speaking as a chef (as in I am employed as a chef)
cilantro often gets misused/overused. It's sorta become like the ketchup of the spice world. It has a distinct flavour profile thus is used a lot in dishes to give it a specific flavour. However, here in lies the issue. It's very very strong, and most people work with dry stuff because....well i dunno, they don't know where to buy fresh?
It only takes a pinch to be able to taste it, so when you have it in everything it grows weary. I personally only use it on duck. Works well with it, just rub it in with some salt on the raw breast and grill, perfect. After that it just becomes a show stealer, I'd rather use parsley, since I can use more parsley to get better colour (it just looks prettier with more little green flecks), and not have to worry too much about ruining my other flavours.