Gastric Bypass Does Disney or My Mom's quest for "Energy drinks"

[Grumpy_Disney_Dad]

The cast of characters and I do mean Characters

Me – 38 year old male, had gastric bypass back in March. I am a chef and a VERY adventurous eater

Mom – 58 year old female, fairly adventurous eater, and loves her desserts and dinner drinks. She does has allergies to beef.

DD – 11 year old female prefers mainstream food (ie chicken nuggets and French fries) and is a carb a holic but as with most 11 year olds, her tastes change on a daily basis


The Restaurants:

Ralph’s BBQ Weldon, NC

Stepmom’s kitchen

Don’s BBQ Pooler, GA

The MarketPlace Grocery Store, WestGate area of US 192

Goofy’s Candy Company DTD

Planet Hollywood DTD

Margarita Stand Mexico

Lotus Blossom Café China Epcot

Tangierine Café Morocco Epcot

Slushy Stand in France

Coral Reef Epcot

Cosmic Ray’s Magic Kingdom

Chef Mickey’s

POP Food Court

Flame Tree BBQ Animal Kingdom

POP Food Court

Boma’s Animal Kingdom Lodge

POP Food Court

Earl of Sandwich DTD

Goofy’s Candy Company DTD

Whispering Canyon Café Wilderness Lodge

Lunching Pad Magic Kingdom

Grand Floridian Café Grand Floridian Resort

Wetzel’s Pretzels Market Place Kiosk DTD

Earl of Sandwich DTD



Day 1 on the way down to Disney we stopped at Ralph’s BBQ in Weldon, NC. Some of the best BBQ I have ever tasted. DD had the buffet which had BBQ pork (pulled and minced) BBQ chicken, Brunswick Stew, fried chicken, banana pudding, and a slew of different salads. She adores Ralph’s BBQ and it is a must have every time we go down that way.

Mom had the minced bbq sandwich that came with slaw, Brunswick stew, and fries. This was her first time eating there and she proclaimed it the best Brunswick Stew she has ever had ( after she finished off all of hers and what was left of mine ) She also loved their pepper vinegar BBQ sauce and is determined to recreate it now that she is home

I ordered the kids pulled pork BBQ platter with slaw, Brunswick stew and substituted collards for the fries. I had about 2 bites of everything and was full so DD and Mom finished off what I couldn’t

If you are heading down 95 and are near Weldon, you would be doing your taste buds a MAJOR injustice if you didn’t stop at Ralph’s

The buffet costs between $9.25 and $9.75 for dinner depending on the day and about $ 7.20 for lunch. Their sandwiches run from $3 to about $6 and sides are about $2. Kid’s Platters cost about $4.50

The portions are HUGE and 2 people could easily share a dinner platter



Day 1 Dinner was at my Dad and Stepmom’s house since we stopped there for the night to visit them. I normally don’t include their house on my restaurant list but step mom fixed a spaghetti sauce that was the BEST I ever had, chocked full of sausage. peppers, onions, wine, garlic, and tomatoes. After having that for dinner, I am ruined for any of pasta sauce. I don’t know how much it cost her to make but if any one wants her phone number for reservations, I am sure she will charge you a reasonable price. Just be warned, she is a stickler for table manners and uses such a variety of silverware, even I didn’t know what some of it was for. (Who knew they made special forks just for asparagus?)

Day 2 Breakfast was also at Dad and Stepmom’s house . Dad has mellowed in old age and now caters to my daughter’s whim for food. She climbs up in his lap, gives hima big hug , bats her eyes and asks him to make choclate chip pancakes every time we go down there. Of course he grumbles, smiles and then breaks out the trusty electric griddle. This time he also made some wonderful thick cut apple smoked bacon he got from the farmers market. Since I couldn’t have any pancakes I eagerly had 2 pieces of bacon. Again I don’t know the price but since dad’s trusty griddle of 30 years finally lost its Teflon coating and we bought him a new one for Father’s Day, I am sure he is looking forward to seasoning it , so I am sure he would charge a very reasonable rate if any one wants his number for reservations.

Day 2 Lunch was supposed to be at the famous Don’s BBQ in Pooler, GA but in one of the few miscalculations I made, I forgot that Don’s is closed on Sunday. We went down the road a bit and had Krystal burgers and chicken sandwiches. I only added this review because Krystal’s is the one of the few places I can eat a whole burger. (For those of you not familiar with Krystal’s, their burgers and sandwiches are the size of White Castle burgers, only not as greasy) DD and Mom shared a banana pudding milkshake that they are still talking about. 2 combo meals, 1 extra burger, and 1 milkshake ran us about $15.


Day 2 Dinner was from the Winn Dixie Market Place near marker 4 on US192 in Kissimmee. We decided to stay off site for 2 nights before actually going to WDW, so we grabbed dinner from there. DD and Mom had some in store prepared sesame chicken that they both said was to die for. It must have been good since they went back and got the same thing the next night. It’s a nice alternative to the fast food and buffets that line 192.

Day 3 was our designated DTD day so DD and Mom started the day with 2 HUGE “Corrupt Your Own Oreos” at Goofy’s Candy Co. DD had vanilla Oreo covered in milk chocolate, rolled in M&Ms, then drizzled with more milk chocolate. Mom was a little more restrained with the vanilla Oreo covered in white chocolate, drizzled with caramel. Neither DD nor Mom was able to finish more than ½ of their cookies so that became a snack the next day. If Liza is working be sure to watch her create the goodies. She has quite a flair for decorating and is fun to talk to. The Oreos were about $3.50 each but the look on their faces when they saw the size of them was priceless

After they tried to devour their weight in Oreo cookie, we decided to have a light lunch of appetizers at Planet Hollywood. I know PH often gets bad reviews but we found the appetizers to be filling and good although a bit overpriced. (Similar to TGIMcFunsters as Anthony Bourdain describes these type of restaurants). We shared the Texas Tostados and the Potato Skins. The tostados were good but the bbq sauce was a bit sweet for my taste. (almost like a KC Masterpiece type sauce) I was also disappointed that guacamole was not longer served on them. The Potato Skins were more like potato wedges, but were sufficiently smothered in real bacon bits and cheese to make up for the thick cut potato DD really loved the potato skins and declared them to be “The Best I have ever had in my whole life” She also made the same declaration about the non alcoholic strawberry concoction she had with lunch. Overall, Planet Hollywood was ok but noisy and the prices were tempered a bit by the $15 voucher included in most MYW packages. Service was ok but the servers themselves were very personable. I think the total bill after we used our voucher was for around $30 (that includes tip, 1 beer, and aforementioned strawberry concoction)

Day 4 was our first day on the Basic DDP and our EPCOT Day. We started the day with the free continental buffet at our hotel and a string cheese stick for me, before heading to POP for an early (insanely early in my opinion 630 am ) check in and heading off to Epcot.

By 11 we were starting to tour the World Showcase and getting a bit hungry. Since Mexico was our first stop, Mom decided she needed a Mango Margarita for energy. After draining the last drop and licking the glass clean, she said it was very mangoy but otherwise just ok. Cost was $8.50

DD had her heart set on Steamed dumplings for lunch so our next stop was Lotus Blossom Café. All she wanted was the potstickers and white rice. The CM couldn’t figure out how to put that together as a Counter Service meal so we just paid OOP for it. DD again stated that “These are the best dumplings EVER! Even if the dipping sauce was icky” and urged me to rave about them in my food report. So consider this a rave about the dumplings

Mom and I were saving ourselves for Tangierine Café and boy were we glad we did. We shared a Shawarma Platter with lamb and chicken. The lamb and chicken were moist, delicious and seasoned perfectly. The salads were light , a bit citrusy and a perfect accompaniment for them. I didn’t have any of the bread but DD said it too was very good. Mom doesn’t usually care for baklava but said this version wasn’t overly gooey and tasted just perfect. This was one of the first meals I can ever remember Mom cleaning the plate and saying how wonderful everything was. Turns out this would be first of many at WDW that she would say that about. Now I know where my DD gets her flair for the dramatic.

By the time we made it around to France, Mom was in need of more energy so a stop at the slushy stand was in order. Mom ordered the Grey Goose Lemon slushy and said it was the perfect energy booster and flavored just right. Maybe Gatorade should look into marketing that drink?

Later that day DD got a Soft pretzel in Germany and … you guessed it proclaimed it to be the BEST!! She was a bit tarnished by the fact that they didn’t have ketchup to put on her pretzel but she got over it . After a strange look from the CM, I assured him that she got that from her mother’s side of the gene pool. He just smiled and nodded and I felt assured I had just prevented the outbreak of another German- American war.


Ok that’s all the typing I can stand for now so I will continue with the rest later tonight or tomorrow. If you have any question feel free to blurt them out and if I don’t know the answer, I will at least make one that sounds believable

 

[Grumpy_Disney_Dad]

Day 4 Dinner was a 745 ressie at Coral Reef. We arrived a bit haggard and hot from a full day of touring Epcot and the chance to relax was much needed. We waited about 10 minutes to be seated. After we were seated and Mom cried after receiving a custom made menu, the waiter brought out a wonderful loaf of crusty bread hot from the oven along with balsamic vinegar and olive oil for dipping. DD ordered the NY strip along with another Strawberry Smoothie drink. The steak looked like it was pulled straight from the pages of Bon Appetit Magazine, perfect grill marks and glistening with juices. I did get to try a bite and this time I had to again with her. Other than the one time I had tried Kobe Beef, this was the best steak I had ever eaten. The broccolini served with the steak was overcooked for our tastes but still flavorful. Mom decided on the blackened catfish with pepper jack grits. She said the grits were creamy and had just the right spice and were a perfect compliment to the spicy and flaky catfish. I had the Mahi Mahi, and was in heaven when I bit into the buttery and perfectly cooked fish. After we finished the entrees, the diver brought down the sign just as desserts were being served, again making Mom cry. For desserts we ordered chocolate wave, mango sorbet with fruit, and the bailey’s / Jack Daniels mousse. Since I cant eat cane sugar anymore, Mom and DD tried all 3. DD tried the wave first and thought it was just ok until she added the brandied cherries, after that she thought it was really good. Mom tried the sorbet first and said it was very creamy and the perfect end to the meal…….that is until she tried a bit and then devoured the Baileys Jack Daniels mousse. She practically licked the mug clean and decided that it qualified as an “energy drink”. Service was above average, the diver sign was perfect and the food was outstanding. Being from a coastal region, I was expecting just ho hum seafood but was very pleasantly surprised at the quality. I would highly recommend Coral Reef to anyone looking for a great 1 Credit table service place

 

[bekkiz]

I love the detail...and the humor A little joking with my dining reviews suits me just fine

Please keep it up!

 

[quixoticvalue]

I am really enjoying your reviews. Keep up the great humor!

PS-- my dbf is the same with ketchup on his pretzel. He even eats ketchup with hard pretzels! I roll my eyes and shiver.... then I hug my spicy brown mustard. Oh yum.

 

[mamaminnie]

Loving the reviews so far.

We've been to WDW with good friends who have had the gastric bypass surgery. They really enjoy sugar-free desserts at the WDW restaurants.

Once at Yachtsman's Steakhouse they had a sugar free chocolate cake that was the best of all 4 desserts at the table.

Waiting for more. . .

 

[Grumpy_Disney_Dad]

Thanks for the compliments so far everyone

Loving the reviews so far.

We've been to WDW with good friends who have had the gastric bypass surgery. They really enjoy sugar-free desserts at the WDW restaurants.

Once at Yachtsman's Steakhouse they had a sugar free chocolate cake that was the best of all 4 desserts at the table.

Waiting for more. . .

After the surgery, i pretty much aviod all desserts except maybe a piece of fruit. I barely have enough room for the required protein. Mom and DD both said I made them gain weight since I had them eat all the desserts that came with the DDP

 

[Grumpy_Disney_Dad]

Day 5 lunch was at Cosmic Ray’s in the Magic Kingdom, one of my personal favorites! I just love their rib/chicken combo platter. Mom and I shared one this time and the ribs were excellent as always, tender , sweet and smokey with just a hint of spice from the dry rub. The chicken was your basic rotisserie chicken but cooked perfectly, still moist and flavorful. I didn’t remember the sides being so fresh last time we were there but this time, the combo was served with FRESH green beans and skin on smashed taters. After eating 1 bone of ribs and a bite of everything else, I gave mom the rest to finish. She loved the chicken, and devoured the sides and even said the prepackaged carrot cake was pretty good. DD opted for a veggie burger and a mountain of chili cheese fries. I have to say that those chili cheese fries were wonderful looking and absolutely huge. DD barely finished half of them. With the demise of the real Figaro Fries, I would recommend heading to Cosmic Ray’s for chili cheese fries. I also noticed that CR did still have the cheese sauce on the fixins bar. DD had a bite of the chocolate cake for dessert and said it was to rich and fudgy to finish. I have to give a pat on the back to Cosmic Ray’s staff for service. Mom had gone to save a table, DD was in a different line and since I was in an ECV, a cast member was waiting right next to the service line to help carry my tray to the table. I thought that was a nice touch.

Day 5 Dinner was at Chef Mickey’s at the Contemporary Resort. This was one of the 2 less than stellar meals we had at WDW. I know CM is all about the atmosphere but even so I was disappointed in the food and service. To get to CM now, you have to walk around the barrier walls placed for the construction on The Wave and wait in a long semi hallway to get to the check in desk. After you receive your pager, you are herded into another line were a photographer takes the family’s picture. I was a bit troubled by this and felt it was more in line with Medieval Times or Dixie Stampede than WDW. It might have ok if they could have offered the picture on photopass, but I just don’t like having merchandise hawked at me while I am eating dinner. After the picture, you are told to wait in the lobby again until your pager goes off. Our wait was less than 2 minutes. When we were seated, DD ordered a Princess Punch and Mom ordered a Bud Light. DD received her drink right away but we had to remind our server twice about Mom’s Bud Light “energy drink” . AT least our server Todd was honest when he said “ I just plain forgot about it “ I headed up the salad bar area to see what I could find and was a little surprised to see it in shambles. Over ¾ of the bowls were almost empty and desperately in need of refilling. I did manage to get a few cold shrimp and a bit of the artichoke tomato salad. I supplemented the salads with some prime rib and a small piece of Italian sausage. The prime rib and salads were all just ok (about what I had expected but the Italian sausage tasted like it had been freezer burned and then left on the buffet since lunch time. It was truly nasty. Mom had a few salads and some salmon that she said was just ok. DD ended up getting ravioli and chicken and this was one of the few meals that she didn’t proclaim to have the best anything. She did enjoy the dessert bar and particularly liked the mouse ear shaped chocolate dessert. Overall the atmosphere and character interaction were good but the food was sub par even for a buffet. If you feel the need to go to Chef Mickey’s for the characters, I would recommend a breakfast reservation instead of dinner.

On day 6, after a less than stellar dinner the night before, I tried to redeem myself by bringing the ladies breakfast in bed from the POP food court. I am usually not a fan of food courts but I must say I was VERY impressed with the breakfast offerings from POP. I chose 1 breakfast platter loaded with eggs, sausage, bacon, potatoes, and a biscuit, and a side order of cinnamon rolls for us to share. I also ended up getting a V8 , milk, and OJ. All that food was only 1 CS and 1 snack credit. Since I thought it was too early for energy drinks, I got Mom some coffee in a refillable mug. The eggs were very buttery, light and fluffy, well above what I had hoped for. They were delicious. The bacon was a bit limper than I like but still ok. The sausage was your standard fast food sausage patty. DD and Mom shared the platter and really liked the potatoes. They also loved the cinnamon roll claiming that it was as good as the one we got from Main Street Bakery a few years ago. The convenience and taste of the food from the POP food court and the refillable mugs were definitely a good way to start the day.

 

[kathie859]

I am loving your report Thanks for capturing the atmosphere and all the little extras in addition to perfectly phrased food descriptions. Can't wait to read more!

 

[phabric]

Loved your reviews. We will be staying at Pop and be going to some of the same restaurants.

 

[noahdove]

Love the review I can't wait to read more...I feel like I was there with youBut, no energy drinks for me

 

[Grumpy_Disney_Dad]

We split up for lunch on day 6 since I was meeting a friend at AK and the ladies wanted to go back to the hotel.

I had the rib combo at Flame tree and the ribs were good. Very similar to the ones at Cosmic Ray 's but i have to say the beans were NASTY!! They had almost a coffee/ vinegar taste to them. I used to be able to eat any kind of baked beans , even cold from a can off the generic aisle at the grocery store but I could only bring myself to eat 1 bite of these. The corn muffin was very very moist and a compliment to the smokiness of the ribs. Again since I was alone, the Cms were great about helping to carry my tray to a nice shady spot to eat.

DD and Mom shared an order of Penne Pasta with Chicken Alfredo and Breadsticks from the POP food court. DD is a pasta freak and said the penne was cooked perfectly and ……yep you guessed it again.. “ The Best She ever Had!!” Both DD and Mom said the chicken was huge and very moist. The sauce was good and creamy but they both said that the could have used another small cup up of it to go over all the chicken and pasta. DD had a bblue raspberry/coke frozen creation in the refillable mug and Mom had a frozen pina colada “energy drink” from Petals Pool Bar. Mom said the pina colada was very good but either a tad to sweet or a tad too lacking in alcohol.

At this point it would be good to note that the Gumball vending machine at the Petals Pool Bar DOES NOT contain jawbreakers or gumballs. It contains ping pong balls you can buy to use with the ping pong table. DD kept eyeing them every time we walked by and was drooling over how big they were. She was bit disappointed that they were ping pong balls but that was remedied by a game of ping pong and a trip to Goofy’s Candy Co. later on

Next up ..Boma’s maybe later tonight or tomorrow morning… Believe me its worth the wait

 

[FirstMagic]

Lovin' the reviews, keep 'em coming!

Sounds like you had some enjoyable dining experience, appreciate all the details. I especially like the reviews of Ralph’s BBQ, Stepmom’s kitchen, and Don’s BBQ, not someplace many of us will get to try, but fun to hear about.

I have a reservation at Grand Floridian Café, so am anxious to read your review of that restaurant!

 

[Grumpy_Disney_Dad]

Dinner on day 6 was at Boma’s and both Mom and I were looking forward to trying the food here. DD was a bit leery about it but had started to come out of her culinary shell. After checking in at the desk, the manager explained to us that because of the bad weather, guests were staying longer than normal and there would be about a 20 minute delay in seating us. No problem, we wandered around the lobby a bit before finding the Victoria Falls Lounge. A quick stop for Mom to grab a Kilimarita She adored this drink with its touches of citrus, cranberry, and a slight brandy taste. As she finished her drink the pager went off and we led to our table. Mom and DD started off with a few salads. DD had the Mixed field greens with a Chili Cilantro dressing that thought was great. Mom tried the different types of hummus, the curry pasta salad, the avocado grapefruit and papaya salad, as well as a slaw looking salad. She thought the hummus was good but not as good as what had in Morocco a few days before. She went gaga over the curry pasta salad and asked for the recipe so she could make it later. She didn’t care for the avocado salad claiming it was just bland and couldn’t quite figure out what exactly the slaw type dish had in it. I tried a bite of the watermelon rind salad and found it to be very refreshing, almost like the pickled ginger served with sushi only not nearly as “spicy”. For my entrée, I had a bit of the Almond Salmon, some shepard’s pie type dish, a small piece of the African sausage, as well as just a touch of the pap and fufu. The salmon was very moist and well flavored (especially for buffet salmon), the almond flavor was present but not overwhelming. A very well balanced dish.. The sausage was much better than what I had at Chef Mickey’s great hints of a sweet spice in it that balanced well with the spicy sambal paste I dabbed on it. The shepard’s pie dish was very good and had just a touch of lamb to add to the richness to offset the slightly sweet cornmeal topping. The fufu was just a garden variety combination of white potatoes and yams mashed together, nothing special but not horrid either. Next I tried the pap. Oh my goodness I had to go all the way to an African buffet to find the perfect food for a southern boy, it was cornmeal dumplings stewed in tomatoes and tasted like sheer heaven!! If I ever have to request a last meal, you can beat pap will be on the menu. It doesn’t look all that appealing but brother oh brother was it some good stuff. I can’t wait to receive the recipe from the staff so I can serve it next time I make steamed shrimp. DD tried the prime rib with cous cous, as well as a smattering of sautéed bok choy. She enjoyed the prime rib since she doesn’t get that too often at home, but went really nuts over the cous cous. It had smoked tomatoes, roasted peepers, and onions in it, items she doesn’t normally like but adored them in this dish. She begged me to get the recipe for it, so I will be preparing that also when I get my food porn primer kit from the chefs at Boma’s.. I was so enraptured by the pap, that I didn’t notice what Mom got other than several bowls of the chicken pepper pot soup. She couldn’t get over how creamy and rich it was. That too was another recipe we requested to be mailed to us. For dessert the ladies shared a platter that had Zebra Domes, cookies, pineapple upside down cheesecake, bread pudding with vanilla sauce, Chocolate Mousse, and an Amarula cake. Both said the zebra domes were light and delicious but turned out not to be their favorites desserts on the plate. Mom liked the pineapple upside down cheesecake but DD wouldn’t try it since she doesn’t like pineapple. DD tried the Amarula cake and said it tasted dirty. Mom liked the amarula cake the best of all the desserts saying it had a fruity caramel taste to it. DD took 1 bite of the bread pudding and claimed it to be the “ THE BEST DESSERT EVER”, that is until she tasted the chocolate mousse. After tasting the mousse she pushed all the other desserts aside and devoured the spoonfuls of mouse on the plate. It had some type of alcohol flavoring in it but I didn’t write it down and don’t remember.
The service at Boma’s was excellent. It was the first place all week we had been offered coffee after our meal and the waitress Rachel was very efficient in catering to our needs as well as explaining what was in some of the dishes. Overall this meal was our favorite for both the food and the service. If you are a little hesitant to try new flavors, I strongly urge you to give Boma’s a try. Familiar food with a bit of unusual twist to it. Definately a place we will be going back to on our next visit!

 

[Tinker*Shell*Bell]

I am enjoying your reviews immensely! I am a lap-band mom and going to Disney this summer. It is great to see how you make the meal offerings and your surgery work together for you.
We plan on a bit of sharing, combined with a bunch of me ordering meals I will never be able to finish. Which really just means more food for my teenage boys anyway.

Thanks for putting your experience here!

 

[BriarRosie]

Wow, you finally had the surgery!

Just wait until you'll walk without the ECV. I friend of mine from Florida had the surgery a few years ago and USED to use an ECV, too. You'll be so excited when you'll become more mobile.

I'm enjoying your food reviews and the "energy drinks".

 

[MandM-Mom]

Enjoying your reviews, we are trying Boma for the first time in August, I am a bit nervous but your reviews make it sound yummy

 

[Megsmachine]

I am really enjoying your reviews. Keep up the great humor!

PS-- my dbf is the same with ketchup on his pretzel. He even eats ketchup with hard pretzels! I roll my eyes and shiver.... then I hug my spicy brown mustard. Oh yum.

My nephew loooooves ketchup so much. Of the many things he puts ketchup on pancakes is one of them and that grosses me out!

 

[Megsmachine]

I loved your reviews, thanks so much! Great job.

 

[Grumpy_Disney_Dad]

I am enjoying your reviews immensely! I am a lap-band mom and going to Disney this summer. It is great to see how you make the meal offerings and your surgery work together for you.
We plan on a bit of sharing, combined with a bunch of me ordering meals I will never be able to finish. Which really just means more food for my teenage boys anyway.

Thanks for putting your experience here!

It may not sound like it by my reviews, but I really did leave a LOT of food on my plates while i was there, and it wasnt very hard to follow the diet restrictions. Congrats on your lapband and don't worry , you will do fine at WDW

Wow, you finally had the surgery!

Just wait until you'll walk without the ECV. I friend of mine from Florida had the surgery a few years ago and USED to use an ECV, too. You'll be so excited when you'll become more mobile.

I'm enjoying your food reviews and the "energy drinks".

Howdy Briar Long time no see I did do some walking without the ECV but unfortunately i will have to keep using one for long distances until they repair the damage I did to my knee waterskiing about 6 years ago. Believe it or not, I did think of you when mom kept looking for "energy drinks". I had a overwhelming desire to scream out KUNGALOOSH!!!

 

[Grumpy_Disney_Dad]

Day 7 started out with another trip to the POP food court for breakfast in bed for the ladies. I again got the adult platter, cinnamon roll, and this time added a yogurt granola parfait. Everything was as yummy as it was yesterday morning. I was very impressed with the quality at the food court.

Since Hollywood Studios, Disney/Pixar Hollywood Studios or the park formerly known as Disney/MGM is not known for its counter service food, we headed to DTD for lunch. There was NO doubt we were going to Earl of Sandwich since we enjoyed it so much last time. We got 2 Scudettos (Italian deli meat), 2 brownies, and 2 drinks. The sandwiches were fantastic as always and I was pleased to see that they used mortadella and cappicola ham on the subs. DD was impressed with the bread and asked if we could find some like it at home. (Alas, we were told it’s an Earl of Sandwich exclusive) The brownies were prepackaged but very moist and rich. DD brought several home to enjoy later this week. My only complaint, and it is a very minor one, is that if you want ice tea refills, you have to wade through the people waiting to pick up their orders since it is not out with the fountain drinks. Earl of Sandwich is still one of my favorite Counter service meals at WDW and is definitely better than anything offered in the Studios!

After lunch, DD decided she needed another snack from Goofy’s Candy Co. so we headed over there. She wanted to try the “Build your own Marshmallows”. She claimed they were very could but as she was eating her marshmallows covered in chocolate and M & M’s, all I could think of was the scene from Caddyshack where they had to close the pool and sanitize it. Her marshmallows bore a very strong resemblance to what they fished out of the pool.

Dinner on day 7 was at Whispering Canyon Café. This one was booked more for DD’s enjoyment than anything else. We were seated almost right away in the back room and Medicine Man was very efficient about bringing our drinks. I had a large Ice Tea, DD had a chocolate milkshake that looked wonderful and mom had her requisite “energy drink in the form of a margarita that she said was loaded to the hilt with alcohol. We all ordered the skillet for dinner. The salad was good but the dressing was heavy on the vinegar and detracted from the greens. The cornbread was huge fluffy, light and slightly sweet. A good offset to the tart dressing of the salad. The skillets arrived overflowing with food. It looked wonderful, but was in fact no better than the ribs and chicken at Cosmic Ray’s or Flame Tree. The beans here were better than the ones at Flame Tree but still had a slight vinegar taste. DD loved the pulled pork and the mashed potatoes and the shrimp were just average. For dessert they had Smores Cheesecake, Kahlua Chocolate cake and apple caramel pie. The cheesecake was very light which a good thing was since the portion was huge. DD said the chocolate cake was ok but opted for another milkshake after just a bite or two of it. Mom’s apple pie was served cold the first time it was brought out and was just ho hum, but after Medicine Man brought out a hot fresh slice, mom said it was much better. Overall WCC was just mediocre food. The service was good but couldn’t help the counter service quality food. If you have preteen or younger kids, I would recommend trying this place once but with all the different options out there, we wont be returning here anytime soon