Bucket List NYE at WDW with Platinum Plan - new 2/28 bonus post, wrap up, and COMPLETE

[margareton27]

Glad to hear Universal matched your original room price! Following along.

 

[ziggystardust]

I'm excited to hear about your experience at v&a. I ate there years ago before I actually really enjoyed wine. It would be a completely different experience now.
It is still to this day the best steak I have ever had.

 

[ThreeBoyMama]

BACK ME UP, @ThreeBoyMama

Those margaritas were the bomb! The fact that I can't even remember which ones we got is a testament to their awesomeness. Sorry Mexico pavilion...Margaritaville wins this one. Up your margarita game, Disney!

Love your Universal reviews--reminded me of how much fun we had there! We thought The Hulk was awesome. You guys are hard core with the driving through the night and getting to the parks at the crack of dawn. And now the mystery of the hotel room switcheroo has been revealed! I would have absolutely FREAKED THE HELL OUT if my reservation had been for the wrong year. How did you not completely lose it?!?! Thank goodness they were able to find another room for you guys!

Can't wait to hear about Wilderness Lodge since that's my next WDW destination. In 8 months. And 5 days. But who's counting.

 

[pepperandchips]

I don't mind Universal reviews! I even have some in my USO TRs.

I figured at least a couple people would enjoy and/or benefit from the Universal part. Plus I somewhat selfishly wanted to show that our normal meals are not three courses plus bread haha!

Your ice cream at Florean's sounds so good! I've only tried the Butterbeer.

We tried the butterbeer soft serve on our first trip and it was a bit too sweet to me. I like the hand scooped kind a little better. But I think it might just be fancy Ben & Jerry's as I want to say I saw the salted caramel blondie flavor at another Ben & jerry's location inside Universal...

It would be indecent to have naked nachos!

You got that right! I agree with you about Margaritaville - the food was much better than I was expecting so it's going into the rotation!

I've never really thought about staying CL, and those snacks make me think I made the right choice...

Yeah... I had high hopes based on the lovely service and food photos I'd seen on other trip reports (admittedly mostly at Royal Pacific). I forgot to mention they had some really nice offerings at the bar during happy hour at their CL including a seasonal shandy that looked nice. Regardless we won't spring for CL at Universal again any time soon. Maybe at Disney one day!

when I was youger and worked in the mall if someone forgot silverware we'd ask at sbarro in the food court for some, and the guy would hide the utensils and not give us a

LOL! You silver thieves! I was going to pilfer some from the quick service restaurant inside HRH but it was closed for refurbishment while we were there so I had to ask at the bar.

Glad to hear Universal matched your original room price! Following along.

Glad to have you! Despite having what I can only describe as a disappointing hotel experience, it is nice that they made it right. That's all I could ask!

I'm excited to hear about your experience at v&a. I ate there years ago before I actually really enjoyed wine. It would be a completely different experience now.
It is still to this day the best steak I have ever had.

Oh man the food was absolutely superb but as someone who knows quite little about wine, their pairings were just mind blowing. I wasn't aware that wine could taste like that!

 

[pepperandchips]

Sorry Mexico pavilion...Margaritaville wins this one. Up your margarita game, Disney!

I knew I'd find support here!!! It's funny because when my margarita came I was initially a bit disappointed in the portion size, but after just the margaritas and a few sips of our beers, both of us were glad we weren't driving so I guess what my lovely coupe of tequila lacked in volume it made up for in potency. I've never felt like that at La Cava... hmm...

You guys are hard core with the driving through the night and getting to the parks at the crack of dawn.

We are! Well really we are hardcore about avoiding the traffic snares that seem to plague I75 through and south of Atlanta on a daily basis . Plus I can squeeze in an extra day of vacation without an extra night of hotel price!

And now the mystery of the hotel room switcheroo has been revealed! I would have absolutely FREAKED THE HELL OUT if my reservation had been for the wrong year. How did you not completely lose it?!?! Thank goodness they were able to find another room for you guys!

Well I was THIIISSSS CLOSE, like the tears were welling up but I was trying to be logical. In hindsight I probably should have just said thanks, enjoyed our morning as soon as the parks opened to regular guests, and booked something offsite. But I was tired and surprised and I couldn't think that far through it. It was honestly either my fault or Orbitz's fault. It is possible I searched in the wrong year and made the booking totally wrong but Universal was sending me emails (maybe related to my having an AP?) the week before our trip so I never thought to double check the year of the booking. Here's what I saw when I looked in the lobby:

Can't wait to hear about Wilderness Lodge since that's my next WDW destination. In 8 months. And 5 days. But who's counting.

I would be counting hours and minutes too going back to the WL! I love that resort so much. I think Animal Kingdom Lodge has a slight edge for me as top favorite but I really loved our stay and you're going to die when you see the view...

 

[Shelbizzles]

Following! I love reading trip reports and dining reviews but I always hesitate commenting and I don't know why. So I'm trying to do it more since everyone looks like they have so much fun
Look forward to your reviews of Sanaa and California grill

 

[Chelley00]

Following along, especially for the V&A review.

OMG, I would have had a heart attack right there at check in had they said it was a year early. I'm impressed you kept it together!

 

[Lisa F]

Oh yeah, babe. Buckling up for this one! I thought the DxDDP was decadent! I did V&A Chef's table on my honeymoon (now divorced) and it was amazing and also nearly 2 decades ago now. I would love to do V&A again before I die. Not sure the picky kid will ever be up to that and not sure I'd do it solo and I know for sure the bf would have a heart attack from the price if I ever even went back to Disney. So I guess living vicariously through you is going to be it for me for the forseeable future!

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I just had to explain to my kid what I was laughing so hard at!

oh and... congrats on the waitlist coming through. That is a 5 dancing banana event!

I miss my first week of december planning thread where I awarded dancing bananas when people had stuff for their trip come through.

 

[Lisa F]

December 27, 2016: FOOD is Universal

Okay, Disney friends. I have to ask for your patience while I slog through a couple of Universal posts. I hope these reviews are helpful to some folks as the Wizarding World continues to flourish and is a popular place for families (and Disney fans!) to visit. Our friends over on the Universal boards here on the Dis are super helpful but maybe you will indulge my quick dining reviews of Universal here on the Dining Reviews board and possibly even enjoy it. haha.

On December 27th, we woke up at midnight and got on the road headed for Orlando. We arrived at the Loew's Royal Pacific Resort around 6:30 in the morning and waited in a bit of a line to check in. Upon giving my name, the team member on the desk informed me that my reservation was actually for December 27, 2017, which meant I was checking in a full year early. She figured this was a glitch and asked me to pull up my reservation, so I did, and it also said 2017 but fortunately she told us she could book us in a standard room for one night. About that time, she called her supervisor for assistance, who apparently told her she could not book us into one of the rooms showing in inventory as they were full. At this point I basically went full meltdown. I'd been planning this for months, had driven through the night, knew this was the busiest week of the year for theme parks (so I was relying on express pass) and was there trying to get in the park for 7:00 early entry. I asked her to find out if there was a room available at one of the other resorts and eventually we ended up being accomodated at Hard Rock Hotel. It was like pulling teeth to get the help and despite having amazing experiences at the Loew's Portofino Bay and at our previous visit to the Loew's Royal Pacific Resort, this team member soured my opinion of RPR a bit with her attitude and all-but-refusal to help us. I mean, really, we're trying to give you a whole bunch of money, how hard is it to help?

And that, my friends, is how the bucket list really started... because the only room they had available at the Hard Rock was a "rock royalty" CLUB LEVEL room. We scuttled over to Hard Rock as quickly as possible, checked in, and printed our express passes. The Universal Loew's hotels now text you when your room is ready, so we left our bags in the car and made for the gates of Universal Studios. Of course this had eaten about an hour of our precious time and we were headed into the turnstiles at 7:35, having lost a good bit of the early entry benefit due to the booking error.

Oh but how sweet a sight this was!

We hit Gringott's at 7:45 and despite having the switchbacks open in the back outside, the wait and ride probably "only" took about 50 minutes. By 8:40, I had this baby in hand!!!!

Chocolate raspberry and salted caramel blondie ice cream scoops from Florean Fortescue's in Diagon Alley (I don't have the receipt but this was $6something even with our AP discount). I think this is the only time I have had ice cream before 9:00 am and also the only time I've been the only party inside Florean Fortescue's. We love the salted caramel blondie ice cream, and the heavenly feeling of enjoying that salty sweet goodness while simply taking in the sights of Diagon Alley is the experience that had called us back to Universal for a quick stay ahead of our Disney trip.

I mean, how bad the morning have been when the sight of this dragon accompanies your sweet morning snack? (ignore the massive crowd, just like I did ) R wanted to get the chocolate raspberry scoop which is why we did, but I would have been fine with two scoops of salted caramel blondie. So so good.

We hung around in Knockturn Alley for a bit while enjoying our sugar high before we took Hogwarts Express (no wait) to Islands of Adventure.

We rode the new Skull Island Reign of Kong attraction (this didn't do much for me, but it has an Express Pass line so it wasn't much of a commitment to see something new) and one of our favorite simple attractions - Dr. Doom's fear fall (a tower drop ride, basically) which gives you a beautiful view of the parks. The Hulk coaster was back open after an extended refurb, but I felt like I needed something more on my stomach before conquering all of those inversions, so we dipped inside Croissant Moon Bakery for my other favorite Universal breakfast:

The amazing (and amazingly green) pistachio muffin. I had to borrow these pictures from my previous trips since I neglected to take pictures of our snack this time. I love these - they have a lovely almond flavor, and despite being an unnatural hue are a delicate and moist pastry option. I have to have one of these on every visit!

We got in line for Hulk but basically as soon as we got in line the attraction went down, and having already gotten our "room ready" text, we decided to bail. Again we had some issues when our room door wouldn't open with our keys and we had to visit the Club lounge for assistance - the staff there acted a bit put out that I'd requested the help so Loew's was really on my ... ****tinonion soup list (see previous DR for joke). Anyway, we finally got into our room (note: handle opens up, not down )

Cutting our losses and in need of libations, we moseyed over to Citywalk for lunch. Well, we moseyed via boat transport. The gorgeous day combined with a dining review we'd heard on the Dis Universal podcast took us out of our usual routine and we decided to give Margaritaville a whirl.

We arrived around 1:15 and there was no wait, though the outside patio was hoppin'. We had a good (if overextended) server who, upon consultation, informed us we'd made great drink selections:

I had the Perfect Margarita "Margaritaville Gold and Silver Tequilas, triple sec, orange curaçao and lime juice served on the rocks... for margarita aficionados only" while R had the Uptown Margarita "Margaritaville Gold tequila, Cointreau® orange liqueur, our house margarita blend topped with a Gran Gala® float. Excellent on the rocks". Mine is the one in the coupe and R's is in the pint glass. These were excellent and quite potent. I have lost the receipt for this meal but the price wasn't "egads" high - I think both margaritas were in the $10-11 range and... I have to say it because they've been getting so much press here on the Dining Reviews board recently... I think they're better than the margaritas at La Cava. BACK ME UP, @ThreeBoyMama

Anyway, beverages in hand, we quickly selected two yummy appetizers that were big enough to serve as our meals.

Traditional wings "Served with fresh veggie chips and your choice of sauce" and we chose them "Clipper - Buffalo style" the online menu reflects a price of $11.99 for these. I believe there were 8 or 10 good sized wings. Maybe not the best ever value but they had great flavor, and we'd seen them on a neighboring table and they sold themselves.

As well as the...

Volcano Nachos "Tortilla chips layered with chili, cheese, pico de gallo, fresh guacamole, sour cream and jalapeños" (menu online says $15.99). Now, these were what we'd heard such rave reviews about since they sauce each layer of nachos with toppings, so that you don't get naked chips at the bottom of the pile. That would be indecent after all! The picture absolutely does not do these things justice. They were MASSIVE!!! And really quite good. Outside of a Mexican restaurant, I kind of expect "bar nachos" and these were great on the bar nacho scale. Maybe middling on the Mexican restaurant scale but they sure hit the spot!!!

By now you have surely noticed the empty margarita glasses, but we were feeling the happy effects of tequila, and not wanting to go to sleep for the night after lunch, decided to switch to the great "slow down my buzz" invention - cerveza.

We each had a Florida Swamp Ape IPA. We enjoyed them, but despite really liking beer I am not great at describing them. Not too hoppy and pretty well balanced is about all I can manage. It was wet and cold and went with nachos and wings. We paid the tab and hit the road, soaking up the Florida sunshine.

Back at the HRH, we had the traditional afternoon nap, preceded only by scavenging in the Club Lounge where we picked up the afternoon offerings of packaged cookies and chips and canned soda and bottled water. Obviously pre-packaged snacks was not what I was hoping for but the unlimited Diet Coke cans were appreciated.

Refreshed from our nap, we hit the Club Lounge again for their evening appetizers. Color me cynical but I was unimpressed:

Barbecue chicken skewers, crudites, and deep fried mac-n-cheese balls

The chicken skewers tasted like the chicken had not been seasoned prior to being shellacked in bottled barbecue sauce and the mac-n-cheese bites just tasted like... fried. I ended up muching on a couple of cheese cubes and loading up on veggies and house white wine. R had a couple of coronas. I guess I have been spoiled by my friend schumigirl's RPR club lounge photos and the offerings I've seen from the Wilderness Lodge club because I was underwhelmed and there was nary a magic cookie bar to be found!

ANYWAY I better wrap this post up before you all fall asleep. We found the shortcut to the parks through the HRH parking lot and waited for the front row of the Hulk coaster.

The Hulk was fun but nothing can top the Hollywood Rip Ride Rocket for me, so we trotted over there and happened to get the front row of RRR by chance and it was melt your face off amazing as always. We caught the holiday parade after screaming our heads off.

(SANTA! I know him!)

It was a cute parade but obviously not Disney. We rode the Mummy (probably more than once, as I love that ride) and shockingly were getting hungry again by this point so we decided to call it a night at 8:50 to find dinner at Citywalk. We wanted something to take back to the room so we meandered over to the Red Oven Pizza company where we ordered the Prosciutto & Arugula Pizza "Fresh Mozzarella, Parmigiano-Reggiano, Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Lemon and Oregano" ($14) and Arugula Salad "Prosciutto, Organic First Pressed Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Fresh Lemon, Cured Tomatoes and Shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano" ($11).

I failed at photos since the food took FOREVER to come out (they said 15 minutes... haha no) but I yoinked one from the internet for you lovely people:

thanks tripadvisor!

Anyway, to add insult to the injury of waiting all night on mediocre take out, the restaurant neglected to give us silverware for our salad so I had to trot down to the bar at the HRH to ask for silverware. The bartender was exceptionally nice (HRH: +1) but then we found out the HRH sells no bottles of wine in its gift shop (HRH: -1) after visiting for shaving cream, so we were forced to dip into our "room booze" brought from home and we had some drinks in the room before hitting the hay.

sounds like a rough in spots but ultimately decent first day. I have not been to universal since Back to the Future was the big thing (god I am OLD). That's not true, we did go to Islands of Adventure. Kiddo is still a bit young for the Harry Potter stuff though the first is next on his list to read so I think at some point soon we will be doing USO.
I thought I may have found my home in margaritaville until you told me they use gold tequila I hate gold tequila (or rather, it hates me... lol). I am the WORST margarita snob possible. First choice: reposado. second choice: anejo. honorable mention: silver (it's fine in a mixed drink but you get no added complexity from it). For the orange component: First choice: contreau Tied for 2nd: O3 premium & patron cintronage. There is no third choice, triple sec is down there with gold tequila in house margarita land and I find grand marnier too brandy flavored. No sweet and sour mix.... fresh squeezed lime juice and a squeeze of agave. I love going to places where they let you specify the booze, I can be more flexible with the orange if the tequila is decent. Sometimes the skinny margarita is the way to go, it is closest to a classic. Mostly I just make them at home nowadays (I sometimes have lady friends texting me at obscene hours wishing I could be around to mix for them) because I can have them exactly the way I want them... I did learn the hard way that I should probably get a jigger and not use my 1/2 and 1/4 cup measuring cups to dish out the booze and probably should also not serve them in pint glasses light on the ice. But when I order them out they usually end up jacked up to closer to $15 with the liquor upgrades.

That said.. I am super sad i missed the specialty margaritas at La Cava. I really wanted to try the avocado one, which is not really a margarita to me but it's own thing all on its own. Also the wings looked decent at margaritaville. wing snob too. Actually why don't we just go with snob.

I love your description of the club food, lol. I can taste it right now (it's not good though!) That ice cream though? I did NOT eat enough ice cream on my trip. my 2nd biggest culinary regret!

 

[Lisa F]

December 28th dawned bright and EARLY EARLY EARLY for us as we wanted to make the most of Early Entry this day (our last at Universal, don't despair). We were at the entrance of Islands of Adventure at 6:55 and were treated to a nearly empty Hogsmeade Village as we sailed through on our way to queue up for Forbidden Journey.

This was a first for me - the queue extended all the way out through the entry "gates" and doubled back across the bridge toward Jurassic Park before snaking in to the usual queue. The inside queue was moving well, so I think this hang up was caused by folks needing lockers. Fortunately we were traveling with no bags so we were in the clear.

After our wild tour of Hogwart's School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, it was time to hit up the main attraction: snacks.

A butterbeer was necessary, of course.

The traditional chilled (not frozen) butterbeer is my favorite. It's like a butterscotch cream soda and is so sweet that one between the two of us was perfect.

We grabbed some sweets from Honeyduke's and headed to the patio behind the Three Broomsticks to enjoy them along with this view:

We had a cauldron cake - chocolate cupcake filled with a creamy chocolate mousse and topped with a dark chocolate handle. This is decadent, chocolatey, and a great treat.

No, this is not a calzone, it is the delicious pumpkin pasty! Kind of like a hand pie (is that a southern term?), the pastry dough enrobes a spiced pumpkin filling. I really like this snack because it's not too sweet but it does have that perfect pumpkin flavor. (as you may notice, I lifted these photos from my stash from previous trips as well, that person in the background is not R or a stranger)

(inside)

After the delicious snack, I feel certain we did some attractions but I don't recall what they were. We decided to take a break to get checked out of our room so we went back to HRH and had some breakfast in the Club Lounge.

Breakfast was much better than the paltry offerings the day before - lots of donuts, pastry, fruit, oatmeal, eggs of a couple sorts, some hot items that apparently did not look appetizing to me since I didn't try them, yogurt, toast, bagels, etc.

The fruit (a few blueberries and strawberries in a giant bowl of honeydew... typical) and blueberry donuts were my favorite. Still, the coffee was good and it was a pretty decent spread. We packed our things and stowed the bags in the car, moving it closer to the back of the lot near the theme parks entrances and headed back in for more fun.

Here we got our first taste of the insane crowd levels this week. This was IOA entry around 11:00 AM, and the day was really warming up so this was pretty unpleasant. We rode the Hulk again, this time not bothering to wait for the front, and it was just as awesome closer to the back.

R wanted to ride the High in the Sky Seuss Trolley Train ride, and we requested and got the Sneetches side (versus the ABCs which I don't like as well). You first get to go through Circus McGurkus and then are treated to some lovely views of the park, like the one above which shows the constant stream of folks pouring in and out.

The Hulk! And some rando's shoulder!!!

CASTLE PIC! (Whatdya mean it's the wrong castle?!)

"That day, all the Sneetches forgot about stars and whether they had one, or not, upon thars."

And with that, we decided our starless bellies needed some pool time and traipsed out of Universal to head to the WILDERNESS LODGE!!!

Author's post-script: After we returned home, I got a survey from Loew's about our hotel experience and I wrote an honest but negative review of what had happened during our stay. They ended up refunding me the difference between Club Level and a standard room of the same type, so I really appreciated the gesture to "make it right". Do I think the hassle was worth "free" club level? No, but I did get a room for about the same price as what I'd reserved and sincere apologies. I wanted to include this because I don't think the service we got at Hard Rock's Club was typical of what they offer - the club was full to bursting any time there was food out, and the staff was constantly having to refresh things and clean up. It left no time for any kind of guest interaction. And I am a member of a RED RED REDNECK family (my dad is a four-wheelin, deep-sea fishin, card carryin member of the NRA) and there were for sure some big rednecks in that club - I'm talking fresh out of the pool, no shoes, wearing a bathing suit, touching communal food with their bare hands, leaving messes, sprawling out on the floor type behavior. So while our experience wasn't one I'd be willing to pay for in the future, I am sure it was strongly related to the time of year and capacity at the hotel, not the service that Hard Rock usually provides. The room itself was lovely and comfortable and I would definitely stay there again if the price was right.

Next up: our first (partial) Disney day

I won't lie. I'm waiting for disney at this point, lol. Hogwarts looks amazing though, I can't wait to see it someday. But too many sweets for me!

 

[pepperandchips]

Following! I love reading trip reports and dining reviews but I always hesitate commenting and I don't know why. So I'm trying to do it more since everyone looks like they have so much fun
Look forward to your reviews of Sanaa and California grill

Welcome! So glad you came out of lurkdom here on my report Sanaa and California Grill are two of our always-favorites. We always sit in the Sanaa lounge which means you don't need reservations! But I have enjoyed their dining room as well and the super views of the animals during daylight hours. California Grill almost needs no further introduction but I will tell you it factored heavily into my favorite day of the whole trip! Those fireworks... Sigh. What are some of your favorite restaurants? Come on into the conversation, the water's fine

Following along, especially for the V&A review.

OMG, I would have had a heart attack right there at check in had they said it was a year early. I'm impressed you kept it together!

Ah! My WBC bin idol! Welcome and thank you thank you thank you for all you do on the boards. You have made several of my family trips happier with your service to the bin facilitation. I am so excited to share our V&A's experience but now I am afraid I am hyping it too much and everyone will be disappointed so maybe I should say it was awful and I don't want to go back... I DID almost have a heart attack with the reservation snafu. I was just so flabbergasted that I guess my Disboards training kicked in and I was like... Okay self, which hotels have early entry and express.. Now GO! Anyway, so glad to have you here and I hope the reviews don't disappoint.

 

[pepperandchips]

My multi-quote went kinda wonky toward the end but I wanted to respond appropriately!!! I love your DR and so happy to have you here with me

Oh yeah, babe. Buckling up for this one! I thought the DxDDP was decadent!

Oh my gosh decadent is the perfect word. I have considered the DxDDP several times but since we usually travel with my mom and sister and the latter is not much of an eater, I knew it would be a waste. I really think the platinum plan was designed for rich (possibly international) Disney newbies who just wanted a total all inclusive experience. I'm sure Disney made tons of money on people who didn't maximize the value but you know we weren't about to waste credits! So yes... Where a signature counts as two entitlements on any other dining plan, it was one on ours. So that was a LOT of credits to use and we definitely ate way more than we should have. But it was fun

I did V&A Chef's table on my honeymoon (now divorced) and it was amazing and also nearly 2 decades ago now

Nope, it was terrible and awful and I never need to hear more about it or I will have to do it... I already want to do Napa Rose chef's table please don't plant the V&A chef's table in my crazy mind!

not sure I'd do it solo and I know for sure the bf would have a heart attack from the price if I ever even went back to Disney

Um, you know you have a horde of compadres ready to meet you and shred the receipts right? What happens in Orlando stays in Orlando... (Also R has not seen the bill from our extravaganza and I hope he never does )

That is a 5 dancing banana event!

THANK YOU! I needed someone to do a banana dance with me because I was losing my mind. "OMG MY WAITLIST MATCHED" was proclaimed many times very loudly to no one but my dog at the time... And I am going to drive poor R crazy with "we get to stay at the Grand Californian" in singsong

I have not been to universal since Back to the Future was the big thing (god I am OLD).

Well prior to last January, I was in the same boat so I maintain neither of us is old. You don't look a day over 28. Or 33, yeah, that's random, let's go with that.

Actually why don't we just go with snob.

NO! The word is "selective" and I need selective friends to help educate me! I know very little about tequila so I love hearing about what I should be looking for in a fantastic margarita. All I know is that the one I had tasted good, but perhaps that's like thinking that Franzia tasted good back when I was in college... Anyway, it's important to recognize quality and demand it when that's important to you. I'm usually a bourbon gal so this was function over form, but I certainly recognize the art in both margaritas AND wings! I love that you and BF are wing connoisseurs. I am a wing enthusiast but my only real deal breaker is the sad wings that look like they come from anorexic chickens...

I won't lie. I'm waiting for disney at this point, lol. Hogwarts looks amazing though, I can't wait to see it someday. But too many sweets for me!

Well R is a dessert-a-holic so I could do without many of the sweets but I nevertheless participate in their consumption.

DISNEY IS COMING SOON! I am away from my laptop at present (may or may not be at Disney again... I seriously need a 12 step program ) but I will get some reviews posted as soon as I can get my photo hosting sorted.

 

[Lisa F]

My multi-quote went kinda wonky toward the end but I wanted to respond appropriately!!! I love your DR and so happy to have you here with me

I'm so happy to be here! not sure it registered that you were going so soon!

Oh my gosh decadent is the perfect word. I have considered the DxDDP several times but since we usually travel with my mom and sister and the latter is not much of an eater, I knew it would be a waste. I really think the platinum plan was designed for rich (possibly international) Disney newbies who just wanted a total all inclusive experience. I'm sure Disney made tons of money on people who didn't maximize the value but you know we weren't about to waste credits! So yes... Where a signature counts as two entitlements on any other dining plan, it was one on ours. So that was a LOT of credits to use and we definitely ate way more than we should have. But it was fun

oh yeah I definitely relied on the 2 credits per signature thing to not die of overconsumption of restaurant food, lol. I'm guessing you did not do platinum for more than a very short stretch though, did I miss which part of your split stay it was attached to?

Nope, it was terrible and awful and I never need to hear more about it or I will have to do it... I already want to do Napa Rose chef's table please don't plant the V&A chef's table in my crazy mind!


Um, you know you have a horde of compadres ready to meet you and shred the receipts right? What happens in Orlando stays in Orlando... (Also R has not seen the bill from our extravaganza and I hope he never does )

Hey I am my own woman with my own job and pay my own bills. If I want to go to V&A I will. BF would just never go with me because of the coronary the price would cause. I love him to bits but he is cheap and even if he agreed and didn't take a coronary based on the price, I'd end up carving his heart out with a butter knife the third sarcastic comment, lol. Two things we don't talk about: how much I spend on my (mostly disney) purses and how much I spend on Disney. Otherwise we are both pretty frugal in every day life! Mine is an R too so I should start calling him that and confuse the whole thing.

THANK YOU! I needed someone to do a banana dance with me because I was losing my mind. "OMG MY WAITLIST MATCHED" was proclaimed many times very loudly to no one but my dog at the time... And I am going to drive poor R crazy with "we get to stay at the Grand Californian" in singsong

I own DVC so I get it. and the Grand Californian is on my bucket list. So yeah I get it!!!!! sing it at me lol.

Well prior to last January, I was in the same boat so I maintain neither of us is old. You don't look a day over 28. Or 33, yeah, that's random, let's go with that.

I will happily take the extra decade!

NO! The word is "selective" and I need selective friends to help educate me! I know very little about tequila so I love hearing about what I should be looking for in a fantastic margarita. All I know is that the one I had tasted good, but perhaps that's like thinking that Franzia tasted good back when I was in college... Anyway, it's important to recognize quality and demand it when that's important to you. I'm usually a bourbon gal so this was function over form, but I certainly recognize the art in both margaritas AND wings! I love that you and BF are wing connoisseurs. I am a wing enthusiast but my only real deal breaker is the sad wings that look like they come from anorexic chickens...

Because my kid puked 3 times this evening and I'm sitting here watching football listening for him to be in distress now that he is in bed I will give you a little lesson.

Gold tequila is cheap tequila. It is usually not made with 100% agave and has colors and flavorings added to make it gold because in general the darker the tequila, the more aged it is, the more expensive it is etc. So it's mimicking the more expensive tequilas in a way that tastes, to me, kind of skunky. I'm not even really sure how to describe it but it tastes "off" to me. Also if you overdo it (not that I would, lol) the hangover is REALLY bad. Don't ask how I know. More expensive tequila does not have this effect.

Blanco tequila is 100% agave but unaged and it is the most neutral tasting and often used in mixed drinks. It doesn't bother me but it doesn't add anything to the drink either. It makes a nice, clean margarita.

Reposado tequila is also 100% agave but aged, I will have to google how much, but it is the lesser aged one. My favorite mixer reposado is Hornitos. Not just for the name. It is cheap but good, the 1.5L bottle is only a couple $$ more than cuervo gold (which I HATE). Um. yes. I do buy tequila by the 1.5L bottle. Don't judge!

Anejo tequila is aged even more and is even darker with more complex flavors that it picks up from the wood. I love anejo in margaritas but you will never find it without asking for it because it has a definite flavor of its own. My favorite home margarita?

we used the nips because it is a very very expensive margarita and a special occasion, lol. Don Julio anejo, cointreau, fresh squeezed lime and a squeeze of agave. My ratio is: 2 tequila : 1 orange liqueur : 1 freshly squeezed lime juice in a shaker with TONS of ice (make sure the booze is no cooler than room temperature, it NEEDS to mellow out with melted ice) and a squirt of two of light agave syrup - shake vigorously for a long time until it gets a little foamy. This is margarita perfection. My usual is hornitos reposado and either O3 or patron citronage because both are much more reasonably priced and 95% as good as don julio and cointreau. And I don't drink all that often, but I just can't resist a bargain of the bigger bottles lol. I think we've been working on the 1.5 liter for about 3 years now... we just make them with mexican feasts usually... bf makes a mean carnitas, which is part of why I am so enamored with him in spite of the fact that we will never do V&A together!

Well R is a dessert-a-holic so I could do without many of the sweets but I nevertheless participate in their consumption.

that is what I miss about traveling with another adult. I do like sweets but I find that the first bite is best and it is rapidly diminishing returns on bites after... if I had someone to share with I'd be happy with a bite or 3 depending on what it is!

DISNEY IS COMING SOON! I am away from my laptop at present (may or may not be at Disney again... I seriously need a 12 step program ) but I will get some reviews posted as soon as I can get my photo hosting sorted.

YAY disney. Yeah if i had more money i'd be there more often. The dining report helps with the re-entry pain. Though I still on occasion take a pic of my food when we are out and the kid is all "MOM! we're not at disney anymore!" ha

 

[ariane37]

OMG on booking for 2017 I would have completely lost it so kudos to you!!! Even though your experience wasn't good overall, it's just good they had a room for you because it saved you the time and worry of having to find another place to stay........but next time you book a trip, double check the year lol!

Chocolate raspberry and salted caramel blondie ice cream scoops from Florean Fortescue's in Diagon Alley

OMG again because both those flavors sound perfect to me! Whenever I make it to Universal again I have to get in there. We missed Florean Fortescue's completely last time.

Kind of like a hand pie

I meant to quote where you asked if that was just a southern term because you know I'm a true northerner and I've never heard it before so maybe it is? It sounds a bit weird to me but I'm sure lots of things we say up here would sound weird to you

 

[Shelbizzles]

Welcome! So glad you came out of lurkdom here on my report Sanaa and California Grill are two of our always-favorites. We always sit in the Sanaa lounge which means you don't need reservations! But I have enjoyed their dining room as well and the super views of the animals during daylight hours. California Grill almost needs no further introduction but I will tell you it factored heavily into my favorite day of the whole trip! Those fireworks... Sigh. What are some of your favorite restaurants? Come on into the conversation, the water's fine

Thanks for the welcome

Ahh Sanaa sounds so nice. I was thinking lunch so that we could hopefully see the animals a bit better. That bread service just sounds so amazing. I had originally been thinking Yak and Yeti for our Ak day but I'm trading it for Sanaa

I haven't been to a ton of restaurants because sadly I haven't been to Disney very much. I live pretty far away in freezing cold Michigan (why do I live here and not near Disney??)

But the one that I do remember enjoying the most our last trip was Rose and Crown (not necessarily the food but the atmosphere, they sat us by the water and we got to see illuminations. I was on and I'm slightly obsessed with the U.K. And their culture. So that prolly sways me lol)
Great views of the fireworks really make some restaurants amazing!!

California grill just looks amazing!! Amazing food on top of the contemporary WITH fireworks viewing?? How can you beat it?

For my trip in September I'm really trying to expand my Disney restaurants to hopefully outside the parks! They just seem so nice and unique. My hubby doesn't want to travel to resorts TOO much though. He likes to enjoy the parks since we only get to go once a year. Maybe two years.

I'm rambling though

Look forward to more reviews

 

[buteraa]

Following along. Great reviews so far and excited to read more!

 

[Disneyhayes]

Jumping in!

 

[Vernie822]

Sooo first off I would've cried in the lobby and melted into a puddle... Good on you for sticking through it! I don't know what I would've done if I somehow ended up there a YEAR early.. :O

So how did this happen that we booked the platinum dining plan? Well I'll tell you: I lost my marbles. I started planning this blowout New Year's celebration at WDW thinking we could always postpone or cancel the package, and then midway through the year Disney announced it was only offering three dining plans in 2017, none of which included tours or Victoria & Albert's (spoiler alert). So I knew it was now or never - Platinum NYE 2k16 or bust.

I crack up every time I see that GIF.. Hilarious!! So excited to read about all of these signatures!!

That is why you are about to read about a super crazy split stay - we stayed at Universal for a night, the Villas at Wilderness Lodge for a night (now the Boulder Ridge Villas), Wilderness Lodge for three nights, and Animal Kingdom Lodge - Jambo House Villas for a night. A total of 7 days, 6 nights of beautiful, insane, Disneyness (and Universalness).

Whoa baby!!

Upon giving my name, the team member on the desk informed me that my reservation was actually for December 27, 2017, which meant I was checking in a full year early. She figured this was a glitch and asked me to pull up my reservation, so I did, and it also said 2017

Lawd.. I can't even!!

Ooooh, these look good!! My husband has never met a nacho he didn't like (has anyone!?) .. I love that they keep the chips from getting too naked.. Classy!

I've heard of hand pies before. Back in PA they have a lot of Amish country and I think they refer to them as hand pies and fry pies. Either way, that looks delicious!

 

[pepperandchips]

12/28 Continued - Our first Disney Day!!!

We'd gotten our "room ready" text for the Villas at Wilderness Lodge (sorry, I am just not ready to make the terminology switch to Boulder Ridge - too soon!) around 11:20 but we were in Universal enjoying a last few attractions. We'd bandied about the idea of going to the Hard Rock Hotel pool and getting lunch at Citywalk but, to my surprise, R was ready to get over to Disney as much as I was.

Around 12:50 pm we came upon this glorious sight:

We've stayed at the Wilderness Lodge before so we just went ahead and self parked and lugged our stuff into the main lobby before traipsing over to the villas building.

I basked in the glow of the tree for a few minutes before we headed off to find our room, which was #5521, right off the elevator and overlooking the lake. It was a great location and had this lovely (?) view:

Being a disney dork, I loved seeing the progress of the new villas pool and grill out there. Anyway, the only complaint at all I had about our room there was that I had forgotten to request a non-enclosed balcony so we were in a dormer-type room so if you sat down on the balcony you couldn't see out. Not really a big deal since we were only there one night, otherwise I loved this room which had a huge tall ceiling and was very convenient. We got some free pins in the room thanking us for our patience during the construction, which wasn't really an impact on our stay at all to speak of so that was fine.

We changed clothes and went down to the pool, planning some relaxation time in the lovely Orlando weather since it was not pool climate at home this time of year.

I got a fruity drink, which is totally required poolside no matter what you normally drink... "Banana Cabana - Cruzan mango rum, Cruzan coconut rum, creme de banana, with orange and pineapple juice and a float of grenadine" (I asked for the grenadine omitted which they obliged)

R had a beer, I think a Kona Longboard. We had a burger and chicken nuggets from Roaring Forks and a second round of drinks at some point but I didn't take pictures of these items, as my drink looked like a rum and coke and you all know what beer, nuggets, and burgers look like. After the pool, R took a nap while I took a nice hot bath and we relaxed in the room for a bit.

At 7:00 we made some room dranks and decided to milk the end of the Christmas holidays by enjoying our cocktails in the lobby on the second floor in the sitting area near the fireplace, where we had a lovely vantage point of the decor .

Around 8:00, we headed to the Territory Lounge and had no problem finding an open table. I love this lounge - the theming is immersive and calming, the service is always fabulous, and their offerings are the perfect mix of upscale and bar food, so you can suit all palates. Forgive the image quality here, I had to do some editing because the lighting in the lounge is so yellow, so if any of the food is unnatural color, that is why.

I started with the pinot noir flight ($22) which included Sokol Blossner, Solena, and Willamette Valley Vineyards pinot noir pours. R had a bourbon and soda which you can see in the background ($10, probably maker's mark but I don't remember). I liked the choices in the flight and ended up having a second full size glass of one of them (the Solena?) which I can't confirm because upon my review of the receipt we were not charged for the glass of wine. It had gotten a little more hectic so I guess he just didn't ring it in (no complaints from me!)

Next up, we had what we'd come specifically to Territory Lounge to try:

The House Bread with Lardo Butter and Sea Salt $6.00. This had been recommended to us on our last visit and it was good, but not as mind blowing as I'd been led to believe. The lardo butter tastes of whipped pork fat (which it is) and it was delicious, but the sea salt butter is always a hit for me so we enjoyed both on the nice, crusty brown bread. R really really liked the lardo butter so I am glad we tried it.

Next up was the "Land Greens Salad - heirloom apples, seed granola, Banyuls vinegar $13" which was nice and light and fresh. Despite the picture this was a large salad and we struggled to finish it all. R was delighted that the greens came from Epcot and I thought that was pretty cool too.

The signature soup! Oh gosh, this was another reason I'd wanted to have dinner at the Territory Lounge and unlike the Lardo Butter, I cannot recommend this highly enough. I have no idea what they put in the "Smoked Portobello Bisque - crispy oyster mushrooms, fines herbes $12" but it tastes so rich and hearty without tasting too much of just cream. I think we just about licked the bowl clean. $12 is a lot for soup but it's totally justified in this case. It was very satisfying and I am sure I will make a point to have this again. It's perfectly suited for the ambiance of the lounge and was a great winter treat.

Our eyes were bigger than our stomachs, but we'd loved the flatbread in the past so we had to have it again:

"Caprese Flatbread - heirloom tomatoes, garlic, ricotta, EVOO, sea salt $13" and if memory serves, the ricotta is house made and absolutely decadent. The tomatoes are so fresh and this is just a super tasty dish. Everything on the flatbread is fresh tasting and somehow manages to feel light, despite basically being a pizza. I really enjoyed this again. The leftovers got eaten later in the trip...

We finished the meal with "Artist Point Cobbler - seasonal berries, black raspberry ice cream $13" which R really really enjoyed and I thought was okay. I wasn't craving dessert anyway, but cobbler is not my thing - I remember one of the seasonal berries was gooseberries, which was pretty neat. You can see one there as a garnish with the husk sticking off of it in the back.

Our dining plan had not yet started and we didn't have an active Tables in Wonderland card yet, since our package with tickets to be upgraded started the next morning. Total out of pocket for this meal with no discount was $105.44, which included my wine flight and R's two bourbons. I think this was pretty fair considering all the food we had. We enjoyed our meal as usual and had great service. Territory Lounge, winning as always!

After dinner, we went back to our room and within a few minutes I was shocked to hear the lilting strains of the Electrical Water Pageant! I did not even think about it being part of the entertainment on Bay Lake. We had a great view from our balcony and I was so overjoyed. I might have cried a little.

Up next: we kick off the PLATINUM PLAN with the Yuletide Fantasy tour and lunch at Le Cellier!

Off topic PSA: I uploaded a bunch of pictures from the Epcot Festival of the Arts with some quick reviews over on the main Dining Reviews board so check it out if you're interested!

 

[pepperandchips]

Following along. Great reviews so far and excited to read more!

Yay, thank you, and WELCOME!

Jumping in!

Come on in, the water is fine! Glad to have you

Ooooh, these look good!! My husband has never met a nacho he didn't like (has anyone!?) .. I love that they keep the chips from getting too naked.. Classy!

Your husband is a man of good taste! I am in the same boat. We actually went to Margaritaville specifically to try these. I can't remember if I mentioned that in the review anyway they did not disappoint!

Back in PA they have a lot of Amish country and I think they refer to them as hand pies and fry pies. Either way, that looks delicious!

Oh and it was absolutely delicious! I just love that it's pumpkin-y without being too sweet.

And of course thank you for coming over to my reviews thread Ashley!!! I always love yours and am glad to have you here.