Restaurants that pleasantly surprised you

B

BroadwayHermione5

DIS Veteran
Joined
Feb 9, 2017
After seeing the restaurant regrets thread and needing some positivity after a chaotic week, I wanted to see what everyone's picks were for restaurants that pleasantly surprised you!


I will start.
1) BOG Dinner (this was before the prix fixe menu): Every single review of the dinner prior to the menu change was HORRIBLE! We get there, all three of us had the steak cooked perfectly medium-one of the best steaks we've ever eaten. They accommodated everything including giving my dad a double order of string beans after he asked for the fries to be switched to string beans as he was sick of fries.

2) Trattoria al Forno Breakfast: Yes we went there because of the characters but ended up falling in love with this restaurant. We will be eating breakfast again there on our upcoming trip and hope to one day do dinner!

3) La Hacienda de San Angel (dinner): As Via Napoli, Biergarten, and food booth people, we wanted to try something new and also be seated for Illuminations. It has instantly become one of our favorite restaurants on property. We will not be going on this upcoming trip as we are trying new places/places we have wanted to try that we could never get a reservation for, but you bet we will be back on our next trip in order to see Harmonious.

4) 1900 Park Faire (Breakfast): While i don't know how or when this restaurant will return, and yes this was in fact another character must do breakfast, this actually was well worth the price for us. It allowed for multiple choices and who can resist that strawberry soup (well I had to be careful-thanks severe acid reflux)!

5) ABC Commissary: LSS, while we went to Disney prior to 2012, 2012 was our first family trip on property. And it was before the introduction of magic bands (we actually found our key cards last year during initial shutdown cleaning sprees!) and MDE. When we went back in 2015, even with following countless vloggers (sorry Dis i hadn't discovered you yet!), we thought we could get some walk ins like we did in 2012 (don't worry we did have reservations just not every day or at every park). Well that caused a problem at DHS. At 4:30, we couldn't get in anywhere, when after failing to get in at Sci-Fi, we looked up and saw the commissary. We were not expecting those delicious burgers and chicken sandwiches. It instantly catapulted into one of our favorite quick services (CHH holds the number 1 spot for QS), and we make it a point to try and get there if possible as it is worth it every time.

So, fellow Dissers, what has been your most pleasant surprise for a meal at Disney
 
The Wave. It's usually a quieter restaurant, tucked away. Our first time we tried it because ds needed a break from the park, and the food was absolutely delicious, exceeding our expectations. The waitress was one of the best we've had, and it was a really good experience. The second time we went the menu was completely different and still just as good.
 
Le Cellier and Chefs de France. We've tried them both in the past and were not impressed. Due to an extreme lack of available ADRs, we jumped on day-of reservations for both of these restaurants just so we'd have some TS restaurants for dinner - wow - both were great. I thought Chefs really upped their game and the atmosphere was lovely. Le Cellier's food was much better than I remembered and it was really enjoyable.
 
Merlin's Magic said:
The Wave. It's usually a quieter restaurant, tucked away. Our first time we tried it because ds needed a break from the park, and the food was absolutely delicious, exceeding our expectations. The waitress was one of the best we've had, and it was a really good experience. The second time we went the menu was completely different and still just as good.
Click to expand...
I am still sad I never tried the Wave before its most recent closure. I have always wanted to try the bacon and eggs!
 
Marthasor said:
Le Cellier and Chefs de France. We've tried them both in the past and were not impressed. Due to an extreme lack of available ADRs, we jumped on day-of reservations for both of these restaurants just so we'd have some TS restaurants for dinner - wow - both were great. I thought Chefs really upped their game and the atmosphere was lovely. Le Cellier's food was much better than I remembered and it was really enjoyable.
Click to expand...
This made me really excited for Le Cellier as we have reservations for it! Haven't tried Chefs de France, but If La Hacienda or Rose and Crown weren't available for nighttime show viewing I would want to be there looking out the window (or if that Monsiuer Paul?)
 
Merlin's Magic said:
The Wave. It's usually a quieter restaurant, tucked away. Our first time we tried it because ds needed a break from the park, and the food was absolutely delicious, exceeding our expectations. The waitress was one of the best we've had, and it was a really good experience. The second time we went the menu was completely different and still just as good.
Click to expand...
Wave is gone, to be replaced with Steakhouse 71.
 
I agree it is sad that The Wave won't be re-opening, as it had some of the consistently best quality food on property, in my experience.

The restaurant that pleasantly surprised me was Skipper Canteen, back when it was new. I'd read the menu and thought it looked too weird and not in a good way, but I gave it a try anyway, and instantly became a fan! It's my favorite restaurant in the Magic Kingdom, and one of my overall favorites.
 
I don’t know about surprise but we have tried restaurants that became favorites we have to eat at when we visit every few years. I have family members with food allergies and they have been so great.

Parks - Crystal Palace breakfast,Tony’s, BOG, Coral Reef, Chefs de France,
Tutto Italia, Le Cellier, Hollywood Brown Derby, 50’s Prime Time Cafe,
Tusker House breakfast, and Rainforest Cafe Animal Kingdom. Plus Liberty Tree Tavern lunch (hope they bring the a la carte back).

Resorts - Whispering Canyon Cafe breakfast, Trail’s End Buffet breakfast,
Cape May breakfast, and Boma breakfast and dinner.
 
Skippers Canteen, we are gluten-free and the tastes like chicken was far better than I remembered or thought it was going to be. We had a relaxing truly tasty meal as the first reservation for lunch in May, and who can’t enjoy a bottle of wine at 11:30am…we are returning in October!
 
Tony's. After reading all the negative reviews I really wasn't sure what to expect. Was it fine dining? Nope. But the service was good, it was SUPER clean, there was a good sized selection even though it was post-covid limited and the food was decent. I wouldn't say it's a must return on every trip but I would go again.
 
We have had quite a few that surprised us. Maybe we had low expectations, but we had a good meal for a good price.

1. Olivias
2. The Wave
3. Ale & Compass
4. Mama Melrose
5. Flying Fish
6. Skipper's Canteen
7. Tiffins
 
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