The September 2013 Crowd Calendar has been updated and the daily analysis for the entire month is available underneath the calendar image. June will be updated in the next day or two – the recommendations shouldn’t change. I’ll just mention that the second Electrical Parade and Fantasmic are better because they’re less crowded and that the late night hours are also a good time to tour. Nothing major. I would expect to see October’s hours come out on March 15th or 18th along with a similar update to July.
We’ll pop back into Splitsville, the newest addition to Downtown Disney. We took a much more comprehensive look around last week in this post.
Larger menu: https://www.easywdw.com/reports7/splitsville.jpg. As a reminder, this is what the food menu looks like. And this is the drink menu:
This time, I visited with friend-of-the-site Brian on an extremely busy Saturday night. I had never seen Downtown Disney so crowded. It was full of marathon walkers coupled with the usual Saturday night crowd. To avoid the crowds, visit on a non-holiday Monday – Thursday from 11am – 6pm or so. Getting to Downtown Disney can still be a hassle though as it will likely be the longest bus ride of your trip. Traffic around Downtown Disney is atrocious and you’ve got stops at the Marketplace, Pleasure Island, and Typhoon Lagoon during the day. Bus transportation is the worst to/from Animal Kingdom and the Grand Floridian. If you’re driving to Downtown Disney, consider parking on the West Side neat Cirque du Soleil and Splitsville. There will be plenty of parking places and it will be easier to get out. Consider taking the boat from the dock behind House of Blues over to the Marketplace and then walk back toward the West Side and your car.
As I mentioned in the previous review, I thought Splitsville would be a good choice for food when Downtown Disney was particularly crowded. There was no way we were going to get into any restaurant at 8pm on a Saturday night without a wait – if restaurants were even taking more walk-ups. Every restaurant would have been at least a 60 minute wait. But there was still room at several of Splitsville’s bars, including the patio downstairs and the main indoor bar upstairs. I started with a “Miami Vice” frozen drink with a 151 floater. As mentioned in the previous review, server knowledge had been spotty in my last two trips, but this one was much more knowledgeable. The bartender offered the rum floater for $2 and then proceeded to list several options, including coconut and 151 proof rum. The Miami Vice didn’t taste anything like the last two I had – it was much fruitier without much alcohol aftertaste. I could see the rum floating on top, so they may have added more sugar to the mix or the rum was watered down.
Brian ordered a Kingpin Margarita, which I had sampled on a previous visit. He agreed that he expected more drink for $14. The drinks are full of ice, despite being served in a large goblet. I don’t see them as being a compelling value whatsoever. We’ll find better drinks for almost half price at Bongos later.
I was curious about their sushi – a very trendy addition to a bowling alley. Speaking of being trendy, bowling alleys sure seem to be. Kings Bowling is opening on International Drive in a couple of months – a 22 lane upscale alley much like Splitsville. Nobody under 21 is welcome after 6pm. The new value resort at Universal is opening with another ten lanes.
Anyway, this is the Ninja Crunch – Fried salmon, Kani Kama Krab, tempura crunch, salmon, and spicy mayo – $13. I think this is 10 pieces with ginger and wasabi on the side, which seemed like a large portion for the money. I’m far from a sushi expert, but I can compare it to other Disney options. It destroys anything at Katsura Grill or in the coolers at the various resorts. It’s as good or better than what’s served at the Kona Cafe sushi bar. I enjoyed it more than what I’ve ordered at Tokyo Dining in the past, but that may have been luck. It wasn’t quite as good as California Grill has been in the past, but the sushi is also half the price. It was a lot of sushi for the money and Brian agreed that it would even be a nice entree portion. So I’m giving Splitsville sushi the thumbs up.
The Loaded Fries – Fries smothered with nacho cheese, bacon, ranch, scallions, and love. Normally I shy away from anything advertised as including “love,” but I was in the mood for some bar food. The fries were not as good – served lukewarm at best and limp. I think just because we were guys, the bartender commented that we got “hooked up with a lot of bacon.” It was still a lot of food and if prepared properly, I think the fries would be better.
Next, Brian ordered the Southern Tier 2XIPA, but they were apparently out of it. That was the best value on the menu – a quality microbrew with an 8.2% ABV. Instead, the Florida Avenue IPA was offered in its place. Brewed by Cold Storage Craft Brewery and coming in at 5.6%, it would be hard to find outside of Florida, but it isn’t quite as compelling of a value. Hopefully the 2XIPA is only a temporary shortage. Brian liked it enough to order a second, though he mentioned (correctly) that an IPA shouldn’t be served in a frozen glass like this. I’m waiting to try the Florida Ave at the Beer and Flower and Garden Festival next week.
Taking one for the team, I went for a Koolaide Bowl – Bacardi O, Razz, Limon, and Dragonberry, mixed with pineapple, cranberry, and orange juices – $14. This one was pleasantly fruity with just a little vodka taste showing through. The bowl drinks would be a good choice for someone looking to nurse a drink for an hour or two, but the hardened alcoholic should probably look elsewhere. The most booze for the money would be a frozen drink with a 151 proof rum floater.
Everything is better when tilted. Maybe I should start making the pictures a little more crooked with each drink. Interested in what kind of a concoction our bartender would create if I asked her for something with bourbon in it, she looked perplexed for a moment and then offered a whiskey and Coke. I agreed that sounded fine. The single ran $6 and I didn’t catch what their house bourbon was. It tasted like Jim Beam, but I had been drinking. You may want to order a simple drink rather than one of the frou-frou bowls.
Overall, our experience at Splitsville was positive, but I regard it as more of a place to grab a bite to eat rather than a place to grab a quality, reasonably priced drink. There’s always bowling too, I suppose House of Blues across the street serves up better, less expensive drinks, particularly during the 3pm – 5pm and 10pm – close happy hours.
In search of another beverage, we headed east. Bongos has three bars inside, all of which were full. It was crackin’ with music, dancing, and a packed restaurant, even after 10pm. We stopped at the outdoor bar, which is surrounded by high top tables.
We last visited Bongos in Part 4 of Downtown Disney Drinking in Depth.
Since it was a humid Florida evening, I went with the Bongos Famous Pina Colada – Our Signature Frozen Drink, made with Spiced Rum and the finest Pina Colada mix – $9. I have no idea what tasted so good in this drink, but it was one of the best pina coladas I’ve ever had. And I may be off base, but the frozen part of the drink tasted like it had been freshly blended, rather than stirring around all day like the Splitsville drinks. It had a nice mushy texture rather than the grainy texture you usually get from a frozen Icee type beverage.
As a fan of anything with a punch, Brian ordered the Havana Punch – The drink with a punch combines Bacardi Limon, Bacardi “O,” Orange, Pineapple, and Cranberry Juice – $9. Brian liked this one as well – I think more than anything we sampled at Splitsville. The outdoor music was fun and the crowd was lively on a Saturday night. While Downtown Disney was much busier overall than I would have initially liked, there was a lot more energy than your typical Tuesday evening. I’m not sure it’s worth braving the crowds, bus lines, and hassle, but it turned out to be a fun night despite the throngs of people.
The mojitos here are excellent too – stuffed full of mint and served with a sugar cane stick.
In closing, consider Splitsville for a bite to eat when the other restaurants are slammed. Bongos is an excellent place to grab a drink at the outdoor bar, particularly in the evening.
Changing gears, we’ll head out to Hollywood Studios on the morning of Monday February 25th. We’re arriving at just about the worst possible time – 9:37am. There’s usually a lull at the turnstiles between 9am – 9:25am. Most people who intended to arrive prior to Park opening are already inside, as the Studios routinely begins admitting guests at or close to 8:45am. Just about everyone in attendance at 8:45am would be in the Park by 8:55am. After that, you’ve got a few stragglers, but more people arrive between 9:45am and 10:45am than any other part of the day.
Despite what looked like a long line at bag check, I was through and to the turnstiles in three minutes.
And I was through the turnstiles in two minutes and on my way up Hollywood Boulevard. Waits at bag check obviously depend on how many checkers they have. Luckily they had plenty this morning, but I’ve arrived when they only have two or three and it takes a lot longer to check Grandma’s fanny pack.
If you’re only going to make one drop during your vacation, I’d suggest making it Hollywood Studios. Toy Story Midway Mania, with its broad appeal and limited capacity, almost always has the longest waits of any ride at any Disney theme park. And FASTPASS return times are almost always further out than any other attraction, at Hollywood Studios or otherwise. As you can see on the clock, it’s just past 9:45am and Toy Story FASTPASS is all the way out to 2:30pm. Virtually any other attraction on property would have FASTPASS with a return time of 10:30am – 11:30am.
When I arrived at Toy Story at 9:50am, FASTPASS was actually all the way out to 3:25pm or a full hour longer than the reader board indicated. This is why the early arrival is so important.
With the 8:25am arrival, you’d be waiting 20 minutes at the turnstiles – it’s true. But you’re saving a whole heck of a lot of time inside the Park. If you arrived at 10am, you’d be looking at a 60 minute wait at Toy Story.
You may remember my Ideal Hollywood Studios Morning Plan as discussed in this post.
- Collect FASTPASSes for Toy Story Mania with a return time of 9:40am – 10:40am.
- Ride Toy Story Mania in the standby line.
- Ride Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster.
- Ride Tower of Terror.
- Collect FASTPASSes for Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster with a return time around 11am – 12pm.
- Ride Toy Story Mania with FASTPASS.
- Ride Star Tours.
- Do whatever.
- Ride Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster with FASTPASS.
- Have lunch.
There are a couple of exceptions. If you want to meet the Toy Story characters across from Toy Story Mania, you want to get in line immediately after riding Toy Story Mania. They greet beginning at 9:15am and will have a 30+ minute wait by 9:45am that won’t dissipate until they take a break during the Parade. Meeting the characters will cause you to wait a minute or two longer at Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster and Tower of Terror, but it won’t be significant.
If you’re interested in participating in Jedi Training Academy, I recommend having a parent along with the kids that want to participate head straight to sign-up at the old Sounds Dangerous building, just past American Idol. If possible, have another person collect FASTPASSes for the group at Toy Story Mania. Once signed up (ask for a show after 12pm), meet at Toy Story Mania and ride in the standby line or skip ahead to the Toy Story characters. If it’s extremely busy or you want to stay ahead of the crowds, meet up at Tower of Terror or Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster instead of riding Toy Story in the standby line.
One newer wrinkle in Studios’ touring is The Legend of Captain Jack Sparrow, which we took an in-depth look at about a quarter of the way down this post. This attraction replaced Prince Caspian in November of last year. This line isn’t quite as long as it looks because only half of the queue is open, but it’s still a 20 to 30 minute wait at 9:50am.
By 10:15am, the wait was a solid 60 minutes. I doubt more than 10% of the people in line know what they’re going to experience inside. But the name recognition, limited capacity, and limited number of things to do at the Studios are causing lines to be long. And as we know, there are few things theme park guests like to do more than get in a long line. After all, if it’s worth someone else’s time, it’s probably worth mine too! If you’re skipping Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster and Tower of Terror, I’d visit Pirates after Toy Story Mania and the Toy Story characters. If you’re planning to do Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster and Tower of Terror, then I’d put off The Legend of Captain Jack Sparrow as long as possible. Ideally, visit during the first Fantasmic if there’s two scheduled. Or otherwise as late as possible when crowds around Toy Story are lower. Another good time to visit would be 2:45pm because the Parade pulls away a lot of families. On one hand, the Pirates attraction is completely skippable in most scenarios, but it’s also one of very few new experiences at Disney World. I would try to make it work, but it isn’t worth waiting much more than 20 minutes.
At 10am, I met up with Darcie and family, whom you may remember from dinner at Raglan Road. They arrived at 8:30am and had been on Toy Story Mania, Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster twice, and Tower of Terror by this time. Sunset Boulevard isn’t looking too clogged.
Tower of Terror has been having significant problems lately. Often, only half of the elevators will be operating, which in turn halves the hourly capacity. Darcie said they got in line with a 5 minute posted wait and ended up waiting 25 minutes, which is the reason why they had only completed so much by 10am. The posted wait just before 10am was 60 minutes. You may want to ride before Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster in the morning or plan to FASTPASS it until it’s fully operational again. I’m trying to think of when Tower of Terror last received an interior refurbishment. They might want to consider it.
Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster is receiving an exterior refurbishment. I was impressed how well the scrim matched the scenery.
Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster was up to a 40 minute wait at 10am with FASTPASSes that were still 40 minutes out. I grabbed one so I could ride with Darcie later. Remember that by arriving at 8:30am, they had already ridden twice and carried FASTPASSes for a 10:35am return, on top of their Toy Story Mania FASTPASSes good for 9:45am – 10:45am.
10:05am and things are still light out on Sunset Boulevard.
This is why you want to arrive prior to Park opening. Hollywood Studios operates with the fewest rides of any major theme park in the world – six if you count Great Movie Ride and Backlot Tour. Even with relatively low crowds at 10:15am, serious waits have developed at the three major attractions. By arriving at 8:30am, you’d already be through all three.
At 10:15am, FASTPASS return for Toy Story was out to 4:45pm with a 60 minute posted wait.
The wait for the Toy Story characters was up to 45 minutes. Had you gotten in line after riding Toy Story at 9:10am, the wait would have been about seven minutes.
After Toy Story with FASTPASSes, it’s time for Star Tours, which actually had a line that stretched all the way out the door.
There must have been some “issue” with the queue as we basically walked straight through the queue for a total wait of around five minutes.
Offering FASTPASS and a large capacity, Star Tours is the lowest priority of the four major attractions. Plan to rely on FASTPASS or ride before 11am or after 7pm to find short waits.
At 11am, we headed back to Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster to use our 10:35am – 11:35am FASTPASSes. Even more people are arriving and the Studios will be at its busiest from 11am – 5pm.
After disembarking Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster at 11:15am, the standby wait was posted at 40 minutes with FASTPASS return 45 minutes out to 12pm. With an 11:30am reservation, Darcie and family opted to grab another set of FASTPASSes for 12pm – 1pm.
So by arriving at 8:30am, they were able to do Toy Story 2x, Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster 3x, Tower of Terror 1x, Star Tours 1x, and they have FASTPASSes for a fourth ride on Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster. Not bad.
If you were to arrive now and hop in the standby line, you’d be waiting the same amount of time to ride Tower of Terror and Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster one time each. Note that FASTPASSes for Toy Story are already gone.
What have we learned?
- Despite being a minor attraction, The Legend of Captain Jack Sparrow needs to be a priority – whether you visit before 9:30am, during the Parade, or as late as possible. Otherwise, you’re looking at a 25 to 60 minute wait.
- Tower of Terror has been having elevator problems and wait times are two to three times as long as they would be otherwise. This is causing even more people to use FASTPASS, which in turn makes return times later and standby waits longer.
- Don’t be worried if Star Tours has a visible line outside before 11am – waits should still be short barring major problems with the simulators.
- Arriving early at Hollywood Studios is essential if you want to experience the big three without long waits.
Archival footage of the entrance to 50’s Prime Time Cafe, where we’ll be having lunch. We last visited in November in the same post as the Captain Jack Sparrow information. My last experience was pretty lousy, with a sampler plate that had obviously been sitting under a heat lamp for some time. The entrees came out less than five minutes after ordering and the appetizer onion rings actually came out after the entrees were delivered.
Blurry menu:
Like a lot of Disney restaurants, including all the restaurants at Hollywood Studios, 50’s Prime Time offers one menu all day. Blame the Dining Plan.
50’s is known for its milk shakes:
These got good scores fromTim and his daughter, though he mentioned that they’re usually served in a nice glass with the malt cup containing a little extra on the side.
Darcie and I went with Diet Cokes flavored with cherry and vanilla respectively. It’s a nice little twist on your standard soft drink. Unlike the milk shakes, refills are free.
Tim started with Grandpa’s Crab Cake – Lump Crab Cake served on Succotash with Bacon, Chili Sauce, and crispy Onions – $9.49.
This is a cake in the same way a hamburger is a hot dog. When the “cousin” put the plate down, she even introduced it as the “crab salad,” which is what it is – a crab salad with just a little bit of crab in it. It looks like more than it is because it’s being propped up by unadvertised avocado. Amusingly(?) Tim didn’t eat much of the avocado and the cousin came to harass him about it. I said I was allergic to avocado, which is why it wasn’t eaten. The cousin replied with a smile, “You’re not really allergic…” I smiled back, picked up my fork, took a large bite, and said, “We’ll see.” This seemed to make the cousin a little nervous. Luckily I’m not allergic.
This time the Onion Rings – Beer-Battered Onion Rings and Horseradish Sauce – $6.49 came out in front of the entrees. They were nice and crispy and didn’t taste a whole lot like onion to me, which was fine. Don’t expect a thick cut onion and a light batter. The horseradish sauce could have just as easily been ranch dressing. It wasn’t bitter at all – probably because people don’t necessarily like horseradish. I would have preferred something a little more pungent.
Tim’s son ordered the Chicken Noodle Soup – Hearty Mixture of Chicken, Vegetables, and Egg Noodles – $6.99. He said it didn’t have a lot of chicken in it, but was just fine otherwise. At seven bucks, it seems to be at least two dollars overpriced.
Tim and his daughter each ordered the sampler. They seemed to be satisfied enough and there at least isn’t a film over the potatoes this time. The meatloaf continues to be dry, even with the drizzle and the pot roast is salty and fatty.
But the chicken is good! The standard Aunt Liz’s Golden Fried Chicken served with Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Chicken Gravy, and Collard Greens with Bacon – $16.99 includes three sizable pieces of chicken along with a healthy scoop of potatoes and the collard greens which few people probably eat.
Mom’s Old-fashioned Pot Roast – Slow-cooked ’til tender served with Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Brown Gravy, Carrots, Celery, and Onions. Darcie seemed to enjoy it, though she may want to interject with an additional opinion. It looks kind of sad on the plate.
Changing things up a bit, I went with Grandma’s Chicken Pot Pie – A Creamy Cheese mixture of Chicken, Mushrooms, Carrots, Celery, Onions, and Peas, topped with a flaky pastry – $17.99.
I actually enjoyed this quite a bit and I’m hoping it wasn’t terribly unhealthy. The broth was creamy without being heavy and it was full of hot baked chicken. The bottom is lined with pastry as well, so you might consider it a “deconstructed chicken pie” if you wanted to be fancy about it. There were only a few mushrooms and onions, which I didn’t object to. I think the smart money at 50s Prime Time is to stay away from the big three – the pot roast, chicken, and meatloaf. There was a family from France next to us and they seemed to be particularly amused by my picture taking. They ordered Salmon Caesar Salads and a Blue Plate Special that looked good from afar. I personally wouldn’t order the pot roast or meatloaf as an entree.
Others may have had better experiences recently. 50’s has a good reputation, but I’m not sure if that’s based more on meals from 2010 rather than 2013. If you’ve been to 50s in the last six months, you could share your opinions, good or bad.
Next up is a look around the interactive queue at Big Thunder Mountain.
Thank you for the update on the 50s lunch – we are headed there in June – I was thinking about the combo of the famous 3 – but think I’ll take your suggestion and order the chicken and a cherry diet coke! Thanks again for the update – always like reading what you have to say!
Thanks again for such detailed info on TSMM. I’ve been wanting/needing/searching for info about when the RTs are in the afternoon. It looks like a 10am FP pull will get me a 4:30ish RT, which is what I want.
We ate at 50’s in January. Hubs had the sampler, I had pot roast. Both were delicious. Daughter had mac & cheese which she said was “yucky”. Coming from a child that will eat ANYTHING – that’s really saying something. But she also didn’t eat the mac & cheese from Columbia Harbor House the night before so I think it’s just Mickey Mac & Cheese that she didn’t like, not exclusive to 50’s. She did eat quite a bit of the food off of our plates. I had some sort of apple something for dessert (don’t remember the name) and it was fine but I wouldn’t order it again – didn’t really like the crunchy stuff that was on top. Hubs had the parfait for dessert and insisted it was the best thing he’s ever eaten. We went right at 5:00 so maybe getting the early dinner seating meant our food hadn’t sat out for very long? This was our third time eating there in three years and we’ve had great experiences every time. I can see how the “cousin” thing could get old. We actually ended up with the same waitress this trip that we had on our very first visit three years ago. She made DH sing I’m a Little Teapot on that trip because he had his phone out at the table so we remembered her well. For us, that was funny. For others, that might be annoying. Guess it just depends on family preferences.
Our party of 3 adult women and my 9 year old niece ate there in November, splitting 3 meals between us. Cousin Tim was a treasure!!
We split 2 samplers and ?? something else. Everything was very, very good, although I passed on the fried chicken.
The Boston Cream parfait was every bit as good as the bread pudding at ‘Ohana. Unfortunately, it was still very early in our trip, and I was sticking to my diet perfectly, and limited myself to 4 tiny spoonfuls of the parfait.
Oh, for a time machine to go back and eat every single mouthful of that parfait.
This meal was definitely better than our previous dinner a few years previously. All in all, with starting our meals with 2 shakes and a vanilla Coke (and a water for me), we were unable to finish 3 meals and 3 desserts between the 4 of us.
On a different matter, it was amusing to discover that we had traveled almost 2100 km to WDW, only to be seated right next to folks who lived 40 km away from our home.
I’ve always had good experiences at 50s Prime Time. While I thought the pot roast was good I enjoyed the poached salmon better. However, their servings are too big! For my next trip I’m sticking with a couple appetizers instead.
JenniferS, I so agree about the Boston parfait! I seldom here anyone mention it..but its actually my favourite dessert at WDW!
Josh, great blog as always.
I’m envious of the fun interactions with the waitstaff other posters reported – we just ate at 50’s last week after not trying it for several years after our last experience with a waiter who just wasn’t into the experience. I’ve always felt the food there was mediocre, but the decor and fun makes it worth the $60 for Onion Rings, 2 Entrees and 2 sodas.
Unfortunately, our experience last week was also disappointing. Our “cousin” was pleasant, but began by telling us he had “just been redeployed from California Grill, and we probably knew more about the restaurant than he did”. I asked him if he’d like us to act sophisticated to make him feel more at home. This drew a laugh from him, but that was the end of any kind of display of personality – it was like being waited on at any other restaurant. (They weren’t busy, so I don’t think that was it).
I still think everyone should try it – decor is Disney at its best – I would just manage my expectations. {:–)
“the collard greens which few people probably eat.”
…and that’s a shame, because those greens are darn good. Not over-cooked, bacony and delicious.
I never realized how few rides Hollywood Studios has. And half of them are “skip-able” if you’ve done them before. A lot of people say Animal Kingdom is a “half day” park but I’d consider Hollywood Studios one before Animal Kingdom. After you ride Toy Story, Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster, Tower of Terror, Star Tours and even Great Movie you can pretty much leave the park. There are some shows that are fun to see but I haven’t seen the Indian Jones show in probably 10 years and I doubt it’s much different.
I wouldn’t be too happy if I were only at Disney for a long weekend and one of the days was used on Hollywood Studios.
Visited 50’s last September. I hate to say it but I was unimpressed. I was hoping to get heckled since I love being given a hard time whilst eating, but Cuz barely phoned it in. Chicken makes a cameo at best in the Noodle Soup.
Still, I’d give it another shot.
I was at 50s earlier this month, my first time back since a bad experience in July. My sister and I shared the chicken pot pie, and we were both surprised by how good it was. It was light on the mushrooms, which was pleasing. I enjoyed the PBJ shake, though the PB flavor overwhelmed the J. My sister always has to order the brownie sundae.
The only time the pot roast has been disappointing was when we ordered the sampler. I definitely wouldn’t order the meatloaf, and there’s better fried chicken elsewhere (like Publix).
Went to 50PT two weeks ago and got the fried chicken as always–I’m crazy that way. The chicken is consistently tasty and HOT, I’ve never been disappointed with it. (You get 4 pieces, by the way, not 3.). The only occasional complaint I have there is slow service, but that is usually not too bad.
I don’t know if this has consistently been the case with TOT, but as far back as my trip at the end of November, they were only running one elevator.
Can one take an alcoholic drink “to go” and walk around DTD with it? For example, that Bongos piña colada!
I was there in Nov (week before Thanksgiving) and Tower of Terror was also only using half of it’s elevators then. I think it may be time for an update. We also ate at 50’s and I had the sampler which was actually really good. The meatloaf wasn’t very dry and the pot roast was just like mom used to make. We also ate earlier in the day (around 4:30pm – 5:00pm) so I would have to agree that the earlier you go the better the food. It’s sad that this park has such few attractions. I remember it being a favorite of mine when I was a kid but now I agree it’s a total half day park. I do miss the Roger Rabbit warehouse though. When will Disney announce the expansion to HS?
I think out of all the parks I cared for Hollywood studios the least, yeah it has Toy Story which is fun… but not as fun as the waits suggest (ditto with Soaring at Epcot), and then there’s the Rock’n Rollercoaster and Tower of Terror, overall not much to do there. You covered this in another post way back when, where all the backdrops and what not are as it’s wasted space, sure there are some tours and shows and what not but overall it’s a lot of walking to do 3 rides (4 if you’re big into Star Tours)
I had no idea The Legend of Captain Jack Sparrow was still so popular. Thanks for the tip about getting there early (or really late)!
As for 50’s PT, we crossed it off the list once they went to an all day menu 🙁 They used to have a fantastic stacked sandwich at lunch time. Call me old fashioned, I guess, but I just don’t want such “heavy” meals at lunchtime…
Had to laugh at your “we’ll see” reaction to the allergy denial, lol. Too bad PTC doesn’t have a FDP or I might eat there, since all I’ll really do at DHS now is ride RnRC and maybe TSM. Love Fantasmic. The kiddo hates 3D and won’t ride Star Tours any more, and now that we’ve done the new version once we probably won’t do it again without her. Hubby likes TSM but has done it twice now and probably won’t want to wait to ride it again. I’ll still stop in at DHS if just to ride RnRC and see Fantasmic but that’s about it until they expand and maybe have a mini Cars Land or Monsters Inc attraction (or any other new thing).
Are there alternatives for sides at 50’s PT? The chicken looks good but I’m not a fan of mashed potatoes.
Geez… another TS menu change that’s for the birds. My DW’s “entree” of choice at 50’s PT has been to order the appetizer crab cake (the real one) and the lettuce wedge together. With this recent change from a “cake” to a near-crab-less “mound” I doubt she’ll go for that. One more reason for us to stick with Mama Melrose, as if the opportunity for a carafe of sangria wasn’t enough…
This made me hungry for sushi. Yum.
@Wendy. Yes, you can change your sides. I often swap out the greens for corn, usually with a mock scolding from my cousin.
My party of 8 had a late lunch at 50’s last August. It was not a good experience. We had a variety of entrees but none were loved. I had the fried chicken and it tasted like the sort you’d get in a frozen dinner or at a school banquet. The atmosphere was disappointing as well. We were sat at the first table inside the door, our waitress was just surly and tired instead of fun, and there was a leak in the bathroom so they closed down the whole bar and you couldn’t get a beer.
We were late for our AR so perhaps they were trying to punish us.
It’s Uncle Gary’s CRAB SALAD you were served and not Grandpa’s Crab Cake. We love eating at 50s for lunch on the day we fly out. The food is always good and not too adventurous for an evening of flying.
We ate at 50’s PT in early February and had a good time. Our server was “into it”, but not annoyingly over the top. Fried chicken was good, and heck yes I ate the collard greens. (With enough butter and bacon grease, it could be green colored newsprint and still taste good.) In fact, the highlight for our 6 & 9 boys was the server feeding me the scraps “airplane” style.
It looks like Tim may have actually been served Uncle Gary’s Blue Crab Salad instead of the Crab Cake.
I cant believe you ordered a drink with KoolAid. Oh wait… yes i can! 🙂
We ate at 50’s PTC during Presidents week. I had the sampler, wife had the chicken, daughter had the Mac and cheese. All very good and we ate at about 11:15 AM. Our waitress was fine, not too over the top, but just enough to enjoy. We love the place, and t was much better than our lunch their last year, when we had seriously considered NEVER going back. The milkshake I recieved did not come with the metal cup, just the glass of milkshake, which I thought we odd. We did get the onion rings as an appetizer. I thought they were incredible! Overall, we will return with our in-laws next February.
As a friend of the site, I’d like to echo the praise for the bongos drinks. I stuck around after Josh left and enjoyed some latin music and another punch. The outside bar was nice on a crowded sat night
I was also at the studios that same day. I would have been there by 8:45 but the bus from The resort was full and I had to wait for the next one. I walked through the turnstiles at 9. Toy story already had a 45 min wait and fp for 10:35. Walked onto rock coaster twice then had about 20 min wait for third ride. Line said 40 min after that. Tower said 15 min but I actually waited 45 in standby.
Is that a typical recommended day? I would hate to see it on a day to avoid. Yuck.
Toy story broke down for an hour or more. I used my fp at around 11:30 after it reopened and when I got off the line said 120 min.
We just ate at 50s PT last week. I tried the chicken pot pie for the first time and was surprised at how tasty it was. Would definitely get that again. My husband got the fried chicken, as he always does and was not disappointed, although he does prefer the chicken at Trail’s End/HDDR over 50s PT. I WAS disappointed in the S’mores dessert. Not my fave and would not get again. Overall, 50s PT is still a “must-do” for us at HS. Sci Fi is another story, however…
We were on Toy Story when it broke down that morning. I think that was the first time I was ever unloaded from a stopped ride – it’s more involved than I imagined (for a ride you’d think you could just hop off of).
50’s is one of the two worst meals we have ever had on Disney property. Absolutely horrible meal January ’12. The fish I ordered, as well as the table next to us, was first delivered seared, but completely frozen inside. Both were sent back, but instead of cooking a new piece of fish for either, they just cooked the original fish until completely inedible…literally the consistency of leather. Bad service, bad food, etc. Not to mention that even with a reservation, we were seated at a plain old table on the back side of the restaurant, next to the bathroom hallway. Never again. Before that time, it was great.
at 50s ptc a lot of the allure has to do with your server . that said had the sampler dec 12 was delish . server was fantastic . have had him twice in the last 10 years. wish i could have his service everytime.
We ate at 50’s while we were there in January. It wasn’t first on my list, but we wound up moving around our reservations and it was the best meal we had the whole time we were there! The pork chop was very good, and the vegetarian spaghetti and meatballs was (in my vegetarian opinion anyway) awesome. We went with the fried cheese to start since i’d read good things about it, and it was okay but not amazing. S’mores for dessert, though, are a must!
We thought the chicken was really good when we were there in December.
I had a Josh sighting on this day! At RNR while waiting for my husband to finish up on single rider. I wanted to say something but was afraid I’d be scary stalky internet lady. Hi, Josh! It made my trip. Sad but true.
First two times we went to 50s in April of 2011 and Janurary of 2012 the food was great, but the last 2 times we went (June 2012 and Dec 2012) the food was sub-par. The staff was still good though.
We were there the 25th too! We were at turnstiles well before 8:30, skipped TS completely, proceeded to RnRC (almost alone), then ToT X2, back to RnRC, off to Star Tour X2 or 3, then Muppets, then 11:15 Indiana Jones made Mama M’s for 12 pm lunch!!! Asked the server to get us to Lights for the 1:20 show and she did. Not a bad morning.