9 days, 20 ADRs, 14 b-day treats, & 2 happy bellies! Completed!
- Thread starter emmysmommy
- Start date
archdandy
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Apr 1, 2011
Definitely subbing! I can't wait to read more of your reviews. We've never eaten at Kona or Cosmic Rays before but your reviews make them sound like really good places to try. We might end up trying Cosmic Rays for one of our CS lunches when we go in June.
emmysmommy
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 30, 2010
Tell the kids that the parents veto the kids!definitely subscribing - love the reviews so far - we wanted to do kona next trip but the kids vetoed it
Seriously, I'm sure they would love it. We love Kona for breakfast! It never fails to get me into a proper Disney mood to eat there for our first breakfastLooking forward to more of your reviews!
Amen! It has become a first breakfast tradition for us as well. Like I said in my review, I will be scheduling 2 breakfasts here next time. It's THAT good!
Thanks Terri! I haven't tried dinner there yet but if someone can give me a compelling reason to book that meal, I'd definitely try it!
Lol at the way you described them pancakes!!
I can't wait to try some Tonga Toast in September!!
Ha, why yes, the pancakes were THAT good!
Some people are tonga toast people (those people!) and some people are macadamia nut pineapple pancake people (my people!) 
Enjoy dreaming about Kona until Sept. Why thanks! How exciting for you - you are down to having to wait only days now....
Enjoy your trip! I was going to say at least we were not seated in the corner! I liked that seat... it was better than sitting in the middle of the room last time. I felt like we were in the mush-pot.
I REALLY enjoyed your last dining reviews and I am SO glad to see you have started another.
Thanks! A repeat customer - nice!
BTW: Congrats on your amazing 50 lb wt. loss! That is incredible.
Thank you Lizzyb!!
Thanks. More to come just for you then!
Cosmic Rays is great since you don't have to worry about ADRs or leaving the park. However, Kona - you really should try if you can sometime. Both of these ADRs were initially tried because of the wonderful people on the DisBoards that shared their dining reivews. Otherwise I may never have known about Kona. My life would be so incomplete without that experience!
More to come.
emmysmommy
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 30, 2010
This was a restaurant that we had tried last summer when we were in MK it is now on our must repeat list. We checked in a little early for our 2:15pm reservation and had literally no wait before our name was called and we were seated at a table for two.
diet coke:
I wasnt too hungry but we wanted the fried cheese appetizer to split. It ended up being the perfect portion for us. Although, we did fight over the cheese curds since those were favored above the cheese logs! The marinara sauce was not spectacular but it was fine for dipping the cheesy goodness. One observation, the fried cheese was not scorching hot with molten cheese spilling out. I did not have any burns on the roof of my mouth since the cheese was only warm in temperature.
Since I was not hungry, I asked Em if she wanted to split a dish. Of course, she didnt want to order what I wanted so .. I ordered the tri-corner sandwich which is served with fries while Em had the pot roast which she had last time. The highlights of the tri-corner sandwich .soft and fresh herb focaccia bread that was spread with a horseradish sauce and the arugula which gave it the perfect peppery bite. The meat and swiss cheese were good as well but honestly, I could have just eaten the bread with the sauce and the greens. Oh, and the fries were the best that I had all week! They bring a little dish of ketchup so you dont have to punch out the Heinz 57 bottle to get a drip of ketchup out of it!
Tri-corner sandwich with fries:
Ems pot roast she must have enjoyed because I think I heard a few mmms. I took one bite and it was delish!
Pot Roast:
I really should not have even entertained dessert but I had to get the ooey gooey toffee cake which is so heavenly! I ordered it with the ice-cream on the side (Im not a huge ice-cream fan - yes you heard that right!) and it arrived with a candle and a birthday serenade from the wait staff.
Ooey gooey toffee cake:
Em ordered the caramel apple tart with butterscotch ice cream.
The total using our Tables in Wonderland card was $53.82 with the 18% gratuity.
Not sure if you can see this since the photo may be too small but here's the menu:
Although our server was ok, I have to make mention of the server that was serving in the same area that we were seated. She was amazing - especially with the kids. She would provide interesting trivia and Americana fun facts to her guests. Maybe she was a history major who aspired to work at MK dressed in colonial garb??
And those tights for the dudes, I always wonder why they would subject them to that humiliation? So there you have it! I like this place - I would definitely return for lunch at LTT. I'm not a fan of the family style dinner so that's not on my list.
Bonus photos of LTT:
Next up: Citricos
TanzUnited99
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Aug 27, 2010
LTT looks like fun! We have not made an ADR for here so will just have to read all the reviews for now. I have seen pics of that ooey gooey toffee cake and it looks heavenly! 
emmysmommy
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 30, 2010
Great reviews
Thanks! And thanks for reading.
Thanks! My DD only orders the pot roast so it must be good!
LTT looks like fun! We have not made an ADR for here so will just have to read all the reviews for now. I have seen pics of that ooey gooey toffee cake and it looks heavenly!
The best part of the ooey gooey cake was the little pieces of toffee and the melted chocolate chips. So very good!
emmysmommy
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 30, 2010
Citricos:
This was one of my favorite meals of the trip. I was proud of myself for trying something new. And I was pleased that all you guys who gave positive reviews here were right on the money.
We had an 8:30pm reservation and since we were staying at the BLT, it was a quick ride on the monorail to the Grand Floridian. It ended up not being so quick since the monorail had to hold for a maintenance check at the Ticket and Transportation Center (TTC.) The delay resulted in us being a few minutes late for our dining reservation. It wasnt a problem as they were not extremely busy. We were given a pager and our wait was about 10 minutes before we were seated at a lovely table for 4 overlooking the pool and GF grounds.
Note: The restaurant is located on the 2nd floor adjacent to Victoria & Alberts.
During our wait for our table we had a chance to peek at the Victoria & Alberts menu. Looking at the crazy fancy dishes that I could not even pronounce let alone know what manner of food they were had me calculating in my head how many Hostess Twinkies it would take to equal an ounce of Galilee Osetra caviar with traditional garnishes at $180 per ounce. Im thinking about 139.5!!
V&A Menu:
Still waiting for our table....
So back to the part about us eating at Citricos..... We were paraded, I mean escorted to our table. I must say that I really liked the vibe of this place.
The dining room had bold Italian accents and mosaic tile on the bar wall and floors. Em described the fabric as 90s RV upholstery (which was an apt description) but overall it was a very nice and elegant décor. The table had simple square glass vases with colorful orchids.
The menus that they presented were printed with a birthday greeting for me. What a nice touch!
Our waiter, Jason, started us with our drinks and a basket of olive bread with salted butter. It was actually very good. This was one of the few times that I had more than one slice of bread.
And my drink had a special Mickey straw!!!
I wasnt very hungry which disappointed me since I really wanted to try an entrée but I decided to let Em order what she wanted and I would take a few bites. However, I did order an appetizer salad; pear and endive salad which is described as follows. Tossed with a Pear Emulsion, Pistachio Brittle, Brillat Savarin Affine Cheese, fresh Strawberries, and Minus 8 Vinegar. Ive never heard of Minus 8 Vinegar but it was delicious and the entire salad was fresh and nicely presented.
Pear & Endive salad
Em ordered the sautéed shrimp as an appetizer while I ordered this as my main since it was small and light. It had farfalline tuscan pasta, lemon, white wine, tomatoes, and feta cheese. This dish was the perfect balance of pungent garlic and fresh lemon with a splash of wine. The shrimp were tender and cooked perfectly pink.
Sauteed shrimp:
For her main course, Em ordered the oak grilled filet of beef that had a veal glace de viande which I believe translated means beef gravy with cheesy potatoes. I tried both the filet and the potatoes and this dish was amazing! I didnt need more than a few bites but I would definitely return and order this again and hope that I have an appetite.
For dessert, I passed. Just kidding! Em and I split the lemon scented cheesecake with raspberry sauce. It arrived at our table all aglow with a birthday candle and well wishes from Jason. The cheesecake was very light and had just the right touch of lemon. One word of advice, dont eat the pointy, triangle shaped, pot holed looking, sticky thingie. It was like eating an Abba-Zaba and I swear I am still digging the chewy bits out of my teeth. I highly recommend this dessert just stay away from the decorative flair.
Jason our waiter was kind enough to take our photo good thing hes a waiter and not a photographer since the photo is fuzzy! Oh wait, I take fuzzy photos too.
The bill came to $97.72 with the gratuity and the TIW discount.
Next Up: Akershus Royal Banquet Hall
This was one of my favorite meals of the trip. I was proud of myself for trying something new. And I was pleased that all you guys who gave positive reviews here were right on the money.
We had an 8:30pm reservation and since we were staying at the BLT, it was a quick ride on the monorail to the Grand Floridian. It ended up not being so quick since the monorail had to hold for a maintenance check at the Ticket and Transportation Center (TTC.) The delay resulted in us being a few minutes late for our dining reservation. It wasnt a problem as they were not extremely busy. We were given a pager and our wait was about 10 minutes before we were seated at a lovely table for 4 overlooking the pool and GF grounds.
Note: The restaurant is located on the 2nd floor adjacent to Victoria & Alberts.
During our wait for our table we had a chance to peek at the Victoria & Alberts menu. Looking at the crazy fancy dishes that I could not even pronounce let alone know what manner of food they were had me calculating in my head how many Hostess Twinkies it would take to equal an ounce of Galilee Osetra caviar with traditional garnishes at $180 per ounce. Im thinking about 139.5!!
V&A Menu:
Still waiting for our table....
So back to the part about us eating at Citricos..... We were paraded, I mean escorted to our table. I must say that I really liked the vibe of this place.
The dining room had bold Italian accents and mosaic tile on the bar wall and floors. Em described the fabric as 90s RV upholstery (which was an apt description) but overall it was a very nice and elegant décor. The table had simple square glass vases with colorful orchids.
The menus that they presented were printed with a birthday greeting for me. What a nice touch!
Our waiter, Jason, started us with our drinks and a basket of olive bread with salted butter. It was actually very good. This was one of the few times that I had more than one slice of bread.
And my drink had a special Mickey straw!!!
I wasnt very hungry which disappointed me since I really wanted to try an entrée but I decided to let Em order what she wanted and I would take a few bites. However, I did order an appetizer salad; pear and endive salad which is described as follows. Tossed with a Pear Emulsion, Pistachio Brittle, Brillat Savarin Affine Cheese, fresh Strawberries, and Minus 8 Vinegar. Ive never heard of Minus 8 Vinegar but it was delicious and the entire salad was fresh and nicely presented.
Pear & Endive salad
Em ordered the sautéed shrimp as an appetizer while I ordered this as my main since it was small and light. It had farfalline tuscan pasta, lemon, white wine, tomatoes, and feta cheese. This dish was the perfect balance of pungent garlic and fresh lemon with a splash of wine. The shrimp were tender and cooked perfectly pink.
Sauteed shrimp:
For her main course, Em ordered the oak grilled filet of beef that had a veal glace de viande which I believe translated means beef gravy with cheesy potatoes. I tried both the filet and the potatoes and this dish was amazing! I didnt need more than a few bites but I would definitely return and order this again and hope that I have an appetite.
For dessert, I passed. Just kidding! Em and I split the lemon scented cheesecake with raspberry sauce. It arrived at our table all aglow with a birthday candle and well wishes from Jason. The cheesecake was very light and had just the right touch of lemon. One word of advice, dont eat the pointy, triangle shaped, pot holed looking, sticky thingie. It was like eating an Abba-Zaba and I swear I am still digging the chewy bits out of my teeth. I highly recommend this dessert just stay away from the decorative flair.
Jason our waiter was kind enough to take our photo good thing hes a waiter and not a photographer since the photo is fuzzy! Oh wait, I take fuzzy photos too.
The bill came to $97.72 with the gratuity and the TIW discount.
Next Up: Akershus Royal Banquet Hall
princess aleya
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Mar 11, 2009
Signing in!!! I love your Dining reviews...great pics, can't wait to hear more.
saintstickets
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Aug 30, 2009
Love your trip report. Keep it coming! DW and I visited V&A during our trip this past Thanksgiving (TR link below) and we were not sure what to expect. With that said, it was the finest dining experience ever! Yes, it is pricey; Yes, the menu items are unique; but everyone should try this at least once in their life! The food and service cannot be beat. Now everywhere we go, regardless of how good it is, we say, "It's good, but it's not V&A!"
TanzUnited99
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Aug 27, 2010
Great review of Citricos! Loving all the food pics
emmysmommy
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 30, 2010
Thanks! More to come for you!
Love your trip report. Keep it coming! DW and I visited V&A during our trip this past Thanksgiving (TR link below) and we were not sure what to expect. With that said, it was the finest dining experience ever! Yes, it is pricey; Yes, the menu items are unique; but everyone should try this at least once in their life! The food and service cannot be beat. Now everywhere we go, regardless of how good it is, we say, "It's good, but it's not V&A!"
Wow! You have entered through their hallowed doors! I'm worried that I will take a bite of something entirely unpleasing to my palate and have to spit it in my napkin. I would think that they frown on that there!
Some things in life just have to be experienced - maybe I'll put this one on my list after 'win the lottery so I can afford V&&A'... 
Seriously though, I'm sure they made you feel like a Queen during your dining experience. Sounds like it is now the gold standard for you. Thanks for sharing that.
Great review of Citricos! Loving all the food pics
Thanks! The food pictures are my favorite part of any review because it really tells a story in itself! Thanks for reading along.
I'll be back with Akershus... since there are no macadamia nut pineapple pancakes around my house, I'll just be getting me some oatmeal this morning.
B
Jasmine_710
And they lived happily ever after...
- Joined
- Jun 28, 2010
Great choices!. Can't wait to read more
disneydreaminA115
Long time lurker - coming out to play!
- Joined
- Apr 28, 2010
I'm really enjoying this report!! I love your writing style
emmysmommy
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 30, 2010
Akershus at Epcot:
When we arrived at the Epcot entrance, we were checked off the guest list for the character dining reservations and entered into a mostly deserted park. (Talk about feeling special!)
Deserted park:
It was an odd feeling walking through the park and stopping to take photos with no one around. We made it to Norway well ahead of our 8:40am reservation, checked in, and were told we would have a brief wait before we were seated.
Princess poses:
After a few minutes we were called to join the short line to have our photo taken with drum roll please .. Cinderella! We posed like a princess with Cindy and then were escorted to the finest table for two in the joint.
In actuality, I really, really liked this dining experience. I had thought about cancelling this dining reservation since it was so expensive for a breakfast. Knowing that it is a character experience didnt temper my hesitation since I dont have a little princess to dress up and participate in the princess promenade. Im very glad that I did not cancel and the expense was an after thought since I would still go back and enjoy this again.
Our server, Joergen, was attentive and did a fine job. We were shown the cold buffet area and our drink orders were filled. The plate of hot food arrived shortly. There were plenty of very American choices at the cold buffet I skipped anything that came from the sea (herring and salmon) only because Im not a fan of fish anyway. I started with the fresh fruit and some danishes. They also had bagels, muffins, croissants, yogurt with various toppings, cheeses and sliced deli meats.
Note: Sorry the food pictures are so small. I uploaded them too small and now when I go to resize them the resolution gets messed up. At least you will have an idea with these "thumbnail" size photos.
"Cold buffet" items:
The hot platter of food contained scrambled eggs cooked to perfection, some wonderfully good (and Im sure hardly any calories) cheesy potatoes, and some bacon & sausage. My plate was heavy on the potatoes, light on the bacon, and just right on the eggs.
Family platter of hot items:
My "hot items plate"
My fruit and danishes plate:
Thank goodness for my attentive daughter who noticed that there were Mickey waffles served at some tables. I was so busy digging into my food that I didnt even realize that you could ask for them. The one food item that you will see repeated in my breakfast dining reviews Mickey waffles! I LOVE those things! So I flagged Joergen down and begged for some Mickey waffles (well, in reality, I did ask nicely even if he heard some desperation in my voice.)
He served the waffles on a separate platter and said those magical words you can have as many as you want, just let me know. Even though I only ate two, if I could have boxed and taken some home with me I would have.
I mentioned that this was a character dining experience and I believe that the princesses rotate. This particular day, we were graced with Ariel and Snow White. Every 20-30 minutes or so they have a little parade with the princesses the princess procession. It was adorable to watch the little ones grab hands and follow-the-leader through the restaurant while they play some song about princes and princesses and wishing wells and I think they mentioned a dragon too!
Between parades the princesses visited the tables - we took photos with Ariel and Snow White.
I loved the enchanting décor which replicated a storybook castle. It had soaring ceilings, bold colored banners hanging from the cross beams and large cathedral windows with rich wood accents throughout.
Thoroughly satisfied with our dining experience, we were presented with our package of the photos that were taken when we entered the restaurant, paid our bill ($68.20 with TIW discount) and prepared to leave.
But wait!!! There was Belle greeting the guests and posing for photos. They had swapped out Cinderella for Belle. Im not prejudiced against blondes but I do prefer women who fall for the bad boys so I really wanted photos with Belle. I took a photo of Belle from afar (because I would never intrude on anyones photo op) and a very intuitive cast member told me that they would be happy to take our photo with Belle. How very nice!
Final analysis on this one...I loved the food, the service was great, the princess interaction was perfect, and the photo package maked it a sweeter deal. I would love to eat here again and relive the entire experience. It was worth the $30+ in my opinion.
Next Up: Chefs de France. Interesting waiter story with this one... stay tuned!
When we arrived at the Epcot entrance, we were checked off the guest list for the character dining reservations and entered into a mostly deserted park. (Talk about feeling special!)
Deserted park:
It was an odd feeling walking through the park and stopping to take photos with no one around. We made it to Norway well ahead of our 8:40am reservation, checked in, and were told we would have a brief wait before we were seated.
Princess poses:
After a few minutes we were called to join the short line to have our photo taken with drum roll please .. Cinderella! We posed like a princess with Cindy and then were escorted to the finest table for two in the joint.
In actuality, I really, really liked this dining experience. I had thought about cancelling this dining reservation since it was so expensive for a breakfast. Knowing that it is a character experience didnt temper my hesitation since I dont have a little princess to dress up and participate in the princess promenade. Im very glad that I did not cancel and the expense was an after thought since I would still go back and enjoy this again.
Our server, Joergen, was attentive and did a fine job. We were shown the cold buffet area and our drink orders were filled. The plate of hot food arrived shortly. There were plenty of very American choices at the cold buffet I skipped anything that came from the sea (herring and salmon) only because Im not a fan of fish anyway. I started with the fresh fruit and some danishes. They also had bagels, muffins, croissants, yogurt with various toppings, cheeses and sliced deli meats.
Note: Sorry the food pictures are so small. I uploaded them too small and now when I go to resize them the resolution gets messed up. At least you will have an idea with these "thumbnail" size photos.
"Cold buffet" items:
The hot platter of food contained scrambled eggs cooked to perfection, some wonderfully good (and Im sure hardly any calories) cheesy potatoes, and some bacon & sausage. My plate was heavy on the potatoes, light on the bacon, and just right on the eggs.
Family platter of hot items:
My "hot items plate"
My fruit and danishes plate:
Thank goodness for my attentive daughter who noticed that there were Mickey waffles served at some tables. I was so busy digging into my food that I didnt even realize that you could ask for them. The one food item that you will see repeated in my breakfast dining reviews Mickey waffles! I LOVE those things! So I flagged Joergen down and begged for some Mickey waffles (well, in reality, I did ask nicely even if he heard some desperation in my voice.)
He served the waffles on a separate platter and said those magical words you can have as many as you want, just let me know. Even though I only ate two, if I could have boxed and taken some home with me I would have.
I mentioned that this was a character dining experience and I believe that the princesses rotate. This particular day, we were graced with Ariel and Snow White. Every 20-30 minutes or so they have a little parade with the princesses the princess procession. It was adorable to watch the little ones grab hands and follow-the-leader through the restaurant while they play some song about princes and princesses and wishing wells and I think they mentioned a dragon too!
Between parades the princesses visited the tables - we took photos with Ariel and Snow White.
I loved the enchanting décor which replicated a storybook castle. It had soaring ceilings, bold colored banners hanging from the cross beams and large cathedral windows with rich wood accents throughout.
Thoroughly satisfied with our dining experience, we were presented with our package of the photos that were taken when we entered the restaurant, paid our bill ($68.20 with TIW discount) and prepared to leave.
But wait!!! There was Belle greeting the guests and posing for photos. They had swapped out Cinderella for Belle. Im not prejudiced against blondes but I do prefer women who fall for the bad boys so I really wanted photos with Belle. I took a photo of Belle from afar (because I would never intrude on anyones photo op) and a very intuitive cast member told me that they would be happy to take our photo with Belle. How very nice!
Final analysis on this one...I loved the food, the service was great, the princess interaction was perfect, and the photo package maked it a sweeter deal. I would love to eat here again and relive the entire experience. It was worth the $30+ in my opinion.
Next Up: Chefs de France. Interesting waiter story with this one... stay tuned!
emmysmommy
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 30, 2010
Great choices!. Can't wait to read more
Thanks! I look back at all of our ADRs and I must say that 95% of them I'd re-book!
I'm really enjoying this report!! I love your writing style
First I have to say, I love the adorable baby photo in your sig!!
So cute.Thanks for reading. I like my font choices as well! Oh, you mean my "style"!! Too bad I can't share the photos that I took of things like the waiters butt or the panty liner that fell out of a woman's shorts but hey we're all friends here so maybe I can..... Never mind, I'll be good.
2xcited2sleep
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 5, 2008
Loving the reviews so far. Can't wait for more!!
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