Dining Reviews Sep 2008 & Feb 2009 Update 8/13 - Complete!

[disneyfav4ever]

After a long day at Epcot, I headed to the Grand Floridian for my last dinner of the trip. Not only was it my last dinner, it was also the last of the signature restaurants, and I had never been there before so I was very excited to try it.

I arrived early, and had to wait quite a while to be seated. While I was waiting I noticed the other guests seemed a lot more dressed up here then at other restaurants. Maybe it was because I had such a wait, and did more people watching, but it did seem somewhat dressier, and I felt slightly underdressed.

My server that night was Adil, and he was very prompt and pleasant. He also, when I asked to keep my copy of the menu, went and got me an envelope for it.

I started dinner with a raspberry mojito, which was nice.

I was served the bread then;

I liked the bread, but only ate one piece. This is still one of my pet peeves in restaurants. A table of four gets a whole loaf, a party of one gets a whole loaf. I really wish they would at least start at half a loaf or less for smaller tables, which would be more then enough, since I only ate a very small piece.

Have you ever been in a restaurant, knowing exactly what you wanted to order, but then changed your mind at the last second and ordered something different for no apparent reason? That's what happened with my appetizer.

I had decided to get the crab cakes, but then switched to the buttermilk-fried shrimp as I was ordering.

I'm still wondering why I ordered this. Don't get me wrong, they weren't bad. They just weren't so much to my liking. The shrimp were nice, but I didn't care much for the apple and celery root slaw it was served with. Again, not bad, just not to my liking.

For my entree, I had known what I wanted for weeks in advance, and this time I stuck to my plan, the surf and turf.

I'm going to start with the negative first. I had known from reading reviews that the lobster tail was not fresh, but I had thought it couldn't be that bad. And while it wasn't horrible, it certainly wasn't that great. It was edible at least.

The potatoes were all right, but there was something about them that I just couldn't decide if I liked them or not. The broccoli rabe I liked. It is actually one of my favorite vegetables, (next to asparagus,) which I don't eat that often, so that was a treat.

The filet mignon was wonderful. I still can't decide if it's better at Narcoossee's or Yachtsman Steakhouse. (Though I'd probably give Yachtsman Steakhouse the edge, only because the potatoes there are so awesome.) It was so tender, and cooked perfectly, and made me completely forget about everything else on the plate.

For dessert I choose the almond-crusted cheesecake with cherry sauce.

This was so good. The cheesecake was so creamy. And the almonds and cherries went so well with it.

After dinner I went out to the deck, and was able to watch Wishes. It was a perfect way to end my last night in Disney. Until I had to go back to my room and pack.

Next - Breakfast at Ohana.

 

[disneyfav4ever]

My last meal. It was a sad thought, especially since I thought it might be a whole two years before my next trip. And not the four months it ended up being. But I was sad to see my vacation ending, even though it had been my longest trip to date, and I was ready to see my friends and family again.

I had booked Ohana as late as possible for breakfast at 10:50, but I had gotten all my packing and stuff done early, and after checking out of Pop and storing all my stuff at the luggage center, I headed to the Polynesian.

It was about 9:30 when I got there, and they were busy, so even though I checked-in very early, I was expecting a pretty long wait. I didn't wait as long as I thought I would though, and ended up being seated at 10:00.

I had my picture taken, and got my leai, (sp?) before being seated.

I actually don't have my server's name from that morning written down in my journal. She was nice, but she did, at the end of the meal, cross out the word optional next to tip. I always tip of course, and also usually always tip at least 18% unless the service really is bad. But it irked me that the optional was crossed out. So I only tipped about 15% percent, which is pretty low for me.

My server from dinner a few nights before was working again, and she recognized me, and stopped and said hello.

Now, on to the food. I had actually listened to a review of Ohana on the DIS podcast while on my trip, and it had been very negative of the food, so I was a little concernned that the food would be no good.

I am happy to say that for the most part, the food was quite good.

I was served the bread basket first.

There were two different kinds of bread. A cinnamon roll type, as well as a sweet pineapple bread. The cinnamon one was good, but my favorite was the pineapple one. And for the record the pineapple bread at breakfast is not the same one that is served at dinner. I would have been happy just eating the two breads.

Next I was served a plate of fruit.

There was pineapple, grapes, watermelon, and honeydew. All the fruit was fresh, no complaints here.

Then the hot food was served.

There was bacon, sausage, eggs, potatoes, a biscuit, and a Mickey waffle. The Mickey waffle was better then the one I'd had at Cape May Cafe. The biscuit I had one bite of, and it was decent, but I was so obsessed with the other breads, that I didn't bother eating the rest of it. Actually with the other breads and the waffles, I don't even see why it is necessary for Ohana to have biscuits in the first place.

The bacon and sausage were both good, the usual breakfast fare that they are. The potatoes I enjoyed, they were nice and crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, and seasoned well. The eggs, and remember I'm not a big egg eater, were just right, and I actually ate about half of them.

So overall, the food was pretty awesome.

The characters that moring were Pluto, Mickey, Lilo, and Stitch. Lilo and Mickey stopped and I had my picture taken with them. Pluto was awesome, he came to my table, grabbed my camera, and handed it to the dad at the next table over, and had him take our picture for me. (The dad had actually been taking my picture before too, but I loved that Pluto "made" him do it.)

Stitch I have to complain about though. Stitch did not stop at my table. I was snubbed by Stitch. Maybe Stitch thought I didn't want to be bothered by the characters, but I think when someone pays the money for a character meal, the characters should at least stop at the table, and see. I didn't bother having my server bring him back over though, as I had already seen him earlier that week, but it still kind of irked me.

Other then Stitch however, it was a great meal, and a nice way to end my trip.

 

[disneyfav4ever]

Even though I have a whole other set of reviews to write, I'm going to write this first. Overall I really enjoyed the deluxe dining plan, but here's a more detailed breakdown of what I thought, and it will actually be things I gathered from both trips.

First of all, when I went in September I had it for $30 some a night, since I had it at the discounted price due to free dining. That made it an awesome deal, and well worth the cost. In February, I paid the $70 some a night, and while that wasn't a great a deal cost wise, I still came out ahead. And you have to remember when I paid the $70 a night, I was there on the buy four get three night free promo, so I was saving about $300 that way, as well as getting the $200 gift card, as well as the $75 one for my birthday. I actually did the math, annd the cost between the room and the food seems to average out to about the same per night. So overall the savings were about the same each trip, but the dining plan just seemed cheaper in September.

The cost doesn't bother me however, and I would easily use the plan again. Is that much food necessary however?

No, but I enjoy the signature restaurants, and those used up a lot of the credits. I would not recommend the deluxe plan to anyone not planning to eat at the signature restaurants at least a few times, since otherwise you'd either be eating three full table service meals a day, which is just too much food, or you'd probably end up using a lot of the credits on counter service, which really just cuts down on the value of the plan.

I also really liked that the appetizer was still included with this plan, since the appetizers I've had in Disney, are some of my favorite things I've eaten.

The amount of meals I had also really didn't take up that much of my park time. The breakfasts I had were almost always pre-park opening. And my dinner ADR's I always scheduled late. (Though in September I usually finished in the parks early, and headed to dinner early as well.) But in February, as you will see, I always had late dinners planned, and usually stuck to my late ADR times, probably because I had a shorter trip that time, and spent longer in the parks. So the only time I was really cutting into my park time was when I had TS lunches, and then I was usually happy to get off my feet and out of the heat for an hour or so.

I'll definatly probably do the deluxe plan every time I go to Disney from now on unless I really can't fit it in my budget, (I'd rather go to Disney and eat CS all week then not go to Disney at all,) or if I go during the Food and Wine Festival, since I do OOP hard-ticket events then, and the deluxe plan would just be overkill I think.

If anyone has any questions about my experiances with the deluxe plan, or would like my opinion on anything I didn't go over, please just ask. I'd be happy to answer your questions.

 

[Flossbolna]

thanks for the insight on the deluxe dining plan!I think I still enjoy having more flexibility on dining, so I am a no plan person, but the deluxe plan actually starts looking better to me than the basic plan.

 

[disneyfav4ever]

I originally had no intention of going to Disney in 2009, and was sure I wouldn't have another trip until at least the fall of 2010. Then Disney announced the buy four get three free nights offer. Even when the originally offered it, I still didn't plan to go, but then one night I was talking with one of my coworkers, who said she was going since it was such a great deal, and she was shocked that I wasn't going to take advantadge of it.

That night I went home and played around with the cost of a trip, $400 for a hotel room, plus like $300 for a ticket, but I get $275 of that back with gift cards so a week would really only be costing me $400. (I had a weird way of doing math for this, but I was really just convincing myself to go.)

Plus emotionally I was in a pretty bad state. My cat had died, which was of course upsetting, especially since I had lost another pet previously that year, but my grandmother had also spent over a week in a hospital, and was now in a home for physical rehab. I knew booking a Disney trip would at least let me get my mind off other stuff and give me something to look foward too.

By February, I was so ready to get away for a week. I was even more stressed out then I had been when I booked the trip, and it seemed unreal to me that I would be in Disney for a week, and not have to deal with my real life for a week.

When I had booked the trip I was within my 90-day window already to make my ADR's, so I was slightly concerned that I wouldn't get everything I wanted, but I did.

The list of meals is on the first post, but this was my intinerary for the trip.

Day 1 / Arrival Day

Late lunch at Rose and Crown, I had booked a 6:00 AM flight out of Philadelphia, so knew I'd be in Disney at sometime that morning, so went ahead and made a lunch ADR. Dinner that night at Narcoossees, which I really wanted to try again. Even though I had enjoyed my meal there in September, I did find some of the stuff I ordered to be hit or miss.

Day 2

Had a full day at Animal Kingdom planned today, with breakfast at Tusker House, lunch at Yak and Yeti, and dinner at Boma. Plus I was thrilled to be eating at Boma on a Sunday night, since that was the last night of the "unofficial" rotation menu I hadn't tried.

Day 3

A full day at Disney Studios. Though Disney changed hours at the last minute, and made it an EMH evening, but I stuck with my original schedule, since if I changed one thing, it would be like a domino effect, and I'd have to change everything around. Dinner at Brown Derby with the Fantasmic Dining package.

Day 4

All day at Magic Kingdom, though I did go to Downtown Disney that night. Lunch at Grand Floridian Cafe and dinner at Citricos.

Day 5

This was my major park hopping day, I spent the morning in Magic Kingdom, the afternoon at Disney Studios, and the night at Epcot. Meals for the day were lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern, and dinner at Yachtsman Steakhouse.

Day 6

My only Epcot day, with breakfast at Akershus and Tutto Italia. Though due to an unexpected event, I did go to the Studios that afternoon.

Day 7 / My Birthday

I spent the whole day in the Magic Kingdom, except when I left the parks for my meals, which were; breakfast at Chef Mickey's, and dinner at California Grill.

Day 8 / Departure Day

Left late this afternoon, but not before spending the morning at Magic Kingdom, and having lunch at Crystal Palace.

 

[danalee]

Yeah another line up!

 

[disneyfav4ever]

thanks for the insight on the deluxe dining plan!I think I still enjoy having more flexibility on dining, so I am a no plan person, but the deluxe plan actually starts looking better to me than the basic plan.

I think if you plan to do a lot of signature meals, it's worth it just to have the meals paid for in advance.

Yeah another line up!

Starting right now.

 

[disneyfav4ever]

I have to warn you right away about this set of reviews. It'll probably be a little more trip reportish since I have my much better notes here with me. If you want to skip right ahead to the food, just scroll down until you get to the pictures.

I was so excited to be in Disney again. I had actually originally had not made a lunch ADR this day, since even though I knew I had a 6:30 AM flight out of Philly, I was afraid I'd be delayed since February is like the worst month weather-wise in PA. I ended up leaving temperatures in the teens, low twenties on the warmer days, and going to temperatures in the seventies and eighties. But I decided to make an ADR anyway, figuring the worst case scenario would be I had to cancel if I did end up getting delayed.

Anyway, my flight did leave on time, and actually arrived in Orlando early, and I made it to Epcot before 11:00. So I had worried about that for no reason. I spent some time in Future World, in the Land and the Imagination pavillions.

My lunch ADR at Rose and Crown wasn't until 2:00, but by 1:00 I was starving, and all I could think about was getting something to eat so I headed over to the United Kingdom then. I had been up since 3:00 AM that morning, and hadn't eaten a thing all day, so it was no suprise that I was starving by that point.

I had eaten at Rose and Crown once before, in 2006. But I had been half sick the last time I had eaten there, so hadn't been able to really enjoy my meal, so I wanted to try it again.

I was seated right by the window, and it felt so nice to be able to look outside and see the sun. I was really just so happy at this point to just be away from PA and the horrible weather and all the stuff I was dealing with at home, that it didn't even really matter to me that I was in Disney, I was just glad to be away from home.

My server that day was Lucy, and she was nice, no complaints there.

I was served bread first;

It was good bread. Nice a chewy with a crispy, cheesey crust. I really like the way the bread is served here, with an English "newspaper" in the basket, and little mini butter balls.

For my appetizer I had the mixed greens.

The menu says the mixed greens comes with croutons, bacon, roasted onions, cheddar, and bacon vinaigrette. And I got all that stuff, and it was all well and good, but it also came with hard boiled eggs. I hate hard boiled eggs. I wish they had it printed on the menu so I could've had them left off.

For my entree I had the shepherd's pie.

It was ground lamb and carrots, topped with mashed potatoes and cheddar cheese. This was good, a little greasy, but the taste was good. It was really just good, basic, filling, comfort food, which is exactly what I needed right then. Sure I love gourmet dining when I get it, but some of the time I really just want to fall back on favorites like macaroni and cheese or mashed potatoes.

For dessert I had the Bailey's Irish coffee trifle.

This was a nice way to finish the meal. It was layers of sponge cake, custard, and whipped cream. And it wasn't too rich that I wasn't able to finish it.

Overall a nice good homey meal. I'd definatly would return, but it's not a must do.

And sorry, I know these weren't my best pictures, but I wasn't really focused on my picture taking at this meal. Too hungry, and too excited about being in Disney.

 

[NWOhioAngela]

I'm so excited to see another round of reviews!

 

[disneyfav4ever]

I was at my parent's house last night, and before coming back home, I spent some time in my old bedroom rounding up some more of my stuff to bring over. One of the things I brought back with me was my Pass Porter and my folder of papers and receipts from my September trip.

So I am finally able to post a somewhat complete, (there are some reciepts I can't seem to find,) cost breakdown from my September trip.

Planet Hollywood - N/A
California Grill - $78.24 / $12 Tip
Cinderella's Royal Table - N/A
Crystal Palace - N/A
Artist Point - $71.67 / $13 Tip
Yak & Yeti - N/A / $8.51 Drink / $11 Tip
Jiko - $60.19 / $12 Tip
Cape May Cafe - $20.23 / $3 Tip
Yachtsman Steakhouse - $72.77 / $12.78 Drink / $18 Tip
Coral Reef - $46.09 / $8 Tip
Spoodles - $49.80 / $7.99 Drink / $9 Tip
Wave - $41.09 / $8 Tip
Ohana - N/A / $8.79 Drink / $7 Tip
Raglan Road - $28.70 / N/A Tip
Boma - N/A
Tusker House - N/A
Rainforest Cafe - $22.35 / N/A Tip
Kona Cafe - $46.50 / N/A Tip
Akershus - N/A
Le Cellier - $36.24 / N/A Tip
1900 Park Fare - N/A
Brown Derby - $48.24 / N/A Tip
Beaches & Cream - $5.32 / $2 Tip
Flying Fish - $78.06 / $12.78 Drink / N/A Tip
Crystal Palace - N/A
Grand Floridian Cafe - $32.75 / N/A Tip
Citricos - $82.30 / N/A Tip
Tokyo Dining - N/A
Narcoossee's - N/A / $7.73 Drink / $17 Tip
Ohana - N/A

I know I have a little notebook somewhere with the rest of the costs. If I ever find it, I'll edit it and fill in the missing info.

 

[MickeyNicki]

If you had to choose between Citrico's and Narcoossee's which would you pick?

And after you choose that one would you go with it or go to Cali Grill instead?

 

[disneyfav4ever]

If you had to choose between Citrico's and Narcoossee's which would you pick?

And after you choose that one would you go with it or go to Cali Grill instead?

That's a hard decision!

I'd probably pick Citricos before Narcoossee's, I don't know if I'd put Citricos above CA Grill or not though, they're pretty even in my book.

If you're trying to choose between the three for your trip though, I'd recommend Citricos only because I don't think you've eaten there before. Correct? You really can't go wrong with any of the three though.

ETA - And if for any reason I don't get around to finishing my reviews for this trip for awhile, I'd rank them in this order, Citricos, CA Grill, Narcoossees.

 

[MickeyNicki]

That's a hard decision!

I'd probably pick Citricos before Narcoossee's, I don't know if I'd put Citricos above CA Grill or not though, they're pretty even in my book.

If you're trying to choose between the three for your trip though, I'd recommend Citricos only because I don't think you've eaten there before. Correct? You really can't go wrong with any of the three though.

ETA - And if for any reason I don't get around to finishing my reviews for this trip for awhile, I'd rank them in this order, Citricos, CA Grill, Narcoossees.

I am working on my list for Oct and DH was helping me (not really, more like making it more complicated!) and I have Jiko, Fultons, Tutto Italia and Citricos...trying to keep the cost down a bit but I dont know if Narcoossee's is better than Citricos or better than Jiko? I think we are going to go to Cali Grill in Dec so I will leave that off for now.

Which would you pick out of these? I need 2

Jiko
Citricos
Narcoossee's
Artist Point

 

[disneyfav4ever]

I am working on my list for Oct and DH was helping me (not really, more like making it more complicated!) and I have Jiko, Fultons, Tutto Italia and Citricos...trying to keep the cost down a bit but I dont know if Narcoossee's is better than Citricos or better than Jiko? I think we are going to go to Cali Grill in Dec so I will leave that off for now.

Which would you pick out of these? I need 2

Jiko
Citricos
Narcoossee's
Artist Point

Men always just make things more complicated, LOL! It's hard enough trying to choose yourself, things like deciding where to eat make me glad I go solo. Of course I'm already playing around with my list of restaurants I want to eat at in 2010, and am already having trouble with that.

If I had to pick two on your list one would definatly be Citricos. I don't know what I'd pick out of the other three, probably Narcoossee's, but I really like Artist Point too. And Jiko is good, it's just not my favorite, but I know a lot of other people love it.

 

[disneyfav4ever]

After my nice lunch at Rose and Crown I left Epcot and headed to the Magic Kingdom. It was very crowded at MK that afternoon, but as I had only gone to see Spectro Magic, since that was the only time I could really fit it into my schedule, I didn't care.

I did have three hours until the parade however, so I saw a performance of Dream Along with Mickey, and went to see Mickey's Phillarmagic, which is my favorite Magic Kingdom attraction.

After watching Spectro Magic with one of my friends from the board, I headed over to the Grand Floridian for my dinner ADR at Narcoossee's. I arrived slightly early, checked-in, and was seated right at my ADR time.

My server this evening was Natalie, she was good. Nothing to complain about with her.

I was served the bread basket, which I didn't bother to take a picture of, since it looked exactly the same as it did in September. Tasted the same too, which was good.

For my appetizer I had the crab cakes, which is what I should've gotten in September. Oh well, no point in going over my should've - would've's now, is there?

These were delicious! Two nice sized cakes, with plenty of lump crab meat, and not a lot of bready filler. It was served on top of a "southern" slaw with Cajun remoulade, which gave the dish just a hint of spiciness. I was very pleased with this dish.

I couldn't decide what I wanted for my entree. I knew I didn't want the surf and turf again, but I had loved the filet, so considered ordering that, but I really wanted to try something different. Natalie recommended another "surf and turf" option, the lamb and shrimp, which is what I ended up ordering.

There was a nice piece of grilled lamb, which was cooked perfectly, and well seasoned, as well as three niece big tiger shrimp. It was served with Moroccan-spiced cous cous and vegetable tangine, which was delicious.

For dessert I had the pecan tart.

It was a generous sized tart, which was delicious, but much too rich to eat the whole thing. It came with a scoop of Sabayon ice cream, which was very nice with it, and very refreshing.

The entire meal came to a total of $75.93, and I left a $13 tip on top of that.

Narcoossee's is a very nice restaurant, and I plan on eating there again on my next trip. (I plan on eating at all the signature restaurants again on my next trip.) Seems I always have a hard time of deciding what to order though.

 

[Pooh&OurHunny]

Thanks for the update...I love Narcoossee's...Was the surf and turf you ordered a special for that night b/c when we went it was Filet mignon and lobster.

 

[disneyfav4ever]

Thanks for the update...I love Narcoossee's...Was the surf and turf you ordered a special for that night b/c when we went it was Filet mignon and lobster.

Both were on the menu, they seemed to be kind of pushing the shrimp and lamb one, so maybe it was just there that week so something?

 

[Pooh&OurHunny]

Thanks...that really looks good. I hope they have it for our next trip.

 

[disneyfav4ever]

Thanks...that really looks good. I hope they have it for our next trip.

Unfortunatly it looks like it's already off the menu. The menu on All Ears was updated in May, and it's not listed. There's another lamb dish now though, and that one sounds really good.

 

[disneyfav4ever]

I had an 8:15 AM ADR at Tusker House for breakfast on my first full day. Why did I make such an early reservation my first day? I had been up since 3:00 AM the day before, and had only gotten to bed around midnight. So I only had about six hours of sleep, and that was right after a night I had only gotten about four hours of sleep. I am used to having at least eight or nine hours of sleep, and usually wake up sometime between 9:00 AM and midnight, not 6:00 AM. I was tired!

But I was also in Disney, and that's enough to get me out of bed insanely early. And by the time I got to Animal Kingdom, I'd had some caffiene in the form of diet Coke, so was able to function somewhat.

I should mention here that I had decided to start wearing my birthday button every day, but I recieved so much special attention this day, that I decided not to wear it again after this day until at least the day before my actual birthday. The reason I decided this was because I figured it wouldn't feel as special on my birthday, if I had been recieving birthday perks all week, but I still did wear it that first day, as well as the three days around my birthday.

I had been to Tusker House my last trip for breakfast, and had really enjoyed it. I had been fantasizing about the bread pudding from there, and couldn't wait to have it again.

I arrived at Animal Kingdom early, and was first in line at the turnstile. I did not make it to the restaurant first, however, since I stopped to take pictures of the Tree of Life, and also this one of Expedition Everest;

I just really like this picture, since it shows the ride at sunrise, and how I did get up insanely early just for breakfast.

Even stopping for pictures I was still one of the first ones at the restaurant, and didn't have to wait long at all to be seated. My table was in the back, in a seperate area with only six tables or so.

My server today was Bryon, and he was hilarious. He and the waiter who was serving the tables at the other side of the room played off each other very well, and were quite entertaining throughout the meal. He was, perhaps, my favorite server all week. It was either him, or my server at Akershus, but they were my two favorites all week.

I started my meal with a nice glass of frunch. Frunch is the speciality juice of the restaurant, (and I believe it's also served at Boma.) I love frunch, it is super yummy. I'm not quite sure what it is, but I think it's a mixture or orange and tropical juices.

I knew from my last visit to the restaurant that the characters started on the other side of the restaurant, so I knew I had time to go up to the buffet without having to worry about missing any characters.

Starting with the ham, and going clockwise, I had; ham, potatoes, beef hash, bacon, a biscuit and gravy, yam casserole, and some of what I think was the bobotie.

All of it was very good, and was mostly stuff I'd had in September that I had remembered liking. The ham was good, but nothing special, the potatoes were good, but not quite as good as I remembered, the bacon was fine, the biscuit and gravy were decent, nothing special, the yam casserole was probably my favorite thing on the plate, and I liked it better then I did in September, like it was just more married together, the bobotie was good as well, just a little salty.

I wasn't really all that hungry after that, but I did need to get myself some bread pudding.

I realize it probably doesn't look like the greatest stuff ever, but it is so good.

I then finally saw Donald and Mickey, (it really does take them awhile to come around depending on where you sit.)

Bryon brought me a cupcake then, as well as a card signed by all the characters. I was going to give the cupcake to the kids at the next table, but it seemed every table had a celebration of some sort going on, so every table was getting cupcakes.

The cupcake was good, better then I'd thought it would be. The icing was all right, it's that really sickingly sweet stuff that I loved when I was little, but now not so much. I ended up just picking at it until Minnie and Goofy came around.

Breakfast cost $20.23, or in my case, one table service credit, and I left a $4 tip. Though thinking back I really should've left a couple more dollars, and I feel badly that I didn't since he really was a great server, but I think I was just too excited to get out into the park.