~First we eat, then we do everything else!~ May 2014 Dining Report UPDATED AUG 29th

[Tinker12]

Have fun!!

 

[DisneyJo]

Joining in

I hope your travel day went well

 

[MiaBella05]

joining in

 

[lauraleh]

Joining in! What an awesome surprise for your parents!

I have a lot of similar ones on my list so I can't wait to hear about your meals!

 

[lizzyb]

Anxiously awaiting an update!

 

[JAMIESMITH]

I'm in!

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

I'm back! Sorry that I haven't updated yet. Our Sunday flight was delayed and we didn't get home till 4am. As a result it has been a bit of a brutal adjustment this week going back to work. But today I finally feel somewhat normal!

Update coming asap!

Your trip looks great -


waiting for more !

Thanks!

Subbing in in departure day. With a 2:30 am departure looks like u may be in the world already as I type (or at least the airport). Looking forward to the updates...

I was at the airport when you typed this

Your plans look great. Have fun!!!

It was a great trip

enjoy your time I can't wait for updates

Thank you updates coming

Have fun!!

We had a fantastic time

Joining in

I hope your travel day went well

Travel day went pretty well

joining in

Thanks for reading

Joining in! What an awesome surprise for your parents!

I have a lot of similar ones on my list so I can't wait to hear about your meals!

They were so surprised. Every meal we had was great so you'll enjoy your choices!

Anxiously awaiting an update!

Coming right up!

I'm in!

Thanks for reading.

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

Day 1: Sunday, May 18th

We left Toronto at 2:30 in the morning and arrived in Buffalo around 4:00am. Check-in and security were a breeze and we were at the gate by 4:30am.

BREAKFAST: Buffalo Airport

At 5am we grabbed some mediocre pastries at one of the airport restaurants. It was enough to fill the void. Nothing more, nothing less

LUNCH: Boma

Somewhere in the planning process, when I realized how early we were arriving at WDW, it dawned on me that we could book a late Boma reservation and it would serve quite well as lunch!

We had a 10:45am reservation and we arrived at 10:50. We were seated at a table for 8! So we had LOTS of room to spread out!

I only took pictures of my plates, not the buffet. At this point I had been up more than 8 hours and had only eaten a croissant



My first plate was savoury. Clockwise from the top - corned beef hash with a cornbread top, ham with spicy mustard sauce, goat cheese and chive scrambled eggs, sausage and crispy bacon.

Everything was delicious but the hash and ham were the standouts. The combination of sweet cornbread with salty corned beef was outstanding.



My second and third plates were sweet. The plate on the left had a chocolate chip muffin, a pecan sticky bun, a sugared scone and some perfectly ripe pineapple. The plate on the right had banana bread pudding and Mickey waffles!

The pastries were quite good and the pineapple was phenomenal. The Mickey waffles were very fresh. Crisp on the outside and fluffy inside. The bread pudding was just ok.

We must have had 4 glasses of jungle juice each. That stuff is addictive! I've saved all my receipts but I don't have them with me so I'll update later

DINNER PART 1: Outdoor Kitchens

Sunday the 18th was the last day of the Flower & Garden Festival so we wanted to try at least a few of the outdoor kitchens.

As you can see, it was a gorgeous night!



First stop: Pineapple Promenade! Dole Whip in Epcot? Yes please! But I forgot to take a picture

Next up: The Cottage (UK)



I was really looking forward to trying to Potato biscuit with salmon tartare. But when I went to order it they informed me they were out of biscuits However, it resulted in me getting a double scoop of salmon! Ok, that works We also ordered the pork and apple sausage roll. We loved both but the salmon was a clear winner.



Last stop: Fleur de Lys (France)



There was no question that we needed to try this booth. DDad and I are both huge fans of duck confit so that item was calling our names. And my entire family loves macarons!



The confit was so so good! Rich and tender with the garlic parsley potatoes. Oh how I wish I could have another right now. The macaron tasted like a french take on a creamcicle.

DINNER PART 2: Chefs de France



Our traditional first night dinner is almost always Chefs de France. We dine here twice per trip at least. Because we had enjoyed the Outdoor Kitchens we decided to have a light meal.



The baguette was still warm, crunchy and delicious.



We all had the French Onion Soup and we noticed the portion was larger than it has been in the past. No arguments here! This soup is comfort in a bowl for me.



Lastly we shared the escargot. I know some people can't wrap their heads around eating snails but I assure you they are delicious!

Once again, I'll update with prices once I fish my receipts out of my carry on bag. ​

 

[H20DogsNDisney]

great first update looks like great food

 

[kastoney]

Great first day. I've never been to Boma but presumed the food to be similar to tusker house, but that didn't appear to be the case from the picks. Does Boma have some of the more Africa items - like pap - that tusker does?

The food and garden festival looks great. How do they serve the duck confit? A favorite of mine too.

 

[tdashgirl]

Subbing!

I like how you did the buffet -- with the savory first and then the sweet.

 

[chocolateMinnie]

Great reviews

 

[lizzyb]

Great update! We really love chefs de France too. Their french onion soup is amazing.

 

[disney meema]

Joining in ... Great first day : )

 

[BarbP]

Like you, I love good food. Enjoying your report and looking forward to more.

 

[cheshirecatattack]

Subbing! I'm from Burlington, Ontario and always fly out of Buffalo too. I understand the leaving at2:30am for flights. Looking forward to your reviews!

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

I'm Back and New Blog News!

Hi everyone! I'm so sorry that it has taken me forever to update this report! I promise I'm going to update it more frequently now.

I wanted to let you all know that I've re-branded my Disney social media accounts to WDW Destination. I wanted to branch out from Disney food because I often find myself helping family, friends and colleagues plan WDW vacations.

So, now my Twitter is @wdwdestination and my Instagram is wdwdestination

To read and follow my blog, you can visit www.wdwdestinationblog.com

Day 2: Monday, May 20th

BREAKFAST: Sleepy Hollow

We decided that we weren’t all that hungry, so Mom & Dad grabbed some fruit from the Liberty Square Market and I got a waffle from Sleepy Hollow. These waffles are so good; crisp and light, perfect way to start a morning! Though I must say I am sad that they aren’t Mickey waffles anymore as a result of the introduction of the waffle sandwiches at Sleepy Hollow. For some reason, waffles taste better when they are Mickey shaped!



LUNCH: Liberty Tree Tavern

Another vacation tradition is lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern. When we first discovered this restaurant it felt like our little secret. It was popular for dinner, but lunch was still relatively undiscovered. Now, it has become very popular but we still feel it is among the most relaxing spots to have lunch at The Magic Kingdom.

We used to get appetizers here, but then we realized that the main draw for all of us is the Pilgrim’s feast. So why were we filling up before? We want to enjoy that turkey dinner as much as possible.



To my parents delight, Liberty Tree Tavern really kicked it up in the cranberry department once Ocean Spray signed on as a sponsor! One trip prior to this we received a slice of canned cranberry sauce. I realize some people love that style of sauce, but Mom and Dad are whole-berry sauce lovers. This sauce is amazing! I don’t even like cranberry sauce and I enjoy it. I asked for the recipe and it appears the secret ingredients are curry powder, cinnamon and orange juice! They give it a unique sweet, spicy, tangy flavor profile.



We also recently discovered the much-loved Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake!



See my hidden mickey? This dessert is like a blondie on crack! It is rich and dense with melted chocolate, toffee bits, chocolate and caramel sauce and vanilla ice cream. That being said, the three of us can barely make a dent in it after such a large lunch.

DINNER: Spice Road Table

This was one of our most highly anticipated meals of the trip! We love the Morocco booth at Food & Wine and tapas style dining.



To drink, I ordered the white wine flight, Mom ordered the red wine flight and Dad tried a beer from Spain.









We loved the menu and we decided to try pretty much everything!


These are the rice stuffed grape leaves. They are served cold, with raisins and pine nuts on top.



I loved these! Mom and Dad felt they were just ok. They have a very tangy, lemony flavor. The rice is tender and the raisins and pine nuts add a lovely sweetness and crunch.



Next up is the Hummus and Olives. There were two types of hummus: one traditional and one sundried tomato. After trying these, I became a HUGE fan of hummus. They were creamy and flavourful. Not to mention the spiced pita served with them is out of this world!



The lamb slider, served on brioche with tsaziki was a hit! The lamb was tender and well-seasoned, the garlic and cucumber in the tsaziki added a nice freshness and the buttery brioche was wonderful. A word of warning though: the olive salad served with the slider is quite spicy!



Here is our next round (yes, we got another slider!)





The spicy shrimp were a suggestion from our server. The shrimp themselves are a good size and very tender. The chili garlic oil in which they are served is spicy, I would say a 5 on a scale of 1 to 10. If you don’t want to feel the heat as much, just scape off any bits of chili or chili seed (Mom did this).



I wanted to love the Harissa Chicken Roll….I really did! I’ve had them at the Food & Wine Festival and loved them. But…they weren’t sliced open at Food & Wine. Why does that make a difference? I could see they were loaded with black beans. I have a serious mental block when it comes to black beans. I detest them. Yes, even though I know I liked it in the past I just couldn’t get my head around it now that I knew the ingredients. Dad liked this, Mom not so much.



The lamb sausage was more my style. I found this to be spicier than the shrimp. Probably a 7 out of 10 for my spice tolerance. Mom couldn’t eat it at all and Dad could only handle one bite. The sausage is cured, with a firm texture. The red sauce is the source of most of the heat.



The mixed grill skewers were Mom’s choice. I wasn’t expecting much from them. I have to say, I was very pleasantly surprised! They were marinated in a light oil and garlic seasoning. The green sauce was likely parsley, garlic and lemon. These are a great option for anyone that doesn’t like heat or aggressive spice/seasoning.



We were nearing the time for Illuminations and even though our server assured us we could stay at the table as long as we wanted without ordering anything else, we decided on a few desserts.

The lemon and saffron custard was wonderful! Like a Moroccan take on a crème brulee. The real winner was the baklava sampler! We couldn’t figure out what each one was so we asked after we had sampled. If I recall correctly: The long skinny one was almond, the pyramid was cashew and the square was walnut. I believe we ordered more drinks as well. Another beer for Dad, a glass of red wine for Mom and a sparkling wine and pomegranate cocktail for me.

The meal was around $150 if I recall but it was worth every penny. We are eager to return.​

​

 

[phabric]

Enjoyed your reviews with pictures.

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

Tuesday, May 20th

It looks like I only have pictures from dinner for this day, so without much further ado...

California Grill



We had been to the California Grill the night it re-opened and we weren't as impressed as our multiple previous visits. However, we wanted to give it another try.

The evening didn't start out well. We had an early seating, 5:30pm. And we were seated at what was possibly the worst table in the entire restaurant! Right beside the entrance to the new observation deck. Every 2 minutes the automatic doors swung open, blasted us with hot air and people walked by either side of the table. There were only 1/3rd of the tables occupied yet when we asked to be moved we were treated as though it was a massive inconvenience.

A manager approached and we explained why we wanted to move. We weren't asking for a window table, we just didn't want to be seated in front of a very active door when there were numerous other tables available. I have a friend that owns a restaurant and his motto is "you never walk a patron past a good table to give them a bad table". That is exactly what CG did.

We suggested to the manager that we would be happy to either wait in, or dine in the lounge. He has us wait there until a different table was "ready". As I said, the restaurant was only 1/3rd full so I'm not entirely I understood the necessity to wait. Regardless, we enjoy the CG lounge so we started there.

We started with a flatbread to share. It was pork, apple and bbq. Delicious!


After about 20 minutes in the lounge our table was ready. Shortly after we were seated our server brought us the new bread basket.

Lavender Foccacia and Whole Wheat Sourdough

We love the sushi at the California Grill. But we did notice a difference in the quality since Yoshie left. The rolls used to consistently be a 10. Don't get me wrong, this is still better than any sushi I can get in Toronto. However, I would say the quality was closer to an 8. I was saddened to see that there were stacks of pre-preped rolls sitting in the sushi case. I don't believe I ever saw that when Yoshie ran the counter.


Shrimp Tempura Roll & Spicy Kazan Roll


Shrimp Tempura Roll - close up


Spicy Kazan Roll - close up

DMom had the Romaine Hearts with sundried tomatoes, anchovies and green goddess dressing. It was a lovely, elevated Caesar Salad.



DDad had the Crispy Rock Shrimp Salad with Wasabi Cream and Soy Reduction. He craves this dish on a regular basis.


I had the Pork Two Ways - tenderloin with goat cheese polenta and crispy pork belly with spiced apple compote.



Pork Belly - close up


Tenderloin - close up

I think this is actually even better than the original signature dish. The tenderloin and polenta is still exceptional, but the pork belly and apple really adds another dimension of flavor and texture to the dish. The tenderloin is lean and juicy, the polenta creamy and tangy, and the taste is overall savoury. While the pork belly is crispy and rich, the apple is sweet and spiced, and the taste is more on the sweet side.

We had a fantastic view from our table in the end.




Another thing I love about the new CG menu is the Ice Cream trio dessert. They had changed the flavours since our first visit. This time it was a banana split inspired parfait, a root beer ice cream with vanilla bean soda for a reverse root beer float and a toffee pretzel pot de creme. Overall it was weaker than the original flavours, but I still love how playful it is! And I would pay good money for a full sized reverse root beer float!



We will be returning to the California Grill in November, but we will be eating in the lounge prior to MVMCP. We wanted a lighter option and we've always had great experiences in the lounge.​

 

[JoeyEmmaMomma]

Following along!