Table Service Choices - help!

Walt Disney World Dining
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It’s been years since our last WDW trip and I would love to try some of the new offerings. We are four adults (two very young adults, and two, um, other adults.). We are all foodies and would dine in all Signature restaurants if money were no object. That said, we all love the fun theming and dined in Sci-Fi every year when kids were young despite the very mediocre food because it was so fun. We’d like to do one character meal. Grabbing counter service during day and having sit down meal at night would best suit us. We plan to watch the night fireworks that replaced Wishes :frowning: in the park. We probably will not do dining plan, but I will price it out after we choose ADRs. Would appreciate your thoughts or better recommendations re my tentative ADR goals for our 7 night trip in March:

first night: Cali Grill OR Toppolino’s (Cali is old favorite and seems less expensive that Toppolino’s, but would love to try this new exciting restaurant, but like idea of watching fireworks from Contemporary, but is Riviera fun place to visit too?) Would do both, but am trying to reign myself in a little.

Epcot Day: Space 220 may not be worth it for food, but seems worth money for one time experience? Lunch OR Dinner?

Other Epcot Day: Shiki Sai near fire work time? (kids, I mean young adults, love Sushi and Japan)

AK day: Tusker House for brunch time and characters? We would like to do one character meal and like the variety of food here, or do Satuli Quick Service to save time in the one day park and enjoy Boma at the AKL where we are staying (we also love Jiko and Santa) We could try to get Storybook Dining at Artist Point for dinner on a MK day??? (Snow White characters are my personal favorite)

MK day: We’ve never been to Skipper Canteen or Beak and Barrell for lunch or dinner. I am leaning toward Skipper’s since I understand even with an ADR we could end up standing in Beak and Barrell? Thoughts???

Other possibilities include heading over to Poly on a MK day for dinner at Wailulu- we love to try something new and could be less pricey than other options. It is also nice to visit Poly.

Toledo? Ambiance and menu look fabulous. Sebastians? Other new restaurants we must not miss? Everything has gotten so expensive it will probably be a while before we get back again!

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For Space 220 I would do Lunch since it’s cheaper (I think it excludes a course but I didn’t miss whatever was missing). FWIW my family loves it there! But it is way too expensive to do more than once in a while.

From what I’ve heard this is the better option if you want a meal vs. a drink / experience. I have only eaten at Skipper’s though.

Fantastic dining experience. A little on the upscale side and delicious food.

A good value and I actually quite enjoyed the food for the most part. But it’s not the highest quality out there. Worth a try for those who want to hit every restaurant eventually.

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Thank you so much for your feedback!! I need to check out Toledo more.

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We are NOT foodies, but do enjoy trying various restaurants as long as the menu is tame.

I did not find Sci Fi’s food mediocre at all. It was actually quite good. Just very BASIC.

We did Space 220 in the lounge. It was likely one and done for us. I’m glad we didn’t pay for a full meal (lunch or dinner) because I don’t think it would have been worth it to us. But, getting the lounge is rather difficult, so if you want to experience it, I would stick to lunch and pay the cheaper price. Only 2 courses at lunch, but that should be fine. If you can get the Lounge, instead, I’d do that. But the food is, in fact, mediocre there.

We JUST did Beak and Barrel. It was cool to see, I suppose, but the food options are very limited. The corn cake thing we had WAS very good, mind you…but it is really more about the vibe and drinks. We were placed at a table with two other groups, so there was a total of 8 of us, which ended up being awkward. The server was great, though. Definitely one and done.

I was a little disappointed with Skipper Canteen, honestly. It was fine. But I guess I was expecting more. The food was a little better than okay, and the decor was interesting, but unlikely to do it again.

We haven’t done Wailulu, but I do recommend this, rather than eating inside MK. We love Kona Cafe, for example, and go there almost every trip. There is also Steakhouse 71 at The Contemporary within walking distance. (Full disclosure, our steaks at Steakhouse 71 were awful. Inedible, really. Neither my wife nor I could finish our steaks. I only managed 2 bites of mine. But the sides were delish, and I think it must have been a one-off, since plenty of other people feel differently. We haven’t gone back to give them another chance.)

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Quick take on Shiki Sai - VERY disappointed in the experience there a couple weeks ago. Food was good and interesting, but the experience was over the top bad. Atmosphere was of a strip mall sushi joint (with a better view). I think they are having an identity crisis on whether they are a fine dining restaurant or a quick service sushi place. I was shocked.

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Welcome to the Forum!

My whole family, DH, DD27, DS25, and myself, are self proclaimed foodies! :laughing:

We used to love CA Grill, until it went prix fixe. Then, it became a limited selection and too much food.

I’ve been to Topolino’s twice for dinner and once for breakfast. Breakfast food was fantastic! We loved the characters’ outfits and the character interaction was awesome. They came around 2-3 times during our meal.

Many times, whether or not we love the food depends on what we order! :roll_eyes: I loved dinner the first time at Topolino’s in 2021. I went with DSIS, who is more adventurous than DH! We had escargot, bone in steak, and scallops, and Fruits of the Forest for dessert. Everything was yummy! In 2023, I went with DH. We had Fritto Misto, brussels sprouts, sole meuniere, fish stew and Fruits of the Forest for dessert. The sole was very rich and the fish stew had a spice in it we didn’t care for. I talk about that here: https://forum.touringplans.com/t/chip-n-dale-host-their-friends-at-their-fl-home/92283/132?u=stlouie. But the menu changes often.

I’ve done the Lounge twice. Both times, we were also offered the main menu. But we stuck to the Lounge menu because we don’t care for prix fixe menus. The best part about going to Space 2020 is the “ride” up to space! Looking down on “earth” from space is cool. A few things float by. Look for the astronauts with light sabers! The cauliflower and sliders are yummy but pricy for what we got.

This is one of our favorite character meals! The food is plentiful and yummy! You do feel like you are eating in a forest. It’s not that hard of a reservation to get the past 2 years.

Love the decor. Food was delicious, fish, fried rice, and cheese bread. Here is our food: https://forum.touringplans.com/t/chip-n-dale-host-their-friends-at-their-fl-home/92283/251?u=stlouie

We love Toledo! Order the pork chop and brussels sprouts!

It was a one and done. The food wasn’t great. I passed on the bread pudding because I was too full! Our friends here said that is the best part!
https://forum.touringplans.com/t/im-back-again/102282/523?u=stlouie.

Not new but two of our favorites are Flying Fish and Narcoossee’s. The food is always outstanding.

From the last time we went to Flying Fish: https://forum.touringplans.com/t/honey-wdw-is-on-the-way-home-from-st-louis/104058/40?u=stlouie. And my first time: https://forum.touringplans.com/t/really-says-my-kids/100125/120?u=stlouie.

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Yes it is the best part! It’s not quite as good as Ohana’s dessert, but still good.

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I second this. We ate there for the first time last year, and it was phenomenal.

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I second this. The food is fine. The service is spotty at best. I really wish they would have expanded Katsura Grill to include the food from Shiki Sai. When we ordered the food, I was expecting it to come out izakaya plates, sushi, entree. Nope. Everything came out very randomly, and we had 6 plates on our really small table.

Takumi Tei is a great restaurant, but very very pricey.

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Same!

Are there specific characters you want to meet besides possibly Snow White ones?

Generally, I prefer family style character meals for potentially better food.

Topolino’s breakfast was great for both food and characters. The little side salads etc were actually memorable. I also really liked the Le Petit Cafe cold brew with housemade almond whipped cream (I am a bit of a coffee snob), as well as the signature cookies from Primo Piatto. I am staying at Riviera next trip and am curious to try more food at Primo Piatto / Bar Riva in general.

With regards to Riviera: We stayed at AKL as well and loved taking the bus to Hollywood Studios and then the Skyliner to Epcot’s International Gateway (which goes through Riviera). I thought the Skyliner was super fun, and the mosaics between the Riviera Skyliner station and hotel are worth seeing as well. It was nice to be in World Showcase during the quieter morning hours - a peaceful time to play the DuckTales Adventure game. :blush:

O’Hana breakfast was notable mostly for meeting Stitch, but the food was family style and surprisingly fine! :sweat_smile:

For what it’s worth, I love Happily Ever After. :smiling_face_with_three_hearts: The projections do mean you want a clear view of the castle if you can. The last couple of times, we splurged on the pre/post dessert party to get a semi-reserved watching area. Keep in mind that the desserts are very mediocre, and it’s not cheap. However, I am short and decided to pay for less stress / more magic. YMMV.

I have not been to either for dinner, but I wanted to mention that we ate at Narcoosee’s and had a great view of the fireworks and Electrical Water Pageant. Might be worth checking out the menu?

Agree with others to look for a lounge reservation. There are a couple of free services that can alert you to cancellations if you need - I was trying to get a sunset time to see the screens change (it did happen, but it was subtle). I had multiple days and times that became available, but you need to be pretty quick to get them (eg text or VIP email).

It was a one and done for us, partially because I stared at the elevator “window” too much and ended up a little disoriented and nauseous.

I would snack around the world, especially with the Flower and Garden booths. A few notable items for me at the regular quick service:

  • Les Halles: yogurt aux parfait
  • L’Artisans des Glaces: brioche with caramelized pecan ice cream and caramel sauce
  • Germany: pretzel bread pudding

You could consider Nomad Lounge as well - they share a kitchen with Tiffins. The kids remember the churros fondly. :joy:

I love Jiko! Especially the Wild Boar Tenderloin and the giraffe bread. I also read that the burger and other items at Victoria Falls Lounge are excellent as well, so I am hoping to try them next trip.

Btw, at AKL I highly prefer the gluten free zebra domes (special request at the Mara) - they have chocolate on the bottom instead of cake.

If you do leave the park, Steakhouse 71 is solid for lounge food in my experience. I have mainly had the bacon and eggs app - sauce is amazing - and the burger. The lounge is nice, especially if you are there off hours (we went after watching the 2pm Festival of Fantasy parade). Geyser Point also is a nice boat ride away. I was too tired to appreciate the bison burger on a previous visit. :sweat_smile:

Toledo was very good last trip, and the ceiling is amazing. We were staying at CSR and checked in on a night it was open. I loved the orange flancocho dessert, which is no longer on the menu. :sob:

A couple other notes:
I also am debating Beak and Barrel. Oga’s was super underwhelming for me, but I loved Trader Sam’s last trip so much.

DHS: I loved the falafel at Docking Bay 7.

Disney Springs: I really want to try Wine Bar George brunch. I also have Pepe / Jaleo on my to try list, and maybe Boathouse. I just saw a review for STK lounge praising the burger. (ETA: Whoops - burger seems to be brunch / lunch, and I didn’t realize this was a national chain :sweat_smile:)

I was really surprised by how much I enjoyed Olivia’s brunch (fried chicken). The boat ride we took afterwards to Disney Springs was fun as well.

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DD32 and I ate here in October, and it was delicious!:face_savoring_food:

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Love the Croques! :face_savoring_food: They are better than Les Halles.

I had the tasting menu. It was rich and yummy but, oh so much food! I had to take most of the shrimp and steak to go. I wanted to pass on the flan but my waiter insisted I take it to go or at least take a bite. I ate the whole thing! :grin: And rolled myself out the door! My Jaleo tasting menu experience starts here: https://forum.touringplans.com/t/really-says-my-kids/100125/328?u=stlouie

We enjoyed brunch and dinner here (on two separate trips).

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I was really surprised at how good the croque monsieur was there!

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This is a solid line up!

My thoughts:

Get an ADR for the Space 220 lounge if you can. Same experience, cheaper option. But if you can’t I recommend lunch for the cheaper 2 course meal.

Love Shiki Sai and there is a great fireworks view if you can time it.

If you all like cocktails Geo 82 is also and option. They have a fireworks desert party but you can also see the fireworks with a regular ADR, you just aren’t by the window.

These are all good choices. Tusker is still good food and high energy. Artist point has nice ambiance, the Snow White characters (love the Evil Queen) and food that is hit or miss. Look at the most current entree reviews to help you decide what to get.

Skippers is our favorite MK restaurant hands down. I went to Wilulu with a group recently and all of our food was fantastic. For many it was their best meal of the trip. So if you are willing to leave the park it is great food and a great atmosphere. I also like Steakhouse 71 at lunch, for some of the best sit down prices and high quality food. Not such a great ambiance.

Beak and Barrel is more snacking foods than a full meal. You will frequntly be seated with other guests.

Both of these things are very true. It is also convenient to AK. I would go here over Jikko for better pricing and equal, if not better, food and ambiance.

Last tip - the non-signature restaurants have larger portions, so if you are a family that splits dishes, consider that as a cost savings.

Note - I took your lead and tries to stay away from signature restaurants.

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Solid quick service option. One of our very favorites.

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Wow! Bummer! It is not my particular choice, but was thinking the “kids” would like it.

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Thank you so much for all your feedback!!! I am debating Toppolino’s (even though I am trying to resist the pricey signatures- I was just told “you work hard, you should dine wherever you want on vacation!” LOL I don’t need encouragement!!!

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I love dining and regularly go to WDW.

AK-The Satu’Li is a favorite because it’s one of the few places that serves food that isn’t fried. Love the variety and mobil ordering.

EPCOT-Was disappointed with the sushi place in Japan. We eat sushi once a week and it was like supermarket sushi.

ANIMAL KINGDOM LODGE-Love Jiko- its real food beautifully prepared

EPCOT-Chefs De France also nails it for protein, veg, and the bread is wonderful

EPCOT- Via Napoli has proper Neapolitan Pizza and the ovens are named after volcanos

AK-Tiffin or Normad also good variety and global cuisine.

POLY-Love breakfast at Kona in Poly. Tonga French toast, the grits , the Kona coffee-perfect

POLY- Trader Sams is magnificently themed and great fun

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We had dinner at Tusker House this past July. We made the latest reservation we could closest to park closing. The food was delicious. Even our 9 and 7 year old grandsons enjoyed what they chose. It’s fun to be able to take a slow walk through the park to the exit after park closing. We have done this same thing in years past. This time there was a rain storm, so it wasn’t as pleasant, but we still enjoyed it.

Happily Ever After is amazing! It’s expensive, but consider doing one of the dessert events. We did Seats and Sweets. It takes place on the Tomorrowland Terrace. You are seated at a table, and it’s all you can eat desserts and beverages, including wine and sparkling wine. We found that people will start staking out places to view the fireworks sometimes two hours before the show begins. Sitting on the ground and eating a hot dog while waiting for the fireworks wasn’t very appealing to us. With that said, we were in our RV at Ft. Wilderness, so we didn’t spend a lot of money on dining in the parks. We were able to splurge a bit. Have a wonderful time!

Pam

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first night: Cali Grill OR Toppolino’s Our last time there we thought Cali Grill had really declined - if it’s an old favorite, you might want to just keep the good memories. We’ve had brunch at Topolino’s and it was excellent. Brunch is a character meal and dinner has Epcot fireworks viewing.

Epcot Day: Space 220 Definitely worth the experience at least once. I recommend going to the lounge as a high-end snack instead of a meal. The short rib sliders were amazing, the cauliflower was good, the calamari was below average.

Other Epcot Day: Shiki Sai No personal experience, but I’ve heard the sushi at the Poly is better.

AK day: Tusker House, Satuli or Boma We like all three of these and I don’t think you can go wrong here.

Storybook Dining at Artist Point If you’re foodies and into Snow White - you should do this!

Skipper Canteen or Beak and Barrell Skipper is the best in MK, but not great. I’d recommend taking the boat to Poly for Wailulu or to Wilderness Lodge for Geyser Point. Haven’t done B&B yet, but everyone I know that has says it’s meh.

Toledo This is on our list to do - I’ve heard great things about it. Three Bridges, also at Coronado, is a more casual, open-air restaurant and pretty good.

Sebastians We were split on this one, my vegetarian daughter and I loved it, but the “meat and potatoes” men of the family thought it was too light of a meal.

For a fun restaurant with better food than Sci-Fi, try ‘50’s PrimeTime. It’s one of our frequent flyer restaurants. Not foodie fare; more 1950’s home cooking staples, but the food is good and the experience is great.

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