If Mickey Cooks It, We Will Come.. And Eat It! (NEW: WCC, Tea, RFC, CM's, & More)

[Hollymom1229]

Hmm...older gentleman who has been at Chefs de France for years? That sounds like Rene. He has waited on us twice in 2007 and 2009. He remembered us between the two trips and absolutely fawned over my niece both times.

 

[NorweJenNY]

I like the way you ate at Chefs de France... you don't always need a big entree at these restaurants. In fact, my mom and I often share one entree and still feel plenty full! That soup looked incredible, and I haven't tried it yet, despite already having gone to Chefs twice! (I'm gonna need to try it soon!) And the flatbread with bacon and onions sounds fabulous! I have a feeling we may have some similar tastes.

I like your reasoning too, about eating in a TS for roughly the cost of a CS. Really, if everyone were to get a full CS meal, with a drink and maybe dessert, you could easily spend the same amount at a TS by just ordering appetizers or a smaller entree, water, and maybe a dessert there as well.

My family loves splitting desserts, btw... the only time we didn't do that was when we were on the DDP, but that was just too much food! Most recently, we've just been using our TiW card, and ordering whatever we wanted from the menu - sometimes appetizers, sometimes an entree, sometimes dessert, sometimes a fun drink, or any combination of those. We felt more restricted on the DDP. (Don't get me wrong though, the DDP is fun... particularly when it's free... )

 

[RachelNinja]

Mmm, looking at that menu, I could so have some lobster bisque right now with the salade au bleu (romaine, bleu cheese dressing, bacon, walnuts, croutons). It would be so yummy right now!

I love how you all get the soup and split something else. It can get to be too much food especially when it's heavy stuff like cheese. It just seems like the perfect amount of food without being too overwhelming.

Great story about the waiter! Love hearing stories like that.

 

[SorcererDonald16]

UPDATE: I'm currently working on the Boulangerie review, as well as a review of Boardwalk Bakery. Look for them in a few hours.

Captain Cook's and thus my TONGA TOAST review will follow tomorrow. Hopefully get my LTT lunch review written and posted tomorrow as well.

Another restaurant on my must do list. Again, I appreciate the menu pics. I have heard nothing but great things about Les Chefs de France.

In the picture of your flatbread there is a bowl in the upper left hand corner. Is that the soup bowl? If it is, it is HUGE!! I am really wanting some of that soup after hearing you describe it!! Great review!

Glad the menu pics are helpful! Yes, that is the soup bowl in the upper left hand corner. There's no false bottom or anything either; it holds a lot of soup! The couple seated next to us ordered soup, an entree, a dessert and come kind of coffee drinks as well. I don't make it a habit of checking out other people's tables, but the tables are close together here and you can't help but notice. It amazes me anyone can eat all that! I'd be sick as a dog.

Hmm...older gentleman who has been at Chefs de France for years? That sounds like Rene. He has waited on us twice in 2007 and 2009. He remembered us between the two trips and absolutely fawned over my niece both times.

The name sounds familiar, so it may well be Rene. If that is his name, everyone ask for him! I'm sure he'll appreciate that when he's running himself ragged on a bazillion tables. In all seriousness though, he's great. Glad you had great experiences as well, assuming it is the same waiter!

I like the way you ate at Chefs de France... you don't always need a big entree at these restaurants. In fact, my mom and I often share one entree and still feel plenty full! That soup looked incredible, and I haven't tried it yet, despite already having gone to Chefs twice! (I'm gonna need to try it soon!) And the flatbread with bacon and onions sounds fabulous! I have a feeling we may have some similar tastes.

I like your reasoning too, about eating in a TS for roughly the cost of a CS. Really, if everyone were to get a full CS meal, with a drink and maybe dessert, you could easily spend the same amount at a TS by just ordering appetizers or a smaller entree, water, and maybe a dessert there as well.

My family loves splitting desserts, btw... the only time we didn't do that was when we were on the DDP, but that was just too much food! Most recently, we've just been using our TiW card, and ordering whatever we wanted from the menu - sometimes appetizers, sometimes an entree, sometimes dessert, sometimes a fun drink, or any combination of those. We felt more restricted on the DDP. (Don't get me wrong though, the DDP is fun... particularly when it's free... )

Thanks for reading! Agreed, it does sound like we have similar tastes! Perhaps you'll find more things you'd like to try as my reviews continue on. I used to be someone who assumed TS was just too expensive to eat at regularly. But if you manage your meals right and don't need a huge meal, you can eat quite well at roughly CS prices. Wish more people knew this. Then again, then it'd be harder to get ADRs! I also hear you on dessert sharing. Very rarely will we ever get 3 desserts. Usually the max. for us is two.

Mmm, looking at that menu, I could so have some lobster bisque right now with the salade au bleu (romaine, bleu cheese dressing, bacon, walnuts, croutons). It would be so yummy right now!

I love how you all get the soup and split something else. It can get to be too much food especially when it's heavy stuff like cheese. It just seems like the perfect amount of food without being too overwhelming.

Great story about the waiter! Love hearing stories like that.

I love cheese, but too much can be kind of nauseating. I spent most of this vacation feeling stuffed, even eating as lightly as I did. Lots of rich food, and more sugar than I'm used to!

I've never had the lobster bisque, but my dad enjoys it! Oddly enough, this place is the only restaurant that he ever eats French Onion Soup at. Doesn't like it unless it comes from Chefs. Not really a big onion fan. They must be doing something right for him to approve!

 

[SorcererDonald16]

Day 3 Snack at Boulangerie Patisserie

We left Les Chefs de France around 8:15pm. So, we had just enough time to do a little shopping before staking out a spot for Illuminations: Reflections of Earth. We aren't one of those families who stakes out territory a long time in advance. We just walk until we get a clear view, or find a bunch of short people we can stand behind (we're all fairly tall). I'd rather have a slightly less magical view and get some other stuff accomplished in the meantime. As in real life, I hate standing around wasting time. That's just how I personally feel about I, myself, standing around a long time waiting for Illuminations, despite it being one of my fave things in all of WDW. Works for many folks, but not for me.

Tops on our list before Illuminations was a visit to the Boulangerie Patisserie. This is the bakery in the France Pavilion of World Showcase. Here is a picture of the outside, and the tops of the heads of the line of folks in front of us:

As much as I adore Kringla Bakeri in Norway, Main Street Bakery, and Boardwalk Bakery, Boulangerie is the best on WDW property, IMO. To me, they have the widest selection, including a lot of unusual desserts you can't find elsewhere.


The Reviews:

Unfortunately, I do not have individual food pics for y'all, but I did take a pic of part of the bakery case! Way better anyway, right?

We waited a fair amount of time in line. This late at night, the line stretches to outdoors every time I've been there. Once you get inside, there are two lines. One veers to the left, and one to the right. A tip: The exact same food is on both sides! Much like POTC's queue, "Please choose either side and keep moving!" Seems to me like a lot of the congestion comes from people unsure of where to go and whether or not they need to check out both sides to see everything. Once you're within ordering distance, it's a simple process. You just point out what you want, they box it up, you check out. Tada! Simple dessert delivery system. They also sell sandwiches, quiches, cheese plates, etc. Never tried any of those though.

We ordered the Raspberry Schuss, which cost $3.95 a piece at the time. If you look at the picture I posted, it is towards the middle of the pic. The top is a red color, and the bottom layers are a yellow-creamy color. We got this to eat a couple of days later back at Wilderness Lodge. Tucked it away in the fridge, and it was fine. It's a fabulous dessert. The top has the raspberry flavor, and I believe a few seeds as well. It tastes like real fruit is used, although I have no way of knowing for sure. Underneath is a light and airy concoction that I don't really know how to describe! Something between a light custard and a light cake batter. Either way, it's very yummy and contrasts the raspberry flavor nicely. If you're like me and love raspberry in almost any form, try this!

The Ratings:

Food: 5x What we ordered was fab, as has everything we've ever gotten here. Looking forward to trying the Schuss again next month hopefully, as well as maybe another dessert (or two!).

Atmosphere: 2x Not much to say here, although they do have some neat decorations and pictures on the wall, such as one of the three French Chefs originally behind Les Chefs de France. Seating is outside. Main complaint is the seating area outside is poorly lit. I like to be able to see my food, and it's really very little light in that area, period. I also think they could benefit from having some huge signs somewhere about the food being the same on both sides of the bakery. I believe they have small signs now, and few people seem to notice them. Either that or they do and don't care, but that's a depressing thought!

Cost: 5x Considering a Mickey Ice Cream bar will cost you about the same chunk of change, I say this is a great value due to the quality of the dessert. While I like the shape of said Mickey bars, I'd rather eat something like the Raspberry Schuss than that. Most everything here (dessert-wise) is in the $2-$4 price range. It's especially a bargain when you compare it to TS dessert prices. Sacrifice the presentation and extras (ex. sorbet), but still great desserts if you're on a budget.

OVERALL: 4x Definitely recommend this to anyone with a sweet tooth, or even those who only occasionally like desserts (like me!). Just be prepared for a wait and no unoccupied tables outside if you go late.

Until Next Time!



Up Next: Day 3 Snack and my Custom Birthday Cake at Boardwalk Bakery!

 

[RachelNinja]

France was so crowded when we were there that we didn't get to explore it at all. I'll have to put it on my list for my next trip along with MK's Main Street Bakery.

I like your logic about the cost of the dessert as compared to the Mickey ice cream bar! I don't feel bad getting the Dole Whip Float because it's a special treat that can't be gotten anywhere else. I wouldn't really feel the same way about ice cream that's similar to ice cream everywhere else. Haha, plus there's the added issue of being lactose intolerant, but that's besides the point.

 

[vinotinto]

Great reviews: love the pictures and the ratings.

 

[letstalkboutdisney]

loved your review of Chefs de france. We are going to try it for the first time in August! You made it sound so wonderful. I can't wait to try it!

 

[SorcererDonald16]

UPDATE: I've been having some Photobucket problems, hence the delay in reviews. I think they've been resolved now. I've got a very busy day today, but will be back tonight with at least the Boardwalk and Captain Cook's (Tonga toast, Tonga toast!) reviews.

France was so crowded when we were there that we didn't get to explore it at all. I'll have to put it on my list for my next trip along with MK's Main Street Bakery.

I like your logic about the cost of the dessert as compared to the Mickey ice cream bar! I don't feel bad getting the Dole Whip Float because it's a special treat that can't be gotten anywhere else. I wouldn't really feel the same way about ice cream that's similar to ice cream everywhere else. Haha, plus there's the added issue of being lactose intolerant, but that's besides the point.

I don't know about square footage, but to me France seems to be one of the smallest pavilions. Everything tends to bottleneck, whether at the bakery or due to the film. Still one of my favorite countries though. Not a fan of their shops, however. Other pavilions have much better shopping opportunities (as if there aren't enough of those in Disney! ).

Thanks for the logic comment! That's how I try to approach Disney Dining-- Cost comparison. Stuff that otherwise sounds expensive really doesn't seem so bad when you sit down and look at the cost of other things. Dole Whip is one of my faves! Unfortunately I never got one this year. Ran out of time and stomach room! Lactose intolerant in Disney? Yeah, I'd imagine that would be hard to deal with there.

Great reviews: love the pictures and the ratings.

Thank you for following along! Hope you enjoy upcoming reviews.

loved your review of Chefs de france. We are going to try it for the first time in August! You made it sound so wonderful. I can't wait to try it!

Glad I helped get you excited for your ADR! It's my favorite restaurant in WDW. Thanks for reading!

 

[SorcererDonald16]

Apologies for the delay with reviews. My computer continues to give me fits. I believe I have it fixed now. I'm going to do my best to get the rest of the reviews written within a week. Thanks for hanging in there, readers!

Day 3 Snack and (Birthday Cake!) at Boardwalk Bakery

Once Illuminations was over, we headed to our car and drove over to the Boardwalk Resort. We weren't going there for the desserts, but we did get a couple of things while there. Our main task was to pick up my custom birthday cake! We didn't eat it until the next night, but I'm including it with the reviews of the other goodies we got here.

dropped and myself at the entrance. From there, to get to the Bakery, you go down the steps on the right and then veer towards your right (the ESPN side of the Boardwalk shops and restaurants). Soon, you'll come up on this small but yummy establishment:

There is very little standing space inside, and I would hate to be here in the mornings when Boardwalk guests are hunting for breakfast! Tables are outside. Here was the menu as it was that night:

And here are a few pictures of the pastry case. Yummy!

​

I love the Mickey cake! For time and cost sake, if I ever spend another b-day in WDW, I may just order one of these.


The Reviews:

Tragically, I have no pictures of the extra goodies we ordered. We ordered 3 key lime tarts for my in-room birthday "party," as well as one of the mini-Mickey cakes. If you look in the first picture of the bakery case, they're towards the middle.

I am ashamed to say my mini-Mickey cake is still in my freezer here! I never could eat it, so kept it refrigerated and froze it when we got back home. I had one in 2008 though, and it's very yummy! The icing coating, which may be fondant (not sure) is good and flavorful. Nice chocolate flavor to it. The cake seemed like white batter with a few colored dots in it. The cake doesn't taste plain to me, but I couldn't tell you the flavor of it. Either way, it's great.

The key lime tarts were very rich, very tangy, and very good! I think I had to munch on it three different times to finish it, it was so rich. Sharp flavor. One of the better key lime desserts I've had.

Now, on to my cake! This was the second year we had ordered my cake from Boardwalk Bakery. The first time we had marble batter with a chocolate mousse filling. We didn't want to cut the cake up to fit into the fridge, and sadly it went bad within a couple days. That particular cake had a screenprint image of Donald in front of Cinderella castle on it, and blue trim. I think it was around $55 or $60. It was a 10" cake (way too big for three people), but if you want a custom cake, that's what you're stuck ordering.

This time I decided to order a marble batter cake with chocolate buttercream filling, hoping that would make it last longer. Not so much! It lasted maybe one extra day. We did put some of this cake in the fridge, so at least that stayed good. The cake is so fresh and moist, the frosting seems to seep into it and just make it a mushy mess unless it's refrigerated. This trip's cake was also 10". I decided to go with a medium purple color for the trim and flowers, and rather than an image, I decided I wanted a chocolate castle on my cake. It's usually white chocolate, but in case I decided to eat it, when ordering we told them that white chocolate makes me ill. They were able to make it in dark chocolate, and they dusted it with gold of some sort. Also said they would put Mickey sprinkles on it. This cake was around $80. We were going to pay when we got it, but apparently since we got there late, they went ahead and charged our CC. We ordered it directly from the Boardwalk Bakery about 3 weeks in advance.

The back of the castle (upside down, haha!):

And a slice of cake that had somewhat fallen apart. Oops!

I was thrilled with both the appearance and taste of this cake! I much preferred the buttercream filling to the mousse from 2008. It was a light cake with a good flavor to it. Obviously fresh. I was really in awe of how pretty it was. Hands down the prettiest cake I've ever had in my life. Was very pleased. The castle survived the trip back home, and is also in my freezer!


The Ratings:

Food: 5x Great desserts, and an incredibly delicious and beautiful cake.

Atmosphere: 2x Nice cases of yummy goodness to look at, but you aren't going in here for atmosphere! The tables with a view of the water are nice though!

Cost: 4x for the pastry case desserts. The ones we tried were great, and prices were fair compared to other desserts on property. For the cake, I rate it a 2x As much as I loved it, the prices are psychotic. And I find it particularly obnoxious that WDW bakeries force you to get a 10" cake if you want much of anything on it. Waste of food and money.

OVERALL: 3 and 1/2x Great unusual desserts, and yummy cakes. Just cramped and crazy cake prices (a property-wide problem).

Until Next Time,
~Sorcerer Donald~

Up Next: Day 4 Breakfast from the Poly's Captain Cook's!

 

[angelsmith52]

Loving the reviews! That cake is fantastic! We have never been to Chefs and probably won't with the kiddos. BUT, if DH and I ever go by ourselves, we are definitely going there!

 

[SorcererDonald16]

Loving the reviews! That cake is fantastic! We have never been to Chefs and probably won't with the kiddos. BUT, if DH and I ever go by ourselves, we are definitely going there!

Thanks! I was very pleased with the cake, that was for sure. Just not the price! As for Chefs, it is a great place to go. If you're worried about child-friendly food, they have things like ham and cheese sandwiches and possibly a child's macaroni too. I'm fairly sure they have different things on the kid's menu, but I can't recall off the top of my head. If you're worried about atmosphere, plenty of children eat there with their parents. Very much a family place. Whomever you go with, I hope y'all enjoy it as much as we do!

On a side note: I just realized I had posted duplicates of the same picture, instead of one of the cake from above and one of the side trim. Whoops! Fixed now. Added a picture of a slice of cake as well.

Be back tomorrow with at least the Captain Cook's and Liberty Tree Tavern reviews.

 

[Cupcake2008]

Great reviews. I love the gold pixie dust on the castle. You should post your cake pictures on the cake chatter thread. People would love to see pictures of your beautiful cake over there and to hear about your ordering experience.

 

[EKW]

I was going to whine about wanting a cake like that for my birthday...until I saw the price! Holy, moly! I'm not a fantastically talented cake decorator, but, given a castle mold I could make the whole cake for under $10. I guess their prices are meant to control the level of demand. Sigh. I wish I were one of the fine folk who can afford to spend that on a cake! It was beautiful!

 

[SorcererDonald16]

Day 4 Breakfast: Captain Cook's at the Polynesian Resort

Our third full day in WDW (4th day overall) was my birthday, and it started out with a breakfast I was very much looking forward to: Captain Cook's CS breakfast from the Polynesian. AKA home of Tonga Toast! We tried this for the first time last year, and I loved it. I can't stand stuff that's too sugary. Large amounts of sugar make me nauseous. I'm the type of person who eats a handful of their Halloween, Christmas, Valentine's and Easter candy, and the rest inevitably ends up in the trash with expired sell-by dates. Yet Tonga Toast didn't seem all that sugary to me in 2008, especially since I didn't use any syrup with it. I eat small meals usually, but even I was able to finish over 3/4 of this the first time. So, I was really excited about getting this again.

once again did a very nice thing and drove over to the Poly from Wilderness Lodge, got all of us our breakfast, and then brought it back to our room. Three cheers for room service that doesn't involve over-inflated prices or a tip!

The Reviews:

and I each ordered the Tonga Toast. For those who have not yet discovered this menu item, Tonga Toast is a very thick piece of sourdough bread that is stuffed with bananas, deep fried, and then coated (and I do mean coated!) in cinnamon sugar. To tell the truth, I am not sure if it is a type of French toast or not, i.e. I don't know if they use egg yolks in the outer coating. It doesn't taste like it to me, but if you have dietary concerns, I would definitely double check this. I feel like I read somewhere a long time ago that it is a type of French toast, but I'm not 100% certain of that.

It was something like $4.95 at the time; current menus says $5.09. Contrast this to the price of the exact same Tonga Toast over at the Poly's Kona Cafe: That Tonga Toast will cost you $10.99. The only difference is you get a side of bacon, ham, or sausage with it, and strawberry compote. So unless you absolutely must have fruit topping and/or pork, or you crave a TS breakfast, do yourself a favor and get Tonga Toast from Captain Cook's. That's $6 saved to go to other yummy treats or souvenirs!

Here are a few pictures of my Tonga Toast:

Ah, Tonga Toast. I pity the people who eat this and then go straight to the parks without brushing their teeth. I wouldn't want to see that dentist bill! The first time I read about this concoction on here, to be honest it sounded pretty disgusting. Cinnamon sugar, sourdough bread, and bananas? Talk about bizarre flavor combinations! It's actually really good, though! The sugar is a wonderful contrast to the sourdough bread, and the bananas provide a flavor somewhere in between the two. If you don't like sourdough bread, I'd be wary of recommending this to you. You can definitely tell it's sourdough bread. Not the strongest type, but not the weakest either. You can tell it's obviously sourdough bread.

Strangely enough, to me this tasted more sugary than it did the first time. Once again, I didn't use syrup with it, so it was nothing different about the breakfast on my end. I could only eat maybe half of it this year. I started to feel nauseous and sick to my stomach really fast. I do plan on trying this again this trip, though. I'm not sure if the sugar is what really got to me, or if it was my rapidly approaching illness. Out of nowhere late that day, while in line for Jungle Cruise, my throat felt like it had been lit on fire. Everything went downhill from there for me over the next several days.

ate a little less of hers than I did of mine. She had never tried Tonga Toast before. In 2008, she was sick during our trip, so she stuck to either pancakes or a Belgian Mickey Waffle that day. Can't recall! Anywho, she liked this, but thought it was too sugary for her taste. She said next time, she'd stick to a waffle. She doesn't care for a lot of sugar.

likes sugary things a little too much sometimes, but in 2008 he realized this was too much for him. So, he decided to order the Belgian Mickey Waffle this year. It cost around $4.50. Here's a pic:

He much preferred this to Tonga Toast. Loved the flavor, and also said it was very light and airy. looked like she wanted to swipe it from him at different points during breakfast, to be honest!


The Ratings:

Food: 5x Only place that you can get Tonga Toast at other than Kona, as far as I'm aware. I know Boatwright's used to have a variation of it, but they no longer serve breakfast, if memory serves me correctly. The waffles are great too. Sadly, this CS Resort location for breakfast puts Roaring Fork to shame at Wilderness Lodge. They don't even have Mickey Waffles there! I believe CC's has Dole Whip floats and soft serve as well!


Cost: 5x Fair prices for what you're getting. The waffle is basically a little more than a danish or pastry at your average Resort CS location, and it's much better according to and . The cost overall at Captain Cook's is especially great when you compare the Tonga Toast CS price to the TS price. Compared to Kona, you're making out like a bandit at Captain Cook's. I fail to see how a couple pieces of bacon or sausage, or a piece of ham, plus the compote, makes it worth another $6. The atmosphere of a TS doesn't make up for it either, IMO.


Atmosphere: N/A Since I didn't see this place for myself, I don't feel comfortable assigning a rating to it for this. It's on the second floor of the Grand Ceremonial House at the Poly. From what I saw of it from a distance later in our trip, it looks nice! Anything at the Poly seems fun to me, though! Love the theme!


OVERALL: 5x Love Captain Cook's, despite the fact I've never actually eaten in there or even seen it for myself! I know said that you use computer touch screens to place your order; he liked that very much. I love Wilderness Lodge, but I don't care for Roaring Forks for breakfast. Wish they would take some cues from CC's at the Poly.


Until Next Time!
~Sorcerer Donald~


Up Next: Message replies & Day 4 Lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern!

 

[jamjar84]

Great reviews.

 

[RachelNinja]

Oo, I like your description of the Tonga Toast. So many people praise it, but you were so descriptive about it that I know now without ordering it that I would NOT like it. Some reviews make it seem as if everyone in the world will enjoy it, but you're very honest about it, and I appreciate that!

 

[Gouden Leeuw]

Just found your thread. Gotta get caught up.

EoS looks very good. Might have to try it on the upcoming trip!

 

[Gouden Leeuw]

It would actually help if I selected subscribe!

 

[OurDogCisco]

Great reviews and thanks for taking the time to finish it!