Dreams, Mojo, Food pics and more! TR starts on pg. 4, updated 3/15/09.

[PirateFish989]

I'm in!

 

[LuccaDrake]

Hi Beka! Just noticed you started this PTR and didn't realize how close your trip is! Got room for a Yankee fan to join in?

Your plans look great. That's quite a day of eating you have scheduled for your Epcot day! Le Cellier AND Coral Reef?! You go girl!

Yes, I guess I can let ONE Yankees fan join in...(sigh). And it is quite a day of eating! I'm not one to miss a meal that's for sure. Although we will NOT be eating breakfast that day as that would be WAY too much. Thanks for coming over Cammie!

You are off to a much better start than I did! I didnt have ONE reader for my PTR!

I am in as well.

I'm sorry to hear that! I promise I'll read your next one! I have read multiple other one's that only have a couple of readers. I think the key is to post on other people's reports to get noticed. Thanks for joining in! I promise it will get more exciting. I can start taking food pics of what I cook at home to warm up if you want.

Don't forget your lime green Mickey Heads too...that will help identify you!

(Red Sox beat the Yankees )

LGMH's...check! I have even laminated a couple! I just need to make t-shirts, go to the dreaded Wal Mart, pack, and clean the house and I'll be ready!

I'll join in the fun! That is the week we were going down with friend's but since our stupid house won't sell (almost 2 years on the market) we have had to put off our trip until January But we are getting AP's and planning for FREE dining next Sept

The clan we are taking with us are Sox fans too! The dad is originally from Boston area, and now the kiddos have no choice, they are always in Sox gear!

Hooray for Red Sox fans! That's too bad about your house. I was hoping to be able to sell ours in the next couple of years, but I think we'll be here for at least another 5 just waiting for the market to come up again. We still owe quite a bit as it's only 7 years old and have taken out a home equity loan. Oh well. It will give us time to turn our forest of a backyard into something usable. Good luck with the sale of your home and for Disney in January and September!

I'm in!

Nice siggy pics! Hubba, hubba!

 

[Tnkrbelle565]

But we are getting AP's and planning for FREE dining next Sept

Not to hijack Beka's PTR. I just wanted to mention that Free Dining (if offered) next year is most likely going to be the CS only plan (that's what they are offering on the 2009 European plans).

 

[Camster0307]

Yes, I guess I can let ONE Yankees fan join in...(sigh). And it is quite a day of eating! I'm not one to miss a meal that's for sure. Although we will NOT be eating breakfast that day as that would be WAY too much. Thanks for coming over Cammie!

Thanks for the warm welcome, Beka! I promise to play nice! (notice how humble I am now considering what the standings are? ) Let's bring on some football!

Anyway....I'm with you - don't miss many meals while in Disney. I usually schedule at least one TS meal a day. And LeCellier is one of our faves!

 

[LuccaDrake]

Not to hijack Beka's PTR. I just wanted to mention that Free Dining (if offered) next year is most likely going to be the CS only plan (that's what they are offering on the 2009 European plans).

I was reading some theories on that on the dining board. But someone made the point that the UK has always had different deals that are usually not as good as the ones we get here. But we plan on going at Christmastime next year if we can afford it, so it won't matter!

Thanks for the warm welcome, Beka! I promise to play nice! (notice how humble I am now considering what the standings are? ) Let's bring on some football!

Anyway....I'm with you - don't miss many meals while in Disney. I usually schedule at least one TS meal a day. And LeCellier is one of our faves!

Your welcome for the warm welcome. Hey, I wasn't even going to mention the standings. Although I'm not so sure the Sox will be winning any championships this year either. Sorry to be so pessimistic tnkrbelle565, but it's true unless they step it up! And we are really looking forward to Le Cellier as it's our first time! Actually, I think all of our ADR's are new for us this year. for new food!

~Beka~

 

[LuccaDrake]

I met DBF almost 3 years ago on the internet. It's not something I ever thought I'd do, but a friend convinced me to try it and here I am! Things moved pretty quickly and 6 months later we were living together. Shortly thereafter DBF was browsing Expedia and saw that Disney was offering Free Dining! He mentioned this to me and I wasn't really sold on it at first as I had only been once before and didn't think I could make a whole vacation out of Disney. So we looked at doing Universal parks instead since they have more thrill rides, but with Disney's free dining we got more bang for our buck by going there for a whole week. It's not very expensive for two people to stay at a value resort and eat free food. So I was sold!

We chose to stay at All Star Sports for 6 days I believe. As soon as we walked into the room I knew it was not going to be good. There was a broken lightbulb in the vanity still screwed in, hair on the bathroom floor, and crumbs around the edge of the bed! So immediately we called the front desk who finally offered to move us to POP. We said yes and they came to get our luggage and off we went. We decided to go to a park for a while and then returned to POP where we found a king size bed in our room that looked a little low to the ground but I didn't think much of it. That is until I went in the bathroom and realized it was a handicap room! Now, I know some of you it wouldn't have mattered to, but I personally do not want to feel like I have to wear flip-flops in the dorm shower. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, there is no bathtub it's just a tiled floor with a curtain you pull around the edges. Needless to say, another phone call was made to concierge. They again said they could move us to another building to a regular double-bed room. Fine. So, in the midst of all of this we had each acquired 3 different KTTW cards. Well, when we went to Epcot the next day, guess what wouldn't work? Yup, the KTTW's! So, we were given paper tickets for the day and had to get yet another KTTW when we returned to the hotel. The rest of the trip went off without a hitch but at the end of it I said I could go a few years without returning. DBF was ready to again though! However, after a few months passed I got the Disney itch and had to go again!

So there we were last year eagerly awaiting the release date for Disney Visa cardholders. We decided to stay at ASMu last year as it had been renovated right before we were there and had read that it usually has less kids and is the least popular value resort. I liked it there just fine and can't remember anything out of the ordinary that happened. However, after that trip DBF was the one who said he could do without Disney for a couple of years and I was the one that didn't want to leave! But again, after a few months (or maybe weeks) went by, we were already eagerly anticipating free dining and another trip! So I guess you could say it's now a tradition for us! We had invited my faux nephew (Brother's fiance's child) who is 9 to go with us this year, all expenses paid, but she said no. We won't get into that here though. Needless to say we were very disappointed as it would have been fun to see Disney through children's eyes. But lo and behold, a couple of months after we booked our trip, DSIL called to see what dates we were going as she had just booked another Disney trip after saying they weren't going this year with the new baby. And they just happened to book the same time we were going! So we will now have 2 nieces to spoil rotten on this trip! So that's our Disney History in a nutshell!

Next up: Restaurant reviews from the past two years!

~Beka~

 

[Tnkrbelle565]

So fun!!! Aren't you glad you are going back?!?! (sorry about all the weird room issues)

BTW, don't worry about meeting your DBF on the internet...I met mine in a bar Now isn't that going to be a nice thing to tell our daughter some day?!?!

 

[LuccaDrake]

So fun!!! Aren't you glad you are going back?!?! (sorry about all the weird room issues)

BTW, don't worry about meeting your DBF on the internet...I met mine in a bar Now isn't that going to be a nice thing to tell our daughter some day?!?!

That will be something nice to tell her one day! The funny thing is I always forget how me met until someone happens to ask. And then it seems just as weird as when it actually happened. Oh well. Did you see that there's another storm following Gustav that's supposed to hit Florida on 9/6? I hope it doesn't ruin our plans!

~Beka~

 

[Tnkrbelle565]

That will be something nice to tell her one day! The funny thing is I always forget how me met until someone happens to ask. And then it seems just as weird as when it actually happened. Oh well. Did you see that there's another storm following Gustav that's supposed to hit Florida on 9/6? I hope it doesn't ruin our plans!

~Beka~

Yes, that's Hanna. I've been watching her for a couple of days. Newest report has it maybe missing Florida though
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/

 

[LuccaDrake]

Since we only have 5 days till we leave I thought I'd recount our previous restaurant experiences. I tried to find the past two years itinerary's but was only able to find one from 2006. It was pathetic. There wasn't much info on it and we only ate at 4 restaurants! 4! Plus we were stupid enough to go to the parks that had EMH those days. We have since learned to avoid them. So without further adieu:

2006 choices were Jiko, Donald's Breakfastosaurus, Yachtsman Steakhouse, and Cinderella's Royal Table. We did have someone advise us of some great choices, but most were signature dining experiences. So we read through restaurants on AllEars.net and came up with those four.

Jiko- For appetizer's we ordered the lamb patis and the taste of africa. The lamb patis was awesome but not being a big fan of hummus at the time (and DBf still won't eat it) we did not fully enjoy this. For an entree I was advised to try the filet with mac&cheese and it was every bit as delicious as I was told it would be! DBF remembers having lamb and he remembers enjoying this as well. For dessert I think I had the pistachio creme brulee This meal would be repeated the following year. I should also note that I had read before our trip that due to free dining the waitstaff would not work as hard as they were only getting so much for a tip. Well, I expected this at Jiko but was pleasantly surprised by an absolutely outstanding waiter. We left him what we would have for a normal, large tip besides what he would already be getting. He was just that good!

Donald's Breakfastosaurus- Well, what can I say. It has fun characters and a great buffet! This would also be repeated the following year, hence the pics in the first post. Here's DBF while waiting to be called:

Yachtsman Steakhouse- Wow. HUGE disappointment! I know a lot of people love this restaurant, but it was not good. The service was bad, the steak was bad, and the atmosphere was bad. We will probably never go back.

Cindy's- We all know that it's not about the food here. But in case you want to know about the food, it looked and tasted like it had been cooked hours before we got there and had been sitting under a heat lamp. Yuck! But the atmosphere was great and I have a cute story about dining here. When we first arrived I noticed a display case outside the restaurant that had the menu in it along with a beer mug and champagne flute. The flute caught my eye as I loooove champagne and thought it was really cute! We went into the restaurant and got our picture taken with The Princess. She commented on the lovely jewels I was wearing that DBF had given me! After that we were seated and when our waiter came over I asked if the champagne flutes could be purchased. Unfortunately he said no, they were only given out to people celebrating special occasions. I was bummed, but oh well. So we went on to have a less than spectacular meal and some great character interactions. Well, lo and behold, at the end of the meal as our waiter brought the check, he also brought out a plain white box for me. My heart fluttered as I thought maybe it was an engagement ring, but instead there were two champagne flutes! What a sweet waiter! So again, we left an additional large tip for our fabulous waiter! (He provided excellent service as well as giving me a little present.) As we went to leave the restaurant we realized that the back entrance of the castle had been roped off as well as the bottom of the ramps a the front of the castle. There were maybe 10 other people that had got stranded with us as they were roping off the castle before the fireworks. We thought that was pretty cool that we would get to watch the fireworks from underneath the castle! As a bonus, Cinderella herself came out to watch the fireworks with the people who were down there. I was definitely a magical moment!

2007- Choices last year were Jiko, Donald's again, Mama Melrose w/Fantasmic package, Crystal Palace, Sci-fi Dine-In, Akershus Princess Storybook Dinner, and Planet Hollywood. Yes, we chose a few more this year, plus we stayed a couple of extra days also.

Jiko- Food was still great, but waiter was not. Appetizer's were again the lamb patis and a mixture of corn, cheese, and something else wrapped in a tamale. Lamb patis was great again, other thing was not for me and I noticed it's not on the menu anymore either. For an entree we both had the filet with man&cheese. DBF was NOT a fan of the mac. So I got to eat his too! I think we only got one dessert to share since we were so stuffed and didn't want to waste it but cannot remember what it was!

Donald's- Great as before, but busier.

Mama Melrose- I thought this was just meh, but DBF liked it so much that we are going again this year! Although we did not use the fantasmic part as we decided to leave the park early. We did pay it forward though and gave the passes to someone on our way out. For appetizer's we split the calamari, as to again not waste food we wouldn't eat. It was good, your regular old breaded calamari. I remember it did come with a fra diavolo dipping sauce which gave it a nice kick. Entrees were a pepperoni flatbread for DBF and steak for me. Again, meh. Good, but no Jiko! For dessert I had gelato and DBF had the Crema Limone. Both good. Service was also spectacular here. Our waiter even sat down with us for a few minutes to ask how our vacation was going.

Crystal Palace- Great selection of food and good character interaction. If it wasn't for the mother sitting next to me who kept pushing her bags onto my side of the booth it would've been a perfect dining experience! Although drink refills were almost impossible to get. Why can't we just get our own drinks???

Sci-Fi Dine-In- DBF does not think this place is worth revisiting but I must say he was very ill the day we went there and didn't eat much. We went there for lunch and I had the spinach dip appy, DBF did not have one due to feeling sick. We both had burgers for our entrees. They were good. And if my memory serves me right, neither of us had dessert. It was a little too much food for lunchtime. I would go back here again as I thought the food was good and the atmosphere was really neat.

Akershus- We ate here for dinner and was reminded of CRT, but worse! Dinner was almost inedible. The dessert was nice though! It was a very rushed meal but we did get to see quite a few princess's. Neither of us were interested in having our picture taken with any of them, but DBF kept making me get up to be in the picture since it was expected of us. I also made him get in on a couple. Notice how excited he looks.

Planet Hollywood- We used our voucher to eat here one night. Neither of us are fans of this place, but since it would be a cheap meal we went. We shared an appetizer of fried zucchini. It was soooo good! A little greasy, but good. I don't remember what DBF had, but I had the fajitas. I remember this only because most of it was cold. The meat was lukewarm, but the rice with it was chilly. We did not get dessert. We were extremely rushed even though it was not busy. I think we were probably only there for 30 minutes total! Not someplace we intend on revisiting this year, voucher or no voucher.

Hoped you enjoyed me recount our dining experiences. It was nice to jog my memory and remember some of the nice times we had that I tend to forget. All of our ADR's this year are new except for Mama Melrose, and I'm excited to try all kinds of new food!

~Beka~

Next up: I will actually post some lists, make some MNSSHP shirts, and fear Hanna.

 

[Tnkrbelle565]

Oh no...more food temptation BTW, really cute top in the pic with Suzy or Perla (don't know which one is which!)

 

[LuccaDrake]

Oh no...more food temptation BTW, really cute top in the pic with Suzy or Perla (don't know which one is which!)

Geez! I just posted that and you already read it??? And it's a dress. Unfortunately doesn't fit at the moment, but I digress. Oh, and Perla is purple. Just remember that and you'll always be able to tell them apart! I learned that from someone else's TR. Looks like we may just squeak by Hanna. (Fingers and toes are crossed)

~Beka~

 

[Tnkrbelle565]

Geez! I just posted that and you already read it??? And it's a dress. Unfortunately doesn't fit at the moment, but I digress. Oh, and Perla is purple. Just remember that and you'll always be able to tell them apart! I learned that from someone else's TR. Looks like we may just squeak by Hanna. (Fingers and toes are crossed)

~Beka~

Ya I'm bored. I let Ash stay up late to watch Monster's Inc (as part of the Disney movie-a-night program leading up to the trip). I don't feel like doing any actual work so I'm on my couch with the laptop (neurotically checking the hurricane watch!)

Perla=Purple...got it. Thanks!

I keep meaning to ask, are you flying out of Logan?

 

[LuccaDrake]

Ya I'm bored. I let Ash stay up late to watch Monster's Inc (as part of the Disney movie-a-night program leading up to the trip). I don't feel like doing any actual work so I'm on my couch with the laptop (neurotically checking the hurricane watch!)

Perla=Purple...got it. Thanks!

I keep meaning to ask, are you flying out of Logan?

DBF is also a little over the top in checking the weather on the laptop and watching the weather channel on tv.

And we are flying out of Portland. Last year we flew out of Manchester but it was more of a pain. We both work in Portland so we will just leave early as long as our flight isn't cancelled!

~Beka~

 

[The Moonk's Mom]

Ah I'm here with only 4 days left for you!!!! Sorry I'm late!

Okay...from memory...

Love the dog pics! So cute...DH won't let me dress our dog up for nothing!

I totally don't blame you on not wanting th handicap room...I think the bathroom thing would be kinda gross too.

I love that your waiter gave you the glasses! So cool!

 

[LuccaDrake]

Ah I'm here with only 4 days left for you!!!! Sorry I'm late!

Okay...from memory...

Love the dog pics! So cute...DH won't let me dress our dog up for nothing!

I totally don't blame you on not wanting th handicap room...I think the bathroom thing would be kinda gross too.

I love that your waiter gave you the glasses! So cool!

Kim! Thanks about the doggies. DBF does a lot of eye rolling around Halloween time. It's fun and the neighborhood kids love seeing them dressed up. We even took them to a costume contest at the local pet store one year! You could always make your pets costumes since your so crafty! DH doesn't have to know.

~Beka~

 

[Tnkrbelle565]

Kim! Thanks about the doggies. DBF does a lot of eye rolling around Halloween time. It's fun and the neighborhood kids love seeing them dressed up. We even took them to a costume contest at the local pet store one year! You could always make your pets costumes since your so crafty! DH doesn't have to know.

~Beka~

Have you checked out Petco's Halloween costumes this year? The selection is HUGE!

 

[marianas00]

You got me with the promise of food pictures.

 

[LuccaDrake]

Have you checked out Petco's Halloween costumes this year? The selection is HUGE!

I have not yet. I usually find good ones at Target. But thanks for the heads up!

You got me with the promise of food pictures.

and ! I'm glad I could bribe you to read this thing. If you eat it, they will come.... Hmm, I might be able to make a title out of that. I am currently in the process of making Mickey cookies to bring to DBF's and my work tomorrow so I will post pics of them when they are done. I've already told my coworkers that they will be tortured with Disney music this week but that I would bring treats to make up for it.


~Beka~

 

[Tnkrbelle565]

Food porn in the form of Mickey Mouse cookies???? Can't wait!!!