That skinny girl can eat! A dining review for Marseeya's June WDW trip.

[Marseeya]

Page 1, Post 1: 'Ohana
Page 1, Post 11: Mama Melrose Fantasmic Dinner Package
Page 2, Post 20: Boma
Page 2, Post 24: 1900 Park Fare -- Cinderella's Gala Feast
Page 2, Post 27: The Mara
Page 3, Post 32: Tangierine Cafe
Page 3, Post 36: California Grill

June 3-June 12, 2006

Marcia: 39
Dennis: 35
Rhiannon: 10
"Sunshine" 9 (DD's friend)

June 3, 2006
'Ohana

Having already eaten at 'Ohana on our 2005 trip, DH, DD and I knew what to expect with the skewered meat. We weren't too sure, however, about DD's friend Sunshine, as her mother had warned me that she was a bit of a picky eater. Well, my family of chubbies just isn't used to that, so I wasn't sure what to expect. We figured on eating at the TS restaurants, and if Sunshine wasn't satisfied with the dinners, we'd find other ways to fill her up.

Our dinner was timed right smack dab in the middle of Gay Days. Now, normally I'm not a bit worried about the environment because we're a very liberal family. But with an extra child on board whose family is much more conservative, I found myself wondering the dreaded question, "How will I answer her questions?" We decided on the most simplistic route of "Well, sometimes boys just like boys, and girls just like girls," and just let her parents deal with the rest.

We arrived for our 5:30 ADR at 5:00, hoping to beat the rush. When we arrived at the Poly, the lobby outside 'Ohana was a chaotic madhouse of people! The girls and I found seats while DH waded his way through the crowd towards the podium. As I scanned the crowd (admittedly looking for lime green Mickey Heads), :blush: I noticed a group of people wearing bold purple shirts with bright red hats. Oh great, I thought, a meeting of the red hat society. Granny central. Um. No. Upon closer inspection, I discovered that the grannies were actually men. What a hoot! The men were all dressed up in purple outfits and ostentatious red hats. They were all so cute. I watched the girls, waiting to see their reactions, but I needn't have worried, because they either didn't notice anything out of the ordinary, or they just took it all in stride.

Within just a minute or two of Dennis signing us in, we were called to our table. I walked in, expecting the same chaos inside as out, but the whole restaurant was only about a quarter full, as you can see from this picture:

http://home.comcast.net/~marseeya/ohana.jpg

We started getting served right away, and I ordered an 'Ohana Colada, which was delicious. Our server started us off with the mixed greens. The girls wouldn't touch them, but Dennis and I liked them just fine. I was a bit disappointed in the new starters and the lack of shrimp skewers. The girls attacked the fried wontons, but I wasn't blown away by them. Sunshine ate ALL of the honey-coriander chicken wings and thought they were great, while the rest of us picked at the sweet & sour shrimp. I wasn't too fond of having to peel and eat sticky gooey shrimp, so I only ate one.

On to the skewers. While both girls loved having the waiter come to the table and slide the meat off the skewers, neither one of them wanted any of the offerings. The steak was fairly tough, but the Asian BBQ pork loin was delicious, as was the turkey and Hawaiian pork sausages.

The skewers were served with Maui scalloped potatoes and stir fried veggies. Nobody really cared for the potatoes, and frankly, I didn't find them any different than the boxed, dehydrated Ore Ida potatoes you find in the grocery store. The stir fried veggies were good, but a little too soggy for my liking.

Then came the dessert -- bread pudding with bananas foster sauce. That itself was worth the entire meal. The bread pudding was soft on the inside and just a bit crisp on the outside, and the bananas foster was delicious. Everybody but Sunshine enjoyed that dessert, but even she picked at the ice cream.

Overall, we'll probably cross 'Ohana off our list for our next trip. None of us were blown away by this meal, and the girls are getting just a tiny bit too old for the coconut races and hula dancing. Sunshine wasn't interested, and Rhiannon was pushed to the side and ignored in favor of the younger, "cuter" kids.

More reviews to come later.

[jo28501]

Great review - keep them coming!!

[bluejasmine]

Oh boy..Im not crazy about peeling sticky shrimp either..Well I will still give it ago Im so disspointed about the grilled shrimp but looking forward to the bread pudding..
Oh let me ask you was it wonton chips or filled wontons??

[nluvwithmickey]

Too bad you didn't enjoy it. I love everything BUT the skewered meats. The meat is too filling and I love all the other offerings better than the big chunks of meat. Idon't mind getting my hands sticky from the chicken and shrimp....so good!

Great review, can't wait for the rest of your report.

[swankybeth]

Great review, looking forward to more! :stitch:

[tinkerbeth]

Thanks for the review. We actually loved that shrimp in the sauce. For me, the sauce made up for the peeling. We had 3 helpings when we were there in March! :blush:

Looking forward to more reviews.

Beth :)

[ufgator]

Thanks for the review. Looking forward to more.

[sugarpie]

Awesome review! :)

[Minniespal]

Enjoyed reading your reviews ~ Thanx for sharing.

[NMW]

Thanks for the review! I really liked the taste of the shrimp, and ate several of them, but I admit they were very messy to peel. I would have eaten a lot more if they had been peeled. Maybe that's why they do it!

[Marseeya]

June 4, 2006
Mama Melrose

After spending the earlier part of the day at Animal Kingdom, we were tired, but excited to go to MGM to have the Fantasmic dinner package at Mama Melrose. I was fortunate enough to secure a 6:00 p.m. ADR for this dinner, but we were so hungry after our long day of park touring and swimming that we decided to get to MGM early to try to get an earlier seating. We arrived at the entrance to MGM just as thousands upon thousands of people were lined up for the Stars & Motorcars parade. Yikes! We hoofed it down the boulevard, trying to beat the parade. Mama Melrose is towards the back of the park near Star Tours and Muppet Vision 3D, so we had quite a walk ahead of us. Somehow we managed to battle our way through the crowds and get to the restaurant before the parade started.

The hostess was more than happy to take us early, and we had about a 5 minute wait before we were seated. The restaurant wasn't overly crowded, and the atmosphere was cool with dark wood and a comfortable decor, as you can see from this picture:

http://home.comcast.net/~marseeya/mamamelrose.jpg

One thing that was really working well with us so far with the girls was the child's credits and adult's credits on the dining plan. Rhiannon, being 10 was considered an adult, while Sunshine at 9 was considered a child. Typically, though, Rhiannon ordered off the child's menu while Sunshine wanted an adult menu. Nobody had a problem with that, and in the cases where both girls wanted a child's meal, the server recommended we pay out of pocket for them to save their credits for a signature meal. We actually did that twice for our upcoming California Grill meal. I'll get into that later, but Rhiannon and I ended up missing a meal while she was sick, so we had a few extra credits saved up.

On to the meal! We started out with the field green salad, which had a balsamic vinaigrette and crumpled gorgonzola cheese. Unsurprisingly, neither girl touched the salad, but Dennis and I liked it a lot, with the exception of the cheese for me. I'm just not ready for stinky cheese! (stolen from an episode of Yes, Dear).

For the starter, we got the grilled pepperoni pizza. The pepperoni tasted smokey and very good, and was cut rather thick. The pizza was great -- a bit too spicy for the girls, but Dennis and I liked it a lot, especially with the onions and peppers.

For entrees, the girls got spaghetti -- Rhiannon got buttered spaghetti (yipee), and Sunshine got hers with a red sauce. This is where we discovered Sunshine's love of spaghetti. Let me tell you, Sunshine weighs about 85 pounds soaking wet, and she's just a skinny little thing, but we found out that night that SHE CAN EAT! She ate her entire plate of spaghetti and practically licked the plate clean.

Dennis got the spicy Italian sausage, and he said it just wasn't flavorful enough for him, but I tried it and thought it was fine. He and I just don't quite agree on what's spicy.

I got the penne alla vodka, and I thought it was fantastic. The pasta could have stood to have more sauce, but I ate almost the whole dish! The pancetta and onion were sliced really small, but they added a good bit of flavor to the dish. This is something I'd love to try to make at home, but only for a special treat -- it's made with real cream. Mmmmmm.

For dessert, the girls got vanilla gelato and Dennis and I got the tiramisu. To be perfectly honest, I wouldn't get the tiramisu again. The mascarpone cheese was light and fluffy -- very delicious, but the lady fingers were too dry. Very nice presentation, though:

http://home.comcast.net/~marseeya/tiramisu.jpg

I wish I would have taken pictures of all the food, but I honestly didn't give it much thought this year!

Overall, we really enjoyed this restaurant and will try to make an effort to go back next year, although without being on the Fantasmic package. Frankly, we thought Fantasmic wasn't all that it was hyped up to be, but that's for my trip report.

Thanks for reading!

[jj1403]

Love the reviews... keep em coming!

[richard_andmel]

Really enjoyed your reviews so far, looking forward to more. :)

[Tanya90210]

Love the Melrose review... have been wanting to hear/see more about it and yours was exactly what I was hoping for....

Keep em coming... loving your reviews

[wilma-bride]

Thanks for the reviews. Looking forward to more. Incidentally, Rhiannon is a lovely name (my youngest daughter is a Rhiannon :) )

[lady_hlh]

Thanks for the review of Mama Melrose on the Fantasmic package. We have an ADR for that one in the fall and I'm glad to see a good review.

[Tam1067]

Nice reports--

I have a question: when you were at Mama Melrose for the Fantasmic package, did you get the option of any desserts besides tiramisu or ice cream? We've got this package booked on July 11, but neither DH nor I likes tiramisu. Thanks!

[Marseeya]

Nice reports--

I have a question: when you were at Mama Melrose for the Fantasmic package, did you get the option of any desserts besides tiramisu or ice cream? We've got this package booked on July 11, but neither DH nor I likes tiramisu. Thanks!

Here's the menu on allearsnet:

http://www.allearsnet.com/menu/menu_mmfan.htm

I wish I would have tried something else, but I normally love tiramisu. :)

[scoutsmom99]

great reviews. I'm thinking of crossing 'Ohana off my must do list this fall. I ate there last fall and I wasn't as impressed with it. I agree with you about the potatos being nothing special.

[Marseeya]

Monday, June 5
Boma

Monday didn't start off too well. We had ADRs to take the girls to Crystal Palace for breakfast, but Rhiannon got sick with a migraine and she and I had to stay behind in the room. So, all I can tell you about Crystal Palace is that Dennis said it was a good breakfast buffet, but he wasn't much more forthcoming than that. He enjoyed it and wants to do it again. 'Nuff said.

Now for Boma.

I loves me some Boma. :love: Mmmmm, Bomalicious! We loved Boma so much last year that we cancelled an ADR just so we could eat there twice in one trip, so I did the same thing this year, knowing how much we loved that place.

For the past three days, we'd been smelling the wonderful scents of the fire oven, so we were more than ready with our mouths a-watering on Monday evening. Our ADR was for 5:40, but as usual, we showed up a bit early, more than ready to wait our turn. The waiting area was packed (hey, people know good food!), but we only waited maybe 10 minutes before getting seated. As the hostess walked us to our table, every time we passed an empty table near the front where the buffet area was, I'd think to myself, Okay, stop now! This seat is great! Just stop now! but our waitress took us on back to window seats. Hmph. Anywhere else, and that would have been a prime seat, but take us to Boma, and we'd be more than happy to belly up to the buffet table! Mmmmm, Boma.

Anyway, sorry. Did I mention how much I love Boma?

We got seated and our lovely waitress asked us if we'd ever been there before, and I was practically panting, going yeah yeah yeah, just get our drinks and GO so we can get to the foooooood! I don't even remember what I got to drink -- just something to wet the whistle. Then we were off!

The buffet is separated into several different areas called pods -- the meats w/ potatoes (with Afritude!), then veggies, then kids' foods, then a cold pod with salads, desserts, a pod with rice and cous cous, then soups... OMG, the soups! :cloud9: The soups alone are worth the entire trip to that restaurant, but I'll get to that in a minute.

There was a very long line to the meat (or rotisserie) pod, so the four of us stood together waiting, not sure of the protocol -- whether we had to wait in that long line to get to another pod, or whether you could just go right up to the pod and form a new line there. According to a server, the latter is the correct procedure, but since we were already in that line, we just waited for the meat. That night, they had crusted prime rib, lamb bobotie, and a banana leaf wrapped salmon. I had the bobotie and prime rib (which you must get with the Boma/African mustard because it's to die for), then I got the cous-cous Marrakesh, and some potatoes with Afritude. I don't know what's so Afritudinal about them, but it's fun to say, and they are pretty yummy.

I was very disappointed to find that I'd gone on a day when they didn't have the carrot-ginger soup in rotation. My dear, dear Dennis knew how much I loved that soup, so the day before he'd called down to find out which day they'd be serving it, so we could rearrange our ADRs for us to go later in the week. I'd get that soup come hell or high water, but that comes later. The soups they had that night included potato bacon, mulligatawny (sp?), seafood gumbo, and some kind of corn chowder. I just had the seafood gumbo, and it was delicious, chock full of seafood and a good amount of spice to it.

Rhiannon just ate a plate full of fruit and mac & cheese (although she says that Boma makes the best mac & cheese in the whole wide world, so that must be saying something). Sunshine, though, that girl blew my mind! On her first plate, she just picked at a couple of things, but then she discovered that they had pasta and sauce. So, she went up and got herself a plateful of pasta and sauce. By plateful, I mean it covered the entire bottom of the plate without being heaped up. Then she got another. Then another. Then another. FOUR PLATES of pasta! She said that she actually wanted another one and I told her I'd faint if she did, and wouldn't you know, that skinny kid ate FIVE whole plates of pasta that night at Boma. :faint: She was ear to ear spaghetti sauce, and had it dripped all over her shirt. I couldn't believe how much she could put away, and I told her that her mother was going to kill me when we brought her back because she'll have put on 10 pounds. She was highly amused.

By the time it was time for dessert, I was stuffed, but had to roll myself to the bar anyway to get at least one zebra dome. Those cute little fluffy buttons of goodness. I also ended up bringing back some little tarts -- they had blueberry and passion fruit meringue. I might have also managed to down some banana bread pudding with all that too. :rolleyes1 When Sunshine discovered the blueberry tarts, she came back with a plate of those and continued with her night of gluttony. After we were all finished, she piped up, "When are we coming back?" :rotfl2: We've got ourselves a convert!

Do I need to tell you at this point that we'll be back? Do I have to remind you that I love Boma??? :love:

Sorry, no pictures. I was too busy eating! :laughing:

Next, I'll do a mini report of Mara. Not my favorite place, but it grew on me during this past trip.

[deany]

We have an ADR at Boma's for dinner on Oct. 3. I am really looking forward to going there plus I am really eager to see AKL. Just one problem - DD's BF19, is a pretty picky eater but he loves pasta and mac and cheese, chicken strips, etc. Is it OK for an adult to go over to the kids section for mac and cheese or would this be considered bad manners. He is a big guy - a hockey player and 6'3" so he won't really "blend" in with all the kids. There is no way that I am cancelling this ADR. (He does not eat beef, just chicken and pasta and dessert) :confused3 :confused3 :confused3

[Marseeya]

There will be plenty different kinds of food for him and nobody would even notice! The kids section is right smack dab in the middle of all the rest of the food. The buffet is really one lonnnnnnng table, just sectioned off into the separate "pods."

Have fun! I'm so jealous.

Oh wait. I shouldn't be jealous because I'll be at Boma on October 1 with a few other women from the DISboards. :)

[kyirish25]

Wonderful reviews!

Love how you update page 1 with the location of the other reviews :thumbsup2

[Marseeya]

Tuesday, June 6
1900 Park Fare

When I was planning our meals for this trip, I gave Rhiannon a choice of princess dinners. Last year, we did CRT and PSB, so I asked if she wanted to do one of those again or if she wanted to try something different, and she chose Cinderella's Gala Feast. Rhiannon is a classic -- she loves ball gowns and dressing up, classical music, and anything fancy. I knew she was going to swoon over the Grand Floridian.

Because I wanted to make this a special dinner, I made a reservation for both girls for the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique and I asked Sunshine's mom to send a nice dress with her so that they could dress up after their makeovers and eat dinner in style. They were both so excited to be able to have a fancy dinner! Here's a picture of Rhiannon w/Cinderella. It's the only one I have that shows 1900 Park Fare:

http://home.comcast.net/~marseeya/cinderella.jpg

Cinderella's Gala Feast is truly a buffet feast. The choices were mostly American foods. The cold bar had different green salads, macaroni salad, mozzarella & tomato salad, and peel & eat shrimp. All I got from there was the peel & eat shrimp and macaroni salad. The peel & eat was just your normal shrimp as was the macaroni salad (normal, that is, not shrimp :)). Nothing to write home about, but still yummy. One thing not to be missed is their strawberry soup. It's a cold soup made from pureed strawberries mixed with something sweet and creamy. Must. Find. Recipe.

When I walked up to the buffet, I noticed a very strong garlic smell and I couldn't place it. I love garlic, so the scent was driving me nuts, trying to figure out which dish had so much garlic in it! They had potatoes and vegetables (the squash medley was very good), but nothing garlicky. Nothing on the meat table had garlic either. :confused3 On the meat table, they had prime rib, pork loin & turkey. Where's the garlic??? :confused3

On my way back with a plate full of meat and veggies, I noticed a table off to the side where there was a chef preparing some kind of pasta dish. Finally, I found my source of garlic! The pasta was a shrimp and asparagus alfredo and it was to die for. The asparagus was sauteed, but still crisp, and the shrimp was sizeable. The reason I'd missed this table before was because it was so popular, the pasta skillet was empty the other times I'd passed it, and the chef must have been replenishing her stock. I was only able to get a tiny spoonful, and she promised me that she was making a fresh batch right then. Rhiannon and Dennis kept sneaking bites off my plate (except for the asparagus) and we couldn't get enough of it.

For the kids, they had chicken nuggets, mac & cheese, and pasta w/marinara sauce. Guess what Sunshine had for dinner? Can we say 4 plates of pasta??? This child must have a hollow leg, because I have no idea where she's putting all this food.

1900 Park Fare is definitely a dinner we'll do again. While dining in the castle is an experience in itself, 1900 Park Fare is a wonderful substitution. The Grand Floridian is stunning, and after dinner, it's fun to hop on a ferry to ride over to the Magic Kingdom. The characters we met were Fairy Godmother, Cinderella, Prince Charming, and Suzy & Perla (look out Flowers Child!). The girls were thoroughly charmed by the prince, as was Mom. :rolleyes1 Why, oh why don't they bring the princes out more often???

[bigbabyblues]

Thanks for the detail on Boma, I'm looking forward to that one! Rhiannon looks so pretty all made up, so much fun!

[MelanieC]

Thanks for your wonderful reviews! I really enjoyed them!

[Marseeya]

I hadn't planned on writing reviews of CS restaurants, but I might throw a couple in. I definitely wanted to share a few things about Mara.

My first impression of Mara on our trip in 2005 wasn't entirely favorable. I felt that the decor was childish and cheap, and it just seemed like a dark dungeon to me. When you first walk in, the lighting is rather dim, but that may be because it's right next to the pool, so coming in from bright daylight could make it seem more dim than it actually is.

Anyway, on to the food. Breakfast is just plain old breakfast food. They have a breakfast platter with scrambled eggs, bacon or sausage, a biscuit, and breakfast potatoes (reminiscent of potatoes with Afritude at Boma. Hmmmm :scratchin ). If you ask for bacon, you're going to get a BIG ol' pile of bacon. They also have a breakfast wrap/burrito, Mickey waffle, fresh fruit, oatmeal, and cold cereals. For kids, they have a children's breakfast platter, which is a smaller version of the adult, minus (I think) the potatoes. It's all good, hot, and filling.

For lunch and dinner, they have a nice variety of foods. They had burgers, pizza (personal size and larger sizes), and tandoori chicken pizza (looked good, but I didn't try it), African stew, half a roasted chicken, different types of sandwiches, fish & chips, chicken strips, salads, and soups.

I really liked the African stew from last year, so I was looking forward to having it again. It's a mildly spicy stew (curry) with beef, chicken, pork, potatoes and vegetables, served in bread bowl. Frankly, I'm not all that fond of bread bowls. It's a great stew, and I had at least 3 servings of it on this trip.

I also decided to try the butternut squash soup. I'm really not big on pureed soups, but this soup is absolutely deeeeelicious! It's a little on the thick side and has a good, sweet taste -- seems like there might be a touch of nutmeg in it, but I'm not sure. I couldn't get enough of that soup, and I'm definitely on the lookout for a recipe.

Another dish I tried at Mara was the half a chicken. I really wish I would have tried it earlier! The chicken was just a normal roasted chicken, but it was served on a bed of seasoned couscous and a side of sauteed vegetables. Wow, it was really fantastic!

For desserts, they had cheesecakes, brownies, carrot cakes, and -- best of all -- a dessert called "Taste of Boma," which had 3 zebra domes and 2 chocolate mousse crisps. My mouth waters just thinking about them.

For kids: mac & cheese, chicken strips, and rotisserie chicken. Poor kids. The adults certainly have all the fun in the restaurants.

[richard_andmel]

More great reviews. :) We always have two dinners and two breakfasts at Boma. I really enjoyed your review of it.

Mel

[disneynan]

I have the recipe for that butternut squash soup. I agree that it is DELICIOUS!!!
It was not on the buffet the last time we ate at Boma. Wish I knew it was available at Mara.

Thanks for the great reviews. I have really enjoyed reading them. If I can't be eating at WDW's awesome restaurants, then I want to read about someone else's meals. :rotfl:

FYI, on one of our visits to Boma, we commented to the server how much we loved the food and she provided us with a card to request recipes. The recipes were in my e-mail account when we arrived home. :goodvibes

[wilma-bride]

Still really enjoying your reports - please say there are more to come :)

[TruBlu]

Great reviews! Thanks!

[MushyMushy]

Last year when we did Epcot, we ate at the Electric Umbrella. I have no idea why, with all the wonderful World Showcase options there are, that we would eat there. :confused3

This trip we decided to try Tangierine Cafe, which I now have a love/hate relationship with. Our day was pretty scheduled out, because we do everything based on our FP return times for rides. We had an 11:40 return time to Test Track, so we wanted to be at Morocco right at 11:00 when it opened, and planned on zipping right into Tangierine Cafe at opening.

Lesson #1: There will be no "zipping" at Tangierine Cafe! Those CMs are on their own time table, fast passes be damned! We showed up at 11 on the dot, only to be told "10 minutes! We open in 10 minutes!" so no problem, we just had ourselves a seat outside. Five minutes passed and a squirrel darted into the cafe! Sunshine and Rhiannon were fascinated and wanted to catch a picture of the cuteness, but when they looked in the doorway, Sunshine shouted, "Oh no! They're stomping at the squirrel and chasing it with a broom!"

Quickly realizing that the squirrel might not have such a happy ending, I ordered the girls back from the door. Fortunately, the CMs weren't out to kill the poor squirrel, but merely wanted to chase it out the back. *whew*

Finally, a half hour later, we, along with about 10 other families waiting to enter, were admitted to the restaurant with huge smiles and welcomes. We were among the first in line, but the CMs were sooooo incredibly slow. Friendly, but slow.

After speaking with a very nice woman outside the restaurant, I ordered a lamb and chicken Shawarma platter on her recommendation, while Dennis ordered the lamb Shawarma platter. The platter was served with spiced grilled lamb & chicken, along with pita bread, hummus, couscous salad, and the BEST tabbouleh I've ever tasted (it had just enough lemon juice without overpowering it as is my usual experience). The lamb and chicken were perfect -- not too dry, but grilled just a little bit crispy on the outside. Very flavorful. My mouth waters just thinking about it. The hummus was very good as well, but I wasn't blown away by it. I make my own hummus, so I know how to make it just the way I like it.

For dessert, they included baklava, which was okay, nothing special.

The girls each had pizza that seemed to be grilled on a pita crust. They loved it, and it looked good to me, even though I don't normally like children's pizza at CS places.

If you find yourself in the WS, and wanting to try something different, definitely give the Tangierine Cafe a try! I'm not sure if they're normally slow like they were that day, but I wouldn't care if they were -- that's how good the food was.

I have a picture I might edit in later. My online storage isn't working right now.

[erikthewise]

Wonderful reviews!
-- It's always like that waiting at 'Ohana. Very little room to wait so a dozen people look like a crowd (and there's usually more than that).
-- I couldn't believe your description of "Sunshine" at Boma! Is she 6 feet tall or something?!

[Ron from Michigan]

Thanks for the great reviews. :)

[ks12066]

Thanks for the great reviews.

[MushyMushy]

June 8, 2006
California Grill

After a long, grueling day at Epcot (but with that wonderful lunch at Tangierine Cafe!), all we wanted to do was go back to the resort, hang out at the pool and chill for a while. A long while. However, silly me, I had the grand idea of making all my ADRs as early as possible, so our ADR for CA Grill was at 5:30. Dennis called to ask about changing the time, but it would have cost us $25 to cancel the original reservation to make the new one. We were seriously considering it, that's how tired we were, but they didn't have any openings anyway. Oh well.

The girls, after their lovely dinner at 1900 Park Fare, were looking forward to a nice dress up dinner. Rhiannon is used to eating out quite a bit with us, and has been to a few upscale restaurants over the years, but Sunshine doesn't go out all that much. I wasn't too worried about her, as she's a very quiet and subdued kid anyway. So, they got themselves dressed, and I did the best I could with their hair to try to recreate their look from the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique -- I didn't do such a bad job.

We arrived at the CA Grill around 5:00, and they seated us right away. One benefit to arriving so early is that you're pretty much guaranteed a great seat, and we weren't disappointed!

http://home.comcast.net/~marseeya/cagrill.jpg

One thing that really disappointed me was the other diners. When you make reservations at CA Grill, they specifically tell you that there is a dress code, yet there were so many women in ragged jean shorts, men wearing baseball caps, and just plain inappropriate dress. I'm not picky, and I'm certainly no fashionista. My idea of a great outfit is jeans and a tee shirt. But come on... isn't it nice to have a nice dinner out once in a while and dress UP a bit? The girls noticed it too, and it made them feel really special to be the only kids there who were so dressed up.

Anyway, we had the most wonderful server, and I hope I can put his name here -- it's David. He was great! Very proper, without being stuffy, and extremely knowledgeable about the menu and wines. He also seemed very friendly and approachable. :thumbsup2 :thumbsup2

For appetizer, I got the dungeness crab California roll, and it was excellent. Totally fresh and rolled well. Dennis got the snake in the grass, which I didn't try because I'm not quite as adventuresome with my sushi as he is. He loved it. Because we paid for adult credits for Rhiannon, we went ahead and got a third appetizer to share with the whole table -- a sushi sampler. The girls at least tried it, but were NOT impressed. :rotfl:

For an entree, I got the black grouper. The fish seemed to be rubbed with some sort of spices, and was grilled so that the outside formed a blackened, but not spicy, crust on one side. It was absolutely delicious. It came with olive oil mashed potatoes that I wasn't thrilled with, as well as crispy rock shrimp and some kind of lamb sausage. The sausage was pretty good, and the shrimp was excellent. I could have eaten a whole entree of that shrimp!

Dennis got the dayboat scallops and said it was really good. I didn't try it because I was so wrapped up in my own food. :goodvibes

The girls both got pizzas for their entrees and said it was the "best ever!" so there you go.

For dessert, Sunshine got plain vanilla ice cream, while Dennis ordered the stratified chocolate tort, and I got the strawberries forever, which is a goat cheese cheesecake with strawberry soup and a strawberry salad. OH YUM!

Rhiannon got the famous rice crispy sushi plate, which we all loved looking at:

Can you tell she gets some practice with the chopsticks?

http://home.comcast.net/~marseeya/chopsticks.jpg

http://home.comcast.net/~marseeya/su****reat.jpg

After dinner, we all strolled out onto the roof to see the view. CA Grill is so relaxing and wonderful -- it's a must for every trip for us!

ETA: BWAHAHAHAH! :lmao: The DIS boards has my link edited because I used the word sushi treat as one word and there's a naughty word in it. I'll fix it when I get a chance.