All Shook Up March 29-April 5

Sorry for the interruption in this report! Spring finally sprung in Colorado and I was spending as much time outside soaking up the Vitamin D I could!

No worries. I know exactly how you feel!

Unfortunately the weather didn't cooperate and 6 inches of new snow and a rockslide closed Trail Ridge Road again so I had to come home early

Oh. Only 6 inches of snow and a rockslide.
How dull. :rolleyes1:

I apologize for the poor pictures but the sheep were pretty far away and I was just using my little point and shoot.

Don't apologize! I see 'em!

I walked over to Mickey's Fun Wheel of Death. :rotfl: I skipped it in 2005 but decided to see if it was really as bad as some on the Dis (you know who you are!) said.

::yes::

I didn't find the ride bad at all but it was rather boring other than the occasional swing.

Slight difference of opinion?
One says most terrifying ride ever, the other says boring.
:rotfl:

and headed Fran's advice to try the Corn Dog Castle. I had to wait a few minutes for it to open but soon I was trying one of these beauties.

That corn dog looks sooo good.

I figure the apples canceled out half the calories.

But of course.

After chilling in my room for a bit,

Turn down the air conditioner.
That should help.

:rolleyes:

Dessert was a creme brulee.

Love creme brulee.

We headed over to DL to start managed to ride SM, BTMRR, Matterhorn, POTC, HM, and Buzz all before lunch!

Not bad!

Proof of the meet!

Nah. I don't believe you.
Photoshopped.

;)

We decided to share the meatloaf. It was a huge portion and we couldn't finish it even though we split it!

:eek: That's a lot of food!

On California Screamin' we came to a very awkward stop before the ride was over....we were sorta tipped over on our side....at full speed its a fun twist...when completely stopped...a little disconcerting!

How long were you left hanging?


That cracks me up! :rotfl:

The metal contraption changed a cube of ice into a perfect sphere!

That's so cool.
I want one.

Alison's finished martini (no olives!)

But with pearl onions. Yes?

I got a souvenir tiki glass to bring home with me.

Was it ceramic or just plastic?

Laundry done I headed back to the hotel and then chilled out until it was time to go to the GCH for my dinner at the Chef's Counter at Napa Rose!

I'm tellin' ya. Just turn down the A/C!

I really enjoyed the Chef's Counter and I highly recommend anyone that loves food to try it.

It sounds awesome! I'd love to give it a try some day...

Thanks for all the food porn... and the updates! :goodvibes
 
You are an updating machine!

Sounds like an awesome day with Alison! That Genie is a riot!!!

Lots of delicious food popcorn:: those pomme frites are calling to me! :rotfl:
 

I am not caught up, but I am totally loving your TR so far. Love that you arrived in time for breakfast. Very cool! And lunch at the Plaza Inn looks delish.

I skipped around a bit and read about your Napa Rose meal. That looks and sounds fantastic.

I will definitely get caught up soon. Loving all the pics!
 
What a great trip so far! I can't believe you got to meet FranandAj and then take a VIP tour with Allison-so special!!!

I love your nails in all the pics! :thumbsup2 They look gorgeous!

What is 1901 and how can I go? Those ice spheres are incredible. :)

I had the scallops at the Napa Rose Lounge last year and thought they were absolutely delicious. I loved that rich sauce they were served on. The chef's table sounds neat. When we ate in the lounge last year, we swore we'd try the actual restaurant or chef's seating during our next trip. Unfortunately we've found out the Napa Rose kitchen is likely to be closed during our trip coming up at the end of the summer. :sad2:

Looking forward to reading the rest. So far it just seems like you've had a really wonderful trip!
 
Sorry the Steakhouse 55 experience didn't live up to expectations. The pictures looked good, though. I always struggle to eat at a place that charges me extra for the side dishes. $40 for a steak and you can't throw in the potato too?:rotfl2:

Glad you met up with Alison. Sounds like you had a very full day that day! And that ice cube sphere-maker-thingy was way cool!

Taking notes on Cafe Orleans...sounds like DW and I should be splitting the Monte Cristo.

You certainly had a lot of gourmet treats on this trip!
 
I am loving your TR!!! It's making me super-excited for our trip at the end of the month.

I am drooling over all the amazing food you tried, and your tour sounded like such a great experience. Can't wait for more!
 
You snuck these updates in while I was going sleepless to WDW and not paying attention to what was going on online! I'm sorry that S55 didn't have the same quality meats as your swanky Denver steakhouses. :rotfl2: Evidently in So Cal we can't get good enough meat since even Del Frisco's didn't open a steakhouse but they opened a "grill" serving salads and "lighter fare". Hopefully the chef proves that he can cook, Disney just doesn't give him resources to buy good enough meat.

I love that ice sphere! So cool!

Yay for more updates!

Taking notes on Cafe Orleans...sounds like DW and I should be splitting the Monte Cristo

And pawning some bites off on the kids so you can have some pomme frites and beignets. I'm telling you...

If you're still hungry you can always go to Pooh's candy store in crtitter country and get a Tiggr Tail. Yummiest treat ever!
 
Holy yum! Napa Rose looks delicious.


I want one bite of a Monte Cristo, just one? Think I can find 10 people to share it with me? :rotfl2: It looks so good but so greasy and rich. The fries look out of this world. Going to try those next trip. :thumbsup2
 
WOW Jill. I am trying to catch up properly this morning and loving every minute! Love your rental car - so cute. Hate that you had trouble parking and got woken up at 2:30am. Boo!

Great first day at DL. I really can't wait to go there. :thumbsup2

The studios tour looks fabulous. So many great props and memorabilia. Now I might have to add that to my list.

In & Out is such a cool name for a FF place.

Really enjoying all your updates and will read more tonight.
 
I'm back and caught up. Your food all looks delicious.

Glad you remembered a picture for proof of a meet.

Nice VIP tour.

I love the chairs with the name on them.
 
I am officially caught up.

Love your dinner at Napa Rose. Sorry dinner at Steakhouse 55 was underwhelming. That's a bummer.

I can't believe TSM is NOT a FP. That's amazing.

That ferris wheel thing (I already forget what its called - I know, I know, but I had a rough day) looks cool. I love the views from up high. Gorgeous.

Gorgeous flower shots. Thanks for the shout out.

1901 looks so cool. Yay for having your own guide.
 
I found your trippie, Jill!!! :cool1::cheer2::banana::yay::woohoo:

I've been super swamped with moving stuff, I am finally at a point where I can sit down for a bit and actually relax :thumbsup2

So glad I found your report! It's been such a fun read so far!!! Sounds like a great trip and has let me relive my Feb DL trip while I read about yours :goodvibes

Need to go back and find more of your trip reports now :p ::yes::
 
only a month behind ;)

Nice VIP tour and 1901!!! Can't ask for more than that, what a perfect day and great company/

Bummer that Steakhouse 55 didn't quite live up to the hype but glad you got your drink, pu pu's and "show at Sam's!

Napa Rose looked wonderful. Sorry I've been so MIA!
 
I purposely searched out your TR looking for an update. Hope to see one soon. popcorn::
 
I'm so sorry! I'm a terrible trip reporter! The weather finally got nice and then I got really busy. This is the busiest time of the year for us at work and I've barely kept up with other folks reports.

Here is a real life update and then I'll wrap up this report.

I had a trip back to Missouri for my niece and nephews birthdays. My brother and I make the cakes for the kids.

My nephew turned 7 and we made him a Minecraft themed cake. My brother made sure all the cubes were regulation size. :)



My niece turned 5 and loves Frozen.



I also spent a weekend buying a new car. My beloved Jeep was totaled last year and I had to buy a replacement that I didn't love. I finally took the plunge and got the car that I've been wanting...a 2014 Ford Escape. It has some fantastic technology and gets great gas mileage!



Back to DL in the next update.

Jill in CO
 
Friday, April 4

Today was my last day in the parks. The parks for much busier today so I didn't get as much done as I would have liked but after the VIP tour with Alison the day before, I really wasn't that sad. I had gotten a 20% coupon that had printed out on one of my Starbucks receipts and decided to do my main shopping at WOD in DTD. I found some great vintage magnets and some more black and white Mickey tea towels (my landlord apparently thought my Mickey towels would be good to use during the remodel...grrr!) I stopped by the art store and found even more vintage magnets that look awesome on my fridge! I stopped for lunch at the Earl of Sandwich and got my EoS fix....There isn't one here so I only get them in Orlando or if I fly to the Philadelphia airport.



After lunch, I headed back to the hotel to start doing some packing. After getting some of my packing done, I headed off campus to get my hair done. I wanted to look nice for my big night at the Gogi Wine Dinner with Kurt Russell. :)

After getting my hair tamed, I headed back to the hotel and got gussied up. Alison and Fran's friend had managed to get us tickets to the event and they graciously offered to pick me up at the hotel so I didn't have to walk/drive to the DLH.

Continued in the next post.

Jill in CO
 
After a quick drive, we parked at the DLH and walked over to Steakhouse 55 where the event was being held. We were held in the lounge and served appetizers and the Gogi Rose wine.





The tenderloin app was the best...the hearts of palm and squid ink was interesting. :)

After a bit, we were escorted to our tables in the main dining room. Our table was back in the corner and made seeing kind of hard but we were close to the guest of honors table.

(I'm going to apologize for picture quality from now on....there was a lot of wine involved!)

Here is a copy of the menu for the evening.



The guest of honor's table. The two ladies on the right are Diane Disney's daughters and Walt's granddaughters.



Mmmmm, Kurt Russell.



The vintner and Bob Gurr.



We started off with some bread and butter. (Good to soak up the wine!)



A great picture of Alison, Fran, and myself.



First course was a Maine lobster cocktail with lemon verbena aioli. It was so light and delicious! It was served withthe Gogi Lulu viognier. I believe this is the wine that Kurt makes just for his mother and is not sold commercially. It was light and crisp..I can see why his mom likes it!



Second course was Pan Seared Halibut Cheeks, Pancetta Bacon Snow, Seared Watermelon, and Cipollini Charcoal served with the Gogi Goldi Chardonney. I'm not a huge fish fan but this was very good and I loved the seared watermelon. Also, if Colorado got Pancetta snow...I'd never wish for summer. :)



Between courses we started chatting with the table next to ours. The man was driving and was not drinking so he gave Alison and I his glass of wine so we would split. We were very happy. :)

Third course was Sonoma Duck two ways, Jilleybean Vegetable Bolognese, truffled potato Fettuccini served with Gogi Jilleybean Pinot Noir. The wine was fantastic and paired well with the duck.



In between courses, Bob Gurr made the rounds. He is a delightful gentleman and a hoot! I didn't realize that the gravedigger in the HM was his likeness...Alison pointed it out...what an awesome part of Disney history! This is the least blurry picture...apparently the lady taking the picture was enjoying the wine too. :)



The fourth course was served. It was a grilled elk chopped steak with egg creamed spinach, candied carrot, and rhubarb Demi Gastric served with a Ampelos, Grenache. By this time, I was getting very full. The elk was delicious but here in Colorado, we would call it an elk burger. :rotfl: We had the extra boxed up and I sent it home with Alison and Fran.



Kurt Russell had been talking about the wines before each course but now he took the time to talk a little about his career and his connection to Disney. I really wasn't aware of his history...It was really fascinating to hear his stories about working for Disney and his time with Walt. Someone from the Disney Archives brought some memorabilia from a couple of his early Disney movies.









After Kurt was finished, dessert was served. It was a Manjari Chocolate Tart, Carmelized Banana, hazelnut Creme Anglaise, Mango Sorbet served with the Ampelos, late harvest Viognier. No matter how full I am, there is always room for chocolate! It was really yummy!



After dinner was over, I had the opportunity to meet Kurt.



We slowly rolled out to the car where Fran and Alison dropped me off at the hotel. It was an amazing evening and a super unique experience with great company.

Jill in CO
 













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