The "I Drove My Family Nuts Getting All These Pics" Dining Review! UPDATED 4/8 FINAL

[ilovepete]

So, DS was feeling a little better by the time our dinner reservation rolled around. I was very happy about this because, well, first of all I was glad he was feeling better, it is so hard to see your babies sick! But also because we had a reservation at Cinderella's Royal Table for dinner! My kids didn't even know there was a restaurant inside the castle, so this was a big surprise for them! DH and I ate there right after we were engaged in 2003 but since then we had not been back.

We went in and waited only a few minutes before we had our picture with Cinderella. This was nice to actually get a family photograph that they printed and gave to you. Most of our photos seem to live on the computer, so I liked getting that hard copy. After our picture, we waited around 10 minutes before they called us to our table. We walked up the spiral staircase and we were seated in the very middle of the castle! It was a neat space and about that time DD5 finally realized where we were, upstairs in the castle! She was loving it! They brought us wishing stars, a wand for DD5 and a sword for DS7. The kids thought that was the best thing ever.

We had a look over the menu, which seemed to be different from what I had seen anywhere before our trip when I was menu browsing. I wish I had taken pictures of the actual menu, but I didn't. So, I have pictures of everything, but the descriptions might be sketchy.

They started out with rolls. They were very good, the standard ones you get all over the place in Disney World. We had these same ones at both Rose & Crown and Be our Guest on this trip.

Then we all got appetizers here. Both kids chose the...

Bite sized Cheddar Cheese and Grapes

They both loved it and ate every bite. I chose the Shrimp and Grits type appetizer.

This was very good. It had shrimp, crawfish, very rich grits, and a tasty sauce on top. Honestly, I think I would have liked it better without the sauce on it, but it was still good and I ate all of the seafood and some of the grits from it. I believe this is the correct description of it, "Crawfish and Rock Shrimp with Grits - Crawfish and Rock Shrimp in a New Orleans-style Barbecue Sauce with Goat Cheese Grits".

DH chose the Royal Tasting of Cheese - A trio of Cheeses with Accompaniments

He loved this and ate almost the entire plate of cheese. It was a great appetizer and he enjoyed it a lot.

Next, we moved on the the main entrees. The kids both selected the Beef Tenderloin which came with Mashed Potatoes and Green Beans.

They ate most of this, but it was a lot of food for them, especially after they already had the rolls and cheese & grapes appetizer. They really enjoyed it though and it seemed to be cooked properly.

I chose something pretty similar for myself, the Beef Tenderloin with Fingerling Potatoes, Asparagus and a Tarragon Demi Glaze. I substituted Green Beans for the Asparagus because I prefer them.

The meat was cooked properly and had a really great flavor, especially with the glaze paired with it. The potatoes were seasoned well, but they were a bit dry, though I did enjoy the taste. The green beans were pretty standard, but I really appreciated the green vegetable at this point in the trip! I also hadn't eaten all day, being back at the hotel with DS, who wasn't feeling well earlier, so I was very hungry for this meal! I am not sure if that colored my feelings on it, but I really did enjoy this beef. However, I did not think it was quite as good as what my husband ordered! He got the...


Pork (yes, that is all I know! LOL I can't find the description, but it is pork slow cooked with some root vegetables and a sauce.

This was amazing! It was so tender that it fell off the bone. The flavor was great and we both thought it was the best entree of the night. I wished I had ordered this, even though I liked what I got, I loved this much more. I am a sucker for good pork though.

Now it was onto dessert. The kids got a choice of a cupcake or ice cream to decorate. DD5 chose the cupcake.

DS7 picked the ice cream.

As you could probably guess, these went over really well with the kids! They loved getting toarrange their own decorations on the cupcake and ice cream. They each split their dessert in half and shared with each other so that they both got cupcakes and ice cream. They still didn't eat it all, I think they were full from the rest of the meal! But it was a nice touch and very fun for them.

I went with the Seasonal Cheesecake:

I believe this is a description for what I had (when I ordered it just said "Seasonal Cheesecake" but I found this on another site), Almond Cheesecake With Lingonberry jam. It was tasty and very creamy on top with a fruit jam inside the cake. I didn't try the piece on top, but it appeared to be nuts of some sort, so I would assume it was almonds. The few bites I had of it were very good, but I didn't have enough room left in my stomach to eat more than that! It wasn't phenomenal or anything, but it was a nice dessert.

My husband chose the Chef's Dessert Trio:

This consisted of a mini version of the cheesecake I had, a flourless chocolate cake, and something with a pudding like consistency. He enjoyed everything and said he was glad he got to try a little of each dessert.

So, now we had finished our meal and we had not one princess visit us yet, would you believe that? Shortly after though, all of them came by, and my daughter was super surprised by the whole thing! She thought it was great and both of the kids took pictures with each princess. Right before we got the bill I asked for another wand and sword for the adults, I wanted one, too! Our server said no problem and brought another wand, sword, and two wishing stars to our table.

We finished up just in time and headed outside to watch Wishes from the outside. I wasn't sure what the view would be like inside and I didn't want to take the chance on missing it. We got to the bottom and they had the gates locked! We were stuck inside the pass through in the castle. I was worried that we wouldn't get out in time for the fireworks but a cast member told us the gates would open soon. Of course, this gave DH and DS plenty of time to sword fight as we were waiting. I was so glad to see DS feeling better that it really warmed my heart to see this.

A few minutes later, the gates opened up to the front of the castle and we walked through them to see a HUGE crowd of people down Main Street. It was a bit surreal because all these people were looking at only us, like our family was someone special because we were walking out of the castle right as everyone was watching it just waiting for the fireworks to begin!

We walked down the side and they moved the ropes and instructed us just to stay there. Fine with me, we had the best and closest seats in the world, front row!

I do have to say, being at the front for the fireworks was great. However, being at the back of that crowd trying to get out of the Magic Kingdom was not so great! It took us an hour and a half to get back to T&TC via the Ferry. It was still a wonderful experience and I wouldn't trade it for anything!

 

[ilovepete]

We woke up the next morning ready for our fun filled day at Hollywood Studios. We were planning to get there early for what my son had been waiting months to do again, Jedi Training! We knew that we wouldn't have time for a breakfast out, so we ate in the room again. Just our usual, bagels with cream cheese and fruit. This was perfect for the kids.

So, we made our way to HS, through the gates, and in line for Jedi Training! We got one of the first shows and DS7 had the time of his life! If you have a Star Wars fan, definitely do this! Very worth it.

After that we did a few rides and then started to get a little hungry. The only place I like to eat in Hollywood Studios is Starring Rolls Cafe. The others aren't crazy about it, but there wasn't anywhere else they wanted to go, either. We decided to get two meals and split them and then use some snack credits later when everyone started to get hungry again. So, we went with one of each. One Turkey Focaccia and one Black Forest Ham sandwich, both with chips. For the dessert one was a Fresh Fruit Tart and one was the Red Velvet Cupcake.

You can't really tell so much from this picture, but these sandwiches are HUGE. They were definitely enough for the four of us to share. Three of the family preferred the ham, but I much preferred the Turkey. It has a nice slice of what I think was fresh mozzarella cheese on it and a nice spread that had great flavor. I didn't try the chips or the desserts, but everyone else ate them up! I ate most of the turkey sandwich since nobody else liked it, and they split all of the rest. It worked out nice because they snacked later and I didn't.

DD5 and DS7 each had a cake pop. They were very surprised by the marshmallow ears, and both really enjoyed them! DH got a Mickey bar (no picture, sorry, he is too fast!) and then later they split popcorn. I just had a drink for my snack because I was still full from my lunch and I was waiting for dinner at a new place we hadn't tried yet!

Here are some of the snacks:

Up next... dinner at another park!

 

[SnwflkCts]

I am really enjoying your reviews! Great job! I am looking at them AFTER lunch since the food pics always make me hungry! HA HA!

I laugh about getting pictures of the food for reviews -- my DH finally got so used to it that he would "set up" his plate so I could get a better picture of any sides/drinks, etc... what our families do to help promote the "DIS" life!

 

[bsjs0708]

I am a true "foodie" and really enjoying your report!!!

 

[tinkerbells mum]

Glad your DS was feeling better and got to CRT. The photos from there look great, we are eating there next month and its great to see photos from the new menu. What a great place to watch the fireworks from xx

 

[Britard]

Loving the report. I am glad to see a family that likes to try as many different things like my family does!

 

[pumba]

what a great view for the fireworks....awesome to look like the doors opened just for you...
thanks for your photos and reviews

 

[ilovepete]

We finished up our day at Hollywood Studios and left there to head over to Magic Kingdom for dinner. We don't enjoy any of the table service restaurants at HS, so we try to avoid being there for meal times as much as possible. Actually, we don't like much of the counter service there, either, but Starring Rolls is tasty enough for me that I'll have lunch there. Most of the time when we are at HS we just take the boat over to either the Boardwalk or Epcot and eat there, but today we had reservations for somewhere new at MK, Be Our Guest! We were very excited to try this, especially DD5, because Belle is her favorite princess.

We arrived at MK and made our way to the back of the park where Be Our Guest is located. There was a very long line for check in. Eventually, they split the line into people who already had reservations and people who were looking for reservations for that evening (there were none). We finally got checked in and it was super close to our ADR time, 5:50, by this point. We got a buzzer and before too long it was buzzing for us to go in. We were greeted at the door and taken inside.

Wow! This place is so beautiful! That was my first thought, and I was pretty impressed with all the decor! I was also struck by the noise, it was VERY loud in the big ball room so I was actually happy when they escorted us to the West Wing, where our table was located.

This room was very interesting as well. They were many touches in here that were very neat. The rose over in the corner was so cool, and at certain points the petals would fall. There was also a picture on the wall that would turn into the beast when the lightning struck over the speakers.

Our table was set beautifully as well. The napkins were wrapped like roses, my DD5 loved that touch. They were very slow here, but they did eventually come and take our drink order and bring us some rolls. Again, they were the standard rolls that seemed to be offered everywhere, but at least they are good.

Now it was time to choose our entrees. I already knew what I was going to get, the Sauteed Shrimp and Scallops with seasonal vegetables served in puff pastry with a creamy lobster sauce.

I love seafood, and I thought this looked delicious. It was, but it was a TON of food. I couldn't even eat all of the seafood in it, much less the rest of it. The sauce had an odd flavor to me, but the actual seafood and vegetables were really tasty. It was good, but next time I think I would order something else. I'd probably go with what my husband got (again) because it was really great! His choice was the Thyme-scented Pork Rack Chop with Au Gratin Macaroni, seasonal vegetables, and red wine au jus.

The Au Gratin Macaroni was definitely the star of this plate! It was cooked perfectly and flavored very well! I was jealous of that one and had a couple of bites of it. The pork was also great as well, it was just right, but what a big portion! He didn't finish it all, but he really liked it and said he would get it again next time if we came here.


DS7 chose the Mickey Meatloaf, which was Turkey Meatloaf, Broccoli Florets, and Zucchini served with Orange "stuff" for dipping.

Now, I tried the meatloaf and thought it was really good, I would have eaten it for my meal! DS7 normally loves meatloaf, but this one he didn't care for at all. He didn't eat much of the meatloaf, but he did eat all of the broccoli. The orange sauce I also tried and I don't even know what that was, but it was not good. I asked for fries for him instead of the zucchini because it is just one of the few vegetables that he does not enjoy. The fries were very good and he ate most of them as well.

DD5 couldn't decide on what she wanted. She really wanted to get pasta with white sauce on it but they didn't have that. So, I suggested maybe she would like getting the Whole Grain Macaroni with just cheese and butter instead since they didn't have the white sauce. They said they could do that, so that is what she went with. It came with a side of broccoli.

As expected, really, there was absolutely nothing special about this. She ate some of the pasta and all of the broccoli. She thought it was OK but not great. I'd talk her into getting something else next time if she wanted to order this again.

While we were eating, there was an announcement that our host would be visiting us soon, and sure enough, in a couple of minutes the Beast showed up in the West Wing! It was a nice touch, and we really enjoyed seeing him at our tables!

Dessert was up next. This was a really neat presentation. They actually bring the cart around to your table and serve your selection right out of the cast.

DH surprised me and went with the Passion Fruit Cream Puff. He didn't care for it much, and he only ate a little bit of it. I tried it, and I agree, it was just OK, but not spectacular.

I selected the Chocolate Cream Puff. I am somewhat of a sucker for chocolate mousse and that is what I picturing inside of the cream puff, so that is why I chose it. That was pretty much accurate, but it didn't have much flavor or depth to it. I liked it, but I didn't eat much of it, and I wouldn't order it again.

DD5 and DS7 both chose the strawberry cupcake. I tasted it and it was definitely the best one of the bunch! We all really liked it. It has cream cheese frosting and a nice fresh strawberry on top. This is most certainly what I would order next time we visit.

The final thing we received during our meal was the famed "Grey Stuff". DH didn't know about this ahead of time and he thought it was hilarious. He ate the majority of it, too! I tasted it, and it was pretty plain, I didn't really get the flavor of Oreo that it was described as, but it was still nice. The kids thought it was great, and they had some of it as well.

On the way out, we stopped by to get our pictures taken with the Beast. He was very friendly and being silly with the guests. I love that you actually get to meet him!

Overall, Be Our Guest was very enjoyable. It was a little chaotic and loud, but that is to be expected for a new, large restaurant. We loved all of the details here, and we would definitely have a meal here again!

 

[DisneyTeacher2]

Really enjoying your reviews! I loved seeing the pictures at French Quarter! We are trying to decide which resort would be best for our three kiddos and the movie/roasted marshmallow idea looks so fun! We were thinking Art of Animation, but boy did that look fun!

Thanks for all the info... Loving it!

 

[Dizneydaz]

Great reviews so far. And I couldn't agree with you more about CS breakfasts at the resorts. We only use credits for breakfast when we realize how many we will have towards the end of the trip but really haven't had a good CS breakfast at any of the resorts (with the singular exception of Pepper Market which we did twice last trip when it was still buffet). One day we even went over to Contempo Cafe to see if their breakfasts were better, but they weren't. Same Bounty Platter at all other resorts.

We did have an excellent breakfast at WPE though. An excellent "counter service" breakfast.

Can't wait to read more.

 

[TwingleMum]

Then it was time for a big surprise for my DH this trip --- the Exotic Driving Experience! He had an absolute blast in the Ferrari Italia 458. He is a huge car guy, and this just made his vacation (probably his year, actually).

Here he is:

Up next, Ohana!

WOW!!! How much does an experience like this cost??? Very cool.

 

[poohangel]

Really loved your review of Be Our Guest. I will be trying for a reservation there for our Sept. trip.

 

[tinkerbells mum]

Love the Be Our Guest review. We've got a ressie here for next month and I can't wait to try it, the seafood you had looks lovely. It's going to be such a struggle to choose what to eat xx

 

[ilovepete]

So photo bucket said I reached my max bandwidth. I've never had that issue with them before, but apparently I did this time. Well, I went to a different location to upload my photos and moved everything over, which took forever! So, now my pictures are showing up fine but the quoted posts with pictures in them still have the photobucket links in them, so they aren't showing up properly. I just wanted to mention that in case someone was wondering what was going on.

Love the Be Our Guest review. We've got a ressie here for next month and I can't wait to try it, the seafood you had looks lovely. It's going to be such a struggle to choose what to eat xx

It was really good, but honestly I think I'd go with something else next time. I am glad I tried it, though. Enjoy your meal!

Really loved your review of Be Our Guest. I will be trying for a reservation there for our Sept. trip.

Yes, it is definitely worth trying, we will be going again I am sure! I hope you are able to get a ressie!

WOW!!! How much does an experience like this cost??? Very cool.

It was around $500 when all said and done (they have fees, taxes, insurance, etc.). But, we did the most expensive car because that was DH's favorite and I figured if we were doing it, I might as well pick the one I know he'd like the best. They had some in the 200s. I got it through Best of Orlando, which saved about $50.

Great reviews so far. And I couldn't agree with you more about CS breakfasts at the resorts. We only use credits for breakfast when we realize how many we will have towards the end of the trip but really haven't had a good CS breakfast at any of the resorts (with the singular exception of Pepper Market which we did twice last trip when it was still buffet). One day we even went over to Contempo Cafe to see if their breakfasts were better, but they weren't. Same Bounty Platter at all other resorts.

We did have an excellent breakfast at WPE though. An excellent "counter service" breakfast.

Can't wait to read more.

Yes, they all leave much to be desired! I was planning on doing a WPE breakfast, but DH would rather save the time, so I didn't push the issues. Though one day I would like to try it.

Really enjoying your reviews! I loved seeing the pictures at French Quarter! We are trying to decide which resort would be best for our three kiddos and the movie/roasted marshmallow idea looks so fun! We were thinking Art of Animation, but boy did that look fun!

Thanks for all the info... Loving it!

We love the French Quarter. It is really nice. I think most of the resorts (at least mods and up, not sure about values) have the movie and marshmallows, though. I know for sure Caribbean Beach Resort & Polynesian do. It is fun, though!

what a great view for the fireworks....awesome to look like the doors opened just for you...
thanks for your photos and reviews

Yes that was a really neat experience! And glad you are enjoying the review!

Loving the report. I am glad to see a family that likes to try as many different things like my family does!

Thank you, glad you are liking it. We do love to try new things!

Glad your DS was feeling better and got to CRT. The photos from there look great, we are eating there next month and its great to see photos from the new menu. What a great place to watch the fireworks from xx

Yes the fireworks from here were great! We were loving it. The new menu was fine with us, very tasty!

I am a true "foodie" and really enjoying your report!!!

Yay, glad to have you here, and glad you are liking it!

I am really enjoying your reviews! Great job! I am looking at them AFTER lunch since the food pics always make me hungry! HA HA!

I laugh about getting pictures of the food for reviews -- my DH finally got so used to it that he would "set up" his plate so I could get a better picture of any sides/drinks, etc... what our families do to help promote the "DIS" life!

Thank you! The food pics make me hungry, too, and they make me want to go back! Lucky you with your DH setting up his plate. Mine was just rolling his eyes. LOL

 

[ilovepete]

Rose and Crown was one of the favorites of our trip. We were seated inside, but we were led to an outside viewing area that was roped off for people eating at R&C. It was a great spot to watch the show, and has been requested by both DS's for our next trip.

Yes, we have read mixed reviews, but we really enjoyed it as well! My husband requests it each time we go.

Love your reviews, thanks!

Thank you, glad you like them!

I´m anxious to dine at Rose & Crown.
I´ve a ressie at the same time as yours.
Loved your orders.

I hope you love it! It is one of the ones we enjoy the most, usually.

Just stopping in to say I am loving your reviews !! Can't wait to read more.

Thank you! Glad you are enjoying them.

Glad I am not the only one who didn't like the CS in Mexico, but sad to see it hasn't changed since 2011. We threw most of ours out too (DH wasn't there).
We liked it in 2009.

Yes, I rarely refuse to eat somewhere again, but that place I can truly say I will have no desire to ever go back!

Loving your review. We're staying in French Quarter again next month and I can't wait we are planning on eating everywhere you've reviewed so far, really glad you've had good meals there and I love the photos you've posted looking forward to reading and seeing the rest xx

Wow, sounds like we may have similar tastes then! Glad you are enjoying the reviews.

That ham & cheese croissant looks crazy good! Look at all that melty cheese! Mmm! Thanks for the awesome Les Halles review!!!

Oh it was very good! I would love one right now, actually! You're welcome, thanks for looking!

Great reviews and pictures! We just ate at Ohana's and Tangierine Cafe last week, so we are really enjoying reading your reviews.

Yes that was a new place for us, but we really enjoyed it. Glad you are liking the reviews!

 

[Dizneydaz]

So photo bucket said I reached my max bandwidth. I've never had that issue with them before, but apparently I did this time. Well, I went to a different location to upload my photos and moved everything over, which took forever! So, now my pictures are showing up fine but the quoted posts with pictures in them still have the photobucket links in them, so they aren't showing up properly. I just wanted to mention that in case someone was wondering what was going on.

I had that problem too on my last review with a lot of photos. Luckily mine would happen right about the end of the 30 day period so the photos would show up in a day or so. It just means you're review is so popular it's had a lot of views. I even removed most of the photo from my siggy since ever time it's viewed each photo is counted.

If you don't mine my asking, what sight did you change to? TIA.

 

[ilovepete]

I had that problem too on my last review with a lot of photos. Luckily mine would happen right about the end of the 30 day period so the photos would show up in a day or so. It just means you're review is so popular it's had a lot of views. I even removed most of the photo from my siggy since ever time it's viewed each photo is counted.

If you don't mine my asking, what sight did you change to? TIA.

I changed it to imgur.com I think it is. I had never heard of it but it seems to be working OK so far!

 

[MamaJessie]

I love the reviews, can't wait for more

 

[Ciciwoowoo]

Love reading what you wrote so far!

 

[ilovepete]

So, the next day was our Animal Kingdom day! This happens to be our least favorite park, we still like it, but it just isn't a full day park for us. We get there, hit the Safari, Everest, and then most of the dinosaur stuff and we are out of there. We decided to try the character lunch this time at Tusker House because we had never done it. We've had lunch there before, and found their selections to be OK. My kids wanted a non-princess character meal, so we figured this would work.

There was nothing spectacular about it. The food was good, tasty, filled us up, but it wasn't something amazing. In fact, I remember it not being even as good as the last time we were here, a couple of years ago. The characters were fun, though, and the kids really enjoyed them, so that is what mattered for us.

I didn't get very many pictures, it seemed to be a super chaotic meal for some reason, so I think I wasn't thinking about pictures so much. I did get some, though, and here they are.

We'd skip this meal next time and just have counter service in AK. It was fine, but just isn't worth going back.