When it comes to character eating at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Hollywood & Vine is the only match in town – err, park. I had a opportunity to take in there lately for the 1st time in ages, and if you have received a cease at the Studios coming up quickly and you’re thinking about producing a Hollywood & Vine reservation, you may possibly want to browse this initially.
First of all, let me commence off by expressing that I enjoy character dining experiences. Certainly, there’s that potentially awkward instant wherever you need to prevent having and change all around in purchase to be equipped to interact with the people, but which is just part of the offer. It is also aspect of the allure. For park friends who highly benefit character interactions, a character dining encounter ought to be the most effective of both of those worlds: delightful Disney food stuff and fantastic moments with Disney people that you just just cannot get anywhere else. I like owning the possibility to interact with the people. They are the cutest things, and they are, in substantial part, what Disney is all about.
Next of all, for a long time, the group right here at the DIS has manufactured our thoughts obvious about this eating location: it is roundly disliked. Granted, that was pre-Covid when the subpar meals was flowing like a river by means of the buffet line I experienced larger hopes that the food items high-quality part of the food would now be distinctive.
When visitors arrive at Hollywood & Vine for Minnie’s Seasonal Dining (it was Minnie’s Silver Monitor Dine when I was there), they are given the opportunity to just take a team image in front of a themed backdrop. A forged member will get the picture for you, and it is a nice minimal instant if you want to get benefit of having a specific pic of your time in the restaurant. And allow me get the probability to say that all of the solid associates with whom I interacted at Hollywood & Vine (especially our server, Nick) ended up wonderful.
The Food
At the time you are seated at your table, it’s spelled out to you that your meal (the cost of which is at this time $55 for grown ups and $39 for kids) will get started with a spouse and children-model serving of rolls with honey butter, and a chopped salad. Each individual guest will then decide on an entrée from a list of seven at the moment out there, as properly as a dessert.
Proper off the bat when investigating dinner below at Hollywood & Vine, I was shocked at the marked change from all-you-treatment-to-eat to a person entrée for every human being. And, as we have grown accustomed to, there was no vast reduction in the for every human being price tag. It’s just such a change from what it applied to be. Granted, the meals wasn’t stunning in yrs gone by, but at the very least there was lots of it.
Let’s consider a glance at my meal.
All those rolls and butter? Delightful. I’m a sucker for all matters carbs and butter, but these were being in fact quite good and it was an uncomplicated solution when our server questioned if we would like one more round of them.
Although the salad was superior, the salad dressing was not. The dressing is described as becoming a Do-it-yourself Smokehouse Ranch, but sad to say, it was just a quite watered-down Ranch. The treatment set into the salad warranted a legit dressing. Yet again, if I had requested for an supplemental part of salad, I believe that it would’ve been brought to the desk.
My entrée is where by things bought genuinely very good. I pretty much never buy pork loin at a cafe. Maybe it is that it’s not the flashiest option on a menu I normally select a steak or even a hen or a fish possibility prior to I opt for pork loin. Mates, I selected the Spice-rubbed Pork Loin at Hollywood & Vine. And I chose wisely.
The pork was moist with a charming sear on the outdoors, and was presented atop a generous part of delightful creamy cheese polenta. The pork loin was topped with Spicy Mustard Barbecue Sauce. I just could not get plenty of of it. And the full thing was topped with a Bacon-Peach Chutney. Holy cowabunga, this was great. And there had been golden raisins included, which, in my reserve, is a excellent point.
My eating companions (my sister, and my niece and nephew) weren’t wowed by their entree decisions. I’ll hold off on sharing my feelings on individuals dishes right up until I taste them for myself.
I chose the Lemon Cake with Refreshing Strawberries for dessert, and what I hoped would be a citrus-lovers’ dream fell flat. I could not detect any lemon flavor, and it ended up staying much more strawberries and shortcake than anything at all.
The Figures
Minnie, Mickey, Pluto and Goofy look through the food to wave and pose six ft absent from your table.
Preserve in thoughts that the topic and character costumes alter all through the calendar year. I cherished the costumes that the figures wore the evening that I ate there, and the four close friends ended up much more than satisfied to continue to be and interact with people seated at the tables.
Friends are asked to remain seated when the people seem close to the tables.
At the conclude of the food, servers hand every guest a pre-signed character autograph card, which makes for a nice keepsake. It is not the similar as having the figures indication your autograph reserve on the place, but it’ll do.
An Option
My encounter at Hollywood & Vine was a mixed bag, and to be truthful, if I’m wanting to shell out $55 for each person on a character dining meal and I’ve acquired a working day at EPCOT on the guides, I’m going to head to The Land pavilion to eat at Backyard garden Grill.
For the exact amount of money, you’re served what I take into consideration to be an superb all-you-care-to-eat food (Chip ‘n’ Dale’s Harvest Feast), you’re ready to interact in a distanced trend with Chip ‘n’ Dale and buddies (Mickey in his farmer costume?! Too adorable!), and you are taken care of to a revolving check out of Dwelling with the Land. Our Walt Disney Planet time and money are too treasured to spend on an knowledge that could be much better in other places.
How has your working experience been at Hollywood & Vine? Please enable me know in the responses part below. Which extra character eating locations would you suggest as alternate options?