A & J hit up O-Town...a May '10 TR w/pics! [Updated 8/26 post #46 Day 12 Part 2]

[jog58]

Hello, everybody!

We are back and getting into the swing of daily life once again. Thanks to everyone who followed us on Twitter and who will be reading our trip report. I hope to have some of it up by the end of the week as we are currently dog sitting at my father in law's and don't have access to a computer and by default our pictures. I am going to start writing today so when we get back home all I should have to do is attach the pictures to it and post it.

 

[jog58]

but I finally got the introduction written! Yay!

Just to recap hubby and I hit the road to Florida on April 23rd directly after work [bad idea] and drove straight through to Florida.
We stayed in 5 hotels total and I think we ended up with more pictures of food than ourselves

The weather was beautiful for the entire first week, in the 70s-80s not very humid. By then second week it was hotter than Hades. There were lots of laughs and good times along with road rage, illness and a lot of delicious and not so delicious food. So let's get this thing started with a table of content !

Day 1: We should drive to Florida! It will be so much fun!

Day 2: Yeah, this whole driving thing not so much on the plus side Pizza Hut!

Day 3: Royal Pacific, Universal Orlando and Pastamore review.

Day 4: I can't believe we fell for the timeshare guys. Margaritaville Review.

Day 5: Fairfield Inn & Suites and a full day at Universal

Day 6: Sea World, first time on Manta and a Jiko review.

Day 7: Sea World, Aquatica and BB King's Blue's Club Review

Day 8: Resort Hidden Mickey hunt, Whispering Canyon and Amazona's Latin Grill Review.

Day 9: Off day, quick ESPN club review

Day 10: Caribbean Beach, then a full park day at Animal Kingdom, Epcot and Magic Kingdom

Day 11: Back to Universal for Total Nonstop Action [wrestling]

Day 12: Inspired by WDW Today our very own Sip and Snack around the world. Review of Old Port Royale food court dinner.

Day 13: The illness portion of our trip, also Le Chef de France and Yak and Yeti counter service reviews.

Day 14: Two words you never want to hear on vacation: chest xray

Day 15: Trying to make the best of our last day and a Wolfgang Puck Express review.

Day 16: The road home goes through Fredericksburg, Virginia

Day 17: Home!

 

[MerMom60_94]

Hi Jo! Can't wait to read up on your trip, particularly I can't wait to hear about Manta. Not to mention I look forward to food porn! I'll be checking back in. Leslie

 

[jog58]

Sorry for the delay everyone but our computer had been messing with us for the last week or so and then it finally pooped the proverbial bed. So I will post days 1 and 2 since they are picture less chapters and then hopefully get to the library in the next few days to upload my pictures to facebook.

Day 1 Friday April 23rd

After a full day of work we decided to hit the road. We had been toying with a few different departure times and ultimately decided that due to April vacation rush hour traffic wouldn't be terrible because a lot of people take that week off from work. We departed my office building at 4pm, at 4:03 we were in bumper to bumper traffic and at 4:06 I could still see my office building. Awesome.

About 40 minutes later we were in Rhode Island. For anyone out there who has never had the pleasure of driving through there on 95 here's what you're missing. Picture a racing video game with a really curvy track, add 300 other cars all doing 70 and then just stopping every so often. It's more fantastic than I can ever describe.

Our first checkpoint of the trip was West Haven, Connecticut for Texas Road House. We made it there at around 7pm and had a ridiculously delicious dinner. The bread was out of this world. My ribs were phenomenal and Anthony said his steak was one of the best he's ever had. I will say though that their version of the blooming onion is very heavy on the seasoning. The first few bites are really good but after that it's just too much.

We were all fed and ready to hit the road. The plan was for me to sleep until about halfway through Virginia and then we would switch so that each person drives every 6-8 hours. Solid plan right?

We arrived in New York a little bit after 9pm hit some traffic but that was a cake walk compared to what we dealt with on the way home, but I'm getting ahead of myself. We ended up on the lower portion of the George Washington bridge. I am not a fan of bridges to begin with so to be on the "lower level" of any bridge was pretty scary. Not a fan.

We hit Newark at 9:52p and we're feeling good, excited to be on the road. Fast forward about 45 minutes and we're downing Red Bulls at some rest stop like it's our job. Why wasn't I sleeping as per the aforementioned plan you ask? Great question! To which I have no answer, aside from saying that it wasn't the smartest choice I've ever made.

 

[jog58]

Hi Jo! Can't wait to read up on your trip, particularly I can't wait to hear about Manta. Not to mention I look forward to food porn! I'll be checking back in. Leslie

Hey Leslie! Thanks for dropping by!

 

[jog58]

When we last left off we were making friends with $20 worth of Red Bulls and getting ready for the long haul.

We crossed into Delaware and 13 minutes later we were in Maryland. If you blinked you would have missed it. I was psyched because Maryland is tiny right? We'll be in Virginia in no time! I mean technically less than two hours to get across a state is really no time at all but it felt like forever. In all reality I had no idea what forever actually felt like until we hit the stomach punches known as Virginia, North and South Carolina.

We crossed into Virginia at 1:47am. I was still awake. Around 4:30am Anthony started seeing faces in the back of a truck we had been following for about three hours, which is never a good thing under any circumstance. On a total 1 hour's worth of sleep I took over driving. It lasted roughly an hour before I was afraid I was going to fall asleep at the wheel, just long enough to get us into North Carolina.

With his restful one hour of sleep Anthony took over again. Nothing interest happened those final nine hours aside from some fantastic signs for some kind of diner/"gentlemen's" club that prompted a whole slew of eggs and legs jokes and the alpaca I hallucinated on the side of the road.

At around 3pm we checked in to the Sheraton Safari. There was one other guest at the desk but there were two people manning it so check in was quick and the person at the desk was very friendly. We had a king room facing the street. We found the room to be a good size, very clean and the bed was comfortable. What more can you ask for? We got a travelzoo rate of $72 [that's including tax] so we felt it was a great deal for the money.

We changed and went down to check out the pool with the world's largest python water slide. That sentence just makes me laugh. There was a decent amount of people at the pool but there were plenty of available chairs.

We got a couple of frozen drinks at the pool bar, which turned out to be $11 a piece [no prices posted]. I usually don't pay that much for an alcoholic beverage but it was just the ticket to after the long drive. For dinner we ended up at the pizza hut next door [as you will see Pizza Hut and Steak and Shake are a recurring theme for us] After dinner, due to being awake for over 24 hours we promptly passed out before 9pm.

Overall, I am glad we drove because now I know that it's just not for me. The likelihood of ever wanting to do that again is close to zero. I think the mistake for us was driving through and not alternating sleeping and driving. But I think if even if we had done that, I am just way too impatient to spend 22 hours in a car.

Stay tuned for Day 3: Royal Pacific, Universal Orlando and Pastamore review, with pictures!

 

[jog58]

Day 3 we got up bright and early to hit Waffle House. This was the first time I had ever had Waffle House and it was so delicious. Breakfast is my favorite, I could have it any time of the day.

We checked into Royal Pacific around 9 AM. The front desk staff was super friendly and helpful and as a bonus, our room was ready. We requested a king room, which we got. We were in room 3652.

Bathroom

Sink area

Bed and couch

TV and table

View from room

The room was immaculate and the hotel is beautiful. I wish I had taken more pictures of the grounds. According to Anthony this was easily the nicest hotel we have ever stayed at. I personally think it's a tie between this and the Grand Pequot Tower at Foxwoods. But hey, to each their own.

We headed off to Islands of Adventure first. We didn't get a ton of pictures. Just a few that we couldn't resist in Toon Lagoon.

The crowds were pretty good that day the waits at both parks were all 15 minutes and under except Rip, Ride Rock It which had a 20 minute wait, we could have waited in the regular lines and have been fine but hey we had our key cards why not use them?

We rode pretty much everything at IOA excluding Doctor Doom's Fear Fall [I recently developed a fear for those types of rides] and Anthony skipped out on the Hulk which from here forth shall be the ride I get on when I want to get a concussion. Either the ride has really turned rough with age or I've turned soft with age. It could be a little bit of both. :ROFL-01: It was one and done for me on that one.

We eventually proceeded to Dueling Dragons. We rode each one twice and decided that we like Fire the best. Due to the fact that we prefer its faster speed and greater height but also because it doesn't barrel roll which keeps the head bumping on the restraints to a minimum.

At around 4:30p we headed over to Universal to see if we could get a quick ride on Rip, Ride, Rock It. We both chose Motley Creu's kick start my heart and it really did enhance the ride. The vertical lift hill is really cool and the entire ride is just very exhilarating. I absolutely loved it. I wish I could have gone on it at night to get the full effects of the lights.

That night we did the dinner and a movie deal at Citiwalk. For those not familiar for $21.95 per person you get an entree at a Citiwalk restaurant[from a select menu, which you can view before purchasing the package], a non-alcoholic beverage, a movie ticket and gratuity. We had done it a few times before quite a few years ago and dined at Pastamore, and Hard Rock [twice].

This time we chose Pastamore. We had really enjoyed our meal there our previous visit so we gave it another whirl. We ordered a pitcher of Sangria which was pretty good. I believe it was in the $16 range.

The service was not fantastic. Our drinks and bread took forever and our server was pretty much MIA. The restaurant was not busy at all so there was not much of an excuse.

Anthony ordered the Chicken Parm.

He gave it a 5/10. Serviceable but not amazing.

I ordered the Fettuccine Alfredo.

I really enjoyed it. It had garlic in it which is not common in Alfredo that I usually have so that was a pleasant surprise. Overall, I doubt we would return to Pastamore. Between the service and the chicken parm we would rather spend our money elsewhere.

Coming up tomorrow Day 4: I can't believe we fell for the timeshare guys. Margaritaville Review w/pics.

 

[jog58]

The previous day at Islands of Adventure we got caught by the timeshare guys. I know, I know we should have just kept walking but we were lured in by the promise of $80 Universal bucks and the fact that we had a lot of time in Orlando so 3 hours didn't seem like a lot.

We showed up at the place [I forget where it is] for a 7:30a presentation. There were a lot of people which was surprising. We checked in and waited for our salesperson to show up. Unbeknown to us they had looked at my last name and just assumed that we would be more comfortable speaking in Spanish so they assigned us a Hispanic gentleman whose English was OK, because he was there to sell primarily in Spanish. It really wasn't a big deal, I just thought that it was quite a leap for them to just assume I spoke Spanish because that's not always the case for people with Hispanic last names.

Anyway, we had the usual "getting to know each other" chat, then we boarded a golf cart over to the property. There we had a continental breakfast of mini donuts, mini muffins and the worst OJ I have ever tasted. After we ate he showed us the property and a unit. Then came the part I was not looking forward to, the pitch.

I had previously read how the whole sales pitch goes in the unofficial guide so I wasn't surprised by the amount of people that came over to talk to us and the progressively lower prices they came with. But after saying no over a dozen times each to the three different people we saw I had enough and I was losing my patience.

The final guy who came to our table wanted us to book a vacation that day for next year on their property. It was actually a really good price but I was so fed up by this point that I was so not interested in anything they were offering. We got our 80 Universal bucks and headed out with a very good lesson learned. Never again, unless we really actually want to buy.

We had lunch at Steak and Shake and it was marvelous as usual. We decided not to visit a park that day because we wanted to save one day's admission so we could go back that Monday for TNA Wrestling.

We had dinner at Margaritaville that night. We arrived before the dinner rush so the restaurant was relatively empty. Our waiter, whose name unfortunately escapes me, was great. Helpful, friendly and attentive. We started off with two Incommunicado:

This is Margaritaville Gold Tequila, Margaritaville Premium Jamaican Silver Rum, Bols Triple Sec, vodka and gin mixed with cranberry juice, pineapple juice, sour mix and Finest Call Grenadine. I am not a tequila fan by any stretch of the imagination but this drink was really good and strong. I was feeling a little woozy after just one.

As an appetizer we got Quesadillas. We had trouble deciding between chicken or beef and our waiter informed us we could get both, so we did!

They were super good. The meat was perfectly seasoned and the chipotle tortilla was an interesting but tasty addition.

For entrees Anthony ordered the Cheeseburger in Paradise

He deemed it one of the best burgers he's ever had and believe me he knows his burgers. I got the Cuban sandwich which is roasted pork and sliced ham pressed in a crusty Cuban loaf with mustard, Swiss cheese and sliced pickles. [Sorry for the blurry picture]

This sandwich knocked my socks off. Everything about it was delicious.

We did not go into Margaritaville expecting a lot and we were pleasantly surprised. We really enjoyed it and will definitely go back. We also got a free Margaritaville fridge magnet with a coupon that we got when we purchased our Universal tickets so that was a nice little bonus.

We ended our night at the pool bar watching the Red Sox and getting live updates on my phone from the Bruins playoff game. Nice ending to the day.

Coming up tomorrow Day 5: Fairfield Inn & Suites and a full day at Universal

 

[mitchfishguard]

did you stay at the fairfield inn at canada avenue by the pirates dinner show? If you did, leander and me were there april 23 to may .

 

[jog58]

did you stay at the fairfield inn at canada avenue by the pirates dinner show? If you did, leander and me were there april 23 to may .

Hi Mitch. Thanks for dropping in. We were at the Fairfield Inn and Suites over by Sea World on International Drive. I'm sure we crossed paths at some point though.

 

[jog58]

On day 5 we checked in at the Fairfield Inn and Suites on International Drive. The hotel opened in the summer of 2009 so it is brand new. Check in was friendly and efficient and our room was ready! I thought the rooms were very tastefully decorated in my opinion and very clean.

The free breakfast was pretty decent. It consisted of the basic bagels, toast, yogurt, juice, and cereal. They also had eggs [in patty shape lol] and waffles which were just ok.

The hotel was across the street from the back of Sea World so we thought we would save ourselves the parking fee and take the hotel shuttle. We have stayed off site before but had never used the hotel shuttle so we were not prepared for how awful it was.

First reservations had to be made at the concierge desk, which is all well and good except you had to go to the concierge of it's sister property next door. Then reading on we found out that the shuttle only accommodates 14 people. The scheduled runs to Sea World were 8:30, 9:10 and 10:35. The scheduled runs from Sea World were 4:30, 6:45 and 9:15.

I am guessing that they assume most people staying there will have a car but it just seems crazy to me that a shuttle runs every forty minutes when the entrance to Sea World is 1.3 miles from hotel. We would have walked but I did not see any sidewalks leading up to the Sea World entrance. I could have very well missed them though.

They also had a shuttle to Universal for $8pp with one pick up times and one drop off time and a shuttle to EPCOT for $8pp with three pick up times and three drop off times.

We headed off to Universal and the crowds were pretty fantastic. We arrived at roughly 11:15am and I was able to ride Rip, Ride Rock It twice in 10 minutes. By 1pm we had done ET, The Simpsons and MIB and decided to wait the 20 minutes for Disaster.

Anthony ended up getting picked to play one of the villains for that performance which was really amusing. We then headed over the the Horror Makeup show where one of the team members scared be poop out of me with one of those bloody arms. I startle very easily. The props and memorabilia they have in the theater are pretty cool.

The show was really entertaining and very funny. A warning though, if you are in the front row you might get a little wet and if you catch their eye the chances of getting more than a little wet are high, as Anthony can attest. We got a few character pictures as we timed the lines pretty well and were in and out and a few seconds. Here we are with the cast of Madagascar.

And with Donkey, Shrek and Fiona.

The team member voicing Donkey was really good and very funny. When we stepped up he said about Anthony “Hey Shrek look it’s your cousin!! Say hi to your cousin Shrek..Look at this Paul Bunyan looking mother, I wouldn’t mess with him…it looks like his muscles have muscles.” His interaction with all the guests before us were really funny.

I rode Mummy 3 more times and around 4pm we waved one last sorrowful goodbye to the Royal Pacific Resort and headed to Cici's for a late lunch. We don't have Cici's near us but we have always seen the commercials and decided to try it.

It is by no means amazing food but for the price it wasn't bad. I don't think we would go back just because it wasn't for us but for someone on a budget it's a sweet deal.

Stay tuned for Day 6: Sea World, first time on Manta and a Jiko review.

 

[jog58]

Unfortunately this will be a picture less chapter. We didn't really take any pictures at Sea World and when we went to Jiko we were with friends so I didn't want to take pictures and embarrass them.

The morning started off rather chilly but we headed out to Sea World. We arrived at the parking lot around 8:25am with a 9am park opening. There were two lines of about 20-30 cars in front of us. I was surprised that they opened the parking lot so close to park opening.

We were let into the park itself at around quarter off and we made our way over towards Manta. The area was roped off but we passed the time by talking to the very nice gentleman that was manning the rope that morning. Promptly at 9 the rope was removed and we all walked over to Manta to find that it was closed due to technical difficulties.

We decided to wait it out and along with most of the crowd we formed a line outside of the entrance to the Manta queue. I can't quite recall how long we waited, maybe 30 minutes?

Even with the delay at Manta we made really good time. By 10:30 we had done Manta twice and Kraken twice. Manta was so cool. The adrenaline rush you get as you crest the first hill that leads you into a head first dive is nothing short of exhilarating. I could have ridden it all day. By 10:45a the wait was 45 minutes

We caught the Sea Lion and Otter show and decided to head out for lunch. We hit the Pizza Hut buffet next to the Sheraton Safari and for the same price as Cici's it was way better. If anyone is ever in that area looking for lunch between 11am-3pm go with Pizza Hut instead of Cici's.

We later did some shopping at the Disney outlet store and then headed to Jiko. The restaurant itself is beautiful and very relaxing. We were seated at a table for four on the upper section of the restaurant. We were first brought a bread basket containing two kinds of bread that I can't quite recall with tandoori butter that I did not particularly care for.

For an appetizer we ordered the Taste of Africa. It came with assorted breads for dipping and three sauces Kalamata Olive Hummus, Durban Tikka Masala, and Malay Spinach-Lentil Dip. They were interesting to say the least. To say we have unsophisticated palates would be understatement, but we tried all the dips and none of them tasted bad, they were just not for us.

For entrees we both ordered the Oak Grilled Filet. It came with macaroni and cheese and a red wine sauce. At first I thought the red wine sauce was just not going to work for me but when you combined the filet, and the mac and cheese with some sauce it was one of the best things I have ever eaten. The meat was cooked perfectly, Anthony rated it the best steak he's had on property.

For dessert I ordered the pistachio creme brulee and it was just ok. I love creme brulee and it just didn't wow me. Anthony ordered the Kenyan Coffee and Koeksisters which is Kenyan Coffee ice cream with spiced donuts. His dessert was delicious, he ate every bite. The coffee ice cream had to be the best coffee ice cream I have ever tasted and the donuts were to die for. Truly a superb dessert.

The service was very slow but it wasn't a huge deal as we were having a great time catching up with our friends so maybe she was just following our cues and letting us be for the most part. When our waitress was there she was just fine.

There were some lows [not too low] in our meal and some incredible highs. The total with tip was somewhere in the $285 range for four of us [thankfully our friends had a coupon] so we saved a bundle. I would love to return to Jiko on our next trip.

Next time Day 7: Sea World, Aquatica and BB King's Blue's Club Review

 

[jog58]

We arrived at Sea World past opening but I don't quite recall what time. The crowds seemed pretty light, a lot of elderly people and groups of young children. We headed straight for the Blue Horizons show which was entertaining as always. The dolphins are amazing and the false killer whale is really cool. I don't particularly enjoy birds in general much less ones flying by my head so I am not into that particular aspect of the show.

We then proceeded to see the sharks, the penguins and the rest of the Artic animals. There were only two Shamu shows that day. I believe one was around Noon or 1 and the other at the end of the day. People were lined up outside the stadium 45 minutes before showtime. We did not feel like fighting the crowds so we headed out and went to Aquatica.

Now, I am no fan of water parks. Water slides [mostly enclosed ones] freak me out and swimming in public pools is borderline revolting so I was not looking forward to going but I figured we should try it at least once. The day was not hot and had a bit of a freeze which made things a bit cold but it kept the crowds super light.

We had a blast! We rode the HooRoo Run which was kind of scary for me as I was going down with my back to the water slide and didn't realize it was a series of drops. Definitely had me screaming. We then headed off to Tassie's Twister which is just like going down a toilet bowl, it was a lot of fun.

The best part of the day was definitely Roa Rapids. It is a lazy river but at like 2 to 3 times the speed. They don't allow inner tubes but you could wear a life vest if you choose. We went with the life vests and we had so much fun. We spent about two and a half hours going around and around. Going to Aquatica is worth it just for Roa Rapids.

We headed back to the hotel to change for dinner around 3pm to find that housekeeping had not been to our room yet which would not have been an issue except for the fact that they skipped us yesterday. The housekeeper was in the room next to us so we hurried out to dinner so we didn't get skipped again.

We had a restaurant.com gift certificate to BB King's Blues Club for $25 off of $50 so we decided to give it a try. When we arrived around 5p the place was empty. Not one other table there. We were seated and after a few minutes the bartender came over and took our drink order since our waitress was no where to be found. She eventually showed up telling us that no one told her she had a table.

On the left the Hoochie Coochie which is Smirnoff Vanilla, Melon Liquor and a splash of cranberry juice. The flavors were good but not very strong. Anthony got the Apple Jazz which is Vodka, Sour Apple Liquor, Jack Daniels mixed with sour, Sprite and a splash of cranberry juice. He said it was good.

For an appetizer we ordered the BBQ chicken flat bread which has roasted garlic pesto, grilled onions,Jack and Cheddar cheese drizzled with BBQ sauce, this was $8.95.

There were two other pieces but I forgot to take a picture before we started eating. This was delicious and definitely the best part of the meal.

For his entree Anthony ordered the Jumbo Stuffed Porktato which is a potato stuffed with pork, bbq sauce, jack and cheddar cheeses, and topped with tomatoes and scallions. It was $9.99

It was every bit as greasy as it looked and not in a good way. The pork itself wasn't terrible but the whole thing was just a mess. I ordered the Patty Melt which was just a burger on Texas Toast with cheese and sauteed onions. This was $10.99.

This was pretty good, not great but serviceable. We also ordered a side of white cheddar mac & cheese for $2.99 and a side of corn bread muffins also for $2.99.

The mac and cheese was really good, the corn muffins were good too. For dessert we both ordered the strawberry short cake, mine without strawberries for $5.99 each.

Oddly enough there wasn't a whole lot of flavor to anything even the ice cream, it just all tasted like sugar. It was a real disappointment. The service was just ok, nothing amazing. With the tip and before the $25 gift certificate the bill came to about $90. This meal was in no way, shape or form worth $90. Next time I would rather save myself a ton of money and go to Steak n' Shake.

 

[jog58]

The next morning we got up bright and early and hit good ole waffle house. We then went to downtown Disney is and hit AM cinema and decided to do some resort hidden mickey hunting.

We decided that we were going to take the bus just to so we didn't have to take the car over to one of the resorts. That was an epic fail. It took forever. By the time the bus turned into Typhoon Lagoon we remembered why we drive and we wanted off. We took a return bus to downtown Disney, got the car and headed to the Wilderness Lodge for an impromptu lunch at Whispering Canyon. We made it there for the tail end of lunch so the restaurant was not crowded. Overall I would say there were about 10 occupied tables.

We waited about 10 minutes to be seated. It took about another 10 minutes to finally get drinks but our waitress was really friendly and we didn't have any other issues aside from that. For an entree Anthony ordered the chicken sandwich.

It was really delicious, it tasted very fresh. I got the Western Chips and Dip.

The chips were really good and the homemade salsa was to die for. The queso dip was not very good. It tasted kind of fake. I ended up asking for a second side of the homemade salsa.

The shenanigans at Whispering Canyon were kept down to a minimum as there were not a lot of people there. Although Anthony did ask for a soda refill and got this.

And then he proceeded to drink it all.

I was impressed

For dessert we got the Kahlua flavored chocolate cake.

I don't quite remember how prevalent the taste of Kahlua was in the cake but I do remember that it was delicious. Whispering Canyon was a very enjoyable lunch and we would definitely return.

We then went on our hidden mickey hunt. We found a few at the Wilderness Lodge. This one is out side of the bar at Wilderness Lodge:

This one was at the coffee bar at the Polynesian.

This one is not an "official" hidden Mickey but I liked it and took a picture of it anyway.

coming up part 2 of day 8, a review of Amazona's Latin Grill.

 

[jog58]

Hi everyone,

Sorry for the delay. This whole actually having to do work at work is really putting a damper on my trip report.

After our day of resort we headed off to dinner at Amazona's latin grill. I was born in Dominican Republic so I LOVE Spanish food. Anthony.....well he humors me LOL. In his defense it is mostly things he has not tried before and has been quite a trooper in trying new things and he has even found stuff that he likes so I do appreciate his efforts to try new things.

We had a Restaurant.com gift certificate for $25 off $35 which is a great deal. When we arrived around 6:30 there were two other parties in the restaurant. The place has roughly 20 or so tables and was very clean. Our waitress was friendly and attentive but not obtrusive.

For drinks I ordered a glass of Sangria [$3.99] and Anthony got a Venezuelan beer called Polar [3.99] both were very good.

For an appetizer we ordered beef empanadas [1.79 each] The were phenomenal. In my country we make them with a much thinner though and ground beef. This seemed like it was made from a thicker corn dough and filled with the most deliciously seasoned shredded beef I have ever had. I would have eaten 3 or 4 more had I not ordered an entree.

For our entrees we both ordered the grilled boneless breast [$12.99] with rice and sweet plantains. It comes with a side of an Argentinian sauce made of parsley, oregano and garlic. The plantains were overcooked but everything else was delicious, tasted very fresh and well prepared.

Anthony skipped dessert as they were all out of pretty much everything except the Tres Leches cake [2.99] which I ordered. This is cake soaked in evaporated milk, condensed milk, and heavy cream. I know to some that might not sound too good but it was really tasty.

We really enjoyed our meal here. The service was good, food was great and you can't beat the prices, especially with a restaurant.com gift certificate.

Coming up next time.....Day 9: Off day, quick ESPN club review

 

[Shannon84]

Hopping in here and following your report

 

[jog58]

Hopping in here and following your report

Welcome Shannon!

Thanks for reading and posting.

 

[metalis4ever]

I think that the Cast Member at Whispering Canyon was slightly disturbed that I was able to chug that entire soda....

 

[heaven2dc]

Thought I'd drop by and say I love your food/drink pics!! I have never tried Sangria and it looks delicious You both seem to be having a great time so far and your food choices have been great! I'd like to try Whispering Canyon at WL on our next trip - we are only staying 5 nights and will be on the DDP so I have rearrange some ADR's to include a dinner there.

 

[jog58]

I think that the Cast Member at Whispering Canyon was slightly disturbed that I was able to chug that entire soda....

I was slightly disturbed and I actually know you.

Thought I'd drop by and say I love your food/drink pics!! I have never tried Sangria and it looks delicious You both seem to be having a great time so far and your food choices have been great! I'd like to try Whispering Canyon at WL on our next trip - we are only staying 5 nights and will be on the DDP so I have rearrange some ADR's to include a dinner there.

Thanks for dropping in and for the kind words! If you enjoy the taste of wine I HIGHLY recommend sangria. It is by far my favorite adult beverage.

Where are you currently planning on dinning on your upcoming trip? I'm sure you can tell I love food so I love to hear about other people's plans.