"I DO...want dessert" Our 10-Day DxDP Honeymoon-FINAL POST

[Lisa29]

Congratulations on the wedding - it may be over but hopefully you have all your pictures to look forward to seeing?

Enjoying your report, can't wait for the next installment.

 

[Pooh's-Honey-Pot]

Yum!!! Looking forward to the rest!!

 

[Roxychica7]

Joining in! Great dining selections, you have a seriously excellent list to go through! Congratulations on your honeymoon! It looks like you two had a blast so far! I'm originally from Baltimore (now living in VA Beach), so I totally understand your search for "the best crab cake ever!"

 

[heatherandnick]

Congratulations on the wedding - it may be over but hopefully you have all your pictures to look forward to seeing?

Enjoying your report, can't wait for the next installment.

You're so right! I haven't seen a single picture since the wedding and I'm DYING to see them.

Yum!!! Looking forward to the rest!!

Thanks for reading!

Joining in! Great dining selections, you have a seriously excellent list to go through! Congratulations on your honeymoon! It looks like you two had a blast so far! I'm originally from Baltimore (now living in VA Beach), so I totally understand your search for "the best crab cake ever!"

I gotta tell you, we were more excited about the food than anything else. This was a total splurge for us and I still cannot believe all the awesome food we had. Anyone who knocks "theme park food" just has no clue.
Girl, you DO get the crabcake thing! Even though you're from the "western shore" you probably came over to OC. These crabcakes really do crap on all the ones we have had at home. (Actuially, Irish Eyes in Lewes, DE had really good ones, too!)

 

[heatherandnick]

So, I just realized I didn't take pictures of our food at Sci Fi. Sorry!

I was really looking forward to this lunch for two reasons. One- I've never eaten here in all my years at D-World and the theming sounds so cool. I'm an "atmosphere" kinda gal (especially at D-World) so I couldn't wait to see it. Two- Although Sci Fi doesn't get the best reviews, we were both really looking forward to good ole' burgers.

First of all, the atmosphere and theming WAS super duper cool. Like something I've never seen in my life. I was not disappointed at all. It was so detailed and the darkness was a nice reprieve from the scorching sun outside.

We sat in the back of a car table. It was great, as was our server.

For appetizers, I got the BLT soup and DH got the 7-bean chili. The BLT soup was delicious. I couldn't believe I was ordering soup on such a hot day, but I sure was glad I did. The tomato soup was creamy, but so much better than ordinary Campbells. The lettuce, bacon, and croutons really made it something special. DH enjoyed his chili, but it was a HUGE bowl. He hardly made a dent in it.

We both got cheeseburgers and fries. They were good, juicy, and HUGE. I think I only ate half of mine.

I had already gotten a chocolate shake for my beverage, but I still decided to spring for the chocolate peanut butter cake (oink, oink!). It was yummy, but very different than what I expected. It was very crusty on the outside, and no peanut butter sauce poured out when I broke it apart. It had more of a peanut butter chocolate fudge inside. It was warm and delicious, though...especially with the cold ice cream on the side.

DH just went with a to-go shake, I think. He helped me with my cake a little bit, but I definitely won the eating battle at today's lunch.

I enjoyed this lunch. Not sure how it would work with a family with toddlers, just because of the difficulties due to the seating arrangements. I think it would be hard for the parents to help the kiddos with their food, etc. The atmosphere rocked, the server was great, the food was yummy. I would go back for lunch, definitely not dinner.

Up Next: Cali Grill

 

[Roxychica7]

I gotta tell you, we were more excited about the food than anything else. This was a total splurge for us and I still cannot believe all the awesome food we had. Anyone who knocks "theme park food" just has no clue.
Girl, you DO get the crabcake thing! Even though you're from the "western shore" you probably came over to OC. These crabcakes really do crap on all the ones we have had at home. (Actuially, Irish Eyes in Lewes, DE had really good ones, too!)

haha, yeah, but I went to college in Salisbury and went on vacation to OC every summer since I was 2 (I went year round while I was in college) does that hype up my crab cake knowledge?
We've only been on the regular dining plan and have not hit any of the signature restaurants yet, so I am definitely on the look out for a few to hit on our next trip (aside from Cali Grill, dbf and I want to do that one). Can't wait to read more!!

 

[TruBlu]

First of all, the atmosphere and theming WAS super duper cool. Like something I've never seen in my life. I was not disappointed at all. It was so detailed and the darkness was a nice reprieve from the scorching sun outside.

Isn't it amazing? We just LOVE the feel of walking out of the blazing hot Fla. sun and into a cool night at the movies.

And, those burgers are great!

 

[chocolateMinnie]

We visit Sci-Fi for lunch for the first time this trip, DS's choice so we had to go with it as he is being so good at agreeing to Princess meals for DD. didn't realise you could get a shake to go - excellent idea.

 

[lilandvisma]

Enjoying reading your reviews!!! Congrats on the marriage You guys are adorable!

 

[heatherandnick]

haha, yeah, but I went to college in Salisbury and went on vacation to OC every summer since I was 2 (I went year round while I was in college) does that hype up my crab cake knowledge?
We've only been on the regular dining plan and have not hit any of the signature restaurants yet, so I am definitely on the look out for a few to hit on our next trip (aside from Cali Grill, dbf and I want to do that one). Can't wait to read more!!

Okay...I guess you qualify as a fellow crab cake connoisseur.
I truly enjoyed the signatures on the DxDP. It was a ton of yummy food. Good luck with your choices.

Isn't it amazing? We just LOVE the feel of walking out of the blazing hot Fla. sun and into a cool night at the movies.

And, those burgers are great!

I see a lot of reviews where people don't really like the darkness of Sci Fi. Are they serious?!

We visit Sci-Fi for lunch for the first time this trip, DS's choice so we had to go with it as he is being so good at agreeing to Princess meals for DD. didn't realise you could get a shake to go - excellent idea.

I hope you guys enjoy it as much as we did. It really is fun. But I have heard not to stray too far from the burgers and fries (i.e. this isn't the place to order a steak, if it's even on the menu). I still think they should offer a Star Wars, pirates, or villians meal for the little guys. They certainly do get shafted!

Enjoying reading your reviews!!! Congrats on the marriage You guys are adorable!

Thanks so much and thanks for reading! Stay tuned for more yummy food pics.

 

[heatherandnick]

Of all our ADRs, I think this is the one I was most looking forward to. I had these visions of (cue romantic music now) sitting next to the window with the castle in the background....eating dinner and then watching the fireworks from our seats...true romance. (Imagine record skipping with that terrible sccccrrrattch sound). That's not exactly the way it went...

When we first took the elevator up to the restaurant, I immediately felt underdressed. I had on a nice(er) dress on with flipflops, DH had on khaki shorts and a polo shirt. Okay, we were SO underdressed that I felt uncomfortable. The ladies had on sequins, 6-inch heels, and guys had on fancy suits. It looked like a really bad prom. There was some sort of event going on in the private room over near the observation deck, and those people were even dressier. Seriously?!? I mean, I know it's Cali Grill, but it's still D-World.

We were taken to our table over in the wine room. I had very mixed feelings...on the positive side, it was so quiet and more romantic in this room. There was only about 7 tables and we were against a window. From our table, we could see Illuminations and the electric boat parade in the distance (the FAR distance). But, as lovely as it was, it didn't fit my vision at all. I got over it, and figured I would have many other opportunities to look at the castle. I'm not one of those people who likes to request a specific table or area, so I guess it is what it is.

Our server was really great. We made it sorta obvious that we were new to the whole "fine dining" experience, and he still treated us with class and helped us along the way. We got some delicious wine and chose our appetizers.

I had eaten sushi only once in my life, DH had never tried it. So, with the help of our server, we decided to go for it. He suggested a half order of the shrimp tempura and half California roll.

DH didn't like the Cali roll...too "fishy" he said. I enjoyed them both, but the shrimp tempura was my favorite. It was a pretty good first sushi experience. (We didn't even know how to eat it ) I would probably get it again, DH would not.

His appetizer was the triple cheese flatbread.

OMG it was so good. He loved it (especially since pizza is his all-time favorite food, EVER). It was tangy, cheezy goodness. Much better than even our favorite local pizza place. I guess it was just a different flavor for us, so we truly enjoyed it. It was a huge serving and we each only had a few bites because, after all, this was only the appetizer. We had lots of food to get through.

We chose the same entree...oak fired filet of beef. No pictures this is why...
The timing was SO off on our entree. Our whole plan was to watch the fireworks from Cali Grill. Our server even discussed with us when they began and how we could get to the 2 observation decks. The fireworks started at 10pm. He brought our entrees out to us at around 9:55. Even before he brought them out, we (I) was sorta panicing because we didn't see him anywhere...we wanted to tell him where we were going and not just disappear. Then, when we saw him coming with our entrees, we were like, "Oh $#@." He saw our faces and realized what had just happened, so he offered to give us hot lids. We took a couple bites of our steak, and then rushed out to the deck for the fireworks.

The fireworks were AWESOME! It wasn't Wishes, but the Summer Nightastic and it was so cool! We both loved the show, and it was cool being all the way at the end of the 2nd observation deck, pretty much by ourselves, with a glass of wine. I really enjoyed it.

So, back to our dinner... DH loved his steak. Mine was good, but I think the timing of everything made it a little less enjoyable for me. Also, I had eaten most of the sushi, so my belly was groaning slightly. Not to be a complainer, but the first bite of steak I took (pre-fireworks) was so chewy that I had to spit it out. The rest of the steak was tender and good, but that first bite kinda (almost) killed it for me. I knew dessert was around the corner, so I only ate a few bites of my steak and a few of the potatoes. DH finished off my steak. I think he would rather stuff himself until he gets sick than leave good meat uneaten.

And onto dessert! We were both about to pop at this point, but I can't let that stop me from ordering sweets! I got some type of chocolate creme brulee.

It was really, really good, but I think I was so full and tired by this point I just couldn't do it. I ate about half of it. (Would love to have the other half right now, actually.)

DH got the Mascarpone and Meyer lemon cheesecake.

Neither of us remember anything about this dessert (food overload, I guess). But doesn't it look pretty?!?

All in all, this was a nice experience at the Cali Grill. DH enjoyed it more than I did. I think my expectations were so high, that I was slightly disappointed. (Not necessarily CG's fault) If the timing of the meal had been better, I would've been more relaxed and probably enjoyed it more. Maybe we should have mentioned the fireworks again to our server after we finished our appetizers? Who knows? It was just a communication problem I guess, not really sure who (if anyone) was at fault. I would eat here again, but only if on the DDP. It would've been WAY out of our budget otherwise.

Up next: 1900 Park Fare breakfast

 

[TheNewMrsB]

Aw, I'm sorry things didn't turn out the way you'd hoped.

For a first sushi experience, you can do a whole lot worse than Cali Grill. I love that shrimp tempura roll, it sends me...

 

[bluejasmine]

Shrimp tempura rolls are one of my faves also. My DD loves Cali Rolls. DH and I have a Calli Grill ADR in a few weeks and just plan on ordering the flatbread to share and two different sushi rolls I know mine will be Spicy Kazan not sure what DH will order, but we will share both and share the banana and carmel dessert and get a two glasses of wine, we planned on just relaxing the evening and watching Hallowishes from our CL or beach at the Poly..

 

[Tri-Delta4Life]

I'm loving your reviews!! They remind me so much of our honeymoon in DW 2 years ago. We did the deluxe dining plan and went to many of the same places you guys did! We loved trying all of the signature resturants! My husband agrees that the Flying Fish crab cake is the best... it's his must do food item each trip!

 

[heatherandnick]

Aw, I'm sorry things didn't turn out the way you'd hoped.

For a first sushi experience, you can do a whole lot worse than Cali Grill. I love that shrimp tempura roll, it sends me...

It WAS pretty dang good!

Shrimp tempura rolls are one of my faves also. My DD loves Cali Rolls. DH and I have a Calli Grill ADR in a few weeks and just plan on ordering the flatbread to share and two different sushi rolls I know mine will be Spicy Kazan not sure what DH will order, but we will share both and share the banana and carmel dessert and get a two glasses of wine, we planned on just relaxing the evening and watching Hallowishes from our CL or beach at the Poly..

That sounds splendid! I hope you have a fabulous time!

I'm loving your reviews!! They remind me so much of our honeymoon in DW 2 years ago. We did the deluxe dining plan and went to many of the same places you guys did! We loved trying all of the signature resturants! My husband agrees that the Flying Fish crab cake is the best... it's his must do food item each trip!

It was a ton of fun, don'cha think?! I wish we could do it all over again. I've never ever been on a trip (aside from a cruise) where I had so much food to eat. It really was an incredible time. Next time, we HAVE to go to Yachtsman.

 

[heatherandnick]

Growing up, my 4 FAVORITE (like, can say every line kinda "favorite") movies were Annie, The Wizard of Oz, Alice in Wonderland, and Mary Poppins. So, imagine my excitement when I knew I was going to have breakfast with Mary AND Alice. DH wasn't quite as excited...but after breakfast he was going to the Magnolia course for a round of golf, so he was excited in his own way.

Breakfast at 1900 Park Fare was exciting and good. It was a very loud, bustling kind of atmosphere with a whole lotta people trying to get to the food bar. Once you fought the crowd and had your food, it was delicious. All we had were the standards (Mickey waffles, eggs, potatoes, bacon) but I do remember the french toast was super yummy. We were very disappointed with the lobster eggs benedict. Yuck! Definitely not for us! I tried the strawberry soup because I had heard so much about it and it was something I had definitely never had before. It was very tasty. Almost like strawberry preserves as a creamy cold soup. Strange, but good.

I would only recommend people to do this breakfast if you are HUGE Mary or Alice fans, or if you are staying at the GF. It took us WAY too long to get here (about 1 1/2 hours). It was good, but not any better than the other breakfast buffets.

A side note from someone who has never interacted with face characters before: We both thought they were freakin weird! Seriously. What do you say to them?!? I now know that we definitely prefer the characters who just wave and hug you.

Next up: Rose & Crown/Illuminations

 

[TheNewMrsB]

Growing up, my 4 FAVORITE (like, can say every line kinda "favorite") movies were Annie, The Wizard of Oz, Alice in Wonderland, and Mary Poppins.

"Maybe far awaaaaay...or maybe real nearbyyyyy..." Okay, I'm done being weird. "Annie" was one of my top faves as well. Like, I watched it a few times a week. I bet my parents were real happy they taped it for me!

A side note from someone who has never interacted with face characters before: We both thought they were freakin weird! Seriously. What do you say to them?!? I now know that we definitely prefer the characters who just wave and hug you.

This makes me laugh, but at the same time...I never thought about that before. It's one thing to hug Mickey as an adult...but to talk to Mary Poppins? What DO you say? Like...yeah, I know you're not really Mary Poppins but you look pretty so it's okay?

 

[heatherandnick]

This makes me laugh, but at the same time...I never thought about that before. It's one thing to hug Mickey as an adult...but to talk to Mary Poppins? What DO you say? Like...yeah, I know you're not really Mary Poppins but you look pretty so it's okay?

Alice told DH he looked like a sunflower (he had on a yellow shirt) and she asked if he sang like a sunflower. He looked at her like she fell out of the sky and said, "uhhhhhh, no." It was so funny. We both agreed she reminded us of Pee Wee Herman. I would post the pic of me and her, but I'm sure I would piss someone off by doing so.

 

[canoe86]

My wife and I will be trying the California Grill for the first time.....AND.....we will not have the kids. (Getting a sitter plus the oldest) So, 3 hours or so to ourselves and will be making it our 16th anniversary dinner. Food looks good.

Another thing we have found is if the restaurant is a signature dinning location, MINIMUM khakis, dress shoes and collared type shirt. Minimum. Our daughters wear very nice dresses and same with my wife. I usually wear a shirt and tie.

OH, and Mary Poppins IS my favorite and have had JUST my picture taken with her at 1900. (kids and the wife love it!)

 

[heatherandnick]

\
Another thing we have found is if the restaurant is a signature dinning location, MINIMUM khakis, dress shoes and collared type shirt. Minimum. Our daughters wear very nice dresses and same with my wife. I usually wear a shirt and tie.

Sounds like you are a very prepared family who likes to dress up on vacation. I only mentioned it on my review because, of the seven signature dining locations in our itinerary, Cali Grill was the only one in which I felt underdressed. There were plenty of other men dining that night with khaki shorts, collared golf shirts, and dockside shoes (like my DH). It was the females in sequins that threw me for a loop.

Have a great time and Happy Anniversary!