April vacation Disney dining adventures (lots of pictures) COMPLETE

[liamsaunt]

Hello and welcome to my dining report!

Who we are: party of six seasoned Disney vets who enjoy Disney dining as an important part of our vacation experience. We prefer table service to quick service, partly for the easier accommodation of allergies and food preferences, but also for the chance to get off our feet for an hour or two as a break in park touring. Our party consisted of four adults and two teens. One photo bug (me). One teen has a crustacean allergy, so you won't see any shrimp in this report.

How we paid: OOP--mostly with Disney rewards--and we used the Tables in Wonderland Discount where it was taken

Where we ate:

Artist Point
Rose and Crown
Jiko
Hollywood Brown Derby
The Wave of American Flavors
Blue Zoo
Grand Floridian Cafe
Flower and Garden Festival Booths
Narcoosees
La Cava del Tequila
BlueZoo
Trader Sams
Various snacks around the world

I have lots of pictures, and will add the TIW savings for the places I have receipts for. As we have found typical for Disney, our dining experiences ranged from excellent to mediocre. First up: Artist Point in next post

 

[liamsaunt]

ARTIST POINT


When I booked the vacation, I told everyone they could choose one restaurant for dinner. Our friend wanted to go back to Artist Point. I have to admit that I was a little hesitant. I have had great meals here, and I have had terrible meals here. How would we fare this time? Read on to find out...

The smoky portobello mushroom soup is a classic dish at Artist Point. It has always been a hit for me, so I chose it as my appetizer. It was fine, less smoky than in the past, but perfectly acceptable. No picture of this for some reason. ($10)

My niece and nephew both started with the cheese plate, which they deemed incredible and completely devoured. The cheese were Laura Chenel Chèvre, Bellwether Farms, Beecher's Bandaged Cheddar, Jaser Hills Creamery Moses Sleeper, and Point Reyes Farmstead. The plate also had Duck Liver Pate, Prosciutto, and some kind of pate ($17)

Our friend chose the Land Greens Salad: Heirloom Apples, Seed Granola, Goat's Milk Cheese, Banyuls Vinaigrette ($11)



He enjoyed this greatly.

My husband chose the Whidbey Island Oysters: Wild Ramps, Thai Chili Aioli, Fermented Garlic, Fennel, Sorrel ($15)



These were delicious but HUGE! We had to cut them in half to eat them.

So far so good, right? On to the entrees.

My nephew ordered the Farm Egg Pappardelle: Wild Boar Bolognese, Porcini, Cow's Milk Cheese, Wild Greens ($15)



Again, huge hit and completely devoured. This is actually on the appetizers menu, but it was more than enough food. We find Disney portions to be too large so often share entrees or order apps.

My niece had the Artist Point salad pictured above for her dinner. She enjoyed it.

All of the adults ordered the salmon cooked medium rare: Chinook Cedar Plank Salmon: Wheat Berry Grains, Grilled Chicory, Artichoke, Carrot, Green Garlic, Lemon ($41)



My friend's:



Not pictured is the salmon my sister and I ordered to share. We mentioned that we planned to split it, and for whatever reason the kitchen decided to split it in the kitchen before cooking it. It came out completely desiccated. Needless to say I sent it back. We waited about 25 minutes for a replacement dish, and when it came back out it was raw and cold inside. I thought about sending it back again, but neither of us were really hungry any longer, so decided to let it go.

I will also mention that both my husband and my friend's salmon were also overcooked (but still edible). Very disappointing for such an expensive dish.

Moving on to dessert...

My niece had the Vanilla Bean Creme Brûlée: Grapevine, Gooseberry, Chocolate ($10)



No complaints.

My friend ordered the berry cobbler



Again, enjoyed and fully consumed.

They also brought out a complimentary birthday dessert for me, and complimentary sparkling wine with raspberries for the other adults (and shirley temples for the teens)



They were macarons, and some sort of chocolate crumble. I would not know because my niece and nephew ate the whole thing before I got a bite.

So, a mixed bag for Artist Point. Good appetizers and desserts, and lovely service, poorly executed entrees.

Tables In Wonderland savings: $101

Next up: Rose and Crown

 

[chocolateMinnie]

Great start - fantastic photos. Looking forward to the rest

 

[zipuzee]

I love that the kids ate the dessert before you did! Can't wait to read the rest.

 

[jesswindsor]

Can't Wait for more!!

 

[Mich123]

Your pictures are beautiful. I'm sure that even the mediocre food will look like it should be in a magazine!

 

[toomuchtv]

Free macarons for your birthday? I could totally go for that!!!

Enjoying it so far. Looking forward to more!

 

[crosstheborder]

Great Pictures! Can't wait to see more

 

[suse66]

Terrific start to your review! Looking forward to reading more!

 

[vettegirl]

Your food pics are works of art! Great job

 

[2xcited2sleep]

Fantastic pictures and looks like a really great line-up of spots you hit. I'm looking forward to more!! I've only dined at AP once and it was a mixed bag for me as well. We had amazing service, I adored the mushroom soup (which was a revelation since I don't like mushrooms!) but my entree was very undercooked.

 

[liamsaunt]

Hello everyone and glad to see that folks are reading along! I spent a couple of months scouring everyone's dining reports while planning this vacation (We had taken a five year break from Disney due to the lure of other vacation destinations, so I had a lot of research to catch up on!), and so am happy to be able to provide some feedback as a thank you.

ROSE AND CROWN

Rose and Crown was my nephew's choice of restaurant. He remembered the fish and chips from a prior trip and wanted to have it again, so off we went. Three people ordered the fish and chips ($21):



The fish was not greasy and the chips were tasty with malt vinegar poured on them. Everyone devoured this and gave it a thumbs up.

My niece ordered the coronation salad: chopped salad with an apple-maple madras dressing ($10)



This was a slightly sweet and crunchy salad with a light curried yogurt dressing. I thought perhaps there was a little too much iceberg lettuce in comparison to the other ingredients, but she enjoyed it (and finished it)

My sister and I opted to split the Chicken Masala Curry: with seasoned vegetables, basmati rice and raita ($20)



The chicken was two boneless skinless chicken thighs. I usually prefer white meat but enjoyed this dish. The chicken was very tender and the masala sauce had a rich flavor. The vegetables were tasty. The accompanying rice and naan bread were both a little dry, but the chicken and vegetables made enough of a meal for us so we did not mind.

I ordered a Sticky Toffee Pudding for the table to share ($7)



The sauces on it are a vanilla custard and a butter rum sauce. I can't tell you about this dessert because my niece and nephew devoured it before the adults were able to get a taste. They loved it though, and were scraping up every last drag of the sauce with a spoon.

Our server here was very funny and personable. I was also pleased by the reasonable (for Disney!) prices at this location. I was unable to secure an ADR for close to Illuminations, but have been able to do so in the past, and there is a very nice view of the show from here if you can get a table at the right time.

I don't seem to have the receipt for this meal, so am unsure how much we saved with the TIW card. I do know that this was our least expensive table service meal of the trip.

Up next: around the World Showcase at the Flower and Garden festival booths

 

[Jgeauxmo]

Love your review so far! RC is one of our must dos on every trip. I'm excited to see the rest. We re about a month out from making our ADRs and still debating some places.

 

[NorweJenNY]

I ordered a Sticky Toffee Pudding for the table to share ($7)

Lol - I know from experience the only way to order this is one for myself... this is not one to share! It's all mine... mine... mine! One of my favorite food items in all of Disney!

 

[nco91590]

I'm psyched to read your reviews! You've got a bunch of old favorites on there, plus a few I'm dying to try Love your pics!

 

[ariane37]

Joining! I've gone back and forth our last couple trips as far as booking Artist's Point. Still not sure.... I see many people suggesting it but haven't read many reviews.
I agree with all the pp's, beautiful pics!

 

[Jerusalem Gal]

I'm in!!! Yum!

 

[TeresaNJ]

Enjoying your report! Thanks for sharing!

 

[mkla2015]

Great pics! Can't wait to read more!!

 

[liamsaunt]

Hello to all the new readers! I am going to have to do the next post in installments because I have way more than 10 photos from the Flower and Garden Booths. So, without further ado...

FLOWER AND GARDEN FESTIVAL BOOTHS (part one)

We ate stuff from almost every booth at the Flower and Garden Festival over the course of our trip. Some stuff was great, other stuff...went into the trash.

First up, we have LOTUS HOUSE (China)

Vegetable Spring Rolls with Orange Sauce ($4.50)



These were fine. The rolls themselves were a little bland. The sauce had some sriracha in it, which gave a needed kick.

Gaoli Beef Bun ($5.75)



My niece ate this one and she LOVED it. She said it was the best thing she ate at the festival, and she wanted to eat about a dozen more. I don't eat red meat so did not try it, but she was very enthusiastic.

We did not try any of the beverages from this booth.

Next up, HANAMI (Japan)

Chicken Edamame Bun: steamed bun filled with chicken and edamame topped with curry sauce ($5.50)



This again was "fine." There was a little too much bun to filling ratio.

Beef Teriyaki Udon: thin-sliced beef, onions and noodles toasted on the grill with soy and ginger ($5.95)



My niece was the only one who ate this dish. She said it was "good, but not as good as that beef bun!"

Finally, the Frushi--fresh pineapple, strawberry and melon rolled with raspberry coconut rice, sprinkled with toasted coconut and whipped cream on the side ($5.25)



You can probably tell from the hands holding the dish that this was another one my niece devoured. She loved this and I bought her another plate of it later in the trip.

Next up, FLEUR DE LYS (France)

Tarte a l'Onion Alsacienne: Alsacien Onion Tart with Sautéed Onions, Fresh Thyme, and Rosemary on a Flaky Puff Pastry Crust ($4.50)



This was...not good :-( I love Alsatian tarts and make them at home. This one tasted like it was about a week old. Total bummer and into the trash!

Cassoulet au Confit de Canard: Pulled Duck Confit with Braised Flageolet Beans ($5.75)



Again....not good. Such a bummer! The beans were mealy. Into the trash!

Can France redeem itself with...

Macaron Chocolate Framboise: Large Raspberry Macaron with Chocolate Fudge and Raspberry Jam ($4.75)



Why yes, yes it can! The one bite I got of this was delicious. The chocolate was not too sweet and the texture of the macaron was correct. As you can imagine, the remainder of the macaron was devoured by the niece and nephew. I meant to go back and get another one for the adults but never got around to it.

Last stop for this post due to how many images you can put in per post is

URBAN FARM EATS (near Pineapple Promenade)

Watermelon Salad with Pickled Onions, B+W Gourmet Farms Baby Arugula, Feta and Balsamic Reduction ($3.75)



This was awesome. I liked everything about this salad. I love watermelon and feta together, and the pickled onions added a great crunch. I will be making this salad at home this summer.

We also tried the

Vegetable and White Bean Naanwich: Arugula Pesto and Oven Dried Tomatoes featuring Seeds of Change Quinoa, Brown and Dried Rice ($4.75)




I really liked the flavors in this dish, though the naan was very hard to cut. We eventually gave up on the naan and just ate the beans/grains/tomatoes/sauce.

No picture, but we also tried a drink from this stand, The Avive Natural Peach Sparkling Wine ($8.50). We all thought it was too sweet. Half ended up in the trash.

Part two coming soon!