WORST DISNEY DINING EXPERIENCE

[bakerjay]

The worst dining experience I've had at WDW was at CRT in 2006. Maybe it was a fluke but it was bad enough that I don't plan to ever try it again given how much it costs to eat there. Bland, boring, ick food.

Otherwise, I can honestly say I've never eaten anywhere that I thought was awful or had really bad service. I don't go to WDW expecting to eat outstanding meals. I'll take good any day of the week. And everywhere but CRT has been at least good.

 

[littleorangebird]

Worst for me was probably Beirgarten on my last trip. Everyone loves this place, but didn't really do anything for me. Expensive, food wasn't that great, and it was so dark in there. Wasn't too impressed with the entertainment either.

Other bad meals: Coral Reef and Hollywood and Vine. Those are literally the only bad dining experiences I've ever had in Disney.

I've never had bad service. Especially being in a family with many food allergies, the servers and chefs are always extremely helpful.

 

[limpy]

And I can also say that twice I was doubled up on the floor, to **** to even stand up to puke my guys out, within an hour. Went from perfectly ok, to that, within one hour. That may not be typical, but it CAN happen.

No one has said that food poisoning symptoms can't hit you hard and fast when they happen - your experience is typical, actually - you'd have the same reaction regardless of the time frame. They are only saying that you can't trace them back to a particular food unless there were other confirmed cases of food poisoning in people who consumed the same food. That is why people, particularly those with experience or knowledge of food-born illnesses, take these sort of claims with a grain of salt.

 

[cgattis]

No one has said that food poisoning symptoms can't hit you hard and fast when they happen - your experience is typical, actually - you'd have the same reaction regardless of the time frame. They are only saying that you can't trace them back to a particular food unless there were other confirmed cases of food poisoning in people who consumed the same food. That is why people, particularly those with experience or knowledge of food-born illnesses, take these sort of claims with a grain of salt.

No, there ARE people who say it can't physically happen that fast. And I'm no expert, but it's always annoying when folks jump in to tell people (whether this topic, or difficulty getting FP, or whatever) that they couldn't possibly experience whatever they say they experienced. It's just a peeve of mine.

 

[BalooFan]

I can't remember ever having a rude server, but have found Grand Floridian Cafe and Beaches & Cream to have the slowest and most inattentive service. There have been meals I haven't enjoyed, but it was probably just a matter of taste and not due to food quality. I never expect much from counter service meals, so I don't recall any really negative experiences.

 

[mom2my3kids]

Bongos. Even though I like the place a lot. It was once so bad it was funny. I was there with a date and another couple. The waitress came over did some small talk. Turned her back to my guest the whole time. Then told me what time she was getting out of work and was I interested in coming back. It was very loud and hard to hear as the band was playing but I could tell that when taking the order of my guest that the waitress told her several times that they were out of that dish. Finally when the food came they brought out for 3 and did not bring the dish out for my date. She noticed that I had what the waitress told her they were out of. When asked, the waitress told her that they had it for him, but none for her. (this is all true) Finally, her dish arrived and it was a dish of off the children's menu lol. It went down hill from there. It was so strange and odd the whole thing that it was funny. We laughed the whole way through.

 

[limpy]

No, there ARE people who say it can't physically happen that fast. And I'm no expert, but it's always annoying when folks jump in to tell people (whether this topic, or difficulty getting FP, or whatever) that they couldn't possibly experience whatever they say they experienced. It's just a peeve of mine.

If you can't trace the symptoms to the contaminated food, how would you know how fast the symptoms came on? If you are arguing that you know which food caused the illness, that is just a guess unless you know of other confirmed cases from the same food.

 

[carmelhp]

I would like to know what time of year people had their bad experiences. I think we've had a lot of "just OK" food experiences but the servers are usually pretty good. I'm just wondering if people are having the horrible server experiences are really busy times of the year when servers are pushed to the brink for days on end.

 

[rangerxenos]

December of 2013, we ate dinner at Tusker House in AK, and it was the worst meal of our trip. We were so disappointed after reading all the rave reviews - the food was sub par, service was awful as well. The buffet was out of a lot of food, and what was there was lukewarm. It wasn't the last meal of the day either.

 

[soar2014]

50s Prime Time Diner...its been a few years and I don't think I can ever go back. We had a waitress that, at the time, was very well known and well liked here on the Disboards. She really dropped the ball with us. She started out fun and cute, but basically ignored us the rest of the time. She brought drinks after a while...and then we would try to flag her down for refills and she would yell something cute at us and away she would go, with no refills for us. We were on the Dining Plan, so she had us order our dessert with our meal. We waited and waited and waited for our meals....tried to flag her or a manager down to inquire as to where our food was....ignored. Finally, someone delivered our DESSERT. Before our meals. We should have left then, now I certainly would. But we waited for our food longer. Then had to wait for dessert. It was ridiculous. We did get a manager involved and I don't remember if they gave us our dining credits back or not...I just remember the pain! We were in there for hours, would have rather been in the park.

Maybe it's because I am older, but when I am put at the mercy of trying to find a manager or waiter I walk into the kitchen and get what I want. Is it against the law? No. Is it against the rules? Yes. Rules sometimes must be broken. I will not wait hours for service. You walk into the kitchen and you will get their attention!

 

[cgattis]

If you can't trace the symptoms to the contaminated food, how would you know how fast the symptoms came on? If you are arguing that you know which food caused the illness, that is just a guess unless you know of other confirmed cases from the same food.

I can tell you with certainty that I went from 100% fine to lying on the floor retching within an hour of eating a pimento cheese sandwich from our cafeteria. I didn't have anything else at all, so it was something in that. Again, my gripe is when people feel the need to tell others "there's no way" something happened. My pediatrician once told me that "nobody" was allergic to ants, and that my son's fever was certainly a virus--call back in 2 days if he still had it. He was stunned when I called, "seriously??" There are always exceptions to the norm; people aren't always stupid/lying/exaggerating/whatever. That's my gripe. And I'm tired of saying it, because people will still do it.

 

[limpy]

I can tell you with certainty that I went from 100% fine to lying on the floor retching within an hour of eating a pimento cheese sandwich from our cafeteria. I didn't have anything else at all, so it was something in that. Again, my gripe is when people feel the need to tell others "there's no way" something happened. My pediatrician once told me that "nobody" was allergic to ants, and that my son's fever was certainly a virus--call back in 2 days if he still had it. He was stunned when I called, "seriously??" There are always exceptions to the norm; people aren't always stupid/lying/exaggerating/whatever. That's my gripe. And I'm tired of saying it, because people will still do it.

Yes, well, you can't actually know that it wasn't something you ate earlier that day or the day before. That is my point. I am not saying that it is impossible, just that you can't know for sure based on the information that you have shared. Which is what most people have been saying.

 

[Melora]

Worst experience was one time we were at OHana's and the server was SO inattentive that he did not bring the kids meals until ALL the adults had been served and were mostly finished eating. The kids were eating off our plates because they were so hungry. I asked twice if he could get their food and then he disappeared and seemed to forget about us. We ended up just having them doggie bag the mac n cheese because the kids were full from our food. We had to ask other waiters to fill our drinks. We've eaten there before and had a wonderful time so I guess it was just out bad luck to get a lousy waiter on the visit. We spoke with the manager who was very sorry and we did not leave a tip.

 

[busymommy2pink]

Worst experiences:

Hollywood & Vine - went at lunch. Several hot dishes were actually cold. I'm fairly certain that my 5 year old got food poisoning here, she was sick the whole next day. Found it very un-kept and dirty. Won't be returning!

Chef Mickey DINNER - Worst dinner for sure. Loud, dirty, slow service, no refills on drinks, character interaction slow moving. We do love the breakfast though.

Rose and Crown - slow service, less than kind server, food was VERY mediocre at best. Patio seat was nice though, but not enough to justify the food.

Cape May Cafe breakfast - we were placed in a room to the side...with just a few tables, weird florescent lights, no windows and felt like a church basement. Food was ok, but was a lot of $$$$$ for a church basement feeling. They shouldn't be allowed to place people there. We felt like we were cast aside. Dinner was nice, when we were seated in the actual dining room.

Hit or Miss

Whispering Canyon - first time, food was meh, server was rude and made our daughter cry even after we asked not to play along. Called her a cry baby afterwards. Dinner there in Sept was great, our server was friend and food was delicious. Not sure if we will return or not.

 

[MrsCC23]

Worst Dinner Experience:

Rainforest Café Down town Disney, waited an hour and 15 minutes for my son't Birthday ADR.
The place was run by Teens who are unapologetic and disorganized.
My mom was grumpy and blamed me and started yelling at me during dinner. My son was in tears, he said "all I want for my birthday is to have my family to spend some time with me".

I will never forget that.

 

[Mindwellwasted]

I've yet to have a BAD dinning experience at WDW, but CRT for lunch my last trip was disappointing for sure! The 'OMG I'm eating at Cinderella's castle' wore off fast. The food wasn't really that great considering the price and because of the size/layout of the room it's hard to interact with the princesses or get decent pictures. The only good photo I have from the meal is the one with Cinderella before the meal.

 

[longrf01]

San Angel Inn - told them I was allergic to cilantro. My dinner had it anyways. They tried to argue with me that it didn't. But the EpiPen worked, Reedy Creek ambulance was there fast, and Celebration has a really nice ER.

 

[Poohcandi]

Hollywood & Vine -- we have been twice and both times awful. Absolute chaos, the last time we went they sat 12 of us at a table for 8. First time we went they cleaned up the buffet halfway through our meal. The handlers did not ensure the characters went to each table and the characters were the only reason we went the 2nd time. So disappointed when I saw that that is where Jedi Mickey is.... Because, NEVER AGAIN!!

While we love O'Hana for breakfast we have experienced poor service here on one occasion, but we will go back, so far the good has outweighed the bad.

 

[baldy6060]

I'd have to say El Pollo Campero. I could tell when they were dishing it out that it had been sitting there a while. I should've said "nevermind." To make matters worse, the portions were so small (especially kids meals) we all tried to fill up with extras at the condiment & toppings area.

Chef Mickey's food was worse than Golden Corral's last October but we were on Dining plan & the character interaction with my 15 month old was priceless & server was fine so I don't regret it but probably won't be back.

We hated CRT on our honeymoon. So expensive for blah food. So that night we went to Casey's for cheap, quick eats. Loved it. We raved about it to my kids. Took them with us our next trip & ate during evening parade. Food must've been from the bottom of the barrel. So nasty. We all felt queasy afterwards. I think it may have been because we were nearing closing time.

Artist Point has always been our favorite but last October we went around 9 pm. Server wasn't very friendly & seemed to want to go home. My wife liked her food but my buffalo dish was nothing special. The steak was just...steak. And my pasta was chewy and bland. Again, probably because we were nearing closing but I paid quite a bit for that dish. Also, my wife was so tired & it's dimly lit so she kept yawning & even fell asleep on the way back to the resort. I told her if it was our first date we wouldn't have had a second date.

I'm hoping these are the worst experiences I ever have because some of these other stories worry me.

 

[Amanda999]

San Angel Inn - told them I was allergic to cilantro. My dinner had it anyways. They tried to argue with me that it didn't. But the EpiPen worked, Reedy Creek ambulance was there fast, and Celebration has a really nice ER.

Good lord! Did they at least apologize after you had the reaction?!