Birthday Dinner

Disney4life222

Earning My Ears
Joined
Jan 31, 2013
I am celebrating my birthday in Disney and plan to have one special dinner with 3 other adults. We will be paying oop. It would need to be out of the parks as I will not have a park ticket on this day. With this in mind, where would you choose for the best food and service? I have thought about California Grill and Yachtsman Steakhouse but am looking for the best food for the price.
 
We've been to California Grill several times and loved it, but this past trip we went to Narcoosee's and the food was wonderful, the service impeccable, and you have the best view of the fireworks at the Magic Kingdom. We made our ADR for about 30 mins before the fireworks started, which gave us time to order drinks and dinner. We had our drinks and apps, took our wine out on to the deck to watch the show, and within 5 minutes of returning, our waitress was bringing out the entrees. It was great timing, and the food was amazing!
 
Having read this?

SHULA's - Dolphin. You said BEST - out of kindness, I left out V&A :). Party of FOUR, with solid 20% tip, OOP, will be about $450.
Ask for "Brandy" :).
 
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If you are looking for best food for the price, I would skip Cali Grill. The view is stunning, but the food is mediocre at best.

If you want steak, I would skip Yachtsman and go to Shula's. Other restaurants worth considering at Swan/Dolphin are bluezoo and Il Mulino. On our last trip, our favorite meal was at Flying Fish. The food and service were outstanding.
 


California Grill is lovely and you could incorporate fireworks viewing to end the evening with a bang. :teeth: Could even add a pre-dinner monorail tour with a stop in one (or all :rolleyes1) of the lounges. I dined there a month or so ago and loved my appetizer and dessert but was "meh" on my entree. It can also be very loud. I'd definitely echo the above poster's praise for Blue Zoo and Flying Fish -- both outstanding in terms of food and service and would probably be my pick for a special dinner. Jiko might be another fun option. I feel like there's so much to do at Animal Kingdom Lodge - explore the resort, animal viewing (including night vision goggles), the stories around the fire, the shop, another lounge :rolleyes: -- that it's really easy to make a night out of it beyond just the meal itself (our meals have always been excellent there as well). Have fun! Happy birthday!!
 
I'll second BlueZoo at Swan/Dolphin. Interesting, subtle decor, delicious food and great service. Another perk is it's close to Boardwalk so you can stop for an after-dinner cocktail at one of many locations within walking distance.
 


I like Il Mulino, Flying Fish, and Narcoossee. I also enjoy California Grill. I think it depends on what you are lookign for in the meal itself, including ambiance.
 
We love Bluezoo, Narcoossee, and Jiko. We had bday dinner @ Bluezoo last trip and only great things to say about our experience!
 
Thank you everyone for your help! I decided on Narcoossees. I would like to try Bluzoo one day as I enjoy the boardwalk area but my family can’t get enough of the Magic Kingdom resorts.
 
We have really enjoyed Narcoossee’s very much the two times we ate there, most recently this past May. Great food, ambience, service and fireworks view is awesome, especially for a special occasion.



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