Conservative Hippie
Ravenclaw
- Joined
- Apr 26, 2006
- Messages
- 6,467
The Cast
Me24, will eat anything that doesnt have a bone, and NO NUTS!
DH26, will not eat anything that comes from the sea, very picky about steak.
Mom46, coffeeholic, espressoholic, cappuccinoholic
DB17 (Michael)17, first time to Disney, loves spicy food (the hotter the better), dubbed this trip Operation Stuff My Face.
Day 1Kona Café and Flame Tree Barbeque
We arrived at the Animal Kingdom Lodge at about 9:00 Monday morning (a three hour drive from Ft. Lauderdale) and were very excited to hear that we were given a free upgrade to a Savannah view room, and that our room was available right away. After settling in, we headed to Magic Kingdom for my brothers first view of the castle. Then I had to find out what all the fuss was over the Dole Whips at Aloha Isle in Adventureland, so we used 2 Snacks on 2 Pineapple Floats. THEY. ARE. WONDERFUL. Sweet, refreshing, and perfect on a hot day. These were only the first of many
We had a 1:05 lunch reservation at the Kona Café at the Polynesian Resort, so we hopped on the monorail at about 12:45 and were promptly seated at Kona. The restaurant was pretty empty and quiet. My mother is a coffee connoisseur, and was really looking forward to a press pot. I asked our server if we could get a press pot for two of our drinks, and she told us that we could each get a press pot as a drink! I know that this is not a common thing, and that some people have not been able to get a press pot on the dining plan at all, so we were very grateful to the server. Mom got her first press pot with the meal, and the Lump Crab Cakes appetizer (I rarely drink anything other than water, so she would use my drink for a second press pot later). I also had the crab cakes, which were served with a light green salad and ginger. Very good! DH had the Pot Stickers (duck dumplings in a ginger sauce), and Michael had the Sticky Wings. He said the sticky wings were very sticky, and not as spicy as he thought they would be. The sticky wings came with a moistened hot towel to clean your fingers, but I think Michael just licked them! For entrées, Mom had the Chicken Caesar Salad, which was topped with strips of Romano cheese. It was very good and a good size for an entrée. I had the Asian Noodle Bowl, which was very pretty, but way too much for me to finish. It was strips of beef, crispy snap peas, onions, carrots, celery, and noodles in a beef broth. There was a spicy chili sauce on the side, which I found too spicy to have any more than a tiny bit on the end of the chopstick, but Michael said it was very good, and he dipped his sweet potato chips in it. The boys both had the Island Chicken Sandwich, topped with bacon, Swiss cheese, and a curry mango mayonnaise on a Kaiser roll. DH substituted fries for the sweet potato chips. Moms second press pot came with dessert, and I even tried a little bit. Im told it has a light full-bodied flavor. Those who enjoy stronger coffee will want to steep it for at least four minutes (the server recommended two, and the first pot was too weak).
Now this part was interesting--while discussing the dessert menu with the server, I asked if the Apple Brown Betty had nuts in it. She asked if I was allergic, or just didnt like them, and I said I was allergic to cashews only, but didnt like nuts in general. She immediately got the chef to make sure I had not been exposed to any cashews, even though I told her it was a mild allergy and I wasnt worried about my food touching cashews. Turns out the Betty has walnuts in it, so I decided on the Caramel-Banana Crème Brulee, which was very impressive and definitely the right choice. I love crème brulee, and this one had a bananas foster twist to it. I was afraid the bananas would be squishy, which is why it wasnt my first choice, but they were not--very fresh tasting. My fellow crème brulee lovers will appreciate the shallow dish that allows for a larger surface area of caramelized sugar! Mom had the Chocolate Macadamia Nut Tart, which was similar to a pecan pie, extremely rich, with a flaky crust. It may look small, but it was plenty. The vanilla bean ice cream (that I finished off) was also just right. Michael had the Kilauea Torte wed heard so much about. It was also very rich, and he really enjoyed all the gooey chocolate lava. The presentation was very artistic, with raspberry and pineapple sauce art. DH had the White Chocolate Cheesecake, also a very artistic presentation with raspberry, pineapple, and lime sauce. We gave this the prettiest dessert award. Overall, the atmosphere was very pleasant, the service was excellent, and the food was good. I think Kona had the prettiest desserts overall, and I would definitely go back. For those interested in the value of the DDP, this bill came about to about $150.
We were at Animal Kingdom for EMH that night, and had dinner at Flame Tree Barbeque in Asia for our CS. Mom and Michael got the ½ Slab of St. Louis Ribs, DH got the Smoked ½ Chicken, and I got the very boneless Smoked Pork Sandwich. All the entrées came with baked beans and corn on the cob. Mom was very impressed with the ribs, very tender, very meaty. Michael complained that the spicy barbeque sauce was not spicy, but I thought it was spicy enough for those of us who do not want our tongues on fire. Everything was very good, although DH says the beans are too sweet for his tastes. For dessert we had a couple each of the chocolate cake and key lime pie. The pie is not as tart as key lime pie should be, but still good, with a graham cracker crust. Being in AK after dark was pretty cool. We ate down by the lake near Flame Tree (where you can spot the boat during the day) and were treated to an awesome view of Everest!
Kona Cafe
Left to right: Lump Crab Cakes, Sticky Wings, and Pot Stickers. Kona Press Pot in the middle.
Asian Noodle Bowl
Chocolate Macadamia Nut Tart
Kilauea Torte
White Chocolate Cheesecake
Caramel-Banana Creme Brulee
Our view from Flame Tree area...
Coming up in Day 2...Coral Reef....
Me24, will eat anything that doesnt have a bone, and NO NUTS! DH26, will not eat anything that comes from the sea, very picky about steak. Mom46, coffeeholic, espressoholic, cappuccinoholic
DB17 (Michael)17, first time to Disney, loves spicy food (the hotter the better), dubbed this trip Operation Stuff My Face.Day 1Kona Café and Flame Tree Barbeque
We arrived at the Animal Kingdom Lodge at about 9:00 Monday morning (a three hour drive from Ft. Lauderdale) and were very excited to hear that we were given a free upgrade to a Savannah view room, and that our room was available right away. After settling in, we headed to Magic Kingdom for my brothers first view of the castle. Then I had to find out what all the fuss was over the Dole Whips at Aloha Isle in Adventureland, so we used 2 Snacks on 2 Pineapple Floats. THEY. ARE. WONDERFUL. Sweet, refreshing, and perfect on a hot day. These were only the first of many
We had a 1:05 lunch reservation at the Kona Café at the Polynesian Resort, so we hopped on the monorail at about 12:45 and were promptly seated at Kona. The restaurant was pretty empty and quiet. My mother is a coffee connoisseur, and was really looking forward to a press pot. I asked our server if we could get a press pot for two of our drinks, and she told us that we could each get a press pot as a drink! I know that this is not a common thing, and that some people have not been able to get a press pot on the dining plan at all, so we were very grateful to the server. Mom got her first press pot with the meal, and the Lump Crab Cakes appetizer (I rarely drink anything other than water, so she would use my drink for a second press pot later). I also had the crab cakes, which were served with a light green salad and ginger. Very good! DH had the Pot Stickers (duck dumplings in a ginger sauce), and Michael had the Sticky Wings. He said the sticky wings were very sticky, and not as spicy as he thought they would be. The sticky wings came with a moistened hot towel to clean your fingers, but I think Michael just licked them! For entrées, Mom had the Chicken Caesar Salad, which was topped with strips of Romano cheese. It was very good and a good size for an entrée. I had the Asian Noodle Bowl, which was very pretty, but way too much for me to finish. It was strips of beef, crispy snap peas, onions, carrots, celery, and noodles in a beef broth. There was a spicy chili sauce on the side, which I found too spicy to have any more than a tiny bit on the end of the chopstick, but Michael said it was very good, and he dipped his sweet potato chips in it. The boys both had the Island Chicken Sandwich, topped with bacon, Swiss cheese, and a curry mango mayonnaise on a Kaiser roll. DH substituted fries for the sweet potato chips. Moms second press pot came with dessert, and I even tried a little bit. Im told it has a light full-bodied flavor. Those who enjoy stronger coffee will want to steep it for at least four minutes (the server recommended two, and the first pot was too weak).
Now this part was interesting--while discussing the dessert menu with the server, I asked if the Apple Brown Betty had nuts in it. She asked if I was allergic, or just didnt like them, and I said I was allergic to cashews only, but didnt like nuts in general. She immediately got the chef to make sure I had not been exposed to any cashews, even though I told her it was a mild allergy and I wasnt worried about my food touching cashews. Turns out the Betty has walnuts in it, so I decided on the Caramel-Banana Crème Brulee, which was very impressive and definitely the right choice. I love crème brulee, and this one had a bananas foster twist to it. I was afraid the bananas would be squishy, which is why it wasnt my first choice, but they were not--very fresh tasting. My fellow crème brulee lovers will appreciate the shallow dish that allows for a larger surface area of caramelized sugar! Mom had the Chocolate Macadamia Nut Tart, which was similar to a pecan pie, extremely rich, with a flaky crust. It may look small, but it was plenty. The vanilla bean ice cream (that I finished off) was also just right. Michael had the Kilauea Torte wed heard so much about. It was also very rich, and he really enjoyed all the gooey chocolate lava. The presentation was very artistic, with raspberry and pineapple sauce art. DH had the White Chocolate Cheesecake, also a very artistic presentation with raspberry, pineapple, and lime sauce. We gave this the prettiest dessert award. Overall, the atmosphere was very pleasant, the service was excellent, and the food was good. I think Kona had the prettiest desserts overall, and I would definitely go back. For those interested in the value of the DDP, this bill came about to about $150.
We were at Animal Kingdom for EMH that night, and had dinner at Flame Tree Barbeque in Asia for our CS. Mom and Michael got the ½ Slab of St. Louis Ribs, DH got the Smoked ½ Chicken, and I got the very boneless Smoked Pork Sandwich. All the entrées came with baked beans and corn on the cob. Mom was very impressed with the ribs, very tender, very meaty. Michael complained that the spicy barbeque sauce was not spicy, but I thought it was spicy enough for those of us who do not want our tongues on fire. Everything was very good, although DH says the beans are too sweet for his tastes. For dessert we had a couple each of the chocolate cake and key lime pie. The pie is not as tart as key lime pie should be, but still good, with a graham cracker crust. Being in AK after dark was pretty cool. We ate down by the lake near Flame Tree (where you can spot the boat during the day) and were treated to an awesome view of Everest!
Kona Cafe
Left to right: Lump Crab Cakes, Sticky Wings, and Pot Stickers. Kona Press Pot in the middle.
Asian Noodle Bowl
Chocolate Macadamia Nut Tart
Kilauea Torte
White Chocolate Cheesecake
Caramel-Banana Creme Brulee
Our view from Flame Tree area...
Coming up in Day 2...Coral Reef....
We will be going there for dinner though. 
Glad you ejoyed it!
