5 days of dining plan-less eating with flower and garden eats too!

[Cimicats]

Hello everybody,

Just back from a 5 night stay at the Yacht Club. For the first time these past few trips we opted for no dining plan. We like to do table service breakfast and table service dinner so we thought we'd try OOP.

This trip it was me, DH and my two sisters, and two nephews joined us for many of the meals.

First up ESPN. We arrived to the YC around 1pm and wanted something quick since we had an ADR at Biergarten for dinner.

DH and I opted for Macho Nachos for Two and ESPN dingers tossed in BBQ sauce.

The nachos were just ok. They reminded me of nachos you get at a fast food stand which has its merits, just not what I was expecting here.

I loved the dingers. Tender chunks of white meat chicken and the BBQ sauce was tasty.

The place was busy. We were seated right away but by the time we left there was a line.

This place is great if you want to watch sports and grab a sandwich or apps.

 

[Cimicats]

Dinner - Biergarten!

I love the Biergarten and having 6 of us it was great for a big group. I really enjoy the food here.

Ok, ok, I admit I'm borrowing this pic from my last visit! I forgot to take a picture this time around. Everything on the plate is pretty much the same except for the Mac and Cheese. Now it is more of a bake with white cheeses and I found it much tastier. Also if you like beets their cold beet salad is delicious.

I love chocolate but I think the apple strudel and pear crumb cake are the star here.

 

[Cimicats]

Three of our five mornings we ate at the Captain's Grille in our hotel. We like it for the convenience and usually no wait.

First day DH had the Salmon and Bagel off the a la carte menu. He enjoyed it.

I went for the buffet. Last trip my favorite thing was the caramel bread pudding. It was soooo good. This time they still have bread pudding but definitely different. I remember it being more ooey and gooey which it isn't so much anymore. Which I sort of get since it is breakfast but I did miss it.

I have a new favorite. They had a number of eggs options. Scrambled, chef's frittata of the day and then two egg bake things. One florentine and one Reuben. It may sound strange but the Rueben one was so good. Corned beef and sauerkraut chopped up in the egg then a dollop of a thousand island like dressing with a little slice of Swiss cheese on top.

Along with the eggs they have grits, oatmeal, sausage, turkey sausage, ham, bacon, fruit, and an assortment of breads, muffins, and danish.

 

[Quin]

Cool; we're having breakfast at Captain's Grille for the first time this trip. We only have one scheduled there, but at the end of our trip we have 1-2 days that we plan to add a breakfast so this is a possibility. I'm torn right now between the buffet and the lemon-ricotta hotcakes on the menu. Did you have/need an ADR for breakfast there?

Looking forward to the rest of your reviews, especially from the F&W component of F&G!

 

[Cimicats]

Tonight we had dinner at Les Chef's. But before we went in we enjoyed a Kir Royal outside before dinner.

= Creme de Cassis and Champagne.

This was so delicious and refreshing.

We were seated for dinner and visited by Remy!

We did prix fixe and had a delicious meal.
French onion soup and lobster bisque:

Short-ribs

Creme brûlée and profiteroles

DH and I had eaten here last trip and enjoyed it again with the family.

 

[Cimicats]

Cool; we're having breakfast at Captain's Grille for the first time this trip. We only have one scheduled there, but at the end of our trip we have 1-2 days that we plan to add a breakfast so this is a possibility. I'm torn right now between the buffet and the lemon-ricotta hotcakes on the menu. Did you have/need an ADR for breakfast there?

Looking forward to the rest of your reviews, especially from the F&W component of F&G!

Hi there! No, we never needed an ADR. We maybe waited 5 mins to be seated tops. Though if you know your time frame an ADR couldn't hurt. I did buffet the whole time but everything coming out of the kitchen looked great

 

[Cimicats]

Tuesday was pool day! Finally it felt warm. Started our day off at Captains Grille, my plate pretty much looked the same (hmmm Rueben eggs).


We did have a few drinks by the pool.

Citrus infusion -citrus vodka, midori, OJ, mint, agave nector, and fresh lemon juice.

Wasn't my favorite, a little too much going on so I switched to a mango margarita

Yummy

DH had a Rum Runner which he could get frozen.

 

[disnut1149]

Hi
Great reviews!!! Thanks

 

[Cimicats]

So after our pool day we headed to Big River Grille and Brewing Company on the Boardwalk. My family was staying at the Dolphin so this was an easy spot to meet up.

We started with the nachos. Much improved from our first night. Pepper jack cheese and shredded chicken, plus a side of guacamole. Yum!

I got the Big Brew Burger with bacon. It was good. Comes with kettle chips like Cape Cod potato chips.

We all got burgers except for one of my sisters, she got a steak. She was not a fan, she wished she just ordered the nachos as her meal.

We sat outside so being able to sit on the Boardwalk was a plus.

 

[Cimicats]

Hi
Great reviews!!! Thanks

Thanks s much!

 

[Cimicats]

The next morning we planned on an early jump to Animal Kingdom so I stopped at the Boardwalk's bakery kiosk for a few things to bring back to the room after dinner.

 

[Cimicats]

Wednesday dinner we had an ADR at the Brown Derby.

To drink I had the Derby Cosmo

YUM

DH and I both started with the Cobb Salad

I thought it was tasty, my DH had a little issue with the texture. Which I can understand, it has a very soft texture.


For entree DH had the bison

DH enjoyed it very much. The sauce served with it was BBQ with a hint of cumin. I thought the bison was great, I never had it before. Though it was very rare. Maybe that is how it is intended to be served.

I had the duck

Served with goat cheese polenta and a cherry glaze. So delicious. Duck was tender and paired nicely with the cherry.

For dessert I had to try the grapefruit cake. I liked it. Something different and light. Well as light as cake can be.

Sorry the pic is so blurry.

Overall an excellent meal.

 

[Cimicats]

Lunch Thursday we had an ADR at Sci Fi. I hadn't been here in a long time so I was looking forward to it.


To start we had artichoke dip. It was ok. A little on the runny side.

DH and I both had burgers. Mine was bacon and cheddar, DH had the picnic burger which has the hot dog and sauerkraut on top. He said as strange as it sounds it worked. You can get cucumber salad or fries. I liked both.

Rather than dessert here I had to get my Mickey bar!

I really love the atmosphere and the burger didn't disappoint.

 

[Cimicats]

On Wednesday the Flower and Garden show officially started. For lunch Weds and again Thursday night we ate at a few of the food stations.

Starting off at the UK pavilion. Potato, chive, and cheddar biscuit with salmon tartar. Baked goat's Brie with kumquat chutney

DH enjoyed the salmon but my favorite was the baked goat cheese. Surrounded by puff pastry with the chutney. Sooooo good.

For dessert I tried the chocolate trifle. I could have eaten a few of these!

Next at a stand called Florida Fresh we tried the Shrimp and Grits with corn and andouille sausage. This came with three large shrimp and had a nice spice to it.

At Fruits by the Glass we got a Raspberry ale and the Watermelon Passionfruit cocktail.

I was at the stand not long after they opened and I noticed later the cocktail came in a smaller cup. I think they gave me the beer sized by mistake.

From the American Pavilion we tried the pulled pig slider and the brisket with collard greens.

Sorry I forgot the pic of the slider but above is the brisket. We enjoyed both

We tried the meatloaf sandwich in Germany as well as the potato pancake. The meatloaf was good but more like a sausage texture the potato pancake was super greasy. The applesauce on top was yummy though. (Sorry forgot pics!)

Having never done F & W this was a treat. I only wish I could have tried every kiosk but I was getting full!

 

[vettegirl]

Nice review on the food and wine treats! Hoping to sneak over hit the festival for a few days here soon

 

[Cimicats]

Nice review on the food and wine treats! Hoping to sneak over hit the festival for a few days here soon

Thanks! Definitely worth checking out.

 

[auntfrannie]

Thanks for the reviews! The food booths are a nice addition to the F&G festival. I can't wait to try them! The brie w/puff pastry looks really good!

 

[Cimicats]

Thanks for the reviews! The food booths are a nice addition to the F&G festival. I can't wait to try them! The brie w/puff pastry looks really good!

It was sooooo good

 

[tinkerbells mum]

Thanks for posting the F&G food photos. I can't wait to try out some (or possibly all lol!) of these next month, they look great. Love the rest of the food review sounds like you ate at some nice places x

 

[Cimicats]

Thanks for posting the F&G food photos. I can't wait to try out some (or possibly all lol!) of these next month, they look great. Love the rest of the food review sounds like you ate at some nice places x

Thanks! I wish I had more time to try a few more kiosks. It all sounded so good!