This Ain't No Volcanic Disappointment! ~ A Free Dining Review 10/2 - 10/8 * NEW 11/3

[WhateverLolaWants]

Hello all! Welcome to "This Ain't No Volcanic Disappointment: A Free Dining Review." We filled our bellies and persevered through the brutal heat.

A little bit about the cast:

Me: 24, raised a Disney fanatic. I have been going since I was 2, and I love Disney for the great memories I have made there. In Spring 2007, I did the College Program and had a blast. I'm hoping to return to Florida someday permanently. I am the reason behind this trip. My favorite band (Better Than Ezra) played the Food and Wine Festival and I had to go because, well, two of my favorite things in the world were going to be combined. Bonus for us was that we were able to do free dining.

Mom: Age - She'd kill me if I told. The reason why I am a Disney fanatic. When my sister and I both did the College Program, she visited us at least 4 or 5 times each (and the program is only 4.5 months long, by the way).

What is great about Disney, in our opinion, is that we always find new things to do to keep Disney exciting. This time was the dining plan. Interesting experience, but I'll elaborate on that in my last post.


The places I will be covering are:

Spirit of Aloha Dinner Show (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33920726&postcount=5)
Planet Hollywood (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33938216&postcount=8)
Ghirardelli
Goofy's Candy Company (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33988775&postcount=9)
California Grill (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=34010236&postcount=15)
Starring Rolls (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=34049827&postcount=23)
Pecos Bill (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=34090715&postcount=27)
All Star Music Food Court
Earl of Sandwich (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=34129640&postcount=31)
Pepper Market (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=34171359&postcount=38)
Cinderella's Royal Table (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=34198531&postcount=39)
Pizzafari
Coral Reef
Food and Wine Festival Booths
Tutto Italia
Roaring Forks
Raglan Road

Hope you all enjoy!

[KatMark]

Hello all! Welcome to "This Ain't No Volcanic Disappointment: A Free Dining Review." We filled our bellies and persevered through the brutal heat.

A little bit about the cast:

Me: 24, raised a Disney fanatic. I have been going since I was 2, and I love Disney for the great memories I have made there. In Spring 2007, I did the College Program and had a blast. I'm hoping to return to Florida someday permanently. I am the reason behind this trip. My favorite band (Better Than Ezra) played the Food and Wine Festival and I had to go because, well, two of my favorite things in the world were going to be combined. Bonus for us was that we were able to do free dining.

Mom: Age - She'd kill me if I told. The reason why I am a Disney fanatic. When my sister and I both did the College Program, she visited us at least 4 or 5 times each (and the program is only 4.5 months long, by the way).

What is great about Disney, in our opinion, is that we always find new things to do to keep Disney exciting. This time was the dining plan. Interesting experience, but I'll elaborate on that in my last post.


The places I will be covering are:

Spirit of Aloha Dinner Show
Planet Hollywood
Ghirardelli
Goofy's Candy Company
California Grill
Starring Rolls
Pecos Bill
All Star Music Food Court
Earl of Sandwich
Pepper Market
Cinderella's Royal Table
Pizzafari
Coral Reef
Food and Wine Festival Booths
Tutto Italia
Roaring Forks
Raglan Road

Hope you all enjoy!

I'm first in (I think)! popcorn::

[OsFan09]

I cant wait for the reviews to begin!

[adsrtw]

Oh, I can't wait to read about it!

[WhateverLolaWants]

Let me preface this post with this tidbit of information: We flew out of Cleveland at 8am, and arrived in Chicago for a 2 hour layover. We ate breakfast (and our waiter forgot to put in our order so we waited forever) at about 9am (10am Ohio/Florida time). That was the last time we ate until our 8pm Spirit of Aloha show. We were the first people seated and the first ones to start digging into the food. We were also the last people to put down our forks. I have never eaten that much food in my life. True story.

So one of my duties when it came to making our ADRs in July was to try and get Spirit of Aloha for my mother's sake. Category 2 and 3 were booked for the days we were trying to get, so we decided to choose Category 1 and pay OOP. Seats were decent, until the lush in front of my mother backed his seat out so far that she could barely see. (Seriously, I have never seen so many $10 drinks be ordered by two people in my life...even their kid had a pile of juice boxes going).

When you arrive, they already have the first course on your table. This includes fresh pineapple, pineapple-coconut bread, and a salad with mango poppyseed dressing.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0833.jpg

The bread was yummy, and the pineapple was good too. I'm not big on fancy dressing (I'm a ranch kind of gal), but my mom really enjoyed it.

So the way the show goes, is they pretty much perform in between the courses being served. Next they brought out the main course which included rice, mixed vegetables, BBQ ribs, and chicken.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0834.jpg

Okay, so I apologize for this picture. We were in such close proximity to people and I was still getting used to taking pictures of food and feeling a tad foolish. So I pretended to take a picture of my mother. This is the same technique I used to take a picture of my 7th grade crush, Brad, on the last day of school. Don't worry, I get more bold as the week goes on.

The ribs were borderline fatty, but the chicken was moist. The vegetables were vegetables so can't really review those. The rice was probably the best part unfortunately. The food was very bland.

And finally, desert. The servers come out with this fancy little show with a steaming volcano on their tray. The crowd gets excited. They get rid of the decoration and serve.. well... I call it "Volcanic Disappointment." When I was in high school, my mother and I went to Europe with my French teacher and other students and parents. One night, we had dinner and they brought out a desert that someone coined the "Floating Disappointment." To this day, I'm still not sure what it was, but it resembled meringue floating in a soup.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0835.jpg

I took a small nibble, and it was not good. A rubbery mousse is the best phrase to describe it. I did enjoy all of the raspberry sauce, though.

The show was decent. Definitely corny in the beginning, but the ending is definitely the best part. To the ladies and gents who enjoy this sort of thing, the eye candy was good :thumbsup2 The guys are built, and the fire dancer guy was a cutie. The girls are gorgeous too. The dancing was amazing as well. Kind of wish I could move my hips like that.

Overall, I'd give Spirit of Aloha 3 out of 5, mostly for the show.
OOP, we paid about $123.07 (I think the change .07 is accurate..).

[TigerKat]

Signing on a bit late!

[MickeyNicki]

Count me in, late but still ready to chow down

[WhateverLolaWants]

Welcome to all that have joined!

Saturday 10/3 was our day for bumming and eating. We headed to DTD at probably about 10:15am and browsed around the shops for a little bit. We had ADRs at noon for Planet Hollywood, but by 11am we were starving so we headed over there early and were seated right away.

After finally adjusting to how dark it is in there compared to the sunny outdoors, we were ready to order.

I ordered the L.A. Lasagna which sounded intriguing. It's a fried lasagna roll with ricotta and meat and sauce (marinara and a creamy alfredo type).

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0838.jpg

It was.. ok. Just not what I was expecting, I guess. I'm more of a cheese person when it comes to Italian-inspired food and there was a lot more meat than cheese. And I'm not big on identifying spices, but whatever it is spiced with (basil perhaps?) was just over kill. On a good note, it is very filling. I probably only finished 2/3 of it.

My mother got the Spinach Salad, which included chicken, strawberries, walnuts, and oranges. It comes with a tomato vinaigrette. She wasn't sure what to make of it, so she ordered the dressing on the side.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0837.jpg

The verdict on the dressing? Takes away from the salad and was too tangy. The waitress was very nice and offered to bring another dressing. On her recommendation, she next tried their creamy Italian. Unfortunately she struck out there. The dressings are made at the restaurant, thus everything is not always the same based on who makes it. So this batch had too much vinegar in it. Finally, she tried the lime cilantro dressing. Perfect match!

Overall, I'd give PH a 2.5 out of 5, mostly for the fact that it's very easy to be a walk in there and that we had the voucher.
We paid OOP for this meal and used our $15 voucher. I can't remember the exact total, but we paid about $24.

[WhateverLolaWants]

After lunch, we browsed around the shops for a bit and also went to Goofy's to check out the Hidden Mickey's in there and buy one of my favorite cookies, the Chocolate Chip Supreme Cookie.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0842.jpg

I didn't eat it right away, but saved it for "breakfast" the next morning. Great breakfast, indeed. Used a snack credit, otherwise OOP it would have been $3.25+tax.

We also decided to have some dessert at Ghirardelli since we never got there on our December 2008 trip.

I'm a simple girl so I opted to get two scoops of vanilla with strawberry topping.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0840.jpg

It was good, but melted quickly.

My mother is not a simple girl when it comes to ice cream so she got something a little bit more fancy. She got the Streetcar/Cable Car (could have sworn it was the first, but allears calls it a Cable Car) which had a scoop each of Rocky Road, Chocolate Chip, and Chocolate ice cream, hot fudge, marshmallow topping, whipped cream, nuts and a cherry.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0839.jpg

She said it was good, very chocolate-y. She really liked how the hot fudge wasn't overly hot so that the ice cream didn't melt as fast.

I'd give it at 4 out of 5 due to the lack of cleaning the tables. Ours had a huge spill of hot fudge (about 3-4 inches wide at least) and even though the guy saw it while he cleared the used dishes for us, we had to go up and ask for a wet rag.
OOP we paid $15.71.

[natalielongstaff]

yummy :thumbsup2

[2 pirates for me]

The cookie looks great! We will have to add this as a stop as my DS's will love the cookies.:cool1:

[engle]

Bring it!!! More, more!!! Very nice so far!!

[tink6137130]

love your review...thanks for sharing :)

[Pooh&OurHunny]

Joining in for your yummy reviews. Enjoying so far and can't wait to read more.

[WhateverLolaWants]

Glad to hear people are enjoying :)

After spending some time at DTD, we headed back to our hotel to get ready for California Grill. When we arrived, we were seated at a table right next to the window with a great view of MK.

I was interested in trying one of their flatbreads. It was between the BLT and Reuben so we asked our waiter for his opinion. His verdict was the BLT and when we heard what fennel really was and how it tasted, we decided to listen to him.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0851.jpg

It was good and the size was great for sharing. Definitely didn't wow us, but still enjoyable.

The first thing I did when we arrived at CG was check the menu to see if the Ostrich Filet was still on the menu and sure enough it was! I am a fan of trying new things and really wanted to try this. It came topped with mushrooms and was accompanied by a buttery potato puree, figs and globe carrots.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0853.jpg

So yummy! I'm not big on cooked carrots, but the globe carrots were fabulous and so were the mashed potato puree and mushrooms. I cleared my plate (except for the figs!).

My mother opted for the Filet. It came with sour cream mashed potatoes and baby zucchini.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0852.jpg

She thought the filet was very good and very tender. She preferred my potatoes, but thought the sour cream potatoes were good too. And I'd have to agree with that. She did not like the baby zucchini and thought that asparagus would have been a better choice.

Now on to desert! We decided to share both of the deserts.

The first was a banana concoction. I cannot remember the name, nor do I know exactly what it was. The best I can do to describe it is room temperature banana pudding.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0855.jpg

We barely touched it and decided to fight over the other desert - the Valrhona Chocolate Cake. Our version came with pineapple and I believe it was a caramel ice cream.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0854.jpg

I tasted it and then uttered the words - "This ain't no Volcanic Disappointment!" (No worries, Eye no proper English.) I am not a cake person, but oh my goodness this was perfect with the ice cream and the pineapple. Absolutely yummy.

So hands down, best dining experience of the entire trip. Fancy food that's edible and easily identifiable (well, except for whatever that banana stuff was). I'd definitely give California Grill a 5 out of 5, even though the waiter never gave us a bread basket.

We used 4 dining credits and paid OOP for the flatbread. Total cost of the meal was $130.34 + tax.

[Disneyof3]

Great start and count me in


I have always wanted to go to the Aloha, but people say the seats for DDP are not that good. I have kids and want to make sure they can see the show and not be put in left field. Besides the gentlemen who was rude with his seat, did you get good seats? Did you notice any bad seats in the place??

[WhateverLolaWants]

Great start and count me in


I have always wanted to go to the Aloha, but people say the seats for DDP are not that good. I have kids and want to make sure they can see the show and not be put in left field. Besides the gentlemen who was rude with his seat, did you get good seats? Did you notice any bad seats in the place??

We liked our seats. We were pretty much dead center and the second table (out of 3) in the row (going back from the stage). For the dining plan, I wouldn't go past category 2 because you either get front to the side, or center in the upper seating level. Also, the show is pretty interactive for kids, the beginning part at least. There is a time where they allow kids to come up to the stage and dance with the actors.

[ShannonMB]

Great so far! I love your avatar pic, and I was cracking up at the drinking family in front of you, including the kid with all the juiceboxes! :rotfl:

[cbg1027]

And finally, desert. The servers come out with this fancy little show with a steaming volcano on their tray. The crowd gets excited. They get rid of the decoration and serve.. well... I call it "Volcanic Disappointment." When I was in high school, my mother and I went to Europe with my French teacher and other students and parents. One night, we had dinner and they brought out a desert that someone coined the "Floating Disappointment." To this day, I'm still not sure what it was, but it resembled meringue floating in a soup.



I think what you called a Floating Disappointment was an Ile Flottante.



The first thing I did when we arrived at CG was check the menu to see if the Ostrich Filet was still on the menu and sure enough it was! I am a fan of trying new things and really wanted to try this. It came topped with mushrooms and was accompanied by a buttery potato puree, figs and globe carrots.


The first was a banana concoction. I cannot remember the name, nor do I know exactly what it was. The best I can do to describe it is room temperature banana pudding.


We barely touched it and decided to fight over the other desert - the Valrhona Chocolate Cake. Our version came with pineapple and I believe it was a caramel ice cream.



I had the Ostrich Filet with different accompaniments last April and loved it. I hope they still have this preparation when I go in December!

Was the banana dessert called a Semi Freddo? I'd not wild over semi-freddo's.

I'm not big on cake either, but I love CG's chocolate cake! I've had it with raspberry and strawberry....but the pineapple sounds amazing too!

Like the reviews, keep 'em coming! :thumbsup2

[cbg1027]

Also meant to add...I love the photo in your avatar! Is that your dog? Where did you get that costume? It's adorable!

[disneyfav4ever]

That ostrich looks amazing! :goodvibes

[WhateverLolaWants]

Great so far! I love your avatar pic, and I was cracking up at the drinking family in front of you, including the kid with all the juiceboxes! :rotfl:

Thanks :) As for the family, quite frankly, I'm not sure how they handled sitting through the show without going potty once!

I think what you called a Floating Disappointment was an Ile Flottante.

I had the Ostrich Filet with different accompaniments last April and loved it. I hope they still have this preparation when I go in December!

Was the banana dessert called a Semi Freddo? I'd not wild over semi-freddo's.

I'm not big on cake either, but I love CG's chocolate cake! I've had it with raspberry and strawberry....but the pineapple sounds amazing too!

Like the reviews, keep 'em coming! :thumbsup2

Just googled Ile Flottante and yep, that's it! I've always wondered what it was called, thanks! And Semi Freddo does sound familiar, I think you're right about that desert too.

Also meant to add...I love the photo in your avatar! Is that your dog? Where did you get that costume? It's adorable!

Thanks :) That is my dog, Lola. I actually got that costume at Target about 3 Halloweens ago. I actually dressed her in it last December for pictures with Santa at DTD. She was really popular.

That ostrich looks amazing! :goodvibes

I know, it was so pretty! Tasted even more amazing than it looked too!

[WhateverLolaWants]

10/4 was our MGM/MK/MGM/MK day (yes, I have a hard time calling it DHS). That darn Toy Story ride required us to get to MGM first, but we also wanted to see the new parade at MK. Even further complicating our plans was the fact that MK had EMH until 1am so we went back to MGM/DHS to fill up some more time and use fastpasses and then went back to MK. You got all that? :rotfl:

I really wanted to try Starring Rolls for lunch because I heard good stuff about their sandwiches and let's be real here - the CS options there are lacking (I still gag at the thought of the Commissary). So we got there at 11am and were disappointed that there were no sandwiches left, except for some vegetable wraps. For some reason, I was under the impression that once they're out, they're out so we walked away. We then decided to ask to make sure that was accurate, but were told to come back in 20-30 minutes and they'll have more. :woohoo:

We sat at the tables and as soon as I saw the woman opening the door to the display case, I bolted (hey, I was really hungry). Oh my goodness, those sandwiches are HUGE!

My mother and I both opted to get the turkey focaccia sandwich. She was sorely disappointed when she realized they also had ham. She survived though.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0857.jpg

So it's bread, turkey, cheese (muenster? I can't remember), lettuce and a pesto mayonnaise. Very messy, but very good. Good change from the same ol' cheeseburger and fries. In the background you can see the chips we also got with the dining plan. We both got BBQ chips, but they were just okay. Borderline stale tasting, even though they were not expired. I also got a bottle of water, and my mom got chocolate milk.

Onto desert.. Apparently anything in the case was considered a dessert on the dining plan. I was originally just going to get a chocolate croissant, but then I started dreaming bigger.

I opted for a banana cheesecake type thing (yes, I'm pretty sure that is the name written on the sign in the case). It was good. Didn't finish, though, because I was full.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0858.jpg

My mom opted for a marble cupcake. This picture honestly does not give it justice - these cupcakes are GINORMOUS. She enjoyed it, but thought it was pretty rich. She also didn't finish because she was also full.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0859.jpg

I would definitely give Starring Rolls a 5 out of 5. Great value and great quality for a CS. We used 2 CS credits, but otherwise OOP all of this would have cost us $32.70.

[cbg1027]

Thanks :) That is my dog, Lola. I actually got that costume at Target about 3 Halloweens ago. I actually dressed her in it last December for pictures with Santa at DTD. She was really popular.


One of my Grandma's dog looks like Lola's Twin. His name is Zac (short for Prozac) and his wardrobe is probably larger than mine. :rotfl:

Me and my Gram are going to Disney in 8 days and the only part she doesn't like is leaving Zac behind! Other trips she takes he usually goes with her.

[Disneyof3]

We liked our seats. We were pretty much dead center and the second table (out of 3) in the row (going back from the stage). For the dining plan, I wouldn't go past category 2 because you either get front to the side, or center in the upper seating level. Also, the show is pretty interactive for kids, the beginning part at least. There is a time where they allow kids to come up to the stage and dance with the actors.


thanks for the reply.

[WhateverLolaWants]

One of my Grandma's dog looks like Lola's Twin. His name is Zac (short for Prozac) and his wardrobe is probably larger than mine. :rotfl:

Me and my Gram are going to Disney in 8 days and the only part she doesn't like is leaving Zac behind! Other trips she takes he usually goes with her.

Aww, it is hard to leave the little one behind. Luckily, though, Disney has updated their pet souvenirs and they have some really cute things. I got Lola this adorable Mickey Mouse hoodie complete with the ears. Zac may have a few new things in his extensive wardrobe!

thanks for the reply.

You're welcome :)

[WhateverLolaWants]

Like I mentioned, we ended our day at MK for the EMH. We had a little delay due to the fact that we took the monorail in and they decided then to add another train to the track. We weren't bothered by this, but if you talked to the people who were rushing to go see Wishes, then you'd get another story. (Honestly, who hops on the monorail 15/20 minutes before the fireworks start?) So when we finally made it to MK (after standing off to the side to avoid the people running to the front gate), we headed straight to Pecos Bill. I wanted to head there for the melted cheese yummm! So glad it has made a comeback at the parks.

So we attempted the new self service kiosks, but the screen wasn't recognizing when I was tapping the buttons and I didn't want to look like I was beating the screen so I gave up and ordered with a human being. We ordered with a CM who was funny because he was making sure we ordered LARGE drinks to get our money's worth.

I ended up with the chicken wrap with fries, a LARGE diet coke, and a cookie for desert.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0861.jpg

Let's see, how to describe the wrap? Okay, maybe this wrap was amazing at 4pm when they actually made it. Yes, they are pre-made and sit on a tray in a fridge until someone orders one. This would be perfectly okay if they didn't put the dressing on it. It was soggy, but again, I bet it would be good if it was fresh. Fries were good with the cheese sauce, and I love condiment bars because I always get a cup of pickles.

My mom ended up with the special they're apparently testing: fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, and corn. Let me preface this with this story: When you stand in line, you can actually see the CMs in the back putting together the hot food through a tiny window type thing. So my soggy wrap gets pulled out the fridge and as we're waiting we can see my mom's getting prepared. Looked interesting until they plopped.. yes, plop is the best word for this.. the gravy on. We started busting a gut and the man behind us even exclaimed "UGH I don't think I can eat after seeing that!" and we laughed even harder when we explained to him that we ordered it.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0860.jpg

Luckily, it tasted better than it looked. The chicken was not dry and the breading was soft. It is also a good size piece of chicken. The corn was hot and good, and the mashed potatoes and slop were decent as well. I'll be anxious to see if they keep this permanently.

Overall, I'd give Pecos a 3.5 out 5 mostly because of the condiment bar.
We used 2 CS credits, but otherwise OOP this would have cost us about $28.79.

[ShannonMB]

My DD loves the cheese sauce on the fixin's bars for her fries, too. :love: I must say, your mom's chicken looks very good, but the gravy looks a little white/weird. I'd give it a whirl, though. ;)

[Tinker Pam]

Looks Yummy

[SuzieN]

I just returned last week from a week at WDW and also ate at a couple of the places you've already reviewed. TOTALLY agree about the "volcanic disappointment"! How blah was that?!!! I took one little taste and pushed it away (and I rarely push food away!). We also ate at the California Grill and I, too, had the BLT flatbread and the banana dessert. The flatbread seemed to really lack something - it was pretty bland. The banana dessert, on the other hand, I have to completely disagree with you on. I REALLY had to hold myself back from licking the plate!!!! What could possibly be wrong with a creamy, carmely, banana-y dessert??!!! NOTHING in my book!!! Loving your reviews - keep 'em coming!

[WhateverLolaWants]

The 5th was our Clearwater Beach day so we started with breakfast at the ASMu Food Court.

We both opted for the breakfast platter which included scrambled eggs, breakfast potatoes, french toast sticks, a biscuit, and your choice of bacon or sausage. The following picture is a little fuzzy, I apologize.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0863.jpg

It was a lot of food, I don't think either of us finished it. Everything was pretty standard breakfast fare but it was good, just nothing to write home about. There was a British couple who hoarded the butter (seriously!). I asked them where they got the butter because I couldn't find it and they stared at me for a second (they must call it something else in England) and I asked again and they said up at the station. They were done eating so who knows what they were planning on doing with that 8+ unused butter packets. Build a fort, perhaps.

Overall, I'd give it probably a 4 out of 5. We used 2 CS, otherwise OOP it would have cost $28.72.

After getting back from Clearwater and washing up, we headed down to DTD to shop some more and have some food. We decided on Earl of Sandwich because the holiday themed sandwich interested us a couple of days prior.

Note: If you are a diehard Earl of Sandwich fan, you might want to skip this review because it's going to be harsh.

So we're still fairly new at the Dining Plan and what it all entails. We pretty much have it down pat for Disney CS, but we weren't sure what it was going to be at a restaurant not owned by Disney. Our game plan was to ask the girl at the register when we placed our order. We place our order and once we're about to ask what we get as sides/deserts, she screams "NEXT!!!" and we turn around bewildered thinking there was a huge line she was trying to get through quickly. There was one other family behind us. Ok, slightly rude but no biggie. So we try to ask some girls making salads. The one girl stared at us and then turned to her friend and told her to talk to us. We soon discovered there was a language barrier and that all the girl could inform us was "$2.50 and under!" They were very sweet and trying to be helpful, but we were still a little unsure. So the cashier should be able to help us, right? Wrong. He was useless. He did answer our question, but he talked so fast we were still confused. So we decided to just go with what we had been doing all week and we took a desert and a side. When I came home, I searched to see if we were correct but apparently we stole so oops.

Sheesh, what a pain in the butt! So we sit, and I go up to get our drinks. Once I get back to the table, our buzzer is going off so I go up to collect our food. I stood there.. and stood there... oh, that employee is looking at me, she'll be over in just a second I bet.. wait, why is she turning around.. why are the cashiers just staring at me? I decided to take it upon myself and just grab my food. They came running then, go figure.

I was hoping the food would make up for it all, but sadly it didn't. We both ordered the holiday sandwich which consisted of turkey, stuffing, cranberry, gravy, and mayo. I got mine sans mayo, and my mom got it sans cranberry.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0864.jpg

It was incredibly dry. Maybe the mayo would have helped that, but I'm guessing no. I think I only ate half of mine. My stolen potato salad was just okay. My mother got the fruit salad which was pretty standard. I believe we both got brownies, which we ate the next morning. Those weren't bad.

I would give Earl of Sandwich 0 out of 5. The service was horrendous. I counted at least 10 people that I could see, and they seem to be getting paid to stand around and talk. Now don't get me wrong, I have worked MANY jobs where I interacted with the public, including working food and beverage at MK so I know how hard it is and what unusually high standards guests have. I am not a complainer usually about service because I've been there before. But this experience was crazy. I was extremely disappointed.

Anyways, we wasted 2 CS credits. Otherwise, OOP it would have cost about $25.56.

[Calgary DISHeads]

The 5th was our Clearwater Beach day so we started with breakfast at the ASMu Food Court.

We both opted for the breakfast platter which included scrambled eggs, breakfast potatoes, french toast sticks, a biscuit, and your choice of bacon or sausage. The following picture is a little fuzzy, I apologize.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0863.jpg

It was a lot of food, I don't think either of us finished it. Everything was pretty standard breakfast fare but it was good, just nothing to write home about. There was a British couple who hoarded the butter (seriously!). I asked them where they got the butter because I couldn't find it and they stared at me for a second (they must call it something else in England) and I asked again and they said up at the station. They were done eating so who knows what they were planning on doing with that 8+ unused butter packets. Build a fort, perhaps.

Overall, I'd give it probably a 4 out of 5. We used 2 CS, otherwise OOP it would have cost $28.72.

After getting back from Clearwater and washing up, we headed down to DTD to shop some more and have some food. We decided on Earl of Sandwich because the holiday themed sandwich interested us a couple of days prior.

Note: If you are a diehard Earl of Sandwich fan, you might want to skip this review because it's going to be harsh.

So we're still fairly new at the Dining Plan and what it all entails. We pretty much have it down pat for Disney CS, but we weren't sure what it was going to be at a restaurant not owned by Disney. Our game plan was to ask the girl at the register when we placed our order. We place our order and once we're about to ask what we get as sides/deserts, she screams "NEXT!!!" and we turn around bewildered thinking there was a huge line she was trying to get through quickly. There was one other family behind us. Ok, slightly rude but no biggie. So we try to ask some girls making salads. The one girl stared at us and then turned to her friend and told her to talk to us. We soon discovered there was a language barrier and that all the girl could inform us was "$2.50 and under!" They were very sweet and trying to be helpful, but we were still a little unsure. So the cashier should be able to help us, right? Wrong. He was useless. He did answer our question, but he talked so fast we were still confused. So we decided to just go with what we had been doing all week and we took a desert and a side. When I came home, I searched to see if we were correct but apparently we stole so oops.

Sheesh, what a pain in the butt! So we sit, and I go up to get our drinks. Once I get back to the table, our buzzer is going off so I go up to collect our food. I stood there.. and stood there... oh, that employee is looking at me, she'll be over in just a second I bet.. wait, why is she turning around.. why are the cashiers just staring at me? I decided to take it upon myself and just grab my food. They came running then, go figure.

I was hoping the food would make up for it all, but sadly it didn't. We both ordered the holiday sandwich which consisted of turkey, stuffing, cranberry, gravy, and mayo. I got mine sans mayo, and my mom got it sans cranberry.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0864.jpg

It was incredibly dry. Maybe the mayo would have helped that, but I'm guessing no. I think I only ate half of mine. My stolen potato salad was just okay. My mother got the fruit salad which was pretty standard. I believe we both got brownies, which we ate the next morning. Those weren't bad.

I would give Earl of Sandwich 0 out of 5. The service was horrendous. I counted at least 10 people that I could see, and they seem to be getting paid to stand around and talk. Now don't get me wrong, I have worked MANY jobs where I interacted with the public, including working food and beverage at MK so I know how hard it is and what unusually high standards guests have. I am not a complainer usually about service because I've been there before. But this experience was crazy. I was extremely disappointed.

Anyways, we wasted 2 CS credits. Otherwise, OOP it would have cost about $25.56.

I'm curious about your clearwater beach day - we are looking for a beach day having never left WDW property before but unsure of what to do. Cocoa beach had also been recommended. Can you comment? We would have to rent a car.

[WhateverLolaWants]

I'm curious about your clearwater beach day - we are looking for a beach day having never left WDW property before but unsure of what to do. Cocoa beach had also been recommended. Can you comment? We would have to rent a car.

I have been to both (Clearwater twice, Cocoa once) and I prefer Clearwater. I like how the water is clearer and more tranquil on the Gulf and it is white sand beaches. Both are well-liked beaches, though, so I don't think you can go wrong with either. You just need to decide if you want to swim in the Atlantic or the Gulf. The distance from Orlando is pretty much the same for both. I don't know if you have kids, but I know there is a lot of stuff to do at Clearwater (great aquarium, pirate cruise). Not too sure what there is at Cocoa but I'm sure someone can chime in.

[Calgary DISHeads]

I have been to both (Clearwater twice, Cocoa once) and I prefer Clearwater. I like how the water is clearer and more tranquil on the Gulf and it is white sand beaches. Both are well-liked beaches, though, so I don't think you can go wrong with either. You just need to decide if you want to swim in the Atlantic or the Gulf. The distance from Orlando is pretty much the same for both. I don't know if you have kids, but I know there is a lot of stuff to do at Clearwater (great aquarium, pirate cruise). Not too sure what there is at Cocoa but I'm sure someone can chime in.

Atlantic/Pacific don't care as long as it has salt and waves, and you can't see the other side. We have a summer place here in Alberta on a lake which of course has none of these. We have DS15 and DD12 and I would love to surprise them if possible with a surfing lesson - any ideas?

[NuttyDisneyMom]

:woohoo:Clearwater Beach is my hometown! I was born and raised there:thumbsup2 It is a lovely beach town, as you well know. Ah...I miss it sometimes! Now you can see why I say I'm a WDW Native....23 years of only being 90 mins away from WDW:yay:

[mcrabeck]

Enjoying your reviews and pictures- looking forward to the rest!

[WhateverLolaWants]

Atlantic/Pacific don't care as long as it has salt and waves, and you can't see the other side. We have a summer place here in Alberta on a lake which of course has none of these. We have DS15 and DD12 and I would love to surprise them if possible with a surfing lesson - any ideas?

What a nice surprise for your kids! The first thing that comes to mind is Ron Jon Surf School at Cocoa Beach. I have never done it personally, but I doubt you can go wrong with Ron Jon. Check out their site http://ronjonsurfschool.com/

:woohoo:Clearwater Beach is my hometown! I was born and raised there:thumbsup2 It is a lovely beach town, as you well know. Ah...I miss it sometimes! Now you can see why I say I'm a WDW Native....23 years of only being 90 mins away from WDW:yay:

Jealous! I remember when I was on my College Program, we'd go to the beach during the day and go in to work at night. That was the life :cool2: Now I have to deal with chilly Ohio, boo.

Enjoying your reviews and pictures- looking forward to the rest!

Thanks :)

[WhateverLolaWants]

10/6 was our MNSSHP night so we decided to be lazy that day and sleep in. It was in the 90s during our entire vacation so the combination of the long days and heat was just wearing us out. We decided to eat at Pepper Market since it was fairly close to our hotel and I hear good things about it.

When we arrived, we were seated by a very nice man who tried to seat us close to the food stations. Very nice gesture, but the table was slightly on the main path and I have anxieties about being "on show" at restaurants. I prefer to be mixed in with the rest of people. We were greeted by our waitress who explained the process to us (well, me. Mom had already been there before). She was nice enough, but walking past us and not acknowledging us when we were trying to get her attention because our drinks were empty was not fun.

We headed up to the stations and walked around forever because we were having a hard time deciding. We both wanted something different, and every time we looked to see what the entrees actually looked like we were slightly disappointed. Quite honestly, the dinner entrees that were not available intrigued me more. We ultimately decided on entrees that were specials that day.

I don't recall there being titles on the entrees, but I think I got some sort of sweet and sour chicken with rice, veggies, and an egg roll.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0867.jpg

It was okay. The egg roll was probably the best part. I found the sauce on the chicken to be a little funny. Veggies and rice were your standard fare.

My mother got some sort of beef and mushroom in a wine sauce I think. Came with mashed potatoes and corn.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0866.jpg

I actually liked her meat and its sauce better than mine and she liked my chicken better, which was kind of funny.

For dessert, we both opted for a strawberry cake. Slightly blurry picture, I apologize.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0869.jpg

Ummm, yumm!!! I have probably mentioned this, but I am so not a cake person but this was delish. Very light and fluffy, the frosting was not too sweet and the strawberries were good. We both enjoyed our desserts.

Overall, I'd probably give Pepper Market a 3 out of 5. I wouldn't mind trying it for dinner because the food sounds better to me. We used 2 CS, but OOP this would have cost us $43.31 for the food + tip.

[WhateverLolaWants]

Like I mentioned, 10/6 was our MNSSHP night. Originally, we had trouble deciding whether or not we wanted to do a TS dinner that night. Last December, we ate at LTT during MVMCP and we felt like it took too much time away from our party experience even though we arrived at 4pm. However, that was our only MK day that trip, so we figured that was why and decided we'd be okay. I was originally interested in 1900 Park Fare but then when I saw an opening for CRT I figured why not?

So our reservations were for about 5:30ish and when we tried checking in, we were told that they did not allow you to check in more than 10 minutes before your ADR. No problem, but it's just so odd that every time you make an ADR they ask for you to arrive at least 15 minutes prior. So we finally checked in and then waited for a bit until we could take our picture with Cinderella. There were a few little girls in their Cinderella costumes, including a set of blonde twins that looked adorable.

We were seated after our photo session right near a window, which was nice. I'm imaging it feels more magical to sit by the window with the view rather than being in the back corner. For drinks, my mother ordered a Coke and I started with a flavored lemonade. Our waiter said it was pomegranate, but quite honestly I think it was raspberry.

For an appetizer, I had the salmon-crab cake.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0870.jpg

This was definitely mostly filler. I was definitely not impressed. The sauce was a sweet corn nectar according to the menu, and that I really liked. It helped the dry crab cake go down a tad easier.

My mother opted for the BLT Salad.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0871.jpg

She enjoyed the salad, but felt the lettuce was a little weak since it was a wedge. Too much of the boring white lettuce and not enough of the darker green lettuce.

For an entree, I opted for the Herb-Rubbed Roast Chicken. It comes with wilted spinach, mashed potatoes, and a chicken jus.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0872.jpg

I scraped the herbs off the top because it did not make the chicken look appetizing (I'll spare you what I really thought it looked like). This was average. There was a post on the Restaurant Board where someone compared the CRT dinner food to food served at weddings. I think that statement is extremely accurate, at least in my experience. Everything in the entree was good, but not amazing.

For her entree, my mother got the Prime Rib. It comes with grilled asparagus and roasted potatoes with a Cabernet sauce.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0873.jpg

She agrees with the wedding statement. She found her entree good, but not spectacular.

And finally, dessert. I opted for the seasonal sorbet, which was raspberry, with berries. It was your average sorbet.

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0874.jpg

And my mother opted for the Chocolate Cream Cheese Buckle. She said it was "alright" and "mushy."

http://i365.photobucket.com/albums/oo91/diswlw/101_0876.jpg

Overall, we both agree CRT earned a 3.5 out of 5. I wouldn't say it was worth the money/credits for the food, but I think eating in the Castle should be done at least once in your life. We used 4 TS credits, otherwise OOP this would have cost $109.67.