In less than 24 hours, i'll be at disneyland! UPDATED! thoughts, foodporn, Napa ROSE!

[disneyobsessed808]

Driving out in the morning, and I can't sleep. I'm so excited. Woot!

 

[Mouseaholic!!!]

Oh boy - we will be there Saturday!

Look for the decorated scooter at the Grand Californian!

Have a fabulous trip!

 

[mystic_path]

So Jealous!!! Have a safe trip. Hope to hear your Trip Report once you get back home.

 

[pixiewings71]

See you there!!!

 

[aprincess@mail.com]

YEAH!!!
Have a great time!!

 

[vettegirl]

Have a blast, I will be there next week!!!!!!!!!

 

[disneyobsessed808]

Aloha all! I'm a big jolly asian/hawaiian dude. i'll be solo, having a lime green mickey head on me somewhere.

I'm here. Well, in my hotel for a short break before tonight. Yay. I woke up around 4 and couldn't go back to sleep so I just started driving then, and got to DLR at 10. I'm so excited for the coming days meals, so I promise some food porn. Going to Goofy's Kitchen, Napa Rose, and Cafe Orleans.

Just some thoughts:
-As noted before, no more single rider line for TSMM
-On the other hand, Indy has a single rider, though that already had fastpass (so IMO not as good)
-Parks were not too busy when I got there, but I'm sure it will be busy tonight.

 

[sonnyjane]

YAY! Definitely looking forward to food pictures. I think I'm going to drive up Monday to get my snack on. Bummer about TSMM I'm usually alone at DL so I love anything with SRL's

 

[Echo queen]

Locking in for live updates.

 

[disneyobsessed808]

Alas, there is no food porn to be had. My camera decided to die (not just the battery the entire camera) last night, allowing for only a few pictures - not very good ones either. Haha. Oh well!

I've never done any TRs, so here is just a random selection of thoughts for the day. If anyone has any questions about DLR right now, I can give my solo POV. Haha

- Thanksgiving was not nearly as crowded as I expected it to be. All the guide books says its crazy, when really, it seem like it was a slightly busy weekend night. (Of course, that will probably change this weekend.) The wait for Big Thunder was 10 minutes at 6 pm, and there was hardly anyone watching Billy Hill

- Did Thanksgiving dinner at Goofy's Kitchen. I probably will go somewhere else next year. I felt a bit odd being alone there, and the last time I went there the Fairy Godmother gave me grief about being solo - so I was a little afraid she would be there again.

- The snow is still really magical. Living in Flagstaff, I'm going to get real snow, but Disney snow isn't so cold, so its better. Haha.

- I have been taking advantage of the Premium passholder discounts at all the stores (20% off until January 3rd). I bought gifts and a Pooh Vinylmation for myself. It's awesome!

- DCA is still a huge maze of walls and barriers!

- The lighting(?) ceremony for It's A Small World was around 8:30 pm. It was really cool. I had never seen it before, but its a really cool holiday video thing projected onto IASW with holiday music.

- Before going to Goofy's Kitchen, there were some carolers in the Disneyland Hotel lobby, taking requests. This was around 6:30, but it was nice to here some live festive music.

 

[Petraman]

What hotel are you at? You are going to love the Napa Rose.... very nice!

 

[disneyobsessed808]

I'm staying at the Crowne Plaza. It's decent. $12 Resort fee :\ but at least that includes the shuttle. I got it on Priceline for $40/night so I really can't complain.

I'm so excited for Napa Rose, I've been a few times before and its always spectacular.

 

[CaliforniaDreamer]

Aloha! Enjoying reading about your trip.

What else has single rider now? The DL site does not list these.
Someone asked me about Space Mt, Thunder Mt and Matterhorn.

Can't wait to hear about your Napa Rose experience. I did the counter special meal planned by the chef and it was outstanding.

 

[disneyobsessed808]

Aloha! Enjoying reading about your trip.

What else has single rider now? The DL site does not list these.
Someone asked me about Space Mt, Thunder Mt and Matterhorn.

Can't wait to hear about your Napa Rose experience. I did the counter special meal planned by the chef and it was outstanding.

Thanks!

As far as Single Rider, the only ones in Disneyland are Indy and Splash. In DCA, Screamin', Grizzly River Rapids, and Soaring over California. I don't remember if Mulholland Madness does or not, as I never ride that.

I'm really excited to eat at the Napa Rose again.

 

[DisneySuiteFreak]

Aloha disneyobsessed808! I'm sending you an shaka! I'm enjoying yor reports too! Thanks for posting! What a bummer about the camera! I would so if that happened to me on my first day of my trip. I feel for you eating alone on Thanksgiving. I would be uncomfortable in that environment by myself too. I bet there were a lot of families, etc. Love the updates!Keep 'em coming.

 

[disneyobsessed808]

thanks for following everyone!

so today was my last full day at disneyland. tear. . oh well. i will be back in just a couple of weeks. silly things like school can't keep me away from the happiest place on earth.

so just a few notes and observations for the past few days.

- parks were much less busy than I was expecting. wednesday was the most crowded day, but thurs-sat was moderate crowds. this saturday morning around 10:30 am only had to wait 15 minutes for nemo subs. i definitely am glad i invested in a premium ap to come this weekend! (also got better discounts, so definitely worth it)

- tiana's show boat jubilee was canceled on sat. after the entire cast sang one song walked out onto the boat, saying that it was due to inclement weather. the 12:30ish show was also canceled due to unforeseen circumstances. anyone else there? know what was up?

- those midway games are super addictive. i spent a good chunk of money trying to win bullseye to no avail. i did win a dumbo and a fishing mickey. for those of you who like the fishing game or with children who like the fishing game, here's a hint that the cast member told me. look around the jet of water that pushes the fishes around the moat. sometimes the jet pushes the fish so that you can see the dot color underneath, so if you see a blue or red one you can get a mickey or goofy. i got a mickey and was so happy!

- TSMM was not open when the parks opened up fri or sat morning. i'm still bitter about no single rider, but did get to go on sat night.

- the Billies are still as awesome as ever. i enjoy their holiday spectacular.

- the waterways need to be cleaned up. there is so much stuff floating in the finding nemo lagoon, in particular the fake plants that have detached.

- a midday hotel break is essential (at least for me)

- i was feeling crazy and decided to go on GRR around 7:30 pm. i got the boat to myself, and the ride was super rough and white watery. i felt like i was being tossed around.

- i have been doing some serious damage to my credit card balance. got some shag stuff and a winnie the pooh vinylmation. i had to keep checking at the world of disney store for that. i checked on wednesday evening, came back first thing in the a.m. on thursday, they didn't have it. came back in an hour and found one. yay!

- is anyone else amused by the abruptness of the fantasyland dark rides? mr. toad and snow white are really scary, but you emerge from the ride and it says "and they lived happily ever after"

finally, napa rose was uh-maz-ing!!! i will write another post later. i used my phone to take pictures, so be ready for some low quality food porn!

 

[disneyobsessed808]

its back to reality. spent a few hours in the park and drove back to az. *tear. i'll write a few more notes later and my napa rose experience and pics will be up today or tomorrow. woot.

 

[disneyobsessed808]

My last day in the parks was a few hours spent in the morning, and here were some final thoughts

- The parks on Sunday morning seemed noticeably busier than the three preceding days of Thanksgiving Weekend.

- I wish the World of Disney store had fitting rooms, or at least more mirrors. The ones they have are inconveniently placed, like right next to the register. I am also kind of bitter as someone stole some candies that I had bought that morning. While trying on the jacket, I had to put down the bag I was holding on the ground. After I looked in the mirror to see how it looked it was gone . I know this is my fault, but I can't believe that someone would take it, and if the store did have fitting rooms, this wouldn't be an issue, IMO. Gah!

Anyway, I will be back to Disneyland in less than two weeks. I can't wait!

 

[disneyobsessed808]

Onto the food - For the most part the food was solid, most of it was good, though some of it not as good as I remember it being. Here's the rundown of what I remember having

Wed Dinner - Pacific Wharf: Chili Bread Bowl and Edamame. I don't know if the recipes for this and Disneyland's Veggie Chili are the same, but I definitely prefered the Disneyland one. The edamame was very fresh but underseasoned. Rating: 7/10

Thur Breakfast - Jazz Kitchen Express: Breakfast Burrito and Beignets. Breakfast burrito was super bland, but the beignets were deliciously messy. Rating: 6/10

Thur Dinner - Goofy's Kitchen. I love the selection of foods here. The Caesar Salad was great, as was the NY Strip and rice pilaf. I even loved the ice cream bar. The pork was dry and the desserts were okay. Rating 8/10

Fri Breakfast - Tomorrowland Terrace: Breakfast Burrito. Better than the burrito at Jazz Kitchen. It had better seasoning and held together better. Rating: 7/10

Fri Lunch - Whitewater Snacks: Chicken/Beef Nachos. These are the best nachos I have ever eaten. Period! Rating 10/10

Fri Dinner - Napa Rose: Chef's Counter. I'll talk about this in the next post but suffice to say - awesome Rating: 11/10

Sat Lunch - Cafe Orleans: Monte Cristo and Pomme Frittes. After reading all the rave reviews for the pomme frittes, I had to come here. Well, they were alright. It was a bit cold, and the cheese/garlic didn't stick to the fries very well. The Monte Cristo was good, but I guess I don't remember it well. I don't remember it be so doughy. But hey, anything deepfried is yummy. Rating 7/10

Sat Dinner - Lucky Fortune Cookery: Tofu with Curry sauce. This was surprisingly yummy. The sauce was a bit on the sweet side, but packed a lot of flavor, and there was enough sauce for the rice. Rating 8/10.

So there you have it, next up Napa Rose

 

[disneyobsessed808]

I have gone to the Napa Rose six times now, and every time I go, it's love. I love everything, from the service, to the food, and the ambiance. I am most definitely living beyond my means when I go there, but I feel like I deserve to splurge.


Anyway, this time around my reservation was for the Chef's Counter at 5:30 p.m. While I waited, I had the Napa Passion cocktail, definitely suggest it for those of you who like fruity drinks. Soon enough I was seated and the waiter told me about the menu or that I could let the chef take care of me. I had sat at the counter before, but always ordered for myself from the menu so that was pretty new. The waiter left me to decide, but after a few minutes, he went up to the chef and told him that I would let the chef decide. Put on the spot, I just went along with it, though I was worried because I don't eat/like seafood. Fortunately the chef asked me what I liked and I basically said anything but seafood, which worked out fine (I was nervous because I wondered if he would be offended that I didn't like seafood. Haha) They also asked me if I would like wine pairings, but I opted for just a pairing with the main course.

The amuse bouche I had was a Spicy Beef Spring Roll. It was the perfect little bite to start the meal. Made me hungry for more. No pic of that - Sorry.

The first course the chef brought out was papardelle pasta with veal, figs. The pasta was great but I wish there was more of it. It was yummy. I mopped the sauce with my bread.

The second dish was venison empanadas. This was really delightful and the spicing of the meat was great, though I probably could not have tasted the difference had they used beef. Still great though.

The third dish was pheasant stuffed with chorizo, peppers and served over lentils. This was my favorite dish of the night. The pheasant was super moist. Being the first time tasting pheasant, it reminded me of duck and turkey combined. The wine they selected for me was excellent and went great with both this course and the next.

The fourth course was short ribs with wild rice risotto. The short ribs were delicious and tender, but the risotto was the real hit. It was creamy and delicious, with great texture. I could have eaten another bowl of that stuff.

For dessert was a smore's pb popover, which I had before, and again, it too was great. The popover was exploding with chocolate. Sorry no pic of that.

All in all, it was a great night. Yes, it's not cheap but it is so worth the expense. Having the chef choose my meal was the best decision I could have made, as I probably have chosen the safe and boring things. I definitely suggest everyone go at least once