*6/26 Update: Our Intentions Were Good, But The Treats Were Better: One Month in Disney (4/21-5/21)

[buzzrelly]

After a successful safari, we headed to Satu'li Canteen for one of our new favorite breakfasts. While I was tempted to try something different, I just couldn’t pass up the opportunity to get the Tropical Pandoran Forest Fruits. DH ordered the same thing.

Wow, that looks good! I may have to try that next trip!

We decided for lunch that we should try Restaurantosaurus before it closes. We ordered a Cobb Salad to share.

Also looks good though it may be gone soon? Did they close Restaurantosaurus yet? I can't keep track!

Our train pulled into the station and an elderly couple next to us looked around confused and were overheard saying “This isn’t the shuttle to the parking lot?”

Oh, no!

We really enjoy the pizza at Via Napoli.

We love it too! That was DD's pick for her 21st birthday down there!

 

[buzzrelly]

Have you ever had Frank Pepe’s pizza?

We are from CT and have had it many times! There's nothing like the OG in New Haven though the other ones around are pretty good! DD went to school in Hamden so we always would incorporate a stop to get some New Haven pizza. Sally's and Modern are amazing too if you are even in the Wooster Street New Haven area!

 

[mickey916]

We were very disappointed with baked items offered in the parks and food courts as everything we tried was dry and somewhat stale…we did enjoy baked fresh items at Sprinkles and Summer House cookie bar at Disney Springs. Also the Wookie Cookie at HS was good.

We've never tried Sprinkles. We may have to put that on the list for next time! We tried the Wookie Cookie a couple years ago and enjoyed it.

Wow, that looks good! I may have to try that next trip!

I was very nervous two weeks ago because DisneyFoodBlog reported that it was removed from the menu but I looked online and it's still there. It's just listed now under "Plant-based". I'm hoping they didn't get rid of it. It's the only plant-based breakfast item so i can't imagine they did.

Also looks good though it may be gone soon? Did they close Restaurantosaurus yet? I can't keep track!

I can't keep track either. We figured we should eat there though since it was probably our last opportunity.

We are from CT and have had it many times! There's nothing like the OG in New Haven though the other ones around are pretty good! DD went to school in Hamden so we always would incorporate a stop to get some New Haven pizza. Sally's and Modern are amazing too if you are even in the Wooster Street New Haven area!

We're always looking for good restaurant stops in CT! I'll put those on the list to try next time we're driving through.

 

[mickey916]

4/30 Back to Our Favorite Park (Again) - Epcot​

We arrived before regular park opening and waited again under Spaceship Earth. The “rope” dropped at 8:55 and we made our way to the Land so I could ride Soarin’ as DH rode Living with the Land. There was a 10 minute posted wait for Soarin’. I waited 13 minutes before boarding, but I finally got assigned to B-1! It's so much better without dangling feet above and warped images.

We headed next to the Butterfly house. There were a lot of White Peacock Butterflies flying around.

It was a beautiful day for more photos of topiaries and flowers.

I love the “hair” on Bo’s sheep!

We continued searching for Spike the Bee as we made our way around the World Showcase. We stopped for a snack at Kringla Bakeri and had to get the schoolbread this time.

We love this every time we get it! The sweet cream filling and toasted coconut is delicious. Schoolbread gets an A.

Okay, I admit it, we also had to get another Triple Chocolate Chip Cookie, just to make sure it was still good and not just a fluke the first time.

Yup, still incredible! It gets an A+ again. It definitely is towards the top of our cookie list. (I'll give the full ranking at the end of my report eventually.)

We made our way around World Showcase stopping for photos along the way.

We saw the Seven Dwarfs in Germany.

And the Dragon in a new location in Japan.

Also in Japan there were displays of traditional Japanese water fountains called Shishi-Odoshi, which means “scare deer”. The idea is that as the bamboo fills with water it drops and bangs on rocks making noises to scare off deer.

Around us we have many deer who like to eat anything my DH attempts to plant in our yard, even so-called “deer-resistant” plants. I suggested he may want to add Shishi-Odoshi fountains to our yard but he thought having continuous banging of bamboo on rocks might also scare away some of our neighbors, haha.

After touring the World Showcase we made our way to Sunshine Seasons for lunch.

Up next..trying a favorite and something new at Sunshine Seasons.

 

[buzzrelly]

It was a beautiful day for more photos of topiaries and flowers.

So pretty. I love F & G fest and I only got to go for one day this year. Next year I’ll make up for it as we’ll be there in March and April!

We love this every time we get it! The sweet cream filling and toasted coconut is delicious. Schoolbread gets an A.

I tried that once because it looks so good but I didn’t like the taste of cardamom in it. It was also much drier than I expected. I’m going to have to try that cookie though!

 

[mickey916]

So pretty. I love F & G fest and I only got to go for one day this year. Next year I’ll make up for it as we’ll be there in March and April!

You'll be there at its peak! We noticed on our trip the flowers were much better in April than towards the end of May. They were definitely getting wilty by then. We're planning on going in April/May again next year.

I tried that once because it looks so good but I didn’t like the taste of cardamom in it. It was also much drier than I expected. I’m going to have to try that cookie though!

Interesting. I've never noticed a cardamom taste. Some of them are drier than others but they're definitely more bready and less like a donut. Definitely try the cookie!

 

[happily single]

The closest Frank Pepe’s to us is in Warwick RI. Worth a trip. Our DS lives near there and we usually take him there for dinner/ lunch if we’re coming for a visit.

That one is almost in my back yard

 

[BellaBaby]

You can always ask for B1 at Soarin. We do that sometimes when they're gonna put us in A and they always say sure.

 

[mickey916]

You can always ask for B1 at Soarin. We do that sometimes when they're gonna put us in A and they always say sure.

Great advice! I usually end up in C but did get put in A once and that one is the worst!

 

[buzzrelly]

You'll be there at its peak! We noticed on our trip the flowers were much better in April than towards the end of May. They were definitely getting wilty by then. We're planning on going in April/May again next year.

April is my absolute favorite time to go. This will be our first time going in mid-March too but DH wants to be there on his birthday so we'll see how it goes! I've heard that's a very busy time!

 

[ddluvsdisney]

Another F &G fan here! We have been going every April since the boys were little. Not only is F &G beautiful I think it’s the best weather!! I tried the school bread last year bc of your suggestion. It was good, but there was a flavor I just couldn’t pinpoint. I didn’t see the bamboo fountains. That is so interesting!!

Edit: we have asked for B at Soarin before as well

 

[mickey916]

April is my absolute favorite time to go. This will be our first time going in mid-March too but DH wants to be there on his birthday so we'll see how it goes! I've heard that's a very busy time!

We love April and the first two weeks of May. Our original trip this past spring was scheduled for mid-March to mid-April but we got scared off by the crowd predictions. Next year though we are planning two trips, one late February/early March and then our April/May trip. We too are curious about the March crowds. Our plan is to hit the parks early and then go find stuff to do at the resorts once the parks get crowded.

Another F &G fan here! We have been going every April since the boys were little. Not only is F &G beautiful I think it’s the best weather!! I tried the school bread last year bc of your suggestion. It was good, but there was a flavor I just couldn’t pinpoint. I didn’t see the bamboo fountains. That is so interesting!!

Edit: we have asked for B at Soarin before as well

We love the April weather. Couldn't agree more that it's the best! I bet that flavor was the cardamom that someone mentioned. I'll have to have one again to see, haha! I will definitely ask for B next time I'm slated for A, that's for sure!

 

[mickey916]

4/30 continued...Enjoying the Little Things at Epcot
​

For our lunch at Sunshine Seasons, we decided to share the Power Greens Salad with Chicken from the Grab & Go section: Mixed Greens, Quinoa, Blueberries, Blackberries, Almonds, Feta, and Balsamic Vinegar

This is one of our favorite salads we discovered on our “healthy eating” trip last December. The chicken is well cooked and not dry. The salad has many interesting flavors and textures. The balsamic vinaigrette is very good.

We also tried the Mediterranean Vegetable Sandwich: Roasted Red Pepper, Red Onion, Tomato, Arugula, Hummus, and Balsamic Vinaigrette on Herbed Focaccia. The online menu says it is served with chips but we were given the choice of pasta salad so we opted for that.

We enjoyed this sandwich. It was very flavorful but we actually preferred the Mediterranean veggie wrap from the Grab & Go section that we got last time. The ratio of bread to vegetables was just a bit too much. Overall though it was a very tasty sandwich. We also were very surprised at the deliciousness of the pasta salad. The macaroni was cooked perfectly and it had just the right amount of dressing. I can usually take or leave pasta salad but this was worth getting again! Our lunch at Sunshine Seasons was awarded an A-. One of our favorite lunch spots in Epcot!

We headed next to check out the display in Communicore Hall. The Spike the Bee flower display was very pretty but it still feels like they’re missing opportunities in this newly constructed exhibition area.

As we departed Communicore Hall. DH was very happy to see that they were giving out free Uncrustables again. They were giving out samples of their new Raspberry flavor as well as Strawberry.

We both really enjoyed the raspberry flavor. It was a nice dessert after our lunch!

Since we really were trying to keep a slow pace and enjoy the little things, we stopped by the fountains near the Imagination Pavilion and attempted to get photos of the bouncing water. This was my best photo:

We decided to watch the Disney & Pixar Short Film Festival, right next door to the Journey into Imagination. We didn’t remember ever seeing these shorts in this theater before. We definitely didn’t remember the 4D effect of the theater shaking during certain scenes! The first time it happened we both looked at each other in shock. I thought we were experiencing an earthquake, lol! DH thinks the effect was more pronounced because there were so few people in the theater. Overall though we really enjoyed the three shorts. We especially found the updated version of Get a Horse with the special effects very interesting. We highly recommend checking out these films.

DH needed to go visit his buddy Figment next so we headed over to the Imagination pavilion.

It appeared they were having some staffing issues though as there was no Photopass photographer available. Also, I thought it strange but the Cast Member that was handling Figment said she would not be able to use our cameras to take our photos either. Usually Cast Members are more than willing to take a photo for you but not this one.

Since we have never stopped by the special Disney Visa Cardholder photo spot, we figured we should stop there to get our picture taken. We got in line at 1:55 and it never moved. After ten minutes of not moving at all, we decided we didn’t need a picture and instead headed to Brunchcot for a snack.

We shared an order of Fried Cinnamon Roll Bites with cream cheese frosting and candied bacon

We had seen different reports about whether or not this year’s version had cinnamon filling. Ours definitely had cinnamon filling! These are very tasty with a nice cinnamon sugar coating, cream cheese frosting and a tasty contrast with the candied bacon. We gave them a B+ and ranked them just above the apple cider donuts from Friar’s Nook.

We took more topiary photos.

Then, we made our way to the United Kingdom pavilion for a free “tea tour” at Twinings. We had signed up earlier in the day for the 3:30 tour. It was a very nice stroll through the gardens of the United Kingdom as the CM taught us about various teas and how they are made.

We are not tea drinkers but it was interesting none-the-less. At the end of the tour we were each given two free samples of herbal teas. We haven’t tried them yet but we will soon, if we ever remember!

After our tour, we wandered back to World Nature and rode Finding Nemo with no wait. We attempted to ride Spaceship Earth which had a 10 minute posted wait but discovered it was actually temporarily closed. We headed to Living with the Land but the ride line was huge so we decided not to wait.

We were trying to pass the time before our 5:30 ADR at Coral Reef but not finding much to do in the area. So, we decided to check in early and see if our time could be moved up a bit.

Up next…dinner at Coral Reef, trying a favorite and something new. Was it as good as the previous visit?

 

[ddluvsdisney]

Your lunch at SS looked really good. I agree about Communicore Hall I just don’t get it. That spike the bee display was really pretty. We saw the Pixar shorts a while back I don’t even remember which ones we saw. I didn’t like how it was standing room only. Is it still like that? Weird about the pic with Figment. I love that Goofy topiary!
Those fried cinnamon bites were one of our favorites last/ and this year. Soooo yummy!!! No matter how many times I’ve been to Disney… I’m always learning new things! I had no idea about that tea tour. My mom would’ve loved that!

 

[buzzrelly]

Our lunch at Sunshine Seasons was awarded an A-. One of our favorite lunch spots in Epcot!

That all looks yummy. My DH and I love to rope drop Remy then head to Soarin and afterwards sit and have our coffee at Sunshine Seasons. Their breakfast is really good too.

It appeared they were having some staffing issues though as there was no Photopass photographer available. Also, I thought it strange but the Cast Member that was handling Figment said she would not be able to use our cameras to take our photos either. Usually Cast Members are more than willing to take a photo for you but not this one.

That's odd. No PP photographer and they won't take your pic? Why even bother having this open??

We shared an order of Fried Cinnamon Roll Bites with cream cheese frosting and candied bacon

Oooohhh, love those!

We are not tea drinkers but it was interesting none-the-less.

I love tea! This seems like a fun little tour. I always take a million pics throughout that area, it's so pretty

 

[mickey916]

Your lunch at SS looked really good. I agree about Communicore Hall I just don’t get it. That spike the bee display was really pretty.

From what I saw on YouTube it seems like they did a great job with the space for Festival of the Arts but then didn't do tons with F&G. Hopefully someday they use it to its greater potential for the festivals.

We saw the Pixar shorts a while back I don’t even remember which ones we saw. I didn’t like how it was standing room only. Is it still like that?

The pre-show where they show little Pixar clips is standing room only but then you go into a regular theater. Right now they are showing Get a Horse which is reimagined, Piper which we've seen on Disney+ and Feast.

Weird about the pic with Figment. I love that Goofy topiary!

The Goofy topiary is one of our favorites!

Those fried cinnamon bites were one of our favorites last/ and this year. Soooo yummy!!! No matter how many times I’ve been to Disney… I’m always learning new things! I had no idea about that tea tour. My mom would’ve loved that!

There is a small sign advertizing the tea tour just outside Twinings. It's easy to miss. We had seen Deni Sunderly mention it on her YouTube channel. Our tourguide was a young woman from Scotland. She did a great job.

That all looks yummy. My DH and I love to rope drop Remy then head to Soarin and afterwards sit and have our coffee at Sunshine Seasons. Their breakfast is really good too.

We'll have to try breakfast there sometime!

That's odd. No PP photographer and they won't take your pic? Why even bother having this open??

It was odd. At first I thought the CM was saying she WOULD take our pictures but then she said each group had to have their own photographer.

Oooohhh, love those!

So good!

I love tea! This seems like a fun little tour. I always take a million pics throughout that area, it's so pretty

It was a fun little tour. We learned a lot and were almost convinced to be tea drinkers, lol.

 

[mickey916]

4/30 continued Dinner & Dessert​

We walked over to Coral Reef and apparently I needed to document that..haha!

I don’t know how I accidentally take these pictures but it happens all the time!

We checked into Coral Reef at 4:45 and were taken right to our table.

Even though the place was quite empty we were seated on the upper tier. I know we could’ve requested a table by the tank but we figured we’d leave those tables for people with kids. There really aren’t any bad seats at this restaurant. Here was our view:

Our server brought over the delicious bread service of pineapple coconut bread and butter.

This is pretty much the same bread you get at ‘Ohana, Olivias and Sebastians. It was served warm but obviously microwaved because, while tasty, it did harden up as it cooled off.

We were happy to see that the Coastal Palm Cakes were still on the menu: Hearts of Palm, Quinoa, Kale, Pearl Peppers, Toy Box Tomatoes, Red Onions, Roasted Corn

This is such a unique and flavorful dish. The palm cakes are crispy on the outside and not overly mushy on the inside. The corn adds great texture. There was much more roasted red pepper sauce this time and added excellent flavor.

We also ordered the Grilled Snapper: Coconut-Lime Rice, Mango Salsa, Avocado, Toasted Coconut, Chili-Lime Seasoning

The fish was well cooked and nicely seasoned. The pineapple salsa added a nice Caribbean flavor. We don’t get seafood very often outside of New England but we enjoyed this dish.

After dinner, we decided to get dessert at the place we had originally planned for the evening prior. We walked to the International Gateway and took the Friendship boat to the Boardwalk.

We then walked over to the Fountain and ordered the German Chocolate Brownie Sundae.

This was surprisingly nothing special. It was pretty standard ice cream, brownie and toppings. The coconut macaroon was very good though. I have a funny story about the macaroons. There were two, one for each of us. I ate mine pretty early but didn’t realize that DH had broken his in half and left the other half in the sundae to save it for a future bite. So, I took a spoonful of what I thought was whipped cream and ice cream and suddenly realized I was eating a macaroon. I said to him “hmmm I think I just ate your macaroon.” He responded, “oh I was saving that!” Oh well. I just got out of the doghouse from the rocket launch thing and here I was back again in it. He really wasn’t upset but he did bring it up several times after that. Haha!

This was our first time getting a sundae from the Fountain and we instantly regretted not going to Beaches & Cream for the No Way Jose. Lesson learned.

We started our walk back to Epcot and DH noticed Todd & Michelle, vloggers from the Traveling Around Disney YouTube channel. We stopped and introduced ourselves. They had just filmed a dining review at Trattoria Al Forno and were walking over to Epcot. We actually ended up walking over with them. They were super nice and we really enjoyed getting to meet them.

As we returned to Epcot, it was time for me to use a LLSP for Guardians that I was fortunate enough to snag at 2:00 earlier that day. I rode Guardians and then we headed back to the hotel.

Up next…a day at Disney Springs

 

[ddluvsdisney]

I remember taking the boys to CR, I think it was their first trip. They loved the fish tank!! So fun for kids. I think we tried CR again a few years back and it was just ok. The snapper looked really good though. Not so sure we’d like the hearts of palm cakes. Is the Fountain in the Swan or Dolphin? Sadly that sundae doesn’t even look that great. Like you said lesson learned. I feel like I’m in the doghouse often!! That’s neat that you got to talk to someone that you watch!! So fun.
Guardians is my favorite all time ride!

 

[mickey916]

I remember taking the boys to CR, I think it was their first trip. They loved the fish tank!! So fun for kids. I think we tried CR again a few years back and it was just ok. The snapper looked really good though. Not so sure we’d like the hearts of palm cakes.

We've never taken our boys. Our first time was this past December. It was very good both times.

Is the Fountain in the Swan or Dolphin? Sadly that sundae doesn’t even look that great. Like you said lesson learned.

It is at the Dolphin. We had gotten a PBJ shake there before that was quite good. They don't sell that anymore. It seems they have revamped their menu and that sundae was new but definitely mediocre.

I feel like I’m in the doghouse often!!

Haha!

That’s neat that you got to talk to someone that you watch!! So fun.

It's funny because we feel like we know them and they obviously didn't have a clue who we were but they were super nice.

Guardians is my favorite all time ride!

Mine too!