make it through the line before a character comes and you have to wade through singing cast members and toddlers to get there.
Not my favorite character meal, but the kids got to see Jake and pals, so it was worth it.
Pros:
the charactersCons:
a bit crowdedReviewed by LLSS Review Date: 09/30/2014
Rating: (7) Recommended
Let me start with the food, which was delicious. The lobster mac and cheese was great. Also, there were lots of chances to interact with the characters which was great.
However, this also lead to a lot of chaos. First, reservations don't exactly get you in on time. We had 11:10 reservations, and were seated probably around 11:40. It feels like the restaurant was a bit to big for just the two lines. When my wife went for food while I sat with the little one, she missed Jake coming to the table (lines for food were around 5 minutes plus). When I went, I missed Sophia (which is the little ones favorite), as well as Handy Manny. There were people running around everywhere as well. We actually didn't even get to see Doc as we had the Frozen show to get to at 12:30 and since it took so long to get seated, we had to bolt. Overall it's great for the little ones, but make sure you block a good amount of time for it.
Pros:
Great food, charactersCons:
Complete ChaosReviewed by StacyLovesDisney Review Date: 07/20/2014
Rating: (7) Recommended
This is a favorite of my two kids, girl 8, boy 5 and me too!
We love the character dancing and singing. My kids love the Mickey Waffles and Tater Tots.
This year, perhaps due to the new characters, the wait time was massive. We arrived in time for our ADR. We had to wait on the front porch to be called. We were taken to our seats where it took another 10-15 minutes to be greeted by our waitress. (My kids were really starving by now) Chef came out to take care of my son's food allergies---stellar job, Chef. Waitress was unfriendly (the first time I have ever had this experience at Disney and I've been going for years) and I actually had to yell out to her," May I please have more tea." as she went sailing by. No stopping at our table to ask if everything was ok. The characters took long to come around. (The last time we ate at H&V we saw each character 3 times during the hour we were there.) Finally, the moment my daughter was waiting for--Doc was coming to the table. My 8 year old daughter was wearing a Doc outfit, I had put her short hair in Doc pigtails, had the Doc headband, she was wearing a Doc bracelet, and had her talking Doc doll with her. I'll have to say this was disappointing.....Doc came stood for a photo and left. No pointing at my daughter's outfit or a hug for the baby doll. No clapping for the outfit and knowing that Doc is a favorite. (We've had this happen with Handy Manny for my son, Donald when he saw my daughter's Donald Duck dress, etc.) In fact, Doc started walking away before my son could get a photo in with her. I had to ask her to wait. (We do not do autographs, so we're quickies as it is with the photos.) We were ready to leave after being in there for an hour and 15 minutes. We kept waiting to see Sophia. We were actually giving up and walking out-- because we had a fast pass--when she finally arrived. We got our photo, but we were frustrated with the money we spent on this event. We will try it again to see if this was just a one-time occurrence.
Pros:
food--dancing with charactersCons:
wait!! lack of character interactionReviewed by Holly93 Review Date: 12/06/2020
Rating: (8) Recommended
Even as two grown adults eating here for Disney Junior Play n Dine, it was so cute and so much fun. The characters interacted with us just as much as the kids! The food was actually really good for breakfast. Lots of options to choose from at the buffet and the cast member refilled my coffee at least 4 times, she was ON it! The cast member also checked on us multiple times to make sure we were having a great experience. Definitely worth stopping in. The characters were adorable even though I don't have kids myself.
Pros:
Cute characters, lots of food choices, great cast member service, well priced for what you get.Cons:
The restaurant layout is a little bit crowded, beware those who use medical devices. My walker almost took out a few toes even with me being super careful.Reviewed by Anonymous Review Date: 02/13/2020
Rating: (8) Recommended
We are here with a large group on the dining plan. There were plenty of options and the food was good. The characters were wonderful and came around multiple times which allowed our kiddos to get up the nerve to interact.
Pros:
Food is goodCons:
If we were paying out of pocket, the sticker shock would have made me question eating here.Reviewed by njdc5 Review Date: 10/28/2014
Rating: (8) Recommended
We always make it to this restaurant on our trips with the kids, for both the character interaction, as well as the food. The characters are a lot of fun, they take the time to come to each table, and even have a few dance sessions during the meal. The food is always above-average for a Disney buffet, with their short ribs being very good. The salmon was good, and their choices for salads and desserts is also large.
Pros:
Character time, the foodCons:
The noiseReviewed by PrincessDaisyDuck Review Date: 08/27/2014
Rating: (8) Recommended
We ate lunch as a party of 7 on August 19th. Our reservation time was 12:15 so the restaurant was packed. It was a little overwhelming because it was so loud and crowded. There was a line for the ladies' room that stretched down the hallway.
The characters were great, we met Doc McStuffins, Jake, Handy Manny and Sofia. We were really happy to see Manny as he is DS's favorite. We liked how the server explained the character rotation so we knew when to expect the characters. They were also well spaced out. The dance parties with the kids were great too.
The food was really good and it had a great variety. There were also good dessert options. Everything was fresh and tasty.
Our server sat us, brought us drinks and never came back, never refilled our drinks or took away plates. We were long done and looking for her when she finally came with the bill. It was probably an hour between when she dropped our drinks off and when she reappeared, we never saw her in between. She then went on and on about the tip - since we were a party over 6 there is a mandatory tip of 18%. I think this is unfair for a buffet, especially with poor service, but we knew that going in and had the cash ready. She kept asking us how we were going to pay it, we told her we had cash and she kept asking if it was cash for the whole table or were my parents paying separately - she just kept asking if we were sure the tip was being paid, it was really uncomfortable.
When we left it was about 2:00 and it was really quiet, so I think in the future a slower time of day would be less chaotic.
I would recommend this place because the food and characters were good.
Pros:
Characters, FoodCons:
Noise, ServiceReviewed by vickie1016 Review Date: 07/31/2013
Rating: (8) Recommended
Family & I had lunch here in early July 2013. We have eaten here on our previous trips as well. Checked in at podium & had no wait at all. Place was half empty upon entering & was like that most of the time we were there (had 1:00 reservation time).
Friendly CM took us to our table & we were greeted by our server. She took our drink order & explained how the characters came to the table. (Again, just like our server at Tusker house we were told the table rotation so we were prepared with cameras & book). Our server was great, never had an empty glass or a dirty dish on the table.
The buffet food was a nice selection, but we have had better in past years. Nothing was wrong with the selection, everything was tasty, but in years past there was more of a variety. We had roasted chicken, pot roast (which was very tasty), roasted pork. There were several fish choices which we did not taste due to allergies. Basic salad choices & soup was tomato something or a spicy corn soup. DD (7) ate off both adult & kids buffets. The kids choices were roasted chicken, sweet meatballs (did not like) or basic kid staples (chicken nuggets, corn, etc.) She really liked the roasted chicken from the adult buffet better than the kids. She did eat some vegies off the kids buffet.
Dessert was great, loads of choices & soft serve ice cream. Also had a chocolate fountain that a CM was dipping fresh fruit.
Now the characters - Jake, Oso, Handy Manny & June. They were all great, took their time, did not feel rushed. DD was dressed like Izzy & got so much attention from Jake - it made her feel special. I also like the dances that the kids get to join in doing. Makes it a fun place.
We will eat here again on our next trip. We are patiently awaiting Sofia's arrival & hoping maybe Doc will join as well.
Pros:
charactersCons:
Sofia not there yetReviewed by dvcmember1983 Review Date: 06/12/2013
Rating: (8) Recommended
This character meal has improved drastically since we have last eaten here. The characters were fun and attentive. Our waiter was the nicest and most attentive that we had our entire trip. He really went above and beyond. The corn bread pudding is to die for. I have to find a recipe for it. I went for seconds and thirds!
