I'm only in it for the IMAGINEER! 9/28 Dine with an Imagineer COMPLETED!

[crystalcml]

Links to reviews are at the bottom of this post

Hi All,
We are getting ready to head out on vacation. Only 4 weeks to go. We have a special treat this year. My mom is surprising Brandon (SHHH IT'S A SECRET!) with lunch at The Hollywood Brown Derby to dine with an Imagineer. The child dreams of becoming an Imagineer someday. He has no clue about this and we have kept it a secret for 11 long long long months! Even still, I'm already feeling the need for sweatpants, hooded sweatshirts and a month at the gym. Does that stop me? I think not! Here's a little about us:

Me 29:

Loves anything and everything Minnesota Twins, Disney World and anything fun. Favorite princess is Jasmine. Likes the magic of Disney to be just that, magic. Is a really picky eater but will try most things once. Favorite WDW restaurant is Crystal Palace Breakfast. Most looking forward to this trip....Dining w/ an Imagineer

Brandon 14:

Brother to Crystal. Blah blah blah teenager! How I don't miss those days. Likes fast rides, magic and any behind the scenes info he can get his little hands on. If he knows how a ride works or any of the special effects it has plug your ears because he is 10 seconds away from blabbing the secrets. Likes to eat but not willing to try new things. His favorite WDW restaurant is Whispering Canyon Cafe. Most looking forward to this trip....50's Prime Time Cafe

Mary 58:

Mother to Crystal and Brandon. Has an obsession with WDW. She wears her "handy dandy" bottle holder , camera, pin trading lanyard and a fan *see above photo* (as if people can't tell we're from Minnesota enough ) all around her neck. Doesn't like roller coasters but will go on them if we drag her but keeps her eyes shut. Will eat just about anything. Always willing to try something new. Favorite WDW restaurant is Tony's Town Square. Most looking forward to this trip....Dining w/ an Imagineer

Since we decided to do the QSDP this year, we have no idea where the wind will take us. Here are a few of the musts:

Table Services we are paying out of pocket for:
Tony's Town Square (L)
Dine with an Imagineer at Hollywood Brown Derby (L)
50's Prime Time Cafe - Cancelled due to having too many left over CS credits

Quick/Counter Services:
Cookes of Dublin (L)
La Cantina de San Angel (D)
Wolfgang Puck Express (L)
Captain Cook's (D)
Boulangerie Patisserie (L)
Sassagoula Floatworks POFQ (D)
Pop Centry Food Court (B)
Pepper Market (D)

Snacks:
Main Street Bakery #1
Main Street Bakery #2
Main Street Bakery #3
Main Street Bakery #4
Starring Rolls Cafe
Writers Stop
Main Street Bakery #5

 

[msmith1026]

Hi All,
We are getting ready to head out on vacation. Only 4 weeks to go. We have a special treat this year. My mom is surprising Brandon (SHHH IT'S A SECRET!) with lunch at The Hollywood Brown Derby to dine with an Imagineer. The child dreams of becoming an Imagineer someday. He has no clue about this and we have kept it a secret for 11 long long long months

I'm in! I am surprising my husband with Lunch with an Imagineer in October, I can't wait to hear about your experience!!!

 

[bluejasmine]

My DS almost 18 wants to be an Imagineer as well and will join the college or career program soon so I booked him a Dining with Imagineer lunch.

It looks like we are going around the same time..

 

[MickeyNicki]

Cant wait! Have a great trip and take lots of pics!

 

[Sappermont]

Subscribing! Can't wait to hear how the surprise goes over! Sounds like it's going to be an amazing trip!!

 

[crystalcml]

Offfff da! It's finally approaching! We are getting set to head out at 3:30am this coming Saturday morning!

Our Ressies:
50's Prime Time Cafe
Dine with an Imagineer
Tony's Town Square

Our first counter service meals:
Cookes of Dublin
Cosmic Rays

Can't wait to fill you guys in!

 

[Schoolbread]

Uffda! Have a nice time. Be sure to eat a schoolbread in Norway!

 

[crystalcml]

Well hello all! We're fresh back from our trip and armed with pictures and thoughts to share with you all lol.

We arrived in WDW early Saturday afternoon and decided to head to Downtown Disney to grab some lunch as we were ravished. We settled on Cookes of Dublin as our first meal in WDW. My mom didn't care for this place on our last visit, but I talked her into trying it again.

We got there around 1:45pm and the place was jam packed! There wasn't a spot to sit in the entire place. We opted for the patio where we found an open table but that soon fizzled as we were caught in one of Florida's notorious rain storms. We made the most of it and had an enjoyable meal once we found cover lol.

Brandon ordered:
Battered Chicken Tenders and Chips

Crystal ordered:
Battered Burger and Chips - hand-battered beef burger topped with garlic mayonnaise, tomato chutney and mixed greens

Brandon and I shared the chicken tenders and the burger. Everything here is made fresh to order. The chicken strips were juicy on the inside and crisp on the outside. The hamburger is fantastic! However, you can only stand to eat about half as it gets very greasy. I ordered the burger plain because Brandon doesn't like things on his hamburgers but I think it'd be great just the way it comes!

Mary ordered:
The Original One & One - Fish & Chips

Again, everything is made fresh to order. The fish is fresh daily. Mary thought this was the best fish and chips she's had in a while. It was moist and light and it wasn't fishy smelling or tasting. And it had a nice crunch on the outside.

The desserts:
Once again you were limited to your choices for desserts. You had the choice of a cookie, fruit cup or cupcake. Unfortunately.....no Doh Bar!

Brandon, Crystal and Mary all ordered:
Pistachio Cupcakes

We all agree that these are the best cupcakes we have ever tried! They had a thick layer of pistachio frosting on top and a chocolate pistachio filling in the center. They were moist and gooey and altogether great!

I still love this place and I have now made my mom into a believer We liked it so much we went back a second time!!!! I suggest everyone try it at least once!

Stay tuned for more reviews:
Up next...........Tony's Town Square

 

[MickeyNicki]

If I tell Todd about a battered burger he will go crazy, I know he will want to eat there!

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

Cookes of Dublin looks so good! I have to try that place eventually.

 

[Schoolbread]

OH GOOD! This is on our list to try in 2 weeks! I am psyched! I LOVE pistachhio, so I'm all in on that cupcake!

 

[butiflfeet]

Great start! Cookes of Dublin looks yummy as always!

 

[crystalcml]

On our 2nd day we woke up early and went to Magic Kingdom for park opening. We decided to stop in to Main Street Bakery for a light breakfast. Boy were we wrong about the light! Man their pastries are of epic porportions!

Brandon ordered:
Cinnamon Roll

Crystal ordered:
Crumb Cake

Brandon and I shared both items. The cinnamon roll was huge and gooey and fresh and warm. It was nummy. The crumb cake was good. It had a ton of that good crumbly stuff on top and it was fresh.

Mary ordered:
Apple Turnover

Mary says this turn over was goooooddddd! It was light and flaky and fresh and large. She would have about 10 if she could.

One thing......MSB is extremely busy even immediately at 9:00am when we got there. Be prepared for a busy place and there aren't many places to sit. But it's well worth it!

Up next..........Tony's Town Square

 

[crystalcml]

We had a 12:30 ressie for Tony's. We checked in about 12:15 and we seated pretty quickly. We were seated in the gazebo area and had a nice and light view of Main Street. We settled into our table and our server was quickly at our sides. She was very nice and very good. She took our drink order and we asked for more time to look over the menu. Once we decided what we wanted she was back at our table in a snap and took our order.

Brandon ordered:
Spaghetti with Meatballs with Marinara Sauce

Brandon thought this was good. I tasted it and thought it was ok. The sauce was pretty good and didn't taste canned.

Crystal ordered:
Bianca Flatbread with fresh Mozzarella, Garlic, and Basil

Mary ordered:
Caesar Salad with Chicken Romaine Lettuce with Grilled Chicken tossed with Caesar Dressing

Mary and I shared the salad and flatbread. The salad is all kinds of awesome. I can't even put it in to words how good it is! The dressing is perfect and not fishy tasting. I wish I could buy a bottle of it to bring home! The chicken is grilled perfectly and scrumptious. The flatbread was a plesant surprise. I really liked it. It was really fresh and it had a good amount of seasonings. Delish!

Desserts:
Mary was the only one who wanted a dessert so she ordered:
Pistachio Crème Brûlée

Mary loves this dessert. She stopped the waitress mid-meal to order it. She said it's good creamy and had a nice pistachio flavor. The sugar bowl with the fruit in it is good to break up and dip in the brulee. She will definitely be ordering this again and again!

We really like Tony's and will continue to come here no matter what dining plan we choose. The service has been good and the food is always excellent!

Stay tuned.......Up next La Cantina de San Angel and a special MSB treat!

 

[Krissalee]

Thanks for sharing your reviews!

That cinammon roll from Main Street Bakery is calling out to me!

 

[mousegear]

Joining little late!
Enjoying the review! Someday, I need to make it over to Cooks of Dublin.

 

[MickeyNicki]

The crumb cake from MSB sounds pretty good, was it very moist?

I love love love the caesar salad from Tonys, we always order it every time we go

 

[crystalcml]

We decided to have a late dinner on World Showcase Lagoon. Our hope was that we would have a nice spot for Illuminations. We finished early and felt guilty taking up a table for people that were eating so we left our table and wandered around.

The view from our table:

Brandon ordered:
Tacos de Carne - Grilled beef tacos served on handmade corn tortillas with pico do gallo, lime and corn tortilla chips

Brandon loves these. He thought they were good. They were baja style with raw corn tortillas, cilantro and lime.

Crystal ordered:
Nachos - Corn tortilla chips topped with ground beef, nacho cheese, tomatoes, jalapenos, black beans and sour cream

These nachos are huge! They are very tasty. I ordered them just as they came jalapenos and all. I ate about half of these as I didn't have room for any more! I wish I could have these at home!

Mary ordered:
Tacos de Pollo - Grilled chicken served on fresh handmade corn tortillas with pico de Gallo, lime and corn tortilla chips

Mary didn't care for her tacos. She isn't a fan of ethnic foods and she said it had a flavor she didn't care for. So the rest of her imput I will leave out as it's biased

The desserts:
Brandon ordered:
Lime Paletas

This was a frozen popsicle pretty much. Brandon loved it. He was able to go back up and get it after he finished dinner. He still had to eat it kind of fast as it was melting.

Crystal and Mary ordered:
Churros con Cajeta - Churros with milk caramel

These were amazing! You got about 2 regular sized churros cut into 4 pieces. They were crisp and full of cinnamon flavor and downright good! The caramel sauce was different but perfecto when the churros were dipped in it. Yum! I'll be getting about 4 of these next year!

All in all, this place is beautiful. I love Mexican food so I try to make it a point to come every year. Brandon and I definitely recommend it. Mary.......don't ask!

Stay tuned..........Up next, MSB and Wolfgang Puck Express

 

[mousegear]

La Cantina is one of my favorite CS. I love those Nachos!!!

 

[DLo]

Great start. Looking forward to more. My ds13 dreams of working for disney one day so very interested in your dining w imagineer review. We have never tried La Cantina but thinking we will have to this year. Nachos look awesome. Cookes of Dublin is at DTD right? We usually go to WPE or EoS but those pics are maybe swaying us to try another new place.