Planet Hollywood

Although we had visited Planet Hollywood at Downtown Disney before, we had only ever eaten sandwiches and burgers there before now. We had really enjoyed the meals we had there, but were under the impression that the proper dinner menu was much more expensive. However, the fact that Planet Hollywood was now on the Disney Dining Plan meant that we could try different meals there at no risk to our finances!

We therefore had a reservation at Planet Hollywood on Friday, November 11, 2011, not knowing that this was Veteran's Day in the USA. As a consequence, when we got to Downtown Disney it was really crowded, and as we approached Planet Hollywood, we saw something I hadn't seen in years -- a long line to get in! We were amazed at how crowded it was everywhere, but fortunately we had a reservation -- we don’t usually bother with bookings here as Planet Hollywood is never normally very busy! We checked in at the podium downstairs, and then still had quite a long wait before being sent upstairs. However, there were lots of people who were still waiting for a table to open up, long after we had been seated (we were watching them)! We bypassed the massive queue that ran two-thirds of the way down the stairs, thanks to our reservation. We still had to wait a little longer upstairs, but were seated after about 5 minutes. We ordered glasses of pink lemonade and Sprite, and then perused the menu for a while. Eventually, Charlie ordered the half chicken with mashed potatoes and vegetables, and I had the ribeye steak with fries and vegetables. We waited absolutely ages for the food, although to be fair, the restaurant was extremely busy that night. We watched as a couple of ladies at the table next to us had their food delivered, then ate it all, while we were still waiting to be fed!

When our dinner finally arrived, we thought that the food was clearly freshly-cooked, being hot and very fresh tasting, and Charlie was adamant that this was the best chicken he had ever had. My steak was fabulous, cooked really well and very tender. The vegetables were gorgeous ! I had some sliced yellow thing that was really tasty, although I've got no idea what it actually was! The fries here are always outstanding, really crisp and delicious.

When it came to ordering dessert, Charlie decided he wanted a particular cheesecake on the menu, (some kind of Jack Daniels dessert), but was told he couldn't have it on the dining plan! How bizarre. We asked why, and were told that it was something to do with the way they order in their supplies, some cheesecakes are ordered in individual portions, and some are whole. Therefore, he could have had one type of cheesecake but not the other! Slightly irritated by this, he finally ordered the key lime pie, while I had the strawberry cheesecake. These desserts were very good, but not particularly outstanding; however, this impression may have had more to do with our being slightly disgruntled about the whole cheesecake incident, rather than the quality of the desserts themselves being under par.

The food was all very good indeed, and we were very glad we had tried a more adventurous meal at this restaurant. We do love the atmosphere in this place, but the service was incredibly slow on this occasion. Two table service credits later plus tip, and we left. Surprisingly, even though it was around 9.00 pm at this point, there were still big groups of people hanging around downstairs, waiting to get in!

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Planet Hollywood exterior at night

About the Author: Carolyn lives in the UK, first fell in love with Walt Disney World in 1989, and has visited 10 times since then, as well as six visits to Disneyland Paris. Her dream is to live in a fairytale castle with her handsome prince; failing that, regular visits to any Disney park anywhere in the world will do!