Thanks everyone for the replies. I apologize for being so slow: I hate how work and school get in the way of DISsing!
Wilma-Bride, BF was very disappointed that that sandwich was missing from the menu this time. That is what he ordered last year and he had been looking forward to it again. I was a bad DISser, and didn't know it was gone so that I could warn him
.
PIZZAFARI
Well, call us odd or strange or whatever you like, but for some convoluted reason or another, Pizzafari was our first experience ever (in 5 trips for me, 2 for BF) with Counter Service. We like to eat a big meal and graze in general, and we do take advantage of the concierge offerings, so I suppose that this is how we got to this point!
We had planned on eating at the Yak & Yeti counter service location, but when it came time for lunch the menu didn't look all that appetizing. There was nothing wrong with it, it was just not the time, if you know what I mean. We stepped out of line, and stared at our map. BF overheard someone saying how good Flame Tree BBQ is. I informed him that I had heard this as well, but I thought that BBQ sounded disgusting at the moment. Again, no reason why it was just not the time for BBQ.
Our options became somewhat limited with these decisions, and we decided that Pizzafari (and pizza) sounded acceptable. We wandered over that way, dodging the crowds which were still fairly heavy, BF giving me the death glare all the while, as he DOES NOT LIKE CROWDS. He thought that it was dreadful and the park must be nearing capacity
. I told him that it was a bit more crowded than I had expected for January 5th, but I was certain the crowds would thin come Monday. Besides, he has never visited MK on 4th of July as I have
.
After a significant amount of darting and dodging, we managed to make our way inside the restaurant. The reports of beautiful themeing were true. there were animal carvings everywhere and the murals were lovely. Unfortunately, it was difficult to enjoy all of these elements within the madhouse that was 12:30 lunch. What was I thinking
. We stepped into a long line and waited. It had been a bit cool at WDW for the past few days before our experience, and the fans were still turned off as a result. The air in the holding chamber where you waited to order your food was growing hot and stagnant. BF began to sweat, and I told him to find a table if he would like, as too much heat turns him quickly into Grumpy.
About ten minutes later (with no movement on my part; there was a problem with someone's dining plan credits, it seemed) BF returned, stating that there were no seats available. I told him not to worry, that maybe things would clear up by the time we finally received our food. He wandered outside for a bit then while I remained in line.
Finally, 27 minutes after arriving I was able to order. I asked for two large drinks, a pepperoni pizza ($6.09) for me, and a Hot Italian Style Sandwich with chips ($7.09) for BF. This sandwich has turkey, ham, Swiss and provolone. For toppings, it has pesto marinated tomatoes and Caesar salad.
After ordering, I stepped aside into yet another line to wit for my order. This took an additional 6 minutes, but I choose to believe (perhaps wrongly so) that they were making my food fresh and just for me
. BF thinks otherwise, but he was really getting irritated at this point.
We wandered through the restaurant and could not find an available table anywhere. Finally, we tried outdoors on the patio and there were plenty of tables available. As it was such a nice day, I felt this was a good alternative to eating inside. It was far quieter at the outside tables, and a nice breeze was blowing.
After returning inside to get some condiments (there is at least one station for condiments in each of the separate dining rooms, I believe) I sat down to eat. My pizza was fair. It was not great but it wasn't bad either. I am not a grease fan, so I will admit to using one of my napkins to lift some of the excess off of the pizza and then coating it in parmesan to disguise the rest. The pizza wasn't really excessively greasy (I have seen far worse), that is just something that my stomach cannot handle. There was not too much sauce, though, a fair amount of cheese, and a good amount of pepperoni. The pepperoni was just crispy and the cheesy gooey and slightly browned. the crust was medium and the whole thing was nice and warm, so all in all it made for a decent meal (and was large enough that I could not manage to finish it all).
BF really enjoyed his sandwich. A few years ago, we were in Lexington, KY near the Red Mile racetrack and we ate at a little restaurant there that has since changed hands. When we were first there, we ordered a Caesar salad that was made fresh at our table and was absolutely out of this world. Ever since then, we have been spoiled on it, as we compare every Caesar we get to it and none measure up. Well, surprisingly the salad on BFs sandwich was the closest that we have found! It was not the exact same, of course, but it was really very good. I wished I had gotten a side salad after tasting a bite from his sandwich, but was unwilling to battle the crowds again. He enjoyed the rest of the sandwich as well, thinking that it was melted just enough but that the veggies on top were still cool and not wilted as though they had been through the warmer too.
The atmosphere of the restaurant out there on the porch was enjoyable. I don't know that I would have enjoyed eating inside as much as it was so very crowded and extremely noisy. The themeing is good, but as I stated above, it was difficult to enjoy it properly amidst all of the chaos. The dining areas were also strewn with a degree of trash and other debris, but the place was mobbed, and the CMs were doing their best to keep it clean. I always bring wet wipes to use on the table though before even setting down my plate or napkin, so I felt a little better.
I think our first CS experience went well, and we were please with the meal. It was bit pricy, perhaps, but it could have been far worse and the food was good enough. This is a restaurant we will most likely return to.
) and the Poly for my BF and I.
Congrats on the upgrade, BWI is our favorite resort!
