Did we come for the rides or the food?!?! - 14 Days of Dining COMPLETE!

[The_Aviator]

Originally Posted by Hootiss

Gotta love that bread pudding, it is definitely one of my favorite desserts Everyone's dinner looked great. I am really enjoying your reviews. Thanks for taking the time to post them.

No worries, I'm glad you're enjoying them!

Originally Posted by haven_alise1997

Enjoying the reviews. Seeing about the Cyclone hitting Australia, hope you and your family are safe.

Glad that you're enjoying the reviews!

The four of us are safe in Sydney, although we do have some family in Cairns which will pretty much be the epicenter of the cyclone. We are being told that everything should be okay, although our Prime Minister's speech to the nation earlier today sounded very grave...

[The_Aviator]

It was Christmas Eve and we went to the main building at CSR in the morning to find that they were serving complimentary holiday cookies and fresh lemonade. It was really nice, and of course anything that's free immediately tastes a lot better!



I'll be posting the review of Le Cellier later this evening

[The_Aviator]

The time has finally come for the report of our lunch at Le Cellier! I know there are people that have been waiting for this one, so I hope I answer all your questions. If there is anything I miss, please feel free to post any questions and I will answer them

We had booked a 12:55pm lunch reservation, which I had managed to get on August 31st! I was actually surprised I was able to get one for Christmas eve with less than 180 days to go, but I was excited to try what many believe to be 'the best' restaurant at WDW.

We arrived early at 12:30pm and went to the small counter at the entrance to the Canada Pavilion to check-in. There was a family in front of us who were asking if they could get a table and the Cast Member told them they were fully booked for the whole day. We checked in next and she advised we would probably have to wait until 12:55pm and to go to the entrance of the restaurant and let them know where we would be waiting. Before going in we snapped a picture of the menu out the front



The lobby of the restaurant is quite small. There is some room to stand outside and maybe a bench or two in the lobby. We stood outside and looked at the gardens for a while before taking a seat in the lobby.



At about 12:45pm we were called to be seated, and taken to a table in Alberta. The Cast Member seating us told us about the Calgary Stampede, which would be 100yrs old in 2012. Don't know why, but it was pretty funny when she proceeded to ask us if we knew what a stampede was

The atmosphere of the restaurant was pretty nice. It was warm inside and the lighting was nice and soft. They had packed quite a few tables into the restaurant but they seemed to be reasonably well spread out. Noise wasn't a problem and we didn't feel cramped either.

Our server was Thomas and he was from Niagara Falls. He was a pretty nice guy, asked where we were from and said how he had only recently served a couple from Australia and another from New Zealand. I suppose they don't get so many guests from our part of the world?

Below are some pics of the menu.



Drinks



And the three course menu (also available on the Dining Plan btw)



To drink DD got a Perrier, DM and DS got the Niagara Refresher (which pleased Thomas of course ) and I got the Red Maple. ($4.69ea) I think it was great that we could get a specialty drink on the DDP. The Niagara Refresher was a Raspberry Smoothie with a splash of Sprite, while the Red Maple was a Mango Smoothie with a splash of cranberry.

Niagara Refresher



Red Maple



Both of them were pretty good. As you can see they were quite icy, but this just meant that it was able to last the whole meal, which was great.

For our entrees DD ordered the New York Strip Steak ($31.99) and the rest of us ordered the Le Cellier Mushroom Filet Mignon ($26.99). Of course we couldn't help ourselves and ordered two bowls of the cheese soup. ($6.99ea) When we ordered it he said that he was expecting us to order one. I guess everyone that visits the restaurant orders one!

Tom then brought out the bread basket. It contained two sticks of pretzel bread, a sourdough bread and a wholegrain bread. If I remember correctly, the wholegrain bread represented three Canadian provinces that combined produced over half of the wheat in North America, while the Sourdough represented the Yukon which only sees 2-3hrs sunlight in the Winter. I don't remember what the story was behind the Pretzel bread, but I think it may have involved Ontario. If anyone knows the story please let me know!



We held onto it for a few minutes until our cheese soups arrived. Tom recommended that we dip the pretzel bread in it, but of course us Disers already know that! The cheese soup was excellent, really thick and full of flavour. The Moosehead beer was definitely there and the bacon added to the already strong flavour of the soup. The pretzel bread tasted absolutely excellent with it. I think that it is worthwhile even buying just one cup of the soup if you come, just to try it. It really is a bit different and really yummy too!



After a few minutes our entrees came out.

Dad's steak



And our Filet Mignon



The Filet Mignon was amazing. The steak itself was perfectly tender and absolutely divine, but what was really special was the mushroom risotto. I've read that a lot of people who dine here substitute the risotto for potatoes or something, but I simply cannot understand why. The mushroom risotto was just beyond words. It was definitely a piece of heaven. Some have said the saltiness of the risotto is a little overpowering, but to be honest we didn't feel that way. After leaving WDW we went to Las Vegas and we had a mushroom risotto there as well, but it was nowhere near as good as this one. DS doesn't like eating steak or mushroom but made an exception here since it was a steakhouse, and she really enjoyed it and would definitely have gone back for another one later in the trip. I've heard that the lunch serving of this dish is smaller than the dinner serving. Personally I didn't think the size of the serving was too bad, although I think it's good to know this before you go, as we did.

DD's steak was also good. Of course being a strip steak it is fairly different to the filet mignon, but it was also good.

After the entrees Tom brought out the dessert menus.





DD and I went with the Maple Creme Brulee ($6.99), DS went with the Smores ($5.99) and DM got the Seasonal Sorbet ($6.49) which was raspberry at the time. Below are the pics







In relation to the Creme Brulee, it was really nice and kinda different as a result of the maple syrup. The custard itself was sort of greyish in colour, while the top was nice and crisp. DS says her Campfire Smores were really good. Although she didn't like the marshmallow part too much, she liked the rest so much that even though she was full she kept eating it. Mum also liked her sorbet, but I don't think it was as memorable as the other two desserts. The sorbet might be a good option for those looking for a lighter dessert.

All in all, we unanimously agreed that Le Cellier was pretty much the best restaurant we ate at over the whole trip. The fact that we all agreed that it was the best is definitely a good sign, as often we have trouble agreeing on this sort of thing! I'm sure if we had been able to secure a reservation at any time later in the week we would definitely have dropped everything and gone. It was one of those rare places where even though we were full, we were still compelled to finish all of our dessert. For our family, that is pretty rare and it is just testament to the fact that this place is not your average table service restaurant.

In terms of value for money, I think it is an excellent value proposition both on and off the dining plan. Without the dining plan, I think the quality of the food, service and overall experience makes it worth the money. On the Dining Plan, I reckon that it is a pretty good value for 1TS credit (Look at the average cost per person below!). I'm not sure what things will be like when this place shifts over to being a signature restaurant, but at least for the time being I think that Le Cellier is an excellent place for people on the DDP.

This restaurant definitely deserves all the praise it receives, and I hope that they don't change any time soon. I think it is well worth making a booking here.

Cost:

4 TS credits used - 20 remaining
Bill Total (excluding the extras) - $166.93 (avg $41.73ea)
Running Total - $1446.86

NEXT UP: A mid-afternoon snack followed by dinner at Les Chefs de France

[Stringbean&Wingnut]

Glad to hear you enjoyed Le Cellier! I definitely wish I had some of that soup now!

I'm curious to see how their menu changes when dinner goes to 2 credits in March!

[vettegirl]

Loved your Le Cellier review. It is my favorite as well. I am not a mushroom fan at all, so can you really taste them in the rice?

[dvc4life]

Le Cellier looks so good. That steak of yours just looks mouthwatering. We will definitely have to give this place a try.

[juliebean]

Originally Posted by The_Aviator

Oh that bread and butter pudding was definitely something!



Thank you for reading! Hopefully there will be an update later today



One time I sat at a table near the dancers, not at Raglan but at a place in Ireland. It was actually quite scary, they were doing their kicks right over my head!

Hopefully the Le Cellier review will be posted later today



Hi Julie,

I guess one of the first concerns is where you will be in Epcot. The 'International Gateway' exit as they call it is located between France and the UK, so if you were somewhere in that part of the World Showcase it would only take a couple of minutes to get there. However, if you were at Spaceship Earth it could take some time!

I would say that the walk from the International Gateway exit to the Beach Club wouldn't be any more than 1/2 mile, tops. Probably more like 0.3mi or 0.4mi. We did this walk very slowly and it didn't take us longer than about eight minutes. I think the Beach Club/Yacht Club are probably the closest ones to Epcot.

However, if the walk from the exit to the resort is a problem, they have the boat service called the Friendship launch. However this would probably take more time than walking, and even taking the boat you still have to do a bit of walking.

Personally, I think that the walk should be fine. It really wasn't too long, and if your girls have been alright walking around in the park this really shouldn't be too bad

Thanks for the info on the distance - and even in miles! I think we'll be staying in the world section that day, but it's something we'll need to keep in mind. Love the pics! The gingerbread house and carousel are great!

[princess aleya]

I'm really glad that you enjoyed Le Cellier. We are going for lunch in June and I can't wait!

[sophie832]

Just getting caught up on all your reviews and really enjoying them! I really like Le Cellier, but DH doesn't think it lives up to all the hype. I'm glad your family had a good meal there

[Tinker12]

Awesome reviews!

[pkdof]

Really enjoying your reviews! I'm also curious about where you ate in Las Vegas - maybe add that on at the end?

[sjs314]

Excellent review of Le Cellier, We are planning on trying it for the first time ever this trip, just not sure yet whether we will do Lunch or Dinner since it will be 2 credits by time we go. Depends on the menus, I am thinking probably lunch but who knows I am not a steak person but DH is so if there is any truth to the rumor about them taking the filet off the lunch menu then we will have to do dinner

I am looking forward to trying a bite or two of the maple creme brulee ....I am diabetic so I have to watch my intake of sugar

[The_Aviator]

Originally Posted by Stringbean&Wingnut

Glad to hear you enjoyed Le Cellier! I definitely wish I had some of that soup now!

I'm curious to see how their menu changes when dinner goes to 2 credits in March!

I'm curious too! Thanks for reading

Originally Posted by vettegirl

Loved your Le Cellier review. It is my favorite as well. I am not a mushroom fan at all, so can you really taste them in the rice?

To be honest, not really. I think that most of the mushroom flavour is in the actual slices of mushroom that come with the dish.

As I said in the report, DS, like you doesn't like mushrooms at all. However she enjoyed the dish.

Originally Posted by dvc4life

Le Cellier looks so good. That steak of yours just looks mouthwatering. We will definitely have to give this place a try.

Oh it definitely was mouthwatering! Do give Le Cellier a try!

Originally Posted by juliebean

Thanks for the info on the distance - and even in miles! I think we'll be staying in the world section that day, but it's something we'll need to keep in mind. Love the pics! The gingerbread house and carousel are great!

Haha no worries Julie, always glad to help. Even if you can't make it to Cape May, there are plenty of fine places to eat at the World Showcase, Le Cellier included!

Originally Posted by princess aleya

I'm really glad that you enjoyed Le Cellier. We are going for lunch in June and I can't wait!

I hope you enjoy it as much as we did

Originally Posted by sophie832

Just getting caught up on all your reviews and really enjoying them! I really like Le Cellier, but DH doesn't think it lives up to all the hype. I'm glad your family had a good meal there

Thanks for reading!

Originally Posted by Tinker12

Awesome reviews!

Thank-you!

Originally Posted by pkdof

Really enjoying your reviews! I'm also curious about where you ate in Las Vegas - maybe add that on at the end?

No worries! I'll add a couple of notes at the end on Las Vegas. We stayed at the Mirage BTW, which was a really good hotel!

Originally Posted by sjs314

Excellent review of Le Cellier, We are planning on trying it for the first time ever this trip, just not sure yet whether we will do Lunch or Dinner since it will be 2 credits by time we go. Depends on the menus, I am thinking probably lunch but who knows I am not a steak person but DH is so if there is any truth to the rumor about them taking the filet off the lunch menu then we will have to do dinner

I am looking forward to trying a bite or two of the maple creme brulee ....I am diabetic so I have to watch my intake of sugar

Thanks for reading! I'm interested in seeing what changes they make to the menu. Hopefully lunch remains the same and the dinner just improves or becomes more seasonal, as some of the other signature restaurants are.

If you're worried about the sugar, the no sugar added chocolate mousse sounds pretty good!

[The_Aviator]

We decided to pick up two snacks while we were in the Germany pavilion. DS and DM got a pretzel to share from the pretzel cart ($4.50). At the pretzel cart they had all the popular condiments available, such as ketchup, mustard etc. They said that it was good, but nothing spectacular.

I decided to go to the newly opened Karamelle Kuche (Caramel Kitchen) to try some caramel stuff. The shop itself is really nice and as you enter the smell of caramel is immediately evident. They actually had a Cast Member preparing some caramel apples I think. Even though the shop is new the staff seem to be handling all the stuff behind the counter quite well.

I settled for a caramel-filled chocolate cookie. ($3.45). The main reason that I bought this over other options was because it was one of the larger items and looked fairly easy to eat, at least compared to the muffins.

It was a really nice cookie. It looked like a regular chocolate cookie from the outside but after biting into it I found a whole lot of caramel filling within. It was really sweet, and lasted me for quite a while.

Just keep in mind that the line at the Karamelle Kuche is fairly long. We went at around 4:00pm and it still took a little over ten minutes to be served! Perhaps it would be more worthwhile if a number of people in your party wanted to get something here. There definitely is plenty of choice!

All in all, I would recommend the Karamelle Kuche for a snack. The pretzel was definitely great value for a snack credit, but I'm not sure if DS and DM would recommend it highly.

Sorry, we forgot to take pictures here! However there will be plenty of pictures in my review of Les Chefs de France, which I'll be posting later this evening

Cost:

2 snack credits used - 23 remaining
Bill Total - $8.47
Running Total - $1455.33

NEXT UP: Dinner at Les Chefs de France!

[sjs314]

I have been excited about visiting the new karmel shop since I read of its opening last year...Yum although once again I have to eat with caution, I can almost smell it just reading about it A friend who visited there last November told me to get the carmel strawberry.. Yum Yum
I am not a big fan of pretzels but good to know about it being available.
Did you bring home any goodies from the karmel shop? I know I will most likely

Looking forward to your review of Les Chefs, it is going to be one of our "new" restaurants this trip