ADRs? Yes We Made Stinking ADRs - A June '15 Dining Report - Updated 10/10: Sassagoula & Wrap-up

[totebagg]

OMG your dinner at Yatchman looks out of this world! Love a good steak! Now you are making me rethink our LeCellier ADR - we love the filet there but we have always said that we would like to compare the two! I may pull a Kari and see if I can get a decent time for Yatchman while we are down there! I am glad you guys enjoyed and was in waddle mode coming out of the restaurant (that is a sign of great food or just plain overeating. )

 

[gardengirl628]

Great reviews so far! Thanks for sharing. Have always wanted to try Boatwrights...and I think you may have convinced me. Can't wait to read more.

 

[vettegirl]

We love the Yachtsman Steakhouse! I am so incredibly tempted to upgrade to the Deluxe Dining for our trip next month so we can dine at signatures. Your review has me wanting to bite the bullet and go for it!!!

 

[mi*vida*loca]

You're making me even more excited for our Yachtsman ADR in 3 weeks. We will be staying at BC and have an ADR there after our water park day. Even the kids are excited for the ADR!

The ribeye is my steak of choice.

 

[EeyoreFriend]

Subbing!

 

[FoodieFriend]

OMG! i love food reports AND sarcasm! heavenly! subscribing & reading all your previous posts. i had eyed up "Boaties" just from their menu but couldn't fit it in to our upcoming visit. maybe we'll try to squeeze it in some how. i am an ADR type (hangs head in shame) so i definitely have a Yachtsman ADR & loved your pics! we adore charcuterie as well so will be trying theirs for sure!!

i am super bummed that LTT will be closed for renovations during our stay. i want that gooey cake! oh well, more reason to return in '17! mmmmm....
thanks again for posting great pics & reviews!

 

[JKSWonder]

We have a reservation at Yachstman in a little over two weeks. We've never been there and now I am completely stoked for it!

 

[DisneyJo]

Your meal looks absolutely delicious and I'm so pleased it's on our list for next trip

 

[momof3princes]

I worked at a local amusement park when I was in high school and college, we all swore people left their common sense at the gate when we came in!
Liberty Tree and the Yachtsman looked wonderful, both ones I would love to try. Slow service at the Yachtsman scares me though with three boys! You never know if they will behave or not!

 

[kastoney]

You have just convinced me to change my final night "fancy" dinner to Yachtsman (hardly an ordeal as we're staying at BC). I can not get enough MEAT! And especially a quality charcuterie!!! YUM, yum, yummers....so thanks!

Hopefully your experience will be as good as ours. I'm not even a huge red meat fan and it was well worth the visit. And definitely try the charcuterie. We've also had it at Cali Grill and this one far surpassed it.

Glad you had a good experience at Yachtsman as we had a wonderful time on our first trip and an awful experience last trip. Sadly for us the venue is forever spoilt and we won't be back

Yikes sorry your last trip was awful. We definitely plan to give it a bit of time before we go again because we know it isn't a back to back place, but hopefully won't encounter what you did when we finally return

Sounds like you guys had a great time at Yachtsman. I've only been there once but remember that everything was delicious!

We definitely did!

Enjoying the reviews, good descriptions, Liberty is on our to do list for 2016, the meal at Yachtsman is also right up my husbands alley. He loves a good steak and he would love the appetizer you all had!

Definitely do liberty for lunch. Its definitely the best option in MK and not much more than counter service. And it sounds like maybe you should give Yachtsman some serious consideration for the sake of your hubby ; )

Glad you enjoyed Yachtsman. Your pics are excellent (and I think you mentioned earlier you didn't have your good camera with you?) So wonderful job! I haven't tried this one yet. The pics and menu always get me excited but like so many signatures, I get worried about my actual meal being a let down. So great to hear a really positive and recent review. Have you tried Brown Derby at HS? In light of the poor lunch choices at HS, I've had a really nice (and inexpensive) lunch with simply the signature Cobb salad appy and the Grapefuit Cake (now its part of a dessert trio). Anyhoo, thank you for the incredible review!

Thanks on the pictures. They were all taken with our iPhones and not one of Jason's usual fancy cameras. They definitely got the job done, but we'll be bringing the "big guns" back out next trip.

We love the signature restaurants. We've had a few disappointments here and there, but on the whole they are worth the splurge. Though the tables in wonderland card makes the price a bit more palatable.

HBD is one we actually haven't done, but we may give it a whirl next time. The menu doesn't entice me too much but that grapefruit cake sure does. It is also this mythical place in my book because I remember visiting as a teenager and being in awe of the people eating in the fancy restaurant. It may just be time for my teenager dreams to come true.

Glad you had a great meal at Yachtsman! Its one of our favorite places to have Dinner! Their steaks are always great.

Thanks. I'm not always a huge steak fan, but they clearly know what they are doing there.

The Yachtsman food looked delicious. We have an ADR in December and you have now convinced me to get the filet which looked incredible.

If you're a filet fan, definitely go that way. Jason loved his too, I'm just not a fan of the fattier cuts of meat

Yachtsman looks amazing! I'm for sure team Ribeye!

Ribeye 2 Filet 1 - looks like I'm losing ; )

 

[kastoney]

I was a bit on the fence on whether or not to include YSH in the dining schedule for my next trip but I do believe that your review has tipped the scale for me. It reminded me of how much I love the YSH filet when it is cooked to the temperature ordered, which more often than not it is.

If you go hope your experience is as good as ours. I'd had filet at Cali Grill on a previous trip and this one eclipsed it by a mile

Yum....this sounded so good..I'm sorry the garlic wasn't soft enough....

You should be sorry. I heard it was all your fault ; )

Wow...yum. Nothing like a good fillet.

Good fillet = Pure perfection

Um that looks amazing!!!! Now regretting not having gone to yachtsman on our disneymoon last year and trying to fit into our next trip.... Glad you had a good dinner, thanks for sharing!

Definitely go for it if you love steaks and can work it into the schedule. Even if it is half as good as our meal you won't be disappointed.

OMG your dinner at Yatchman looks out of this world! Love a good steak! Now you are making me rethink our LeCellier ADR - we love the filet there but we have always said that we would like to compare the two! I may pull a Kari and see if I can get a decent time for Yatchman while we are down there! I am glad you guys enjoyed and was in waddle mode coming out of the restaurant (that is a sign of great food or just plain overeating. )

We've never done LeCellier, but largely because I'd read the quality isn't what it once was. Not having been I don't have a point of comparison, but it would be hard pressed to have the same quality as Yachtsman. I'd say give it a whirl if you can fit it into your plans. I'm sure your hubby would love it!

Great reviews so far! Thanks for sharing. Have always wanted to try Boatwrights...and I think you may have convinced me. Can't wait to read more.

Thanks so much

 

[kastoney]

We love the Yachtsman Steakhouse! I am so incredibly tempted to upgrade to the Deluxe Dining for our trip next month so we can dine at signatures. Your review has me wanting to bite the bullet and go for it!!!

Or just pay out of pocket since you'll be right there ; )

You're making me even more excited for our Yachtsman ADR in 3 weeks. We will be staying at BC and have an ADR there after our water park day. Even the kids are excited for the ADR!

The ribeye is my steak of choice.

Filling up on loads of meat after a long day at the water park sounds like a great plan to me. Hope you all enjoy. Can't wait to hear all about it.

Man now we're up to 3 Ribeye and only 1 filet ; )

Subbing!

Welcome to the food party!

OMG! i love food reports AND sarcasm! heavenly! subscribing & reading all your previous posts. i had eyed up "Boaties" just from their menu but couldn't fit it in to our upcoming visit. maybe we'll try to squeeze it in some how. i am an ADR type (hangs head in shame) so i definitely have a Yachtsman ADR & loved your pics! we adore charcuterie as well so will be trying theirs for sure!!

i am super bummed that LTT will be closed for renovations during our stay. i want that gooey cake! oh well, more reason to return in '17! mmmmm....
thanks again for posting great pics & reviews!

Thank you so much. I'm truly glad you're enjoying and I see you really did check out the other reviews too. You must be really hungry right about now ; )

No need to hang your head in ADR shame. I joined that club this trip and the dark side wasn't as bad as I'd made it out to be. Definitely work in yachtsman if you can. Boaties was good, but may not be worth the trip if you aren't staying right there. And I'm already feeling Liberty Tree in 17, it has a good ring to it ; )

We have a reservation at Yachstman in a little over two weeks. We've never been there and now I am completely stoked for it!

Woohoo. So hope you all enjoy. Be sure to let us know how it was.

Your meal looks absolutely delicious and I'm so pleased it's on our list for next trip

Hope you enjoy as much as we did!

I worked at a local amusement park when I was in high school and college, we all swore people left their common sense at the gate when we came in!
Liberty Tree and the Yachtsman looked wonderful, both ones I would love to try. Slow service at the Yachtsman scares me though with three boys! You never know if they will behave or not!

I'm with ya on the service and kids and I just have one to worry about. That is usually when my good parents (aka the iPad) comes into play

 

[Lesverts]

Your description of the salad from LTT made me laugh. It went through my mind that it sounded exactly like one of Wendy's salads, but with cheddar instead of bleu cheese. And then you mention having bleu cheese would be better.

 

[ariane37]

Man now we're up to 3 Ribeye and only 1 filet ; )

Make that 3 Ribeye 2 filet We ate at Yachtsman for our anniversary in March and had a fantastic meal and great service. We too walked out of there feeling like Weebles (can you tell how old I am?) and took a nice slow walk around the BW to try and feel normal again. I LOVED my filet. Um....can't remember which cut DH had....too focused on my food lol! The only other signature we've eaten at is HBD twice for lunch. We liked it; actually until YSH I thought the filet at HBD was the best I'd had on property. We're doing CG and Narcoossee's in Nov. and so far have Jiko's booked for our Jan. no kids trip (thanks to your raving review Kari!) and I'm sure we'll do at least one other signature on that trip but not sure which one.

 

[kastoney]

Your description of the salad from LTT made me laugh. It went through my mind that it sounded exactly like one of Wendy's salads, but with cheddar instead of bleu cheese. And then you mention having bleu cheese would be better.

Yeah, Wendy's is a pretty good approximation to the lettuce at least. Is it too much to give me what you advertise and not a plate full of iceberg lettuce ; )

Make that 3 Ribeye 2 filet We ate at Yachtsman for our anniversary in March and had a fantastic meal and great service. We too walked out of there feeling like Weebles (can you tell how old I am?) and took a nice slow walk around the BW to try and feel normal again. I LOVED my filet. Um....can't remember which cut DH had....too focused on my food lol! The only other signature we've eaten at is HBD twice for lunch. We liked it; actually until YSH I thought the filet at HBD was the best I'd had on property. We're doing CG and Narcoossee's in Nov. and so far have Jiko's booked for our Jan. no kids trip (thanks to your raving review Kari!) and I'm sure we'll do at least one other signature on that trip but not sure which one.

Filet is moving on up in the world ; ) And love the weebles, at least you just wobbled and didn't fall down ; )

Hope you love CG and Jiko. We're fans of both but clearly one really has the love of my taste buds right about now ; ) Let us know how Narcoossee's is. I'm expecting to eat there for the first time next trip since we'll be right next store.

 

[kastoney]

It's time for some lions and tigers and bears, oh my!

Jason was the first one up the next morning and elected to go for a run. While I made numerous lovely comments about running and vacation sounding like some form of torture to me, he was able to get this gorgeous early morning shot of Port Orleans Riverside


Once Casey and I finally made our way up we were off to the Animal Kingdom. Our first stop was The Rascal Park - aka the Boneyard for anyone not familiar with the cool Casey lingo - which is one of her favorite places in the world. Unfortunately it wasn't open yet, so we took a quick spin on a prehistoric Dumbo


And met either an abnormally large dog or extremely small child


Before happening upon this little hair threading place, where Casey was able to pick her own thread and beads and indulge in something I think was pretty unique to Animal Kingdom



She loved doing this and is already asking about it for next trip!

After that we were finally able to get to her beloved Rascal park where she ran around like a banshee and her Daddy may have done something a little more low key...


After reluctantly pulling her from the park, we were finally off for some brunch at TUSKER HOUSE!!! For those that have been following me you've likely gathered that I loathe buffets so most character meals just aren't my thing. I go to a restaurant for food so I have expectations of eating something good, shocking I know, and mediocre buffet food just doesn't cut it. But the one exception I've found is Tusker House. Now that may have a little something to do with this "jungle" juice:

Which is a combination of passion fruit, orange, and guava juices and despite the lack of alcohol is quite tasty.

Or speaking of alcohol, our love of Tusker may really be thanks to this African beauty

The African Bloody Mary with vodka, Loaded Bloody Mary Mix, and spicy African berbere sauce garnished with berbere-rubbed beef jerky, a celery stalk, carrot, and parsley. I have no idea what loaded bloody mary mix implies or what berbere sauce is, but that really didn't matter because they apparently mean we are really darn good and you should have at least two per visit!

But what keeps us returning to Tusker House as the only character meal we do is amazing plates of goodness like this one.

Meet my first plate of African breakfast goodies. Starting at noon and going clockwise, we have the beef bobtie which is a quiche like dish with some great spice undertones like curry and ginger. Up next are some delicious fried platiains (that still counts as a fruit right?) and some mealie cornbread. Then there is a corn beef hash with a cobbler like topping which is quite good and the very African smoked salmon ; ) Next up is mealie pap, which tastes like a cross between corn pudding and grits and is unquestionably better than both. Then some fruit (who put that here) and a yummy, but very unAfrican, cheese blintz.

Now I attempted to take photos of the entire buffet to give everyone an idea of the diversity of options, but my pictures were horrible. So for anyone who wants to see how a real food reporter does it you can check out @jabead 's (aka Barb, my disney food yoda) latest visit: http://www.disboards.com/threads/yo...k-royalty-lounge.3423639/page-6#post-54088122

So to make up for my lack of photo's here is a look at Jason's plates:



Clearly he has more of an affinity for eggs, sausage, and cottage cheese than I.

Casey played it more to the American tastes

Enjoying some Mickey waffles, bacon, and good ole ham n cheese fritatta

Now the beauty of a late morning tusker house breakfast is you get two for the price of 1. Aka we got to enjoy a second bloody mary (don't judge) with some of their delicious lunch offerings. I didn't get a picture of Jason's plate, but here's a look at mine:

Starting from noon again, are the collard greens - which were among my favorite items on the plate - and some golden raisin basmati rice that was pretty bland. Next was a delicious samosa, which despite being held under a hot lamp was surprisingly crisp as I bit into the yummy potato and pea (I think) filling. Next was a lamb stew which was extremely flavorful and a peri-peri salmon, which had good flavor but was a bit mushy. The shrimp were good, but didn't have a ton of flavor, and the creamy substance on the plate was a coconut chicken that was moist with a subtle sweetness. In the center is a curry chicken which was really spicy, but good and last but not least is the spiced vegetable tofu, which was shockingly my favorite of the lunch dishes, as it had some good spice to it as well as some saffron flavor.

Phew, that's a lot of food ; )

While her Mommy was busy stuffing her face and inappropriately drinking before noon, Casey had a ball meeting the characters and joining in on the character parade.









Side note she had a bit of a wardrobe malfunction with her goofy picture (aka his hand may have slid her shirt strap down) so this is the "best" picture of the bunch ; )

So to recap for those, like me, who may not be a fan of character meals or buffets in general, Tusker House is worth consideration. The food is table service quality and the unique offerings really make it stand-out. They also participate in Tables in Wonderland, so we were able to save $17.59 (aka Casey ate for "free).

I'll stop there for now. But up next, more imbibing in AK and the land of the big ball!
​

 

[lauraleh]

I love Tusker House. We are trying Boma and Yak and Yeti so we are skipping it this trip. My favorite thing was the corned beef hash with (I think) cornbread topping. It was so good to me. I also agree with you on the late breakfast time slot. Loved trying both!

 

[KathyM2]

he was able to get this gorgeous early morning shot of Port Orleans Riverside

Such a pretty shot. My hubby is a runner too and though he wasn't with us last time we went to WDW, I looked around a bit and saw some amazing places I'm sure he will like to run next time we are there!

Casey was able to pick her own thread and beads and indulge in something I think was pretty unique to Animal Kingdom

That is really cool. Do you happen to know if that bead thing is a permanent fixture? I think my DD would really like that...was it expensive? Crowded? And can you possibly give me an idea of the location? (I know...I'm not demanding at all lol)

mediocre buffet food just doesn't cut it.

So with you. Which is why I love your meal recos and why we are doing Tusker as our one buffet/character meal on our upcoming trip.

the only character meal we do is amazing plates of goodness like this one.

Looks amazing!

Enjoying some Mickey waffles, bacon, and good ole ham n cheese fritatta

I'm glad you posted this because I was a bit worried that your place looked delicious but somewhat exotic...and my DD doesn't do too much exotic...so...her plate would be more on the Mickey waffle and bacon side...

 

[FoodieFriend]

yum! we're not into eggs so we're definitely having lunch at Tusker House in Sept! can't wait! thanks for your review & pics!

 

[Vernie822]

I 100% agree with your opinion on Tusker House. I don't dig buffets in general but this one won me over. Jungle juice is a bonus. I haven't been for lunch but we may need to try a late breakfast/early lunch sometime. Good idea!