50s Prime Time Café
Disney-MGM
Lunch
Date of Visit:	3/3/2007
Time of Visit:	13:30
Adults in Party:	6
Children in Party:	1
Total Cost:	$125.60
Average Price Per Adult:	$20.27
Ten Point Scale
Food:	8.0
Value:	8.5
Service:	8.0
Environment:	9.0
Overall Rating:	8.4

The idea behind this eatery is a cute one: diners would be transported back to the 1950s and would eat in an idealized kitchen from the era, googie designs on the tables and black and white televisions blaring overhead. To complete the illusion, servers and hosts and bussers engage in nonstop roleplay: this is your aunt's kitchen, and not only are plates to be licked clean, elbows are categorically not allowed on the table. They mean it; one patron near us was made in mock-seriousness to stand and sing "I'm a little teapot" as penance for too many elbow transgressions. One member of my party ended up finishing all the food on his plate because he was scared of what our server might do (though he was joking... I think). It's done in fun, but majorly shy types may still wish to consider carefully if they can handle the attention.

Don't miss the chance to add flavor shots to sodas ($3); we liked the blackberry, watermelon, or sour apple additions to sprite. Each tasted like a liquid Jolly Rancher in that flavor.

The onion ring appetizer ($6) was oily, but the horseradish rather than ranch made for interesting flavors. We found the fried chicken ($15) to be good, with a solid array of spices and a fairly high quality of meat. That said, takeout chicken away from Disney is often just as good, and about a third of the price. The chargrilled chicken sandwich ($14) was bland, and desperately needed a sauce to spice up the entire affair. The predominant flavor was that of charcoal--at least they really grilled it. The chicken pot pie ($14) was flaky, salty, and all-around excellent. We'd get that one again. The turkey stack sandwich ($12) was very dry, and very average. We would not recommend this one. The clear winner was the meatloaf ($13), nicely spiced and baked just right. The interaction with the mashed potatoes and nearby gravy can only be described as peppery goodness. Alas, the uneven nature of the meal concluded with a downer in the form of the pot roast ($16), which suffered not only from overcooking and a burned-in flavor, but also some fatty and disgusting pieces of meat discovered only late into the meal.

The child's meal of grilled chicken strips ($7) was bland, but our four year old liked it. Ditto the marainara macaroni. The side items (fruit, beans) were not flexible, and tasted like health food. The peanut butter and jelly shake ($5) tasted only like peanut butter - either there was a mixup, or the one flavor is too overpowering. The hot fudge sundae ($5) was about what you'd expect, only larger. A good treat are the s'mores ($5), served hot, light, fluffy, and very rich. 

Refills were extremely slow, and service was in general spotty. We had been shown to our table originally before it was bussed, and asked to return a few minutes later. Our server seemed absent, and almost certainly overworked. The fun atmosphere of the role-play livened up the place, but the slow staff and slow kitchen made the entire event stretch to 90 minutes, despite our advanced reservations.