First a Little Pomp & Circumstance,then a Whole Lot of Disney Dining! COMPLETE

[emmysmommy]

Sorry about the detour to Disneyland, but I promise to get back to Disney World food with an update yet tonight. As for the Monte Cristo, yes it is probably a heart attack on a plate but maybe it wouldn't be such a bad way to go???

I'm going to have to read the reviews as well! I still take photos of my food at D-land! Crazy huh?

 

[jabead]

I went to Epcot the first time in 1984 as well.... December 1984 to be exact when my oldest was nearly 2 years old.

We were there right after Thanksgiving so we probably just missed you.

So do you remember the kiosks in Future World where you made your dining reservations? How about your very first table-service meal there?

 

[jabead]

Yes! I've been waiting to see another San Angel Inn review. Didn't make it there on the last trip, although I've wanted to try it for a while now (after hearing about some of their positive changes). Can't wait to see your updated review of it.

Yes, I have to say that I was a little disappointed that you changed your plans and didn't go to SAI on your last trip. Oh well, maybe next time.

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

Yes, I have to say that I was a little disappointed that you changed your plans and didn't go to SAI on your last trip. Oh well, maybe next time.

Definitely next time, especially now that I see your full review of it. Although I'm a bit sad that I won't be able to order that avocado margarita.

 

[vettegirl]

Great review and perspective on SAI. I will be dining there for the first time in Sept.

 

[deenbrad]

SAI has always held a special place with us as well. It's such a romantic setting. It just didn't make the cut last trip since we didn't find the food to be as appetizing as before. Now your pics are making me think I might need to add it to our December trip!

 

[hogwartsdropout]

I haven't been to the SAI in years. The last time I went I had your DD2's meal from 2007 and you're right, it was not good!! Your review definitely makes me want to go back and try the new stuff!

 

[iloveeeyore]

I really enjoyed your 2 SAI entries, the retrospective and the review. We love it there, too. And I agree that the avocado margarita tastes more like banana than avocado. I think it's the melon liquer? Whatever, that thing is flippin' delicious! Loving your report!!!

 

[emmysmommy]

We were there right after Thanksgiving so we probably just missed you.

So do you remember the kiosks in Future World where you made your dining reservations? How about your very first table-service meal there?

Honestly, I don't remember the kiosks. That was a loooong time ago and my memory is not as good as you young 'uns! I do remember staying at the Poly and eating there but for the life of me I can't remember where we ate at Epcot. In old photos I've seen myself dressed nicer one night like we were at a nice TS restaurant but you know... I can't tell you where!

After reading your review I was so tempted to change my La Hacienda ADR to SAI since we've been to La Hacienda before. But now I'm thinking I want to try BOTH! Hmmm... what to do since I love the Botana app at La Hac.

 

[jabead]

Definitely next time, especially now that I see your full review of it. Although I'm a bit sad that I won't be able to order that avocado margarita.

Well, it won't be too much longer until you can, right? I was thinking you were 20??? But then again, up until your Il Mulino review from your last trip, I had you pegged as a college professor...as it seemed like your trips coincided with college breaks. Plus your reviews were always so well-written, descriptive, and knowledgeable So you can imagine my surprise when I discovered that you were young enough to be a college student.

Great review and perspective on SAI. I will be dining there for the first time in Sept.

I'm so glad that you are going to give San Angel Inn a try. I'll look forward to reading your review.

SAI has always held a special place with us as well. It's such a romantic setting. It just didn't make the cut last trip since we didn't find the food to be as appetizing as before. Now your pics are making me think I might need to add it to our December trip!

If you can possibly fit it into your schedule, I say go for it!

I haven't been to the SAI in years. The last time I went I had your DD2's meal from 2007 and you're right, it was not good!! Your review definitely makes me want to go back and try the new stuff!

Well, since your next trip is in two weeks (I'm very jealous, by the way ), I know it's probably too late to add SAI to your plans. But perhaps next time you could give it another try? I think you will be pleasantly surprised by the changes.

I really enjoyed your 2 SAI entries, the retrospective and the review. We love it there, too. And I agree that the avocado margarita tastes more like banana than avocado. I think it's the melon liquer? Whatever, that thing is flippin' delicious! Loving your report!!!

And another one who will be there in just a couple of weeks! How exciting!!! I need to go back and reread you PTR to find out if you will be dining at SAI while you are there.

Honestly, I don't remember the kiosks. That was a loooong time ago and my memory is not as good as you young 'uns! I do remember staying at the Poly and eating there but for the life of me I can't remember where we ate at Epcot. In old photos I've seen myself dressed nicer one night like we were at a nice TS restaurant but you know... I can't tell you where!

After reading your review I was so tempted to change my La Hacienda ADR to SAI since we've been to La Hacienda before. But now I'm thinking I want to try BOTH! Hmmm... what to do since I love the Botana app at La Hac.

"You young 'uns"!?!?! You are too funny, Brenda! But then again, I quit counting once I'd reached the age of 39. So last April I celebrated my 39th birthday for the 13th time!

As for your La Hacienda vs. San Angel Inn dilemma, that's a tough one. I've been to La Hacienda twice. The first time it was shortly after they opened and we had a very good first experience. Then when we went back 6 months later, it was just okay. So I guess I'm kind of neutral when it comes to La Hacienda. But I would probably keep your La Hacienda dinner and maybe try to squeeze in a snack/light lunch stop at SAI to see if you like it. An avocado margarita and an order of chicken tostadas would be my recommendation!

 

[GoofySon'sMom]

SAI has been on our never again list after a couple of less than stellar meals but your review may make me rethink that. Next trip though. We are sticking with La Hacienda this trip. We really enjoyed our meal last year and it is one place we are all looking forward to returning to. As long as I can have one of those avocado margaritas, I am good! I loved it last year! Yum, Yum, Yum!

 

[emmysmommy]

I like your recommendation... avocado margarita and chicken tostadas! You did say that we would see more avocado margaritas so they MUST be good. Especially with a Tinkerbell endorsement!

Like I've said in the past, we just don't have enough time at WDW to fit in all the food we want to try!

 

[emmysmommy]

As long as I can have one of those avocado margaritas, I am good! I loved it last year! Yum, Yum, Yum!

See!! I'm with you on that one!

 

[smile4stamps]

Well, it won't be too much longer until you can, right? I was thinking you were 20??? But then again, up until your Il Mulino review from your last trip, I had you pegged as a college professor...as it seemed like your trips coincided with college breaks. Plus your reviews were always so well-written, descriptive, and knowledgeable So you can imagine my surprise when I discovered that you were young enough to be a college student.

I had always thought DonaldDoleWhip was older as well.. I was shocked to discover he was not yet 21! His reviews are wonderful!



As for your San Angel Inn review... unfortunately it was one of our worst in '09 and its not something we will give a go of this time... maybe if I can convince hubby to go again in a few years!!

Your next review... Jiko... is another place we had an awful meal at and hubby has REFUSED to return even though I told him I heard it was much better.... I am thinking Jiko would be better for him than Flying Fish as it offers less seafood but I can't convince him...

 

[Roma]

I have loved reading every single one of your reviews! In fact your review of the YSH persuaded me to cram it in on one of our few dinner-less nights on our upcoming November trip!

What a great trip for you and your DDs .

 

[nanienamou]

San Angel looks so good! I've been wishing to eat there for ever and we have it booked in October. I had the avocado margarita last year and it does slithly taste of cucumber. Delicious!

 

[jabead]

I have loved reading every single one of your reviews! In fact your review of the YSH persuaded me to cram it in on one of our few dinner-less nights on our upcoming November trip!

What a great trip for you and your DDs .

First of all, to the DIS!!!

And thank you so much for the kind words.

I see that your November trip is to celebrate your 1st anniversary. Disney World is a wonderful place to celebrate an anniversary (I celebrated my 25th with my DH in Nov. 2010 ) and November happens to be my favorite time of year to go. I love to catch both the tail end of the F & W Festival and the beginning of the Holiday decorations, plus the crowds have always been pretty low and the weather is perfect (not too hot or too cold).

So anyway, I hope you have a great trip! Oh, and thanks again for taking the time to post a comment.

 

[jabead]

San Angel looks so good! I've been wishing to eat there for ever and we have it booked in October. I had the avocado margarita last year and it does slithly taste of cucumber. Delicious!

Hmmm...banana, cucumber, and/or avocado??? I guess I will just call it "Delicious" flavored!

And I must tell you that I enjoyed reading your 2011 dining reviews. I found it when I was looking for Il Mulino reviews when planning for this trip. Il Mulino reviews are very few and far between. I'm happy to see you have another trip coming up this fall. I'll look forward to reading about your experience at SAI and the rest of your dining adventures.

Oh, and thanks for reading!

 

[jabead]

As for your San Angel Inn review... unfortunately it was one of our worst in '09 and its not something we will give a go of this time... maybe if I can convince hubby to go again in a few years!!

Your next review... Jiko... is another place we had an awful meal at and hubby has REFUSED to return even though I told him I heard it was much better.... I am thinking Jiko would be better for him than Flying Fish as it offers less seafood but I can't convince him...

Yes, I would have to say that I remember seeing many bad reviews of SAI during that 2007 - 2009 time period. Consequently, I wasn't too enthused about going there on our March 2010 trip, but the kids all insisted. So I went into it with pretty low expectations and ended up being pleasantly surprised. Our next visit (Nov. 2010 anniversary trip), the experience wasn't so great but that was due to service issues, not the food. It was right after La Hacienda opened (where we also dined on that trip and had great service), and I suspect that they moved (at least temporarily) all their best servers over to the new restaurant. But anyway, our two visits since then we have had both good food and service so I think (hope?) everything is back on track there.

As for Jiko vs. FF, that's a really tough choice to make. I would probably stick with Flying Fish, but my DDs would say switch to Jiko. I'll save the explanation for my review though.

 

[jabead]

SAI has been on our never again list after a couple of less than stellar meals but your review may make me rethink that. Next trip though. We are sticking with La Hacienda this trip. We really enjoyed our meal last year and it is one place we are all looking forward to returning to. As long as I can have one of those avocado margaritas, I am good! I loved it last year! Yum, Yum, Yum!

I like your recommendation... avocado margarita and chicken tostadas! You did say that we would see more avocado margaritas so they MUST be good. Especially with a Tinkerbell endorsement!

Like I've said in the past, we just don't have enough time at WDW to fit in all the food we want to try!

I just reread both of your current dining plans for your upcoming August trips and I must say that IMHO you have both done an excellent job in planning. I am especially happy to see that you are both dining at my three favorite Disney restaurants (as of now anyway )...California Grill, Yachtsman Steakhouse, and Le Cellier (lunch). And speaking of which, did you hear that next year lunch at Le Cellier will be 2 credits instead of 1? I haven't used the DDP for our last couple of trips (only TIW), but I was still kind of disappointed to hear that. Anyway, I just wanted to tell you that I am very much looking forward to your reviews. I should be done with mine by then and will be in full Disney withdrawal, so I'm counting on your reviews to help me fight the "No Disney Trip to Plan" blues.

Oh, and I also wanted you both to know that I too frequently changed my dining plans, especially during the last month or so before our trip. That is why I waited until just 3 days before we left to post our dining plans. I really am a very laid back person in my normal life (seldom plan what we are having for dinner more than a few hours in advance ) but when I get into my Disney Trip planning mode...