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

[fallonkendra]

I was so lonely without you while you were off busy getting engaged and whatever!!!!

Haha, it's nice to know I was missed. I'll be getting my trip report started today!

unfortunately I do not recommend this tour.

I enjoy your honesty haha.

(The word I wanted to use was disgusting but that's not very descriptive, is it?)

I actually laughed out loud at this. If I don't like something, I'm not subtle about it either.

usually La Fin Du Monde

Funny story - even though we are Canadian, my fiance had never tried La Fin du Monde until we went to Disney in 2016. It's now his primary beer of choice, and he came home just last night with a few of them.

I chose the "Nanaimo Pie - chocolate hazelnut crust, coconut custard, cream anglaise $11".

This looks... wrong. I grew up eating nanaimo bars (which I'm pretty sure this dessert is supposed to be based on, only fancier because it's a signature restaurant). This is the recipe I found online (and sounds familiar to the one I'm used to as a kid) I even found a picture of what they should look like:

Nanaimo Bar Recipe
Bottom Layer½ cup unsalted butter (European style cultured)
¼ cup sugar
5 tbsp. cocoa
1 egg beaten
1 ¼ cups graham wafer crumbs
½ c. finely chopped almonds
1 cup coconut

Melt first 3 ingredients in top of double boiler. Add egg and stir to cook and thicken. Remove from heat. Stir in crumbs, coconut, and nuts. Press firmly into an ungreased 8" x 8" pan.

Second Layer½ cup unsalted butter
2 Tbsp. and 2 Tsp. cream
2 Tbsp. vanilla custard powder
2 cups icing sugar

Cream butter, cream, custard powder, and icing sugar together well. Beat until light. Spread over bottom layer.

Third Layer4 squares semi-sweet chocolate (1 oz. each)
2 Tbsp. unsalted butter

Melt chocolate and butter over low heat. Cool. Once cool, but still liquid, pour over second layer and chill in refrigerator.

spoiler alert: this is the only attraction we ended up riding the entire trip at Disney

I was looking at the details of the premium dining plan, and that's the first thing that crossed my mind - when would you have time to go on the rides?!

Great view from your room! Looking forward to hearing about your V&A supper!

 

[cinderkelly]

Eeekkk! I'm so totally in! Omgeee, the platinum plan , I had no idea it went away tho. I got as far as where all you ate ( and stayed) and you had me hooked!

I've never been to Universal but I'm a big HP fan, so I'm going back to read now!

 

[Mom2m&k]

Really enjoying your trip report so far! Can't wait to hear about Victoria and Alberts!

 

[ariane37]

unfortunately I do not recommend this tour.

There, I said it, this tour was boring.

Oh man, I've always thought this tour sounded so interesting! Sorry it wasn't. I'd be disappointed if I felt I'd waste precious Disney hours.

I have to say neither dessert was anything to write home about

I keep debating going back to Le Cellier; the filet looks so good! But even positive reports seem to say dessert is just "ok"

After our lunch, we rode Soarin' with a fastpass (spoiler alert: this is the only attraction we ended up riding the entire trip at Disney

WHAT!!!! Food is definitely important, yes, but ONE attraction? I think that's against the rules!!

Funny story - even though we are Canadian, my fiance had never tried La Fin du Monde until we went to Disney in 2016. It's now his primary beer of choice, and he came home just last night with a few of them.

I may have told you this but I first tried La Fin in Canada in Epcot and now it's always in our fridge

 

[alex9179]

V&A! DH and I had our 11th anniversary dinner there. We never seem to do justice to the "milestone" years. Anyway, 4 yrs later we dream about going back. It's why I started cooking with purpose. I'm not at that level, of course, but I'm MUCH better. I really loved dressing up (we never do) but I could have totally used some jammies on the way back to the resort!

 

[vinotinto]

Joining in! I'm also in Hotlanta, and the funny thing is that on the platinum plan, I would have chosen the restaurants you chose!

May the platinum plan RIP. I never go to to try it, so I'll live vicariously.

 

[nco91590]

What the? Did I miss something? Is WL building their own version of the bungalows????

 

[pepperandchips]

Ugh, so sorry that tour was a bust!! You'd think it would be really informative and fun.

I know. I was most looking forward to this one. Don't worry though, they got WAY better!

Hahahahaha... I swear people look at me funny when I tell them I go to Disney and don't ride much but I'm there for the food, too. Love the new Soarin!!

Between the delicious food, the bizarre-o alternate reality where almost everyone is happy and almost everything is clean, and spending quality time with people I love most, I *almost* don't need the rides. Almost.

Wow this looks crazy different from when I had it in April! I love me some coconut too so I'm always up for a coconut dessert. Mine was way more chocolatey and I really liked it. Sounds like you had a great meal!

Boo. I feel like I got cheated! I will just need to go back in search of MORE COCONUT DESSERT!!!! Speaking of which, have you had the coconut macaroon from sunshine seasons? oh yea. That's what's up. There's a little coconut magic ahead in this report, come to think of it...

it definitely is one of those things where a very little goes a very long way.

Yeaaaahhh. I don't even know if it was the cloves but I normally like cider and this was just... woof.

Oh god already planning lunch here, lol. Don't read reviews when hungry for dinner!

No kidding! Sometimes editing these posts is torture in and of itself. And then someone goes and writes an ode to a new favorite restaurant and I'm over here checking the Disney website for resort pricing...

Funny story - even though we are Canadian, my fiance had never tried La Fin du Monde until we went to Disney in 2016. It's now his primary beer of choice, and he came home just last night with a few of them.

It's funny you say that because I see Unibroue beer on a fairly regular basis here in the liquor store or even at Trader Joe's but I have never bought it for home. It's like it's one of those special disney things that I haven't made part of home life in order to keep it special (but without even realizing it)

This looks... wrong. I grew up eating nanaimo bars (which I'm pretty sure this dessert is supposed to be based on, only fancier because it's a signature restaurant). This is the recipe I found online (and sounds familiar to the one I'm used to as a kid) I even found a picture of what they should look like:

OKAY NOW I REALLY FEEL CHEATED! The homemade version looks amazing. Going to have to make those sometime.

I was looking at the details of the premium dining plan, and that's the first thing that crossed my mind - when would you have time to go on the rides?!

Um, you don't!

Great view from your room!

I know I loved it so much. I was torn up on check out day. Don't worry, there were mimosas to ease my blues.

 

[pepperandchips]

Eeekkk! I'm so totally in! Omgeee, the platinum plan , I had no idea it went away tho. I got as far as where all you ate ( and stayed) and you had me hooked!

I know, I know... I am a great salesman for things no one else can have. However, I think my final recommendation on the platinum plan would be to scale it back and do the DDxP or however it's abbreviated. We just had so much... err... way too ENORMOUSLY much food.

I've never been to Universal but I'm a big HP fan, so I'm going back to read now!

Oh, get thee over to the Universal ASAP lady! It's a foodie paradise at a fraction of the price. (Although I've only been to Universal about 1/10 as many times as WDW)

Really enjoying your trip report so far! Can't wait to hear about Victoria and Alberts!

Thank you! V&A coming up next!!!

I'd be disappointed if I felt I'd waste precious Disney hours.

Well I heard some cast members talking when we told them they were doing Yuletide Fantasy and the one who'd done it was pretty lukewarm on it, so that was the first red flag. And apparently Yuletide Fantasy is run by the Disney Institute or something like that and none of the others are. Maybe backstage magic, but I think that's it. I think the others are all guest services functions and those CMs just blew away the guides on Yuletide Fantasy.

I keep debating going back to Le Cellier; the filet looks so good! But even positive reports seem to say dessert is just "ok"

Oh man that lunch was so so incredible. I can't wait to take the rest of my family! And try poutine! Really, I feel that one should be so full after her scrumptious dinner that she must pace herself and have dessert a few hours later... so in that regard the dining plan is not really my thing. But I would absolutely recommend Le Cellier but I would grab dessert somewhere else in Epcot or at the Boardwalk.

WHAT!!!! Food is definitely important, yes, but ONE attraction? I think that's against the rules!!

I know! I couldn't believe it myself. THat's the danger of the AP I think... I never believed it or thought it would be the case with us but I'm actually okay now with relaxed trips where we aren't rushing to the attractions. It was also INCREDIBLY busy at the parks when we were there so we were sort of in a "get in, get stuff done, get out ASAP" mode.

I may have told you this but I first tried La Fin in Canada in Epcot and now it's always in our fridge

I may have to start stocking it at my house too! It's so funny that it's basically our go-to beer at WDW but I've never once bought it at home. I have bought the Shoferhofer (I know that's not spelled properly but I'm too lazy to google right now) and it just wasn't the same without the Germany pavilion!!

V&A! DH and I had our 11th anniversary dinner there. We never seem to do justice to the "milestone" years. Anyway, 4 yrs later we dream about going back. It's why I started cooking with purpose. I'm not at that level, of course, but I'm MUCH better. I really loved dressing up (we never do) but I could have totally used some jammies on the way back to the resort!

Really 11 is more important than 10... I mean you made it an entire extra year! We are big into "celebrating nothing" and not making much of "occasions" so I totally get where you are coming from. Maybe we'll get back around to V&A's in another 5 years so I'll hope that for you as well. And I'll join you in dreaming until then...

Funny how I was telling R that I usually pick up a few ideas to try making at home from all of the Epcot festivals. We do a breakfast potato hash with bacon that came from F&W, a watermelon salad inspired by Flower & Garden, and so on so I totally get where you are coming from with your inspiration!

It was fun to dress up for V&A but we never found a photopass photographer that night so our lone photo is a little blurry. Oh well, we dress up a fair amount in real life and it was a special treat, photo or no.

Joining in! I'm also in Hotlanta, and the funny thing is that on the platinum plan, I would have chosen the restaurants you chose!

May the platinum plan RIP. I never go to to try it, so I'll live vicariously.

First of all, love the username! Vino tinto is my favorite but V&A's got me on the other vino too... Glad to hear you like the restaurant picks! I don't think we would change any of them even if one experience didn't really live up to my expectations... I know, I know...

What the? Did I miss something? Is WL building their own version of the bungalows????

YES! They aren't out over the water but WL is building like 30 waterfront cabins. Apparently they are not going to stay these pastel colors (thank goodness) but WL is construction mayhem right now. Funny enough it did not bother us in the slightest and it was kinda cool to see what they were working on. Right now they have one whole side of WL's "U" shaped building completely closed and turning them into DVC villas. Not gonna lie it was pretty awesome staying at a half full resort. BRING ON THE POOL CHAIRS!

 

[jesswindsor]

Great Reviews!! Can't wait for more!!

 

[pepperandchips]

Great Reviews!! Can't wait for more!!

THank you so much! Working on my V&A write up presently.

 

[Lisa F]

THank you so much! Working on my V&A write up presently.

well get to it!!!!! I'm waiting!

 

[pepperandchips]

well get to it!!!!! I'm waiting!

YES MA'AM!!!

 

[pepperandchips]

12/29/16 Continued - Most Amazing Disney Meal EVER!

Of course you know I am talking about Victoria & Albert's, the crown jewel of Disney dining, secreted away from prying eyes behind a pair of lovely wooden doors and off the main Grand Floridian lobby near the check in point for Citricos. But I'm already getting ahead of myself here.

After our rest, we took our time getting ready and dressing, and I opened a bottle of wine we'd bought at the lobby shop the night before. It was "Cowboy Cabernet" ($19) and I would more aptly call this one a Cowboy Cabernasty. It was sweet and cloying and artificial tasting. I would skip this one. Anyway, we did enjoy getting gussied up for our date night and took our time traveling to dinner, opting to travel via boat to the Contemporary and then via monorail to the Grand. We arrived a few minutes ahead of our 7:30 second seating reservation in search of a photopass photographer to commemorate our fanciness, but as we never located one, we were right on time for dinner.

Upon entering the shared entry area for V&A's and Citrico's, a cast member immediately came from behind the desk and asked if we'd be dining at Victoria and Albert's (guess R's jacket was a giveaway?) and ushered us through the aforementioned mystery doors. And when I say mystery, I mean it. It was like a portal into another dimension. We left behind us the Disney World of happy shrieks and candy-coated children's smiling faces and entered a realm of soft voices, low lighting, romance, impeccable service, and tasty tasty artfully prepared food.

We were shown to our table quickly, which was a round table (what I'd normally call a table for four at any other restaurant) but based on the way they had the tables and chairs arranged, we were facing into the center of the room toward the harpist and in view of a couple of larger parties, but somehow secluded from our nearest neighbors. We were close enough to hear the conversation of the louder of two neighboring couples, but I never saw the face that matched the voice of the female in the pair. Alas, the mystery remains.

Anyway we made ourselves as comfortable as we could, given our relative unease at being someplace so decidedly... fancy. Would I use the wrong fork? Would I embarrass myself? Would I think all the food was icky?

In short order, we were introduced to our servers and all of these doubts vanished for the remainder of the evening. Our main server was Anita, which I am not certain I would recall now that I'm a month removed, but fortunately her name was printed on the receipt. Our other server was wonderful and warm and helpful and I cannot for the life of me remember his name.

Above is our menu for the night. The 7-course prix fixe was what was included on the platinum plan and neither of us saw the need (or ability) to enjoy 10 courses, so we went with the 7-course option. On the 10-course side of the menu, our names are printed as a keepsake, which was a really wonderful touch. Of course the photo I posted is not from the restaurant, I took that at home. At the restaurant the menu is presented much more nicely. So, I will warn you in advance that our next selection colored the rest of the evening for us: we both ordered the wine pairing. So that was a lot of wine! (And a lot of incredible wine at that) But the memories of some of the dishes that weren't my favorite have faded a bit at the edges due to the six wine pours... and I was enjoying my date night and I did not take notes during the meal. Sorry, DISers.

Here is a vantage from our table with our first wine pour, the Drappier Brut Rose. If you look past the glass of Rose in the center of the photo you can see the harp - the harpist was a highlight of this experience. She played on and off throughout our entire evening and her song library included a number of pop and indie songs that brought me smiles each time I recognized something new and unexpected. She mixed those in with some holiday selections and classical numbers and it was absolutely the perfect auditory accompaniment to such a fine meal.

For four of the seven courses, there was a choice between two options so R and I just ordered one of each and shared everything. For the amuse bouche there was no choice obviously, and the entree and dessert courses each had more than two options but we shared those as well and duplicated nothing. For some reason I did not take a photo of the amuse bouche and of course I have no recollection of what it was. The rose, however, I do remember liking a lot. It was crisp and not sweet and a great celebratory start to the meal.

First course (above): Octopus "a la Plancha" with Baby Beets, paired with Basilio Izquierdo Garnacha Blanca/Viura. The wine was a crisp, light white as you would expect to be paired with seafood. I don't like beets and I don't much care for seafood, and I certainly don't care for rubber, which is what the texture of the octopus was like. Actually to be fair it was more like crab and rubber had a baby. This was served cold and I think you can tell that I did not care for it. But I did try it and I was proud of myself for doing so!

First course: Rohan Duck with Soba Noodles, paired with Poet's Leap Riesling. Riesling is not one of my favorite varietals so I was surprised to find that I enjoyed this one (I know, I know, I'm already making enemies! ) as it had a nice balance of flavors and wasn't too sweet. There was a dryness and earthiness to the wine that I really appreciated with the duck. The duck itself was perfect - the preparation evoked asian flavors for me with that brown umami taste that's so hard to get at home. There were some crisp veggies served with this and I got to enjoy most of the duck since I let R have all but a bite of the octopus.

Okay, I promise this is going to be the last bit of negative and I will come back from the precipice of sounding like a picky, whiny, baby.

Second (seafood) course: Pumpernickel Crusted King Salmon with Lemongrass Sabayon, paired with Merry Edwards Sauvignon Blanc (2013).

I will start with the positive: this is the best wine I have EVER EVER had in my whole life and I would never have expected that as I am a huge red wine fan. I took one sip of this wine and felt the sunlight on the hills and smelled the wind in a vineyard. I know that sounds absolutely ridiculous (and it is) but this was one of those life changing moments that you read about in a novel where you are in the perfect place at the perfect time and the earth shifts on its axis a bit and a smile just enters your soul. Yep. And I hated the salmon because I hate the way salmon tastes and I have texture issues with squishy stuff and this was squishy and salmony and I couldn't get over it. I tried two small bites - I wish I loved salmon but I just can't do it, and I know if any place could convert me it would be V&A's, so I think I just have deficient tastebuds. I'm sure if you like salmon this would be heavenly as R enjoyed it very much. I did drink almost all of this wine.

Second (seafood) course: Seared Diver Scallop with Melted Red Cabbage and Shallot Jam paired with Mas de Daumas Gassac

Our server described the garnish on the plate as "everything bagel" seasoning and it was exactly like that! I love bagels and I liked this presentation a lot. I struggle with scallops because of the texture - they can be too chewy or squishy for me but I was able to enjoy this one by cutting very thin pieces and taking some of the crunchy garnish with it. The red cabbage was also helpful in that regard. The actual flavor of the scallop was very good, buttery and light and fresh. Yet despite the light flavor and not overpowering the scallop, there was a nice brown flavor to the accompaniments that kept this from being one-note. The wine was another shining star in this course - R and I kept swapping the two wines back and forth as they were both so different and so good. This one was definitely more earthy while the Merry Edwards had a very round, fruit flavor.

Third course: Green Circle Chicken with Chestnuts and Butternut Squash, paired with Lange Reserve Pinot Noir

This was a very autumnal dish and was complex, rich and brown. The chicken was perfectly prepared and retained its moisture and a great chicken flavor (some chicken tastes like nothing... this was definitely not one of them). Among so many stars though, this was simply a nice member of the ensemble. We did enjoy it but I wouldn't remember to name it if I was picking out the best dishes of the meal. As for the wine, I am usually a big pinot noir fan and I recall being surprised that this was not one of my more favorite wines of the evening. Probably because this dish was outshone in a major way by...

Third course: Loin of rabbit with Kalamata Olives and Lemon Gremolata paired with Caparzo Brunello di Montalcino.

We should have gotten two of the rabbit, but who'd have known? We were practically fighting over the little sausage you see on the left of the plate. Every single morsel on this plate was absolutely scrumptious - rich and deep flavors that were still light enough to keep you wanting more. I love the idea of "prepared 3 ways" type dishes and this one was a home run. I liked this wine a bit better than the pinot noir - it was a nice dry red and complemented the delicious rabbit dish very well.

Fourth (main) course: Lamb Loin with Cassis, Rutabaga, and House Made Ricotta paired with Bodegas Alto Moncayo Veraton Garnacha. Another star - V&A's was really shining by this course, and the lamb was perfectly seasoned and prepared. The cherry flavor from the cassis accented the natural lamb flavor in a way that highlighted the richness of the dish without bringing out any extra game flavor. I'm sure this wine was good but I don't recall much about it. Go figure, I was only how many glasses in?

Where is the emoji for angels trumpeting?

Fourth (main) course: Australian Kobe-Style Beef with Bordelaise Sauce paired with Clos Canon Grand Cru. Holy moly. The thing that looks like marrow is actually short rib stuffed inside a piece of potato, or root vegetable of some sort and it was so incredibly delicious. And just look at that beef! Buttery insanity in beef format. I actually enjoyed the sauce which I would usually find to be superfluous on such a lovely preparation of beef, but this was another home run. The wine was a deep and dry merlot/cab franc blend that was big enough to stand up to the beef but not big enough for me to list as one of the top three of the night (interestingly, none of the reds were).

At this time we were offered and accepted coffee. Above is the very interesting coffee set up, of which I am infinitely jealous and would require immediately for my own possession were I not living in a 900 square foot apartment with no room for such an indulgent coffee toy. If you have not been to V&A's or have not been stalking reviews like I did prior to my trip, let me tell you briefly how it works: the small burner underneath the water chamber heats the water such that it evaporates/boils up into the top chamber, where it mingles with the coffee grounds and brews the coffee. The heat source is removed and the pressure in the lower chamber drops, and the liquid from the top chamber (now coffee) flows past the glass rod back into the lower chamber to be served. This was very cool to watch! It made a dark, rich, espresso-like coffee.

Fifth (palate cleanser) course: Honey Ice Cream with Warm Whiskey Butterscotch paired with Vietti Moscato D'Asti.

This honey ice cream was incredibly rich and delicious without being too sweet or over the top. The wine was way too sweet for us but I'm sure we drank it anyway... Which leads me to admit I can't remember what was in the little glass. I think it was a spiced tea of some sort but again... wine...

Fifth (cheese) course: Selection of Cheese from the Market, paired with Rare Wine Co. Series Baltimore Rainwater Madeira.

Anita told us a bit about this Madeira selection and the historical aim of the wine company making it. This is a wine from a time gone by, and the current wine makers are seeking to reintroduce it to the American culture of the here and now. I could definitely taste the nuances and difference in the Madeira versus the Moscato D'Asti but unfortunately neither of us has much of a palate for sweet wine so we didn't appreciate this as much as we should have. The cheese selections were scrumptious and perfect as I generally find nearly all cheese to be. The portions seemed tiny upon presentation but we had a hard time finishing all of it! The Marcona almonds were a welcome sight and we really enjoyed this course.

Thank goodness for us (and you), the wine was over. I am so grateful we tried it as I think I learned a lot from the pairings and I got to branch out and try things I would not normally have an opportunity (or desire) to taste. I did a poor job remembering and describing all of the pairings but I assure you we appreciated them all (whether we liked them or not) and this meal opened me up to a whole new world of sauvignon blanc!

Sixth (dessert) course: Tanzanian Chocolate Mousse served with Orange-Scented Milk Chocolate Gelato

Sixth (dessert) course: Caramelized Banana Gateau

These were recommended to us by Anita, who suggested we take bites of each together, and she was so right! We loved the flavors together and separately and I am glad we chose these desserts, but I had originally planned on either the Grand Marnier souffle or the Hawaiian Kona Chocolate Souffle so we surprised even me with these options! Anita told us that the Tanzanian was the "chocolate-y-er" option of the choices and we are nothing if not a pair of chocoholics. We very much enjoyed dessert and our coffees and a couple of the truffles that were presented to us at the end of the meal (sorry, I didn't photograph those either or take notes on what we had).

All in all, this was an amazing once-in-a-lifetime type of experience that I am so glad we tried on the platinum plan where I didn't feel the need to "ENJOY EVERY CENT OF THE MEAL BECAUSE I PAID $XXX.XX for it!!!" If you know what I mean. Yes, this meal is expensive. But the service is indulgent, the food amazing and obviously hand crafted with a lot of care, and the wines perfectly paired for your maximum enjoyment. It was luxurious in every way, but not something we're dying to get back and do on the next trip or anything like that.

On our way out (at 11:01 pm) Anita took our photo:

I was presented a boxed rose on the way out, which lived from December 29th until about January 10th, which was a lovely remembrance of our special night. We called an uber from the Grand Floridian and put our rear ends to bed since we had an early morning the next day.

Math in this post: Our package paid $394.05 for our meals (2 entitlements) and we paid $343.65 out of pocket for the wine pairings ($105 each) and tip.

Up next: Backstage Tales, and Tiffins for lunch!

 

[kastoney]

Not sure how I missed your report before now, but I am here now and after your full couple of reviews me and my drool are officially on the edge of our seats.

V&A looks absolutely amazing. What a perfect food and drink experience. I've yet to convince the hubby to go, but one of these days...

 

[alex9179]

When we went, I intentionally ordered items that didn't thrill me. For me, the evening was about exploring and tasting some of the best prepared foods that I would normally never order. I had a beet carpaccio that still haunts me. I hate beets but the dish was delicious. I now order my whole chickens from the same supplier that V&A uses. Chicken, who knew it had a flavor of it's own and is tasty!

I understand texture issues. Between my own in my younger days, my friends', all of our kids...it does loom. I'm glad that you stepped out of your comfort zone. Keep doing it because our tastes change over time.

A wonderful report, even with the influence of the wine pairings Man, I want to go back so desperately!

You both looked so pretty/handsome!

 

[Chelley00]

Yay! The V&A review! I'm so impressed you made it through the wine pairings. I'm a one and done lightweight so I would have been asleep at the table by course 2. I'm so lame.

I keep going back and forth about keeping our May reservation.

 

[cinderkelly]

Wowzers, what an evening! I give you mad props for making it through all the wine pairings, plus remembering what all that lovely food tasted like!

My husband is so much like you in regards to seafood and texture, he loves fish ( in fried form) but he refuses to try lobster or scallops, and I got him to try octopus at Coral Reef and he hated it I think he was worried one of the suckers was going to stick to his throat and suffocate him or something...

Pretty dang awesome evening, love your food descriptions. Crap. Now I'm hungry.

 

[Lisa F]

12/29/16 Continued - Most Amazing Disney Meal EVER!

Of course you know I am talking about Victoria & Albert's, the crown jewel of Disney dining, secreted away from prying eyes behind a pair of lovely wooden doors and off the main Grand Floridian lobby near the check in point for Citricos. But I'm already getting ahead of myself here.

After our rest, we took our time getting ready and dressing, and I opened a bottle of wine we'd bought at the lobby shop the night before. It was "Cowboy Cabernet" ($19) and I would more aptly call this one a Cowboy Cabernasty. It was sweet and cloying and artificial tasting. I would skip this one. Anyway, we did enjoy getting gussied up for our date night and took our time traveling to dinner, opting to travel via boat to the Contemporary and then via monorail to the Grand. We arrived a few minutes ahead of our 7:30 second seating reservation in search of a photopass photographer to commemorate our fanciness, but as we never located one, we were right on time for dinner.

Upon entering the shared entry area for V&A's and Citrico's, a cast member immediately came from behind the desk and asked if we'd be dining at Victoria and Albert's (guess R's jacket was a giveaway?) and ushered us through the aforementioned mystery doors. And when I say mystery, I mean it. It was like a portal into another dimension. We left behind us the Disney World of happy shrieks and candy-coated children's smiling faces and entered a realm of soft voices, low lighting, romance, impeccable service, and tasty tasty artfully prepared food.

We were shown to our table quickly, which was a round table (what I'd normally call a table for four at any other restaurant) but based on the way they had the tables and chairs arranged, we were facing into the center of the room toward the harpist and in view of a couple of larger parties, but somehow secluded from our nearest neighbors. We were close enough to hear the conversation of the louder of two neighboring couples, but I never saw the face that matched the voice of the female in the pair. Alas, the mystery remains.

Anyway we made ourselves as comfortable as we could, given our relative unease at being someplace so decidedly... fancy. Would I use the wrong fork? Would I embarrass myself? Would I think all the food was icky?

In short order, we were introduced to our servers and all of these doubts vanished for the remainder of the evening. Our main server was Anita, which I am not certain I would recall now that I'm a month removed, but fortunately her name was printed on the receipt. Our other server was wonderful and warm and helpful and I cannot for the life of me remember his name.

Above is our menu for the night. The 7-course prix fixe was what was included on the platinum plan and neither of us saw the need (or ability) to enjoy 10 courses, so we went with the 7-course option. On the 10-course side of the menu, our names are printed as a keepsake, which was a really wonderful touch. Of course the photo I posted is not from the restaurant, I took that at home. At the restaurant the menu is presented much more nicely. So, I will warn you in advance that our next selection colored the rest of the evening for us: we both ordered the wine pairing. So that was a lot of wine! (And a lot of incredible wine at that) But the memories of some of the dishes that weren't my favorite have faded a bit at the edges due to the six wine pours... and I was enjoying my date night and I did not take notes during the meal. Sorry, DISers.

Here is a vantage from our table with our first wine pour, the Drappier Brut Rose. If you look past the glass of Rose in the center of the photo you can see the harp - the harpist was a highlight of this experience. She played on and off throughout our entire evening and her song library included a number of pop and indie songs that brought me smiles each time I recognized something new and unexpected. She mixed those in with some holiday selections and classical numbers and it was absolutely the perfect auditory accompaniment to such a fine meal.

For four of the seven courses, there was a choice between two options so R and I just ordered one of each and shared everything. For the amuse bouche there was no choice obviously, and the entree and dessert courses each had more than two options but we shared those as well and duplicated nothing. For some reason I did not take a photo of the amuse bouche and of course I have no recollection of what it was. The rose, however, I do remember liking a lot. It was crisp and not sweet and a great celebratory start to the meal.

First course (above): Octopus "a la Plancha" with Baby Beets, paired with Basilio Izquierdo Garnacha Blanca/Viura. The wine was a crisp, light white as you would expect to be paired with seafood. I don't like beets and I don't much care for seafood, and I certainly don't care for rubber, which is what the texture of the octopus was like. Actually to be fair it was more like crab and rubber had a baby. This was served cold and I think you can tell that I did not care for it. But I did try it and I was proud of myself for doing so!

First course: Rohan Duck with Soba Noodles, paired with Poet's Leap Riesling. Riesling is not one of my favorite varietals so I was surprised to find that I enjoyed this one (I know, I know, I'm already making enemies! ) as it had a nice balance of flavors and wasn't too sweet. There was a dryness and earthiness to the wine that I really appreciated with the duck. The duck itself was perfect - the preparation evoked asian flavors for me with that brown umami taste that's so hard to get at home. There were some crisp veggies served with this and I got to enjoy most of the duck since I let R have all but a bite of the octopus.

Okay, I promise this is going to be the last bit of negative and I will come back from the precipice of sounding like a picky, whiny, baby.

Second (seafood) course: Pumpernickel Crusted King Salmon with Lemongrass Sabayon, paired with Merry Edwards Sauvignon Blanc (2013).

I will start with the positive: this is the best wine I have EVER EVER had in my whole life and I would never have expected that as I am a huge red wine fan. I took one sip of this wine and felt the sunlight on the hills and smelled the wind in a vineyard. I know that sounds absolutely ridiculous (and it is) but this was one of those life changing moments that you read about in a novel where you are in the perfect place at the perfect time and the earth shifts on its axis a bit and a smile just enters your soul. Yep. And I hated the salmon because I hate the way salmon tastes and I have texture issues with squishy stuff and this was squishy and salmony and I couldn't get over it. I tried two small bites - I wish I loved salmon but I just can't do it, and I know if any place could convert me it would be V&A's, so I think I just have deficient tastebuds. I'm sure if you like salmon this would be heavenly as R enjoyed it very much. I did drink almost all of this wine.

Second (seafood) course: Seared Diver Scallop with Melted Red Cabbage and Shallot Jam paired with Mas de Daumas Gassac

Our server described the garnish on the plate as "everything bagel" seasoning and it was exactly like that! I love bagels and I liked this presentation a lot. I struggle with scallops because of the texture - they can be too chewy or squishy for me but I was able to enjoy this one by cutting very thin pieces and taking some of the crunchy garnish with it. The red cabbage was also helpful in that regard. The actual flavor of the scallop was very good, buttery and light and fresh. Yet despite the light flavor and not overpowering the scallop, there was a nice brown flavor to the accompaniments that kept this from being one-note. The wine was another shining star in this course - R and I kept swapping the two wines back and forth as they were both so different and so good. This one was definitely more earthy while the Merry Edwards had a very round, fruit flavor.

Third course: Green Circle Chicken with Chestnuts and Butternut Squash, paired with Lange Reserve Pinot Noir

This was a very autumnal dish and was complex, rich and brown. The chicken was perfectly prepared and retained its moisture and a great chicken flavor (some chicken tastes like nothing... this was definitely not one of them). Among so many stars though, this was simply a nice member of the ensemble. We did enjoy it but I wouldn't remember to name it if I was picking out the best dishes of the meal. As for the wine, I am usually a big pinot noir fan and I recall being surprised that this was not one of my more favorite wines of the evening. Probably because this dish was outshone in a major way by...

Third course: Loin of rabbit with Kalamata Olives and Lemon Gremolata paired with Caparzo Brunello di Montalcino.

We should have gotten two of the rabbit, but who'd have known? We were practically fighting over the little sausage you see on the left of the plate. Every single morsel on this plate was absolutely scrumptious - rich and deep flavors that were still light enough to keep you wanting more. I love the idea of "prepared 3 ways" type dishes and this one was a home run. I liked this wine a bit better than the pinot noir - it was a nice dry red and complemented the delicious rabbit dish very well.

Fourth (main) course: Lamb Loin with Cassis, Rutabaga, and House Made Ricotta paired with Bodegas Alto Moncayo Veraton Garnacha. Another star - V&A's was really shining by this course, and the lamb was perfectly seasoned and prepared. The cherry flavor from the cassis accented the natural lamb flavor in a way that highlighted the richness of the dish without bringing out any extra game flavor. I'm sure this wine was good but I don't recall much about it. Go figure, I was only how many glasses in?

Where is the emoji for angels trumpeting?

Fourth (main) course: Australian Kobe-Style Beef with Bordelaise Sauce paired with Clos Canon Grand Cru. Holy moly. The thing that looks like marrow is actually short rib stuffed inside a piece of potato, or root vegetable of some sort and it was so incredibly delicious. And just look at that beef! Buttery insanity in beef format. I actually enjoyed the sauce which I would usually find to be superfluous on such a lovely preparation of beef, but this was another home run. The wine was a deep and dry merlot/cab franc blend that was big enough to stand up to the beef but not big enough for me to list as one of the top three of the night (interestingly, none of the reds were).

At this time we were offered and accepted coffee. Above is the very interesting coffee set up, of which I am infinitely jealous and would require immediately for my own possession were I not living in a 900 square foot apartment with no room for such an indulgent coffee toy. If you have not been to V&A's or have not been stalking reviews like I did prior to my trip, let me tell you briefly how it works: the small burner underneath the water chamber heats the water such that it evaporates/boils up into the top chamber, where it mingles with the coffee grounds and brews the coffee. The heat source is removed and the pressure in the lower chamber drops, and the liquid from the top chamber (now coffee) flows past the glass rod back into the lower chamber to be served. This was very cool to watch! It made a dark, rich, espresso-like coffee.

Fifth (palate cleanser) course: Honey Ice Cream with Warm Whiskey Butterscotch paired with Vietti Moscato D'Asti.

This honey ice cream was incredibly rich and delicious without being too sweet or over the top. The wine was way too sweet for us but I'm sure we drank it anyway... Which leads me to admit I can't remember what was in the little glass. I think it was a spiced tea of some sort but again... wine...

Fifth (cheese) course: Selection of Cheese from the Market, paired with Rare Wine Co. Series Baltimore Rainwater Madeira.

Anita told us a bit about this Madeira selection and the historical aim of the wine company making it. This is a wine from a time gone by, and the current wine makers are seeking to reintroduce it to the American culture of the here and now. I could definitely taste the nuances and difference in the Madeira versus the Moscato D'Asti but unfortunately neither of us has much of a palate for sweet wine so we didn't appreciate this as much as we should have. The cheese selections were scrumptious and perfect as I generally find nearly all cheese to be. The portions seemed tiny upon presentation but we had a hard time finishing all of it! The Marcona almonds were a welcome sight and we really enjoyed this course.

Thank goodness for us (and you), the wine was over. I am so grateful we tried it as I think I learned a lot from the pairings and I got to branch out and try things I would not normally have an opportunity (or desire) to taste. I did a poor job remembering and describing all of the pairings but I assure you we appreciated them all (whether we liked them or not) and this meal opened me up to a whole new world of sauvignon blanc!

Sixth (dessert) course: Tanzanian Chocolate Mousse served with Orange-Scented Milk Chocolate Gelato

Sixth (dessert) course: Caramelized Banana Gateau

These were recommended to us by Anita, who suggested we take bites of each together, and she was so right! We loved the flavors together and separately and I am glad we chose these desserts, but I had originally planned on either the Grand Marnier souffle or the Hawaiian Kona Chocolate Souffle so we surprised even me with these options! Anita told us that the Tanzanian was the "chocolate-y-er" option of the choices and we are nothing if not a pair of chocoholics. We very much enjoyed dessert and our coffees and a couple of the truffles that were presented to us at the end of the meal (sorry, I didn't photograph those either or take notes on what we had).

All in all, this was an amazing once-in-a-lifetime type of experience that I am so glad we tried on the platinum plan where I didn't feel the need to "ENJOY EVERY CENT OF THE MEAL BECAUSE I PAID $XXX.XX for it!!!" If you know what I mean. Yes, this meal is expensive. But the service is indulgent, the food amazing and obviously hand crafted with a lot of care, and the wines perfectly paired for your maximum enjoyment. It was luxurious in every way, but not something we're dying to get back and do on the next trip or anything like that.

On our way out (at 11:01 pm) Anita took our photo:

I was presented a boxed rose on the way out, which lived from December 29th until about January 10th, which was a lovely remembrance of our special night. We called an uber from the Grand Floridian and put our rear ends to bed since we had an early morning the next day.

Math in this post: Our package paid $394.05 for our meals (2 entitlements) and we paid $343.65 out of pocket for the wine pairings ($105 each) and tip.



Up next: Backstage Tales, and Tiffins for lunch!

What an amazing evening! I think when you have such perfectly crafted dishes, of course you are going to be experiencing them critically... it was good that you tried the salmon, now you really know! I am a huge lover of fish and seafood so all of that sounds great to me, but not such a big fan of duck, lol. So basically you got most of your $260 a day in this one meal. Nice. So if I went solo I could expect to drop about $400 for the same experience. I still wanna!

 

[ThreeBoyMama]

Yay, have been looking forward to your V&A's review. Wow, what an experience! Everything looked amazing. I just love wine pairing menus--it's so fun to try things you normally wouldn't. You guys will remember that meal forever!