14 Days of Gluttony AKA Doing Free Dining Again! COMPLETE!

[MrsB1228]

Tonight was our last dinner at WDW and one of the places DH requested was Nine Dragons in Epcot's beautiful China pavilion. We enjoyed a delicious meal here in 2010 and he really wanted to return. He doesn't make many requests so it was one of the first ADR's I made.

Our ADR time was 6:45 pm. We checked in at 6:30 and were seated immediately. Our server checked in soon after and we placed our beverage order.

DH had a regular lemonade.

I had a raspberry lemonade. Both were lovely and refreshing on this hot, humid Florida night. I think we each had two refills.

We decided to order their fixed price special, which includes appetizer, entree and dessert.

The appetizer consisted of two vegetable spring rolls and two pork pot stickers. They were both good, but nothing special. 3/5

DH ordered Sweet and Sour Chicken balls, which was served with a side of steamed white rice.

Frank enjoyed this very much. He said the batter on the chicken was nice and light, not greasy at all and there was more chicken than batter. Always a plus when having Chinese food. He gave his meal 4/5.

I ordered the General Tso combo, which consisted of lightly breaded chicken cooked in a mildly spicy red sauce and steamed chicken dumplings. Mine was also served with a side of steamed white rice.

I really liked this, the combination of flavours and textures made for a very enjoyable meal. 4/5

Dessert choices were ice cream or ginger cake. We both opted for ice cream.

I chose the Strawberry Red Bean.

DH selected the Caramel Ginger.

The ice cream was fine but nothing to get excited about. We both give it 3/5.

This meal used 2 table service credits and would have cost $58.51 OOP.

Nine Dragons is good for what it is, Americanized Chinese food. It's nothing that you can't get in any reasonably large town anywhere in North America, but there's something kinda special about enjoying it at Disney.

Up next: Lunch at Wolfgang Puck Express.

 

[disnut1149]

Hi Carol
Looking forward to more!! Thanks!
Joan

 

[MrsB1228]

Today was the day all WDW fans hate to face ... departure day.

We were up early to finish packing and then took our suitcases to the airline check-in kiosk in the POFQ reception area. Love this service, it's so convenient! Afterward, we stopped by the food court and grabbed a quick bite to eat, we each chose a cinnamon roll. It was delicious as usual!

Since we'd used all our park tickets, and the Magical Express wasn't picking us up until 3:45, we decided to head to Downtown Disney to kill some time. We opted to have our last WDW lunch at Wolfgang Puck Express.

Sorry the pictures aren't the greatest, I took them with my phone since my camera was packed in my carry-on and was stored with Bell Services.

I'll preface this by saying that I wasn't really feeling the greatest on this day. I had a headache and my stomach was feeling "off", so this probably affected my enjoyment of my meal.

We each wanted something a little lighter, so we opted for a salad. DH chose:

Barbeque Chicken Salad - grilled chicken tossed in a tangy bbq sauce, romaine, cucumbers, onions, tomatoes, crispy tortilla strips. This was supposed to have Ranch dressing but since DH hates it, he subbed Italian. He really enjoyed it, the greens were fresh and crisp and the chicken was very tasty. 4/5

I selected:

Chinois Chicken - grilled chicken, shredded cabbage, carrots and romaine, crispy wontons, cashews, ginger and sesame honey dressing.

I'm sorry to say I didn't like this at all. The cabbage was extremely bitter and there was far too much of it. The chicken was good, so I ate some of that but I pretty much left most of this untouched. To be fair, the fact that I wasn't feeling 100% might have had something to do with it, but Frank tried it as well and agreed the cabbage was very, very bitter. I can only give this 1.5/5.

For dessert, DH had the fruit cup you see pictured above and I had a frozen yogurt with sliced strawberries, which I thoroughly enjoyed.

For our beverage, we each had Minute Maid Cranberry Grape. We love the Red Grapefruit flavour, but were unable to find it anywhere on this trip. This was good, but a little too sweet for my taste. Frank enjoyed it.

Even though my salad was very disappointing, WPE still remains on my must-do list as the majority of their entrees are absolutely amazing! We'll be back for sure.

This meal used our final two quick service credits and would have cost $40.45 OOP.

Up next: Final thoughts

 

[MrsB1228]

Hi Carol
Looking forward to more!! Thanks!
Joan

Hi Joan! Just finished posting our final day and will be wrapping up soon, thanks for reading!

 

[MrsB1228]

We had an absolutely wonderful anniversary trip, filled with fun, great memories and delicious food. I thought I'd close by posting our favourites, along with a comparison in cost OOP compared to the Dining Plan.

Our favourite Quick Service entree:

DH: The Norwegian Club Sandwich at Kringla Bakeri og Cafe.

Honourable Mention: The Stacked Sandwich from the Contempo Cafe

Me: The Oven Roasted Salmon from Wolfgang Puck Express. I didn't get a picture of this, so I'm borrowing one found on the web.

(The picture is from the blog "Spring Into Disney")

Honourable Mention: The Norwegian Club Sandwich at Kringla Bakeri og Cafe (see above).

Favourite table service entree:

DH: The Pilgrim's Feast from Liberty Tree Tavern:

Honourable Mention: The La Hacienda platter from La Hacienda de San Angel.

Me: The Mushroom Filet Mignon from Le Cellier.

Honourable Mention: Coffee-rubbed bone-in pork chop from Kona Cafe.

Favourite dessert:

DH: The Black Forest Kiss from Raglan Road.

Honourable Mention: Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcake from Contempo Cafe.

Me: Cream Cheese Wontons from Yak & Yeti.

Honourable Mention: Coppa di Brutti Ma Buoni, "Ugly But Good" - Amarena cherry and vanilla gelato sundae from Via Napoli.

We used all of our quick service, table service and snack credits. We used a lot of the snack credits for sampling the Food and Wine Festival selections and for snacks to take home to family. We had the dining plan for free during our visit, which is a great value, but we've also purchased it a number of times in the past. Speaking strictly for my family, we've always found that the dining plan really works well for us. We enjoy the fact that our meals are paid in advance, and we enjoy the freedom of ordering whatever we feel like having, without regard to the cost. Without the plan, we're looking for ways to economize and would likely order less expensive items, rather than what we truly wanted. I love planning our holiday, so having to make advanced ADR's isn't a problem for me.

The cost of dining during our holiday, if we'd been paying OOP would have been $1,561.38 for the two weeks. If we'd been paying for the plan, it would have cost us $1,443.12 for two adults, for a savings of $118.26. The fact that we went during the free dining promotion just made it an even sweeter deal.

Well, that's the end of my report. I want to thank everyone who came along for the ride, I've really enjoyed sharing our experiences with you. My sister and I are returning this fall for another two weeks of Disney fun and food, this time with the deluxe plan. I'm looking forward to experiencing some of the Signatures I've read so much about!

Have a magical day everyone!

 

[WDWaddictt]

Thanks for sharing! I really enjoyed reading your reviews!

 

[jude&jonah]

This was an incredible review- I read every page!!! Thank you!!! And just added the norwegian bakery/sandwich shop to my must do list for later this month!

 

[disnut1149]

Hi
Thanks for your wonderful reviews!! I'll be looking forward to reading your new reviews after your next trip. Have a great time!!!

 

[hobbs6799]

Read every page and thoroughly enjoyed it. Thanks so much for taking the time to bring us such a delicious looking TR!!!!

 

[emmysmommy]

Hi Carol! What a great finish! How exciting that you will be returning in the fall for another 2 weeks! Awesome!

Sorry you weren't feeling well for your WPE lunch... sounds like your salad just wasn't good. That was kind of you to excuse it due to not feeling well.

I was glad to see Y&Y's fried wontons made it to your "best of" list!! I love those things! Your other choices look pretty amazing. I have so many places still to try!

Oh, and the General Tso chicken dish at Nine Dragons looked really good as did the dumplings. I love Chinese food so this is a great option at Epcot. The photos on the Disney site make it look like the tables are right next to each other. Was it crowded or did it feel intrusive with people sitting close by? Give me a plate of great food and I likely wouldn't notice so I guess that's not really a big deal!

Again, great review. I really enjoyed reading!

 

[MrsB1228]

Thanks for sharing! I really enjoyed reading your reviews!

You're very welcome, thanks for reading!

This was an incredible review- I read every page!!! Thank you!!! And just added the norwegian bakery/sandwich shop to my must do list for later this month!

Thanks for your kind words, I hope you enjoy Kringla Bakeri! I wish we'd tried it sooner, it was sooo good!

Hi
Thanks for your wonderful reviews!! I'll be looking forward to reading your new reviews after your next trip. Have a great time!!!

Hi Joan, thanks for reading along! I hope to write a review of my next trip, I just have to remember to take the darn pictures before diving in, LOL!

Read every page and thoroughly enjoyed it. Thanks so much for taking the time to bring us such a delicious looking TR!!!!

Aw, thanks so much! I really enjoyed sharing them, it was fun reliving our experiences!

Hi Carol! What a great finish! How exciting that you will be returning in the fall for another 2 weeks! Awesome!

Sorry you weren't feeling well for your WPE lunch... sounds like your salad just wasn't good. That was kind of you to excuse it due to not feeling well.

I was glad to see Y&Y's fried wontons made it to your "best of" list!! I love those things! Your other choices look pretty amazing. I have so many places still to try!

Oh, and the General Tso chicken dish at Nine Dragons looked really good as did the dumplings. I love Chinese food so this is a great option at Epcot. The photos on the Disney site make it look like the tables are right next to each other. Was it crowded or did it feel intrusive with people sitting close by? Give me a plate of great food and I likely wouldn't notice so I guess that's not really a big deal!

Again, great review. I really enjoyed reading!

Hi Brenda! Thank you so much for your kind words, I had a lot of fun sharing our dining adventures with everyone.

The Chinois Salad at WPE just didn't do it for me, I'm afraid. I was disappointed because it's usually rated very highly by people here at the DIS. I suspect it was a combo of a very bitter cabbage coupled with my not-very-happy tummy. Having said that, I don't think I'd try it again. There's too many other truly yummy things on the menu to take another chance, LOL.

The General Tso combo was very, very good. Our server warned me it was spicy, but I honestly didn't find it very spicy at all. You could detect a bit of heat, but nothing that had me grabbing for my water glass. This isn't the first time they've warned us about spiciness at Nine Dragons ... only to find the so-called spice to be nonexistent. Maybe they think the North American palate is rather wimpy? Yes, the tables are rather close together, much like Le Cellier. We had a lovely couple sitting next to us who might as well have been dining with us as I could hear every word of their conversation just as I'm certain they could hear ours. This is the only downside with many WDW restaurants, IMO.

You and Em are going to be back in the World very soon, I can't wait to read about your trip!

Thanks for reading!

 

[gardengirl628]

Your reviews were great...thanks so much for sharing! Kona is one of our favorite, as well, for breakfast and dinner. My DH had the coffe rubbed pork last time and loved it!

 

[MrsB1228]

Your reviews were great...thanks so much for sharing! Kona is one of our favorite, as well, for breakfast and dinner. My DH had the coffe rubbed pork last time and loved it!

Thanks so much for your kind words Dana, I appreciate it! Mmm ... that coffee rubbed pork chop was amazing, I'm glad your DH enjoyed it!

Thanks for reading!

 

[Legend1]

I've really enjoyed reading this and looking at the pictures off all that gorgeous food. Thank you so much for sharing

 

[MrsB1228]

I've really enjoyed reading this and looking at the pictures off all that gorgeous food. Thank you so much for sharing

Thank you for your lovely message, I appreciate it very much! I enjoyed sharing our dining adventures with everyone, it was like re-living our vacation all over again.

 

[Derryfam]

Thanks for sharing! Some really lovely pics and now I'm very hungry

Loved your ratings a really great idea! Again thanks for sharing

Cath

 

[smiths02]

We used all of our quick service, table service and snack credits. We used a lot of the snack credits for sampling the Food and Wine Festival selections and for snacks to take home to family. We had the dining plan for free during our visit, which is a great value, but we've also purchased it a number of times in the past. Speaking strictly for my family, we've always found that the dining plan really works well for us. We enjoy the fact that our meals are paid in advance, and we enjoy the freedom of ordering whatever we feel like having, without regard to the cost. Without the plan, we're looking for ways to economize and would likely order less expensive items, rather than what we truly wanted. I love planning our holiday, so having to make advanced ADR's isn't a problem for me.

The cost of dining during our holiday, if we'd been paying OOP would have been $1,561.38 for the two weeks. If we'd been paying for the plan, it would have cost us $1,443.12 for two adults, for a savings of $118.26. The fact that we went during the free dining promotion just made it an even sweeter deal.

Well, that's the end of my report. I want to thank everyone who came along for the ride, I've really enjoyed sharing our experiences with you. My sister and I are returning this fall for another two weeks of Disney fun and food, this time with the deluxe plan. I'm looking forward to experiencing some of the Signatures I've read so much about!

Have a magical day everyone!

Thanks for your wonderful reviews! I really enjoyed them. I see how DDP works for your family and does save you money (especially during free dining) but a savings of less than 10% seems really small for someone who used every credit and planned so well in advance. I bet there are so many people losing money on DDP.

 

[MrsB1228]

Thanks for sharing! Some really lovely pics and now I'm very hungry

Loved your ratings a really great idea! Again thanks for sharing

Cath

Thanks so much Cath, I'm glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for reading!

Thanks for your wonderful reviews! I really enjoyed them. I see how DDP works for your family and does save you money (especially during free dining) but a savings of less than 10% seems really small for someone who used every credit and planned so well in advance. I bet there are so many people losing money on DDP.

Thank you, I'm glad you enjoyed the reviews! Yes, the DDP used to be a really great value, but not so much anymore since they keep increasing the cost and reducing what it includes (such as apps and gratuities). Everyone needs to figure out if the DDP is worthwhile for them, taking into account touring style, appetite, etc. For us, it's really more a matter of convenience. Having everything paid up front frees us to order whatever we like, and not worry about the cost. Of course, getting it for free is a no-brainer, LOL!

Thanks for reading!

 

[Happy99]

thank you for the reviews

did I miss the one for Tokyo dining? I see that on your original list but didn't see it going through the pages

 

[MrsB1228]

thank you for the reviews

did I miss the one for Tokyo dining? I see that on your original list but didn't see it going through the pages

It's on page 1, post #9. You probably didn't see it because there are no pictures for that review. DH and I forgot the camera at our resort when we left for Epcot after our afternoon break.

Thanks for reading!