I went to Florida just over a year ago now with work and on one of our free evenings a group of us chose to go to Ponderosa for an evening meal on the recommendation from one of the group who had been before. I honestly couldn't tell you which one on International Drive it was as there is two ... Read review
NH Hotels, the hotel chain leader in Europe, with more than 300 hotels in 20 countries in Europe, Latin America and Africa. Enter into our web site and find the best available tariff at all times
Advantages: Cheap, under 5's eat free and lots to choose from Disadvantages: Some may feel the food is 'cheap'
...us chose to go to Ponderosa for an evening meal on the recommendation from one of the group who had been before. I honestly couldn't tell you which one on International Drive it was as there is two but, as they all operate on the scale and order process it will still give you an idea what to expect when you eat at one of them.
The chain:
Ponderosa has five restaurants in Orlando. Two are on International ... ...They are all named Ponderosa Steakhouses. They operate a meal policy where by diners can order a meal to be served to them and then still eat from the 'all you can eat' buffet.
The style:
They all pretty much follow the same theme too with a cream decor and diners order their main meal an drinks as they enter at the counter before they go through into the main dining area. Once you've ordered you are ... more
I went to Florida just over a year ago now with work and on one of our free evenings a group of us chose to go to Ponderosa for an evening meal on the recommendation from one of the group who had been before. I honestly couldn't tell you which one on International Drive it was as there is two but, as they all operate on the scale and order process it will still give you an idea what to expect when you eat at one of them.
The chain: Ponderosa has five restaurants in Orlando. Two are on International Drive, two in Kissimee and one at Lake Beuna Vista. They are all named Ponderosa Steakhouses. They operate a meal policy where by diners can order a meal to be served to them and then still eat from the 'all you can eat' buffet.
The style: They all pretty much follow the same theme too with a cream decor and diners order their main meal an drinks as they enter at the counter before they go through into the main dining area. Once you've ordered you are shown to a table and your server then brings you over your drinks and main meals once they are ready. If ordering soft drinks these are refillable and so are quite good value. You can start helping yourself to the buffet once you have your table.
The menus: As you enter through the main double doors the menus are displayed in picture form on the walls. They have meals listed depending on price. There are normally 4 rows with the top row all being meals priced at $9.99 and the bottom row normally at $19.99. Meals consist mainly of things like chicken and fries, steak and fries and I even saw lobster! It is just the main meal on the board that you order as things like starters and desserts are all in the buffet choice.
Staff and servers: The counter staff I came into contact with were very helpful -they were quick at getting the order through and as soon as I had ordered the other member of staff was ready to show us to our table. The drinks we had ordered arrived really quickly and when we wanted refills these also came very quickly. The member of of staff who was bringing our drinks and main meals was lovely and friendly and seemed very happy. There are a few staff behind the self serve buffet counters that are constantly putting out food and if you need them they were also very helpful. Overall I cannot fault the staff at all.
The food variety: I chose to have a steak as my main meal which I was able to have cooked medium rare and it was very nice for $9.99. The fries were plentiful and it was also served with a Small salad. Of course the main selection of food is from the buffet - I believe it changes daily on what they offer apart form some dishes that are available pretty much every day. On my visit I saw chilli, spaghetti, extra fries, meatballs, scrambled eggs, noodles, chicken curry and prawn crackers. I know there was plenty of other hot dishes but, these are the only ones I remember trying! For dessert they have have a selection of ice cream and jellies and the main thing I liked was that they had a ice cream machine that you could get Mr Whippy type ice cream out of in chocolate, strawberry and vanilla flavours. I was so excited by this as the selection of toppings they had for the ice cream was excellent! They had chocolate strands, chocolates drops, lots of different flavoured sauces and even some crushed M&M's - I was in dessert heaven!!! Overall there was a really good amount of food on offer and plenty to keep everyone happy. The dining room: The dining area is nicely laid out with the tables all laid out on either side of the building and the buffet area in the centre facing the main door where you pay for your food. The lighting is good with it not being too bright and not too dim. The tables are fairly basic as are the chairs but, not that bad that they aren't comfortable to use! There are plenty of them too and as a general guide I would say the building could fit about 150 diners in. Of course I am not sure if this is the same for each Ponderosa but, I'd imagine they would try to keep them all of a similar size to make the most profit from having a buffet style restaurant.
Meals: Ponderosa are open all day and serve three different meals. They are open for breakfast which includes all the usual breakfast items you expect such as eggs, bacon, sausage and cereals along with a variety of juices and tea/coffee. Breakfast is served between 7.30am - 11.30am and is just a small $3.99 for the all you can eat. This is definitely a good way to get a hearty breakfast for cheap! They are then also open for lunch between 11.30 - 4pm and dinner is served between 4pm - 11pm. A good bonus is that all children aged 5 and under eat for free with each full paying adult. Overall opinion: I was really impressed by Ponderosa both in terms of service from the staff and the range of food available. I cannot say the food is the most amazing I've ever had but, for the price it is certainly not the worst and also is good enough for those who either are on a budget or just don't like spending a lot of money on food when on holiday. The fact that if travelling with young children means you will only pay for adults is a bonus as prices are really good anyway. I have already planned in a few trips to Ponderosa for different meal times for our upcoming trip as I know that it will save us a lot of money and that everyone in our group will be happy with the food here. I honestly think this place is somewhere you have to try - sure if you don't like mass produced grub you probably won't like it but, I bet those on a budget will love it just as much as I do!
Advantages: You can eat all you like Disadvantages: Dont eat too much if you are going to a Theme Park (for obvious reasons)
As there was a Ponderosa Steakhouse restaurant just over the road from our hotel on International Drive, Orlando, we usually found overselves heading in that direction in the morning for our usual breakfast fix, before the usually mad day ahead of us. There are about five of these restaurants in the Disney vicinity, two on International Drive and three in nearby Kissimmee.
You can come out of there full to the brim for as little as $3.99 and with ... ...$1.90 to the pound) that works out at approximately just over £2.00. They do a breakfast buffet, and a lunch and dinner buffet for $8.99 for a steak buffet. If you choose a different item, either chicken, fish, pork or a larger steak, the price may vary up to approx $15.00. The food is plentiful and you can go back again and again to refill - you even get a clean plate but keep your cutlery otherwise you'll find yourself eating with your fingers, ...
SBROWN487 27.08.2005
· Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Ponderosa Restaurant Orlando
Advantages: value for money, huge choice Disadvantages: none
...saw the adverts for the Ponderosa and thought the prices were too low for it to be any good...but a friedn said the food was good so we gave it a try...and are we glad we did!
We went for lunch...you pay for your choice of meal as you go in. There are a couple of levels and the refillable drinks are charged seperately- we went for the entry level basic buffet.
We were greeted by our server who showed us to our table ( a large Florida diner style ... ...brought our drinks and cutlery and showed us the range of food available. We were stunned by the variety.
There was a choice of : a variety of soups and salads - and when I say salad I mean lettuce and various other green leaves, cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, corn, beetroot, croutons, potato salad, eggs, diced ham, diced chicken, turkey, beef, shrimp, crab sticks, several kinds of coleslaw and a whole range of dressings.
There was hot buffet section ...
miawriter 08.01.2007
· Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Ponderosa Restaurant Orlando
Advantages: Good value for money, fast service, kids enjoy choosing themselves Disadvantages: Basic in appearance but don't be turned off by this
Ponderosa restaurants great for those families visiting Orlando on a budget. They offer a good choice of entrees, which you order as you enter, all of which are a good price and displayed by the till area for you to choose from. A typical entree would be steak tips and onions and a jacket potato, or maybe a steak with fries. These are then paid for along with your required drinks, and then you are seated and introduced to your server. This system ... ...used to, but it works well when in Florida. By purchasing the entree, this also entitles you to choose from the buffet. You can have as much as you like, and your server will encourage you to eat more by constantly replacing the pile of plates for you to use! Once again, not like here in the UK where the restaurants barely give you anything on your plate. I have visited this chain many times, and the staff have always been very polite and friendly. ...
disneynutter 22.07.2008
· Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Ponderosa Restaurant Orlando
Advantages: Good Value For Money Disadvantages: Extremely Busy
This is excellent value for money it was $3.99 when i went last july (2006) and kids under 12 went free, but you had topay for there drinks. The choice in this place is unbelievable, we went for our breakfast, and one of two lunches. The lunch is slightly more $4.99, there was all sort to choose from, steaks, fish, fries, all kids of salad and cakes. My childrens loved it, (the cakes were a big favourite), especially at breakfast. You culd also coose ... ...I was always busy so i recommend to go early if you were planning on going, and if you see any coupons laying around (these were at the back near to shop) take a few booklets these discount other meals at other restuarants within orlando like red lobster. The food was excellent value for money and well cooked - great for full breakfast a just a snack. The drinks werent expensive all in all our bill came to about $13.99 which is around £8.75 for 2 ...
DAWNMULLAN 02.07.2007
· Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Ponderosa Restaurant Orlando
Ponderosa is extremely good value for money, the it is all buffet style but you can if you wish order from the menu if you wish, but, to be honey there is no need to unless you are wanting a steak, there is everything you can think of in the buffet.
You can go for breakfast, dinner or tea. Breakfast is around $4.99, and all you have to pay for is the drinks on top of this, the children go free under 12 The choices are good : - Breakfast – you can ... ...the toilets (this is the ponderosa in Florida) there are coupon booklets – I recommend you take some of these, they are free, you get discount off of other restaurants in Florida for meals and clothes like 10% off Sheplers – which is a shop that specialises in Boots and belts.
All in all this is good value for money and clean. I would recommend this to anyone.
I would recommend that if you want to go for a breakfast that you get there early because ...
KIWIMULLAN03 06.07.2007
· Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Ponderosa Restaurant Orlando
Value for Money
Standard of Menu
Atmosphere
Standard of Service
Cleanliness
Similar reviews »
Reviews which might be of interest for "Ponderosa Restaurant Orlando"
Advantages: Savings on eating out Disadvantages: None really - it's good value
Donalds, Dunkin Donuts, Nascar Sports Grille, Sizzler Restaurant, Ponderosa Steakhouse, and many more that are familiar to those who have been to Orlando before. Locations were spread throughout I-Drive, Kissimmee, Lake Buena Visa and the Sand Lake Road area.
We received the Kids Eat Free cards in advance through the post, which were accompanied by a participating restaurants listing. We merely showed the card to our server when we arrived at the restaurants and experienced little difficulty in using them. It's as simple as that, and the kids food is omitted from the bill. We did not use it every day, but the card had paid for itself after two or three meals out, and there was plenty of opportunity to do so. ...
