Our Adventures in Free Dining - 2 Adults x 5 Nights DDP (Complete w/a Few Pics)

[BearcatsFan]

Thursday, September 20th - Snack at Artist's Palatte at SSR

After dinner, we decided to run down to Artist's Palatte and pick up a few snacks to try and use up a few of our remaining snack credits.


We got 2 containers of Strawberries and Whipped Cream and chocolate cake for my husband.


The strawberries were good, as always. The chocolate cake was standard-issue WDW in the plastic container, nothing special, but he proclaimed it still tasty.


Rating for Both Snacks:


Approximate Total Cost: $13 (3SN Credits Used)

 

[shalom]

This is kind of a strange set-up. It is a gift shop, food court, dining room, and mini-mart all in one area..

I remember wondering how that worked for eating (we just hit the gift shop there). The seating area seemed small to me, but I would guess most people have breakfast and snacks in their units anyhow, so not as much of a morning and evening rush, maybe?

My husband chose Worms in Dirt as his dessert. For those not familiar, it is chocolate pudding with cookie crumbs on top ... with gummy worms buried inside. He liked this okay - he said some of the gummy worms had started to disintegrate inside the pudding, which gave it a rather strange texture and taste.

Middle daughter always gets worms and dirt at the Contempo Cafe. And I always think it looks nasty. I tried a bite the first time and was not impressed, have not been willing to try it again, but she always thinks it's great stuff. Good for kid food, I guess.

Oh, wait, you guys got the pudding version anyhow. She gets the cake. Never mind.

 

[BearcatsFan]

Friday, September 21st - Breakfast at Wolfgang Puck Express at Downtown Disney (Marketplace)


First Impressions: At first, to be honest, I was kind of worried. I'd heard so many great reviews about WPE here on the DIS, so I expected the place to be absolutely packed. It was *dead*. In fact, other than us, there was only one other table full of people when we got there. When we left, there were still only a total of 4 tables with people. WPE was incredibly clean and the ordering process was easy. We placed our order, then went to grab a seat and wait for our food to be brought to us.


My husband and I decided to order the Breakfast Pizza with two sides of scrambled eggs and milk to drink. Little did we know how much food this was going to be!

The breakfast pizza certainly lived up to its reputation! It was sooo good. I can't believe we put down the entire thing. It's large and definitely enough to share between two people. We enjoyed it so much that I'm going to try and make our own version here at home.

Rating for Breakfast Pizza:


The portions of scrambled eggs were huge! We probably could have only ordered one to share and it would have been more than enough with the pizza. They had a unique flavor to them, almost as if they'd been cooked on a grill. Delicious!

Rating for Scrambled Eggs:


Approximate Total Cost: $24 (OOP)


Final Thoughts: This restaurant is worth its weight in gold. To get a TS experience for QS cost is phenomenal. I had planned ahead of time to pay OOP, and it was well worth it (we were saving our final two QS for lunch today). The food was excellent, the service friendly, and the serving sizes large. We saw a plate of bacon going by that was positively huge. This will definitely be on our do-again list for our next trip.

 

[BearcatsFan]

I remember wondering how that worked for eating (we just hit the gift shop there). The seating area seemed small to me, but I would guess most people have breakfast and snacks in their units anyhow, so not as much of a morning and evening rush, maybe?

My husband said when he went down to get breakfast there was hardly anyone there, so you may be on to something. If we'd known ahead of time we would have a full kitchen, we definitely would have planned to eat more meals in.


Middle daughter always gets worms and dirt at the Contempo Cafe. And I always think it looks nasty. I tried a bite the first time and was not impressed, have not been willing to try it again, but she always thinks it's great stuff. Good for kid food, I guess.

Oh, wait, you guys got the pudding version anyhow. She gets the cake. Never mind.

I make a similar pudding version that's low-sugar, but always leave the worms out because I think they affect the flavor too much. DH forgot about that and ordered it anyhow.

 

[BearcatsFan]

Friday, September 21st - Lunch at Rainforest Cafe in Downtown Disney


First Impressions: When all our plans for the week got changed, this was a last-minute substitute in place of a Biergarten dinner ADR.

This place is large, but not quite on par with T-Rex. The atmosphere is neat - I love the aquariums - and there's something to look at everywhere. We arrived for our ADR 10 minutes early but had to wait. We were seated mid-restaurant at a tiny table for two right next to the aquarium.


After being seated, we were greeted promptly by our waiter, who took our drink orders of tea and Coke. He asked if we knew what we wanted to eat, and I told him I would need to speak to the chef.

Getting the chef took *forever*. She finally came out and frankly seemed a bit puzzled as to how to advise me on what to order. It was as if she didn't want to give any suggestions at all - she wanted me to tell her what was okay. Problem was, I didn't know what was okay ... I didn't know how the meats were prepared or if the veggies were steamed or boiled in salty broth, etc. She was very impatient with me and it showed. Finally I just gave up - after peppering her with a dozen or so questions and getting short answers (or no answer at all), I decided I'd just order what I wanted and forget trying to work with her.


In the end, I chose the Rumble in the Jungle Turkey Wrap. Definitely not the best choice considering the salty lunchmeat, but I felt this was the lesser of all other evils. I ordered it with a side salad instead of fries.

When the wrap was delivered, I found out I needn't have worried about the lunchmeat as there was mostly none in it. It was mostly wrap and very little substance. The salad came with a vinaigrette dressing (which I did not order) on the side, along with a huge chunk of bread. I gave the bread to my husband, and he couldn't bite it, it was so hard. The salad was limp and wilty and very unappetizing.

Rating for Rumble in the Jungle Turkey Wrap:


My husband ordered the Fried Shrimp with Fries. The shrimp portion was very small considering the price, and he thought the coating was rather hard and thick. He didn't care for the tarter sauce they were served with - it was too sweet for his liking. He said the fries were way too salty - he showed me a couple of them that I could actually SEE the salt on. Gross.

Rating for Fried Shrimp with Fries:


When it came to dessert, I went for my old stand-by Strawberries and Whipped Cream. This was 5 strawberries, still with tops attached, not even sliced, with about 2 Tbsp of whipped cream ... I was not expecting was for it to be charged at the maximum dollar level for a single-serving dessert ($8). I thought that was pretty outrageous. No prep even went into this - they just laid a few strawberries in a bowl and squirted out some whipped cream next to it.

Rating for Strawberries and Whipped Cream:


My husband chose the Chocolate Diablo. Now *his* dessert was something to behold! A huge slice of delicious chocolate cake with a mound of whipped cream and creamy chocolate icing. He shared a couple of bites with me (after seeing my disappointing dessert) and I tell you, this was worth every penny and then some!

Rating for Chocolate Diablo:


Total Cost of Meal: $63.88 (2TS Credits Used)


Rating for Quality of Service:


Final Thoughts: While Rainforest Cafe has a neat atmosphere, the food is seriously lacking, especially considering this was nearly a $70 lunch. The service was just okay - our server was friendly, but seemed stumped as to what to do about my wrap and salad issues. The chef here was the absolute worst I dealt with on Disney property - even the QS restaurant chefs were more helpful. She didn't want to advise me at all, but rather acted as if I were bothering her by calling her out of the kitchen to help me.

Again, I have both their names, but won't be listing them for reasons previously mentioned ...

I can say we've eaten here now for the first and last time. It isn't an experience worth repeating, and definitely not worth the 2TS credits it cost us. I'll choose T-Rex every day and twice on Sunday over RFC, even with the slow service the second time around there.

 

[BearcatsFan]

Friday, September 21st - Dinner at Artist's Palatte at SSR

I wasn't terribly hungry, and this was an early dinner prior to heading to MNSSHP.

We ended up getting an order of Chicken Nuggets with Saratoga Chips to share. They were really good, all white meat, and the portion was fairly large.

Rating for Chicken Nuggets with Saratoga Chips:


DH chose chocolate cake for his dessert (again, standard WDW chocolate cake in the plastic container) and Coke to drink.


Approximate Total Cost: $16 (1QS Credit Used)

 

[BearcatsFan]

Friday, September 21st - Snack at Sleepy Hollow at MK


I ordered the Nutella and Fresh Fruit Waffle Sandwich.

Holy moly! This thing lives up to its reputation here on the DIS! It was simply delicious and definitely decadent. The amount of fresh fruit and Nutella on it was crazy! It was so, so good!

Rating for Nutella Sandwich:


Total Cost for Snack: $5.95 (OOP)

 

[emmysmommy]

Oh my gosh!!! I became friends with the Nutella fruit waffle last trip and I miss it already!!

So odd about the RFC chef who was less than helpful. I thought they were the experts in the menu and could make appropriate suggestions... guess not in her case.

What are Saratoga chips?

 

[Ro Z]

Oh so sorry your RFC experiance wasn't good. We like it but usually for apps and drinks. But my goto sandwich is the rumble in the jungle! I love it. I just ask for turkey,bacon,lettuce,tomato and mayo. I think I get chips not fries as I am a fry snob. Lol.

 

[Ro Z]

Oh my gosh!!! I became friends with the Nutella fruit waffle last trip and I miss it already!!

So odd about the RFC chef who was less than helpful. I thought they were the experts in the menu and could make appropriate suggestions... guess not in her case.

What are Saratoga chips?

Saratoga chips are housemade potato chips. I think you would call them kettle chips. We have cape cod or nantucket chips like them here in N.E. BTW fries are not an option at Artist Palette. My DS was not happy!

 

[shalom]

I make a similar pudding version that's low-sugar, but always leave the worms out because I think they affect the flavor too much.

Ditto! I made it with the worms once for a kid's birthday, but that was it. Do not get the appeal.

This place is large, but not quite on par with T-Rex. The atmosphere is neat - I love the aquariums - and there's something to look at everywhere.

If you liked the atmosphere, you might give the RFC at Animal Kingdom a shot. It seems to get much better reviews than the one at DTD for some reason.

Holy moly! This thing lives up to its reputation here on the DIS! It was simply delicious and definitely decadent. The amount of fresh fruit and Nutella on it was crazy! It was so, so good!

Not a Nutella fan, but I say the same of their funnel cake with strawberries and whipped cream.

 

[CatNipRules]

Wednesday, September 19 - T-Rex Dinner at Downtown Disney


I spoke with Chef Chuck prior to ordering and believe it or not, he remembered us on-sight. I already knew what I wanted - it was more a case of letting him know.


I ordered the Neanderthal New York Strip, medium-well. This time, I ordered red-skinned potatoes and steamed carrots as my sides and iced team for my drink.

Once again, this meal did not disappoint. The steak was cooked to perfection, as were the veggies. Not much more to say that I didn't already say in the last review!

Rating for Special Order Neanderthal New York Strip:


My husband also ordered the Neanderthal New York Strip again. This time he didn't even bother with the mashed potatoes and went straight for the Waffle Fries as his side. He ordered Coke again to drink.

Again, everything was cooked to perfection!

Rating for Neanderthal New York Strip:


We ordered the same desserts as last time, too. Yeah, we're pretty boring that way! When we find something that works, we tend not to change things up very much.

Rating for Ice Age Indulgence and Strawberries w/Whipped Cream:


Total Cost of Meal: $93.14 (2TS Credits Used)


Quality of Service:


Final Thoughts: Chef Chuck gets , but our waiter this time was terrible! If Boatwright's was our most rushed meal, this was our slowest. He was in no hurry whatsoever (which is good and bad). He catered to larger tables in a big way, and this meal took forever due to slow service. We had to ask for our desserts, ask for refills, and ask for the bill. We must have flagged him down 8 or 9 different times because he just never checked on us. Again, I won't list his name - it's unfair to call someone out on the carpet who can't defend themselves.

Chef Chuck, on the other hand, is absolutely amazing! He actually took the time to talk with us on a personal level, got to know us a little bit. He's truly a nice guy and so, so easy to work with. He is a great example of how Disney chefs go out of their way for their guests.

Even with the mediocre service on this visit, I'd still recommend T-Rex without hesitation and it's on our must-do list for future trips.

I love the steak, but for whatever reason I can't stand cooked carrots. Steamed or otherwise. LOL! They just have a strange taste to them that I can't get past. I love them when they are raw, but cook and I don't like them.

It's a double edged sword sometimes. I hate it when we are rushed, but hate it even more when they are slow. We have a wings place that we go to and if they seat us near the bar we get the slowest service. I've taken my check up to them a few times and asked to be checked out.

I really can't wait for our ressie at T-Rex!! So very excited!!

 

[CatNipRules]

Friday, September 21st - Lunch at Rainforest Cafe in Downtown Disney


First Impressions: When all our plans for the week got changed, this was a last-minute substitute in place of a Biergarten dinner ADR.

This place is large, but not quite on par with T-Rex. The atmosphere is neat - I love the aquariums - and there's something to look at everywhere. We arrived for our ADR 10 minutes early but had to wait. We were seated mid-restaurant at a tiny table for two right next to the aquarium.


After being seated, we were greeted promptly by our waiter, who took our drink orders of tea and Coke. He asked if we knew what we wanted to eat, and I told him I would need to speak to the chef.

Getting the chef took *forever*. She finally came out and frankly seemed a bit puzzled as to how to advise me on what to order. It was as if she didn't want to give any suggestions at all - she wanted me to tell her what was okay. Problem was, I didn't know what was okay ... I didn't know how the meats were prepared or if the veggies were steamed or boiled in salty broth, etc. She was very impatient with me and it showed. Finally I just gave up - after peppering her with a dozen or so questions and getting short answers (or no answer at all), I decided I'd just order what I wanted and forget trying to work with her.


In the end, I chose the Rumble in the Jungle Turkey Wrap. Definitely not the best choice considering the salty lunchmeat, but I felt this was the lesser of all other evils. I ordered it with a side salad instead of fries.

When the wrap was delivered, I found out I needn't have worried about the lunchmeat as there was mostly none in it. It was mostly wrap and very little substance. The salad came with a vinaigrette dressing (which I did not order) on the side, along with a huge chunk of bread. I gave the bread to my husband, and he couldn't bite it, it was so hard. The salad was limp and wilty and very unappetizing.

Rating for Rumble in the Jungle Turkey Wrap:


My husband ordered the Fried Shrimp with Fries. The shrimp portion was very small considering the price, and he thought the coating was rather hard and thick. He didn't care for the tarter sauce they were served with - it was too sweet for his liking. He said the fries were way too salty - he showed me a couple of them that I could actually SEE the salt on. Gross.

Rating for Fried Shrimp with Fries:


When it came to dessert, I went for my old stand-by Strawberries and Whipped Cream. This was 5 strawberries, still with tops attached, not even sliced, with about 2 Tbsp of whipped cream ... I was not expecting was for it to be charged at the maximum dollar level for a single-serving dessert ($8). I thought that was pretty outrageous. No prep even went into this - they just laid a few strawberries in a bowl and squirted out some whipped cream next to it.

Rating for Strawberries and Whipped Cream:


My husband chose the Chocolate Diablo. Now *his* dessert was something to behold! A huge slice of delicious chocolate cake with a mound of whipped cream and creamy chocolate icing. He shared a couple of bites with me (after seeing my disappointing dessert) and I tell you, this was worth every penny and then some!

Rating for Chocolate Diablo:


Total Cost of Meal: $63.88 (2TS Credits Used)


Rating for Quality of Service:


Final Thoughts: While Rainforest Cafe has a neat atmosphere, the food is seriously lacking, especially considering this was nearly a $70 lunch. The service was just okay - our server was friendly, but seemed stumped as to what to do about my wrap and salad issues. The chef here was the absolute worst I dealt with on Disney property - even the QS restaurant chefs were more helpful. She didn't want to advise me at all, but rather acted as if I were bothering her by calling her out of the kitchen to help me.

Again, I have both their names, but won't be listing them for reasons previously mentioned ...

I can say we've eaten here now for the first and last time. It isn't an experience worth repeating, and definitely not worth the 2TS credits it cost us. I'll choose T-Rex every day and twice on Sunday over RFC, even with the slow service the second time around there.

That's just odd that the chef was so misinformed at RFC.... It would seem like that would be a requirement for a job there. Especially as a chef. I would be very leery for that simple reason.

We love RFC, but not sure if it's a must do or not. Simply because there are so many other places to eat on Disney property that are wonderful.

 

[hsmamato2]

Aw, you had such an opposite experience at Boatwrights from what we had last year. I also ordered the tenderloins and thought they were pretty big, and the service was very nice - not rushed at all. Our waitress described the pasta with the tenderloins as 'adult mac&cheese' because it's made with white cheddar, not the neon orange powdered stuff most Americans are used to.

we ate at Boatwrights 2 yrs ago,it was very good, and were stuffed.... thanks for the reports, staying here soon and dreaming.....plus I don't think we'll get breakfast at POFQ,it sounds....not so great.

 

[BearcatsFan]

Oh my gosh!!! I became friends with the Nutella fruit waffle last trip and I miss it already!!

So odd about the RFC chef who was less than helpful. I thought they were the experts in the menu and could make appropriate suggestions... guess not in her case.

What are Saratoga chips?

The Nutella waffle was sooooo good! I'm going to make them here at home, but only occasionally ... don't think I can handle that calorie/carb heft too terribly often.

Oh so sorry your RFC experiance wasn't good. We like it but usually for apps and drinks. But my goto sandwich is the rumble in the jungle! I love it. I just ask for turkey,bacon,lettuce,tomato and mayo. I think I get chips not fries as I am a fry snob. Lol.

My husband wants to go back again just for the chocolate diablo.

Saratoga chips are housemade potato chips. I think you would call them kettle chips. We have cape cod or nantucket chips like them here in N.E. BTW fries are not an option at Artist Palette. My DS was not happy!

We thought it was odd that fries were not an option. We loved the chips, though!

Ditto! I made it with the worms once for a kid's birthday, but that was it. Do not get the appeal.



If you liked the atmosphere, you might give the RFC at Animal Kingdom a shot. It seems to get much better reviews than the one at DTD for some reason.





Not a Nutella fan, but I say the same of their funnel cake with strawberries and whipped cream.

DH seems to remember us eating at RFC @ AK, but the only time we ever went to AK was the first year it opened, and I do not remember eating there.

I love the steak, but for whatever reason I can't stand cooked carrots. Steamed or otherwise. LOL! They just have a strange taste to them that I can't get past. I love them when they are raw, but cook and I don't like them.

It's a double edged sword sometimes. I hate it when we are rushed, but hate it even more when they are slow. We have a wings place that we go to and if they seat us near the bar we get the slowest service. I've taken my check up to them a few times and asked to be checked out.

I really can't wait for our ressie at T-Rex!! So very excited!!

You are going to flat *love* T-Rex! I hope you get a wonderful server like we did the first time around (and stick with the waffle fries ... trust me when I say they are excellent!)!

That's just odd that the chef was so misinformed at RFC.... It would seem like that would be a requirement for a job there. Especially as a chef. I would be very leery for that simple reason.

We love RFC, but not sure if it's a must do or not. Simply because there are so many other places to eat on Disney property that are wonderful.

I would have thought she would be more helpful, considering all the other great chefs I dealt with over the course of the trip. Maybe I caught her on an off-day?

we ate at Boatwrights 2 yrs ago,it was very good, and were stuffed.... thanks for the reports, staying here soon and dreaming.....plus I don't think we'll get breakfast at POFQ,it sounds....not so great.

The breakfasts at FQ were your standard-issue QS type. Pre-made omelettes, etc. If you want good breakfast, head to DTD to WPE (Marketplace) or treat yourself and go over to the Poly to Kona.

Hope you have a magical trip and have lots of great food while you're there!

 

[BearcatsFan]

Here are a few photos. Some of them aren't good quality - I apologize in advance. We got a new camera right before the trip and I haven't quite adjusted to it yet.

Enjoy!

Philly Cheesesteak from Sassagoula's

Tuna Sub w/Pasta Salad from Sassagoula's

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream from Sassagoula's

Cookies & Cream Ice Cream from Sassagoula's

Neanderthal New York Strip & Garlic Mashed Potatoes from T-Rex

Waffle Fries from T-Rex

Neanderthal New York Strip & Seasonal Veggies from T-Rex

Strawberries & Whipped Cream (could be from anywhere, but is from T-Rex)

 

[emmysmommy]

Thanks for sharing the photos! I've never been to T-Rex but am glad you shared a photo of the steak and mashed pototoes. Oh, and those waffle fries look like a great choice.