“This place better not burn down before I get my entrée!" – A DLR Feb16 TR (8/25 Wrap-up & new TR)

[Saphire5742]

Got caught up again. Looks like you made the most of your trip.
Loving all your photos from Disneyland. Makes me want to visit even more. One day.
I also love Small World. Pretty cool that your mom saw it at the world's fair.
Nice getting in Club 33.
Also have to say that I love your wife's Disney shirt from the second DL day.

 

[skier_pete]

Oh, I hand't guessed Club 33! I thought you'd be going to Blue Bayou. I think we can agree that Club 33 is a just a smidge more exciting than BB

Blue Bayou would be interesting to try - but yes Club 33 certainly tops it. We actually discussed doing Blue Bayou as well, but felt it was too much money to spend on the trip.

What a great opportunity to experience something so special (minus the fire alarm/evacuation, although that part does adds to the story and gave you your trip report title )! I wouldn't bat an eye at the price of the meal either!

I know - who cares what it costs when you get to experience it. The fire DID add to the story - but it also did take away some from the experience (you will see in the next section.)

I have to say I've been to Disneyland 50+ times and I think I can count on one hand the number of times I've looked up while walking down that area of New Orleans Square, so you're absolutely right about not thinking 3-dimensionally.

Since we've been there the first time, I always look up at the balcony. I've never seen anyone out there.

Got caught up again. Looks like you made the most of your trip.
Loving all your photos from Disneyland. Makes me want to visit even more. One day.
I also love Small World. Pretty cool that your mom saw it at the world's fair.
Nice getting in Club 33.
Also have to say that I love your wife's Disney shirt from the second DL day.

She manages to find very unique Disney wear for the most part. She like me likes stuff that doesn't scream DISNEY but really is only Disney if you take a good look.

 

[heaven2dc]

Enjoying your TR! How exciting to be able to dine at Club 33! I always forget to look up at Club 33 when we are visiting DL to see if anyone is standing on the balcony. I miss the courtyard though - always made me feel like I was in some quaint part of the city of New Orleans Can't wait to find out if you got your entree!

 

[NJlauren]

Such a cool you got to go to Club 33! I think this a dream for most Disney fans, thank you so much for sharing your trip, and you Club 33 experience!

 

[PrincessInOz]

Ooh! looks like you had an exciting time at Club 33. How awesome to be able to get in!

Hope you DO get your meal!

 

[kcpinwdw]

we had a lunch reservation at Club 33

i dont know how you were able to not punctuate this sentence with about a million exclamation points. I am in awe of your self-restraint.

 

[franandaj]

Exciting times in anticipation of your meal!

 

[khertz]

Although I already knew all about your super special lunch from FB, I still read this update and thought HOW FREAKING COOL! So nice of your friend to make the reservation for you!

While expensive, it's such a special opportunity I'm sure it was absolutely worth every penny for the experience. Not cool to have it interrupted by smoke alarms though!! I hope your food didn't takes extra smoky. lol

 

[Kindermouse]

Your trip up to this point sounds like a lot of fun. Teenagers...you have to not have one to appreciate them. At least that how mine made me feel when I was at DL with him last month.

I'm so jelous that you got to have lunch at club 33. I would have had to have a drink to, just because you could and very few other people can. The fire alarm gave you a chance to check out some of the little known specs. Who knew the staff would out number the guests.

If it makes you feel any better about getting stuck in a Disney fire drill, you could consider the fire drill my class had yesterday. It was 90 degrees and we had to be on the black top. It lasted for an hour (actually it was a small gas leak but the procedures were the same). I have a class of 25 five/six year olds by myself. But I was getting paid at the time, while you were paying through the nose for the experience. Say la vie

I'm totally going to have dinner there one day, when they start paying teachers much much larger salaries and I can afford a membership.

 

[skier_pete]

Enjoying your TR! How exciting to be able to dine at Club 33! I always forget to look up at Club 33 when we are visiting DL to see if anyone is standing on the balcony. I miss the courtyard though - always made me feel like I was in some quaint part of the city of New Orleans Can't wait to find out if you got your entree!

I thought to myself "If I was a member I would go out on the balcony every visit, and the first person to actually see me standing on the balcony, I would invite to join me." Of course, I'd also probably get kicked out for such shenanigan's.

I could see where the courtyard could be missed by those that knew about it. It really is a shame to wall it off to the public, but it DID make a very nice waiting area.

Such a cool you got to go to Club 33! I think this a dream for most Disney fans, thank you so much for sharing your trip, and you Club 33 experience!

It's either a "WOW, you got to go to Club 33!" or "What in the world are you talking about?" response. People that don't know about it seem totally unimpressed even after you explain it.

Ooh! looks like you had an exciting time at Club 33. How awesome to be able to get in!

Hope you DO get your meal!

It was totally awesome. It would really stink if we didn't get out meal!

i dont know how you were able to not punctuate this sentence with about a million exclamation points. I am in awe of your self-restraint.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Exciting times in anticipation of your meal!

I really did leave everyone hanging, didn't I! Coming back soon.

Although I already knew all about your super special lunch from FB, I still read this update and thought HOW FREAKING COOL! So nice of your friend to make the reservation for you!

While expensive, it's such a special opportunity I'm sure it was absolutely worth every penny for the experience. Not cool to have it interrupted by smoke alarms though!! I hope your food didn't takes extra smoky. lol

I was wondering why they added a smoked salmon special to the menu when we came back in! Seriously though - I think it was actually a false alarm. I believe someone was working on the electrical system or something.

Eating there will always be super special to me - even though this was our second opportunity. I don't know if we'll ever get the chance to do it again, but I would love to!

Your trip up to this point sounds like a lot of fun. Teenagers...you have to not have one to appreciate them. At least that how mine made me feel when I was at DL with him last month.

ugh - I know!

I'm so jelous that you got to have lunch at club 33. I would have had to have a drink to, just because you could and very few other people can. The fire alarm gave you a chance to check out some of the little known specs. Who knew the staff would out number the guests.

I couldn't help but have a drink! C'mon, it's drinking in Disneyland! Who gets to do that!

If it makes you feel any better about getting stuck in a Disney fire drill, you could consider the fire drill my class had yesterday. It was 90 degrees and we had to be on the black top. It lasted for an hour (actually it was a small gas leak but the procedures were the same). I have a class of 25 five/six year olds by myself. But I was getting paid at the time, while you were paying through the nose for the experience. Say la vie

Yuk - that sounds awful. Our DD when she was in elementary school had a short in her fire alarm system at school. They had to evacuate like 4 times into fairly cold temperatures (maybe 40s outside) and then finally they bussed all the kids to the HS, where a parent had to go and pick them up. What a mess! I feel for you having to wrangle all those kids for so long - but I suppose it is part of the job.

I'm totally going to have dinner there one day, when they start paying teachers much much larger salaries and I can afford a membership.

I hope you do someday. I feel very fortunate to have made a friend that is nice and generous enough to share their membership with my family.

 

[skier_pete]

So back to our Club 33 experience. When last we left, we were standing out New Orleans Square near the train station, waiting for them to allow us back in the Club to resume our meal. I forgot to mention that I spent part of the time texting with our member/friend. You can imagine their response to “You’ll never believe what just happened…”

We waited outside for about 20 minutes, and finally they let us come back into the Club. At this point they also took away our appetizers, and said they were going to be re-preparing everyone in the Club’s food fresh. Understandably the reason for this was out of their control, and it really was the right thing to do, but it ended up leading to my only real complaint about the meal. For whatever reason, we were the last ones that got our food, and we waited about 40 more minutes to get the food. That means all told, we were in the restaurant for almost two hours before we even got served any food. The total meal time took just about THREE hours because of this. While I didn’t expect the meal to be rushed, I was expecting probably a 1.5 to 2 hour meal time, and honestly, based on the fact we were originally served our first course about 45 minutes after we entered the restaurant, that was probably the timing that we were looking at before the fire alarm. So I don’t really want to disparage Club 33 for it, but it still was not the greatest situation. In addition, we were all sort of starving by this point as it was now coming up on 2:30 PM, and we also had a teenager that had been sitting there for two hours that was starting to lose patience.

Fortunately, the food was well worth the wait.

DD got this for her appetizer – it was a whipped yogurt parfait with fresh berries. Unfortunately, she said she didn’t like it. I have no idea why because while it was not super-sweet or anything it tasted like vanilla yogurt. She did eat the berries off of it.



I had the Warm Blue Crab and Artichoke Gratin with Lemon Chervil Glacage. This was basically a baked crab and cheese soufflé with crackers, but it was absolutely delicious. I should’ve eaten the cold one that was on my plate when we walked back in the restaurant.



DW had the Country Sausage and Pate Maison, which was actually THREE different types of sausage served with bread and some other flavor enhancers. She really liked it a lot. I had a taste of one of the sausages, but I was glad I went with what I did.



An interval with another picture of us – proving we were here!



Now that the kitchen was back up and running, the courses started coming out in regularly intervals. While DW and I had the 4 course meal, DM and DD only had the 3-course, so DMs first course and DWs second course were the same: The “Lafayette” Garden Salad with Radishes, Cucumber and Vinigerette Maison. This was a nicely presented and well made salad, and no complaints from either of them.



I had the Salad of Smoke Duck Breast, with Tuscon Kale, Persimmon, and Cranberry Orange Perserves. This again was delicious. I love duck (DONALD – NO!), but prefer it in moderation. There were several slices of duck in here and the flavor of the dressing and everything made it excellent. Even the Kale, which is not a favorite of mine, tasted good in combination with the rest.



For the main course I had the Petit Filet, Tender Harticort Verte (which must mean potatoes) and Cabernet Essence. It was delicious and prepared just right.



DW and DM again overlapped their choices, ordering the Veal Scaloppini, Apple, Sweet Potato Salad, and Lemon Thyme Jus. Both very much enjoyed their choice.



DD had the Macaroni and Cheese off the kids menu. Supposedly this was an “adult” portion. It was fine, but pound for pound this is the most expensive macaroni and cheese you’ll ever see. At least she ate it!



The portions don’t look huge, but they were plenty large enough. We still had room for dessert though. DD ordered this one off the adult menu, and I ordered it as well: Warm Chocolate Fudge Pecan Brownie, Caramel Sauce and Coconut Sorbet. This was fantastic. DD wouldn’t eat the coconut sorbet, but it was not a heavy coconut flavor, and it offset the richness of the chocolate and caramel perfectly.



DM had the Winter Pumpkin Beignets stuffed with Pumpkin Cheese Cake and Pumpkin Parfait. She said they were great, but while they looked delicious that was a little too much “Pumpkin” for me.



DW had the Citrus Tart with Passion Fruit Meringue and Huckleberry Syrup. Again she really enjoyed it.



With dessert, we had been there a solid three hours and were ready to go. Our bill, as final proof we were there. With tip I think it ran me $420. Good thing I had a gift card!



Some more stuff on the way out, an inlay in the floor by the hostess stand:



A mosaic on the floor on the way out:



Overall – it was an amazing experience – such a classic piece of Disney legacy and the chance to eat at such a private club more than overwrote the expense o f the meal and even the inconvenience that came from the alarm. I would love to go back again someday if we ever have the chance again.

Unfortunately because it was now 3:30 PM, we had to scoot back to our hotel. We were supposed to meet a fellow DISer that evening at around 4:30 or 5 at the hotel, and we had hoped we were going to get a little time to rest. As we exited the club we noticed our next problem – it was starting to rain. Even the sky was crying that we had to leave Club 33!!!



The forecast had been for rain to occur “late in the evening”, but unfortunately we were not so fortunate. It was raining very lightly at this point as we headed back to the Grand Californian.

Up next - "DON"T RAIN ON MY PARADE!!!" (Spoiler Alert - it rained on the parade.)

 

[franandaj]

That means all told, we were in the restaurant for almost two hours before we even got served any food. The total meal time took just about THREE hours because of this.

I'm not surprised that it took three hours. I've had meals that have gone that long, but they are usually larger parties.

I had the Warm Blue Crab and Artichoke Gratin with Lemon Chervil Glacage. This was basically a baked crab and cheese soufflé with crackers, but it was absolutely delicious.

I've had that one! It's soooooo good!

DW had the Country Sausage and Pate Maison, which was actually THREE different types of sausage served with bread and some other flavor enhancers.

I didn't like the looks of any of the salads, so I had that one for my "salad"! Yum!

I had the Salad of Smoke Duck Breast, with Tuscon Kale, Persimmon, and Cranberry Orange Perserves. This again was delicious. I love duck (DONALD – NO!), but prefer it in moderation.

Hmmmmmm. That doesn't look so bad, I would probably eat around the Kale though. Blech!

Tender Harticort Verte (which must mean potatoes)

Actually Haricot = A special french skinny bean. Vert = Green

DW and DM again overlapped their choices, ordering the Veal Scaloppini, Apple, Sweet Potato Salad, and Lemon Thyme Jus.

You guys are eating almost the exact meal I had! The veal was good!

With dessert, we had been there a solid three hours and were ready to go.

Didn't you order a dessert?

Even the sky was crying that we had to leave Club 33!!!

Good one!

 

[rteetz]

That sucks that is took a while but at least the food was worth the wait. I must say that the dessert you got looked very good. I can understand the pricing because of it being club 33 as well. I am glad you had a great time.

 

[skier_pete]

I'm not surprised that it took three hours. I've had meals that have gone that long, but they are usually larger parties.

Well, I would expect a larger group would take longer. And again, I don't really want to come down too hard on Club 33 here - they were trying to do the right thing. I'd say the more annoying part was that every other table got served before we did...this was people getting their mains as well. I kept thinking "How long does it take to heat up a little crab gratin?"

Hmmmmmm. That doesn't look so bad, I would probably eat around the Kale though. Blech!

Well, as I said, the Kale surprised me that it was actually OK. Cause I'm with you - Kale Blech!

Didn't you order a dessert?

Maybe I missed saying it: I had the same dessert as DD - the brownie. IT was wonderful!

That sucks that is took a while but at least the food was worth the wait. I must say that the dessert you got looked very good. I can understand the pricing because of it being club 33 as well. I am glad you had a great time.

Well another day it wouldn't have been a big deal to stay there, and under other circumstances they may have had to drag me out of there, but having to go meet up with somone else meant we had to leave.

 

[Tinker326]

Awesome dining experience (being there, that is!)-

Maybe someday for me..........................

 

[PrincessInOz]

What a great meal.
Shame about having to wait for the meals to come back out again....but at least they were fresh, even if it was at the expense of precious park time.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Bummer about the delay with the food. Understandable but you'd think they could provide something just to ride you over


All the food looks really good - amazing really and for a special occasion type meal the bill seems not crazy (though maybe I am just used to NYC prices)

The first course you and your wife go

 

[skier_pete]

What a great meal.
Shame about having to wait for the meals to come back out again....but at least they were fresh, even if it was at the expense of precious park time.

Yes - I agree they were doing the right thing...and it wasn't even lost park time. We were planning to go back to the room anyways...but it was the fact that we only got a 45 minute rest instead of an hour and a half.

All the food looks really good - amazing really and for a special occasion type meal the bill seems not crazy (though maybe I am just used to NYC prices)

Well, you are certainly correct there. As far as DW and I go, I've definitely spent more on a meal that was not nearly as special as this. And I didn't want to imply the prices were out of line. I'm just not used to having to pay for FOUR people at those prices - particularly for DD. She's only been off most kids menus for about a year, so we are used to her costing us $10 not $100! I just really wanted to give her the chance to be able to say she's eaten there. As I said right up front, I knew going in what this was going to cost. I had a Gift Card with $400 on it just for this purpose. I just wanted people to know just because you get access to Club 33 doesn't mean it's a free meal.

I'm at a point in my life where I don't mind spending money for a meal - but I better still see value to it. This meal DEFINITELY had value to it.

The first course you and your wife go

I think you cut yourself off there @TheMaxRebo

 

[TheMaxRebo]

I think you cut yourself off there @TheMaxRebo

Oops, not sure what happened. Mid post it flicked to the DL trip report page so I thought my post was lost - but I guess not. #ThanksShanghai

I was just saying I thought the first courses you and your wife got, your duck salad, and the desserts looked especially good

Glad you felt it was all worth it (but do get where you are coming from spending $100 for DD)

 

[Kindermouse]

I just realized that your cost for a high end 3 course meals is the same price Disney is charging for the dessert party where only get...one course.

Kale is actually not bad when it is prepared right. Massaged Tuscan kale is yummy. Not sure how they massage it but that is how the prep was explained to me and it makes it taste good instead of the bitter stuff I end up with when I try to use it in salad myself.

And I get what you mean about the cost for DD. My son still has a less than sophisticated pallet and wants to order off the kids menu. I'm less than thrilled when we do a world of color prix fixe meal I spend 45 bucks on chicken nuggets and baby carrots with ranch with jello for dessert. That folks, is a 15 bucks max dinner. But you are paying for them to have the experience like you said.