Welcome back James Hummel with a rousing review of the Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue at Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground. You may want to kick up your heels after this fun read! By the way — don’t forget that Hoop Dee Doo experienced a few changes after a copyright battle this summer…
Hoop Dee Doo Revue Review – Yee ha! I had read and heard many things about Hoop Dee Doo Revue leading up to my last vacation. I was always reluctant to attend Pioneer Hall as it never seemed like an accessible location. Since I was staying in the Cabins at Fort Wilderness, it was the perfect opportunity to check out one of the most talked about dining experiences in Walt Disney World.
If you aren’t staying at Fort Wilderness, Wilderness Lodge or the Contemporary, Pioneer Hall can be a challenge to get to. In most cases you have to make your way to either the Magic Kingdom and hop on the Fort Wilderness boat (recommended) or get to one of the other 3 parks and take the Fort Wilderness bus (not recommended; it will end up being a 2-bus ride as you have to take a second internal bus to get to the hall). If you are staying at Wilderness Lodge or the Contemporary, it’s a simple and relaxing boat ride.
Atmosphere
Once at Fort Wilderness and Pioneer Hall, you’ll feel like you’re in an old Western town, complete with horse carriages and a Trading Post. Kids can have fun before and after the show in the sizable playground and with old time games like horseshoes (rubber shoes for safety). If you time your reservation right, you can sit on the Bay Lake beach and catch Wishes and the Electrical Water Pageant.
So, what’s the dinner show all about?
Inside the hall, you feel like you are sitting in an old stage saloon. Families sit at large tables on the lower level or in the balcony. We sat on the lower level, under the balcony. Our table was taller so that we could see over the other tables, and we sat on swivel chairs so we could swing around while we were eating.
Eats
Dinner is served family style and is all-you-care-to-eat. When we sat down we were provided with fresh corn bread with butter, and tossed salad. The bread was very tasty, and thankfully not dry (can’t stand dry corn bread). The salad was OK. A typical tossed salad.
We were also served all you can drink beer, wine, or Sangria in addition to other non-alcoholic beverages. My brother-in-law and I enjoyed the beer, while my wife tried the Sangria. I would pass on the Sangria. It seemed bitter to me.
Dinner came shortly after and included Fried chicken, Ribs, Corn, Mashed potatoes, and Cowboy beans.
Let’s talk about the protein first: the ribs were OK but the Chicken was fantastic. The chicken was very moist and the skin was very crispy. I love me some crispy fried chicken.
The winner of the meal though was the Cowboy beans. The beans contained loads of pulled pork. I could have eaten the beans as an entire meal.
For dessert we had strawberry shortcake. The cake was moist and the strawberry topping was not overly sweet. If I wasn’t filled up on chicken, I would have had a hearty serving. (Editor’s Note: This looks like a different Strawberry Shortcake than what we were served on my last visit. Can anyone concur?)
The Show
As good as the meal was, the real reason I was at Pioneer Hall was for the show. The Revue was fantastic. The show just doesn’t happen on the stage but all around you. There is lots of guest interaction going on.
I won’t give too much of the show away, as you really need to experience it in person. The dancing and singing get your feet tapping.
The jokes may be corny but they are also family friendly. I was afraid that my three year old son would get bored with the show, but he was glued to the action. He barely ate his dinner for all the action going on. Oh, and fair warning, the finale is LOUD!
Overall
The only negative part of the experience was the service: I think the Cast Members have too many tables to handle in such a short period of time. We had to wait for our drinks and I still haven’t been served the extra fried chicken we asked for.
The Hoop Dee Revue is a fantastic experience. It may be kinda pricey (we were on the dining plan so we had to use 2 credits, but I think the bill was over $200 for the 5 of us) but I will return to Pioneer Hall on my next trip. Yee Ha!!
Has your family hooped it up at the Hoop Dee Doo? Let us know what you thought about the food and/or the show!
Heather says
I do believe that is a different version of Strawberry Shortcake from the one I had on my last visit to to Pioneer Hall. I have also found that the service at HDDR is slow . . . drinks are slow to come to the table and that all you can drink option is really frowned upon . . . we were in fact warned by our server when we ordered our second round that this was a family friendly establishment. Really? Two drinks each during dinner and we’re getting a warning. (We were not misbehaving–we just asked nicely for refills after the salad course.) I suppose if you drank an entire pitcher of Sangria there might be an issue, but a couple of beers or glasses of wine during dinner should not be a problem.
James (Disneynorth) says
Heather– Funny enough, we received beer refills without asking! I saw quite a few pitchers sitting on tables.
Morgan @ Becoming Rooks says
Heather, I really find it depends on who you have as a server. We’ve had the servers who chastise you for drinking too much and are slow to bring refills of sangria and some who keep bringing pitcher after pitcher and just seem to enjoy seeing us all get a little happy. We had our wedding rehearsal dinner there and our waitress was very happy to keep the sangria coming!
We’ll be at HDD in two weeks! I am excited to see the changes!
kirsten says
I did not find it difficult to get to the show. I drove my car over to Fort Wilderness and took the first bus over to pioneer hall. At the end of the show there were lots of buses waiting to take people back, it was way easier than I thought it was going to be.
Estelle says
Did that come to $40 pp including using the dining credits? I really think that’s a reasonable price for food, drink, and a show.
Thanks for the overview. I always forget about this for dinner. I probably haven’t seen this in over 10 years. Must return! I loved it as a kid.
robert craig says
great show was there september this year loved the cheesecake
marcellina says
We went in Sept 2007 on our wedding trip with our extended family and had a great time! I would definitely say if at all possible drive to Fort Wilderness and then take a bus to the show.. it was really quick and easy that way. I don’t remember the food being particularly great but I’m sure I enjoyed the beans (I’m a bean girl though.. haha). The show was great and it was fun to see everyone getting involved. I think it’s a must do for frequent Disney visitors but I don’t think I would do this on every trip… maybe every few years or so.
marcellina says
btw, I think this dinner show is more fun with a big group.. if it were just my husband and I we probably wouldn’t do it but if you have kids or a large group of family or friends it would be really fun!
Catherine says
Response here would have been “and this family wants more booze.”
Chrissy says
I saw HDD a few years ago, and while the server wasn’t mean about bringing refills, I never did get to have my strawberry shortcake that night because everyone else at the table got theirs except for me. Other than that, I’d go see it again – and hopefully get my strawberry shortcake this time.
Mark D. says
I was brought a pitcher after the second refill. Probably depends on the server.
Tink says
HDD is my favorite thing in the world! Of course, we get the all-you-can-drink Sangria which makes everything fabulous 🙂
Nikki says
love love love!!!! this show and will go time and time again! Highly highly recommend!!!
Diana says
Great revue for a great experience. It’s one of those out of the way things that people might not think about it. What a great way to take a break from the parks.
Lauren says
The strawberry shortcake is definitely different, and the new version is WONDERFUL. It was one of my favorite desserts all week!
Jason says
Ate here tonight (12.27.11). Great experience as always. Service was excellent. My wife’s sangria, and my beer, were never became empty without another waiting on the table. Plenty of food. It was a great time.
James (Disneynorth) says
Kirsten and Marcellina — I wondered if you could park at the front of the resort. I guess that’s a yes! That makes sense since there are other activities (horse back riding). Then again, if you take advantage of the free refills on the adult beverages, you don’t want to drive…
James (Disneynorth) says
Estelle — According to another site, I would have been in Category 2 seating, which made it $63 per adult and $31 per child. My bill may have been closer to $250. Still a great deal.
Annie says
We went in March of 2013. In my opinion it is a must see? The strawberry shortcake might have been different but it was delish. I actually came across this site looking for the recipe:) the entertainment was great and the servers ate a little slow. When they act rude it’s part if the show. Ours slammed the bucket of chicken on the table… Don’t miss it! Food is good, entertainment was better. Kids were never bored.