Celebrating a 21st Birthday Around the World. A DxDDP Review. Update 08/22 'Ohana

[toomuchtv]

Every time I see someone review Le Cellier and get that filet and risotto, my mouth absolutely waters! I LOVE IT!!!

We also enjoy Boma for breakfast, but I always get a made to order omelet, which is most of what I eat. Someday, we'll try it for dinner.

 

[ariane37]

I've really, really wanted to go back to Le Cellier - it's been a few years. I think we went right before they changed to 2 credits. We enjoyed it back then, but the reviews lately skew more towards the "meh" and that keeps me from returning. I'm glad your meal wasn't terrible, and if we do go back I'll definitely be ordering the filet with the risotto!
Now Boma breakfast on the other hand I'm dying to go back to. DH and I went for the first time in January and I fell in love French toast bread pudding? YES!! And I loved the goat cheese and spinach eggs. I don't doubt yours are better but since I don't make them at home, I'll have to take Disney's lol. DH liked the make your own omelet (he got 2!) but isn't a huge breakfast eater so I don't know if we'll get back there unless we're staying at AKL again. Our food was all hot though, but we were also there shortly after they started serving.

 

[pepperandchips]

See I don't hate everything that you guys love!

Too funny! The meal at Le Cellier looks delicious! I can't wait to visit.

 

[fallonkendra]

Your review of Saana is very helpful! I have a reservation for our next trip, but we live in a very diverse section of Edmonton, where there are Indian restuarants everywhere. I think I will keep the reservation, just to try that bread service, but I'm not going to go in with high expectations for the butter chicken.

I'm even more excited for our Le Cellier reservation! The food looks so good there!

Your daughter's Mickey mouse shirt - is it from H&M? I think I might have the same one!

 

[DVCShannon]

Thank you for sharing such delicious photos! I've always wondered about AKV food, so I appreciate your feedback on each dish, they all possess such quality in terms of their visual presentation, so it can be hard to decide which dish to choose! Thanks again for your reviews and great photos!

 

[4kidsandadog]

Le Cellier Filet Mignon $52.00
AAA Canadian Tenderloin, Mushroom Risotto, Asparagus-Tomato Relish, Truffle-Butter Sauce

The steak was tender and very good, but the mushroom risotto was amazing! It was the true star of the dish. It was so creamy and went perfectly with the steak.

YES! Love it when someone else is wowed by that risotto. That is one of my absolute favorite things to get at Le Cellier. I've even found the recipe for it online and made it a couple of times here at home. It's a little labor intensive, but so worth it!

 

[MissKIA]

I love all your reviews. Can't wait for Ohana!

Thank you! Ohana coming up shortly!

Great reviews! I can't believe Manitoba is 2 tables but the food looks good! I've been hesitant to go to Le Cellier because of the bad reviews. At the beginning of my planning, I was seriously considering it but decided to forego it on our next trip. Your review makes me rethink that!

I know it gets some not so favourable reviews, but I think it has more to do with the fact that it never used to be signature and now it is. People don't think it is worth it. I thought it was great personally, but I was never there before so I can't compare.

Enjoying your reviews! I had a similar experience at Sanaa. I thought I would be wowed and there would be oooh's and ahhhh's, but it was pretty ordinary.

Also loving your profile picture. My absolute favorite-in-the-whole-entire-world/on earth/in the galaxy hockey player plays for the Jets.

Yay! Let me take a guess.... Dustin Byfuglien? The Hawks are also on the teams that I like. I just wish they weren't in the same division as my Jets!

This is exactly what I'm worried about :/ I'm from Vancouver and I made a lunch ADR at Sanaa but I've been thinking about cancelling it since I eat Indian food on a regular basis and it seems very Indian inspired. It's kind of the same reason I've kept away from any of the Sushi restaurants at Disney - we have more Sushi and Curry around where I live than we do pizza places.

Sanaa certainly wasn't bad, it just didn't wow me.

Come on 'Ohana!!!

Coming up shortly! (Today!)

you are SOOO making me look forward to my trip. Even Sanaa. The restaurant is beautiful and I have a kid with sensory issues so finding something a little different but with a menu that he likes can be a challenge sometimes (though he is getting better and better - a year ago the sanaa menu would have been a no-go but now he loves grilled chicken! We are going to share the bread service (he loves bread, lol) and I'll probably try a couple of the curries. I think I will enjoy it because my expectations will be adjusted. I have NO indian food here so it is a rareish treat for me but I have lived in places with amazing indian food too (and gone to the places my indian friends preferred). Here I just make my own. I wonder if I can request that they spice up the butter chicken. I do love creamy chicken curries (I make chicken tikka masala at home) but I'm ready for it to be not very spice forward!

I'm sure they can spice it up if you ask them to! The bread service was very good. Gotta love Naan Bread!

Every time I see someone review Le Cellier and get that filet and risotto, my mouth absolutely waters! I LOVE IT!!!

We also enjoy Boma for breakfast, but I always get a made to order omelet, which is most of what I eat. Someday, we'll try it for dinner.

I probably would have enjoyed Boma more if I had an omelet as it would have been hot. The temperature of the food was my only complaint really other than the runny eggs.

I've really, really wanted to go back to Le Cellier - it's been a few years. I think we went right before they changed to 2 credits. We enjoyed it back then, but the reviews lately skew more towards the "meh" and that keeps me from returning. I'm glad your meal wasn't terrible, and if we do go back I'll definitely be ordering the filet with the risotto!
Now Boma breakfast on the other hand I'm dying to go back to. DH and I went for the first time in January and I fell in love French toast bread pudding? YES!! And I loved the goat cheese and spinach eggs. I don't doubt yours are better but since I don't make them at home, I'll have to take Disney's lol. DH liked the make your own omelet (he got 2!) but isn't a huge breakfast eater so I don't know if we'll get back there unless we're staying at AKL again. Our food was all hot though, but we were also there shortly after they started serving.

The french toast bread pudding was the main reason I wanted to go to Boma. I LOVE french toast and I LOVE bread pudding! Even though I wasn't a huge fan of some of the restaurants we tried, I certainly didn't hate any of them, and I'm glad I tried them cause I want to try them all!

Too funny! The meal at Le Cellier looks delicious! I can't wait to visit.

It was, I loved it.

Your review of Saana is very helpful! I have a reservation for our next trip, but we live in a very diverse section of Edmonton, where there are Indian restuarants everywhere. I think I will keep the reservation, just to try that bread service, but I'm not going to go in with high expectations for the butter chicken.

I'm even more excited for our Le Cellier reservation! The food looks so good there!

Your daughter's Mickey mouse shirt - is it from H&M? I think I might have the same one!

Le Cellier was great in my opinion. I'd definitely like to go back with my husband. He would love it too.

Carly actually got her shirt at Forever 21.

Thank you for sharing such delicious photos! I've always wondered about AKV food, so I appreciate your feedback on each dish, they all possess such quality in terms of their visual presentation, so it can be hard to decide which dish to choose! Thanks again for your reviews and great photos!

I definitely had a hard time choosing dishes at some places. All the more reason to go back and try something different!

YES! Love it when someone else is wowed by that risotto. That is one of my absolute favorite things to get at Le Cellier. I've even found the recipe for it online and made it a couple of times here at home. It's a little labor intensive, but so worth it!

It was sooo good. I'm not really a fan of cooking labour intensive dishes at home, so I don't know if I'd try making it at home. I'm just going to have to go back I guess!

 

[MissKIA]

Ohana is one of the two places we returned to for the same meal as we had enjoyed in the past. So you know we're going to love it.... right?

The first time we went there was the first time we went to WDW which was in 2010. At that time Carly had developed some kind of intolerance to pineapple - she would get really bad stomach cramps whenever she would eat it - so the chef came out and talked to her and made her special dishes that didn't include pineapple. Being that this is a Polynesian Restaurant, naturally there is pineapple in almost everything, so she got different variations of most dishes. She wasn't really a fan at the time. In the mean time she seems to have gotten over her intolerance of pineapple, and my Mom really wanted to try it, so she agreed to give it another go. (She LOVES pineapple so she was really happy to be able to eat it again!)

We decided to order a few drinks now that Carly was allowed to partake.



Let me see if I can get these straight. This was my drink and it was

Island Sunset
Seven Tiki Spiced Rum, Parrot Bay Coconut Rum, Melon, and Peach combined with our Guava-Passion Fruit Juice

My Mom ordered:



Tropical Macaw

Parrot Bay Coconut Rum, Midori Melon Liqueur, Pineapple Juice, and Cranberry Juice





I'm not 100% sure but I think Carly ordered:

Raspberry-Ginger Mojito
Finlandia Raspberry Vodka, Ginger, Mint, Raspberry Puree, and Fresh Lime Juice, Topped with Coconut water

All of the drinks were delicious. We each tried eachother's and we all thought our own was the best so I guess we all chose wisely!


Now, on to the food, since I know that's what you're all really here for!

If you're not familiar with Ohana (which i'm sure most of you are), it is served family style, so there are no decisions to make.

First they bring out:



Mixed Greens Salad with a Lilikoi dressing

As well as pineapple Bread, but I don't seem to have a picture of that. It just looks like a loaf of bread really. Nothing too exciting visually!

Both of these were very good.

Then they bring out:



Noodles, tossed in a Teriyaki Sauce with Fresh Vegetables and Stir Fry Vegetables.

THESE. WERE. AMAZING.

I could have just eaten this plate for my entire meal and been ecstatic. They were so good. The veggies were cooked perfectly and I just love Teriyaki anything so I loved this.

They also brought out:




Pork Dumplings tossed in Garlic-Ginger Sauce
served with Peanut and Sweet-n-Sour Sauces

and





Honey-Coriander Chicken Wings
served with Peanut and Sweet-n-Sour Sauces

Or should I say wing. Just kidding. they brought out a bunch of them. I just forgot to take a picture at first. (I guess I was too excited about those noodles). Here is a picture of one though!

These were both excellent as well. They also offered us more of everything. I have read reviews were people said they had bad service and were basically ignored. We couldn't have had better service. They came by many times offering us more of everything.

They also come around with skewers of



Sweet-n-Sour Chicken
prepared over an oak fire, served on Skewers with Peanut and Sweet-n-Sour Sauces


Szechuan Sirloin Steak
prepared over an oak fire, served on Skewers with Peanut and Sweet-n-Sour Sauces


Spicy Grilled Peel-n-Eat Shrimp
prepared over an oak fire, served on Skewers with Peanut and Sweet-n-Sour Sauces

I apologize, I do not seem to have a picture of the shrimp. I can be difficult to take an appetizing picture of these meats that are deposited on to your plate, but I did what I could. These were good, but honestly I could have done without them because I loved the other dishes so much more. I'm not saying they weren't good by any means, they were just so overshadowed by the other offerings. The shrimp was good also, but you had to peel it which makes it pretty messy to eat.

THEN after you stuff your face with all of this yummy goodness they bring out:




‘Ohana Bread Pudding à la mode with Bananas-Caramel Sauce

Okay, I HATE bananas but this was one of the best desserts EVER. Really I think the banana part is just a few slices of banana on top. I love love loved this!!! I don't know what else to say.

So, would I return? YES YES YES!

Obviously. Nothing else to say about that!

Up next:

Garden Grill Breakfast

 

[maiziezoe]

Yay! Let me take a guess.... Dustin Byfuglien? The Hawks are also on the teams that I like. I just wish they weren't in the same division as my Jets!

Bingo! I am still sad that we traded him. I have Byfuglien memorabilia all over my house and he is my screen saver on my phone, iPad and both laptops. This morning I purchased tickets to the Hawks Jets game on December 4th in Chicago. *sigh* Buffy. I love watching him play.

 

[Lisa F]

Ohana is one of the two places we returned to for the same meal as we had enjoyed in the past. So you know we're going to love it.... right?

The first time we went there was the first time we went to WDW which was in 2010. At that time Carly had developed some kind of intolerance to pineapple - she would get really bad stomach cramps whenever she would eat it - so the chef came out and talked to her and made her special dishes that didn't include pineapple. Being that this is a Polynesian Restaurant, naturally there is pineapple in almost everything, so she got different variations of most dishes. She wasn't really a fan at the time. In the mean time she seems to have gotten over her intolerance of pineapple, and my Mom really wanted to try it, so she agreed to give it another go. (She LOVES pineapple so she was really happy to be able to eat it again!)

We decided to order a few drinks now that Carly was allowed to partake.

View attachment 189236

Let me see if I can get these straight. This was my drink and it was

Island Sunset
Seven Tiki Spiced Rum, Parrot Bay Coconut Rum, Melon, and Peach combined with our Guava-Passion Fruit Juice

My Mom ordered:

View attachment 189237

Tropical Macaw

Parrot Bay Coconut Rum, Midori Melon Liqueur, Pineapple Juice, and Cranberry Juice



View attachment 189239

I'm not 100% sure but I think Carly ordered:

Raspberry-Ginger Mojito
Finlandia Raspberry Vodka, Ginger, Mint, Raspberry Puree, and Fresh Lime Juice, Topped with Coconut water

All of the drinks were delicious. We each tried eachother's and we all thought our own was the best so I guess we all chose wisely!


Now, on to the food, since I know that's what you're all really here for!

If you're not familiar with Ohana (which i'm sure most of you are), it is served family style, so there are no decisions to make.

First they bring out:

View attachment 189235

Mixed Greens Salad with a Lilikoi dressing

As well as pineapple Bread, but I don't seem to have a picture of that. It just looks like a loaf of bread really. Nothing too exciting visually!

Both of these were very good.

Then they bring out:

View attachment 189257

Noodles, tossed in a Teriyaki Sauce with Fresh Vegetables and Stir Fry Vegetables.

THESE. WERE. AMAZING.

I could have just eaten this plate for my entire meal and been ecstatic. They were so good. The veggies were cooked perfectly and I just love Teriyaki anything so I loved this.

They also brought out:

View attachment 189258


Pork Dumplings tossed in Garlic-Ginger Sauce
served with Peanut and Sweet-n-Sour Sauces

and


View attachment 189259


Honey-Coriander Chicken Wings
served with Peanut and Sweet-n-Sour Sauces

Or should I say wing. Just kidding. they brought out a bunch of them. I just forgot to take a picture at first. (I guess I was too excited about those noodles). Here is a picture of one though!

These were both excellent as well. They also offered us more of everything. I have read reviews were people said they had bad service and were basically ignored. We couldn't have had better service. They came by many times offering us more of everything.

They also come around with skewers of

View attachment 189261 View attachment 189263

Sweet-n-Sour Chicken
prepared over an oak fire, served on Skewers with Peanut and Sweet-n-Sour Sauces


Szechuan Sirloin Steak
prepared over an oak fire, served on Skewers with Peanut and Sweet-n-Sour Sauces


Spicy Grilled Peel-n-Eat Shrimp
prepared over an oak fire, served on Skewers with Peanut and Sweet-n-Sour Sauces

I apologize, I do not seem to have a picture of the shrimp. I can be difficult to take an appetizing picture of these meats that are deposited on to your plate, but I did what I could. These were good, but honestly I could have done without them because I loved the other dishes so much more. I'm not saying they weren't good by any means, they were just so overshadowed by the other offerings. The shrimp was good also, but you had to peel it which makes it pretty messy to eat.

THEN after you stuff your face with all of this yummy goodness they bring out:

View attachment 189264


‘Ohana Bread Pudding à la mode with Bananas-Caramel Sauce

Okay, I HATE bananas but this was one of the best desserts EVER. Really I think the banana part is just a few slices of banana on top. I love love loved this!!! I don't know what else to say.

So, would I return? YES YES YES!

Obviously. Nothing else to say about that!

Up next:

Garden Grill Breakfast

can i just tell you how glad I am to hear 1) the good review of 'Ohana (because I am going there myself) and 2) the review of the drinks, lol. I always wanted a lapu lapu but reviews of it make me second guess that. people say it is STRONG and not that tasty. The tropical macaw looks really funky but the island sunset SOUNDS the best. Thank you for the photos!

 

[toomuchtv]

So it's not just me! I HATE bananas, but don't notice them in the bread pudding. Of course, I'm not a huge fan of bread pudding, so I usually eat mostly ice cream while my bread pudding loving husband enjoys the rest.

 

[Jerusalem Gal]

Oh my God your review of 'Ohana made me want to be back there RIGHT NOW!!!
I'm so glad you enjoyed it! I've also read many mixed reviews from lots of DISers but when I was there in January we absolutely loved it- best meal of our trip! And we ended up going a second time because it was so good! (So of course I had to book it for my next trip in October )

 

[Lisa F]

Narcoossee's

We took the ferry over to the Grand Floridian from MK which worked out perfectly. I drops you off right in front of Narcoossee's which is super convenient if you don't know exactly where it is on the property.

For starters Carly ordered:

View attachment 182206

St. Augustine Soft-shell Crab $21.00
Buttermilk-fried, Low Country Grits, Tarragon Sauce, Green Tomato Chow-Chow

She enjoyed this, and I tried a bite as well and it was quite good, if not a little bready. I prefer my shrimp and crab without breading, but it was tasty.

My Mom and I both ordered:

View attachment 182208


Maine Lobster Bisque $13.00
Butter-poached Lobster, Coral, Chervil

We both really enjoyed this. It has lots of big chunks of lobster in it which of course is always appreciated in lobster bisque!

For our entrees we were quite boring and all ordered the same thing. I had every intention on ordering the lobster here, but once we got there I was just in the mood for a steak, so that's what I got!

View attachment 182212


Grass Fed Filet Mignon $49.00
Boniato-Potato Mash, Broccolini, Red Wine-Oxtail Reduction

I loved everything about this! The steak was tender and delicious, the potatoes were creamy and decadent and I love broccolini. It was perfect to me. Carly ordered hers rare, and while she liked it, she didn't like that there wasn't much crust on the steak (is that the right word? I don't know, I'm not a foodie. Hopefully you know what I mean!) and she would have like it better if it had been seared a little longer.

We also ordered an enhancement to share:

View attachment 182220



Herb-roasted Mushrooms $15.00
Cremini and Shiitake Mushrooms in Herb Butter with Vermont Goat Cheese Feta

This is not included in the meal plan and we had to pay out of pocket for it, but it was well worth it. I love mushrooms with my steak and these were great. There was plenty there for all 3 of us as well, so there is definitely no need to purchase one for each person.

For dessert you'll be happy to know we all ordered something different!

I had to order:

View attachment 182222

Almond-crusted Cheesecake $12.00
with Lambert Cherry Sauce

This was one of the rare instances where for me the item really lived up the hype! I love it, it was delicious. I think this may be the one dessert that I actually finished too.

Carly ordered:

View attachment 182231

Narcoossee’s Candy Bar $11.00
Dark Chocolate-Mocha Bar with House-made Guanaja Chocolate Gelato

She loved this, and if you are they type of person who thinks there is never too much chocolate, ('cause to me this is too much chocolate! ) you will love this too! I tasted it and it was very yummy, but there's no way I could eat more than a few bites of this. It is extremely rich.

My Mom ordered:

View attachment 182232

Coconut and Chocolate Crème Brûlée $11.00
Layered Coconut and Chocolate with Whipped Chantilly Cream and Toasted Coconut

This was great! I had debated on getting this, but I decided on the cheesecake since it gets such rave reviews, so I was happy that my Mom decided to order it so I could try it. It tasted like suntan lotion and I mean that is the best way possible. I love coconut and I love coconut and chocolate together even more. She was very happy with her choice.

We also ordered the french press coffee to have with our desserts.

View attachment 182236

This was very good coffee. A perfect accompaniment to end a great meal!

Would I return? YES!

Obviously! It was very good and I would not hesitate to return... for dinner. (More on that later )

Next up - Kona!

so since you tried both the coconut creme brulee and the cheesecake, which would win for you in the future?

 

[ALEXandFAB]

'Ohana is one of the meals I'm most looking forward to during our upcoming trip. I'll admit that I have no plans of even touching the salad. Gonna save the belly room for noodles, wings, steak, and bread pudding

 

[Lisa F]

'Ohana is one of the meals I'm most looking forward to during our upcoming trip. I'll admit that I have no plans of even touching the salad. Gonna save the belly room for noodles, wings, steak, and bread pudding

there is a reason they put it out first!

 

[Lisa F]

Aww I wanted to do the same and have a little breakfast and lunch since DH is not a big breakfast eater either. My reservation is sadly even earlier than yours... Looking forward to your Narcoosee's review!

when we went in 2014 we had an 11:30 ADR and I was kind of annoyed breakfast stuff was still out. It was pretty picked over too, we grabbed a couple of things and waited for them to put lunch stuff out. My guess is that if breakfast runs until an ADR of 10:45 they have to make sure to have breakfast stuff is out for people who are seated at 10:45. It really wasn't till 11:45 that it was 90% transitioned to lunch.

 

[Ruth B]

Loving your report. Thanks for sharing.

 

[MissKIA]

Bingo! I am still sad that we traded him. I have Byfuglien memorabilia all over my house and he is my screen saver on my phone, iPad and both laptops. This morning I purchased tickets to the Hawks Jets game on December 4th in Chicago. *sigh* Buffy. I love watching him play.

He is a big fan favourite here too. He's definitely fun to watch play! Hawks games can be a tough to get tickets to here. Lots of people want to see our home town boy Toews play. We went to a game last year and there were LOTS of Toews jerseys in the crowd!

can i just tell you how glad I am to hear 1) the good review of 'Ohana (because I am going there myself) and 2) the review of the drinks, lol. I always wanted a lapu lapu but reviews of it make me second guess that. people say it is STRONG and not that tasty. The tropical macaw looks really funky but the island sunset SOUNDS the best. Thank you for the photos!

I steered clear of the Lapu Lapu as well cause I'm not really a fan of super strong drinks. I want it to taste good, not just like booze! The drink I got was really good.

So it's not just me! I HATE bananas, but don't notice them in the bread pudding. Of course, I'm not a huge fan of bread pudding, so I usually eat mostly ice cream while my bread pudding loving husband enjoys the rest.

Yay another banana hater! They're so gross. LOL

Oh my God your review of 'Ohana made me want to be back there RIGHT NOW!!!
I'm so glad you enjoyed it! I've also read many mixed reviews from lots of DISers but when I was there in January we absolutely loved it- best meal of our trip! And we ended up going a second time because it was so good! (So of course I had to book it for my next trip in October )

You're going back in October already! SWEET! I'm so jealous. I have to wait another year still. I really want to go in October one year to do the Halloween party. It looks awesome. Is your sister going with you again?

so since you tried both the coconut creme brulee and the cheesecake, which would win for you in the future?

Hmmm, tough decision but I would probably get the cheese cake again. It was that good!

 

[MissKIA]

when we went in 2014 we had an 11:30 ADR and I was kind of annoyed breakfast stuff was still out. It was pretty picked over too, we grabbed a couple of things and waited for them to put lunch stuff out. My guess is that if breakfast runs until an ADR of 10:45 they have to make sure to have breakfast stuff is out for people who are seated at 10:45. It really wasn't till 11:45 that it was 90% transitioned to lunch.

Yeah I was looking forward to the lunch offerings too, but they just never seemed to show up! We had a fastpass to get to so we couldn't really wait around too long and it wasn't that big of a deal anyway. Next time I'll just have to book for lunch if I want to try it.

Loving your report. Thanks for sharing.

Thank you, and you're welcome!

 

[Candycane83]

when we went in 2014 we had an 11:30 ADR and I was kind of annoyed breakfast stuff was still out. It was pretty picked over too, we grabbed a couple of things and waited for them to put lunch stuff out. My guess is that if breakfast runs until an ADR of 10:45 they have to make sure to have breakfast stuff is out for people who are seated at 10:45. It really wasn't till 11:45 that it was 90% transitioned to lunch.

The reservation I have is 10:20 (not sure yet if I'm really keeping it and hopping) so I'm guessing it'll mostly be breakfast.