Max & Mommy Go Deluxe - Eat Like Pooh, Bounce Like Tigger, Lose a Pound! Lots-o-Pix!

[Wendi2000]

Right off the bat I've got to say that we ate VERY, VERY WELL on this trip. We had some of the best meals of any of our WDW trips, had excellent service everywhere we went, and we were very pleased with the Deluxe Dining Plan. Oh, and I actually did lose a pound... must have been all the walking because I certainly didn't watch what I ate one little bit!

We are:

Mommy (Me, Wendi - 38-y-o single mom to Max)
Max (my 7-y-o son)
This is our fourth trip to WDW in four years, two with my mom, and two with just the two of us. We stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge from December 13-22, 2008. Our first night was a room only, and the following nights were all on the Deluxe Dining Plan.

I have pictures of almost everything, but didn't really take snack pictures or those that have been done many times before (like 'Ohana).

Here's where we ate:
The Mara (multiple times - breakfast, lunch, & dinner)
Sunshine Seasons (lunch)
Akershus Royal Banquet Hall (dinner)
Boma (breakfast & dinner)
Tony's Town Square (lunch)
Cinderella's Gala Feast at 1900 Park Fare
Yak & Yeti (lunch)
Jiko (dinner)
Sci-Fi Dine-In (lunch)
The Hollywood Brown Derby (dinner)
Chef Mickey's (breakfast)
Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe (lunch)
'Ohana (dinner)
San Angel Inn (lunch)
Columbia Harbour House (lunch)
Hoop Dee Doo Revue
California Grill

We had a couple of ADRs that we didn't keep, but we did keep most of them. Many people find that trying to do too many table service meals on the deluxe plan really takes up too much time, but we liked our little breaks and at times when we just wanted a quick meal, we canceled our TS reservation and just grabbed some counter service instead. It worked out well for us and instead of feeling like we had to keep eating, we were actually hungry when it came time for our meals for some reason. It usually doesn't work out like that for us, but this trip it did. I am not a breakfast person, so when I actually do eat breakfast I tend to be hungrier throughout the day, maybe that's what made me hungry on this trip... or maybe it was the full-throttle park touring??? We used all of our meals and almost all of our snacks by the end of the trip - we have always done the regular dining plan, and always have to scramble to buy snacks at the end of our trips... this time we worked them out perfectly and only had 4 left at the end, which was perfect for getting snacks for our flight home.

Our first night I had planned to either have dinner at The Mara or head over to DTD to try T-Rex Cafe. I really wanted to take Max to T-Rex because I knew we'd both get a kick out of it... but I also knew how tired we would be after our all-day flights from California, so I was realistic about my intentions. I ordered a $25 from MyPoints for T-Rex so we could spend less OOP if we ate there. Well, we were up at 5:00am to leave home and we got settled in our room at AKL around 7:00pm.

Guess where we ate? :rolleyes1

[Tink rules]

Sounds good!!!

[chocolateMinnie]

subscribing, great restaurant choices.

[MickeyNicki]

What a great line up, Im in!

[Wendi2000]

Saturday, December 13, 2008

Dinner - The Mara
Max had the kid’s Cheeseburger with French Fries, Grapes, and Chocolate Milk.
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I had the Chicken Breast Nuggets with French Fries and a small drink (Sprite Zero).
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The server just kept loading more nuggets into my dish; I must have ended up with about 12 of them (and they are BIG) then piled a bunch of fries on top. Max ate all of his burger and a few of my nuggets plus a ton of fries. I’ve never seen him eat so much!

He liked his meal, and I liked mine too – I don’t really eat much meat, so this is something I wouldn’t normally eat, but it sounded appealing at the time and it was very good. The chicken was high quality and I liked the batter, it was just right. The fries are never really hot here because they are made in advance and they sit under heat lamps, but they’re still pretty good for sitting around for a while. This meal hit the spot, but I really could’ve used some veggies, I should’ve asked about subbing a salad for the fries.

[loralie]

Great start...can't wait for more. :thumbsup2

[mickeymotto]

Great start. Can't wait to see more. I love your list of places you went to. We will be doing a similar trip to AKL this summer.

[SunnieRN]

Sounds like a great trip! Can't wait to hear more!

[OurDogCisco]

Great start... can't wait to hear the rest!!!

[wdw1972]

Wow - I'm looking forward to the rest! Max's burger didn't look too bad. Hope you guys had a great time.

[MiaBella05]

popcorn:: popcorn::

[Wendi2000]

Sunday, December 14, 2008

A little background: I didn’t sleep well at all the night before because my big suitcase did not show up from Disney’s Magical Express. The CM did leave a silent voicemail message for me at 2:59am though that my bag had been located at the airport and was now here and could be delivered to me at any time. I had to go down to the lobby to check in for our package in the morning anyway, so I picked it up at that time and then headed down to The Mara to pick up breakfast to take back to our room.

Breakfast - The Mara
I got myself the Breakfast Platter with Bacon, a large Chocolate Milk (to save for later for Max), and a large Orange Juice.
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I got Max the kid’s Mickey Waffles with Bacon and a small water.
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I also picked up our refillable mugs that were included with our deluxe dining plan and filled one with Coffee and the other with Hot Chocolate. I got a bag at the checkout register and loaded the bag with our breakfast bounty and headed back to the room with my beloved suitcase, our big bag of breakfast and our two mugs. I set up breakfast out on our balcony, but Max wanted breakfast in bed, so I took his food back in for him.

I'm always pretty well satisfied with breakfasts from The Mara, they are just basic, the same platter you can get all over WDW. I also like the convenience of having a quick breakfast at the resort early enough that we can get to the parks before opening without wasting valuable park touring time to stop and get something to eat.

Next up... my favorite counter service restaurant in all of WDW... can you guess???

[dvc_bwv]

Waiting for more. I thoroughly enjoyed your previous trip report. The food looks wonderful. Can't wait for more..............:thumbsup2 :thumbsup2

[TONNIE]

sub

Hey we where at AKL DEC 14-21 we where probably neighbors;)

[skellingtonfreak]

Great start to the line-up! Can't wait for some more reviews!

[Wendi2000]

Waiting for more. I thoroughly enjoyed your previous trip report. The food looks wonderful. Can't wait for more..............:thumbsup2 :thumbsup2

Thanks, glad you enjoyed the last one... I certainly enjoyed eating and writing about it!

sub

Hey we where at AKL DEC 14-21 we where probably neighbors;)

We were on Kudu Trail on the second floor - our first time on that side of the resort, it was a little disorienting the first couple of days!!! I prefer being on the other side, it's a little easier for the pool & the Mara.

[TigerKat]

Jumping on board........popcorn::

[msce2]

The reviews are great! Thank you!

[suzimar57]

i'm in! popcorn::

[Wendi2000]

OK... I'm sure a few of you are ready for something other than The Mara, so here goes! We spent our first day at Epcot and I can't miss out on my favorite counter service restaurant...

Lunch – Sunshine Seasons
Of course I had the Grilled Salmon with Olive Pesto Sauce with sides of Mashed Potatoes and Salad. This is my favorite meal here. I got Strawberry Shortcake for dessert and a Coke to wash it all down.
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This is one of my favorite counter service meals in all of WDW – it is a unique dish that you might expect from a table service restaurant. I did notice that the serving size was drastically reduced from the last few years, but it was still enough food for me – Max and I used to be able to share this, and it wasn’t really enough to share this time (not that it really stopped him, he’s a salmon fiend!)

Max had the kid’s Deli Sandwich with Grapes and Carrots and a Pink Lemonade.
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He ate most of his lunch and about half of my Salmon, Mashed Potatoes, and Strawberry Shortcake. He’s a bottomless pit!

We both enjoyed our meals, as I said, the salmon dish was much smaller than it used to be, but it was just as tasty. Max’s sandwich didn’t seem too exciting to him and he probably would’ve preferred something else, but he was in a bit of a mood when I grilled him on what he wanted (he did say the sandwich, but I think he was expecting something else) and he just wanted to go find a table and sit down while I got the food.

[lizzyb]

Great reviews soo far!

[tndisneyfan]

Great reviews! Looking forward to the rest. :surfweb:

[Wendi2000]

Oh, it's not in my picture and I forgot to mention that the kalamata petso sauce for the salmon now comes in a little cup on the side if you want it. It is really yummy!

[MadiMouse]

Great food porn! I absolutely love Sunshine Seasons!!! :)

[mi*vida*loca]

I'm in. Can't wait to see Akershus dinner! :goodvibes

[Wendi2000]

I'll try to get our Akershus review up today... in the meantime, anyone care to guess what Max just tasted???

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hahaha!!!

[SingingMUA]

Looks like a "Beverly" face to me!! :rotfl:

ETA: nice review so far... looking forward to more

[mcrabeck]

I'm in- great reviews so far :cool1:

[Wendi2000]

Looks like a "Beverly" face to me!! :rotfl:

Ding! Ding! Ding! We've got a winner.

He spent quite a bit of time trying to get a bunch of kids on a field trip to try the Beverly... it was too funny! Then the kids were trying to get their chaperones to taste it. They were saying stuff like, "this stuff is horrible, don't ever try it... you've got to try it!!!" hahaha

[Krissalee]

Great reviews so far - looking forward to the rest!

[VAisforDisneyLvrs]

Enjoying your pics and reviews! Can't wait to see more.

[SmallWorld71]

Great so far! I've never been to the Mara, but the breakfast meals look just like the ones at ASMovies; I think the food courts at the resorts do a decent job on breakfast. :thumbsup2

[Wendi2000]

Great so far! I've never been to the Mara, but the breakfast meals look just like the ones at ASMovies; I think the food courts at the resorts do a decent job on breakfast. :thumbsup2

Yes, the breakfast platters are pretty standard all over. I think the value resorts have quite a bit more variety because they only have the one restaurant. I remember getting a lot of different items at Pop when we stayed there on our first trip. The Mara has the standard Breakfast Platter, Mickey Waffle (adult is a big one and the kid's get two little ones), Croissant Sandwich, Oatmeal, Bagels, Pastries... that's pretty much it for breakfast... unless you want a package of Zebra Domes!!!

I prefer to grab breakfast at the resort because we can do that early enough to still get to the parks before opening and we don't waste any park time stopping for breakfast that way. Also, CS breakfasts aren't very easy to find in the parks, and they still offer the standard fare that you can get at the resorts anyway... unless you want a little treat from the Main Street Bake Shop or something like that.

[Wendi2000]

Ready for more??? I've got a few hours left before it's time to ring in the new year... so how 'bout a review while we wait???

Dinner – Akershus Royal Banquet Hall
It was about 5:30 and we were once again famished! We strolled over toward the World Showcase and ducked into Mexico for a ride on the Gran Fiesta Tour. Once we were off I figured it was a good time to check in for our 6:15 ADR at Akershus – we were about 20 minutes early and were taken in immediately. First, we took pictures with Belle, which didn’t turn out half bad and we received the photos with our meal as an included benefit, then we were seated at a table for two right near the buffet. Our waitress was Hanne and she took our drink order and asked if we needed more time to decide on our dinner entrees. We were ready, so I ordered the Mustard-Glazed Grilled Salmon topped with Red Onion Jam, which was accompanied by Roasted Potatoes and Veggies, and an Iced Tea.
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Max ordered the kid’s Grilled Chicken Breast with Corn and Boiled Potatoes and a Chocolate Milk.
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We also got rolls with butter.
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We were then directed to go over to the buffet to have unlimited appetizers. This was really good; I had Salad with Ranch Dressing, Potato Salad, Beet & Apple Salad, Smoked Salmon with Dill Cream Cheese, Peppered Smoked Fish, Peel & Eat Shrimp, Cucumber Salad, and some Muenster Cheese.
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Max loaded up on meats, cheeses, shrimp, and smoked salmon.
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We both enjoyed this part of the meal quite a bit. Our entrees came out next and they were both very good. Max loved his corn and potatoes, but was already too stuffed to eat more than a bite of his chicken, which he did say was “perfect”. My salmon was very good; I really liked the mustard sauce and caramelized onions. Underneath was a small pile of crisp green beans and baby carrots and some very good roasted potatoes. I was delighted with everything. When Hanne was ready to bring our dessert platter, she asked me to write down Max’s name for her because she had a little surprise for him. Out she came with a special Jr. Chef Certificate and a “design-your-own” cupcake platter for him. Apparently they can do one of these each night and she picked Max.
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He wouldn’t allow me to take a picture of his special cupcake for some reason, he kept guarding it from my camera's viewfinder... but it was a vanilla cupcake, with cups of vanilla frosting, chocolate syrup, gummy bears, and Mickey head sprinkles. Oh, and I was able to sneak one picture before he caught me... don't tell him it's here!!!
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He had fun making it, and that is usually all he does with that kind of thing. Then after the cupcake had sat there for a couple of minutes, he actually ate it, he really ate it, almost the entire thing too!

This left me with the entire dessert platter.
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I liked the Rice Cream with Strawberry Sauce – it is just rice pudding.
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The Flourless Chocolate Cake was far too rich and chocolaty for anyone who isn’t a serious chocolate junkie!
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Then there was the School Bread – well, I like School Bread quite a lot.
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Too bad I could only put away about a quarter of it. I didn’t notice much of a difference in this new version with the caramel frosting from the older version.

Oh, I almost forgot!!! Somewhere in between our entrees and dessert were the princesses! This is what most people go to Akershus for… I was hoping to see Snow White tonight.

First came Aurora,
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next was Jasmine,
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followed by Ariel,
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and Cinderella was the finale.
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Max was very happy to take pictures with them all, yay! We paid our bill, left Hanne a tip, and headed back into the night at Epcot.

[HappyPeach]

I'm really enjoying living vicariously through your post! Keep it coming, please!:)

[SunnieRN]

What great updates! Looking forward to more. Loved the beverly face!!

[Wendi2000]

I'm really enjoying living vicariously through your post! Keep it coming, please!:)

Thanks, glad you're liking them! Can you believe after all of these restaurants I wish we'd had even more???

What great updates! Looking forward to more. Loved the beverly face!!

Thank you! I really tried to capture that face!

I'll try to get more posted tonight...

[danielle.st]

The flourless chocolate cake was the only dessert I really liked there! I thought it tasted kind of like a soft homemade fudge.

[Wendi2000]

The flourless chocolate cake was the only dessert I really liked there! I thought it tasted kind of like a soft homemade fudge.

It was just way too rich for me. I think you have to have a very serious love for chocolate in order to be able to enjoy this one, and I'm just not that big on chocolate. It was almost like pure cocoa. I can see how chocolate lovers would dream about this dessert...

[Wendi2000]

OK, ready for more???

Monday, December 15, 2008

Breakfast – Boma
We had a breakfast ADR for 8:05am at Boma, we just love the breakfast at Boma. We were either right on time, or a couple of minutes late but we were seated right away and had a great server, John (I think we’ve had him before, he seemed very familiar). Today at the carving station they had Ham and Turkey (didn’t try them, so I can’t comment). I had Frunch and Coffee, Max had… SODA. Yeah, I let him have what he wants on vacation, so he asked John if he would mix up Coke and Sprite for his breakfast beverage and John was happy to oblige. Max feasted on big, gorgeous Strawberries, Pancakes, Scrambled Eggs, Sausage and Bacon.
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I helped myself to a bowl of Oatmeal with Brown Sugar,
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Bobotie, Bacon, an Egg Over-Medium, a slice of Wheat Toast, and a strip of French Toast.
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Everything was wonderful… as always. I didn’t get the Press-Pot of Kenyan Coffee – I just can’t seem to justify it when I’m the only one drinking it, it’s too much coffee for me, even though it is so good. Maybe next time I’ll just get it anyway and enjoy the indulgence.

Boma has always been a favorite of ours for both breakfast and dinner... I am starting to like the breakfast a little more than the dinner now. I think it is mostly in comparison to other meals because breakfast at Boma just outshines every other breakfast anywhere!

I'll be back later with a lunch review of Tony's Town Square... do you think we hated it as much as most DISers??? Or will we surprise you?

[MickeyNicki]

We are huge Boma breakfast lovers too! Cannot wait to hear what you think about Tonys, we had lunch there in Oct and really enjoyed it....trying dinner in a few weeks

[Leslieann1024]

Can't wait for the rest ! Thoroughly enjoying your review so far . . . . !

[Wendi2000]

We are huge Boma breakfast lovers too! Cannot wait to hear what you think about Tonys, we had lunch there in Oct and really enjoyed it....trying dinner in a few weeks

Boma breakfast is a must for us... I have never had a better breakfast anywhere. I'll try to hurry up with my Tony's review!

Can't wait for the rest ! Thoroughly enjoying your review so far . . . . !

Thanks! I'll try to keep up with posting now that the lazy days of holidays are coming to an end...

[angelmav]

Great reviews and look forward to more!

You dont see alot of Akershus dinner reviews, so thanks for that one too! :thumbsup2

[Wendi2000]

Great reviews and look forward to more!

You dont see alot of Akershus dinner reviews, so thanks for that one too! :thumbsup2

Yes, I agree... lots of breakfast reviews, but not many lunch or dinner reviews are out there.

[Wendi2000]

OK folks... on with the show!!!

Lunch – Tony’s Town Square
We were hungry, and it was fairly close to our lunch ADR, so we headed out of Tomorrowland. We saw that the Omni Bus was parked right outside, so we hopped on board. We didn’t realize that it was staying put for a few minutes because the Castle Forecourt Show, Dream Along with Mickey had just started. We were at the front of the upper deck of the bus, so we had a great seat for the show. Once it was over we were on our way down Main Street USA and were deposited at the curb directly in front of Tony’s Town Square. It was exactly 12:05, which was the exact time of our ADR, how perfect is that? We checked in and waited no more than 10 minutes before we were seated.

Max ordered a Chocolate Milk… surprised??? I was really craving a Coke, and it sure did hit the spot! I ordered the Calamari with Olive Relish and Marinara Sauce for my appetizer and it was wonderful…
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I actually finished the whole thing – well, Max did have a couple pieces of the Calamari. I thought the marinara was very bland, so I didn’t use it, the calamari was fine without it though, I really liked the olives, they added the perfect spark of flavor to the dish. For my entrée I chose the Grilled Salmon salad
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The salmon was perfectly grilled and tasty, the salad was... meh, pretty bland – I expected it to be a little more flavorful because I absolutely love beets and I really like feta and candied walnuts all together… but the dressing was a little too benign and the feta and walnuts were not plentiful enough, the beets were OK, but they would’ve been much better if they were pickled or marinated to give them a little flavor. I was still happy with my selection, but I had seen the scampi at a nearby table and it looked like a real winner too – if I went back, I’d probably try that!

For dessert I opted for the Spumoni, which was very good. I asked what the Chef’s special cheesecake was, and our server said it was either mocha or espresso flavored (I can’t remember exactly), and was more of a mousse than a cheesecake – it still sounded pretty good, but I’m a cheesecake purist so I thought I’d give the spumoni a try instead.
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It came with a tiny chocolate biscotti and an almond flavored cookie – they were delish!

Max had the kid’s Salad,
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Cheese Pizza,
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and Ice Cream Sundae
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He devoured the pizza, ate about a third of the salad, and mostly just played with his dessert. He liked the pizza so much he even ate the crusts – which he never does. As soon as he bit into it he moaned that it was “so soft and good”.

We would definitely go to Tony's for lunch again, we had very good service, liked the atmosphere, and liked the food enough to go back for more. We were also wishing that we'd been there with my mom, or that she had been on this trip with us because she's a big Lady & The Tramp fan... next time she comes along we'll definitely take her to Tony's!

[ireland_nicole]

I'm going to have to catch up on your other reviews, b/c I am so loving this one; I'm definitely in for the long haul!popcorn::

[MadiMouse]

Girl, you sure know how to eat...and good, too. Dang, I need to lose weight and you sure aren't helping! ;)

Great reviews!!

[Wendi2000]

I'm going to have to catch up on your other reviews, b/c I am so loving this one; I'm definitely in for the long haul!popcorn::

Thank you! Glad you are enjoying the reviews...

Girl, you sure know how to eat...and good, too. Dang, I need to lose weight and you sure aren't helping! ;)

Great reviews!!

Yeah, you can see from my body that I like to eat! hahaha Too bad I don't get as much exercise at home as I do on vacation... if so, I could keep eating like that and losing weight instead of eating less and gaining!

[distherapy]

Yay! What a great review you're writing. I am so excited for more.

[Wendi2000]

Yay! What a great review you're writing. I am so excited for more.

Thanks! I'm trying to get all of my 1900 Park Fare pictures together so I can post another review soon!

[Wendi2000]

OK, everybody ready for dinner???

Dinner – Cinderella’s Gala Feast at 1900 Park Fare
As soon as we were done riding Splash Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, we headed out of the park and hopped on the Monorail to get to our 6:45 dinner ADR at Cinderella’s Gala Feast at 1900 Park Fare. We were about 10 minutes early and waited at least 20 minute for our table, but we had a pager, so we were able to go out to the Grand Floridian lobby and relax near the giant Gingerbread House.
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Dinner was terrific. I had been a little worried because we really liked this restaurant in the past, but it hasn’t gotten such great reviews lately. Our server was Sonia, and she was very good – came around just enough to take care of everything – we never had dirty plates on our table and she brought drinks quickly and told us how to strategize seeing the characters when they came around. Dinner was very good. I started out with Caesar’s Salad, Fresh Mozarella and Tomato Salad, Chicken Marsala, Salmon in Cream Sauce, Paella, Ciabatta Bread, Mashed Potatoes (these are so very good, I can eat them at every meal!), Salad Nicoise, and a wonderful salad with Tomatoes, Peppers, Capers, and I don’t remember what else!!! I went back for some soup – I skipped the Chilled Strawberry Soup this time, and I got some Tuscan White Bean Soup which was very, very good. I also got some kid’s Macaroni & Cheese, which I usually like, but whatever version they use now tastes a lot like that fake butter flavoring on movie theater popcorn… not so good on mac & cheese!
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Max had about three pieces of Cheese Pizza, Plain Noodles with Parmesan Cheese, Corn, Mashed Potatoes, Macaroni and Cheese and Ciabatta Bread.
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Doesn’t all of that yellow/white food look so unhealthy??? LOL! He ate almost everything on his plate! He said he was too stuffed for dessert, but I definitely wanted some, plus we still had two characters to see – so I asked our server for a cup of Coffee and set out to find some sweet treats.

I came back with two dishes – one with Bread Pudding and Apple Crisp drizzled with Vanilla Sauce; the other with a Key Lime Tart, Cheesecake, Chocolate Mousse, and Carrot Cake. Max took the whole chocolate mousse right away as his own, so I didn’t get a chance to try it, I think it was absolutely delicious though, because it was gone in a flash! I had a bite of everything else and they were all good – I especially liked the carrot cake. Max had bites of everything else too and the remaining ¾ of the cheesecake – it must have been as good as the mousse. We must’ve inhaled it all quicker than I could grab my camera… sorry! They were very pretty little desserts too!

We were visited by Anastasia, Prince Charming, Cinderella, Lady Tremaine, and Drizella. All were great, and they were fun to watch.
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[MickeyNicki]

Thank you so much for your 1900 PF review! DH and I are eating dinner there with our 2 nieces in a few weeks and I am glad to know the food and characters were great! How loud was it in there and at the time you went was it very busy?

[Wendi2000]

Thank you so much for your 1900 PF review! DH and I are eating dinner there with our 2 nieces in a few weeks and I am glad to know the food and characters were great! How loud was it in there and at the time you went was it very busy?

It wasn't at all as loud as I'd expected - but certainly not quiet either... and it was very busy while we were there. I think we probably waited 20 minutes for our table and pretty much every table was full while we were there. I was worried after reading a lot of unfavorable reviews lately, so I'm really relieved that it was good for us. I guess a lot would depend on what you eat though... I don't eat much meat and I love seafood and veggies, but I think there are a lot of meat lovers who are disappointed with places that aren't all about meat and potatoes, KWIM? I enjoy buffets because I like side dishes more than main dishes!!! hehehe

Anastasia and Drizella had a lot of fun together and they were entertaining to watch. Prince Charming wasn't as beautiful as the one we met there last time though!!! hahaha

[MadiMouse]

Reading your reviews made me go to Cheesecake Factory last night to pick up $21.00 worth of cheesecake (3 slices). Is this the way you want me to start 2009???? :)

Great update!

[Wendi2000]

Reading your reviews made me go to Cheesecake Factory last night to pick up $21.00 worth of cheesecake (3 slices). Is this the way you want me to start 2009???? :)

Great update!

Perrrrrfect... my evil plan is working!!! :ssst:

[habg1]

All I can say is WOW. Perfect review so far. So jealous. :thumbsup2

[madameleota71]

Love your reviews! That giant gingerbread house is absolutely beautiful!!!:love:

[madameleota71]

Sorry...I accidentally posted twice!

[Ciciwoowoo]

I love your review so far! :love:


I have a cute Beverly face pic of my son too. Aren't they the best? Oh, and I adore how all the pics of Mommy with the characters are taken from the perspective of looking up. :goodvibes Max did a good job with those pics!

I look forward to reading more!

[suzimar57]

enjoying your reviews and photos, especially of the stepmother and evil stepsisters at 1900!

[soontobewed07]

You had the same group of char. as we did last March. They were so great with DS only 9 months at the time cinderella kissed him and prince charming held him so cute:lovestruc . We love 1900 PF although skipping it this time for Norway princess breakfast.

Your reviews are terrific!

[Disneylover87]

:thumbsup2 great reviews! were going in may and i wasn't sure about tony's or 1900 park fare.. but now i know they seem great!

thanks for the great reviews!!

[Pooh's-Honey-Pot]

Enjoying your reviews! I'm glad to hear a good review of Tony's as we love it there!

[Wendi2000]

All I can say is WOW. Perfect review so far. So jealous. :thumbsup2

Thank you... it was a great trip!

Love your reviews! That giant gingerbread house is absolutely beautiful!!!:love:

Isn't it amazing? It smells yummy too!

I love your review so far! :love:


I have a cute Beverly face pic of my son too. Aren't they the best? Oh, and I adore how all the pics of Mommy with the characters are taken from the perspective of looking up. :goodvibes Max did a good job with those pics!

I look forward to reading more!

Ah... so you like all of my chins, huh? LOL

enjoying your reviews and photos, especially of the stepmother and evil stepsisters at 1900!

They were really fun.

You had the same group of char. as we did last March. They were so great with DS only 9 months at the time cinderella kissed him and prince charming held him so cute:lovestruc . We love 1900 PF although skipping it this time for Norway princess breakfast.

Your reviews are terrific!

Thanks!

:thumbsup2 great reviews! were going in may and i wasn't sure about tony's or 1900 park fare.. but now i know they seem great!

thanks for the great reviews!!

Thanks, I've seen a lot of not-so-flattering reviews of both places so I was very pleased to enjoy them both so much.

Enjoying your reviews! I'm glad to hear a good review of Tony's as we love it there!

I can't believe how many great meals we had. We usually have at least one where we get rotten service or something that makes it not-so-great. What is your favorite dish at Tony's?

[SunnieRN]

Woo hoo! Three updates with pictures! Really enjoying this! Booked our AK trip for next december, can't wait for Boma breakfast!

[ShannonMB]

This is BRILLIANT so far. I'm loving the pics and your story!!!! :hug:

BTW, what is a beverly/beverly face? :confused3

[Wendi2000]

Woo hoo! Three updates with pictures! Really enjoying this! Booked our AK trip for next december, can't wait for Boma breakfast!

I hope you love it as much as we do!!!

This is BRILLIANT so far. I'm loving the pics and your story!!!! :hug:

BTW, what is a beverly/beverly face? :confused3

Thank you! Beverly is an English soda that you can taste (for free) at Club Cool in Epcot. There are a bunch of sodas from different countries that you can try out. Beverly tastes like earwax... :scared:

[west&east]

Great job on the review so far! Keep it coming! We leave in a little over 2 weeks for AKL. Did you write a separate review about the resort by any chance?:thumbsup2

[Wendi2000]

Great job on the review so far! Keep it coming! We leave in a little over 2 weeks for AKL. Did you write a separate review about the resort by any chance?:thumbsup2

Thanks! I haven't written an AKL review, but I'd be happy to share anything you want to know. Max LOVES the pool... I love the hot tub (the one closer to the pool slide is larger and hotter - I prefer it to the one behind the bar, which is smaller and not as hot). We are in love with the feel of the resort, the relaxing low-lighting, the smells that hit you as you walk in, the savannas, the beautiful lobby and unique gift shop, and the special activities that are available (although we didn't participate in much of anything on this trip). One of the biggest advantages though is the bus service... it is far superior to other resort's buses that we have used. In fact, on this trip the longest we waited was probably 15 minutes (which is totally acceptable) and that only happened once - we had really good luck and almost always walked up as the bus was pulling in, or as the bus was ready to pull away from the curb! Max was sure it was because we rubbed the carving near the front door each time we left... I'm sure he's right!

[rentayenta]

Wendi, I didn't know you had a report going?! :woohoo: Now I need to go read....................:surfweb:

[Wendi2000]

OK... time to start on a new day!

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Breakfast – The Mara
We headed down to the Mara to grab some breakfast before catching the bus to the Animal Kingdom. I had Oatmeal with Brown Sugar as a snack credit
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I got Max the Adult Mickey Waffle with Bacon (sorry, I forgot and cut it all up before taking the picture - I know that's not the way you want to see Mickey's face!!!), a yogurt (snack credit too – and he only took one bite so I finished it), a large Chocolate Milk (which maybe got half finished, should’ve gotten the small…) and a Coffee (for me!)
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I didn’t want to bring along the mugs since we were going to jump straight on the bus after breakfast – plus I knew we wouldn’t be able to handle so many drinks! I really love the oatmeal here, it is a little on the salty side, but the texture is perfect and the serving is plenty to fill me up for the whole morning. Max cleaned his plate, and I did get a bite of his waffle – it was very, very good – fluffy and just the right sweetness.

[MadiMouse]

I see we both cut up our waffles the same way! ;)

[Wendi2000]

Wendi, I didn't know you had a report going?! :woohoo: Now I need to go read....................:surfweb:

Jenny!!! When is your next trip? And how about Disneyland? When I got back from WDW I had a letter in the mail that I won a trip to Disneyland and they had to receive my acceptance that day!!! We're going in February or March... I just have to figure out when we can do it.

I see we both cut up our waffles the same way! ;)

Yeah, especially with kids you've got to cut 'em all up BEFORE you put the syrup on... otherwise the syrup always ends up all over the hands... icky-sticky!

[rentayenta]

Jenny!!! When is your next trip? And how about Disneyland? When I got back from WDW I had a letter in the mail that I won a trip to Disneyland and they had to receive my acceptance that day!!! We're going in February or March... I just have to figure out when we can do it.








:hug: Your reviews and pictures are awesome! I cannot believe how much Max has grown!!!!

:woohoo: You won a trip to Disneyland? How?

We are going to WDW this May! :cool1: I am so excited!!! :dance3:

We never made it out to Disneyland last year. Finances just didn't allow it- isn't that everyone's story lately? :sad1:

I am so glad I found this! Can't wait to read more! popcorn:: :goodvibes

[iluvpluto27]

I'm really enjoying your reviews and pictures. I really liked our Boma breakfast too and your pics have made me decide I must fit in a return visit on our next trip.

[momofdbsdc]

Great reviews and pictures!!!! Thank you for taking the time to share them!!!

[onelilspark]

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:scared1: Mickey?? :sad1:


Kidding! Looks delicious still!

[Wendi2000]

:hug: Your reviews and pictures are awesome! I cannot believe how much Max has grown!!!!

:woohoo: You won a trip to Disneyland? How?

We are going to WDW this May! :cool1: I am so excited!!! :dance3:

We never made it out to Disneyland last year. Finances just didn't allow it- isn't that everyone's story lately? :sad1:

I am so glad I found this! Can't wait to read more! popcorn:: :goodvibes

I won the trip from the LA Fox News (Channel 11) - they had a trivia question to answer about the superbowl (yes... I definitely needed the help of Google!) three Sundays in a row. I answered twice and evidently I did something right!

I'm really enjoying your reviews and pictures. I really liked our Boma breakfast too and your pics have made me decide I must fit in a return visit on our next trip.

Boma breakfast is sooo yummy!

Great reviews and pictures!!!! Thank you for taking the time to share them!!!

Thanks... and you're welcome!

:scared1: Mickey?? :sad1:


Kidding! Looks delicious still!

Poor little Mickey... he certainly was delicious though!

[Wendi2000]

Lunch – Yak & Yeti
As usual, we are totally starving by now and it’s time for our 12:30 lunch ADR at Yak & Yeti.

Lunch was fabulous!!! We started with drinks, I had the Mango Iced Tea, which was delish, and what do you think Max had? Yep… that’s right, Chocolate Milk. He ordered the kid’s Cheeseburger with French Fries and Fried Rice – he loved the fries, ate half of the burger and didn’t even touch the rice.
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There is no kid’s appetizer here and he was kind of perturbed that I got something to eat before he did. Our server offered to bring out his food with my appetizer, but believe me… that would’ve been much worse, because when he’s done eating, he just wants to GO.

I had the Seared Ahi Tuna appetizer and it was wonderful, the wasabi cream sauce was great and the slaw under the tuna was perfect. The flavors all worked beautifully together and I ate every last bite.
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For my entrée I had the Seared Miso Glazed Salmon with Vegetables and Jasmine Rice.
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The flavor of the salmon was delightful, and it was cooked so perfectly that it practically melted in my mouth. The glaze was very good, and the grilled flavor was just right. I gave a chunk of the salmon to Max and polished off the rest of the slab.

For dessert I had the Cream Cheese Won Ton Skewers with Pineapple.
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I wouldn’t have ordered this without seeing it so many times and reading so many rave reviews about them; I had to try them for myself and I’m so glad I did. The honey vanilla sauce really made this dish, it was the perfect accompaniment to the tart pineapple and rich creamy cream cheese enclosed in crispy fried wontons.

Max didn’t want dessert, so I asked for the Chocolate Chip Cookie for him because I knew we could just take it with us for later.
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The server actually brought him two pre-packaged cookies and Max did end up eating one of them at the table, and I ate the other one later in the day. This lunch got a huge thumbs up from both of us, we would absolutely return again.

The only downside is that Max had just gotten a leather wrist strap made with his name embossed on it in the Magic Kingdom the day before and he left it at the table and forgot it. We called lost & found and the restaurant directly but no one had turned it in… bummer! He was definitely wearing it at the table too… I can see it here:
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[MadiMouse]

Tell Max that I am going to get him for wasting that Fried Rice...especially since I am here drooling over it!:rotfl2:
The wontons look absolutely delish!!!;)
Great update!!!:goodvibes




P.S.
I'm sending my weight watchers bill to you!!!

[Wendi2000]

Tell Max that I am going to get him for wasting that Fried Rice...especially since I am here drooling over it!:rotfl2:
The wontons look absolutely delish!!!;)
Great update!!!:goodvibes




P.S.
I'm sending my weight watchers bill to you!!!

Max and I both love fried rice... but I kept reading reviews that the Y&Y fried rice was odd... nothing specific, but it's just not that good and no one can seem to pinpoint just why.

I tasted the rice and it wasn't very good, so I have to agree with the reviews. It was just a little off, kind of bland and the flavor just wasn't normal for fried rice.

No way am I paying for your WW bill... but man, I was looking at these pictures as I was posting them and was practically drooling for that tuna and salmon again. Maybe I'll take Max out for Japanese food tomorrow night!!!

[Wendi2000]

Time to get down to business!!! Who's ready for Jiko???

Dinner – Jiko
We checked out the Zawadi Marketplace for a while to kill some time, and headed to Jiko at 5:30 for our 5:55 ADR. We were seated in about 5 minutes.

For my appetizer I ordered the Kalamata Flatbread
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I was having a hard time deciding between that and the Cucumber, Tomato, Onion Salad. It was very good, but I kind of wished I had gotten the salad. The flatbread was really nothing special – but it was big, filling and tasty. Max enjoyed it!
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For my entrée I had the Maize Crusted Sturgeon with Vegetables of the Moment in a Tomato Butter Sauce.
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It was absolutely delightful. What a fantastic piece of white fish, cooked to perfection, and what a sauce! It was served atop Brocollini, Baby Bok Choy, Sugar Snap Peas, Edamame, Tomatoes, and Green Beans (as far as I could tell); all were cooked perfectly and really went well with the fish and the sauce.

For dessert it was another toss up between the Pistachio Crème Brulee and the Lemon Curd with Blueberries and Sour Cream Ice Cream – this is what I went with and it was wonderful.
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Creamy, tart ice cream, perfect blueberries, and creamy, gooey lemon curd. It was very nice and not too filling. I didn’t make much of a dent in it, but I’m not a big dessert person and I definitely had enough to get my fill.

Max had he kid’s Peas and Carrots for his appetizer – I don’t know why he ordered this, and he really didn’t want to eat it when it arrived.
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He got the kid’s Tomato and Cheese Pizza and it looked almost like the flatbread I had for my appetizer without the additional toppings. He said it was “good”.
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For dessert he had the Ice Cream Sundae and White Chocolate Mickey Mouse Puzzle. He didn’t eat it… well, he finally ate one puzzle piece and enjoyed it, but that was it.
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Jiko is amazing and I highly recommend trying it if you haven't already... if you have tried it, I know I don't have to tell you!!!

[SunnieRN]

Yummm! Everything looks SO good!
Congratulations on winning your trip! Used to watch fox channel 11 when I lived in CA!!
Yummm I still dream about napa rose!

[MadiMouse]

Yummy! Now I didn't care for Boma's dinner but I could really try Jiko! Great update...as always! ;)

[accountingbabe08]

We went to Jiko our first night last trip, and boy did we enjoy the food. I had that flatbread also. I don't remember what i had for dessert as I took it to go and stuck in the fridge. I'm enjoying your reviews.


Belinda

[rentayenta]

I won the trip from the LA Fox News (Channel 11) - they had a trivia question to answer about the superbowl (yes... I definitely needed the help of Google!) three Sundays in a row. I answered twice and evidently I did something right!



:cool1: That's awesome!



Okay, now Jiko is on my list. It looks fabulous!

[west&east]

Does the white chocolate puzzle come with some sort of paints? I thought I saw this at some other restaurants.

[Wendi2000]

Yummm! Everything looks SO good!
Congratulations on winning your trip! Used to watch fox channel 11 when I lived in CA!!
Yummm I still dream about napa rose!

Thanks, I still can't believe I won!

Yummy! Now I didn't care for Boma's dinner but I could really try Jiko! Great update...as always! ;)

Jiko is fabulous... you should definitely give it a try.

We went to Jiko our first night last trip, and boy did we enjoy the food. I had that flatbread also. I don't remember what i had for dessert as I took it to go and stuck in the fridge. I'm enjoying your reviews.


Belinda

Jiko = yum! Glad you're enjoying the reviews!

:cool1: That's awesome!



Okay, now Jiko is on my list. It looks fabulous!

Yeah, don't miss out on Jiko, it is amazing. I can't wait for our DL trip now... more planning to do!

Does the white chocolate puzzle come with some sort of paints? I thought I saw this at some other restaurants.

Now that you mention it, I seem to recall seeing these with paints too, but his didn't come with them.

[Wendi2000]

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Breakfast – The Mara
Up early again this morning, and we’re raring to go to the Studios. First, we stopped in at the Mara for a quick bite. We split a Breakfast Croissant Sandwich with a Juice for Max and a Coffee for me, and Max had a Cinnamon Roll (Snack Credit). This was pretty good, but I wouldn’t have wanted to eat the entire croissant – too fattening! I’m glad we shared this. Sorry… I totally forgot to take pictures of this meal, but we enjoyed it and would split the sandwich again!!!

I'll be back later with lunch at Sci-Fi Dine-In!!!

[photomama]

thanks for posting all the reviews. I didn't see San Angel in the DDP??

[Wendi2000]

thanks for posting all the reviews. I didn't see San Angel in the DDP??

It was on the dining plan when we were there. I don't know if it still is this year, or if the dining plan has even been finalized yet for 2009... it seems like there is a huge amount of confusion about which restaurants contracted for 2009 still.

[Pooh's-Honey-Pot]

thanks for posting all the reviews. I didn't see San Angel in the DDP??

I found this earlier when I was looking for DDP restaurants - its off Disney's website so should hopefully be accurate! It shows San Angel inn! :thumbsup2

http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/media/wdw_nextgen/CoreCatalog/WaltDisneyWorld/en_us/PDF/2009%20Disney%20Dining%20Plan%20-%20Walt%20Disney%20World.pdf

[Wendi2000]

Lunch – Sci-Fi Dine-In
After two consecutive rides on Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster I realized we were very late for our 11:00 lunch ADR at Sci-Fi, for some reason I had it in my head that our ADR was at 11:40… oops! No problem, they seated us immediately and we had a great time not only watching fun movies and eating in a great car, but also chatting with the family from England in the front of the car, both of us were on the Deluxe Dining Plan and we were discussing the amount of food we'd been eating!

I couldn’t resist getting those Onion Rings for my appetizer, and I shared them with Max but we still didn’t finish them.
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Max made his own “Hidden Mickey” with his… cute!
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They were superb… perfectly seasoned, just the right amount of batter, and perfectly cooked so they were golden and crispy on the outside with wonderfully plump, soft big onion rings on the inside. Great choice!

For my entrée I chose the Shrimp Pasta, it was good, but way too huge. Plus I couldn’t see what I was eating so I had to hunt for the artichokes… didn’t want to miss out on those! The shrimps were huge and the pasta was cooked perfectly. I would order this again, but I would also like to try other items… this dish wasn’t extraordinary or anything, and it seemed a little oily, but I don’t know for sure, since I couldn’t see it!
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Ohhhhh… and I had a Cherry Vanilla Coke for my beverage and man was it good!!! Soooo sweet!
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For dessert I had about 4 bites of the Apple Crisp. It was sooooo very good, it would be worth it just to come for this! It was huge and there is no way I could even have finished half of it on any given day, but I just don’t do dessert, so it is mostly wasted on me – the most I usually will eat is half of any dessert.
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Max had the kid’s Cheese Pizza with Salad and Fruit Salad… oh yes, and he had Chocolate Milk! He devoured his pizza with gusto, and ate some of his fruit and none of his salad.
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Oh, he also had another untouched sundae…
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We really enjoyed this lunch. The atmosphere is so unique and the food was better than I’d expected. Our server was GREAT too. She brought Max a driver’s license and offered to take pictures of us… something I wouldn’t have even thought to ask, it’s really nice to have the pictures to see now!
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We would definitely return to Sci-Fi in the future. It was a very good experience for us - I'm sorry not everyone has had the same fortune as we had.

Later I grabbed a Coke and a snack pack of Carrots and Celery with Lite Ranch Dressing to share and Max ate almost all of the carrots while I ate most of the celery there, so I’m glad I got a few more vegetables into him (and me – I always feel extremely veggie deprived at WDW). This snack hit the spot and it was nice to sit on a bench and take a little break to refresh.

[Wendi2000]

Dinner – The Hollywood Brown Derby
The posted wait time for Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster was 40 minutes, but we waited about an hour and twenty minutes!!! Yikes. This made us about 20 minutes late for our dinner ADR. Once again, it wasn’t a problem.

We arrived at The Hollywood Brown Derby at 6:23 for our 6:05 ADR and were seated within 10 minutes. For the first time, we didn’t get seated at the booth in the center of the right hand section of the restaurant… for some reason we always get that same booth. This time we were on the upper level just past the lobby to the left overlooking the rest of the dining room. Our server was good, but not the best we’ve had there.

I ordered a Pomegranate Cosmo, which was super delish! He never asked if I wanted anything else to drink.
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I had the Blue Jumbo Lump Crab Cake for my appetizer.
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I’ve had this before and it is good, but I really, really should’ve ordered a salad – I must get more veggies soon!!!

Of course for my entrée I ordered the Grilled Salmon over Gorgonzola Polenta with Balsamic Reduction.
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This dish is sooooo good, I can’t help but order it. I hope next time to finally try something else though, as good as this is, I really ought to venture out a little more.

For dessert I had the Pumpkin Cheesecake which was fantastic – I ate almost half of it! Yay.
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For his appetizer Max had the kid’s Chicken Noodle Soup and ate quite a bit of it.
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He had the Meaty Macaroni with Marinara and Mozarella and had a few bites, but didn’t eat much.
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He did have a nice hunk of my salmon though. For dessert he had the Hidden Treasure and actually ate a tiny bit of the ice cream and both of the gummy worms.
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He had a Chocolate Milk with a Milk chaser. Oh, and I did order a Decaf Coffee to go with my dessert.

When we left the restaurant we had 3 minutes before the park closed, and still held two Fast Passes for ToT, so we ran! Probably not the best idea to run and then ride a gut plunging ride RIGHT after eating a huge meal… but it all worked out OK for us. We made it on the ride and had a good one for the last of the night – plus this is our only day for Studios.

[DWFan4Life]

Saturday, December 13, 2008

Dinner - The Mara
Max had the kid’s Cheeseburger with French Fries, Grapes, and Chocolate Milk.
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I had the Chicken Breast Nuggets with French Fries and a small drink (Sprite Zero).
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The server just kept loading more nuggets into my dish; I must have ended up with about 12 of them (and they are BIG) then piled a bunch of fries on top. Max ate all of his burger and a few of my nuggets plus a ton of fries. I’ve never seen him eat so much!

He liked his meal, and I liked mine too – I don’t really eat much meat, so this is something I wouldn’t normally eat, but it sounded appealing at the time and it was very good. The chicken was high quality and I liked the batter, it was just right. The fries are never really hot here because they are made in advance and they sit under heat lamps, but they’re still pretty good for sitting around for a while. This meal hit the spot, but I really could’ve used some veggies, I should’ve asked about subbing a salad for the fries.



Wow, this looks yummy. I really love fries. Is this served for DDP?

Thanks for sharing this. :)

[Wendi2000]

Wow, this looks yummy. I really love fries. Is this served for DDP?

Thanks for sharing this. :)

Yes, you can get this on the dining plan with a large fountain drink or a bottled beverage plus a dessert. This was our first night and we weren't on our dining package yet, so I only purchased what we would normally eat... otherwise I probably would've tested out a little bit of cheesecake or zebra domes... and probably a bigger drink too!

[SunnieRN]

Sci Fi and Brown Derby both looked so yummy, but when you said your pasta had artichokes and shrimp I know now what I will most likely get when we go there, yummm!

[Wendi2000]

Sci Fi and Brown Derby both looked so yummy, but when you said your pasta had artichokes and shrimp I know now what I will most likely get when we go there, yummm!

Yeah, it's definitely a good combination! Plus the shrimp were really big and cooked just right. Unlike some other shrimp I had on this trip...

[Wendi2000]

Thursday, December 18, 2008

Breakfast – Chef Mickey’s
We hit morning EMH at the Magic Kingdom before heading out of the park to catch the Monorail to the Contemporary Resort for our 10:10 ADR at Chef Mickey’s.

Last year, I didn’t make a Chef Mickey’s ADR because I didn’t think it was that big of a deal… the food is nothing special and the characters are fun, but we’ve seen them many times. Well, Max was really upset that we weren’t eating there and I kept trying for an opening and never was able to get a reservation, so this year I made sure to get this on our list for Max.

We got there right on time and checked in at the podium which was right next to a construction area with noise and the smell of power tools and sawdust… not such a great thing and I would have been very disappointed if we were seated near this. I really think they should’ve mentioned this at the time of making the ADR – it wouldn’t have changed our minds on eating there, but some people probably would opt out. Luckily, we were seated in the same section we’ve been in every single time… over at the windows with the castle view. This is a great spot because there are only about 7 tables up there, the buffet is nearby, and the view is great.
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Max is always hunting for Hidden Mickeys… he really liked the chairs here.
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We had a very good time, and our server Michael was excellent and friendly. There was Coffee and cream on the table for us, and Michael came around with his pitcher of Orange Juice and refilled us as needed. The buffet was the same as always. I really like the Vegetable Breakfast Lasagna and the Corned Beef Hash with Cornbread topping. The Challah French Toast was very good and so was the Smoked Salmon with Capers and Cream Cheese. The Watermelon was perfect and I tried the Cheese Blintz with half Cherry topping and half Blueberry Topping – it was fine, but I’ve had much better, it was a little citrusy tasting. I also found a donut for Max and he was very happy about that!
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3101/3141706015_41282fc85d.jpg

Max had a really good time posing with Goofy, Mickey, Donald, Pluto, and Minnie, I was happy that he was happy – I had a good time too.
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Our table neighbor kindly offered to take that last picture of both of us with Minnie after she heard Max trying to sabotage all of my character photos… plus I’m kind of tired of all of the double-chin pictures that are taken from Max’s level (not that I don’t actually have a double chin or anything, but ya know)!!!

Here’s one of Max’s plates.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3095/3142526138_62166b5819.jpg

And mine.
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We were very pleased with our meal, atmosphere, and character interaction at Chef Mickey's and we'll be back in the future.

Our lunch ADR for today is for Liberty Tree Tavern... we had dinner at LTT last year and we didn't like the food, but the lunch menu looks really good... but, did we actually make it there??? Stay tuned!

[Mich123]

Thanks for the reviews and pictures! I'm just jumping in, working on tweaking plans for a upcoming trip...this is so helpful!

[Wendi2000]

Thanks for the reviews and pictures! I'm just jumping in, working on tweaking plans for a upcoming trip...this is so helpful!

You're welcome... glad to help!

[rentayenta]

I have decided salmon is your favorite food and Chef Mickey's looks WAY better for breakfast than dinner. :thumbsup2

[Wendi2000]

So, is your mouth watering for LTT lunch??? Oh no... so sorry! Max asked if we could just grab a quick lunch somewhere instead...

Lunch – Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Café
We had a 2:00 Liberty Tree Tavern ADR but we really wanted to grab a quick service meal and we were so close to Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Café that we dropped right in.

I was thinking that Max would want the ribs again and we could share the Chicken & Ribs meal, but he was very interested in getting a burger and since I wanted something from one of the other lines anyway, I went ahead and got him the adult meal. So, he had a Cheeseburger, French Fries, Coke, and Carrot Cake – plus a lot of ketchup – the toppings bar is totally wasted on him! I set him up with his food before I went to order mine, so he had already started before I thought to take pictures, sorry!
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I had the Club Salad with Bleu Cheese Dressing, Coke, and Carrot Cake – I put a few extra toppings on my salad... a slice of tomato and a bunch of pepperoncinis – and I think I’m the only person alive who likes dill pickle slices on my salads!!! Plus I filled up a couple of those little cups with sautéed mushrooms. This salad was so filling – I was still feeling stuffed an hour later. It was good and didn’t feel bad about having this instead of LTT (I was planning on a salad for my entree anyway). We ate one of the carrot cakes (really good, but very sweet!) and kept the other in our fridge, but it was still there when we left!
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Cosmic Ray's isn't my favorite place, but it usually has something that will satisfy us when we go. We have never actually sat near Sonny Eclipse before and this time he was within our view - oh, and it was really packed, as it usually is when we go... but it was around 2pm so I guess it's always like that!

Next up is 'Ohana... one of our favorites... but is it still???

[rentayenta]

After just doing 40 minutes on the Wii Fit, I cannot tell you how wonderful that burger looks. :cloud9:

[Wendi2000]

I have decided salmon is your favorite food and Chef Mickey's looks WAY better for breakfast than dinner. :thumbsup2

Yep, you've got me pegged. Salmon is Max's favorite food though, so I always have to share!!! :rolleyes:

After just doing 40 minutes on the Wii Fit, I cannot tell you how wonderful that burger looks. :cloud9:

See, and after 40 minutes of Wii time you can afford it!!! ;) In fact, you might be able to get the double (Fortunately Max doesn't even know there is a double - not that he could even finish the single, but he would want the double... with bacon if only he know it was an option!!!) :rotfl:

[mommykds]

Time to get down to business!!! Who's ready for Jiko???

Dinner – Jiko
We checked out the Zawadi Marketplace for a while to kill some time, and headed to Jiko at 5:30 for our 5:55 ADR. We were seated in about 5 minutes.

For my appetizer I ordered the Kalamata Flatbread
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That looks delicious. Your review makes me want to try Jiko next trip. Thanks for posting.

[alan_renfroe]

Great thread! I just now found it! Subscribing.

[2giddy4wdw]

great reviews!!!

[Wendi2000]

That looks delicious. Your review makes me want to try Jiko next trip. Thanks for posting.

You should absolutely try Jiko, it is wonderful.

Great thread! I just now found it! Subscribing.

Thanks!

great reviews!!!

Thank you!

I'll try to get more up tonight...

[TigerKat]

Getting caught up here. A big JIKO fan here, great review of one of my fave places!!:thumbsup2

[DisneyFan83]

Great reviews! Love the pics too!

[Wendi2000]

Getting caught up here. A big JIKO fan here, great review of one of my fave places!!:thumbsup2

I don't think there's anything at the Animal Kingdom Lodge that I don't like...

Great reviews! Love the pics too!

Thank you!

[Wendi2000]

Dinner – ‘Ohana
Once we were done at the pool and laundry room this evening, we took showers and headed to the Polynesian for our 7:50 ADR at ‘Ohana. We checked in right on time and I requested a Magic Kingdom view just in case we were still there at 9:30 for the Fireworks at Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party. I was told that they could put in the request but there was no guarantee and it might be a long wait. I was OK with that, I got the pager and sat down… for about five minutes.

Our table was right at the window and we had a dead center view of the castle – it was perfect. Our server was Becky and her helper was Bob, they were very good, and kept everything coming at a perfect pace.

First off, I have to say, I am not a fan of ginger. I did not like the food on this visit to 'Ohana as much as I had in the past.

The bread was brought to the table by the host at the time we were seated and it was very good, soft and sweet. The Salad with Honey Lime Dressing was next, along with the dipping sauces. I really like this salad, the dressing is so simple and so good. I ate a lot of it. Next came the Chicken Wings and Potstickers. I don’t do chicken wings, but Max loves these – on one of our trips, he ate an entire bowl of them – granted he didn’t eat anything else because he was so full, but still… he really loves those wings! The potstickers were just very basic pork potstickers, but they had too much ginger for my taste. Next came the Broccoli and Sugar Snap Peas – however, they also tasted like ginger… too bad because I LOVE these two vegetables and I was looking forward to eating a lot of them to get my veggie intake. I still did eat quite a bit of them, but not as many as I would’ve if they hadn’t tasted of ginger. The Noodles came at the same time as the veggies and they were very bland – there just wasn’t much flavor there at all, and they were just noodles and a few very fine bits of maybe cabbage… not even sure – I did drizzle a bit of the peanut dipping sauce to some of my noodles and that helped a lot, but they just weren’t that great.

Becky brought out hot washcloths so we could clean up after the wings. Soon the meats started coming – first was Turkey and Pork. The turkey was very good, the pork was a little tough. The Beef followed quickly and I didn’t try it but Max ate a couple of pieces and really enjoyed it a lot. I was looking forward to the shrimp, and was pleased to see how big they were and how good they looked when they came out. Becky set 7 of them loose onto my plate and 4 on Max’s plate. I quickly started unpeeling the first one and bit into it… ugghhh gritty!!! The next was also slightly gritty, so I was really apprehensive about trying more. The next one was fine, and there was another in the batch that was also OK, but most of them were either gritty or mushy – I have never really had bad shrimp before – this was a big disappointment. I asked for another piece of the turkey since it was good and I’d only had one piece of it. Becky brought over a couple more pieces but it was awful – I think it was a bit undercooked and it tasted very gamey – I suppose it pretty much tasted like… turkey… which I normally don’t really like, but that first piece really was nice! Oh well.

I think I could skip ‘Ohana next time and open up that spot to try something new. Oh yeah, Max did get in on the coconut races, he had a great time doing that – and we did get to see the fireworks during the most incredible dessert ever… ‘Ohana’s Bread Pudding is one dessert that I eat and eat and eat. I love it! We also got to see the Electrical Water Pageant, which was very nice too. After dinner we made our way back to the Lodge for the night.

I didn’t take any food pictures here, I think everyone is probably pretty bored of seeing the same old ‘Ohana pictures… it’s all the same stuff. I did get a few pictures of the coconut races though.
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Looks like Max is neck-and-neck with a grown-up here! Hahaha. In the past, they made the big kids turn their brooms upside down to make it fair for the little ones, I guess they don’t do that anymore.
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He was happy in the end… he said he thought he came in third and he had fun running through the restaurant and competing with everyone else.
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[jpmom97]

Thanks for the reviews, I am really enjoying them. We had the same bad food at Ohana a few years back and I am afraid to go again. My dad lives near Disney and wants to meet us there for dinner but I am too scared LOL. hearing this review just proves I should be.

[Wendi2000]

Thanks for the reviews, I am really enjoying them. We had the same bad food at Ohana a few years back and I am afraid to go again. My dad lives near Disney and wants to meet us there for dinner but I am too scared LOL. hearing this review just proves I should be.

Thanks, glad you are enjoying the reviews.

I would go to Kona Cafe instead of 'Ohana. If they change the menu again, I'll go back, but I think we'll at least skip it on the next trip and maybe try again later. It wasn't horrible, but I'd rather eat elsewhere.

[Wendi2000]

Friday, December 19, 2008

Breakfast – The Mara
Wow, last night I was NOT feeling well and I suspect it may have been due to my dinner at ‘Ohana. Not sure if it just didn’t agree with me, or if something was actually bad… maybe it was that shrimp! After a pretty sleepless night we headed down to the Mara to fill our mugs and grab a breakfast snack. I was still not feeling all that great, but I knew I’d have to eat something in order to make sure I didn’t feel worse by lunchtime. I got an Oatmeal with Brown Sugar (no new picture), and Max had Fruit Loops and Milk (no picture of this either… I think everyone knows what they look like… kind of sickening!) Hahaha!

We brought everything back to the room and had a relaxing breakfast on our balcony. The oatmeal was as good as usual, and Max liked his icky cereal.

Coming up is lunch at San Angel Inn... do we agree with almost everyone else that this place stinks? Or did we love it? I wanted to try it because the new lunch menu looked promising and it always smells soooooo good in there!!!

[aceys_h0ney]

Great reviews, looking foward to the rest!

[darthtatty]

great reviews again, pleased to see you enjoyed sci fi. we want to try it this trip but been seeing loads of bad reviews recently.

i know exactly what you mean about feeling veg deprived at WDW i remember when we were there. everytime i saw a little bit of veg garnish i was snatching it up as fast as i could.
hopefully i'll have better finds this trip. :goodvibes

[Wendi2000]

Great reviews, looking foward to the rest!

Thanks... I'm hoping to post more today!

great reviews again, pleased to see you enjoyed sci fi. we want to try it this trip but been seeing loads of bad reviews recently.

i know exactly what you mean about feeling veg deprived at WDW i remember when we were there. everytime i saw a little bit of veg garnish i was snatching it up as fast as i could.
hopefully i'll have better finds this trip. :goodvibes

We've seen some poor service, icky food reports for Sci-Fi too, so I was a little worried, but we had a fantastic server and we liked our food, so I guess we lucked out! I thought the atmosphere was great too, so did Max.

WDW just doesn't serve enough veggies with their meals. I do well at buffets and salads, but there is often an appetizer that just looks a little more appealing than a salad at the time I'm ordering... I should know better by now, but it's hard to resist sometimes!!! hehehe

[Wendi2000]

Lunch – San Angel Inn
Max was already hungry for lunch so we headed into the World Showcase and took a ride on the Gran Fiesta Tour. I wanted to go to the bathroom and wash our hands before lunch and we were directed all the way over to Norway to the restrooms so it took a while to get back and get checked in for lunch… I don’t know why they sent us away because later I saw that there were restrooms right there in the restaurant! Oh well, no biggie. We were seated right away for lunch and our server, Eduardo took care of us well.

I ordered a Coke and the Sopa Azteca for my appetizer and it was very good… just very simple chile-tomato broth with some tortilla chip strips, cheese, and avocado – it hit the spot – I was happy with my choice, Max liked it too.
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For my entrée I had the Corvina with tomatillo sauce and mushrooms.
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It wasn’t good. I think the fish was fine – it was dry, but I could’ve lived with that if the sauce was good. The truth is, it smelled horrible… really dreadful. I can’t even describe the smell, but it was so unappetizing that I couldn’t even eat more than three bites of the fish and I only tasted a couple of the mushrooms before I gave up on it. Eduardo noticed that it was mostly untouched and he really wanted to bring me the Mahi-Mahi, but I told him I was fine and I didn’t need another dish.

I had the White Chocolate Mousse with Berries and Caramel Sauce for dessert.
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It wasn’t great, the texture was strange and the whipping cream or whatever they make the mousse with was just too greasy and rich for me – it gave my mouth that greasy film – yuck.

Max didn’t want anything on the kid’s menu, so we asked Eduardo if they could make a cheese enchilada for him, he said they could do a Quesadilla without the chicken, so Max agreed to that.
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It came with Mexican Rice and a mixture of Corn, Carrots and Peas. He also had a Chocolate Milk.

For dessert he had the Horchata Gelatin – it was OK.
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He ate all of the quesadilla and all of the rice; he really liked it. I wasn’t very pleased with this meal. I would like to try the place again though, I’d just order something different and would probably have the flan or skip dessert. Maybe I should’ve kept the Tutto Italia reservation – I know it is a much better restaurant… I just wasn’t really in the mood for it today.

On our way out of Epcot that evening we were stopped by a CM who asked us if we’d eaten at an Epcot restaurant that day and asked if we’d be so kind as to complete a 7-minute dining survey for them, so we did. It was a computer survey and was quick and easy to complete and gave a good opportunity to comment on our dining experience. Hopefully it does some good.

Stay tuned for our dinner at Boma. This has always been one of our favorites... will it stay on our list of must-do restaurants?

[msce2]

Great review! Sorry the meal wasn't that good though. I'm glad you got to do a survey. Hopefully with more of these the restaurants will get better.

[Wendi2000]

Great review! Sorry the meal wasn't that good though. I'm glad you got to do a survey. Hopefully with more of these the restaurants will get better.

Thanks, I wish the meal was better too, but SAI isn't off our list so we'll try it again sometime. I was happy to participate in the survey, I always like taking surveys.

[SmallWorld71]

Sorry the food at SAI wasn't the best. Glad your server was good.

I, too, sometimes feel veggie deprived at WDW. One of the things I like to do is sub the fruit cups for my desserts at CS places. Not exactly a veggie, but makes me feel a little better. Plus, they save well if I am not hungry enough to eat it then. :thumbsup2

[wdwfanatic316]

Just read the entire thread- thanks for the great reviews! :thumbsup2 Can't wait to hear how you liked California Grill!

BTW, I think it's really neat that you and your son go to WDW together with just the two of you! I'm a former single mom who thought about going with just my DS (10) and myself, but never made it. Now I just drag my DH along!

[Wendi2000]

Sorry the food at SAI wasn't the best. Glad your server was good.

I, too, sometimes feel veggie deprived at WDW. One of the things I like to do is sub the fruit cups for my desserts at CS places. Not exactly a veggie, but makes me feel a little better. Plus, they save well if I am not hungry enough to eat it then. :thumbsup2

Good idea, especially since I'm not a big dessert eater... I do like to taste them though!!! hehehe

Just read the entire thread- thanks for the great reviews! :thumbsup2 Can't wait to hear how you liked California Grill!

BTW, I think it's really neat that you and your son go to WDW together with just the two of you! I'm a former single mom who thought about going with just my DS (10) and myself, but never made it. Now I just drag my DH along!

Thanks, we have a lot of fun on our trips together!!! I'll keep the reviews coming for you!

[bluechic03]

Well my DH and I are eating at San Angel Inn on our trip in April. I know it doesn't get good reviews but I always wanted to try it, I always thought the view was so nice. I'm grateful for your review though, it shows me what I'm NOT ordering :lmao:

[Wendi2000]

Well my DH and I are eating at San Angel Inn on our trip in April. I know it doesn't get good reviews but I always wanted to try it, I always thought the view was so nice. I'm grateful for your review though, it shows me what I'm NOT ordering :lmao:

Glad to help... I am glad you are still going, I wouldn't discourage anyone from trying it out. We had a good experience other than my entree anyway.

[Wendi2000]

Dinner – Boma
Back at the Lodge we were a couple of minutes late for our 7:05 Boma ADR, but we were seated immediately and had a nice meal. I wish I’d felt like eating more. Max ate well – he especially liked the huge Meatballs and Penne, Coconut Curry Salmon, Macaroni and Cheese, and the Chicken Nuggets.
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He even went up to get desserts – and he really loaded his plate – I didn’t get a chance to take a picture because by the time I got back to the table he was halfway through it. He had two Cookies, a Brownie, a Zebra Dome and a spoonful of Chocolate Mousse. He ate everything but the mousse and half of the zebra dome. He made a comment about one of the cookies being really good – it looked like maybe a sugar cookie… something plain and white anyway.

I really liked the Corn Pudding with Spinach – this was the first time I’d had this dish and it was very good. I also thought the Salmon was very good and I enjoyed the Spinach & Quinoa Salad, Falafel, and Macaroni and Cheese – it was a heck of a lot better than the stuff I tried at 1900 Park Fare.
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This is the Chicken Corn Chowder.
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One of my favorite desserts here is the Cassava Cake – it is so simple and I just love it. I also tried the Banana Bread Pudding and the Peach Cobbler with Vanilla Sauce and Rum Raisin Sauce but I didn’t care for either of them all that much. The bread pudding was OK but not great.
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I think I’ve been to Boma enough that I wouldn’t mind skipping it on a future trip in order to try something else, but I wouldn’t take if off my list completely because it really is good. I don't think I would be able to skip breakfast at Boma though, plus there aren't as many breakfast restaurants that I'd want to trade it for.

[toocherie]

I'm really enjoying sharing your trip and food reviews with you and Max!

[MentalVacation]

oh this is a great review. you have hit several of the places I have on my list...AND we seem to have similar eating tendencies. :) (Lots of seafood/fish/veggies) I am a tomato freak. Fresh, firm tomatoes. Mmmmm...tomatoes and mozzarella.....and basalmic vinegar. Mmmmmm.

I am really glad you took the time to put this together.

[Wendi2000]

I'm really enjoying sharing your trip and food reviews with you and Max!

Thanks, I'm glad you're enjoying the reviews.

oh this is a great review. you have hit several of the places I have on my list...AND we seem to have similar eating tendencies. :) (Lots of seafood/fish/veggies) I am a tomato freak. Fresh, firm tomatoes. Mmmmm...tomatoes and mozzarella.....and basalmic vinegar. Mmmmmm.

I am really glad you took the time to put this together.

Thank you. I hope my reviews give you good ideas on where to go and what to try... mmm, now you're making me hungry!!!

[Wendi2000]

Saturday, December 20, 2008

Looks like we skipped breakfast this day... we probably grabbed a snack of some sort, but I don't know anymore!

Lunch – Columbia Harbour House
I was able to order two adult meals without a problem but the person ahead of me tried and was denied… I got the 6-piece Chicken Nuggets with Fries (they also offer an 8-piece), a bottle of Water and a Chocolate Cake for Max.
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I had the Anchors Aweigh Sandwich (tuna) with Chips, Coke, and an Apple Blossom.
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I love the tuna sandwich here and it really hit the spot. Max ate everything except for a few fries I stole from him – neither of us ate much of the desserts as usual, but he did better on the chocolate cake than I did on the apple blossom. We will keep coming back to CHH, it is a favorite of mine.

[Tink rules]

Me too and it looks like you ordered exactly what I get when I go... I love that sandwich!!! :thumbsup2

[Wendi2000]

Me too and it looks like you ordered exactly what I get when I go... I love that sandwich!!! :thumbsup2

I'm still a little sad that I can't get the half sandwich and clam chowder combo anymore though... that was the best! I know I wouldn't be able to eat the whole sandwich and soup... I need to find someone to share with so I can do that. I guess Max would've probably shared, I didn't think of it at the time though, and I think the soup would have to be OOP, I'm pretty sure it's not a snack credit and I don't think I'd make it a meal either (even if it is allowed).

[peightonmom]

I love your reviews!
What a handsome little guy you have.
:goodvibes

[Wendi2000]

I love your reviews!
What a handsome little guy you have.
:goodvibes

Thank you!

[luckytobeme88]

Max & you rock :flower3:

[Disney owl]

great report thanks

[Wendi2000]

Max & you rock :flower3:

Thank you!

great report thanks

Thanks, glad you are enjoying them!

I'm hoping to get Hoop Dee Doo Revue posted sometime today, but I've got a couple of papers to write and I need to study for a midterm too, so we'll see!!!

[richard_andmel]

I've really enjoyed your dining reviews so far. Thanks so much for sharing them. :)

Mel

[Wendi2000]

I've really enjoyed your dining reviews so far. Thanks so much for sharing them. :)

Mel

Thank you, I'm glad you are enjoying them.

Time to get back to it... next up is our very first time at the Hoop Dee Doo Revue!!!

[Wendi2000]

Dinner – Hoop Dee Doo Revue
After our break we took the bus back to the Magic Kingdom and then hopped on the Resort Launch to the Fort Wilderness Campgrounds for our 7:15 Hoop Dee Doo Revue ADR. This was our first time to see the HDDR and I didn’t know what to expect. First of all, there was a huge crowd of people and I wasn’t sure if there was a check-in process – I found a CM at the photo area and asked him and he pointed me to a CM at a barrel up ahead where we could check in for the show. Once we were checked in, which was quick and easy – there wasn’t actually a line there – everyone was just crowded around the area, we got our pictures taken and then were directed to the left side of the building to wait for our admission to the restaurant. There were a lot of things for the kids to do while we waited – Max played horseshoes, hula hooped, played checkers and had a good time before the show.

Soon, they opened the doors and we were taken upstairs to our table (tier 3). I thought it was very odd that the seats were all facing away from the stage, so you ate at the table facing away from the show and then turned around the other way to watch over the railing. I guess if they put the tables against the railing there might be too much distance over the table to see well enough. It actually worked out just fine the way it was.

We were fed very well. First up was a basic Salad with Italian Dressing and a big slab of Cornbread. Unlimited beverages are included in the price of the dinner show and I had Sangria (three of them actually… but I only drank about 2-1/4… I was tipsy after 1-1/2 though)! Max had Chocolate Milk, but he never got a refill. I don’t know why I didn’t take a picture of the Sangria… maybe because they didn’t really leave my hand??? LOL! I’ve never had cold sangria before, this was served with ice – I’ve always had it room temperature, just like red wine normally is… this was good though!
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Then dinner buckets came around… Fried Chicken, Ribs, Mashed Potatoes, and Beans.
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Strawberry Shortcake was brought out for dessert, it was very good. I thought I had taken a picture of it… but I guess not!

We had a lot of fun at the show, the performers were very funny and we got into it – we sang along, played the washboard and had a good time.
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[Wendi2000]

Sunday, December 21, 2008

Looks like we may have skipped breakfast this morning, probably because I had planned on an early lunch!

Lunch – The Mara
During an afternoon hotel break from the Animal Kingdom we went down to the Mara and got some lunch. Again, I was able to order two adult meals. Max had the Pepperoni Pizza, Root Beer, and Watermelon.
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I had the Chef’s Salad, Coke, and Sliced Apples with Caramel.
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Lunch was good, but I really wanted Pizzafari, Max was having a meltdown so we had to take a hotel break instead. I missed that wonderful Italian sandwich – the salad was good, but it just wasn’t the same, ya know?

I saved the apples for later and ate them while watching the Jingle Jungle Parade. I just hate it when we sit down for a parade or fireworks or something and then we’re kind of stuck there and everyone around us has someone from their group who brings back food! Hahaha… this time I was prepared (and they were GOOD)!

Stay tuned if you'd like to know what we thought of dinner at California Grill... our reviews are coming to an end... so sad!

[Wendi2000]

Dinner – California Grill
We left the Animal Kingdom around 5:00 for our 5:45 ADR at California Grill. We arrived a little bit late – the Contemporary and Polynesian share a bus and made a pit stop along the way at Blizzard Beach. But we had a great bus driver who had us all singing “The Wheels On The Bus” and then when we got to our stop he invited two kids (Max was one of them) to sit in the driver’s seat and take a picture. Fun!
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We checked in and received a pager, which went off immediately… not sure why they bother to hand them out, but oh well. We were told we could come back at 9:00 for Fireworks on the Balcony if we wanted to return. Our waiter was Saad. He was very nice and helpful. We were started out with bread and goldfish crackers… I wonder why they don’t use the Mickey crackers… probably too expensive!!! Hehehe
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I ordered the Winter Greens with Pears, Yoshi’s Sushi Sampler, Iced Tea, and the “Year of a Million Dreams” dessert.
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Max had the kid’s Romaine Salad, Roasted Salmon with Basmati Rice and Broccoli, Chocolate Milk, and Rice Crispy Sushi.
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Sorry the salad picture was taken too late, he got to cut it up and put it all together himself. He ate EVERYTHING… I couldn’t believe it!!! Our waiter took us over to the doors to see the Hidden Mickey and our meal was very nice. One of the other waitresses who was working at a table behind us stopped and talked to us a few times too. She then came over and asked me if I ever drank alcohol and if I liked sweet wines. I told her that I did and she told me that the gentleman at the table behind us wanted to buy me a glass of dessert wine because he could see that it was just me and my son and that I hadn’t had anything to drink and he thought I might like a drink. Very sweet!!! I had a very sweet dessert Reisling, but I don’t remember the vintner. It was nice even though I didn’t plan on having any alcohol.
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After dinner, we took the bus to Downtown Disney… just as I’d promised Max. We went to Goofy’s Candy Company and made a custom Gingerbread Mickey for my mom – it took quite a while and I was so disgusted by the smell and the sights of all of the sweets in that place, it was truly revolting to me and I was dying to hurry up and get out. I really hope she liked the cookie… it was certainly worth the snack credit!

The picture of it wasn’t taken until we got home, so it’s a little messed up, but this is pretty much what it looked like. It was dipped in White Chocolate, rolled in Pecans, and Drizzled with Caramel.
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[granmaz]

Off topic, but I remembered that bus driver from the photo!!! He drove us to AK, and had the whole bus sinigng The Wheels on the Bus too, plus he did a quiz which had the bus in stitches. I wish more drivers were like him.

[Myhappythought5]

It looks like you all have had a great time. I love the little sushi dessert at the Callifornia Grill. My daughters would love this.

[TigerKat]

Off topic, but I remembered that bus driver from the photo!!! He drove us to AK, and had the whole bus sinigng The Wheels on the Bus too, plus he did a quiz which had the bus in stitches. I wish more drivers were like him.

We've never had a fun bus driver before, sounds like so much fun!:thumbsup2

[skellingtonfreak]

Thank you so much for the review of the HDDR. That is one of our try-outs in September. I have thoroughly enoyed all of your reviews!

[WDWPrincess1208]

The rice crispy sushi is so creative! leave it to Disney to think of something like that!

[Wendi2000]

Off topic, but I remembered that bus driver from the photo!!! He drove us to AK, and had the whole bus sinigng The Wheels on the Bus too, plus he did a quiz which had the bus in stitches. I wish more drivers were like him.

Wasn't he wonderful??? He totally shares the Disney Magic!

It looks like you all have had a great time. I love the little sushi dessert at the Callifornia Grill. My daughters would love this.

It was very fun!

We've never had a fun bus driver before, sounds like so much fun!:thumbsup2

He was really great.

Thank you so much for the review of the HDDR. That is one of our try-outs in September. I have thoroughly enoyed all of your reviews!

Thanks, glad you are enjoying them... I hope you have fun at HDDR!

The rice crispy sushi is so creative! leave it to Disney to think of something like that!

Yes, they are very cool. I was going to make some for my son's last birthday party just a few months before our trip but I ended up being too rushed to do it... it was great to see it on the menu and then to see how they actually looked was great... maybe someday I'll get around to making them!

[aceys_h0ney]

Great review! I love the rice crispy suishi! Very creative.

[BreTyPres87]

I've read the whole thread so far and i'm really liking it!! I'm a single mother too with 2 boys so I hope someone looks at me and thinks I need a drink too because i'm sure I will!!:lmao: we're doing the deluxe ddp and going to a few of the restaurants you've listed so far- i'm worried about Ohana now though because I also dislike the strong ginger flavor
I know what you mean about too many sweet smells I get a stomachache in places like that ,its just too much!!

[SunnieRN]

Woo hoo, I just got caught up! How are your disneyland trip plans coming alomg??

[Disney_Mama]

Great reviews and pictures.:thumbsup2 Thanks for sharing.

[MadiMouse]

Yay! I loved the updates! :)

[Wendi2000]

Great review! I love the rice crispy suishi! Very creative.

Thanks! I wish I'd gotten a taste of the rice crispy sushi myself... but someone was a little stingy with it!!! hahaha

I've read the whole thread so far and i'm really liking it!! I'm a single mother too with 2 boys so I hope someone looks at me and thinks I need a drink too because i'm sure I will!!:lmao: we're doing the deluxe ddp and going to a few of the restaurants you've listed so far- i'm worried about Ohana now though because I also dislike the strong ginger flavor
I know what you mean about too many sweet smells I get a stomachache in places like that ,its just too much!!

Wow, we must be long-lost twins!!! I hope someone buys you a drink too!

Woo hoo, I just got caught up! How are your disneyland trip plans coming alomg??

Honestly, we go to Disneyland so much that there isn't much planning involved. I did make our priority seatings and I've got a general plan on what shows we're going to see, etc. I am really looking forward to the trip, we're taking my mom and my brother and my mom hasn't been to Disneyland in a long time with us.

Great reviews and pictures.:thumbsup2 Thanks for sharing.

Thank you!

Yay! I loved the updates! :)

Thanks, glad you are enjoying them!

[Wendi2000]

Monday, December 22, 2008

Breakfast – The Mara

We stopped in at the Mara this morning to grab a couple of bagels, bananas and drinks then took them out to the bus stop so I didn’t take pictures… just did the grab and run thing. We were trying to use up snack credits too so we wouldn’t be stuck with too many at the end of the day.

Lunch – The Mara

Well, time for our very last meal at WDW. We had one meal credit left and a bunch of snack credits. I wanted to use the snack credits for snacks we could eat on our flights home. We split a Chicken Nugget meal with French Fries with a slice of Cheesecake and a Strawberry Milk (for Max). I used up snack credits with a Root Beer, Carrot & Celery Sticks w/Ranch Dip, two huge Chocolate Chip Cookies, and a Coke – I figured we could have the veggies and coke at the airport and eat the cookies & cheetos on our flights. I’m such a dolt that I totally forgot that I put the whole bottle of coke in my backpack and never drank it. Guess what triggered my memory? The airport security agent who asked if the backpack was mine and if she could open it. Still I was a little confused and asked if I forgot about a liquid… then she pulled out the coke! Hahaha… I got a little slap on the wrist for that one, but we were both laughing about it.
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I hope those photos work… Flickr just changed their whole format and it took me forever to find the links that can be embedded…

I’m a little bit sad to be done with my dining reviews. We had such a great trip and had so many wonderful meals. I hope we can go again this year, but ya never know! At least we’ll be in Disneyland in two weeks so maybe I’ll do a dining review then to give me more food to think about and take pictures of!!!

I hope everyone enjoyed our reviews and I really hope it helps with the trip planning ahead for everyone. I know that I always get a lot of information when I read reviews and especially when I see pictures of meals – it is really helpful in the planning process and it’s nice to see how good (or not-so-good) the food looks before deciding what to order or what restaurants to make ADRs for.

Ciao for now everyone!!!

[Laurabearz]

Very nice report! Thanks so much for sharing!

[Uncle Remus]

I certainly enjoyed it, thanks for all the info and great pics. :thumbsup2

[MadiMouse]

:guilty:

I thoroughly enjoyed your TR! So when is the next trip?

[TigerKat]

Thanks for taking the time to share your reviews with us!:goodvibes

[Angelrose]

Thanks so much for your great reviews and pictures.

[SunnieRN]

Awesome report!! Glad your Mom gets to go o disneyland with you!!!:goodvibes

[Wendi2000]

Very nice report! Thanks so much for sharing!

Thanks and you're welcome!

I certainly enjoyed it, thanks for all the info and great pics. :thumbsup2

Glad you enjoyed it!

:guilty:

I thoroughly enjoyed your TR! So when is the next trip?

I wish I knew... I do know we'll be at DLR in two weeks!!!

Thanks for taking the time to share your reviews with us!:goodvibes

You're very welcome.

Thanks so much for your great reviews and pictures.

You're welcome, thanks for reading!

Awesome report!! Glad your Mom gets to go o disneyland with you!!!:goodvibes

Thanks so much... yeah, we're excited to go with her again soon. She did go to WDW with us twice, but it's been a couple of years already.