Before I begin this update, I have some not-so-great real life news. (Those of you that are already friends with me on Facebook know about this, don't worry, nothing ELSE has happened!
)
This past Friday, due to downsizing at my company, I found out that I am losing my job. My last day there will be next Friday (the 24th).
It's all still a bit unreal to me, even though I have begun the ever-fun process of job searching. We're all just hoping something great comes along soon!
---
Anyways, on to the real reason we're all here! It's time for breakfast!!
One more picture of the fogged-up castle.
We then headed left, in the direction of Crystal Palace.
As you can see, the pathways were bustling.
Adventureland
Back on my first report on the Dis,
my dining review, Wingnut had chimed in on a few of the restaurant reviews (here, at
Raglan Road, the
Grand Floridian Cafe, and
Boma), and I asked him if he wanted to write any of our restaurant reviews here as well. He jumped at the option of doing Crystal Palace (and Akershus, but that's a review for a different day), and so now I will hand the computer over to the one, the only, the Wingnut:
Hola! Its your friendly neighborhood Wingnut!
I have to apologize. I am coming quite late to the party, and am just now catching up on the trip report. I just read through, thinking of what I can add to Stringbeans fantastic trip report. I figured I can add my two cents in two areas (I was trying to rewrite that sentence to add something else with a two in it
I think Dennys has some sort of 2,2,2 breakfast item
but I digress.)
First, the pork bun, or Cha Siu Bao, was unfortunately disappointing. Growing up in NY, Ive had my share of excellent Chinese food, and these were definitely commercialized (and probably frozen) products; so please dont judge all pork buns by these (they are possibly my favorite food ever, so Im quite passionate about them lol.)
Secondly, I have a bit of a bone to pick here
. Our trip from the airport to the Polynesian. Stringbean failed to inform you that I was yelled at.
Yes, she got mad at me in the happiest place on earth for not knocking over children and hopping over the elderly in order to get slightly ahead in the check in line. Just wanted to add that in my own defense. [BTW, Stringbean is sitting next to me, claiming she never yelled
. But she did
dont let her cuteness fool you!]
Ok, so now on to what we all wanna hear
THE FOOD!!! HOORAY!!!
Before I get into the full review, there is a bit of back story I feel compelled to share. As a youngster, I always felt that anything Disney was childish and I was too mature for it. So up until I was about 23, Disney was not a place on the forefront of my mind. Then I went with Stringbean, and she opened my eyes to how fun an experience it could be. Yet, I still resisted anything with characters
So you can imagine how out of place someone like me would be at a place like Crystal Palace. [SB:
Please reference my PTR, in which going to Crystal Palace was ALL HIS IDEA. Dont let him fool you here.]
So on to the review
The check in process at Crystal Palace is an experience; and an odd one to boot (at least for me.) It is a multi-step process that begins with checking in with a nice lady who sites at a little ticket window. I felt as though I should have bet on Secretariat to win, place, or show. The nice lady took our information and gave us a buzzer thingy.
Now, normally when the buzzer goes off, the server shows you to your table.
At least, isnt that what youd expect?
Not at Crystal Palace. No; the buzzer is just meant to tease you. When the buzzer goes off, you have to wait towards the door for the server to come and announce you prior to being seated. So I liken this step to being moved from the big waiting room to the little room at the doctors office. They always move you to the little room so you can wait another hour for the doctor to finally show.
So were finally seated. And let me tell you the Crystal Palace is huge and cavernous. If it were empty I would have shouted RICOLA just to hear the echo reverberate. But even with the enormity of the room and the tremendous seating capacity, you arent placed in too close a proximity to other tables and you arent overwhelmed by noise. This was greatly appreciated.
The view from our table:
As for the spread, there are 2 parts to the buffet. There is the normal buffet and the kids buffet. The normal buffet is just that. A normal breakfast spread with scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, pancakes, fruit, etc. It was very indicative of other buffets around Disney, and was very good. Stringbean and I especially enjoyed the scrambled egg casserole. Stingbean- I really enjoyed that. It had peppers, ham, cheese
I think it was called Poohs Breakfast Casserole.
Stringbean's plate:
The kids buffet is where the experience gets special. And to sum it up, I have three words for you. PUFFED FRENCH TOAST! Oh my was this tasty. The closest thing I can equate it to would be a zeppole (for my non-Italian friends out there, that is fried puffs of dough caked in powdered sugar) crossed with a krispy kreme doughnut. In laymans terms
. FANTASTIC!
Wingnut's plate:
That mess you see to the left is Poohs Breakfast Lasagna; AKA a diabetics nightmare; AKA Adams second favorite thing on the planet (next to the puffed French toast of course.) [SB: Um? Ive been now cast aside in favor of breakfast pastries. Oh, how the mighty have fallen
] It is literally French toast and danish soaked in pudding and custard with jam and bananas. Perfect for those with a sweet tooth the size of Montana
Like me
Other misc. items that are worth noting are the corned beef hash which was quite yummy, and the biscuits and gravy, which were not. They were more akin to hockey pucks than biscuits, but that may have just been the batch I had.
Wingnut's second plate: [SB: As you could see, I was a bit over-enthusiastic on my first place, so that turned out to be my only trip to the buffet here. Possibly the first time I have EVER done that at a buffet!]
And of course, no foray into Crystal Palace would be complete without mentioning the characters. There are plenty of characters walking around, posing for pictures and dishing out hugs. This is definitely perfect for the little ones (although Stringbean and I must have looked a little odd being there without kids. I felt compelled to justify our presence: Im here for the puffed French toast, I swear Im not weird!)
[SB: Piglet and I were seemingly on the same fashion wavelength that day...]
If I had one regret for Crystal Palace, it would be that I didnt get a chance to try the breakfast pizza
But then again, that is always what next time is for
. Overall, Stringbean and I really enjoyed our breakfast here, and it was a great start to our day at the Magic Kingdom.
Be sure to check my next installment: Akershus; or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Smoked Herring.
I also love the stone walls and the floors. It's all so pretty, and I really, really hope we get to stay here for a night or two at the end of a value trip one of these days.
