Tuesday, October 14th - Walt Disney World Life Lesson #11: When You are Running Late for an ADR Your Preferred Method of Transportation Will Always Let You Down.
You know what they say: breakfast is the most important meal of the day.
Such sage advice was never more true than on this day, when my lovey and I devoted our entire Epcot touring plan to nothing less than World Showcase Alcoholic Domination or WSAD, also known as
We Sure Are Drunk. I felt certain that if Jay and I were going to survive our drinking plan it would have to be done on a full, but not
too full, pair of stomachs. Shortly before we left for WDW I noticed that the Grand Floridian Cafe had been on the receiving end of some pretty good reviews. When MickeyNicki gave them two enthusiastic thumbs up I bit the bullet and made a breakfast ADR, rationalizing that if for some reason the meal turned out badly we'd soon forget all about it in a haze of drunken blissfulness.
While the weather gods graced us with a breezy, mild, and not remotely rainy day, the transportation gods were yukking it up at our expense; as smooth and easy as the bus system was on Monday it was excruciatingly painful on Tuesday, like passing a kidney stone. Our reservation was for 9:30AM ... we waited until 9AM for a Magic Kingdom bus to make an appearance while watching numerous MGM, Animal Kingdom, and Downtown Disney buses pull up, belch fumes in our faces, and then lumber off. We would have been willing to jump a bus to Epcot and then monorail it over to the Grand Floridian, but those buses were also mysteriously absent. By the time our chariot arrived it was 9:15 and I was growing fidgety and it didn't help matters that we got stuck in construction traffic on our way to Magic Kingdom. Upon finally completing the first leg of our journey we hoofed it over to the monorail station, sprinting up the ramp to catch a ride on the train that just happened to be waiting for us only to be told that it was out of service and another train wouldn't be along for at least twenty minutes.
I would have laughed at the ludicrousness of it all but I was too busy not puking a lung on that nice family standing right next to us.
Why?
I don't like to run. In fact, I hate to run. If I had to choose between running for my life or being devoured by a pack of hounds with bees in their mouths who, when they bark, shoot bees at me ... well, I guess I'm doing the dog'n'beehive jive because running is just
painful.
So, there we were ... stranded within plain view of our final destination. The only other option was to try to catch a lift on one of those cute little boats that randomly sail between the Magic Kingdom, Grand Floridian, and Polynesian. But waiting for a ride on these boats carries its own special risk since they seem to operate on a mysterious and capricious schedule known only to the hardy sea salts who captain them.
Luckily we didn't have long to wait for a cute little boat and as my hubba gently reminded me ... we were on vacation and if we got somewhere not on time it wasn't the end of the world. And I adore boat rides on the Seven Seas Lagoon - they're so peaceful and picturesque and they come with plenty of fresh air so when the only other people on the boat have a small child with them who blatts loudly in its diaper the cool breeze will waft the smell of poo away before you can turn to your beloved and ask, "who farted?"
The prow of our stinky little love boat
Quick, take the picture before they release more poison gas...
By the time we actually reached the restaurant, which is housed on the lobby level of the Grand Floridian, we were easily thirty minutes late for our ADR and I had visions of being turned away or being faced with a ridiculous wait. But it was just the opposite - the cafe was not busy at all and we were seated immediately. Our table was in the back of the restaurant so we were surrounded by a wall of windows that looked directly out on to the hotel's lawn and walkways. The decor was light and airy - I felt like we were dining in a cozy, comfortable summerhouse.
Pretty...
In honor of the drunk-fest we'd planned it seemed more than reasonable to start the morning off with a little hair of the dog along with the usual WDW swill that passes for coffee. And no, for those of you who may be wondering, drinking swill at the Grand Floridian does not make it any less swilly.
For my first alcoholic beverage of the day I chose poorly and ordered the
Key West, described as a frozen blend of pureed strawberries and orange juice laced with rum.
Too much ice not enough booze
In the hands of a better bartender this could have been a good drink but we'll never know for sure because it would have taken a solar flare to melt that iceberg in my glass. It tasted like a watery strawberry snow-cone with none of the added benefit of red dye #5 sugar-syrup to turn my tongue a shocking shade of scarlet.
Jay, as he often does in these instances, chose wisely and ordered the
Florida Sunshine , described as Peach Schnapps, Chambord, Vodka, and a splash of orange and cranberry juices.
I covet your drink ... is that so wrong?
There was no doubt about it ... this drink was the choice of champions and it was perfectly blended - not too sweet and not too tart. And considering how much alcohol it contained, it was a smooth, easy drink - not at all harsh or overpowering.
Had the weather been as hot and humid on this day as it had been on the previous days of our visit I might have ordered something different for breakfast, but I loves me some french toast and I'm a firm proponent of eating bread with my alcohol to help soak it all up. The Cafe offers
Maple French Toast which the menu described as challah bread dipped in maple and vanilla flavored batter served with a choice of bacon or sausage.
French toast & pig
Butter & syrup
Wow! This was ever-so-good! The bread was firm but slightly custardy and had a lovely, light vanilla flavor. They didn't skimp on the bacon, either; there was a lot of pig on my plate for me to share with the hubba. And may I just publicly offer up thanks for the generous pitcher of maple syrup they provided for my bread drowning and bacon dipping pleasure?
Jason surprised me a bit with his choice - I was sure he was going to order the lobster eggs benedict but he opted for the
Cafe Breakfast Skillet instead. This item is described as biscuits topped with sausage gravy, scrambled eggs, tomatoes, peppers, onions and melted mozzarella and cheddar cheeses.
Breakfast mish-mash
I find that revolting ... I do not like all my foods jumbled up together in one serving dish like that, especially at breakfast. However, for those of you who do enjoy what I like to refer to as mish-mash, Jay says this was truly a delight to eat.
Final verdict?
MickeyNicki and her thumbs were right!!!
The Grand Floridian Cafe is a hidden gem - we had a peaceful, leisurely meal with attentive service and very good food. Jay and I both liked that their menu provided some nice variations on standard breakfast fare and they offset their swill with some good alcoholic morning beverage offerings ... just do yourself a favor and avoid the drink with the Antarctic ice shelf.