Theme Or Flavour ...

I care more about quality than theming. I would happily go out of my way to eat at the barely themed Olivia's at Old Key West, but would walk right past the heavily themed 50s Prime Time Cafe because I like Olivia's food better than anything I've seen on the 50s menu. And I guess it's obvious that I am defining quality in terms of whether the food is prepared well and appeals to me. I would pass up high-quality signature restaurants if the menu selections didn't appeal to me.

In terms of combining theming and quality/food, I think I'd go with Teppan Edo. I realize it's Japanese food for American tourists, but it feels Japanese to me and I love the food. If we ever eat at Tokyo Dining, my choice might change. A few runners-up might include the Biergarten (love the theming, like the food), Restaurant Marrakesh (ditto), Boma (like the theming, love the food, and I'm talking about dinner, since we've never done their breakfast), and 'Ohana (ditto).

We really only consider theme restaurants when the nieces and nephew are along. If the food is great, then I'm happy to eat it in a closet.

I figure I can eat at a good restaurant anytime at home. While I am enjoying Disney, I want to also enjoy some Disney theming. Not saying bad food/excellent theming wins out over good food/good theming. I still think you need to find a balance. And I do think that many of the heavily themed restaurants also offer excellent food. Then again, I still travel with my kids and so my thoughts regarding theming might change later on down the line!

It depends on the meal for me - when it is, what the other options are, who I'm with.

I'm more likely to pick a restaurant with a menu I love over one that's impeccably themed. If I'm going to drop some serious coin on food, I want to get something I know I will enjoy and love it. I completely agree with you about BOG. I'd LOVE to dine in Beast's castle, but I'm not going to spend that much money to do it when nothing on the menu sparks my interest. (Though the lunch menu looks interesting enough, but I don't really want to stand in line for as long as is necessary right now)

It depends who I'm with. Like this past weekend with mom & dad, we had to do 50's and Beaches & Cream. My dad was born in '55 and he's obsessed with the malt shop & juke box era, black & white television, and other things "50's", so for him to fall in love with Disney all over again, I felt like going to those restaurants was important. I will say that the food at 50's was MUCH better than I remembered and the food at Beaches & Cream wasn't fancy, but it tasted excellent. B&C was actually an excellent dining experience--more about that in the TR.

Usually we are more about theme at Disney, but we do like Biergarten and Garden Grill for combining Disney fun and delicious food.

Our one pick would be chefs de France. We go for a blend of theme and quality.

Yeah, put me as one who would put quality of food before theme in general. As for one that is able to match food and theme, well, as of now, my pick is Be Our Guest for lunch. I mean, getting to dine in the West Wing or the grand ballroom with a very tasty lunch...you can't beat that if you're a fan of BATB film. Other than that, I think Sanaa and Boma would be a great picks for great food and theme. And I will try those places one day. Mark my words!

OK - Anything to do with Disney dining grabs my attention so here's my take on it...

If we get the chance (usually through free dining) to book a number of restaurants we tend to balance the load between fun and flavour.

But we always browse the menus at home before we book.

This time out we're picking just a few that we "must do" when we're there.

Be our Guest is absolutely awesome when it comes to theming and it has my favourite beer so I don't mind if the food isn't top notch.
I loved the food in Le Cellier the first time round but my last experience was ruined by grumpy kids (my own I might add).
If I could take my wife back to V&A's at the expense of losing all other dining - I would jump at it. The best, grown-up food I've ever had - The restaurant doesn't need gimmicks.
That all said - I think secretly I love the theming of Rainforest Cafe more than the kids do - But they're a good excuse to go.

At the end of the day - I Do Disney - Because I'm a child at heart and can run around like a child and eat like a child. Why should the kids get all the fun? - It's wasted on them!

Hmm.. Not sure that actually answered the question did it?

Kinda...I agree..I laugh when I read people complain about the noise at T- Rex...Get a life..It's Dinosaurs..

I'm happy to try out some of the themed places just to see what the fuss is about, but I do check that there will be something on the menu I can eat first. Some have been great (sci fi) and some were a bit more meh where the food is concerned (50's). Tbh in general I'm more about nice, tasty food rather than theme. It doesn't have to be fussy food, just something that sounds appealing to me and cooked well. I've never eaten with the princesses, cause none of the menus appeal and I don't want to spend that much money on food I'm not going to enjoy, I don't wanna see those princesses THAT much (okay maybe I do but still can't bring myself to book one lol).

Some people have been able to snag a FP+ for BOG lunch at 30 days out on https://beourguestlunch.disney.go.com/

Whit! ...A FP + for a food booking??Not an ADR..? ...

When it comes to food and theme i think a good balance is the best way to go. For that reason i'm super excited to be staying at AKL this year because Sanaa and Jiko both do a great job of that and you bet I will visit them multiple times. I also agree with Chefs de France. Good food, and a genuine experience.

Agree...We are cellabrating our DS birthday at Jiko in October...It's his all time favourite restaurant ...Had a lunch at Sanaa on our last trip..Awesome...We all love Indian cuisine and this was as near as anything I've tasted at WDW..I'am hoping to buy a box of zebra domes while I'am there at AKL...

Yes, you can't make ADRs for BOG for lunch because it's a CS restaurant, however Disney currently does offer FP+ reservations for BOG lunch. It does not take up one of your 3 FP+ reservations either, it's a separate FP+

We have our favorites - and those are based on quality: Jiko, Cali Grill, Narcoossee's, and V&A. These we return to over and over. We also make a point to try new restaurants on each trip, still preferring quality over theming. Citrico's is great, Ohana, Kona Cafe, Sanaa, Boma, Artist Point - The list goes on.

We used to love the Akershus - for the buffet that I thought was great and the wonderful castle atmosphere. We like the Brown Derby, but is loud - and the Sci-Fi, 50's, BOG just haven't risen to the top of our list of places to try yet. I think, for us, the resort restaurants are our favorites. Quieter, subtle theming, a more 'adult' vibe. We really like the 'going out to dinner' part of our WDW vacations! Getting a bit dressed up, getting a taxi or driving ourselves. . .

We do, however, enjoy park (or DTD) based meals for lunch, and sometimes breakfast. When we are in the parks, we LOVE the theming and immersing in the magic.

It's separate!? I wasn't aware of that! I thought it was one of the three. Good to know

Question for all of you who have been to Chefs de France: Do the wait staff speak French? That would be the deciding factor in booking an ADR there.

I can't speak for every single member of the Chefs de France wait staff, but all the ones we encountered in our one visit there were clearly French. Hubby minored in French in college and was able to do a little ordering in that language. But the wait staff we encountered also spoke excellent English. So if you want to order in French, you can; and if you're afraid of attempting French, you won't need to.

we like mexico for the food and theme, 50ies for the theme (food is good too), turf club for the food

Quality over theming, always. Even my kids feel this way and they're still young. But we're also of the opinion (even at home) that if we're going to pay to eat out somewhere we're going to enjoy the food.

On Chefs de France - our waiter spoke English. He was also very nice and great at his job. Oh and the food was one of the best meals I had this past February.

Thanks for the info! To be honest, I wasn't 100% sold on Chefs de France, but had picked it because I wanted the children to be able to practice their French in a real world situation. So I am quite relieved to know they will be able to speak French, and that the food is also excellent!

Have you read Robyn's review of that restaurant?
http://www.wdwforgrownups.com/articles/lunch-chefs-de-france-has-authentic-atmosphere

I had never really wanted to go before she wrote this piece for us. Now it's totally on my list!

Okay, now I am quite excited to give it a try! Filet de boeuf grille, sauce au poivre vert Gratin Dauphinois et haricots verts...yes please!