I'm so proud of myself for doing these updates in a timely manner. The last few days have been crazy whirlwinds, and yet here I am, finding the time for it. But then again, I can already tell that this whole blogging thing is going to be exhausting.
Anyway, I left off after we were all checked in, and Allison, Amanda and I were settling into our Patterson apartment. I unpacked the majority of one suitcase, but unpacking is hard when you don't have a trash can or hangers or anything, really.
While we were waiting for Casey to get back from casting, we decided we ought to explore our new home! Luckily our building is right next to a laundry facility, and everything in there looks pretty easy to operate. Which is good, because I'm definitely not a technology person.
Then we wandered around Patterson for awhile, checking out the pool and gym and main building. We learned how to get to our church services (we can take a bus!) and other logistical stuff. For instance, the main desk at Patterson will check out a wagon to people, so you don't have to carry everything from the bus stop at Chatham! Very convenient.
Speaking of the bus stop, we then decided that we probably ought to know where it is and how long it takes to get there. So we set and timer and meandered on over to Chatham!
I was surprised by how nice all the CP housing looks from the outside. I had heard some horror stories of unrenovated apartments, but everything looked really pretty! Lots of bright colors. Which evidently I did not take pictures of.
Along the paths, there are signatures from various Disney characters! It's adorable, and it makes me love Disney all the more.
It took us about 7 minutes to get from the apartment to the bus stop, which isn't a terrible walk unless you're carrying lots of groceries and apartment supplies. But quit letting me get ahead of myself.
We decided it would be prudent to hit Walmart that afternoon, because we were in serious need of soap and toilet paper and other basics. Allison had to head off for her drug test, but we promised to get her some food for the next few days. We caught the bus at Chatham, and were off!
It only took around 15-20 minutes to get to Walmart, which isn't a terribly long time for a bus ride, but it took us forever to find everything we needed. Since Allison couldn't come and we still had a dinner reservation that night, we only got enough stuff to tide us over for a few days, so we'll have to do some serious grocery shopping later this week.
But I managed to get everything I need except a comforter. With all my groceries and hangers piled high in my new laundry basket, I didn't think that I'd be able to carry another large item home from the bus stop.
We didn't get back until probably like 5 or so, and our dinner reservation was at Paradiso 37 at 7:35. Our church was having an activity at 6, but we figured we didn't have a ton of time and should just head over to DTD.
The bus was super late-probably like twenty minutes. It worked out fine for us, but there was a cast member waiting who was probably going to be late. It just heightened my resolve to leave super early for everything.
We eventually got on the bus, which dropped us across the street from the West Side. I think that's what is was called, at least. By Planet Hollywood and Characters in Flight.
At that point, I was not in the best mood. After a full day of sitting on a plane followed by a full day of standing and walking and lugging giant suitcases around, my feet were not very happy either. But I really wanted to celebrate with roommates, and by that time I was seriously hungry, having had a banana for breakfast and skipped lunch because too much was happening.
We had a few minutes before our reservation, so we just wandered around looking at everything. We stopped for a few minutes to listen to a man play Let It Go on the saxophone. Allison was greatly excited by T Rex, so we went and checked out the gift shop and merchandise.
Then we headed over to Paradiso 37! Again, I apologize for the lack of pictures. I was really not in the mood to be responsible. But at least I remembered to get food pictures!
Food Review:
We checked in around 5 minutes early for our reservation, and were led promptly to a table inside, like we requested. It wasn't overly cold at the time, but I still didn't want to have to wear my jacket while eating.
Our server was named Anthony, and he was from the Bahamas! He was very personable and friendly. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture of the menu, and I'm too lazy to find one on the internet. But Casey was torn between a burger and a burrito, and Amanda was torn between a burger and enchiladas.
So naturally we asked Anthony for his opinion, which he was happy to give. In fact, he would tease us for the rest of the dinner about whether we were happy with our choices.
I didn't have any difficulty deciding. I went with the Bacon Pineapple burger! I've recently been converted to the deliciousness of grilled pineapple, and I was greatly intrigued on how it would influence a burger.
Here it is, in all its glory:
Honestly, this was among the best burgers I have ever eaten. My main problem with hamburgers is that the meat tends to be overcooked and therefore dry, which requires me to smother the thing in ketchup which in turn upsets the flavor combination. This wasn't a problem at Paradiso 37, because they actually asked me how I wanted my burger cooked, so I got medium rare!
The pineapple seemed to fix any potential problem entirely. It was moist and juicy without soaking through the bun or dripping liquid. The best bites had a large combination of bacon and pineapple, which went together oddly well. It was an interesting mix of flavors, but a delicious one. I have no complaints. The burger itself gets a solid A.
The burger came with fries, which for some reason were served separately.
To me, they were just average fries. They had a nice flavor, but I didn't eat more than half of them, though I polished off my burger entirely. Casey also got the same entrée I did, but her experience with the fries were a little different. Here are some adjectives/phrases she used: heavenly, divine, the best fries I have ever eaten. She said they were so good she didn't even need ketchup. Allison tried a few of mine and said they were addicting.
So maybe I was just being a food snob, but I wasn't overly impressed. They certainly tasted good, but I can't rave about them the way my roommates did.
Allison and Amanda both got the chicken enchiladas.
For the most part I was too busy relishing my food to ask them about theirs, but they both seemed to enjoy it. I definitely heard "Yum", and that the green sauce was better than the red, if slightly on the spicy side. At any rate, 3 out of the 4 plates at the table were empty by the end of the meal.
After a fairly large meal, we weren't really ready for dessert just yet, plus Amanda had serenaded us with talk of Ghiradelli. Umm, yes please. We're all poor college students, and so we got the check split 4 ways without any difficulty.
Our server, Anthony, was genuinely one of the best waiters that I've ever had. He was helpful, funny, and engaging. Eventually we asked him to take a picture with us, because he was honestly that amazing. We couldn't stop raving. And, to top it all off, he got permission to get us the CM discount even though we aren't technically cast members until Friday!
In short, he was awesome, and he definitely got a nice tip from us young, amateur tippers! He even told us as we were leaving that we had made his night, and we assured him that he definitely made ours too!
Overall:
The food was excellent all around. I didn't hear any complaints. However, while the burger I had was pretty large, I'm not sure it was worth the $16.99 price. Delicious yes, but when I can get a decent burger in more the $5-$10 range, I'm not positive that it's worth that extra splurge. However, food gets a
B+.
The décor wasn't overly special, though there was a fancy colorful thing behind the bar.
The only thing that struck me was that Paradiso 37 was slightly reaching in their presentation. Yes, it's a full service restaurant, but that doesn't mean the burger can't come on a regularly shaped plate or that the fries have to be served in a separate container. I mean, the containers of fries even had a doily beneath them. Obviously this didn't detract from the experience at all, but their attempts to be fancy fell flat and seemed slightly ostentatious. Atmosphere:
C. Nothing special. No specific theming that I noticed.
And of course, the service was incredible.
A+. We wrote down on the receipt that he ought to get a raise.
And now, the real question. Would I eat here again? Despite my great experience, I think the answer is no. At least, not for awhile. I'm sure I'll go back someday, but there are so many other restaurants in Disney that I still need to try, and Paradiso 37 didn't strike me as incredible. The bacon and pineapple burger was the only entrée that really appealed to me, though admittedly I'm kind of a picky eater. If I were to go back, it would be to try the Churros and Sopapillas from the dessert menu.
But in general, while the food was good and the service excellent, it wasn't the amazing dining experience that I've had at other WDW restaurants. Still, I think it's worth a visit. Overall:
B.
After dinner, no one was terribly hungry, but we still felt Ghiradelli calling our names. So we decided to go shop in the magnificent World of Disney for awhile before we ate again.
We had barely made it inside when Amanda headed off to the bathroom, and we lost Casey in a fit of picture-taking and wonder. Allison and I were meandering around slowly, waiting for Amanda. We stopped in a room filled with stuffed animals, looking at the Winnie the Pooh section. We were just remarking on how cute a particular Eeyore was when the guy standing next to us remarked that the one he was holding was cuter.
And then proceeded to talk to us for a straight hour and a half.
And that's not an exaggeration. I can't even call it a conversation, because he did the vast majority of the talking. He was a former cast member, and very nice, and told us some really funny stories about working in the Magic Kingdom.
After awhile, we started dropping really obvious hints that we needed to find our roommates and fill ourselves with ice cream. He kept promising that this or that story would be the last, but then would go off on a tangent and just keep talking. He was really nice, but my goodness, it was getting late and I was ready to go. We hardly got to look at World of Disney at all.
Also, he kept touching my hand/elbow. Probably around 10 times during the course of the "conversation." I understand flirting, but flirting with someone by talking at them for way too long isn't going to get him anywhere. Though he did have a nice accent, which I appreciate in a man. Eventually Allison texted Casey and Amanda, who came to rescue us. He did ask for our numbers before we fled, which we were gracious enough to give.
By that time, it was nearing 11 and my lack of sleep was really catching up to me. We considered going to Ghirardelli anyway, but decided we would just come back another night later in the week. After all, we can't get into the park until either Thursday or Friday, depending on our Traditions schedules.
So I came home and pretty quickly settled into bed. My bus for Casting left at 11 the next morning, but I got up at around 9 to work on this darn thing, you lucky people.
I'll have another update soon about Casting (which wasn't terribly exciting) and our new roommates, who came this afternoon!
Love,
Kira
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