3 nights on the DxDP w/ pics

[hillo]

Thank you to everyone for reading. I really hope my reviews are useful. I am sorry I am late updating. A busy, but very fun Labor Day weekend, along with classes (including classes all day on Labor Day) have kept me busy this week. Luckily, I am now off for the weekend.

SweetSerenity - I had thought about canceling our ADR for Tutto Italia and trying a walk-up at Via Napoli. I am so glad I didn't. I do want to try Via sometime in the future, but on the DxDP, I am glad we went to Tutto.

Unfortunately, I do not have pictures of...

Artist Point

I have eaten at WCC many times and love the Wilderness Lodge. However, I didn't really know what Artist Point looked like. It was a beautiful restaurant, and we had a wonderful view right next to the windows that overlook the waterfall.

The waitress let us know that bottled water was included with the DxDP along with another non-alcoholic beverage, so we had Acqua Panna water and strawberry daiquiris. I'm glad they offer the bottled water as WL's tap water is awful. The daiquiris were very good.

For starters, my dad and I had the famous Portobello Mushroom Soup. It was incredible! I was scared the soup wouldn't live up to my expectations, but in fact, it exceeded them. The soup was smooth and creamy with lovely crunches of mushroom that tasted almost like bacon. My dad loved it also.

My mom had the Dungeness Crab Cakes. It was two half dollar sized crab cakes. They were tasty, not the best nor worst crab cake my mom or I have had.

For entrées, my mom and dad had to try the Buffalo Strip Loin. They enjoyed it, but would rather have had a filet. There were some gristly parts and it just wasn't the best cut of meat. They said the side of brown rice was too salty.

I had the Cedar Plank Roasted Salmon. I wish this dish had been better. It's way too expensive to just be a good salmon dish. It was nothing special, and I've had better salmon for 1/3 the price. I didn't taste any special flavorings coming from the cedar plank. Don't get me wrong, the salmon was good, but it was just salmon. The only other flavor I tasted was the black peppercorns on top. The vegetables were vegetables except for the beans. The beans were a very nice surprise on the dish. There were not many of them, but they had a slight crunch and were very tasty.

Along with the entrées, we were each allowed a side. My mom and I chose the saffron risotto. It was fine. I didn't eat much of it. I couldn't taste any saffron, so there wasn't a lot of flavor. It had some balsamic vinegar drizzled over it that overpowered the risotto when getting a bit of it on the spoon. My dad had the sweet potato hazelnut gratin. He didn't eat most of it, so I had some. It was very good, but very buttery. I couldn't manage more than a few bites, and I love rich foods.

Once again, we were stuffed come dessert. We all had the Artist Point Berry Cobbler. It was very tasty with the vanilla ice cream. The berries were fresh and the crust was nice and buttery.

Overall, I probably would not return to Artist Point. I would, however, love to get some Portobello soup from the Territory lounge on a cool evening!

 

[MickeyNicki]

Thank you for your AP review, makes me glad I cancelled for Narcoosse's

 

[hillo]

Thank you for your AP review, makes me glad I cancelled for Narcoosse's

I hate it for AP because it has the potential to be a really great restaurant. I hope you enjoy Narcoossee's. I would like to try it sometime, hopefully on the DxDP.

 

[hillo]

I ate at Marrakesh three years ago, and really enjoyed it, even though others in my party didn't care for it. I love the Morocco pavilion and the different spices in Moroccan food, so I wanted to try it again. Also, it's the place to get the earliest possible dinner reservation at 3:30pm (we were leaving this day right after dinner) and it is overpriced if paying OOP, but a great value on a dining plan.

Our experience didn't start off well. We arrived about 3:20 and were seated immediately. There were very few people in the restaurant (not surprisingly). The hostess gave us our menus, and I was surprised to see they were different from what I was expecting. I was disappointed that the Mogador Fish Tagine was not on the menu as this was the dish I was looking forward to. When the server came by to take our drink orders, I asked if there were any fish options. He said the only fish option is the seafood bastilla. At this time, I considered suggesting leaving and trying to get into Via Napoli as it was not yet taking reservations. As I tried to find something else I liked, I noticed the prices were quite a bit lower than Allears's menu also. That's when I realized we had the lunch menus. My mom needed to use the restroom, so on her way there, she asked the hostess for dinner menus. My mom came back to the table to tell us the hostess said she would bring them by shortly, then went to the restroom.

My dad and I closed our menus, so when the waiter came by, he asked if we were ready to order, even though my mom wasn't at the table. I told him, "No, I just realized we had the lunch menu. The hostess said she would bring us dinner menus." So, he pulled out his cell phone, checked the time (3:35), then said, "Oh, now you can have the fish." I was so mad! I understand the mistake of us getting lunch instead of dinner menus, but for the waiter to tell me there were no fish options and then proceed to pull out his phone to check the time really ticked me off. Needless to say, I once again thought about trying another restaurant. Sadly, that whole episode put a damper on the experience, even though the food was quite good.

My mom ordered a coke and my dad ordered iced tea. The server brought two cokes, so he told my mom she could have both, then brought out the tea later. Neither of them received a refill. I guess you don't get refills there.

I started with the seafood bastilla. It was very tasty, but a little small for $10. It was also hard to eat without the filling falling out of the pastry.

Seafood Bastilla

My mom and dad both chose the Marrakesh Feast which included the Harira Soup and Beef Brewat Rolls for an appetizer. The soup was surprisingly good. My mom liked the brewat rolls, and I think my dad thought they were pretty good, but he made the comment that he wasn't used to sugar on savory things.

Harira Soup and Beef Brewat Rolls

Also, we were brought bread. I didn't care for it. It was a little stiff and cold. I do believe my parents enjoyed some with their soup.

The platter that came with the Marrakesh Feast consisted of two lamb sausage links, a chicken skewer, a beef skewer, mushrooms, some sort of tomato salad, potatoes, and olives. My parents enjoyed most of their dishes. The lamb sausage was too hot for them to eat much of it. I thought it was very spicy also. The chicken was moist and flavorful. I think my mom thought the beef was pretty good. They didn't say anything about the rest of the dish. I didn't think the mushrooms had any flavor.

Marrakesh Feast platter

I was able to get the Mogador Fish Tagine. I believe the fish was tilapia, but I forgot to ask. The dish was light and very tasty. I enjoyed the fish and all the vegetables. If paying OOP, it would have been $27.95. To put that in perspective, I probably could have made the dish for about $5, since tilapia is sometimes only $3.99 lb at my local Harris Teeter. The potatoes, red peppers, carrots, and olives were all very good.

Mogador Fish Tagine

For dessert, the Feast comes with baklava, and I decided to also order the baklava. It was very tasty, but a tiny portion for $6.95.

Baklava

To have with my baklava, I considered ordering coffee, then decided to ask about the mint tea. The server's face lit up. I think he was excited that I was actually ordering the traditional mint tea. That made me feel a little warmer toward him. He brought out a glass and another server made a little show of pouring the tea over the mint leaf by raising the traditional pot high in the air to pour it into my glass. The experience felt authentic and the mint tea was very good. Sweeteners were brought to the table, but I decided not to use any. I was given a refill on the tea over the original mint leaf. The other server once again poured the tea into my glass from high above. The tea was particularly enjoyable as it was getting very cold in the restaurant.

Mint Tea

Overall, the food was really good. I would never pay for dinner here OOP. Unfortunately, the experience was a little... off, so we probably will not return. I would rather try other places around the World Showcase which I feel is the case with most guests. The server was efficient enough and he finally seemed personable when I ordered the mint tea, but our initial interaction overshadowed the entire meal. The problem with Marrakesh is a little intangible. Also, they need softer seats. From now on, I would rather go to the Tangierine Cafe for Moroccan food and atmosphere.

 

[hillo]

I was going to wait and do this tomorrow, but changed my mind.

By upgrading the free dining offer, we paid approximately $360 for the DxDP. The regular price is about $648.

This breakdown includes what was covered under the DxDP. It does not include tips or alcohol.

Mugs $43.10
Jiko 218.19
CA Grill 256.74
WCC 118.32
Tutto 151.23
Art. Pt. 254.00 (lost receipt - this price is appro.)
Rst. Mar. 146.66
Snacks 70.03

Total: $1258.27

As you all can see, we saved a lot of money - $896.27. However, it was a ridiculous amount of food. It's hard to say whether we would do it again. Even using TIW, we would not have saved no where near the same amount, which makes the DxDP look very favorable. However, our overall food cost would have been less with TIW because we would have eaten much less.

In case you're curious, tips came out to $202. We tipped 18-20% (before tax - the suggested amount on the receipt). Therefore, our total food cost (minus dad's alcohol) came to about $562. We could have only eaten at two of the signature restaurants for that.

Thanks everyone for reading. Feel free to ask any questions.