A Christmas Dining Extravaganza

[tyandskyesmom]

Artist Point

Dinner that night was Artist Point. Over the years, we have heard differing opinions on this venue. We love it.


We checked in at 8:15pm for our 8:50pm ADR and we were seated at 8:20pm. We were in the back section near the windows. Our server was Carol and she was great! She took our drink orders and brought bread.

Bread is never wasted on my family!

Skyler had decided she was eating here. For an appetizer she ordered the Land Greens Salad ... heirloom apples, seed granola, goat milk cheese, Banyuls vinaigrette (with the vinaigrette on the side).

She loved it...although, take that with a grain of salt because she picked it apart and didn't eat it all together as intended. But as long as she ate it, I'm good!

Cary ordered the Romaine Salad (as it is listed on the receipt) but I do not see it on the menu now...I wish I did because I remember it being served oddly but I do not remember what it was exactly.

I think, now that I am looking at the picture, it was basically a head of romaine lettuce with housemade croutons, looks like some herb and something else...I know, real descriptive. If I had gotten my butt in gear sooner maybe the descriptions of food served in December would still be on the menu!

Anyway, we all thought the presentation was unique...weird even. But it was very fresh and Cary really enjoyed his salad.

I had the Crab Cake that is no longer on the menu. It was very food and I at the whole thing. MMMMM...

And Tyler. Well, Tyler wasn't thrilled by anything on the appetizer menu...to eat. But for entertainment purposes, he ordered the Artisanal Cheeses - handcrafted breads, seasonal accoutrements.

It is so pretty and I so want to love a cheese plate. But sadly, I don't. Cary was feeling better but he wasn't pushing his luck so that fell to me and Skyler. Some of these were ok. Skyler would only try them if I said they were ok. I'm glad we got to experience these and not have to wonder if we were missing out our whole lives but in the future, we will not be ordering a cheese plate...no matter how pretty they look!

Tyler, Cary and I all ordered the Grilled Filet Mignon - crushed potatoes, charred eggplant, spring onions, herb vinaigrette...

Mine medium rare, as presented.

Cary's medium well, as presented.

And Tyler's with French fries.

I always have a hard time deciding. I have had the salmon before and I know it is awesome. And there are so many other dishes I would love to try. And since the boys were getting the filet, I could have still tasted theirs and gotten something else, branched out. But I didn't. And in the end, I didn't regret it. We all cleaned our plates. It was al very good!

Skyler was the only odd man out. She ordered the Chinook Cedar Plank Salmon...local potato, cauliflower steak, leeks, petit turnip , whey butter.

She loved it. She loves Salmon anyway but this one she really likes. She ate the whole thing...and that's not like her. I didn't even get a bite! She was also impressed when they brought it out on the cedar plank it was cooked on and then laid it on her plate.

For dessert I got the CObbler with Seasonal Berries and Black Raspberry ice Cream.

Yum!

Skyler got the Old Fashioned Butter Cookies - cereal milk shake, old-fashioned butter cookies

There were a lot of cookies in that bag and the milkshake did taste just like the milk in the bottom of the cereal bowl...maybe like a fruity pebbles. She liked it a lot a a lot of the cookies came back with us.

And Cary and Tyler both ordered the "seasonal Dessert" which was the Warn House made Doughnuts ... Nutella ganache, marionberry jam

Ooohhh...these were gooooood! Messy though. One of the orders was to go...the other we all inhaled. They were still good after being in the refrigerator a few days. I remember we did eat his take home treat because I had one when I was ready to go one morning and waiting for everyone else and it dropped messy,. red, sticky jelly all over my shirt and it never came out!

Some where in here, Skyler has a contact issue and of course she does not listen to her mother and bring a case with fluid in it with her when she's out. So Cary ran to the store and grabbed the only contact solution they had and a case while we waited at the table. I am sure he paid much more than he needed to since she had all of that in the room but her eye was really bothering her so we had no choice.

All in all, we all loved Artist Point as usual. We were one of the last ones in there that evening and they were starting to close things down but we were repeatedly told not to rush. It was quiet and cosy and comfy. We had a great time with great food. I wish it wasn't so out of the way. But I guess if it wasn't it would be loud and crowded and that just wouldn't be the same. We will be back.

TOTAL = $317.12... TOTAL FOOD = $2364.82
USED 8 CREDITS ... USED 55 MEAL CREDITS

 

[tyandskyesmom]

Great report! I like your cost comparison--I'm trying to figure out if DxDP would be cost effective and reading your report, it seems like it might be.

I think it depends on how you eat. If you want to order the most expensive thing and like being able to experiment and not lament the cost (like cheese plates and escargot) then the dining plan is the way to go. If you are sharers or people who generally steer towards the pasta dishes or the cheaper end of the dining spectrum, maybe not so much.

 

[dizzy daisy]

Boo-hiss! to the red sticky jam that ruined your shirt! lol Red jam stains are the devil to get out of clothes! I'm glad you were at the room still. I sat in ice cream at Disneyland when I was 15 and from that trip forward I'd have an extra pair of shorts in my bag or car "just in case", lol.

Enjoyed the updates and photos (Tyler's Kermit shirt is awesome). I hope this was the last of a sickly feeling for your family and you were able to get everything you wanted done

 

[Delphinidae]

Enjoying your report so far. That chocolate Nemo sculpture was AMAZING. Liked your Tusker House review especially, we have never been and have a breakfast reservation there for the upcoming trip and I have been debating keeping it or not as I made it before we had the dining plan since breakfasts are cheaper if you're going OOP! But it is for 10:45 and someone said we may get a chance to get some of the lunch buffet too? Who knows but it may be one we keep just because we have never done it.

If one person from your party misses the ADR, do they still charge a no show fee for that person even though the rest of you are there?

 

[tyandskyesmom]

Enjoying your report so far. That chocolate Nemo sculpture was AMAZING. Liked your Tusker House review especially, we have never been and have a breakfast reservation there for the upcoming trip and I have been debating keeping it or not as I made it before we had the dining plan since breakfasts are cheaper if you're going OOP! But it is for 10:45 and someone said we may get a chance to get some of the lunch buffet too? Who knows but it may be one we keep just because we have never done it.

If one person from your party misses the ADR, do they still charge a no show fee for that person even though the rest of you are there?

We schedules some of our late breakfasts to be able to partake of lunch too possibly. I don't think it happened if I remember correctly. I know Hollywood & Vine started closing down one side of the buffet while we were there but lunch did not get put out while we were there. Maybe we were too fast in eating and just didn't wait around though.

No, we were never charged a no show fee for anyone not showing up as long as someone showed up.

 

[cheerupem0kidx0x]

I am having total disney dining envy right now lol. All the food looks great!

 

[BusyP76]

Great reviews! We are on the deluxe dining plan in September, but for a much shorter trip (6 days). Still tweaking our ADRs and your reviews are much appreciated!!

 

[PlutoTheDog89]

Loved your review. We go every year for Xmas and we just started planning our next trip and ADRs. Your reviews helped!

 

[starousse]

Your Artist Point meal looked great, especially those nutella donuts.

 

[Nohal]

Enjoying your reviews. Great pictures and info about your meals. Looking forward to the rest.

 

[jesswindsor]

Great reviews!!! Thanks for sharing!!!

 

[tyandskyesmom]

Tony's Town Square

We checked in for our 11:20am lunch at Tony's Town Square at 11:08am.

We were called to be seated shortly after.

Our table was in the main dining room along the far wall. We were about two tables away from the glass walled room (where we've always sat before).

Our waitress was Kelly and she was from the Midwest like us. Said she came down for a little while and stayed! I am hoping to be able to say that some day! Kelly took our drink orders (Sprite for Cary, Apple Juice for Skyler, Root beer for me, and coke for Tyler). And brought bread and dipping oil. The kids don't like the dipping oil and prefer butter but the bread itself they enjoyed.

The place was slowly filling up but was still on the quiet side. I know Tony's gets a bad rap around here, but we have always loved it and have never had a bad meal.

For appetizers I had Zucchini Fries ... breaded seasoned zucchini with creamy sun-dried tomato dressing for dipping.

These are really good. Crispy on the outside, hot and moist on the inside. The dipping sauce is really good and compliments the zucchini.

Skyler had the Caesar Salad - Romaine lettuce tossed in Caesar Dressing topped with Romano and Crostini.

She loved this salad and ate the whole thing.

Tyler ordered the Calamari ... served with Olive Relish and a side of Marinara sauce.

We have always loved the calamari here. Yes, even my picky kids eat calamari! We do only like the rings though none of the suction cups (as the kids call them).

And Cary had the Pasta Fagaoli ... traditional meatless Italian soup with pasta and beans.

He really enjoyed his soup. I tried it too and it was really good.

as my entrée I ordered Cannelloni - filled with a mixture of ground beef and sausage, mozzarella, and ricotta served with marinara and creme sauce.

Which surprised me because I ALWAYS get the Shrimp Scampi. I must have really been in a "try new things" kind of a mood. The Cannelloni was really good and I was glad I got it. If there was one thing I would change though it would be less meat inside and a bit more cheese instead. But like I said, it was really good. I ate most of it but I did end up leaving some...it was huge!

Tyler got his usual...

Chicken Parmigiana ... Lightly Breaded Chicken Breast with Marinara sauce topped with Melted Mozzarella over Spaghetti. He loves this here and practically licks the plate clean!

Cary ordered the Spaghetti - with Meatballs and Marinara sauce .

He really enjoyed it. He finished most of it.

Skyler ordered the Margherita Pizza - with pizza sauce and fresh mozzarella garnished with fresh basil; add pepperoni or sausage with pepperoni. It was perfect. She allowed Cary and Tyler to each have a piece and they agreed!

As our desserts we got a couple of things which we actually ate there!

Skyler got the Tony's Cheesecake. I believe it was pumpkin spice flavored.

It was ok. I think it was more the flavor we just didn't prefer but we did like it and it got eaten!

Tyler and I got gelato ... Italian style ice cream chocolate or vanilla (Tyler Vanilla and me chocolate).

What could go wrong with gelato?!?!?!

And Cary got the Pistachio Crème Brulee.

It was hit first time eating crème brule, I had explained what it was but until it arrived, he didn't get it. But now he does and he loved it. The chocolate biscoti was great too!

Kelly kept our drinks full and was very nice, talking to us about her family and such, without being annoying. It does get a bit loud in there when it's busy but we are ok with that for this venue.

By the time we were finishing up, the place was packed. We had another successful meal at a place most people around here would tell you is worse that a frozen dinner. We love Tony's and I expect we will be back! By 12:04pm we were paying our check.

TOTAL = $157.77 ... TOTAL FOOD = $2522.59
USED 4CREDITS ... USED 59 MEAL CREDITS

 

[tyandskyesmom]

Gaston's Tavern

And we had to stop at Gaston's!

And of course we had to get a Cinnamon Roll...

When Tyler heard these were back, he had to have one (or seven if he had his way!). He used to love them when they had them at the Main Street Bakery. It was great! Soft and chewy and warm with enough icing on it.

And we had to try a LeFou's Brew ... Frozen apple juice with a hint of toasted marshmallow and topped with all-natural passion fruit-mango foam

It is very sweet but Skyler is an apple juice freak so she loved it.

There was no line in here at around 1:30am. How we could eat anything so soon after lunch, I don't know but we managed it!

The total was approximately $9.00 or 2 snack credits.

 

[Winniebell10]

Wow! Your reviews are wonderful. Thank you for taking the time to do this. i am trying to figure out dining for our trip in early December of this year. We are wanting to hit our favorites and some new to us restaurants. Your review has lots on our list. Can't wait to read more!

 

[Sydney2977]

Loving your reviews! You're giving me some good ideas for next trip. We really enjoy Tony's too- it's one of our must-do's.

 

[klacey1]

Such a great DR!! Your family is beautiful!

 

[tyandskyesmom]

Kona Cafe

And checked in for our 5:30pm Kona Café ADR. We we're a little early but only waited about 10 minutes.

We were seated in the center of the restaurant near the outside rail. Our server was Robyn.

Now I almost didn't make an ADR here at all. Our last two or three visits here have been horrendous! Mostly service but the food wasn't justifying a return visit when you factored in the horrible service. But, I did it. For three reasons. #1...we used to LOVE Kona. #2...we needed another meal and I did not want to go too far our of our way. #3...I wanted Cary to be able to experience it. I was hoping we wouldn't regret it.

Robyn brought our bread. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this bread...it is my favorite bread services in all The World.

And she took our drink orders. Cary a sprite, me a diet, Tyler a Coke, and Skyler a Mega-Berry Smoothie - Raspberry Puree and Nonfat Yogurt blended with Odwalla Berries GoMega.

With an Umbrella...which she loves!

Cary was trying to teach her how to use chop sticks.

For appetizers I ordered the Pot Stickers ... wok-seared pork and vegetable dumplings with a creamy soy-ginger sauce

I love pot stickers...almost anywhere (except a Chinese joint near our house!). Skyler is developing a taste for them too which now means at TGIFridays and Noodles & Co. I now have to share!!!

Cary ordered the Shrimp Tempura Roll - Tempura Shrimp and fresh Mango served with Liliko'i Sauce

Which was good but not as good as at California Grill!

And the kids got Sticky Wings - Glazed Chicken Wings with tangy Mustard Drizzle and Toasted Sesame Seeds with the mustard drizzle on the side.

The last time we had these they were so super dry it was like chewing saw dust. And to top that off, our waitress never came back to refill drinks so it was bad. This time, we liked them. Not loved, we've definitely had better but the were good.

for our entrees, Cary, Tyler, and I ordered the Grilled New York Strip Steak ... served with roasted fingerling potatoes, seasonal vegetables, and molasses-bacon butter (Tyler's with fries and the molasses bacon butter on the side, Ty and I medium rare and Cary's medium well)

Mine and Cary's...

Tyler's...

They were all really good. This time we had broccoli with them that was really cooked well. Last time it was broccolini that tasted and felt like chewing plastic...so bad that I actually spit it out in my napkin! The butter was a really good flavor to include on the steak too.

Skyler wet with the Sustainable Fish - with carrot-ginger puree and lemon grass scented cream (which today was salmon) whcihc she asked for separated.

She didn't touch the plate on the left but demolished the plate on the right. I got one little bite of her salmon and it was a really good dry salmon. Sometimes salmon is still "wet" inside but this was cooked to perfect flakiness! The puree was really good too but I couldn't get her to taste it.

For dessert I had the Warm Apple Tart - with cinnamon gelato and bacon-macadamia nut brittle.

It was delicious...the bacon-macadamia brittle got stolen by Skyler but the rest that I had was great!

Skyler ordered the Kona Kone...

Which used to be so much more impressive when it was actually a cone. But it was still a fun dessert.

Tyler got the Kilauea Torte ... An explosion of warm liquid Chocolate inside Chocolate cookie Volcano which somehow I do not have a picture of. It is possible we took it home with us and didn't take a pic because it was all boxed up.

Cary got the Chocolate Fondu ... with Tropical Fruit and House-made Cookies which I also do not have a pic of but this I know was packaged up to go.

I do not believe either got eaten later.

Robyn was a good server and kept our drinks filled (and brought Skye a water after she finished her smoothie). Our orders came out correct (last time they did not). The food on the plates was good and did not taste or feel like plastic. So all in all, Kona moved back up a notch for us. We're still cautious but we are willing to give the benefit of the doubt in the future. This time around, Kina was a good choice.

TOTAL = $220.72 ... TOTAL FOOD = $2743.31
USED 4 CREDITS ... USED 63 MEAL CREDITS

 

[tyandskyesmom]

We arrived at The Poly at 7:08am. We arrived at the check in for Ohana and they were asking only one person from each family to stand in line to check in and they were not yet checking people in. Cary stood in line while me and they kids found a seat.

I was sad to see they no longer give out leis nor do the take your family photo before going in. We were the first ones seated at 7:30am at the first table the characters came to.

We were given our bread/rolls by Arelis. We were also given juice and Skye ordered Apple Juice, Tyler a coke, and Cary chocolate milk. I was plenty happy with the juice!

And fruit...

Neither of which we were offered more of because no one else stopped by our table again for quite awhile. Even after they did, it was to simply scoop up empty plates not ask if we wanted more...which we did.

Finally, our main platter arrived.

At which time we were finally asked if we needed refills. Now, I am a drinker while I eat. I drink and eat at the same time so I usually go through many refills. There were what looked to be 37 million servers running around and only about half the restaurant was being used. They couldn't have been that stressed yet...they just opened. Now one was especially nice, cordial yes, not nice...and being that this is the "ohana" place and we're all family and it was CHRISTMAS EVE, you'd just expect a little bit more joy???? On regular days when we've been here before there was much more joy floating around...maybe the servers from Kona moved to Ohana and visa versa???

Anyway, the platter had scrambled eggs, bacon, Stitch waffles, biscuits, breakfast potatoes, and sausage links.

Everything was fresh and hot...although they had just opened so you'd expect that. The sausages used to be great big fat links...no more. All in all, everything was good. We asked for more waffles and bacon when someone finally noticed us sitting there doing nothing. And asked for more refills on our drinks...yes, we had to ask!

As we were finishing up eating, the characters started coming around. Stitch was first.

Then Lilo...

Mickey's picture was blurry???

So was Pluto's...

Then they came around with noise makers, I mean instruments. Skyler decided she was going to join the parade this time.

Tyler was being 16!

Lilo led the procession...

I have to work on my picture taking abilities in dim places with action!

Stitch followed...

Then the Main Mouse...

And the girl of the hour!

At this point I was trying to not get annoyed but we had had very little attention from any server here. They share tables actually so any one of many could have stopped by to see if we needed anything. I am quite sure people are sat in the same order all the time so the characters know where they stop and start and the servers know too. SO they had to realize we were seated close to first! We have only refills on drinks we had to ask for, no ability t ask for more bread or fruit and the server who picked up our empty dishes did not care to ask if we needed more, we actually had to stop a server running past to get more waffles and bacon. And my pet peeve of all pet peeves, we're at a pay one price meal and we had to WAIT FOR OUR CHECK! We actually had to ask for it! Why they weren't pushing us out the door I don't know and we did not have that problem anywhere else the whole two week trip. And the funny thing is, we weren't there more than an hour. We tend to be quick eaters, don't linger most of the time, aren't people who do coffee or cordials after dinner...but since we couldn't get food or beverage so we were ready to leave much faster that usual. To our surprise, none of the characters were very attentive...picture, sign, leave. Except at the table next to us...but they had a down syndrome young adult who was very into characters (it was fun to watch them interact with her and how excited she was to see them) and many other kids...but they had to pretty much force the characters into allowing time for all their party to get time with them.

Now, this review leaves a bad taste in my mouth because in the past we have had excellent food, service, and interaction here but this time we had good food and bad everything else. It was too early in the day for them to be stressed out or behind. And it was Christmas Eve. People have paid for and chosen to spent their time and money in Disney World and chose to do Christmas Eve breakfast with Ohana. For the cost of this meal, especially at a holiday pricing time, I should have left more satisfied. I mean, we had enough to eat but we would have liked more fruit and bread. We got autographs and pictures but weren't feeling the Disney love. Usually Lilo and Stitch play and interact with each other and are so much fun...today they were all business.

This one might be moved to the bottom of out list in the future. I'm sad about that though. Maybe a bad day??? But at opening on a special day??? I don't know.

Anyway, we were out of there in about an hour, like I said and weren't gonna let it ruin our day.

TOTAL = $127.76 ... TOTAL FOOD = $2871.07
USED 4 CREDITS ... USED 67 MEAL CREDITS

 

[Sydney2977]

Aww, that's sad about O'hana. We used to go when our boys were younger (Stitch is DS#2's fav) but have gone to Kona the last few trips. I was actually thinking about doing it next time because we love the food (DH and I would go for the juice and pineapple bread alone) but now I'm not sure. And no more lei's or picture? The Stitch waffles are cute though.

 

[dizzy daisy]

Oh what a drag your Ohana breakfast wasn't a good experience on Christmas Eve