Magic Happens, and Then You EAT: Our Gluttonous *Year of the Dragon* COMPLETE!!

[DonaldDoleWhip]

Let's get on with it, then!

Let the food porn begin!

Yay! I can't wait!

 

[iloveeeyore]

Uh-oh...ummmm, I was a little premature in my excitement. DH hasn't uploaded the porn to photobucket yet. I thought it was done, but I misunderstood. Please stand by...

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

Uh-oh...ummmm, I was a little premature in my excitement. DH hasn't uploaded the porn to photobucket yet. I thought it was done, but I misunderstood. Please stand by...

No problem - I can wait.

 

[jecskc]

Coming over from my DR to sub in !! I can't wait to read about your trip and see all of your yummy food !!

 

[fairy8i8]

Subscribing! Can't wait to read the reviews. I popped over to read your Live trip report, and it just made me more excited to read you Dining Review!

 

[iloveeeyore]

No problem - I can wait.

It won't be much longer...

Coming over from my DR to sub in !! I can't wait to read about your trip and see all of your yummy food !!

Thanks for coming over! Welcome!

Subscribing! Can't wait to read the reviews. I popped over to read your Live trip report, and it just made me more excited to read you Dining Review!

So glad you read my TR! Welcome and stay tuned!

 

[iloveeeyore]

We were still at home later than usual, as we had a later flight than we usually take (10:30 as opposed to 6:30). We found ourselves with plenty of time to eat breakfast at home, but we didn't want to prepare it (it was a vacation day, after all).

Aladdin took Hercules along with him to our favorite local deli a few miles away, and we all got our "usual."

For Belle, a bagel with cream cheese:

Yup...that is a huge slab of full-fat cream cheese, yes, it is. In other words, this was awesome (I know, even though I didn't taste it that morning). The bagel itself is not the best bagel available in the New York area (if you are from here, you know what I mean), but it doesn't matter THAT much when they slather it in this much delicious cream cheese!

For the rest of us, 2 fried eggs with American cheese and bacon on a Portugese roll:

I'm only posting one picture because they all looked pretty much the same (there were indeed 3, we did not have to share this meal ). To tell you the truth, this was not as great as it usually is. The bacon was a bit, I don't know, maybe greasy? Not cooked well enough? There was something just a little "off" about the bacon. And the eggs were a tad overcooked. On the really bright side, as opposed to the bagel (which is NOT the best around), the Portugese roll IS the best around, in our opinion...perfect crust on the outside and nice and fresh and soft on the inside, with just the right measure of salt in the dough. Aladdin enjoyed his sandwich with a spot of ketchup, while Herc and I like ours "neat."

Aladdin and I also had coffee in our personal refillable mugs we purchased at least 10 years ago from the deli:

Both coffees came black, with me dressing mine at home. Al likes his black. I prefer mine with any kind of artificial sweetener (we use Splenda at home) and milk, whatever kind is available (we use skim). I am not a fan of cream or creamer in my coffee.

We have certainly gotten our money's worth on that refillable mug deal, no doubt about it. Their coffee is our favorite from our area. We like it much better than any of the chain coffee/donut places we all know, and on August 3, it did not disappoint.

If this were our first time ordering egg sandwiches from this deli, we probably wouldn't have been all that impressed, because of the weird bacon and the hard eggs. Since we know that was an exception and not a trend, and because of the great roll, coffee and voluminous cream cheese, it still rates a:

3/5

A solid start to our gluttonous adventure!

Next up, our snack on JetBlue! But first, I have to sleep!

ALOHA!

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

Uh oh, I don't know where the best bagel is in the New York area. We usually go to Bagel Emporium if we're looking for bagels (simply because it's most convenient), and it wouldn't surprise me to hear there are better options.

 

[iloveeeyore]

Uh oh, I don't know where the best bagel is in the New York area. We usually go to Bagel Emporium if we're looking for bagels (simply because it's most convenient), and it wouldn't surprise me to hear there are better options.

We love Murray's and Zabar's the very best, but Bagel Emporium is really, really good, too! Love the different cream cheese options, too. My favorite is the olive. Belle just goes for the plain, usually, sometimes vegetable.

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

We love Murray's and Zabar's the very best, but Bagel Emporium is really, really good, too! Love the different cream cheese options, too. My favorite is the olive. Belle just goes for the plain, usually, sometimes vegetable.

Thanks for the suggestions! I just looked at the menu for Murray's, and it looks fantastic. I have to try that place eventually.

 

[iloveeeyore]

Thanks for the suggestions! I just looked at the menu for Murray's, and it looks fantastic. I have to try that place eventually.

It is fantastic! You should try it, for sure. You like olives, right? My favorite is the everything bagel with olive cream cheese. You never know when one needs some more salt in his/her diet!

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

It is fantastic! You should try it, for sure. You like olives, right? My favorite is the everything bagel with olive cream cheese. You never know when one needs some more salt in his/her diet!

Yep, I love olives - that sounds amazing!

 

[iloveeeyore]

We have been flying on JetBlue for the past several trips and find the customer service quite excellent, especially considering the price that we pay for the flights.

You get a complimentary soft drink, juice, milk or coffee, and you pick a small snack from a pretty wide array of options. If you want an alcoholic beverage or a larger snack, those are available, too, for a price.

This snack was served to us at around 11:30, which was just about the time we were starting to feel thirsty and like maybe we could use a little snack (except Hercules, who was thirsty in the airport but chose not to buy a $3.00 soda from the vending machine on principle).

Belle and Aladdin both chose the popcorn chips snack flavored with just a bit of sea salt:

I tasted these and thought they were quite good...crunchy and fresh with just the right amount of salt.

I went with the Terra chips Blues with BBQ flavoring:

I love Terra chips, but these weren't the best I've ever had. I prefer the mixed bag with the sweet potatoes and the beets, but these were good. I enjoy BBQ flavoring on my chips, but it's not my top choice.

Hercules chose chocolate chip cookies.

He dug into them before I had a chance to snap a picture, and I didn't ask him for a taste. He needs the calories more than the rest of us do, he is a 15-year-old football player . He said the cookies were "fine."

Herc and Aladdin had Diet Cokes, Belle had a ginger ale, and I went for some "freshly brewed Dunkin' Donuts coffee." I had only had one cup up until now, and usually I have 3-4 cups before lunch (or dinner, if I'm working that night).

No big surprise, here, nothing bad, nothing great. A solid snack!

3/5!

Up next...our first "lunch" in WDW, Contempo Cafe!

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

I also really like the snacks on JetBlue - they make it easier to resist spending $8 on an unappealing sandwich at the airport.

 

[iloveeeyore]

Yep, I love olives - that sounds amazing!

My mom used to pack me cream cheese and olive sandwiches in by brown lunch bag when I was a kid. The olive cream cheese brings me back...AND kicks it up a notch!

I also really like the snacks on JetBlue - they make it easier to resist spending $8 on an unappealing sandwich at the airport.

Disney CS establishments are so much more reasonably priced...and good... compared to our "real world'" right? Maybe this is why we appreciate the Disney food services so much?

 

[MainStreetFireman]

To tell you the truth, this was not as great as it usually is. The bacon was a bit, I don't know, maybe greasy? Not cooked well enough? There was something just a little "off" about the bacon. And the eggs were a tad overcooked. On the really bright side, as opposed to the bagel (which is NOT the best around), the Portugese roll IS the best around, in our opinion...perfect crust on the outside and nice and fresh and soft on the inside, with just the right measure of salt in the dough. Aladdin enjoyed his sandwich with a spot of ketchup, while Herc and I like ours "neat."

I have a theory about this -- Normally, we arrive at a time when the bacon has been cooking all night (it's a well-known 24 hour place). But, this time, we came in after the morning rush. So I think that they had already parceled out the best of the morning bacon and we were getting some bacon that would have been perfect if it had been on a lunch sandwich a bit later. Just MHO.

Thanks for the suggestions! I just looked at the menu for Murray's, and it looks fantastic. I have to try that place eventually.

Murray's has a number of great locations in Manhattan. The olive spread is the best on a salty bagel. Not to be confused with Murray's Cheese Shop (which has a convenient Grand Central Terminal outpost), which is also to die for.

I also really like the snacks on JetBlue - they make it easier to resist spending $8 on an unappealing sandwich at the airport.

Herc passed on buying water at the airport on principle alone. $3+, just because that water passed through TSA screening, is objectionable to say the least.

 

[iloveeeyore]

Once we were settled into the Contemporary well enough to start thinking about and having time for food, it was about 2:45. We had an appointment with Sammy Duvall at 3:15, and a dinner ADR at Chef Mickey's at 5:45, so we had to have a quick, small lunch.

We had never before tried the Contempo Cafe, and there were a few items on my "list" here, so we rode the escalator up to the Grand Concourse and got on a short line at the baked goods window.

What I MOST wanted to try was the Dulce de Leche Cupcake (I am a caramel freak). Alas...there were none! Instead I opted for my second choice, which I have read about on these boards, the Strawberry Lemonade Cupcake:

This was a pink cake with a generous portion of lemon filling (like you'd get in a lemon-filled doughnut) and a mountain of strawberry flavored butter cream icing. This was a gorgeous cupcake, beautifully presented...but it wasn't really our cup of tea. It was way too sweet for any of us to enjoy; we all four tried it and unanimously agree that we wouldn't order it again. We're glad we tasted it, though.

Belle really wanted to try the Red Velvet Cupcake:

This was better than the Strawberry Lemonade Cupcake, but then we (Belle, Aladdin and I) already know we love red velvet cake (Herc is not a fan, and did not taste this cupcake). It had a nice filling of cream cheese on the inside (IIRC), but again, cloyingly sweet icing. Al and I had to remove most of the icing to remotely enjoy our portion of the cake. Belle really enjoyed this, though and didn't really mind the sweetness.

Hercules ordered his own Chocolate Chip Cookie:

(I apologize for the blurry picture.) He was in a chocolate chip cookie kind of mood, apparently. He thought this was good, not great. Better than the ones on the plane, but not the best he has ever had. He said he's had softer, fresher, more delicious chocolate chip cookies, but he's also had much worse. Al took a taste and agrees with this assessment!

We are inclined to say that we would go back to the Contempo Cafe, but we wouldn't make these same choices again (except for MAYBE Belle and the Red Velvet). We like the atmosphere in the Grand Concourse and the view of the monorail. Aladdin and I would lean toward giving this snack a 2/5, but we think that maybe we just don't really like the Disney gourmet cupcakes. This would go in our file as overrated, and maybe our expectations were just way too high. Since Herc and Belle thought their snack was good, this experience rates a:

...we're calling it a 3-/5

OOP Cost of this snack: $10.84

Up next...our Welcome to Walt Disney World dinner!

 

[cantwaitvaca09]

I loved your TR and now I can't wait to read all your dinning reviews.
Great Start!

 

[Tracerr00]

Wonderful reviews so far!! I have to say that I love those Popcorners chips as well and I eat them with some Lauging Cow cheese and I love Terra chips too. Yum! I love cupcakes but I don't know if the strawberry lemonade would be my cup of tea...the red velvet one might be though! Many times I end up scraping off a little of the frosting anyway on many cupcakes to balance out the cake to frosting ratio! A new place just opened on Friday very near where I work and it's called Cupcake. I think I'm in trouble!!

Looking forward to more reviews!!

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

I definitely recommend going back to Contempo Cafe to try some of their lighter fare. I've had really good salads, sandwiches, and flatbreads there (the marinated beef flatbread is so good), and it's one of my favorite CS locations for its more unique options. As a rule, Disney cupcakes are way too sweet for me. The exception might be the carrot cake cupcake at Wilderness Lodge, and I only ate half of it (since my mom and I split it).

My mom used to pack me cream cheese and olive sandwiches in by brown lunch bag when I was a kid. The olive cream cheese brings me back...AND kicks it up a notch!

Disney CS establishments are so much more reasonably priced...and good... compared to our "real world'" right? Maybe this is why we appreciate the Disney food services so much?

I've never had olives and cream cheese together, although I can imagine the combo being good (since olives and feta go together well, and feta is even saltier than cream cheese).

And agreed on Disney CS. I actually think CS options have improved over the past year. From healthier options (like the grilled salmon and steamed broccoli at Columbia Harbour House) to amazing variety (tandoori at AoA!) and more authentic touches (okonomiyaki at Katsura Grill in Japan), I'm quite impressed with recent quick service changes. And when I compare Disney's CS food to airports, movie theaters, and Six Flags crazy2, Disney looks even better.

Murray's has a number of great locations in Manhattan. The olive spread is the best on a salty bagel. Not to be confused with Murray's Cheese Shop (which has a convenient Grand Central Terminal outpost), which is also to die for.

Herc passed on buying water at the airport on principle alone. $3+, just because that water passed through TSA screening, is objectionable to say the least.

I definitely want to try Murray's now. We'll be leaving for our trip tomorrow, but maybe after I get back. The variety and ingredients sound incredible.

As for water, tell me about it! One time, we were scheduled to fly out of Philadelphia Airport. After making it through security, I bought a huge $4 water bottle that I was going to save for the flight. In an interesting turn of events, our flight was delayed, and due to a high possibility of missing our connection (across the Pacific Ocean), we ended up cabbing it to JFK. After the 3.5 hour taxi ride, imagine my horror when a security agent found my huge, unopened $4 bottle of water in my backpack (which I had forgotten about) and threw it away in the trash. He wouldn't even let me drink it.