Most Recent Reviews
Review of Via Napoli Ristorante e Pizzeria
Reviewed by gina_maria216 Review Date: 02/03/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
Ate dinner here for the first time on Jan. 27. The meal was probably one of the best I had in years on Disney property. DH and I shared the calamari(EXCELLENT), I had the candele pasta(AMAZING) and he had the mushroom pizza. DD4 had the margherita pizza and DD1 had the spaghetti and meatballs. Everyone cleaned their plate. For dessert, I ordered the zeppoles, DH had a gelato of some sort, and DD4 had the gelato cookie sandwich. We will be eating here again and again.
Pros:
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—Review of Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue
Reviewed by fey2k Review Date: 02/04/2013
Rating: (9) Recommended
Jan 31, 2013, 6:15 seating. First time attendees, loved the show. We purchased the Cat1 seating. Since it was just the two of us, we ended up in the "sweetheart" table, next to the stage, right in the center of the stage.
Ribs were good, but not great. Fried chicken was awesome! Side dishes were all very tasty. They bring out a LOT of food - way too much for the two of us. Was disappointed to find out uneaten food has to be discarded. Would have liked a doggie bag option.
Show was fun, with good audience interaction. Cast celebrates birthdays and anniversaries. Server was great and we never ran out of drinks.
All seats are good in this show. The balcony offers just one row of tables along the side and back, so there are no bad seats in the balcony. Some of the seats on the floor on the sides might not have as good of a view of the stage. I have a picture of the room, but not sure how to post it here.
Prices are inclusive of tax and tip, and there is an option to use the dining plan.
For those staying on property, there are special buses available after the show to take you back to your hotel - no need to go to the TTC, etc. Our bus was zoned for Pop, Art of Animation and Carribean (IIRC). This was a great option to have, since by the time we finished, most of the parks were closed.
Pros:
Lots of food, fun show, good transportation after showCons:
uneaten food is discardedReview of Keys to the Kingdom - Magic Kingdom
Reviewed by fey2k Review Date: 02/04/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
Tour date Sat, Jan 26, 2013. We had Landon as the tour guide. I think he has learned a LOT since the time of another reviewer in April 2012. We really enjoyed his passion for Disney.
The details others have posted recently have not changed. Enjoyed getting our own boat on Jungle Cruise and hearing some stories of the molds of animals and characters. Really enjoyed the use of the headsets on Haunted Mansion, getting the behind the scenes info as we rode through the attraction!
We are not Disney history experts, so all of the information we heard was new and interesting. Would love to take similar tours in other parks.
As other have posted, get there early for check in and then wander main street for photos before the crowds let in.
Tour lasted a good five hours, including the stop for lunch.
Pros:
Lots of info, special pinCons:
NoneReview of Richard Petty Driving Experience
Reviewed by fey2k Review Date: 02/04/2013
Rating: (8) Recommended
Tues, Jan 29, 2013 - Rookie Experience. Loved this experience, but very expensive. The experience has changed based on reviews I read. The track has a speed limit of 145mph now. You drive with an instructor, not following a pace car. I like having the instructor - he gave tips the entire time on how to get faster, when to accelerate, etc. I was only (grin) able to manage a top speed of 124mph - awesome!
Details - you check in and then get a race suit that pulls on over your street clothes. Only clothing requirement is to wear closed-toe shoes. Class time is pretty basic - our instructor added a lot of humor. Family can sit with you in the class, which was nice. The track has markers all the way around, noting the fastest line on the track. That was nice to have for someone not familiar with racing! The cars are manual transmission, but you only have to shift when starting out. Once you get to 4th gear (by turn 2), you stay in that until the end. Rookie experience is a fast 8 laps. You get a print out of lap speeds and a certificate.
Bring your own camera. You are free to take lots of photos/videos. They have a photo car (#43) behind the wall so you can pose for photos.
Tickets - Undercover Tourist has discounts, but Richard Petty people were not familiar with them, and they would have to exchange emails to arrange it all. Undercover Tourist person was not very familiar with the process, nor the days of the program offering. I was not comfortable with that lack of info and the email requirement. I got a similar discount through Tickets-at-Work. They provide a voucher, then you call Richard Petty to book an actual date. That worked great. I even changed the date as rain was forecast for my original date. That was not a problem.
Richard Petty people are very upfront about everything is available, for a price. But, I did not get any upsell like others have posted. I paid the $17 for a single photo. $99 for the video was too much to pay.
On the plus side, you have a year to ride again at any Petty site and get a $200 discount as a past participant.
Pros:
get to drive fastCons:
expensiveReview of Clarabelle's Hand-Scooped Ice Cream
Reviewed by mom2boys2 Review Date: 02/04/2013
Rating: (9) Recommended
We stopped here on our way out of the park on the very last night. My son was really wanting a scoop of mint chocolate chip ice cream and Clarabelle's hit the spot. It was a very large single scoop and he agreed to split it with his brother. Good idea!
I just had to try a hand-dipped ice cream bar. Chocolate ice cream with dark chocolate and chocolate chips. YUM! You can get as many of the topping as you want but most are more kid-oriented. So I stuck with the chocolate theme and it was wonderful!
The only negative was that they did not accept the DVC 10% dicount. This was the only food location we encoutered on our trip that did not. It struck me as odd, but did not lessen our experience.
Pros:
Really good ice cream!Cons:
No discount 🙁Review of Fiddler, Fifer, and Practical Cafe
Reviewed by mom2boys2 Review Date: 02/04/2013
Rating: (9) Recommended
We stopped for coffee twice during our trip - each of our Extra Magic Hour mornings in CA. After riding all the rides we wanted, I would stand in line for the FP distribution for RSR while my husband took the boys to FF&P Cafe to start getting coffee. It worked out quite well as I was always through the FP line before he sat down with the coffees! We appreciated the consistency of the Starbucks coffee drinks and they honored the DVC discount which made it cheaper than an airport Starbucks! Their food items were Starbucks corporate (except for a few Disney-themed specialities, like Mickey cookies) and I would have rather had fresh-baked muffins, etc. from the Disney bakeries. Overall it is a good place to quickly stop for a morning pick-me-up!
Pros:
Starbucks consistencyCons:
—Review of Flo's V8 Cafe - Cars Land
Reviewed by mom2boys2 Review Date: 02/04/2013
Rating: (8) Recommended
On our first evening at CA the time difference caught up to us quickly and by 4:30 pm we were starving for dinner. We had just made it to Cars Land and decided that dinner at Flo's V8 Cafe was in order. The ambience is fun - the exterior doesn't miss a detail, the queue and ordering stations are efficient, and the food was up relatively quickly. We chose to sit outside so the boys could watch RSR and it was a beautiful setting!
The food was decent. It wasn’t anything I wanted to rush back and have again, but it was plenty and tasted good enough. I had the Citrus Turkey Breast with Peas & Carrots and Mashed Potatoes. It was served with gravy, cranberry sauce and a roll. It was definitely an ample serving (I was unable to finish it and was quite full) and the turkey was tasty. The sides were decent, but nothing I desired to stuff myself with. The roll was quite good! My husband chose the Pork Loin with Coca-Cola BBQ sauce. He enjoyed it and said the sauce was unique and good. He had the same sides as I did and had the same feelings. Fine but nothing special. The boys had Turkey Sandwiches. We elected to order the kids meals on a plate rather than served in the Lightning McQueen Racecar. Props to the cashier for giving us that option! It dropped the meal down to $6 which was much more palatable. We knew the car would be fun for a few hours but would quickly become annoying. It was easy to get them to agree to save the money now and then spend it on a real toy later! The kids’ meals ended up being way too much food for our boys – they could have split one if there was a way to add extra protein. When you have it served on a plate it comes with the sandwich (fresh sliced turkey breast served on a roll), peas & carrots, apple slices, grapes and milk. As we found at many of the restaurants this trip, all the fruits and veggies are plated and therefore you can’t easily take them with you when they don’t eat it all. That, combined with the excitement of finally being in Cars Land, led to a lot of wasted food.
Pros:
It's Flo's! Large quantitiesCons:
Food is...ehh...okReviewed by mom2boys2 Review Date: 02/04/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
Oh Ghirardelli...how I love you so!
I had to have a Ghirardelli on our first evening. With its location (I don't even have to leave the park?!) I don't see how it can fail! I ordered my standard Single Scoop Chocolate Chip with Dark Chocolate Hot Fudge. The boys both got Kids Scoops on cones with sprinkles (which were promptly put into cups to prevent tragedy) and they definitely received a larger portion than I, oddly enough. My husband chose to just go back through the entrance and get another free sample square!
We visited 2 other times, both just for my husband to get his sample square. One of those times I decided I needed more hot fudge. The ice cream wasn't necessary. The helpful girl at the register was trying to figure out the best way to ring it up (I was more than willing to pay $1 for it!) when another employee came over to help. When he figured out what I wanted he just walked over to the counter and had them put some in a cup for me to go...no charge. It wasn't the biggest deal in the world but at that moment he made me supremely happy!
The sundaes and scoops are smaller than those at the Orlando DTD location and everything is served in plastic cups/bowls. But the convenience of being inside the park makes up for it, in my mind! And they do not pre-open the sample squares of chocolate so you can hold onto them for later. A big deal to this mom when her husband keeps going back for more and she needs to keep them for AFTER meals for her kids! 🙂
Pros:
Chocolate! Customer ServiceCons:
—Review of Pacific Wharf Cafe
Reviewed by mom2boys2 Review Date: 02/04/2013
Rating: (9) Recommended
A much-needed warm meal on a cool, rainy California night!
I enjoyed the Vegetarian Chili in a bread bowl. I could have used more chili but the bread is just so darn good that I got over that. My husband stepped out of character and ordered the Chinese Chicken Salad. He said it was great but could have used some more chicken. Also, they said it came on mixed greens but it was definitely just iceberg lettuce. I ended up finishing the lettuce part of the salad after he ate all the chicken and toppings (and bread bowl!).
Our oldest son had the Kids Turkey Sandwich which was not on sourdough but instead "goldfish" bread. It was fine with him but seems odd to me. It came with carrots and apple sices, thankfully in single-serve bags so we could keep one for later. Our younger son had the "Power Pack" and loved it. It no longer comes with a cheese stick (as of the first of January, aparently) but does have a Danimals yogurt, small banana, goldfish crackers, sliced apples and carrots (in bags again). After the yogurt, banana and crackers (and some of Mommy's bread bowl!), he was good to go. We saved the carrots and apples for later and they were an appreciated snack an hour or so after. Both meals came with milk.
Over the years the menu has changed slightly but for the most part it is consistenly good food. And the bread bowls definitely make it wonderful! With our DVC discount, it was less than $30 for dinner. A good value!
Pros:
Bread Bowls.Cons:
—Review of Le Cellier Lunch/Dinner
Reviewed by jefflysiak Review Date: 02/04/2013
Rating: (7) Not Recommended
Le Cellier used to be our favorite lunch spot in all of World Showcase, primarily because of their prime rib sandwich and cheddar cheese soup. Unbeknownst to us, a few weeks before our most recent vacation, the restaurant switched to an "all day" dinner-only menu, and no longer offers the more afforable burgers, sandwiches and smaller portion soups. We were very disappointed and in fact saw several families leaving the restaurant after being handed the new menus. It's a shame that Le Cellier has done this... it used to be the most popular restaurant on the WDW property. I'm sure that's going to change very quickly. Too bad, because the food is always excellent and service exceptional.
