Belly Up to the Bar With Bendy and Her Friendies!!! Button Pics & New Thread Started!

[PNO4TE]

I've got a little food porn for you all....today was my and my darling hubby's 10 year anniversary, and since we are saving every penny for our F&W trip, we celebrated with a meal at home.

Happy Anniversary! Your menu looked yummy. I would love to have your recipe for the carrots, please!

 

[PNO4TE]

Elin that food porn looks great, especially the shrimp & grits. Although, I must admit that the beet chips intrigue me ... what did they taste like?

They are crisp like a potato chip but beety-sweet. De-LISH!!

 

[PNO4TE]

I have the house to myself this week - mom went away with my brother to Cape Cod... I went out to go grocery shopping for myself... I just ended up in the candy aisle...

 

[PNO4TE]

I hope you sleep well, friendie.

When you're feeling better we need to plan a "let's all have the same slushy boozey drink and chat" night here on the Belly up thread!

I hope this morning finds you feeling better too, Brenda. I also am hoping there is an end in sight for your discomfort!

travelmel - love the cartoon!

And I am IN for a Boozing With Bendy night!

 

[PNO4TE]

And make no mistake - if you're going while it's still free dining, you BETTER get your ADRs the very day your window opens. I waited until noon (to be honest I slept until noon ), to call up yesterday - the online reservations were down right after I started mine. I knew things book out fast, but we're going in low season ferchrissakes, and I surely didn't expect I couldn't get any of my times, a few hours after the lines opened. Chefs de France was already booked the entire day of Sat. September 26, so had to switch that one to Monday and the only time availableon Monday was noon! I really wanted dinner I then asked for Citrico's for the 26th instead, and the only time I could get was 5. 30 pm *ACK*!!! That's usually when I'm finishing lunch.
Of course, it was the opposite situation when I was trying to book Kona for 6 pm (because we want to go over there directly after AK closes at 5 PM), because then, earliest time I could get was 8 p.m.
The CM could tell I was in shock and told me that by 7 AM every morning they have 500 people queued up on the phones. I guess every man and his hound dog is coming during free dining .

I am HOPING that since we arrive on October 2, that a lot of the FD people will either have left or be at the tail end of their trips. I am dreading next Saturday morning. We have a DVC reservation that (so far) won't pull up on the WDW online dining site. I will have to call along with the hordes.

Loved your pictures with your son. What a cutie. (oh... you too!)

 

[oybolshoi]

Thanks so much for posting this info. It would be nice if Disney would give us this information before we have to book our ADRs. And make no mistake - if you're going while it's still free dining, you BETTER get your ADRs the very day your window opens. I waited until noon (to be honest I slept until noon ), to call up yesterday - the online reservations were down right after I started mine. I knew things book out fast, but we're going in low season ferchrissakes, and I surely didn't expect I couldn't get any of my times, a few hours after the lines opened. Chefs de France was already booked the entire day of Sat. September 26, so had to switch that one to Monday and the only time availableon Monday was noon! I really wanted dinner I then asked for Citrico's for the 26th instead, and the only time I could get was 5. 30 pm *ACK*!!! That's usually when I'm finishing lunch.
Of course, it was the opposite situation when I was trying to book Kona for 6 pm (because we want to go over there directly after AK closes at 5 PM), because then, earliest time I could get was 8 p.m.
The CM could tell I was in shock and told me that by 7 AM every morning they have 500 people queued up on the phones. I guess every man and his hound dog is coming during free dining . Then right after that I heard the news about Michael Jackson and it took me the rest of the day to recover from both those experiences.

WOW. Angela I'm so sorry that your ADR experience was so craptacular.

I would just suggest that you keep trying to tweak things using the on-line system (when it works) to see if you can nab some better times. I've read some posts on the restaurant board that folks have had some success trying that. And we do know that people cancel ADRs evey day so you could have some luck ... I will keep my fingers crossed for you and your sister.

Anyway, Bendy - can you expound on why the Welcome Center events are so awful? I'm tempted by the Wine walks and Flavourhood sounds great. What do you think of Sweet Sundays? I know you had a rough experience with the celebrity chef lunch. The one that's on when we're there is Paula Deen - so probably not worth it. PFTS sounded so out of control last year but I wouldn't want to risk it.

Here comes my dissertation ...

The problem with the Welcome Center events, in my humble opinion, is that most of them are held in an open kitchen / seating area that's "blocked off" from the non-paying public's view by a row of potted fronds. Depending on the time that the event is being held the Welcome Center can be very busy and depending on where you sit you may be affected by ambient noise from people who are there to cool off, visit the bookstore / gift store/ wine cellar, attend wine seminars, have a drink, or use the bathroom.

Last year's set-up left two sides of the venue open to crowd noise - one side was potted off along the walkway to the bathroom and then directly to the left of that area was the space where wine seminars were being held, the other potted area was adjacent to the walkway that winds around the Welcome Center itself and there's no way to prevent people from walking through that area or to stop them from congregating there.

There is a third wall of palms that serve to block the guests view of the area that leads to the kitchen area, and then the last "wall" is the demo kitchen area. Guess what's almost right behind that area?

The bookstore.

To be fair ... not everyone who attended an event at the Welcome Center last year had the same experience that we did. But it will definitely factor in to any paid events that we might consider attending this Fall. I think that for the amount of money we as guests are asked to pay, it's not too much to ask to have a private venue where you can eat and learn in relative peace.

It's a money play. The Odyssey was actually a pretty good location for these kind of events but there wasn't a bookstore or gift shop there, so once the event was over guests just went their happy way. NOW ... there's a book signing after most of these events and as a paying guest you're not even guaranteed a spot in the line to get your cookbook signed (should you chose to purchase one of said overpriced items in the first place). We were given Irvine's cookbook during our session but when we wanted to have it personalized the line was out the door. Why couldn't he have taken care of all of us who paid to see him first before heading over to the book signing?

Bad planning.

BTW ... TDC Nala has been referring to the palm walls as Palmhenge ...

As for Sweet Sundays ... we only attended one and that was about three years ago. We had seating issues that were eventually resolved but meant that we got breakfast leavings that were rather lukewarm. The demo and sweets were wonderful - we saw Warren Brown and Mary Meyers and they were engaging, informative, personable and accessible. I think that F&W planners have tried, with decent success, to prevent the fiasco we had with seating by escorting people to tables and seating them by party size. There was a bum rush for tables when we attended and since we were at the back of the line by the time we entered the venue the four of us weren't able to sit together. This happened to another group as well and we raised holy hell for about 15 minutes until they finally relented and prepared additional tables.

From what I've read in the past couple of years, Sweet Sundays is kind of a crap shoot depending on who the presenter is.

Did that help at all or did I just ruin everything for you?

Honestly the Irvine event was the worst F&W thing we've attended ...

We've had great success with the F&W pairings at various restaurants and really enjoyed the lunch we did at Bistro last year. Also, although PFTS was not as good last year as the year prior, in our opinion, it is still a pretty cool event to try at least once. The price tag and the crowds can definitely be a bit of a detriment, though.

The wedding pic was TOO cute and I'm loving the food porn. This is my 4th day of Chinese take-out leftovers. JUst not in the mood to spend much time in the kitchen lately.
I didn't do the wedding thing though I did the parent thing One of my favourite memories is taking my son to his first WDW visit at age 2 1/2. Those were the days of BIG hair,

Your son looks just like my husband did at that age! Jay has naturally curly hair, too!

 

[hmgray95]

Happy Anniversary! Your menu looked yummy. I would love to have your recipe for the carrots, please!

Elin, there's really no recipe....I just take extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, freshly ground pepper and a little sea salt and just mix it all up, and then roast at 400 degrees for around 30 to 35 minutes (depending on how crunchy you like your carrots).

 

[hmgray95]

Thanks so much for posting this info. It would be nice if Disney would give us this information before we have to book our ADRs. And make no mistake - if you're going while it's still free dining, you BETTER get your ADRs the very day your window opens. I waited until noon (to be honest I slept until noon ), to call up yesterday - the online reservations were down right after I started mine. I knew things book out fast, but we're going in low season ferchrissakes, and I surely didn't expect I couldn't get any of my times, a few hours after the lines opened. Chefs de France was already booked the entire day of Sat. September 26, so had to switch that one to Monday and the only time availableon Monday was noon! I really wanted dinner I then asked for Citrico's for the 26th instead, and the only time I could get was 5. 30 pm *ACK*!!! That's usually when I'm finishing lunch.
Of course, it was the opposite situation when I was trying to book Kona for 6 pm (because we want to go over there directly after AK closes at 5 PM), because then, earliest time I could get was 8 p.m.
The CM could tell I was in shock and told me that by 7 AM every morning they have 500 people queued up on the phones. I guess every man and his hound dog is coming during free dining . Then right after that I heard the news about Michael Jackson and it took me the rest of the day to recover from both those experiences.

Anyway, Bendy - can you expound on why the Welcome Center events are so awful? I'm tempted by the Wine walks and Flavourhood sounds great. What do you think of Sweet Sundays? I know you had a rough experience with the celebrity chef lunch. The one that's on when we're there is Paula Deen - so probably not worth it. PFTS sounded so out of control last year but I wouldn't want to risk it.



The wedding pic was TOO cute and I'm loving the food porn. This is my 4th day of Chinese take-out leftovers. JUst not in the mood to spend much time in the kitchen lately.
I didn't do the wedding thing though I did the parent thing One of my favourite memories is taking my son to his first WDW visit at age 2 1/2. Those were the days of BIG hair,

Angela, these pics are too cute!

 

[PNO4TE]

Elin, there's really no recipe....I just take extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, freshly ground pepper and a little sea salt and just mix it all up, and then roast at 400 degrees for around 30 to 35 minutes (depending on how crunchy you like your carrots).

Thanks! It sounds scrumptious, Heather (?? - I think that is right!). I think we would love it!

 

[Tink rules]

Those booking for end of Sept - remember... it's F&W &&&&& Free dining goes until Oct 3rd this year... hopefully it will calm down after that...

 

[oybolshoi]

Those booking for end of Sept - remember... it's F&W &&&&& Free dining goes until Oct 3rd this year... hopefully it will calm down after that...

it darn well better or they shall feel the wrath of Bendy and her parasitic twin.

 

[PNO4TE]

Those booking for end of Sept - remember... it's F&W &&&&& Free dining goes until Oct 3rd this year... hopefully it will calm down after that...

That's what I am hoping for!

 

[Tink rules]

it darn well better or they shall feel the wrath of Bendy and her parasitic twin.

Wow... I'm glad I wasn't born attached to you...

 

[oybolshoi]

Wow... I'm glad I wasn't born attached to you...

hey, the twin calls most of the dining shots ... I just pay the bills.

 

[TigerKat]

Wow, y'all have been quite chatty! My internet is off and on so I'm trying my best to stay caught up.

Elin - Great food porn, those beet chips intrigued me as well, never heard of them!

Heather - Happy Anniversary!!!!

Michelle & Bendy - Hoping y'all are having a stress free day today.

Angela - Your DS is adorable!

 

[*KeepMovingForward*]

I had Beet Chips with Thyme and Sea Salt

These look interesting. I don't like beets, but wonder if I'd like beet chips.

I've got a little food porn for you all....today was my and my darling hubby's 10 year anniversary, and since we are saving every penny for our F&W trip, we celebrated with a meal at home.

Our menu for the evening was spice rubbed ribeyes, cheddar-sour cream mashed potatoes, roasted lemon carrots and molten chocolate lava cakes with vanilla ice cream and kahlua whipped cream. DH also grilled a 6 oz filet for an appetizer, but we only got two bites of it before DD5 wandered into the kitchen and said "Is that steak? Save that for me for dinner!". I guess it's true....the apple really doesn't fall far from the tree....

I'm just getting started with the food porn shots, so these aren't the greatest....but here are our dinner plates...yummy moo cow, creamy, cheesy potatoes and sweet, yet tart carrots.

Our beverage for the evening was Duplin Carolina Scuppernog. Duplin is a small winery near Wilmington on the NC coast, and they put out some pretty good wines. For those of you who hail from north or west of the Mason-Dixon line, scuppernog grapes are a Southern specialty, and are a little muskier than a normal wine grape. This particular wine is very fruity, with a slight musky aftertaste, and very sweet, which is how DH and I like our wines. Here's a pic of the bottle....which of course we had already broken in to!

And finally, dessert. These turned out a little flatter than I would have liked, but I only had 10 oz ramekins, and they were meant to be baked in 6 to 8 oz ramekins. Fortunately, my stomach didn't notice the flatness.

Somehow the kiddies ended up eating a great deal of these as well! I swear those kids are like bloodhounds when there's chocolate involved.

It all looks really good. You guys are shaming me because I've been on cooking hiatus. I may have to take to the kitchen this weekend. Maybe. We've had Duplin wine, not sure of the variety but I remember the label (hey, at least I remember something at my age). Friends of ours in NC sent us some wines one year and it was pretty good stuff, its just too bad we can't get it around here.

I didn't do the wedding thing though I did the parent thing One of my favourite memories is taking my son to his first WDW visit at age 2 1/2. Those were the days of BIG hair,

I love your pictures! You DS is adorable! Big 80's hair...yeah, I'm guilty too. DH laughs hysterically when I whip out those old photos.

 

[PNO4TE]

My DD does not like beets and does not like the beet chips. So... maybe not your cup of tea?

 

[PNO4TE]

OK, friendies... I just showed Bob a list of TS restaurants with places circled that I thought he would like for the October trip. Imagine my surprise when he said, "What about this Sci-Fi Dine In Place?"

Never in a million years would I have thought he would like that place! He said it combines two of his favorite things: 50s sci-fi flicks and the drive-in. Who wouldda thunk it?!!?!

So... now I need to know about it since I have never researched it before. I know some of you have gone. Anyone have any input? Any food porn?

 

[TigerKat]

OK, friendies... I just showed Bob a list of TS restaurants with places circled that I thought he would like for the October trip. Imagine my surprise when he said, "What about this Sci-Fi Dine In Place?"

Never in a million years would I have thought he would like that place! He said it combines two of his favorite things: 50s sci-fi flicks and the drive-in. Who wouldda thunk it?!!?!

So... now I need to know about it since I have never researched it before. I know some of you have gone. Anyone have any input? Any food porn?

We tried Sci-Fi for the first time last year and loved it! Yea, it's cheesy but fun kinda cheesy. Stick to the burgers and shakes and you'll be just fine. Actually the burger was one of the best ones we've had in WDW. Here's a link to some porn:

http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=21157568&postcount=3

 

[PNO4TE]

We tried Sci-Fi for the first time last year and loved it! Yea, it's cheesy but fun kinda cheesy. Stick to the burgers and shakes and you'll be just fine. Actually the burger was one of the best ones we've had in WDW. Here's a link to some porn:

http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=21157568&postcount=3

Thanks, Kathy! Bob said a "little" hokey was OK, not over the top like at 50's Prime Time.