Day 2 Part 2: California Grill and Galactic Hero
We had a great afternoon of getting fastpasses and running around the Magic Kingdom. We rode Peter Pan, Dumbo and Barnstormer all within a 45 minute period. I know getting a FP for Dumbo and the Barnstormer aren’t all that sought out to get but I still enjoy not having to wait much at all for anything I ride. It honestly was not as busy as I remembered it being when I went over the same week back in 2014; however, it still was pretty crowded so I took whatever fast passes we could get. While in line for the barnstormer I got a fast pass for Haunted Mansion FINALLLY. For some reason it seemed as though that was the toughest FP to get so far. I am not sure if it was because everyone was obsessed with the ride this trip or what but I finally got it!
This whole afternoon of riding rides and just enjoying just being in the Magic Kingdom, eating at the California Grill was in the back of the mind the whole time. Not because I was hungry but because I was nervous! I have never ate at a signature dining venue at Disney and the classiest meal I have ever had was either at Olive Garden or in the Main Dining Room on the cruise. I did not even think about my outfit in the morning for dinner and I was worried now I wasn’t in the correct attire for the night. Well I obviously still enjoyed myself the whole entire time in the park it was just in the back of my mind.
We then got a FP for Pooh and thoroughly enjoyed that ride. When we bounce with tigger just brings me so much joy! We then hopped over to peoplemover to kill time before our Space Mountain fast pass. After we got off Space the time was about 6:20 so we decided to mosey our way to the Contemporary for our 7:00 reservation at California Grill and I was literally shaking in my boots.
I had never been to the Contemporary before except when I was 4 so I definitely looked like a fish out of water. We found the check in on the second floor and upon checking in I read the sign about the dress code and it said “Resort Casual”. I was like okay I am sure I look like resort casual but then I read the smaller print. No holes in your clothes. Well crap, all my jeans have holes in them and I am currently wearing black jeans with holes in them. So naturally I start to panic and I feel like everyone is just staring at me waiting for me to get kicked out. (Okay I am a bit dramatic and overact a bit.)
We got sat at an excellent table right next to the window. An our server Moe came and I automatically knew she was going to be an amazing server! She was so knowledgeable about everything on the menu and was able to answer literally any question that was thrown at her. She took our order and said that she would bring our appetizer out and then would wait to bring the rest out until after the fireworks were over.
I got the Sonoma Goat Cheese Ravioli which was truly delicious! It was goat cheese in the center and it was so creamy and cheesy and just to die for. I never wanted it to end. The broth that it was in was delicious as well! I already knew that this was going to be an amazing meal.
Rachel ordered the Charcuterie board and it was definitely not what she was expecting when she ordered it. When the board came out, she got a side menu to tell her exactly what each thing was. When she saw meat board she thought that she was going to get like different slices of meat with cheese. No, she got all different sorts and presentations of meats and names that we have never even heard of. Even though it was different, she seemed to enjoy it. I thought they all were really good! The meat in a cup, I think it was pork, had a lime drizzle and it was extremely good! It just was not something we were used to.
I went and watched Happily Ever After on the observation deck while Rach stayed inside because her feet were hurting from the long day and it was sprinkling a tad.
When I got back our entrée’s came out within 5 minutes afterwards. I literally started salivating right when they were set on the table. I ordered the braised pork shank and it was falling off the bone when I even started eating it. The polenta was delicious and something I have never had before, just heard it a bunch on the Food Network. I can’t rave enough about this dish!
Rachel ordered the filet and potatoes and it came with a cake of potatoes! It was just layers and layers of potatoes. It look delicious, however once we started eating we realized just how much food we had eaten throughout the day and it definitely was catching up to us.
For dessert we ordered the Crème Brulee and chocolate cake. I also got a cupcake for my birthday and all this sugar made me sick just thinking of trying to eat it. I felt so full and only could take a few bites of dessert. The few bites I did take were super yummy! The cream on top of my cupcake was the best bite of dessert I had the whole night.
By the time we walked out of the Contemporary and into the Magic Kingdom it was about 9:40 so the whole meal took about 2 and a half hours all together, with a break for fireworks. So we had about two hours until park close and we definitely took advantage of those two hours.
We got a fastpass for Buzz and I FINALLLY GOT GALACTIC HERO! I could not be more excited and I definitely went over the top on my celebrating but I felt like I deserved it! We then got a fast pass for Splash and then while we were headed up the first hill on Splash we got another fast pass for Splash that started in a minute! We then got a fast pass for the barnstormer and the decided to end out our night with a fast pass on Peter Pan. After all those fast passes we saw the time and it was about 11:30 and we decided we had enough for the day and were ready to call it a night. We headed out to the bus station and saw a bus coming for the AKL. Score! We got in line waiting for the bus and it just drove right passed us and didn’t stop. I was extremely confused. The next bus came around 11:55 so I am not really sure what happened but all I know is that Rach was extremely tired and her ankles were KILLING her. She had sprung her ankle about 2 and a half weeks before the trip and then on her first day somehow got third degree burn on her other ankle, blisters and all. She definitely was in a lot of pain and was ready to just get home and lay down.
We finally got home around 12:30 and laid down only to realize we had a breakfast reservation at 7:35 AND it was spring forward so we were losing an hour of sleep as well. The next morning was going to come a lot fast than either of us would have liked.
FP count for this section: 10
FP count for the trip so far: 22