Cruising concierge on the Fantasy-FOOD PICS: PIRATE NIGHT @ AP! [updated 3/24]

[emmebear]

hello everyone!!

i am doing a TRIP REPORT in the disney cruise section of the forum but i wanted to post some food pics. this will be the food-abridged version to my trip report.

we sailed in a one bedroom suite [concierge] on the disney fantasy. we were on the eastern caribbean itinerary with stops in st.thomas/st. john, san juan & castaway cay. the dates of our cruise were 1/26/13 - 2/2/13.

the wonderful barb posted some updates of our food and i am hoping to post some more.


here's a few from my DAY 1 update.

a perfect mimosa to start a perfect vacation in the concierge lounge during the meet & greet.


...so the mimosa went down very quickly and i ordered my second drink.

grey goose voda + soda water + lime = awesome.


we found a lovely fruit basket awaiting us on the dining room table.

hooray, fresh fruit!!

the bow even had the cruise logo on it. i loved it!

epic coffee machine!!

i wanted to try out the epic coffee machine. it's rumored to have cost $10,000 (or so the internet says) but nonetheless, it made outstanding cafe latte's and whatever your heart desires in a matter of seconds. the captain made frequent visits to the lounge just for coffee. i love that thing.



here are some of the afternoon offerings. the food at the lounge changes daily and the ever awesome KWAN was very helpful in the lounge. she was one of my favorite cast members on board. i'll post a picture of emme & kwan during the birthday post. but she was incredible.

assorted fruits, cheeses, shrimp & lettuce wraps & marinated mushrooms. YUM!

so i headed back to my room to enjoy my afternoon snack while sitting on the balcony.

grey goose vodka + soda water + lime.

plate full of yummyness.

more delicious cheese.


up next, dinner @ animator's palate.

thanks for reading everyone & happy eating!!!

 

[luv2sleep]

Thanks for posting! Glad to see a mixed drink! Yay! Love the food pics!

So is the plain coffee that comes out of there actually good and better than what you get from room service, the drink station, and in the dining rooms?

 

[emmebear]

Thanks for posting! Glad to see a mixed drink! Yay! Love the food pics!

So is the plain coffee that comes out of there actually good and better than what you get from room service, the drink station, and in the dining rooms?

i didn't have coffee at any other place but in the concierge lounge but the coffee that i did drink from that machine was awesome. i tried cafe latte's, cappuccino, regular coffee, espresso, hot chocolate etc. alice (from concierge) says it's the best coffee on the ship. the captain gave the coffee two thumbs up!

i primarily only drank alcoholic drinks in the concierge lounge. we were offered two happy hours a day and they would grab you a drink whenever you asked. all these drink pictures are from the lounge. the lounge had all kinds of alcohol. it was fantastic!

i did order one stella artois as i was watching a movie in the buena vista theater.

 

[DLFan123]

I'm very excited about this! Can't wait to see and read more!

 

[emmebear]

updated 2/9/13


DINNER @ ANIMATOR'S PALATE

our dining rotation was AERAERA & we had second seating which is 8:15. we arrived at about 8:10 & there was a line to get inside. our table number was 74. another perk of concierge is that your family gets to sit at their own table, which i thought was nice.

animator's palate was located on the 3rd floor, aft. it was pretty rocky this night and i felt slightly queasy. upon entering the dining area, a cm hands every single person a hand sanitizing wipe. they did this before every dining opportunity minus when we had brunch at palo.

we were shown our table which was close to the large projection screens (they are all over the place) but directly in front of the area where the cm's place drinks, food etc. it was a really busy area but we didn't mind because we ate quickly this evening as the rocking of the boat was really getting to me. i wish i had taken a bonine earlier!

our servers were mr. o'neil from jamaica and his assistant was mr. ninja. (yes ninja). they were both very efficient and very nice. i don't know how they manage to serve all the tables & get the orders right but they did.

loved the chair!


...now to the fun stuff.

menu!


we ate at AP three times & each time there is a different menu for the night. on the 3rd night (which is the animation night), there is a picture of sorcerer mickey which moves.


every meal in the main dining rooms came with a bread service & a special spread in addition to butter & whipped butter.

such a cute butter knife!
tip: you can buy these knives in the gift shops to take home with you.



and for our appetizers, we had:

Black Truffle Pasta Pursettes - pasta purse filled with truffle scented cheese and coated with a delicate champagne sauce

this appetizer was recommended by our server. it was ok. it didn't blow me away or wow me. but out of the three that we ordered, it definitely was the best.

Wild Mushroom Risotto and Porcini Twist - served with Parmigiano-Reggiano

this tasted as bad as it looks. it didn't look pretty & i found it to be pretty bland. i didn't get much mushroom flavor despite appearing as if there were a ton of mushrooms in this. overall, unappetizing.

Sesame-flavored Rock Shrimp and Caramelized Onion Cheesecake - with Asian barbecue sauce and topped with micro greens

this item really intrigued me when i saw it on the menu. unfortunately, it did not deliver. it lacked flavor. a lot of the food on the ship was underseasoned and bland. the texture of the cheesecake reminded me of cold quiche. i didn't get much sesame flavor from it. i gave it three bites and was done with it.



so far, we were disappointed in the meal.


the lights dimmed during appetizer service & our friend crush appears!

emme had no idea what was going on!


crush was pretty cool as he would communicate with different people in the dining area. it really caught people off guard and one little guy ducked under the table as crush was talking to him. overall, great entertainment!

emme was really amused by crush as were all the kids.



our entrees arrived pretty quickly.

the kids meal.

Grilled Pacific Black Cod: With sautéed Morel Mushrooms on a Sweet Potato Purée

this was what my mom ordered. my mom loves seafood & wanted to try this. this fish was actually good but kind of dry. we always ordered a fish entree and for the most part, the fish was really fishy but on this night, this cod was tasty for the most part.

Marinated Angus Beef Tenderloin carved to order on wasabi mashed potatoes with bok choy and a tamarind-barbecue reduction

this was my entree. the tenderloin was tender and the mashed potatoes didn't have much wasabi in it but was good. there wasn't much bok choy on the plate and i thought the carrots were cute. after the disappointing appetizers, AP redeemed itself with a tasty entree.


now to dessert (emme's favorite part of any meal).

Vanilla ice cream with mickey sprinkles

my daughter is pretty simple in her needs for dessert. vanilla ice cream & sprinkles is the perfect dessert for her. and she enjoyed every last bite of it! mr. o'neil was really accommodating when we ordered this. i was very thankful.

i'm not much of a dessert fan but was very curious with this:

No sugar added: Citrus Lemon Mousse With Mango Coulis

the mousse was more like a very airy & light cake. it wasn't overly sweet & i really enjoyed it. two thumbs up!


overall, our first meal in rotational dining was a good experience. the dining room was very very busy. i did request any kind of hot sauce (minus tobasco, texas pete etc) with our meals. they did not have sriracha on board but they did have sambal. with our other meals, they made sure we had a bowl of sambal at our table. it was very thoughtful.

the appetizers were somewhat disappointing but the entrees were good (minus the semi-dry cod). the atmosphere was great but the rocking of the boat made me queasy. our servers were amazing & we had a great experience.



after we left animator's palate, we ran into some friends.

tiana & emme.


we have never met tiana at disney world. when she's out and about, the lines are tremendous & i just don't have the patience to wait. but tiana was out in the lobby atrium right as we were exiting dinner. perfect timing! she looked beautiful in her dress. out of all the character pictures we had taken, tiana took the most time with the children. it was very heart warming to see the faces of these little girls light up.

goofy!!

sleeping beauty.



up next, day 2 & emme's big birthday!

 

[emmebear]

here's the food excerpt from my latest post updated today [2/10]

happy 3rd birthday emme!


after our morning character meets, we headed to cabanas to pick up some breakfast. emme wanted pancakes so off we went.

cabanas is a really nice area. there are two sides to cabanas. it is buffet style with self drink areas but cast members pick up empty plates and are very helpful. in addition to the buffet area, there is a fruit area [you have to let them know which fruit you want], ice cream scoop area, grilled meats area, salad & soup area as well as a "sandwich" area where they had things such as prosciutto, mortadella & buffalo mozzarella. on certain days, there was also sushi. there's also snow crab legs, mussels & shrimp too. all are cold (which kind of turned off my mom) but very fresh.

for breakfast, there is a made to order omelette station which also has egg whites available. there's also krispy kreme donuts as wells! i'm not going to lie, i did indulge a few.

i can say that cabanas can get chaotic when it comes to getting your food. there really is no line and no one to guide you where to start. you kind of just go for it. some people are nicer than others, some were rude but in the end, everyone got their food.

when we sat for lunch, i would scope out which side looked the least busy as both sides had the same food. i really enjoyed my lunch at cabanas. in fact, i preferred it over some of the food we had at the main rotational dining areas. some stand outs during lunch was malaysian fish stew, bbq short ribs, lamb curry with heavy indian spices just to name a few. these 3 things were my favorite items from cabanas and it was DELICIOUS.



i have pictures of all the stations at cabanas and will post them later (i took too many pictures and haven't sorted through all of them yet).


here are some pictures of the breakfast buffet:

assorted breads, pastries & danishes.

smoked fish section.

made to order omelette station.

eggs of all types.


but for our "brunch", here's what we got:

cabanas had different types of pancakes, toppings, in addition to sugar free syrup.

the eggs benedict was quite good. the egg yolk oozed out perfectly. the hollandaise was decent. i think i ate an eggs benedict every day. what's better than an perfectly oozing yolk.

 

[emmebear]

food excerpt from my latest post updated 2/11/13.

after our princess meeting, we headed to cabanas for lunch. here's some of our plates:

i thought it was great to offer sushi as the fish was fresh but the rice was cold & hard. it kind of defeats the purpose of sushi to have cold & hard rice. i just ate the fish off the rice so it was more or less sashimi.

emme's plate of black beans, roll, chicken fingers & penne pasta. god bless disney for the rice & beans as it was the main thing emme ate each day at cabanas. she's a pretty picky eater and i was so grateful they had some sort of rice dish for her.

this was one of my plates. the fish was snapper, the shrimp was cajun spiced and very tasty, the polenta cake was very delectable & the meat was over cooked. another winning lunch from cabanas!

 

[emmebear]

food excerpt from my latest post updated 2/12/13.


i only had one "food" picture in this last post. alcohol is considered a food group while on vacation, right??

emme after her BBB birthday makeover. dress created by my friend sophie.




...back in the concierge lounge as our dinner was at 8:15.

grey goose vodka + club soda + lime




up next, our formal dinner at enchanted garden which includes my favorite entree of the entire trip.

 

[emmebear]

updated 2/15/13


DINNER @ ENCHANTED GARDEN: FORMAL NIGHT



enchanted garden is located on the second floor. it was a bit tricky to get there from our room 12(forward) so julia escorted us down to enchanted garden. while we were waiting for the dining room to open, we went to a shutters kiosk and browsed the pictures taken by cast members. it was a nice way to pass the time as we were 10 minutes early.


table 74 was literally the first table when you entered enchanted garden on the left side. this made it great to leave quickly when dinner was over and also gave us quick access to the bathroom. since we were one of the first tables to be sat, i got a nice picture of the dining area.

enchanted garden


i was really happy to have a table to ourselves! and i was also glad we had a booth instead of a table. it was very nice.

happy 3rd birthday emme!!


i brought along my external flash for my camera during this meal. my camera itself is heavy & cumbersome at times and with the flash, it gets really heavy & awkward during dinner.

these flower lights change colors & also opened & closed when the day turned to night. it was very neat!

cupid mickey at the fountain centerpiece of enchanted garden.

emme wanted a closer look.



after a few pictures and looking at the menu, we were ready to order.

there's always a bread service.

Multi-grain Loaf and Country Current Bread

Chickpea-Garlic Purée



here are our appetizer choices that we shared between the two of us:

Ahi Tuna and Avocado Tower With Crispy Noodles and Wasabi Dressing

i really wanted to like this as it was very pretty. there was just something a bit off with the combination. the tuna was fresh however.



next, we have:

North Atlantic Lobster Ravioli With roasted Garlic and sweet Basil scented Tomato Juice

minus the red color from the tomato juice, the ravioli was actually quite good! this was our favorite of the appetizer. we ordered another one to share.



lastly,

Cucumber Garden Roll Filled with Julienne of Carrots, Bell Peppers and Zucchini, flavored with Cilantro and dressed with White Shoyu and Lemon Dressing

this appetizer was very crisp & refreshing. my mom enjoyed this very much. we ordered an additional roll to share.



entrees:

Caramelized Sea Scallops With Roasted Asparagus, Sun-dried Tomatoes, and Pearl Pasta, garnished with caramelized Leeks and Veal Jus Reduction

this entree was one of the worst on the trip. the scallops were very rubbery and very unappetizing. they also had a strange smell to them as well. the scallops were frozen so it's hard to get a nice sear on them. i was anticipating scallops like the ones i've had at california grill which were ridiculously delicious & this was far from it. the entree looked pretty but after 1/2 a scallop each & a few bites of everything else on the plate, we stopped eating from this plate. two thumbs down.


onwards to hoping for better...

Slow Roasted Prime Rib, Thyme-roasted Vegetables, Double-baked Potato, Horseradish, and Natural Jus

i asked for medium rare but this was more of a medium. the horseradish never made it onto my plate. however, the prime rib was juicy & not dry. the double baked potato was dry & definitely not worth the precious space in my belly. this was much better than the scallop dish and overall an OK entree.


and now, my favorite entree of the entire cruise.

*drumroll*

Pan Seared Sea Bass With Fava Beans and Pea Risotto and a sweet Chili Glaze

this entree was absolutely delicious. the sea bass was perfectly cooked & had no fishy smell or rubbery texture whatsoever (unlike some of the other fish we had on board). it was a very generous portion of fish as well. the fava bean & pea risotto was amazingly tasty. i absolutely loved everything about this risotto. not too thick & not too runny. it was perfectly seasoned as well. i didn't think the dish needed the sweet chili glaze and i ate around it as i felt it didn't add anything to the dish. in fact, it kind of threw my taste buds off.

my mom & i shared the entree & ordered a second. unfortunately, the second serving was a completely different story. the fish was pretty unappetizing, very flat and not cut properly. however, the risotto was still on point.



and here's emme's dinner:

it's the same nuclear orange mac & cheese found in the theme parks. i love that macaroni & cheese!



after our entrees, our server, assistant server, manager (bhoola) and what seems to be a football team of servers came over with cupcakes for emme & then they sang happy birthday to emme. it was such a surprise! i was running out of space on my sd card so i only got bits & pieces of the singing.


here are the desserts they brought out (we did not order this, it came along with the singing).

emme loves her some cupcakes.



as emme was finishing up her cupcakes, enchanted garden was changing into night.

overall, the dinner at enchanted garden was a very fun experience. the place itself is so nice to look at. i wish i would have gotten up and walked around the place but i spent the majority of my time stuffing my face. priorities i guess! emme felt very special during the meal and the staff went out of their way to make sure she had a very special birthday.

the meal was much better than animator's palate the night before. despite being "formal night" some people arrived in very casual clothes....very casual meaning shorts & flip flops. it was a weird mix of people in tuxedos and full on ball gowns to others in sundresses, shorts & flip flops. to each their own i guess.



after dinner, we headed back to our room to find this:

LOBSTER! (i wish i ate more lobster on board). i think i'm going to devote an entire post on the very impressive towel origami btw.

our stateroom hosts did some incredible things with towels.

they also left this for emme.

we pulled the curtain back & was absolutely surprised! emme could not believe it. she kept saying, "OH MY GOODNESS MOMMY!!

i have never seen a birthday cake made out of towels.

the birthday girl & her birthday cake.



emme had a very spectacular birthday on board the fantasy. from the start of the day and until the very end we celebrated, disney style. we had such a great day & it as only day 2 of our trip! we finally called it a night a little past midnight. boy, was i exhausted & so was emme who was loudly snoring & taking up 95% of the bed.



up next, the morning after & the kids club!

 

[emmebear]

i will be posting pictures soon....been catching up on my other dining reports.

 

[emmebear]

ROYAL COURT

after a long day which included lots of time in the pool, i was pretty tired & spent. emme had a long nap and was ready to go. because i was so tired, i decided to take my point & shoot to dinner. i didn't have the energy to drag my dslr camera, so my point & shoot camera had the job of taking pictures tonight.


but first, we ran into some friends:

phineas & ferb!

table 74 was again, very close to the entrance which gave us quick accessibility to the very important potty. i was pretty hungry & was excited for dinner.

emme getting her coloring on.

Warm Herb Brioche with an Olive Spread

the brioche bread was good & the olive spread was tasty.


here are the appetizers:

Escargots Gratinés-Herb-marinated Snails with finely chopped Mushrooms, topped with Garlic Butter and Breadstick

i love love love me some escargots. these snails were delicious. i wish they were more garlicky...the more garlic, the better. we ordered a second one of these. i really enjoyed these very much.

i also ordered Iced Lobster and Jumbo Shrimp White and Green Asparagus, Micro Greens, and Lemon-Dill dressing with Horseradish Cream but the picture was very blurry. the shrimp was ok. nothing special about it.


next...

Belle's French Onion Soup With Gruyère Cheese Crouton

has anyone had the french onion soup at "be our guest" at walt disney world? the french onion soup served there is a travesty. it's pretty terrible. i was hopeful that this french onion soup would be good.

this french soup was equally terrible. the cheese wasn't bubbly or ooey & gooey. the crouton was super soggy & the broth was very bland. it was very disappointing.



here is emme's dinner:

the chicken was a little dry & the gravy saved it. emme ate only the mashed potatoes & got seconds. mr. o'neil also brought her some jasmine rice. he was very awesome.



our entrees:

Pan seared Tofu, Roasted Zucchini, Eggplant and Red Peppers (Vegetarian)

this was a very good entree. they used sesame oil to sear the tofu & it really reminded me of how we make tofu at my house. at this point, i really missed korean food. my mom enjoyed this entree. it was very tasty.

Double Cut Rack of Lamb with a Dijon Crust
With fine Green Beans, Gratin Potatoes and Rosemary Jus

after the disappointing french onion soup, i was pretty hesitant about my lamb. the lamb was cooked beautifully but the meat was a bit tough. the rosemary jus was rich & delicious & really added a great depth of flavor to the lamb. the gratin potatoes were dry but the green beans were fresh & crunchy.



overall, this was the second best meal out of the 3 we've had at rotational dining. i still don't understand the french onion soup & why disney's french onion soup is so terrible. the tofu was delicious as were the escargots.

the restaurant itself is really beautiful. i have additional pictures i took with my dslr during our second visit to royal court & will be posting later in this trip report.

after dinner, we went straight to bed as we had an 8:15am excursion in beautiful st. john.

 

[rachel09985]

I don't think I could eat escargot!

That kids chicken actually looks good! haha. Where is your dessert pictures?? That is my favorite part!

 

[emmebear]

I don't think I could eat escargot!

That kids chicken actually looks good! haha. Where is your dessert pictures?? That is my favorite part!

If done properly, the snails are very tender and delicious. They are a great vessel for flavor. Yummy!!!

 

[TDC Nala]

Moving this to the cruise board, as the Restaurant board is for discussion of restaurants located at the Walt Disney World resort.

 

[princess aleya]

Thanks for posting pictures of the concierge louge. I've always wondered what was offered. My husband and I just sailed on the Magic this past November, we really didn't care much for the food offered in the dining room. However the food in the buffet was really good, we ate there often.

 

[emmebear]

Thanks for posting pictures of the concierge louge. I've always wondered what was offered. My husband and I just sailed on the Magic this past November, we really didn't care much for the food offered in the dining room. However the food in the buffet was really good, we ate there often.

I agree about the food in the main dining rooms. Some of the food was pretty bad but some of the entrees were tasty!

We loved the different food offerings in the lounge. It was very convenient & delicious.

The food @ cabanas on the fantasy was very good...my favorites were the short ribs, Malaysian fish curry, and lamb curry. Mmmmm!

 

[emmebear]

updated 3/24/13


PIRATE NIGHT @ ANIMATORS PALATE!

mr. o'neil & mr. ninja greeted us promptly & look what was awaiting us at the table:

SAMBAL



and here are some menu excerpts for the night:

we got some warm, yummy bread:

and while we are waiting for our appetizers, emme & i got into the pirate spirit (well, i did more than she did).

ARGH MATEYS!



speaking of appetizers, here is what we ordered:

Caribbean-style Conch Chowder - with sherry, sweet peppers, onions, tomatoes, thyme, and garnished with diced potatoes and crispy bacon bits

this was pretty terrible. it tasted like nacho cheese in soup form. i didn't see any conch or bacon. this was definitely not a winner.


next:

Black Beard's Jumbo Crab Cake - with a golden raisin-carrot and coconut slaw served with a spice Calypso dressing.

the crab cake was a definite upgrade from the conch soup. the slaw was forgettable. there was a nice amount of crab in the crab cake & minimal filler.


lastly:

Pirates Golden "Pot Stickers" - Oriental pork dumplings deep fried and served with a Tamarind-ginger soy sauce and pickled vegetables

i really dislike the word "oriental". however, these dumplings greatly reminded me of the pot stickers at 'ohana. the skin wasn't as crispy but they were pretty good. waaaay better than the terrible conch soup.

tired emme.

tink & hook.



here are the entrees:

Captain Hook's Macadamia Nut-dusted Mahi Mahi - Jasmine rice and sautéed pineapple on a mild curry sauce

this picture isn't the best but it's the only shot of the fish that i got. the fish was awful & inedible. it was definitely frozen & had a terrible smell, texture & taste. the rice was good but after two bites, we threw in the towel on the fish dish. absolutely gross.


up next:

Treasures of the Seas Grilled Shrimp and Seared Scallops - served on strings of pasta and fresh creamy tomato sauce

this was recommended by our server so we ordered it to share. the sauce was not creamy at all. when i think of a creamy tomato sauce, i think of a vodka sauce. it was just regular red sauce. i got suckered into the seared scallops (again) & i was disappointed (again). there is a bright spot to this dish...the grilled shrimp! the shrimp was really good. i enjoyed them. the pasta had potential but it fell flat.


our last entree:

Castaway Chicken Breast - rubbed with Pirate Island Spice, rice and beans, and fried okra on rich spiced glaze

the picture makes this look like some sort of spider but this was the definite winner of the three entrees we ordered. the chicken was moist & i loved the fried okra. i was surprised the okra wasn't slimey...thumbs up from me. maybe 3 times is the charm for entrees?? i was glad we found something we liked.


emme had a meal of rice & mashed potatoes. go figure.


overall, another OK meal at animators palate. i love the ambiance of this place & our severs were extraordinary. disney definitely knows how to theme places up!