Most Recent Reviews
Review of Via Napoli Ristorante e Pizzeria
Reviewed by disneyprincess1014 Review Date: 06/30/2014
Rating: (10) Recommended
This place is a must do for every Disney trip from now on. We had a reservation, which you need to get in here and were taken right on time. Our server was Claudia who was absolutely wonderful. She explained what we could and could not get on the dining plan for adults and for children and was friendly and attentive without being intrusive. We chose to get the Fritto Misto appetizer even though it was not included in our DDP and we were glad we did! Everything was great, from the calamari to fried veggies, risotto balls, and fried cheese. Most of us (including the kids) had the classic Margherita pizza which was amazing. The crust was awesome and this pizza is definitely one of the best if not the best I've had. My husband had the Carciofi pizza and loved it. For dessert, Claudia recommended the Coppa (Ugly but Good) sundae and she was right- it was delicious! My son got a cookie for his birthday with singing and server attention, which he loved. and the kids got a gelato sundae from the dining plan. We will definitely go here next time and highly recommend it.
Pros:
Delicious food, excellent service, dessertCons:
—Reviewed by emsmom64 Review Date: 06/30/2014
Rating: (10) Recommended
We Loved this resort! We have always stayed at the value resorts but now that my daughter is bigger...as in a 20 year old now..we thought we would try a "grown up" resort and boy did we love it. Very pretty grounds...we faced the river in the Acadian house and it was just beautiful. We swam in both the quiet pool and ole man island and liked both but preferred the quiet pool. The food court was good..nothing special...i felt the quality was the same as the value resorts just better theming. I would definetly stay here again!
Pros:
Layout, themingCons:
noneReview of Garden View Lounge Tea
Reviewed by AmyMC Review Date: 06/30/2014
Rating: (2) Recommended
This used to be my favorite place in Central FL for afternoon tea. There are at least three or four other places that are better now.
I've visited this location more than 20 times over the past 10 years. As a "local", annual passholder and Tables in Wonderland member, I've raved about this place and brought friends, family members and co-workers here for the experience. No longer.
I'm not sure I can sufficiently convey how very, very disappointed I am with the changes made in the past year. Yes, it's been a little over a year since I was last here but I've always been able to count on Garden View Tea Room to provide a quality experience. Since I've always ordered the Grand Tea, that is what I'll be comparing.
First of all, the elegant Royal Albert china has been replaced with a cheap, dingy looking service that does not go with the decor at all. Also, the teapots are smaller. The flute of sparkling wine used to be served with a fresh strawberry on the side. No longer. The teapots are smaller and the tea strainers are just there for show - there are no tea leaves in that pot to be strained out. Some may be fine with this, but I enjoyed the tea getting stronger as the afternoon passed and had a habit of adding milk to the last couple of cups.
The first course of sandwiches was disappointing as well. As another reviewer mentioned, the bread is now regular bread instead of the thin-sliced dense bread normally served with afternoon tea. Also, there seems to be less filling in them, although it could just seem that way now that the bread has doubled in amount. The duck terrine and onion tart were the same.
The second course of scones was a shock. The scones are MUCH smaller than they used to be... and ours were cold and hard. They served the scone with a white porcelain tray of the condiments: a very small amount of Devonshire cream, a lemon cream and a rather runny strawberry preserve. The preserves seem a bit watered down compared to the small jars of Dickinson's preserves they used to serve. I'm certain it's much cheaper for them. The tart was the same. I usually don't eat but a bite of it because it's very sweet.
For the last course, we got to choose between the strawberries and cream, the English trifle and the pastries. We both chose the trifle. I must say that the presentation was very pretty as they are now in little glass pedestal dessert bowls. Unfortunately, the taste was not. At least for me. The strawberries tasted a little off, the whipped cream tasted oily, there was very little cake and the serving size was smaller than I've received in previous visits. I understand that having them prepared in advance adds a layer of quality and quantity control compared to just having the servers scoop the trifle out of large bowls into smaller ones... but this is NOT the quality to aspire to.
They are going to be refurbishing in July and will be operating out of Citricos during that time. According to our server, only the kitchen is being redone.
WE paid $37 each for the Grand Tea with no upgrade to the sparkling wine. According to the menu currently posted on here for May 2013, that is an $8 increase for much, MUCH lower quality.
I won't go back again... and it's just so very disappointing
Pros:
Still great serviceCons:
Quality of experience has diminished GREATLYReviewed by disneyprincess1014 Review Date: 06/29/2014
Rating: (10) Recommended
This was the best character meal we had all week and by far the best breakfast. It rivals Crystal Palace for sure and the characters are better here. Jake and Sofia danced with my kids during the character dance times, and it seemed that there was more character interaction here than at other places. Jake, Doc, Manny, and Sofia all spent lots of time with the kids, signing autographs and posing for lots of pics. They really fussed over the kids and made them feel super special. Our server was attentive and efficient. But the best part was the food. Everything was fresh and delicious. There was a make-your-own breakfast burrito section, puffed French Toast with Chocolate Kahlua sauce (soooo good), cheesy breakfast potato casserole, pancakes, eggs, bacon, Mickey waffles, bread pudding with vanilla sauce, an omelet station, breakfast meats, and a make-your-own Greek Yogurt sundae bar. The food was very good. Definitely worth doing again, especially if you have little ones.
Pros:
Great breakfast, amazing characters and serviceCons:
—Review of Restaurantosaurus
Reviewed by disneyprincess1014 Review Date: 06/29/2014
Rating: (7) Recommended
The Good: Restaurantosaurus is a decent counter service, and has standard fare like burgers, hot dogs, chicken and a veggie burger. My husband and I had the burgers, and they were decent for a counter service. The fries were really good- thin, crispy and fresh. Lemonade was great. The kids' meals come in a little pail and both of my boys had the corn dog nuggets which were good. I like that they can choose healthy sides, like apples and grapes. The chocolate mousse was good. The rooms here are really fun and if your kids like dinos like mine do, it's a fun place to eat.
Pros:
Toppings bar, refills, kid meals, decor, friesCons:
—Review of Bay Lake Tower (Disney Vacation Club)
Reviewed by disneyprincess1014 Review Date: 06/29/2014
Rating: (8) Recommended
Bay Lake Tower is a great place to stay if you have little ones who love Magic Kingdom, which we do. We booked a 2 BR Lake View Villa, and upon arriving at noon, were told that our room would be ready at 3. We waited patiently, as we know check in is at 4, but it wasn't ready until 4:15 which was a bit annoying but at least we had the pool and Community Hall. The check in staff seemed clueless and couldn't answer questions about the room or transportation.
Now onto the positives. Our room was beautiful and had a great view of the lake and pool, as well as Epcot in the distance (Illuminations at night) and the water parade. We loved the view, especially in the morning while we ate breakfast and drank coffee on the balcony. The room was bright, clean, and in good condition. The pool area was a lot of fun, including the slide and the Mickey splash area too. The pool staff and campfire staff were wonderful with the kids.
You can't beat the location for walking distance to MK and monorail too, but on our vacation which was the last week in June (busy time) it didn't start running until 8:30 which was a bit puzzling. Buses were fine but for Epcot, it would have been nice to have a monorail a bit earlier to be there for opening.
Pros:
Location, bright rooms, pool, did I mention location?Cons:
Check-in, monorail not always runningReview of Grand Floridian Resort (Deluxe Resort)
Reviewed by RSZB Review Date: 06/29/2014
Rating: (9) Recommended
This was my first stay at the Grand Floridian Resort. I had concerns about the resort feeling too “upscale†for us, but it had the most reasonable room rate available on the monorail for the 2 nights (June 23-25) we wanted. I reserved an outer building lagoon view room, but was upgraded to the Royal Palm Club in room (4319) in the main building! This was a girls’ trip and the deluxe queen room was beautiful and very large with a view of the pool and Wishes fireworks from the balcony. Our room was located very close to the monorail station.
Our room was on the 3rd floor where 2 concierge desks were located. We had access to the 4th floor lounge via internal stairs or elevator. The lounge offered food and beverages 4 times throughout the day. There were usually 2 cast members attending to replenishing the refreshments. The offerings were varied, delicious, and plentiful. The lounge overlooks the lobby and is especially nice during the live music performances. A pianist plays Disney tunes from late afternoon to early evening and then a band plays until 10pm. There were a handful of shops located around the lobby which all had different operating hours.
It seemed there were more cast members here than at other resorts. They were professional, friendly, and helpful. The turn down service was a nice touch.
We used the monorail to and from the Magic Kingdom. It was stuffy and warm with a distinct lack of air flow on all occasions. Is this a side effect of the work being done?
We only used the bus service once. Due to the modified monorail schedule, a bus ran directly to EPCOT for Extra Magic Morning Hours.
The boat service was efficient enough. We used it a couple times. One night we used it after 11pm from Magic Kingdom, since the posted monorail closing time was 11pm. The boat dock was completely full and another boat was summoned to help with volume.
One evening, we walked around the grounds to get a sense for the whole resort. The pool slide was open past 10pm as was the water play area. Both inside and outside areas seem huge to me, but it didn’t feel crowded anywhere. There was construction work going on in the Sugar Loaf building.
I would recommend the Grand Floridian Royal Palm Club level rooms if you are committed to taking advantage of the extra services. I can only hope to be able to stay here again!
Pros:
location,Cons:
limited monorail during our stayReview of Pop Century Resort (Value Resort)
Reviewed by RSZB Review Date: 06/29/2014
Rating: (8) Recommended
This was my first stay at the Pop Century resort for one night – June 20th. We checked into our preferred room (6408) at 10:30am. It overlooked the foosball game in the courtyard. We were only there for one night, but it was quiet and close to the main building. The room size was adequate for the 2 of us on a girls’ trip, but would be a challenge for my family of 4. The bedding was comfortable and we were greeted with towels shaped into a Mickey head. I missed not having a ceiling fan and second sink.
Even though we didn’t have a chance to eat there, the food court seemed to have many options. (As a side note, my family loves the Riverside food court.) I strolled through the gift shop which was well stocked with a large variety of merchandise. Take the time to view the shadow boxes on the wall across from the check-in desk. They were definitely a “blast from the past!†We passed by the large pool area, which was very sunny and not crowded.
The bus service was just okay – maybe it was our timing. During our short stay, we took the bus from the resort to Downtown Disney and back and then to Hollywood studios and back. Each bus had 2-4 wheel chairs and/or scooters to load. Each trip took 30-35 minutes from the time we arrived at the bus stop to when we left.
We took a walk across the bridge to visit the Art of Animation resort at night. The short walk across the bridge and on the main pathways are very well lit. The pool area was gated and required a room key to access. The main building is similar in design to Pop. Each section is themed to a movie and is very fun!
The cast members at Pop were very friendly, attentive, and interacted with all age levels. I’ve stayed at all resort levels and felt there was no difference in service between this value and moderate or deluxe.
I would recommend the Pop for those who spend the majority of their time in the parks.
Pros:
priceCons:
lack of ceiling fanReviewed by RSZB Review Date: 06/29/2014
Rating: (9) Recommended
This was my first stay at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. We checked in early (7:30am) with plans to arrive at Hollywood Studios by 9:00am. Check–in was a bit bumpy – our early arrival and reservation request were both met with disapproval and uncharacteristic resistance from the attending cast member. Even though I supplied a cell phone number, I wasn’t notified when our room became available. I’m choosing to believe it was a coincidence. All the other cast members we encountered here were friendly and conversational.
We stayed in room 2308 (Sunset Savanna – which was a reservation request) and had wonderful views of giraffes, zebras, cattle, cranes, and an ostrich. The animals tended to stay close to what looked like a viewing platform at the Kidani Village. The room was amply sized for the 2 of us on a girls’ trip, but the size would work for a family with 4 adults.
The lobby is beautiful and worth checking out in detail. There is art work on display throughout the resort. I enjoyed exploring the pathways that wind through the inside and outside of the resort. There are many opportunities to sit and view animals. The gift shop has a variety of merchandise including refrigerated drinks.
Two restaurants are located inside Jambo House and a quick serve is accessible from an outside covered walkway. We ate breakfast at Mara (quick serve), which had hot and cold selections with indoor and outdoor seating available. We ate dinner at Jiko, which was relaxing and enjoyable.
At night, we walked around the large zero entry pool and there was a fire pit with rocking chairs outside the main back doors from the lobby. The animal viewing areas around the pool were closed when we passed by around 10pm.
The bus service was fine. A longer ride is to be expected due to the remote location of the resort. We rode the bus to and from Hollywood Studios, Animal Kingdom, and EPCOT.
The guest laundry area came in handy. There seemed to be more dryers than washing machines. I used a dryer which was $2 for 20-30 minutes. A change machine was available.
I would recommend the Animal Kingdom Lodge for a “more than going to the parks†vacation. The inviting atmosphere encourages planning time to spend at this resort.
Pros:
atmosphereCons:
noneReview of San Angel Inn Lunch/Dinner
Reviewed by seahawk7 Review Date: 06/29/2014
Rating: (8) Recommended
We ate there in early June. It was our first time and we really enjoyed the food. We like spicey so we could handle the heat. I had the vegetarian enchiladas with red sauce and they were good and spicey. My kids had the chile relleno and they were good and spicey. We are from the Southwest and are familiar with spicey Mexican food so we could handle the spice. I would caution others who are not to maybe ask for a sample of the chile so they don't get a dish they can't eat. We stuck to water, so our meal was only 65 dollars at dinner and that includes chips, salsa, and guacamole! This is a unique meal at Disney that is worth the reservation.
