So I asked her where she wanted to go, she said TRex cafe. I asked her if she was joking, she assured me she wasn’t. Is this a trap?
You go for the atmosphere, not the food, entertains the kids. I thought you were looking for food.
I thought I was too!
If you don’t mind spending a bunch for an anniversary dinner, Victoria and Albert’s is worth it. You do have to wear at least a sports-coat (if not a tie as well), but the food is that good. And unlike other ‘spend through the nose’ kind of places, you won’t leave hungry. Nothing worse than spending way too much for a seven course meal, and still leave hungry. They’ll also call you before hand to see if you have any needs/requests that need to be accommodated. We go there once every 5-10 years - so we’ve been twice. Worth it both times (it’s at the Grand Floridian).
For less pricey options, the two restaurants already mentioned at the Animal Kingdom lodge are good choices. Their buffet is outstanding as well (Boma’s), but it’s a buffet - possibly not what you’d want for an anniversary (but I’d recommend it for any other time).
There are tons of places at Disney Springs (ala Downtown Disney), but one I’d recommend (but not necessarily for food) is Wine Bar George. They have hundreds of wines, and they are all available (and priced) by the ounce. Want to try an expensive wine (or three) but don’t want to pay $50/glass? There you go. The reason I wouldn’t necessarily recommend it for food is - I haven’t had any there. They do have some food, but it’s not a large menu. More ‘small plates’ (cheese, etc) than entrees. But great for wine. They know their stuff.
For atmosphere more appropriate for an anniversary, I think California Grill could work (at the top of the Contemporary). Haven’t been there in years, tho, although last time we went I thought their food was good. You also used to be able to get a reservation so you could watch the fireworks over at the Magic Kingdom - and they pipe the music into the restaurant. But they’ve changed the show where they project stuff on the castle now (instead of pretty much being 100% fireworks), so it may not be as good as it was to watch from far away like that. But that wouldn’t affect the food.
If you wanted to stay with steak, I’d recommend the Yachtman’s Steakhouse (?) at the Yacht & Beach Club. I think Le Cellier is good, but YS is even better. In Epcot, there’s a restaurant in Mexico that is beside the outdoor cantina that does a little more upscale Mexican food that could also work.
All that said - if your wife insists on TRex Café, maybe augment it w/ the Wine Bar George before or after the meal, so at least you get something a little more ‘anniversary’ appropriate, and less ‘Rainforest Café but with Dinosaurs’ vibe.
Jesus Christ, how many restaurants do they have at Disney?
I think there are at least 90 that take reservations. Probably more than half of those are outside the parks - in park-operated hotels and what used to be Downtown Disney.
Yep, in Disney Springs and in the resorts themselves. Disney Springs is a popular destination for nightlife and eating out, and you don’t need a ticket. It’s not a park.Sadly I have no recommendations because we dine with a toddler, and nothing says don’t take your toddler than a sit-down with a quiet and nice atmosphere. TRex would have been an option if my nephew didn’t remind is every couple of hours of how much he doesn’t want to eat.
If comfort food is your thing, try ‘Homecomin’ at Disney Springs. No worries about a toddler in there, and real good food.
I’ll pitch it when we inevitably go again. It was a challenge to get my nephew through even a quick service, but a year can be a big difference for a young one.
My favorite Disney restaurant was Ohana at the Polynesian Resort. It’s a Brazilian-style meathouse where they come around with endless skewers of delicious meat. Of course it’s been about a decade since I’ve been there. :-/
There are so many, they pretty much all are more expensive than they would be in the real world, and the majority of them are fully booked well in advance it seems. The place just prints money.
Indeed:
If you enjoy Asian cuisine try Morimoto Asia in Disney Springs. We went there for my birthday dinner last summer while at Disney/Orlando for volleyball nationals, and it was very good. Also very pricey, but most sit down places at Disney are. It’s a little cheaper at lunch, as they have a nice lunch special, and they also have a Kid’s Menu that includes mac & cheese and hot dog (with an Asian flair) so young picky eaters have something they like too.
For the adults, the cocktails all have an Asian/Pacific twist to them, and many are amazingly tasty. My wife got some kind of coconut drink that she raved about afterwards.
Should also mention Boma’s - the buffet restaurant in the Animal Kingdom lodge. My favorite buffet restaurant period (not just DW). The soups are usually some of the best in existence.
I have a question for you theme park regulars. The last time I went to Florida we spent some time at both Disney and Universal. One of the things I noticed a few times at both parks was that there were people that would move forward through the line saying, “I’m trying to catch up to my <family, son, daughter, whatever>.” Trying to be nice, most of the people in line let them pass.
But it happened often enough (maybe three times during our last visit) that I’m thinking this is just a few entitled assholes pulling one on the honest folks. In one case I was close enough to the front of the line to see one lady that said she was trying to get to her family get to the front, act like she was looking around for a few seconds, then jump on the next ride spot. In another case it was some teens that seemed just too aloof to be in an “emergency”.
Did any of you notice this on your trips? I don’t recall it happening when I went in 2009, but my last trip around 2014 is when it happened. Because this was new to me I didn’t cause much of a stink, but damnit the next time this bullshit happens I’m going to stand fast in my spot and tell them, “If it’s an emergency, don’t go through the line, go around and get a park employee to help you.”
We do that sometimes when we have a big group.(catch up to the bigger group that is, not cheating through) I also do that a lot with my toddler where I’ll wait in line and my wife will take her to the bathroom and just waits at an accessible point. I’m sure some people try to pull a fast one and get away with it, but I’ll still give people the benefit of the doubt.
I did not encounter that at all during my trip. There were a few kids that ran past me, think teens, but it was the fastpass line and we didn’t care. My sister goes maybe almost once a year, like 1.5 or something, she never encounters it when she goes. She has seen it a coupe of times as a Six Flags pass holder, but we’re talking maybe once out of ten visits.
What I did see is some parents had to take their kids out to go potty suddenly, and they were at the front of the line. I think the staff members gave them something, like a lanyard and they were told to come back via the exit so they could go straight to the front. I was pleasantly surprised by that, and it took a lot of pressure off the parents with young ones.
Yeah, I see that every now and then. And I’ve even been in a spot where I saw that the person did catch up to their group (so clearly wasn’t trying to cheat their way on). I would guess that the vast majority of the time, they are legitimately trying to catch up to their family/group. I guess if you’re all the way up front and see someone who’s cheating, maybe try and tell someone about it. But that happens rarely enough that it’s probably not worth the hassle (unless you’re right there).
Can’t say I’ve ever encountered this. I’ve only been to Universal a couple of times (had to check out the Harry Potter stuff) and noticed they don’t run quite as tight a ship as Disney.
Thanks for your answers, everyone. It’s not a big deal, more an annoyance than anything else. Mostly I was just curious because suddenly in one visit I saw it three times and none seemed legit. I’d never seen it before in earlier visits and thought maybe it had become an unofficial hack.