Join us in welcoming guest author Eric Lane! Today, he’s sharing a review of Les Chefs de France in Walt Disney World’s Epcot. Bon Appetit!
Based on its location and consistently solid food quality it’s no wonder that Les Chefs is one of the most popular establishments in Epcot.
Atmosphere
Sitting right on the promenade of World Showcase Lagoon, Chefs de France is a prominent restaurant. Built to replicate a French bistro, the large open interior is fronted by a long, glass sunroom. Those walking along the World Showcase Lagoon can see the diners all the way in the back, and those in the back can see all of those walking by.
Les Chefs de France Window Tables
Our reservation was at 8:50PM and a positively bubbly maître d’ seated us right in the middle of the sunroom window. Seats against the glass were for two, we were one row away from the window. Because the whole restaurant is an open room, you can see all the waiters, everyone getting up and down, and all the people walking outside.
Les Chefs de France Back Sunroom at Night
A large floodlight outside provided an amber warmth that calmed all the hustle and bustle.
Front of Les Chefs de France at Night
We ate as the restaurant closed and slowly cleared until it was just our table and about 5 others when we were finished at 9:45PM.
Eats
Since we were at a French restaurant I decided to start with the French onion soup. The cheese was a little sharper than I thought it would be, which caught me off guard. Although unexpected it added a welcome bite to the flavor. The onion and beef flavors were much more subtle, but the cheese didn’t overpower them.
French Onion Soup
Another unusual touch was that I got the heel of the bread, which made it a little difficult to cut out a good hunk of bread with my spoon. Overall good, but not enough to stop me from sampling another appetizer next time I eat here.
The next dish was the ungainly titled “Filet de Saumon, pommes de terre ecrasess, au buerre et chboulette, sur coulis de tomate et poivron rouge.” That was the bold faced name of the dish, but instead of saying it while ordering or the direct English translation of “broiled salmon, smashed potatoes with butter and chives, served on a tomato and red pepper sauce” I was able to get away with just asking for the salmon filet. I appreciated that the sauce was not served on the salmon, but placed on the plate before the potatoes and salmon. It let me dip the salmon in the slightly spicy sauce and get just the right amount on the fish for my taste.
Salmon
The salmon itself was perfectly cooked and seasoned with a little black pepper and just enough other spices to bring out the flavor of the fish. The potatoes were simple and added nothing of note to the dish other than a starch. It was a good, straightforward main course. (Note; the accompaniments on this dish have changed on the menu since the review was written.)
My friend, who despite not being a foodie is my BDFF (best Disney friend forever), had the baked macaroni with cream and gruyere cheese. She enjoyed it but I absolutely loved it. Flavorful, simple, and among the best mac and cheese you’ll find at Walt Disney world.
Baked Macaroni
She saved about half of it for the next day and reheated it in the microwave in Café Rix at Coronado Springs. Mac and cheese is sometimes best experienced the next day, right? This held its flavor well and didn’t turn greasy. Unfortunately the cheese didn’t remelt. It wasn’t quite as good as at the previous day but made for a fine lunch.
Her husband had the beef tenderloin. I didn’t sample it but he cleaned his plate. A man of few words, he declared it “good.”
Beef Tenderloin
We finished by splitting an absolutely decadent strawberry cream cake. The strawberries were crisp. The filling creamy and not overly sweet, and the cake was light and perfect. I’d go as far as to say this is now among my favorite desserts at Disney World.
Strawberry Shortcake
Overall
It shouldn’t be surprising by now that Les Chefs de France is a fine restaurant with solid food and a great view of the World Showcase promenade. It’s one of the few places that, since it opened back in 1982, hasn’t changed that much. It’s understandable because, as they say, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
A final note: even though our reservation was around the time of IlumiNations and the entire front of the restaurant was a window, Chefs de France does not provide a great view. There are trees and small stands in the way, and people lining the railing around the lagoon. Go for the food, not the IllumiNations view.
Have you dined at Les Chefs de France recently? What dishes do you recommend?
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I am sure you will get either people that like or dislike and very few in between because that seems to be the case with this place.
Unfortunately I am on the latter and will not give it another shot, 3 strikes, yes 3 and your out for me.
Service on all 3 visits has been bad, Out of the 6 meals my wife and I have tried and 4 apps we have tired 2 meals and 2 apps have been noteworthy.
Most recently I tried the scallops and shrimp. 3 pieces of shrimp the size of a quarter and 2 scallops the size of a dime. Sauce was watery. I was not even done my French onion soup when dinner came and the servers response was “well I have to put this somewhere on this table and when your finally done you can get to it.”
No more no more!!
I absolutely love Chef’s de France! I agree their french onion soup is quite delicious but my favorite is the “Filet de boeuf grille, sauce au poivre vert Gratin Dauphinois et haricots verts – Grilled tenderloin of beef with green peppercorn sauce original potato gratin of Savoy and green beans. It’s fantastic.
Had a number of lunches here over the years. Never a bad one. Always enjoy the place. Not bad for faux French.
I love Chef’s de France! It’s one of my “don’t miss” restaurants each trip to WDW.
Thanks for taking the time to write this review! The strawberry cake does look lovely.
We ate at Chefs de France the end of May. As to be expected, the place was packed due to all the promotion it has been given, the wait staff wasn’t rude just harried by the number of people. Obviously by 9 pm, the place is much more relaxed but we couldn’t wait that long with younger grandchildren. Something not mentioned is that if you’re on a dining plan you are restricted to the Prix Fixe menu. Which was OK. My wife got the onion soup and I got the salad as the appetizers. We also got a cheese plate (at extra cost but that was explained to us by the waiter) which as pretty good. My main complaint was the entree. My wife got the Demi Poulet which she liked; I got the Cote de Boeuf. Mine was cold so it either set waiting for her chicken or cold by being mass produced. I would go again but as they say: timing is everything.
I’m at WDW at least once a week, so I eat at the Epcot restaurants fairly often. My absolute favorite at Les Chefs de France has always been the Tarte a la Tomate et Fromage de Chèvre (Tomato and Goat Cheese Flatbread), although, strangely, I rarely see it in reviews or hear it talked about. Maybe folks don’t find it to be very French? Anyway, it has a beautiful handmade crust topped with a delicious tomato sauce and fresh goat cheese. Yum! And now… I think I better go make a reservation! 🙂
Chefs de France was always one of my favorite places to eat dinner. But the past few times we have gone the service (not food) hasn’t been the best. Our last visit we had made an ADR early enough to enjoy our meal and get out to see the Illuminations. Our meal was great, and everything was going fine until it was time to pay the check. We gave our check with credit card to our server and she disappeared for almost 30 minutes … we sipped our wine, patiently waiting until finally I flagged down another server to ask where our check went. About ten minutes after that he came back with our check. Not sure what happened to our server, and I know that things happen, but it was a big disappointment as we had already missed half of Illuminations. And it was the last night of our vacation! It does seem the service is a bit spotty now … But if you are not worried about the service then I would give this place a try. It’s just not on the top of our list anymore.
Chefs used to be one of our favorites in all of WDW, esp when my DD was younger and Remy would come around. After two disappointing meals, we now walk right past to Les Halles for counter-service or carryout, and then L’Artisan des Glaces for ice cream. These strike us as much fresher and more authentic (not to mention cheaper!) options than Chefs, which seems overdue for a makeover.
Going for my first trip to wdw in December
Will have the deluxe dining plan
Have a long list of restaurants but am trying to choose between chefs de France and monsieur paul
Any thoughts?
Jon — It comes down to the experience you’re looking for and the number of credits that you would like to spend. Chefs de France is a 1 credit table service, while Monsieur Paul is 2. Chefs de France is like a bustling urban cafe — busy, a little loud, beautiful street level views. Monsieur Paul is fine dining, second floor, quieter, linens, more refined. Here are reviews that may help you decide: Monsieur Paul Review; Chefs de France Review. We like both, but would probably give the slight edge to Chefs de France. Bon chance!