Where have all the farmers gone?

Image: Jett Farrell-Vega

We were flabbergasted by the utter absence of anything farm fresh in the meal. Even on the vegetarian plate, I don’t think we ever saw so much as a green bean beyond the mashed potatoes and corn, both of which may have been worthy of a spot in a Hungry Man frozen dinner but certainly not at a flagship restaurant in Walt Disney World. While the restaurant wasn’t necessarily the healthiest choice in the past, it did at least have some healthy options. Those appeared to be gone as well.

With the salad failing to make the cut, it truly made us question if there’s really any garden left in The Garden Grill. While we generally try not to complain, we ended up cordially raising our concerns to the server, particularly regarding the vegetarian meal. The chef came out and was polite but ended up misinterpreting our complaint by suggesting he could make something off-menu or bring us up something from Sunshine Seasons. We were basically told that plenty of people like the new menu and that, while they were willing to accommodate us, they had no issue assuming the meal they served was adequate for the average guest for the price. The vegetarians in our party were a bit embarrassed about the whole thing and ended up just opting to leave it be. We piddled through the meal, but there was no getting around it: it was terrible, nowhere near the previous quality of this formerly excellent restaurant.

Steakhouse prices for a Sizzler-quality supper…

Image: Jett Farrell-Vega

If the waning of the restaurant’s farm-friendly vision wasn’t bad enough, prices have stayed at the $40-$50 a person range, just as it was when The Garden Grill wowed guests with stunning spreads of fresh vegetables, marinated steak, and hot cobblers. For a company that makes two billion dollars a year in profits, it didn’t just feel like a bad value. It felt insulting, particularly knowing just how insanely good this restaurant had been not five years previous.

The strange shift in quality at The Garden Grill carries the distinct funk of the ever-shifting world of Disney budget cuts and price increases. While this is only conjecture, it seems obvious that somewhere in upper management, the call was made to adjust to a menu that would be cheap to produce, easy to replicate, and would maximize profits while minimizing costs. While this is good business to a point, it could be argued Disney has made the questionable jump from good business to taking advantage of guests.

Indeed, after we paid the bill and were heading out, something happened that I have never seen in thirty years visiting Disney World: the manager came out and gave us a full refund, a set of Fastpasses for Soarin’, and offered to comp a meal at Sunshine Seasons for our vegetarian guests after listening to the same concerns I’ve listed in this article. I would emphasize not expecting this sort of thing if you have a bad dining experience—Disney’s guest service is amazing, but they usually find other ways to accommodate disappointed diners. I don’t know whether this was Disney going above and beyond or whether it was because one of our party members let it slip that I’m a writer, but it was the one gesture that left me hope that at least someone is listening at the Garden Grill.

For now, we’ve decided to consign the Garden Grill to our own list of Disney lost legends: the farm-fresh, sustainable rotating restaurant that appears to be on its dying breath.