A Little F&W, Dessert Party and some Celebrations...10.8-10.13 now completed.

[slk537]

Friday was our MNSSHP day so we knew there would be some down time in the afternoon. We decided to spend the morning at DHS and then we headed to DTD for lunch. I have no idea why I don't have any photos of our sandwiches, but here's the review:

We ordered our usual two items to share:

Original - roast beef, cheddar and horseradish. DH and I split this and it was wonderful. It's always been my favorite, but once or twice it hasn't lived up to our expectations. This time it did. I ordered it with extra horseradish...yum!

Cobb Salad - this is lettuce tossed with chicken, chunks of swiss and cheddar cheese, tomato, cucumber, dried cranberries and ranch dressing. I wanted to try the mediterranean, but we both love this so I stuck with a classic. On the hot day, it was delicious!

Best BLT - we were too full and saved this for later. When we broke it out, not surprisingly the lettuce and tomato were super mushy. The bacon was plentiful and very smoky. I would love to try this again, fresh.

Fruit cup - this was DS's choice. He had eaten a lot of popcorn at DHS (had to get his own bucket) and just wanted fruit. He was very happy - strawberries, melon, pineapple and grapes.

Cupcake crown - yellow cake, buttercream and sprinkles. DS and I shared this two days later. It was no longer fresh, but still tasted great!

Brownie with Ghiradelli chocolate chunks - the three of us split this the next day and it was WONDERFUL! I would never have thought a packaged brownie could be so good, but we all loved it.

(both desserts are sitting on top of a package of pumpkin muffins from Super Target - very good!!! )

EOS - not the best CS value, but we don't care...we love it anyway!

 

[slk537]

DH had always wanted to try Tony's and it was the Halloween party night so I made an early (5:30) ADR there, thinking I would probably cancel it. Once we booked the dessert Party (8:30) I was almost positive we'd have a CS dinner and skip Tony's. But DH really, really wanted to try so off we went.

We got here a little before our ADR and checked in. They were putting out Halloween table cloths on the coloring tables for the kids and were offering a special Halloween dessert...a cupcake cone in a small ceramic Mickey pumpkin mug. We considered buying one, but didn't want to carry it around all night.

We were seated very close to the fountain and our server was very nice, but very rushed. DH and I decided to start with a caesar salad each while DS colored and enjoyed the bread.

This was not among the better caesars I've ever had. The lettuce tasted almost like iceberg, the croutons tasted packaged and the dressing was blah. We each ate about half of our salads and gave up. It wasn 't bad...just not good.

DS had carrots with ranch dip as his starter and he liked it very much.

for our entrees, DS chose the kid's spaghetti and meatballs. He liked it and had a nice conversation with a CM I think may have been the restaurant manager. He was told that if he was finished with half the pasta when the CM returned he would get a surprise. He ended up finishing almost all of it and was presented with a fast pass to any MK ride. DS was very proud of himself and tickled with the FP certificate.

DH decided to order the NY Strip. It was decent for a theme park steak, although it didnt' measure up to the other steaks we all enjoyed later on the trip. He also really liked the green beans, although neither of us could decide what they were flavored with...there was a lemony and herb-y flavor we couldn't identify.

I ordered the chicken Parmigiana and it was very good. It tasted fresh and the chicken breast was ginormous! DS tried it and liked it and DH finished it for me when I was full. There was nothing special about it...it was very similar to Olive Garden...but that doesn't mean it wasn't a good entree.

DS chose the ice cream for dessert, and it came with a candle for his birthday and Halloween sprinkles. He was very pleased with the presentation.

DH debated between the pistachio creme brulee and the spumoni, but in the end the spumoni won. This is one of his favorites and he was VERY pleased with it. I tried all three flavors as well...the chocolate was my favorite and I'm not a huge chocolate person. This was an excellent dessert!

I knew from the get go that I would get the tiramisu. I love love love tiramisu...whipped cream, whipped mousses, whipped marscapone - all of these are weaknesses of mine. And the coffee flavor just makes it perfect. I really liked this tiramisu, once I picked out all the chocolate shavings:

Overall, we loved the atmosphere and the manager CM was charming and made DS feel special. Would we return? Maybe. It didn't make the MUST COME BACK list, but definitely didn't make the NEVER AGAIN! list either. It was an extremely festive and wonderful way to begin a great Halloween Party night, however.

 

[mcarthur205]

I love Earl of Sandwich, I have to eat there at least once very trip. They stopped making my favorite sandwich though, the chicken florentine. I had to make do with the tuna melt last time, it was good but not as good as the chicken. Oh well...

We ate at Tony's once about ten years ago. We had to finish up our meal quickly though, my ds had a meltdown (he was three years old at the time) and we thought a quick exit was in order LOL. Don't remember much about it, maybe we should try it again sometime.

Did you enjoy the Halloween Party? We're going to try it for the first time next year, are there any must do's?

 

[lynn46356]

Earl of Sandwich sounds so GOOD. It wasn't on my list until I read the descriptions of the food and seen the desserts. Now another possible cs restaurant to try. I think I'm going to have to extend our stay. Can't wait for MORE!

 

[princess_parents]

Thanks for the reviews. I look forward to hearing about the Wishes Dessert Party. We have reservations for it in December.

 

[slk537]

I love Earl of Sandwich, I have to eat there at least once very trip. They stopped making my favorite sandwich though, the chicken florentine. I had to make do with the tuna melt last time, it was good but not as good as the chicken. Oh well...

We ate at Tony's once about ten years ago. We had to finish up our meal quickly though, my ds had a meltdown (he was three years old at the time) and we thought a quick exit was in order LOL. Don't remember much about it, maybe we should try it again sometime.

Did you enjoy the Halloween Party? We're going to try it for the first time next year, are there any must do's?

We really loved the Halloween party - even more than we thought we would! It is really a lot of fun and the T or T-ing is a blast~!

Earl of Sandwich sounds so GOOD. It wasn't on my list until I read the descriptions of the food and seen the desserts. Now another possible cs restaurant to try. I think I'm going to have to extend our stay. Can't wait for MORE!

It is also a great deal, not DDP-wise...the sandwiches and salads are about $6...desserts $2. Good for OOP!

Thanks for the reviews. I look forward to hearing about the Wishes Dessert Party. We have reservations for it in December.

We're with the people who really enjoyed it...I'm going to put it up now!

 

[vettegirl]

There is an Earl of Sandwhich not far from my house here in San Antonio. I have never tried it, so it looks like that is what I am having for lunch tomorrow. Thanks for the review and look forward to more!

 

[slk537]

After dinner, we headed into the park to enjoy a few rides and such before the party started. We walked through the Noodle Station and saw all the tables set up and ready for the party. It was a hot and muggy night, so we were even more excited to have a place to sit and enjoy cold drinks before the fireworks.

We were supposed to come back at 8:30 and when we did, we checked in and got more wristbands. We then lined up for about 3 minutes before each group was escorted to their table. Our section had our very own CM assigned and he was wonderful - very gracious, welcoming and genuine. I suspect he has quite a future in hospitality!

Our table was close to the fence area, but not up against it. We had a great view and were able to help ourselves to the desserts and drinks immediately. The drinks offered were:

hot tea
sweetened ice tea
ice water
lemonade
raspberry lemonade
milk

Across from the drinks was the table full of desserts.

The "castle tower" of glasses that DS loved...blue plastic

A wide shot of part of the buffet;

DH's plate...Fresh pineapple, chocolate covered strawberry, a tiramisu that he gave me (he doesn't like them...) and two chocolate cheesecakes. Also a regular cheesecake behind the tiramisu...if you look closely you can see the chocolate straw.

DS's plate - after he dropped his Halloween cupcake...a super moist and fudgy brownie and some fresh watermelon.

A second plate DH got for us - This is two raspberry shooters, a chocolate peanut butter tart and a cupcake. The cupcake was a substitute for the one DS dropped, the raspberry shooters were great! There is a little sweet whipped cream on top, a white chocolate disc I ignored, and a very tart and fruity drink. I loved mine and DH let me finish his, as he wasn't as excited about it. The chocolate pb tart...DH liked it. I didn't try it, because at this point I was sugared up and to be honest, other than reeses pb cups, I'm not a fan of pb in desserts...

My plate - This plate has a pistachio creme brulee in the little tea cup - it was wonderful! Some fresh watermelon, a tiramisu in the clear cup on the right, a fruit tart in the back and a chocolate cheesecake with whipped cream behind the tea cup. I loved the watermelon, the tiramisu and the creme brulee (had to share half with DH though!), the tart was good - loved the fruit. The cheesecake was really good for cheesecake but I wasn't in the mood so I left most of it.

We also had tons of raspberry lemonade, ice water, etc.

They did such a great job keeping the tables filled with everything. I don't think anything ran out all night. We chose to share items, but only because we wanted to, not because they didn't have more. I did feel VERY sugared up and stopped sampling sooner than I would have thought. The heat made the lighter items (fresh fruit, raspberry shooter, drinks) even more appealing.

Our tables were cleared and our assigned CM was really sweet and nice. DS was able to run around and sit by the fence with some other kids he met to watch the Villains Mix and Mingle on the castle stage...not the best view, but good enough to enjoy. I had to leave the area to run to the bathroom and when I came back I was greeted very graciously with a very subtle glace to see if I had a purple wristband.

The fireworks was the Hallowishes show and it was fantastic. We had a great view (although slightly off center of the castle, obviously) and thoroughly enjoyed it. I'll post some fireworks photos to this later.

Afterwards, we were welcome to linger, but we decided to head over towards the castle to sit for the next Villains show, followed by the parade. Crowds were heading out, so we got excellent seating with a perfect view.

All in all, it was a great evening and we thought it was well worth the money.

Also:

We did trick or treating before the dessert party over in Tomorrowland and Toontown. CM's put in huge handfuls of candy and we ended up with a ton for half hearted t or t-ing. During the parade, the Goofy's Candy Co float came with CMs carrying bags of candy, so DS got more dropped into his bag there and then CM's put handfuls in our bags on the way out as well.

Here is the candy back at the room, once DS poached most of the chocolate:

 

[slk537]

The next day we had breakfast in the room and then headed out to the parks. For lunch we decided that we would go to Coronado Springs and Pepper Market, since we had enjoyed it back in May. Dh was disappointed that they no longer had the fajitas and DS was grumpy because he did not care for his pizza on the last visit, but in the end we were all quite happy.

DS decided to go with the kids fruit and yogurt plate this time - he liked it very much. The yogurt was Yoplait Peach - one of his favorites at home:

DH and I decided to share the Philly Cheesesteak and Chicken Nachos. When DH came back with the nachos, I thought he'd decided on a Chicken Caesar instead. Nope...the huge mound of lettuce covered up nachos:

These were SO good! The chips were covered in nacho cheese sauce, refried beans, guacamole, jalapenos, sour cream, salsa and lots of shredded cheese. We definitely needed forks to eat them after a while, but they were really great! The chicken alone was well flavored and not dry at all. This was a favorite!

The Philly Cheesesteak was also just outstanding - the bread was chewy and soft, the meat and veggies had been cooked to order and the fries were good too. I ate too many nachos and only had a part of my sandwich half, but DH took care of the rest. This was another great choice!

For dessert, I chose the strawberry shortcake. The cake was a bit dry, but the whipped cream and strawberries were great. I ended up sharing with DS and we left most of the cake.

DS picked the Oreo cake for DH's dessert, and while it looks wonderful, we just weren't hungry enough to do it justice. I think this cake part was dry, too.

Overall, an excellent CS place and one we really enjoyed. The atmosphere is fun, the food is fresh and delicious and the service is great.

 

[cbg1027]

I'm really liking your reviews! Keep 'em coming!

 

[plutosgirl]

We are doing the Wishes Dessert party...loved the pictures!! Now I'm even more excited!!! Great reviews!!

 

[MickeyNicki]

Thanks for the Dessert Party review...we are going to that on our MVMCP night and I cannot wait! Hopefully they will have some holiday desserts with pumpkin, gingerbread, apple and cranberry in them....get you in the holiday mood!

The food from Pepper Market looks outstanding! Need to get back there

 

[slk537]

I'm really liking your reviews! Keep 'em coming!

Thanks! Will do!

We are doing the Wishes Dessert party...loved the pictures!! Now I'm even more excited!!! Great reviews!!

I had no idea if we'd love it or hate it, but decided to risk...so glad I did! I hope you enjoy it as much as we did. If you go on a non party night, you will see Tinkerbell fly directly over you. She doesn't fly for Hallowishes, so we didnt' see her, but we could see her *cough* line....

Thanks for the Dessert Party review...we are going to that on our MVMCP night and I cannot wait! Hopefully they will have some holiday desserts with pumpkin, gingerbread, apple and cranberry in them....get you in the holiday mood!

The food from Pepper Market looks outstanding! Need to get back there

Thanks! They did have Halloween decorations on the cupcakes, brownies and a few other things in honor of the season, but I would love to hear if they add different items for Christmas - I'm with you...anything pumpkin, apple or cranberry HAS to be good!

 

[Jennyfer]

I was thrilled to find your reviews and excellent pics of Cape May and the dessert party! These are the 2 reservations that DH was not thrilled about, but after seeing that bucket of crab legs, he's all in!

Looking forward to the rest!

 

[slk537]

This evening was supposed to be Kona Cafe way back and then was cancelled and rebooked for Boma. I love Boma, DS likes it and DH tolerates is. However, he was feeling very charitable since I had given up Jiko for Yachtsman for our anniversary dinner so Boma it was. But then I decided I just wasn't up for the chaos of the pod buffet, so earlier in the day we played around with the online reservations (LOVE those!!!!!!!!) and decided on an old favorite from a few trips back - SSR's Turf Club. We liked the idea of being able to dine at our own resort and DH and I were both in the mood for prime rib.

We checked in on time and had to wait about 5-10 minutes. There was some college football on in the lounge area (not the Badgers, so we didn't actually care about it, but football is always worth watching) so the wait didn't seem long at all. Our server was another WI native from not too far from us, was very friendly and we liked her immediately. We pondered the menu and DH and I decided on sodas (darn that cold medicine!) and DS opted for a vanilla milkshake, which he loved.

Here's where we deviated from our comfort zone a bit. I was thinking the buffalo chicken tenders or onion rings would be really good. DH decided he wanted to try the calamari. We are not really big seafood people, save shellfish, so normally calamari wouldn't be an option. For some reason, he wanted to give it a shot. And here's where I remembered Nicki's reviews of calamari and how it didn't sound scary as she described, so I said sure.

Not Scary:

These weren't the slightest bit rubbery...the batter was super light and there were little battered peppers in there too. This was served with a marinara, which was very good and a garlic mayonnaise dip, which was EXCELLENT. We bribed DS to try one (cost us only $1...a bargain!) and he summed up my feelings about the calamari plain exactly: "they don't taste like anything." Au contraire, my son...they taste like cripsy garlic mayo!!! Which was yum. We enjoyed almost every single round calamari and opted out of the mini octopi, because to be honest...they freaked us out.

Very Scary:

I wish I could tell you that both DH and DS were mature and refined and refrained from playing with these freaky little things but I'd be lying.....

We were also served warm parmesan breadsticks with salted butter just prior to the calamari. Very good!

DS decided on the kid's mac and cheese with sides of fruit and cooked veg:

He loved the veggies, enjoyed the fruit, didn't like the mac and cheese. Since he had been so game to try the squid and the mac and cheese was a little more stouffers and a little less Kraft I was okay with it.

side note: DS is bizarre about his mac and cheese. He always likes Kraft (of course) and loves the Mickeyroni and cheese. Refuses to eat if it's served with shredded cheese on top as a garnish, sometimes enjoys baked, creamy style...sometimes hates it. I can never predict how he'll feel about it unless it is a tried and true place. And truth be told, after it was served I remember he didn't like it here in November 2007, but at the time my mac and cheese mom-dar wasn't working.

DH and I both ordered the same thing...the prime rib. We are a medium rare family (DS included) and we asked for this to be between rare and medium rare, so warning for those who don't like "pink". It was served with a veal demitasse (right?) mashed potatoes and greens. Our server told us they had the best prime rib on property and she was RIGHT!

I ordered horseradish (creamy) with mine and didn't need it. The sauce on the plate was perfect and I absolutely loved this meal. DH was very impressed too and we were very happy to have chosen this restaurant.

DS didn't want dessert, as he was full from his vanilla shake, fruit and veggies and DH knew exactly what he wanted from before: the cheesecake

He loved this as much this time as he did last time he had it. A very rich and yet light (really, that's possible) cheesecake with fresh berries. I tried it and it was very good, but I was definitely not in a cheesecake mood on this trip. I did help myself to the whipped cream on top though...

I was debating about the espresso chocolate cake with a red wine flavored ice cream, but didn't want anything heavy. I was going to ask for the wine ice cream with maybe some berries, but our server recommended the individual apple pie and I decided to trust her. I wasn't that into having dessert so I was easy. Plus I figured if the pie was sickly sweet (like most apple pies) I could eat the vanilla ice cream. I make my pies, applesauce and apple crisps with mosty Granny Smith apples for that wonderful tart-sweet flavor so I really don't like most pies that taste like apple pie filling.

This was SO not one of those!

Oh my gosh - this was tart and homebaked flavored and still warm and just delicious. The only thing that would have made it better would have been french vanilla instead of vanilla bean ice cream. I wished I could finish it and I begged DH to have some so none of this loveliness would get thrown out but he was feeling the deep fried calamari, huge piece of beef and cheesecake and didn't help me out past a bite (where he agreed it was heaven). DS tried and liked it as well, but sadly half of it was cleared with the plate. Sure, I could have taken it back to the room, but we never actually eat much that comes back with us....

This was truly my favorite meal of the trip - and we had some excellent ones (see YSH review to come). For us, the Turf Club is worth a special trip, but I don't know about others. It has a very country club feel to it and not especially a lot of Disney feel. No characters, no "signature" item, nothing that jumps out and says "GO HERE!" but if you are looking for a truly excellent meal in a location that is quieter than most, even with kids there, I highly recommend the Turf Club. This was our third trip there and each has been stellar.

 

[slk537]

I was thrilled to find your reviews and excellent pics of Cape May and the dessert party! These are the 2 reservations that DH was not thrilled about, but after seeing that bucket of crab legs, he's all in!

Looking forward to the rest!

Thanks!! We absolutely love Cape May - they have had consistently very, very good food for a buffet (and otherwise) and it's a must do on every trip. The crab honestly was very good (to me) and while we were there it was brought out constantly and was very fresh, yet the section was never empty.

And make sure you leave lots of time between dinner and the dessert party...trust me

 

[slk537]

On Sunday, our 12th anniversary, we booked a traditional family favorite for breakfast. DH and I have been going to Kona for a long time while DS has done the GF Pirate Cruise. On our last trip we brought DS with and he was pleased to join our breakfast tradition.

While we waited for our table, I checked out the pastries in the coffee bar:

This one intrigued me - someone next to me referred to it as a volcano and it really did look like one. For some reason, I got a huge kick out of this...?

We were soon seated next to a couple who was celebrating their 38th anniversary and our server was really cute about having two anniversaries next to each other. Later, the 38 year couple was replaced by a 1 year couple...I guess 10-11 is a popular date. It's peak season up here so our wedding was gorgeous.

DH and went with our "usuals" for this meal and DS tried something different. DH and DS both ordered orange juice and I started with a cafe mocha, which I absolutely love after adding 1-2 Splenda packets.

delicious caffeine....!

ooh! was digging for another photo and found this mocha from another trip, pre whipped cream melt and splenda add:

DS ordered the fruit plate (as he had at Pepper Market) with bacon as his side instead of his usual Mickey pancakes and he thought it was okay. He was really not feeling good this morning mid way through the meal and didn't eat much (banana, strawberries and a few grapes. And bacon. He's never too sick for bacon). I was very worried he had caught my flu bug. He had been coughing the day before and we bought him some mucinex, which helped, but had no other symptoms. Now he was lethargic and not hungry No temperature, but still that headache...we ended up getting him some children's tylenol at the shop after breakfast, headed back to the room instead of Epcot and let him rest. He rested for about 15 minutes ("rested") and was raring to go again. He never actually came down with my flu, thank God, so it was just a headache. Whew!

Back to the food...DH ordered his usual...the Big Kahuna. This has everything...french toast, pineapple macadamia nut pancakes, bacon, sausage, ham, potatoes, eggs your choice (he likes scrambled) and pineapple. I did take a photo, but it's not that great. For journalistic integrity, I will show it here, followed by a much better shot from a previous trip/report:

This time:

A few times ago:

Hmmm...looking at the photos, maybe it wasn't my picture that was bad. The whole meal in the second shot looks better....that said, DH loved everything as he always does and offered DS his sausage. It was a true measure of how ill DS felt that he didn't jump at the offer. I had two of my own, which are super filling so neither did I.

I ordered my favorite - the blueberry pancakes. I chose sausage instead of bacon or ham.

I really hate to say it, but this time this totally sucked. My sausage was fine, although I like it a little more browned. But the pancake batter was either waaaaaaaay overmixed (and thus rendered too tough) or they had been sitting, premade, for a while. They were chewy, tough and just not good. I may have sent them back, but I was worried about DS and not really that hungry anyway.

Our sweet CM also brought us an anniversary treat, complete with a card she signed and doodled in herself:

Now THIS was good! The koko puffs themselves were okay, but the whipped cream was fresh and I think by now we've established how I feel about whipped cream.... The cute little Mickey sprinkles gave the fresh whipped cream a nice sweet crunch. DS did try a little of this.

Not our best trip to Kona, by any stretch, but we've been here enough to know it was an off day and that DS's headache affected the experience overall. I have also learned that the kid's fruit plate comes with yogurt on the plate (God forbid!) and we'll have to remember to order it on the side if he wants it again. Or we'll just get him the adult version in the pineapple boat, since we pay OOP for this meal anyway...

Oh - one odd thing...the kids meal includes milk, apple juice or soda, but not orange juice. We had to pay the adult price for DS's juice on top of the kids meal price. Needless to say, he brought it with him back to the room.

 

[disneyfav4ever]

Turf Club looks really good. I have it on my list of places to try next year.

 

[dizneeat]

Just caught up!

Turf Club looks really yummy! Those Calamari look delish and that apple crisp - oh my!!! Guess I need to squeeze that in next trip.
I wonder if we should drop Kona in favour of the Wave for breakfast on our next trip - any thoughts?

 

[slk537]

Turf Club looks really good. I have it on my list of places to try next year.

It's excellent!

Just caught up!

Turf Club looks really yummy! Those Calamari look delish and that apple crisp - oh my!!! Guess I need to squeeze that in next trip.
I wonder if we should drop Kona in favour of the Wave for breakfast on our next trip - any thoughts?

HA! I was just posting over on your Pixie Dust! Great minds!

Kona has always been really good...not sure what happened this time I would probably try The Wave for bfast, only because I've never been there for that and it intrigues me.