Most Recent Reviews
Review of Backlot Express
Reviewed by Disney6Pack Review Date: 03/21/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
Party of 5 (me, DD15, DD14, DS12, and DD10) dined here for lunch during Mardi Gras break. We had never eaten here, but I decided to try it based on the reviews I had read and the fact that it offered free drink refills. The park was crowded because of the holiday and there was a cheerleading competition. Lines to order were long, but moved quickly enough. Food came out quickly enough and we found a table next to the condiments and drink refill station. I had the buffalo chicken bites (which were not on this website’s menu), oldest 2 DDs had burgers, and 2 youngest kids had chicken nuggets. Everyone enjoyed their food and enjoyed being able to refill our drinks before leaving the restaurant. I can’t believe I’ve never tried this in all the years that we’ve been coming here. We really enjoyed it and will come back again.
Pros:
food, location, free drink refillsCons:
noneReview of Coral Reef - Lunch/Dinner
Reviewed by masonmj84 Review Date: 03/21/2013
Rating: (6) Not Recommended
Ate here for lunch on a recent deluxe dining trip. Seeing the tank was cool but I was otherwise generally unimpressed.
The food was mediocre and uninspired (almost tasteless) and our server seemed disinterested and jaded. The restaurant also seemed somewhat worn and dirty.
The only reason I give this a 6 instead of a 5 or lower is because of the tank. But you can get just as good of a view of this at The Seas exhibit and there are too many other, better places to eat in Epcot.
Pros:
fish tank is pretty coolCons:
mediocre food, disinterested serviceReview of Via Napoli Ristorante e Pizzeria
Reviewed by masonmj84 Review Date: 03/21/2013
Rating: (9) Recommended
This is the best restaurant I've eaten at in the World Showcase so far.
Among the best pizza I've ever had (the crust, in particular, is delicious) and the arancini appetizer is excellent.
Pros:
the food, particuarly the pizzasCons:
restaurant can be noisyReview of Electric Umbrella
Reviewed by Disney6Pack Review Date: 03/21/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
Party of 5 (me, DD15, DD14, DS12, and DD10) dined here for lunch during Mardi Gras break. We eat here every trip because it offered free drink refills. The park was crowded because of the holiday and there was a cheerleading competition. Lines to order were long, but moved quickly. Food came out quickly and we found a table upstairs. I wanted something different so I ordered the chilled chicken wrap on the kids menu, oldest 2 DDs had burgers, and 2 youngest kids had chicken nuggets. Everyone enjoyed their food and enjoyed being able to refill our drinks before leaving the restaurant. We really enjoyed it and will come back again.
Pros:
food, location, free drink refillsCons:
crowded and usually hard to find tableReview of Gaston's Tavern
Reviewed by Disney6Pack Review Date: 03/21/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
Party of 5 (me, DD15, DD14, DS12, and DD10) at Magic Kingdom during Mardi Gras break. The kids were waiting in line for the new Ariel ride, so I walked over to Gaston’s to grab a LeFou’s Brew. We wanted to try it and wanted the souvenir cup. We all tasted it and thought it was good, but we think the Butter-Beer at Harry Potter’s World at Universal is much better. Gaston’s Tavern is very well themed, but extremely small. I can imagine that it gets quite crowded when people want to purchase food. We were there during an off-time, so there was only one person ahead of me in line. We loved the fountain and statues in front of Gaston’s. It is definitely worth a try.
Pros:
theme, LeFou's BrewCons:
—Review of Flying Fish Cafe
Reviewed by masonmj84 Review Date: 03/21/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
We've eaten here twice in the past year or so and have had excellent food and service both times.
The first time, I had the snapper, which was out of this world (even the leek fondue served with it was delicious).
The second time, I had the steak and snapper combo, which was equally as excellent (had a hard time deciding between this and just the snapper).
Sevice was spot on both times.
We've eaten at most of the signature restuarants on the dining plan and believe this is one of the 3 or 4 best.
Pros:
food and serviceCons:
noneReview of Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe
Reviewed by Disney6Pack Review Date: 03/21/2013
Rating: (8) Recommended
Party of 5 (me, DD15, DD14, DS12, and DD10) at Magic Kingdom during Mardi Gras break. We just wanted a mid-afternoon snack, so I ordered chicken nuggets, 2 orders of fries, and 2 drink for the 5 of us to share. I personally don’t think the food is all that great, but the kids love it for some reason. I think they mostly like sitting in the air-conditioned room watching Sonny Eclipse, so we always seem to end up here on every trip. Food is ok, but on a past visit I had the chicken sandwich which was extremely dry. It wasn’t crowded during this visit because of the timing, but I have seen it unbearable in the past during lunchtime. We’ll probably keep coming because it’s a favorite of the kids, but I would probably skip it if it was just me.
Pros:
atmosphereCons:
crowded, hard to find a tableReview of Cinderella's Royal Table Breakfast
Reviewed by masonmj84 Review Date: 03/21/2013
Rating: (8) Recommended
We've eaten twice here over the past year or so with different sets of in-laws. Both times we had an 8:15 ADR.
As others have stated, this place is all about the experience. In particular, the experience of walking down an empty Main Street before the park opens and the experience of eating inside Cinderella's Castle with Disney princesses visiting your table.
Those aspects are truly magical and are what makes this restaurant worth it because the food and service leave a lot to be desired. While not terrible, the food (outside of the pastries, which are quite good) is generally mediocre and, in and of itself, grossly overpriced.
As far as the service, surly is the best word I can use to describe. The servers know that they'll get the same tip regardless of the level of service so they're motivated to rush you through the meal and, in our experience, seemed irritated in responding to even very modest requests (for example, a request for a refill on OJ was often met with an annoyed sigh).
Despite those drawbacks, the positive aspects of the experience carried the day for us both times. Your mileage may vary.
Pros:
the overall experienceCons:
mediocre food, somewhat surly service, expensiveReview of Shutters
Reviewed by nessz79 Review Date: 03/21/2013
Rating: (9) Recommended
We stopped by here so that we wouldn't have to leave the resort to eat dinner. We walked up at 7 PM with 6 people and didn't even have to wait. One might think that means a mediocre (at best) restaurant, but we found this to be a hidden gem.
In the past, Shutters has not had the best reputation or reviews and it may have deserved it...at one point. But not anymore. Shutters now brags a chef from one of the Disney cruise ships and it shows. My husband and I ordered the fish of the day, which was prepared with a lemon cream sauce, yuca cakes, and peas. Normally I am not a fan of peas, but even they were tasty. My father-in-law had the chicken dish which he also said was excellent. The kids got standard kid dishes and they were standard quality- cheese pizza and pork ribs.
Prices were reasonable for Disney. About $18-29 per entree.
The best part of the visit was the service. Our waitress was very friendly, funny, and attentive without being overbearing.
It was quiet with maybe a dozen filled tables and room for more. Maybe as more people hear about Shutters, they will be interested in eating here at least once on their trip. I think Shutters could do even better if they offered some sort of sit-down breakfast so families wouldn't have to fight the crowds at the food court.
Pros:
Food, service, no reservations neededCons:
nothingReview of Casey's Corner
Reviewed by mmfan Review Date: 03/21/2013
Rating: (7) Recommended
We never used to miss a snack or lunch at Casey's on previous visits, now eating here is just another option. The corn dog nuggets are really good, they let us add fries and dessert for our counter service meal on the meal plan.
It was raining the day we ate there, we had on ponchos so did not mind the rain and it stopped right after we ordered. There were cast members drying off the outdoor seating with towels. Because of the weather, we were able to get a table and eat our meals there. DH likes adding all the fixings to the chili dog, but agrees with other posts that the buns are rather large - he ate the dog with a fork as it is so messy.
You can't beat the place for location, the atmosphere, and the fantastic tunes by the piano player - so even though it is always crowded and food is not the greatest, we will continue to return.
