Adv. in Free Dining WITH PICS! A few surprises and disappointments! UPD. Ohana, Yak

[devonsmommy]

Hello all,
Yes, I still haven't quite finished last year's free dining review, but I wanted to get this one started in case it could help anyone out who is going this year.

Cast:
Me--33, mother, loves steak, chicken, potatoes. Does not eat any seafood!

D--3, my dd, first trip to the world! Not too picky. Will pretty much try anything.

M--My mom Along for the ride. Eats anything.

A--32, My cousin, leaving her dh and 2 dd home for a different experience at the world!

So we stayed at Pop Sept. 11-17th.

Table Service:
Kona Cafe--Dinner
1900 Park Faire--Breakfast
Cinderella's Royal Table--Lunch
Ohana--Dinner
Yak and Yeti--Lunch
Akershus--Breakfast
Le Cellier--Lunch
Beaches and Cream--Dinner
Sci Fi--Lunch
The Wave--Dinner

Counter Service:
Columbia Harbor House
Pop
Wolfgang Puck Express
Cosmic Ray's

And probably a few more along the way that I am forgetting. I am in the process of uploading pics to my computer, so I'll hopefully start the reviews tomorrow!

 

[devonsmommy]

We arrived at our resort using the Magical Express around 12:30 p.m. We checked into our room, took a little rest, and then headed out to the Magic Kingdom. There was a halloween party that night, so we knew the place closed at 7 p.m. But since it was dd's first trip, we wanted to see the castle!

We had dinner reservations at 7:15 p.m. at Kona, but knew we wouldn't make it till then, so we all split this:

Anchors Aweigh Sandwich - white tuna with lettuce and tomato on toasted multigrain bun $8.09
The cashier let us sub fries for the chips.
Dessert was the apple crisp.

This sandwich was REALLY good! We gobbled everything up not realizing how truly hungry we were. The apple crisp was warm and also delicious. I would definitely order this again!

 

[milmore104]

Great start keep it going I leave in 9 days... I need my fix to hold me over!

 

[TigerKat]

Signing on!

 

[disneyfav4ever]

Reading along!

 

[NuttyDisneyMom]

I'm in

 

[DLo]

great start. lookingforward to more. think i will have to add theanchors aweigh to my must eat list. We will be eating at sci fi in a few weeks (first time in a long time) and hope to eat at beaches an cream (staying at bc)

 

[mermaid&cinderella]

I love their sandwiches and that apple crisp looks yummy! I will have one of those soon......we leave in 3 days....woohoo! I can't wiat to read the rest of your review!

 

[devonsmommy]

Great start keep it going I leave in 9 days... I need my fix to hold me over!

Signing on!

Reading along!

I'm in

great start. lookingforward to more. think i will have to add theanchors aweigh to my must eat list. We will be eating at sci fi in a few weeks (first time in a long time) and hope to eat at beaches an cream (staying at bc)

I love their sandwiches and that apple crisp looks yummy! I will have one of those soon......we leave in 3 days....woohoo! I can't wiat to read the rest of your review!

Thank you all for joining me!

 

[devonsmommy]

We had a 7:15 p.m. ADR at Kona, and arrived around 6:45 p.m. We weren't seated until very close to our ADR time. That gave us some time to check out the menu and explore the shops upstairs. I just love this resort, and would love to stay here sometime!

dd3 ordered this:

Grilled Chicken Strips - with macaroni topped with marinara sauce and mozzarella, served with veggies and fruit salad $7.59
Instead of the veggies we got the make your own sundae.

dd isn't that picky, she ate almost all of the pasta and a few bites of her chicken, and all of the grapes. She was too excited to get her make your own sundae! She crafted a beautiful sundae and then ate the toppings but not the ice cream!

The adult entrees were:

Teriyaki-style New York Strip - sirloin strip grilled with pineapple teriyaki glaze served with mashed Yukon gold potatoes and stir-fried broccolini $27.99
I had this exact same thing last year, and it was just as good this time! I love the sauce that comes with the steak. The potatoes were so good!

Pan Asian Noodles - Asian egg noodles with sliced chicken, pineapple, seasonal vegetables, and a housemade sweet and sour sauce $16.99; with shrimp $17.99
I had a taste of this and it was SO GOOD! It had a lot of flavor. I contemplated ordering this but decided not to because I wasn't sure about the pineapple. Next time, this is what I'm getting!

Shrimp and Scallops - panko breaded shrimp and pan-seared scallops with sticky rice and ponzu, spicy guava-passion fruit and wasabi cream sauces $20.99
My mom subbed the potatoes for the sticky rice. I didn't try this because I don't eat seafood but she ate almost all of it, so it must have been good!

For dessert we had:
Kilauea Torte $5.49

This was warm, and really good!

Banana-Chocolate Creme Brulee - with a chocolate spiral $5.99

This was declared (by my cousin) as the best dessert of the trip!

My mom got the white chocolate cheesecake to go because she was full and we had a fridge. But we never ended up eating it!

Overall, we loved this meal and would definitely eat here again.

 

[Pooh&OurHunny]

joining in

 

[onelilspark]

Mmmm, I love Kona. I think it's sooo underrated.

 

[vettegirl]

Love the steak at Kona, the whole dish is super yummy. I love the Poly!

 

[ilovejsparrow]

That pan-fried noodle dish looks delicious (not to mention the creme brulee!), I might have to try Kona!!

 

[southern_belle21]

Joining in! That all looked fabulous!! I haven't eaten at Kona in awhile, and looking at those pics makes me want to eat there now! Keep em coming!

 

[onejellyshelly]

I love the Kona, and will be eating that steak in just a few days. Can't wait to read more.

 

[DLo]

We love Kona. Sadly we will be skipping it next trip in order to try some new places (usually stay in MK area but this trip epcot area)

 

[Ciciwoowoo]

Looks yummy!

 

[vinotinto]

Thanks for all the awesome pics. We have reservations at Kona next month. I looked over the kids menu in allears and was confused. There was a platter with "five" food groups or a 3-course menu for kids. How does the kids menu works? Could you substitute the fruit salad for the sundae (and do they bring it all out at the same time)?

dd3 ordered this:
Grilled Chicken Strips - with macaroni topped with marinara sauce and mozzarella, served with veggies and fruit salad $7.59
Instead of the veggies we got the make your own sundae.

dd isn't that picky, she ate almost all of the pasta and a few bites of her chicken, and all of the grapes. She was too excited to get her make your own sundae! She crafted a beautiful sundae and then ate the toppings but not the ice cream!

 

[PiperGirlInWondrland]

Joining in! Thanks for the KONA review, we will be eating there for the first time this Thursday I am looking forward to trying it out!