Reviews

Restaurant Review: ‘Ohana

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WDW Park Planners Rating:

Location: Polynesian Village Resort

Dad and the girls, 2015

“‘Ohana means family, and family means nobody gets left behind or forgotten.” This famous Lilo & Stitch quote is one of our family’s favorite lines, and couldn’t be more true. For us, Disney is about family, and our WDW vacations hold some of our best family memories, especially at ‘Ohana.

The ‘Ohana restaurant is a very family-friendly spot, and one of our go-tos in WDW. The atmosphere is fun and engaging, with games for the kids and live island music throughout the night. You definitely want to come hungry to this meal – the Polynesian-inspired cuisine is delicious – and never ending!

The meal is primarily family style; your server will bring big portions to the table for the appetizers, sides and dessert. For the entree, they come around with meat and shrimp skewers and serve you individually. Pace yourself for this one, since each course is better than the last!

This restaurant is always jam-packed, so be sure to make your reservation far in advance (we would not recommend just walking up and putting your name in). Even with a reservation we always end up waiting a while for our table. But while we wait, we always like to order fun tropical drinks – they have options for the whole family!

WDW Park Planners Tip:

The Polynesian is directly across the lagoon from the Magic Kingdom, so you can see the fireworks show from many locations at the resort, including inside ‘Ohana. The restaurant plays the music for the show, so if you time your dinner correctly, you will get an awesome viewing of the fireworks.

Check the times guide on Disney’s website and try to coordinate your reservation around that – it makes the evening even more magical. Tables by the window have the best view, but you can always just get up from your table to go watch, too!

Reviews

Restaurant Review: Chefs de France

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WDW Park Planners Rating: 

Location: Epcot® World Showcase

Our family used to dine at Chefs de France on almost every trip to WDW. We hadn’t been there in a few years, so decided to add it to our itinerary this past August. It was exactly as I remembered it, and we had a great dinner together.

Dining at Chefs de France feels as though you’re eating at a charming cafe on the streets of Paris. It’s a great, easy spot for families to enjoy lunch or dinner in the World Showcase. We usually go for dinner, mostly because we have other lunch spots that we like to hit up in Epcot. The servers, who are all from France, have always been incredible friendly and helpful.

The main menu is obviously very French-focused, with a kids menu also offering dishes with a slight French flair (in case you have very picky eaters like we did, be sure to check the menu in advance of booking). The food is good, but not one of our favorites in the World Showcase. Upstairs above Chefs de France is the nicer restaurant, Monsieur Paul. It’s a totally different atmosphere – think white tablecloths – and in our opinion has better food (which comes with a higher price tag and a dress code).

We’ve never had a bad experience at Chefs de France, so we consider this a solid go-to option. If you have older kids or are more adventurous foodies, there are other spots we would recommend going first (in addition to Monsieur Paul in France, Mexico, Germany and Canada are a few of the best!).

Post-dinner, be sure to stop by L’Artisan de Glaces (also in France) for some ice cream or sorbet to enjoy while you watch Illuminations!

WDW Park Planners Tip:

Book your dinner reservation approximately 1.5 hours in advance of Illuminations: Reflections of Earth. That way, you have enough time to enjoy your dinner and then walk out directly to watch the fireworks! The viewing area from France outside of the restaurant is usually pretty quiet, but you can also head over to the bridge that leads to the United Kingdom for one of the prime viewing locations (which will likely be a bit more crowded).