7 Days of Good Eats - We're Back! Updated 4/21/11!

[brewhome]

Hi everyone,

I'm heading to the World tomorrow and I will write a dining review when I return, if you are interested! I'll warn you now - my DH does not like the idea of me taking food porn pics, but I'll try to sneak some in here and there. At the very least, I will give you my honest opinions!

We're staying at ASMU, and the cast is my DH (age 45), me (age 38), DS1 (age 10), and DS2 (age 8). It'll be the first time DS1 is on the adult DDP. We have the regular DDP and we'll be going to the following TS restaurants:

Tony's Town Square (dinner)
Captain's Grille at the Yacht Club (dinner)
Donald's Safari Breakfast at Tusker House
Le Cellier (lunch)
Sci-Fi Dine In Theater (lunch)
Yak 'n Yeti (dinner)
Crystal Palace (dinner)

We don't plan CS ahead; we just eat wherever and whenever the mood strikes. And of course, we'll be indulging in some yummy snacks along the way!!

 

[Hootiss]

Have a great trip, look forward to your reviews

 

[saintstickets]

Sign me up coach! I hope you sneak a few pics in even though I never take any during our trips. DW and I love to read opinions of other restaurants so we can try something new each trip. Our last trip was without kids (Nov/Dec 2010 trip report link below) and we did more dining than riding. It was great! I look forward to reading about your trip.

 

[MishyMouse]

Have a great trip!

 

[brewhome]

Hi everyone,

I'm heading to the World tomorrow and I will write a dining review when I return, if you are interested! I'll warn you now - my DH does not like the idea of me taking food porn pics, but I'll try to sneak some in here and there. At the very least, I will give you my honest opinions!

We're staying at ASMU, and the cast is my DH (age 45), me (age 38), DS1 (age 10), and DS2 (age 8). It'll be the first time DS1 is on the adult DDP. We have the regular DDP and we'll be going to the following TS restaurants:

Tony's Town Square (dinner)
Captain's Grille at the Yacht Club (dinner)
Donald's Safari Breakfast at Tusker House
Le Cellier (lunch)
Sci-Fi Dine In Theater (lunch)
Yak 'n Yeti (dinner)
Crystal Palace (dinner)

We don't plan CS ahead; we just eat wherever and whenever the mood strikes. And of course, we'll be indulging in some yummy snacks along the way!!

Hi everyone, we're back from another awesome trip to the World! I organized my receipts and added up my totals, and I'll be starting my dining review tonight. I sadly don't have food porn pics because my DH just does not go for that at all, but I will give you my honest reviews! We did make a change to the line up above - we swapped out Yak 'n Yeti for dinner at Wolfgang Puck Cafe.

I will also be reviewing the following counter service restaurants:

All Star Music - Intermission Food Court (lunch)
Rosie's All-American Cafe and Fairfax Fare (lunch)
Wolfgang Puck Express (dinner)
Electric Umbrella (dinner)
All Star Music - Intermission Food Court (dinner)
Flame Tree BBQ (lunch)
Casey's Corner (lunch)

First up - ASMu food court and Tony's!!

 

[iluvpluto27]

I'm in! Looking forward to your reviews.

 

[lovegrumpy]

Can't wait to hear about then.

 

[TanzUnited99]

Looking forward to hearing your reviews

 

[chocolateMinnie]

subscribing

 

[yolie912]

Subscribing...

 

[brewhome]

Hi all! It's time for day one reviews! We arrived at ASMU around 1:30, checked into our room, and headed right down to Intermission Food Court because we we were starving from our travels!

DH got a bacon cheeseburger with mushrooms and onions, fries, soda, and chocolate chip cookie. It was a typical Disney burger on a wheat bun, which we actually don't mind. DH inhaled it all, and said the mushrooms and onions really added some good flavor.

I got a hot dog, fries, soda and chocolate chip cookie. For some reason, I love Disney hot dogs - they remind me of ball park hot dogs. Of course, I added liquid fake cheese and it was delish!! The fries were hot and crispy - just the way I like them.

DS1 (who is 10 and on the adult plan) got a bacon cheeseburger, fries, soda, and brownie. He ate the brownie first and loved it because it was so fudgy! I didn't care because we were on vacay - and if dessert comes first once in a while, so be it! He did enjoy his burger and fries, as well... typical Disney burger.

DS2 (who is 8 and on the child plan) got the adult chicken nuggets, fries, soda, and chocolate chip cookie. He loved the nuggets - they were big and had a yummy crispy coating. We all enjoyed our cookies - not quite as good as home baked ones, but they are pretty tasty and are a good size.

Now - I know there's lots of back and forth about CS credits not really being counted as kids meals vs. adult meals. Here's what happened... when we checked in, the CM at the check in explained the dining plan to us and specifically told us that DS2 did NOT have to order a kids meal... that CS credits are all the same, so there is no requirement to order off the kids menu. So, we ordered him the adult meal, because the adult chicken nuggets are so much better than the kids meal nuggets. When we got to the check out, the cashier told us we cannot use a "child" CS credit on an adult CS meal. I told her to charge us for 4 adult CS meals, knowing full well that they really are all the same credits, and the CM told me she'd "let it go this time" and allow me to use a "child" CS credit for the adult meal. I wish all CM's would get on the same page about this!!!

 

[TanzUnited99]

Am glad you enjoyed your meal at the Intermission food court.

I have heard/read that CS credits are the same - it doesn't matter if you are a child/adult but obviously like you said not everyone is on the same page!

 

[brewhome]

Dinner our first night was at Tony's Town Square in MK. DH and I had been there on our honeymoon 15 years ago, so it was a nice little walk down memory lane. That time, we sat in the front part of the restaurant with the big windows overlooking Main Street. This time, we were seated in the center part of the restaurant, right near the Lady and the Tramp fountain - so the kids loved our spot! The restaurant is really cute inside - but, like most restaurants in the theme parks, it was pretty loud.

We all had dinner rolls with olive oil dipping sauce, and they were delicious. Warm, crusty, yummy rolls dipped in oil - there just can't be anything wrong with that.

DH had chicken parmesan and vanilla gelato. He said the chicken was moist and the breading was good, and it came with a nice amount of melted mozzarella and a big pile of pasta. It didn't have a ton of sauce, but he likes his pasta dishes a bit dry. He really liked the vanilla gelato; it was a little bit lighter than vanilla ice cream.

I had spaghetti with meatballs and pistachio creme brulee. The spaghetti was a good portion size and cooked perfectly al dente. The meatballs were huge! They were pretty flavorful. They were light in color, so my guess is they are made with a mix of beef, veal, and pork. The sauce was just ok - it was a bit on the spicy side, whereas I like my sauce a bit more on the sweet side. But, not bad. The pistachio creme brulee was DELICIOUS!! I am a lover of all creme brulees, but this one was extra good because of the subtle pistachio flavor. It also came with a crispy cookie and candied pistachios on the side - yum-o!

DS1 had a NY strip steak with roasted potatoes and squash, and an ice cream bomb. He loved his steak - it was cooked to a perfect medium and had a nice grilled "crust". The potatoes were plain, but cooked well -I think they had just a hint of rosemary on them. I tried his squash and it was yummy, but of course DS1 wouldn't eat it! He totally loved his ice cream bomb. It's a thin layer of chocolate cake with chocolate and vanilla ice cream mounded on top, and all of that is covered with a hard chocolate coating. Yum. He ate every bite and didn't want to share!!

DS2 had a kids cheese pizza meal with carrot & celery sticks, and a kids ice cream sundae. He liked it all and the pizza had a really nice crust on it.

I would recommend Tony's for dinner - I think next time, I would stay away from the red sauce and order a pasta dish with alfredo, or a steak. It's just not my type of sauce, but you may like it! Desserts were great and the service was really good, too.

 

[disneybound31]

Great so far!

 

[shera]

great reviews,sounds like you guys had a great time

 

[kupperman]

I'm in! Great reviews so far.

 

[lakohls]

subscribing - trying to plan our ADRs for next trip - thanks

 

[Pooh&OurHunny]

joining in.
We went to Tony's 2 months ago as a walk in and we had a wonderful lunch...my husband was quite surprised with the meal b/c last time we went 2 yrs ago it was so so.

 

[brewhome]

Hi all! Thanks for all of the positive comments, I am glad you're enjoying the reviews. I'm sorry it's been a while since I updated them - work and kids tend to get in the way!

So... onto our day 2 lunch at Hollywood Studios. We decided to eat in the Sunset Boulevard area of HS because there are several restaurant choices all nestled together, and the seating area there is great. We actually had a couple of Cast Members, acting as a 1940's starlet and her agent, do a whole skit at the table next to us! They were hilarious, and DS1 and DS2 go a real kick out of it.

Onto the food! DH, DS1, and DS2 all ordered from Rosie's All-American Cafe and I ordered from Fairfax Fare.

DH had a double cheeseburger with fries and a carrot cake for dessert. He said it was a "typical" Disney burger - not the best in the world, but very filling and tasty enough. He really liked the carrot cake - the frosting was sweet, and the cake was nice and moist.

DS1 had a single cheeseburger with fries and a chocolate cake for dessert. He loves Disney burgers, so he polished it off pretty quickly. He ate about 1/2 of the chocolate cake, which he said was "really, really sweet".

DS2 had the kid chicken nuggets with fries and a chocolate chip cookie. Although we all agree that the adult chicken nuggets in most places are way better than the kid ones, he really liked the kid ones this time, and of course, scarfed down his cookie. Everyone enjoyed the fries - hot and crispy, and they had malt vinegar at the condiments station, which we all love.

I had a pulled pork sandwich with baked beans and a chocolate cake. The pork was sweet-spicy and had a nice smoky flavor. This is the first time I've had a wheat bun fall apart on me, but I think it happened because the pork was quite saucy. Didn't matter to me; I just ate it with a knife and fork! DH ate some too because the sandwich was HUGE, and he wished he would have ordered that instead of the cheeseburger at Rosie's. The beans were smoky and had pieces of the pulled pork in them - good flavor, but they were a bit hard. I ate 'em anyway. DS1 was right - that chocolate cake was really sweet! The frosting is really gooey, and the cake is nice and moist.

Overall, I'd recommend this area in HS for counter service because of the varied choices (burgers, BBQ, pizza, turkey legs). None of the counter service in HS is really, really great, but this is definitely acceptable theme park food, IMO.

 

[brewhome]

On to day 2 dinner! We walked from HS to the Yacht Club for our ressie at Captain's Grille. It's a really nice walk; it took us about 15 minutes. The kids enjoyed watching the ducks on the waterway. We like to eat dinner at a new resort each trip so we can enjoy more of the property, and the Yacht Club was really, really nice! The view of the Boardwalk is great and we love the nautical theming of the hotel. The Captain's Grille is a really pretty restaurant inside, and the tables are actually a bit spaced out, so it wasn't very loud in there. I do also have to commend the excellent service we received. The server explained the three course menu and what was covered on the dining plan, and was present at just the right times.

We all shared a basket of multi-grain bread and butter that was warm, nutty, and delicious.

DH had the three course menu but swapped desserts with DS1, which the server had no problem with. DH started with the lump crab cake appetizer which he split with me. It comes with two good sized crab cakes, a fennel-arugula salad with a nice light dressing, and a swirl of stone ground mustard sauce on the plate. These crab cakes were nice - they had a nice crispy outside and a warm, fresh taste. The mustard sauce was not really spicy and was a nice complement to the sweet crab. The fennel-arugula salad had a bit of zip, so it was a really well balanced dish. For his entree, DH ordered the market fish, which was mahi mahi. He was served a bowl of delicious wild rice (the menu said ancient grains) with two good-sized pieces of perfectly cooked mahi mahi, and a really nice broth that had a light spicy flavor. He really, really enjoyed this dish. For dessert, he had the Apple Tart Tatin, which was kind of like a crustless apple pie. It had a bit of a crumb layer at the bottom, and then the apples were molded on top of that. It came with a caramel cream sauce and a scoop of cheesecake ice cream. He enjoyed it, but since he's more of a "traditional" apple pie fan, it was a little different than what he is used to. Good, nonetheless!

I had the Grilled NY strip steak with cheddar bacon mashed potatoes, roasted whole baby carrots, and red wine sauce. Oh, YUM! The steak was cooked to a perfect medium and had a really nice grilled flavor. The red wine sauce was light and delicious. The carrots were perfectly cooked. The cheddar bacon mashed potatoes were AWESOME - creamy, smoky from the bacon, and cheesy. The pile of them was huge - I couldn't believe how big the portion size was. I had the Chocolate Profiterole for dessert, which was heaven on a plate for chocolate lovers. It had a thin piece of chocolate on the plate as a base (think about 6" by 2"), with three lovely scoops of chocolate mousse on top of that, another thin piece of chocolate on top, and creme anglaise drizzled over the top. It was soooo good... not super rich, but just delish. I would have licked the plate if it was polite to do so.

DS1 had crab legs with steamed red potatoes and a 1/2 piece of corn on the cob. The corn was a bit overdone, but it was sweet. The potatoes were just plain steamers, but dipped in melted butter,they were tasty. There were four sets of crab legs, and they were pretty meaty - and very sweet and tasty. Keep in mind that these are not like East Coast crabs during the peak season, but they are pretty good for the middle of winter. DS1 loves crab, so he was a very happy camper. He had chocolate gelato for dessert and he was served three huge scoops - so much he couldn't finish it, although he liked it very much.

DS2 had a kids hot dog meal with french fries, a salad with ranch dressing, and the kids ice cream sundae. He enjoyed his hot dog and fries and didn't eat much of the salad, but it looked nice and fresh. He really liked the kids sundae, which was a make-your-own with side dishes of chocolate sauce, caramel sauce, sprinkles, and M&M's. Like a typical boy, he likes interactive desserts and this one was really good.

This was our second favorite TS meal of the trip (you'll have to stay tuned to see what our favorite was - I bet you can guess just by looking at our list!!). It's a great use of TS credits, and is only a single credit vs. a 2 TS credit at the Yachtsman next door. With my kids being 10 and 8, we just don't feel we'd get our money's worth at signature restaurants yet, so Captain's Grille was a great choice for us. I highly reccommend it for the great service, relaxed atmosphere, and really good food!!