"Guess who`s back"...3 Return for 3 Weeks @ RPR. Parks, KSC with lots of good food and fun...A May 2023 TR

[schumigirl]

I love Longhorn! I will never understand why people knock chain restaurants. Between pricing and sometimes just wanting something you know you will eat is worth it to me.

I agree, some chains in America are very good, certainly better than most chains in the UK.

Knowing what you’ll get is a good thing sometimes. We do enjoy Longhorn and Red Lobster something that does amuse some folks, but hey Ho…..we love them!

 

[schumigirl]

Unfortunately, I haven't seen Wicked yet! I wanted to see it in Minneapolis when it was there, but it didn't work out. I would absolutely love to see it!


It's funny that the Muchkins scared you, LOL. I don't know if there is anyone who wasn't traumatized at least a little by that movie! My husband wasn't - he loves it.

Oh you’d love it, by far the best show we have ever seen and I include Phantom of the Opera and Chess in that, we loved them too, but there’s something about Wicked that is just so special.

Ah yes, the munchkins. We all have our triggers for sure, one of my friends kids was terrified of the tin man and wouldn’t run through fields of flowers in case she fell asleep they way they did in the poppy field……lol……it’s funny how things stay with you from childhood.

 

[schumigirl]

Hey Carole,
I just caught up with your new TR, which reminded me to start thinking of my own trip in the middle of May. Crazy how it suddenly arrives!

back Aurora!!

Good to see you……I forgot you had a May trip too, oh goodness yes, it does creep around quickly!!

Glad you‘re along for this one too, I do hope you enjoy it……

 

[Worfiedoodles]

I like the reliability of a chain. I know what to expect, have a rough idea of the menu, and can relax in the predictability

 

[schumigirl]

I like the reliability of a chain. I know what to expect, have a rough idea of the menu, and can relax in the predictability

Yep, I think that’s it, you know what you’re getting and we like a bit of familiarity with food at times.

And there are some very good ones, as I said much better than chains over here in general, we avoid them like the plague over here

 

[BroadwayHermione5]

I agree, some chains in America are very good, certainly better than most chains in the UK.

Knowing what you’ll get is a good thing sometimes. We do enjoy Longhorn and Red Lobster something that does amuse some folks, but hey Ho…..we love them!

I love red lobster as well! Now I want their cheddar biscuits….

 

[schumigirl]

I love red lobster as well! Now I want their cheddar biscuits….

I don`t think we`ve ever had a bad meal there and I have an excellent recipe for the identical biscuits, so we can enjoy them over here too.

You really couldn`t tell the difference and everyone loves them. When we do buffets at each other`s homes, that`s one of the things I do get asked for. The problem is sticking to one or two!!!

 

[keishashadow]

And as we`re not American Football fans

…except for the Pittsburgh Steelers

I love Longhorn! I will never understand why people knock chain restaurants. Between pricing and sometimes just wanting something you know you will eat is worth it to me.

some of the franchises don’t deserve to use the name in our area Longhorn has only a few locations in our ‘burg is the absolute worst here. Red Lobster, thankfully seems to have rebounded.

I like the reliability of a chain. I know what to expect, have a rough idea of the menu, and can relax in the predictability

once we do find a franchise site that is solid, will definitely go out of our way to patronize it. Texas Roadhouse is especially hit & miss for some reason in our area. Carole posts such lovely pictures of Longhorn, I really need to give that location a chance.

Millers, Cheddars & Bonefish in Orlando, have had markedly different experiences for us leading to patronize specific sites. Even before the catch-all pandemic excuses, it was a problem. It does seem as tho staffing is starting to slowly perk up again, yea!

 

[BroadwayHermione5]

some of the franchises don’t deserve to use the name in our area Longhorn has only a few locations in our ‘burg is the absolute worst here. Red Lobster, thankfully seems to have rebounded.

I will say we will travel a state over to get to Cracker Barrel and Outback because they are better over state lines but we are thankful for the other chains in our area.

 

[schumigirl]

…except for the Pittsburgh Steelers

some of the franchises don’t deserve to use the name in our area Longhorn has only a few locations in our ‘burg is the absolute worst here. Red Lobster, thankfully seems to have rebounded.

once we do find a franchise site that is solid, will definitely go out of our way to patronize it. Texas Roadhouse is especially hit & miss for some reason in our area. Carole posts such lovely pictures of Longhorn, I really need to give that location a chance.

Millers, Cheddars & Bonefish in Orlando, have had markedly different experiences for us leading to patronize specific sites. Even before the catch-all pandemic excuses, it was a problem. It does seem as tho staffing is starting to slowly perk up again, yea!

Oh of course the Steelers!!!! Almost forgot about them!!

It`s good to know some of the places that were disappointing during and after the pandemic are picking up, hope it continues as there are definite changes from before. We noticed places that used to have long waits or were always busy are now much less so.

We have heard the excuse of staffing issues since we came back after covid, but in our observation sometimes it`s just bad management pure and simple.

We keep meaning to go back to Bonefish but we never get around to it, Cheddars we thought we`d love, but again, staff and steak not being cooked correctly put me right off it.....should try it again if only for those honey croissants!!!

The Longhorn we go to has only disappointed us once where we had to send Tom`s steak back 3 times......it became a bit of a joke really, but when we went back it was better, so hoping May is a success!

 

[schumigirl]

I will say we will travel a state over to get to Cracker Barrel and Outback because they are better over state lines but we are thankful for the other chains in our area.

I always forget about Cracker Barrel, we`ve only eaten there twice and the first time was in 2007! We went to one in Sanford a few years ago and aside from the food being good we always love the store to meander through, never leave empty handed!!

I took the huff with Outback after they tried to tell me this flat, overcooked dried up piece of hoof was a filet.......er no. It looked like it had been run over by a tyre! That was about 2014 and yes, I hold a grudge....lol........the lady to the table beside us said she thought it was because we were British and didn`t know good steak as the reason they had tried to pass it off to us!!!

We should give Outback another try sometime.

When you say you travel a State over, how far do you travel for that, I`m curious about distance as some folks think we are a little crazy to travel the distances we do to go to a restaurant, and we don`t think it`s far at all!

 

[BroadwayHermione5]

I always forget about Cracker Barrel, we`ve only eaten there twice and the first time was in 2007! We went to one in Sanford a few years ago and aside from the food being good we always love the store to meander through, never leave empty handed!!

I took the huff with Outback after they tried to tell me this flat, overcooked dried up piece of hoof was a filet.......er no. It looked like it had been run over by a tyre! That was about 2014 and yes, I hold a grudge....lol........the lady to the table beside us said she thought it was because we were British and didn`t know good steak as the reason they had tried to pass it off to us!!!

We should give Outback another try sometime.

When you say you travel a State over, how far do you travel for that, I`m curious about distance as some folks think we are a little crazy to travel the distances we do to go to a restaurant, and we don`t think it`s far at all!

Love Cracker Barrel!

I very rarely eat red meat out anymore but my mom and I met friends for lunch last month and her steak was perfectly medium (plus they have amazing lunch deals now!)


So I luck out that I’m literally on the border with the state next to us (so close in fact we frequent restaurants and businesses in that first town over the border and some people in my town have overlapping properties. So it’s anywhere between 30-60 minutes depending on traffic and which restaurant.

The outback literally 20 minutes from us is horrible from service to food, hence why we go over the border. Plus there are still a lot of malls over the border that we frequent too.


Other people in other states might not be as lucky so I recognize the privilege of being so close!

 

[schumigirl]

Love Cracker Barrel!

I very rarely eat red meat out anymore but my mom and I met friends for lunch last month and her steak was perfectly medium (plus they have amazing lunch deals now!)


So I luck out that I’m literally on the border with the state next to us (so close in fact we frequent restaurants and businesses in that first town over the border and some people in my town have overlapping properties. So it’s anywhere between 30-60 minutes depending on traffic and which restaurant.

The outback literally 20 minutes from us is horrible from service to food, hence why we go over the border. Plus there are still a lot of malls over the border that we frequent too.


Other people in other states might not be as lucky so I recognize the privilege of being so close!

Oh that`s nice and handy then for you to get there. I know some states you could spend hours driving and you`re still in the same state......30-60 minutes isn`t too bad a drive for some lovely food.

I do expect steak to be perfect when I order it, I think we`re all the same though, it`s not hard to cook a steak rare, but some chefs seem to struggle there.

We have some lovely bars/pubs/restaurants near us too, but we have about 3 places we love that are about 45-70 minutes to get there, so we make sure we make a real evening of it.

It is a privilege to have so many wonderful options around.

I am going to suggest Cracker Barrel for this trip too, see what they think.

 

[disneyseniors]

Oh of course the Steelers!!!! Almost forgot about them!!

It`s good to know some of the places that were disappointing during and after the pandemic are picking up, hope it continues as there are definite changes from before. We noticed places that used to have long waits or were always busy are now much less so.

We have heard the excuse of staffing issues since we came back after covid, but in our observation sometimes it`s just bad management pure and simple.

We keep meaning to go back to Bonefish but we never get around to it, Cheddars we thought we`d love, but again, staff and steak not being cooked correctly put me right off it.....should try it again if only for those honey croissants!!!

The Longhorn we go to has only disappointed us once where we had to send Tom`s steak back 3 times......it became a bit of a joke really, but when we went back it was better, so hoping May is a success!

Don't forget the Minnesota Vikings football team too, LOL. Sorry Keisha Shadow

 

[schumigirl]

Don't forget the Minnesota Vikings football team too, LOL. Sorry Keisha Shadow

Darn it, I forgot about them too.......lol.....

I`ll never make a sports fan!! Although I`d watch American Football over our football......aside from cricket it is the most boring game on the planet!!!

Yep, not a UK football fan at all.

 

[schumigirl]

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[schumigirl]

One place we all absolutely love and have always enjoyed since way back in 2007 is Confisco Grille and when I asked Kyle which place in each park he looked forward to going back to, this was the first name out of his mouth.

It is perfectly positioned as you exit Port of Entry and turn left towards Seuss area, but because a lot of folks are either rushing in the mornings to get to where they want to go or rushing out in the evenings to get home, this is easily missed and several folks have told me they didn`t even know it was there till they read it on a TR. And for us, it is far superior to Mythos which is clearly coveted as it is busy, but for us, we haven`t been there for many years now preferring CG.

But, we do keep saying we`ll give it a try sometime in the future.

The menu has changed a lot since then, they used to have a slightly more varied menu and slightly different influences, but that`s a good thing for sure. Over the years we had one slightly negative experience from here and it was sorted out nicely and without issue. I think it`s true to judge a place with how they treat you when things aren`t perfect. And they did make it right which is all you look for.

I`m not overly fussed with their cocktails and drinks in here, but only because they are so mass produced, when you see red wine for the sangria come out of a bucket, it`s not as appealing somehow, so I think I`ll stick to something non alcoholic or something they make from scratch.....gin and lemonade works!!!

Confisco has a good bar which used to be better when it was filled with tables and you could just pop in for a drink and get some food too, it was a great place to meet up with friends, something we`ve done many times over the years. The Backwater Bar does have plenty of outside seating too, we`re just not fussed eating outside when it`s so hot, and to be honest we much prefer in Confisco itself.

The chefs here all wear proper whites and proper chef`s hats, which looks so professional, there are several restaurants where this is still the case, and I do like to see it especially in an open kitchen like this one.

In the last couple of years they`ve opened up the upstairs area for dining, originally under the guise of an AP area, but now if you ask you can have your table up there, sometimes you may have to wait a little longer as there aren`t a lot of tables but it`s nice to do it once or twice if only for the views.

It is a much smaller area upstairs, but it is nice, however once you`ve done it a couple of times as we have, we prefer to eat downstairs, it jsut feels cosier somehow.

The menu is delightful and we love most of the options they have.....except for hummus.......first time I tried it years ago, I assumed it was off......then a few years ago a friend made it fresh, told me without doubt I would love it....this woman has known me for thirty years......so I tried it......

​

I`m glad our friendship survived me reacting like someone had spoon fed me Plutonium!!!

So, it`s one dish that we all despise with a passion.....but apart from that and cilantro which they do use a lot of in here, we enjoy most dishes they offer.

The ribs have changed from many years ago too, but again, in a good way as we were lucky enough to be first to taste this dish on their first day on the menu, sweet and sour sticky ribs on goats cheese polenta and we aren`t overly fond of goats cheese but this is delicious.

The Pad Thai is one of the best onsite from the restaurants that offer it, I don`t quite know what sets it aside and makes it better than Mythos for example, I`m not quite sure, but comparing the two of them CG is just better.

Shrimp and chicken are always beautiful and not overcooked and noodles don`t seem to clag together. My only complaint and it is something I do complain about a lot under my breath....it`s just not spicy enough, so if I do order it again, I`ll make sure to ask for my little side pot of jalapenos and swirl them through.

One of Tom`s favourite things to eat is sandwiches......doesn`t matter what kind, if it`s a sandwich he`ll eat it. He still misses their French Dip sandwich from a few years back and everytime tries to encourage it back on the menu, but so far.....doesn`t look likely! I also miss one they used to do with chicken and shrimp.....it was lovely.

The Pork Belly BanhMi is nice, it`s a little too dry for me, but he enjoys it and usually adds some mayo which he loves, and like a lot of their sandwiches, they are very filling!!

The lovely Worfiedoodles and her husband met us here on our last Christmas trip for lunch and it was all lovely, we sat upstairs and had a rather lovely time.

I always say it, but we`ve been so lucky in the friends we`ve made over many years from the Dis. Some we have spoken online and in emails for a long time and some we met many years ago and kept in touch. Worfie and I got friendlier a couple of years ago now when someone was being a real asp to me online and we got chatting about it....and became firm friends then. macraven, keishashadow, tink1957, Robo56 and some that no longer post anymore are just some we`ve met and stayed friends with not forgetting AussieBritTraveller, Matt and Rob who have become very good friends too and were a huge part of our last trip.

So, meeting for food is something we all have in common and something we all enjoy meeting up for.

Worfie got the Ravioli which I think was an AP special dish, she said it was very good and it did look good.

Mr Worfie got the Southwest Salad with grilled chicken which is a dish Tom keeps saying he`s going to have....then decides it`s far too healthy!!!

The lettuce wraps were decent, but I`m not sure I`d order them again, I`m not sure why, I do make these at home for a lighter lunch or for get togethers with friends and maybe I like mine better.......

The Ahi Tuna nachos are again very nice, but Ahi Tuna is really too nice to pair with nachos, but it`s fresh and it was spicy enough as I did ask for extra jalapenos which they brought in a little pot as they doubted I`d need them......I did need them

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Tom enjoyed their Chipotle chicken wrap, it wasn`t my favourite, but it wasn`t my meal as I was informed......lol.....but we do like to share so I think I get an opinion on what he chooses......

The Confisco BLTA is a large dish and although the bread is lovely, I just can`t eat most of it, so I stick to the chicken and everything in the middle which is very nice.

Most folks don`t believe me when I say I have never had a Quesadilla of any kind. I don`t really like cheese, or a lot of cheese and stick to Brie usually, so any I`ve seen always look like they have a lot of cheese in them, so one day I decided to order their chicken quesadilla to try it, with extra jalapeno of course and I also asked for the chef to be light on the cheese....and I really enjoyed it!!

I think Kyle might like this dish as he loves cheese.

One of their AP dishes I really enjoyed was their Dan Dan Noodle dish....this was spicy enough for me without having to add anything and it was lovely. The beef was tender, maybe would have preferred it rare, but that`s not the dish, so I hope this one is on when we go back at some point.

So, this is another "must do" restaurant for us every trip, I honestly cannot recommend Confisco Grille enough.

It`s a pleasant restaurant, it`s got a lovely theme with some interesting displays as you enter and look up, they have curios from each and every land in the park.

Staff are lovely, food is good and it has a lovely ambience about it. Many folks book, but we never have even on recent trips, we turned up just after midday and got a table staright away despite them saying it might be 15 minutes or so.

If you do try it, I really hope you enjoy it.....it`s going to be a place we`ll visit at least once this upcoming trip.

And this for me is such a nice way to spend a Saturday afternoon perusing our favourite places that we`ve enjoyed and look forward to again on our upcoming trip......

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[keishashadow]

He still misses their French Dip sandwich from a few years back and everytime tries to encourage it back on the menu, but so far.....doesn`t look likely! I also miss one they used to do with chicken and shrimp.....it was lovely.

Sadly, both missed to the point where we struggle to find something to satisfy us both there. Are appetizer wings still on the menu?

 

[cstorm65]

I had never been to Confisco before until I was down a couple of weeks ago and had a great meal there. It will definitely be a place we do on future trips!!

 

[cstorm65]

Sadly, both missed to the point where we struggle to find something to satisfy us both there. Are appetizer wings still on the menu?

Yes, I had them a few weeks ago. They were wonderful!!!