I had the same thing as you, cslone. (I wouldn't see an ACL recovery as being the same thing as an articular cartilage recovery. They're two different things.) Yours sounds a little worse than mine. My articular cartilage had been worn away. They removed the plica, and they pokes holes into the base of my femur to stimulate blood flow to aid growth.

I followed the rules closely and took my time. I did a lot of stuff on the elliptical machine at the gym until they gave me the OK to ride. I was riding again (albeit very slowly) in six weeks or so. I won a race three months later. My knee has never been 'right' since then due more to the trauma of the surgery than the meniscus/cartilage itself. But I'm still able to play tennis, volleyball, row, ride, skate ski, etc on it.
I'm 49. This was in 2005.
I'm on Glucosamine. Nothing else.