(Insert Witty Dining Review Title Here) June 17-24 (updated 8/5)

[jecskc]

So, I'm getting caught up, and ran across your Nov. ADRs. I advise you to stick with the pizza at Via Napoli. We went last Oct. and I got something other than pizza..chicken parm I think.. and it left a lot to be desired. Far better food at Olive Garden. Perhaps it is better now. Via Napoli had only been open a few weeks when we went.

Also as a side note, the walk up pizza window they have outside Via Napoli is not the same pizza as inside. I don't get it. DD and I stopped there last March to grab some dinner, and the pizza was this extremely thick crust cheese laden number. I love a think crust, but this stuff was ridiculous. I don't know why they just didn't slice up the stuff they make inside. It was very odd.

Back to reading now...

Do you think I should change this ADR ?? Of course we all love pizza, but I was kinda wanting to try something else. Maybe Tutto ?? I don't want to waste a credit on an undeserving restaurant.

Since we are staying at the Boardwalk, we have all of those restaurants nearby ........

 

[Pixie Princess]

WPE was very good. I was surprised that it was so small and I had thought that there was more on the menu. Maybe the Cafe next door is the CS spot everyone talks about so much. We might check it out in November and see. Anyway, the pizza was very good and there was plenty of food. Desserts were good, too.

I think WPE is/was undergoing a refurb, and it looks like they made some space at the Cafe while construction is going on (or maybe they added another cafe to serve that side of DTD?) WPE is actually located in the Marketplace section, and is fabulous. You absolutely get bang for your buck there, and they have way more than pizza. We usually eat at least one meal there each trip, but didn't on our last one due to time constraints. I do have to say the cashiers are hit or miss with that place. What is nice about WPE though is they do have people who service your table..bring your food to you, refill your glasses etc., and those folks have always been wonderful.

The Cafe is a TS place, and is okay. We've eaten there a few times, but I've only found one thing on the menu that is outstanding, and they took it off the menu a couple of years ago and now only offer it as a special (or at least that has been the case the last couple of times I went) I think that is why I'm just so-so about the Cafe. We went there on our first trip and I had that mahi mahi, and the experience now just doesn't live up to the first time we went. The sushi is quite good though. I'd probably just stick with that if we go back.

 

[jecskc]

I think WPE is/was undergoing a refurb, and it looks like they made some space at the Cafe while construction is going on (or maybe they added another cafe to serve that side of DTD?) WPE is actually located in the Marketplace section, and is fabulous. You absolutely get bang for your buck there, and they have way more than pizza. We usually eat at least one meal there each trip, but didn't on our last one due to time constraints. I do have to say the cashiers are hit or miss with that place. What is nice about WPE though is they do have people who service your table..bring your food to you, refill your glasses etc., and those folks have always been wonderful.

The Cafe is a TS place, and is okay. We've eaten there a few times, but I've only found one thing on the menu that is outstanding, and they took it off the menu a couple of years ago and now only offer it as a special (or at least that has been the case the last couple of times I went) I think that is why I'm just so-so about the Cafe. We went there on our first trip and I had that mahi mahi, and the experience now just doesn't live up to the first time we went. The sushi is quite good though. I'd probably just stick with that if we go back.

Sushi ....... ick. Not my thing.

Have you ever made that candy sushi for your DD ??? My kids love that stuff.

 

[Pixie Princess]

Do you think I should change this ADR ?? Of course we all love pizza, but I was kinda wanting to try something else. Maybe Tutto ?? I don't want to waste a credit on an undeserving restaurant.

Since we are staying at the Boardwalk, we have all of those restaurants nearby ........

If you are wanting an Italian meal, I'd switch to Tutto. We actually cancelled Tutto for Via Napoli since it opened in time for the trip last year. I'd check out some more recent reviews and see what people have to say about the food outside of pizza. Since it had just opened when I went, it could very well have improved. The decor and atmosphere of Via Napoli is really cool. If I had ordered pizza, I would have really enjoyed the experience.

If you weren't on DDP, I'd say give the Italian place at the Swan and Dolphin a shot. I hear it is very good, and I think it participates in TiW. I can't remember for sure..it has been a while since I looked into TiW.

 

[Pixie Princess]

Sushi ....... ick. Not my thing.

Have you ever made that candy sushi for your DD ??? My kids love that stuff.

No we haven't. I thought what a great idea when you said ya'll made at home. You'll have to give me the candy combinations.

 

[jecskc]

I think WPE is/was undergoing a refurb, and it looks like they made some space at the Cafe while construction is going on (or maybe they added another cafe to serve that side of DTD?) WPE is actually located in the Marketplace section, and is fabulous. You absolutely get bang for your buck there, and they have way more than pizza. We usually eat at least one meal there each trip, but didn't on our last one due to time constraints. I do have to say the cashiers are hit or miss with that place. What is nice about WPE though is they do have people who service your table..bring your food to you, refill your glasses etc., and those folks have always been wonderful.

The Cafe is a TS place, and is okay. We've eaten there a few times, but I've only found one thing on the menu that is outstanding, and they took it off the menu a couple of years ago and now only offer it as a special (or at least that has been the case the last couple of times I went) I think that is why I'm just so-so about the Cafe. We went there on our first trip and I had that mahi mahi, and the experience now just doesn't live up to the first time we went. The sushi is quite good though. I'd probably just stick with that if we go back.

If you are wanting an Italian meal, I'd switch to Tutto. We actually cancelled Tutto for Via Napoli since it opened in time for the trip last year. I'd check out some more recent reviews and see what people have to say about the food outside of pizza. Since it had just opened when I went, it could very well have improved. The decor and atmosphere of Via Napoli is really cool. If I had ordered pizza, I would have really enjoyed the experience.

If you weren't on DDP, I'd say give the Italian place at the Swan and Dolphin a shot. I hear it is very good, and I think it participates in TiW. I can't remember for sure..it has been a while since I looked into TiW.

I'll look into Tutto. I KNOW the kids will eat pizza, though. I'll take another look at the menu and decide.

 

[jecskc]

We had 5:15 reservations for

At this dinner, we would use the last of our table service credits.

We sat down and I immediately ordered a Celtic Cocktail

Where upon it mixed nicely with my Vicodin. Ah yes.

(I was having some back problems during this trip and I am still having problems. Back pain is the worst, I’m here to tell you.)

I did decline a refill when he asked me if I wanted one. I did want to be able to walk back to the car.

DH got the beer flight

Here he is double fisting it.

The kids got cokes.

Our waiter, Joe, was super nice and talkative. He brought us some soda bread.

This bread was just strange. It had a sweet taste and it was really thick and heavy. I wasn’t sure what to think of it. We didn’t eat much of it.

We thought we only had 3 TS credits left, so DH and I were going to split something. So we ordered the calamari for an appetizer.

Calamari City - Salt 'n' Pepper calamari and mixed tempura vegetables served with a spicy remoulade

They fried everything on their menu in a tempura type of batter. Which is OK. But not my favorite. The calamari was good and the dip they had for it was good, too. The fried veggies ?? Not so much. Just not my thing. I mean I like fried zucchini and even some green beans can be good. But they had carrots and broccoli fried up in batter in there. And it was just strange. Again, not my thing. The calamari was good though.

So when we were ready to order our entrees, Joe came back and let us know that we actually had four TS credits left instead of three. So I quickly ordered the Salmon.

Baked Atlantic salmon filet topped with smoked salmon, served with a maple glaze.

This was really good. The salmon had a savory glaze and the potatoes were really good. I would so order this again.

But if I had known that we had four credits, I would not have ordered that appetizer.

DH got the Short Ribs

braised ribs with horseradish mash, carrots and parsnips

And another beer.

I really enjoyed my dish and DH enjoyed his as well. He did say that there was some fatty parts to the ribs, but he just ate around it. This was a TON of food for us. Good food though.

DS ordered a burger.

Char grilled sirloin beef burger with bacon, tomato chutney, and Dubliner vintage cheddar. Served with Irish style chips

He ordered it plain. Just bun, cheese and burger. And he got onion rings instead of the fries.

He said it was good and he ate all of his onion rings. But ate about 2/3 of the burger which was huge.

And DD ordered the chicken strips and fries.

Two deep-fried chicken goujons with Irish style chips.

Not a crumb left. She loved it.

These windows were very pretty. It is hard to see in this picture, but it had XOXOX in it.

Then the band and the dancers came out.

They were really fun to watch.

For dessert, DS and I ordered the Dunbrody’s Kiss

Chef Dundon's gift to America. Chocolate. Add chocolate. Then add some more. With us?

It was really good, but I couldn’t eat it all. Neither could DS. So we got them to go. And ate them later at the villa.

DD ordered two scoops of chocolate ice cream, with chocolate syrup on the side.

She ate two bites and that was it. I think she was full and not that it tasted bad at all.

DH got the Dundon’s Delight

(I don't see a description for this on the allears.net menu. But it was a meringue sort of cookie with some ice cream.

Which he really enjoyed.

We would definitely eat here again. The food was really good and the dancers were really cool.

 

[bigal'sdaughter]

Awesome review!
Ok .. so we did Tutto in Feb b/c DH wanted a bigger/more filling meal for supper and it was VERY tasty. The pasta and sauces were hot and fresh. DD ordered something pasta off the kids menu which was a pretty good size -if I remember correctly. I had a strawberry prosecco drink (yum!) and DH had an adult something too. We were really hungry and it was a filling meal - and it was only bread plus main courses!
Now we don't do the dining plan - so I can't speak to how good a use of a TS credit it is - but the main courses and drinks were great!
We have Via Napoli booked for Oct - b/c we just really want to try it- again no dining plan as of yet...

Thanks again for the awesome review - can't talk DH into Raglan Road as of yet... don't know why not.. but honestly he'd be happiest going to epcot every evening for a week - doing a ride or two, seeing a character, eating a yummy meal, and walking around a bit before hitting the caramel shop or the patisserie.

 

[POOHS3]

Just curious what time did the music and dancers start? On the website it says 7:00. I keep trying to get a reservation around 6:30, but right now we are stuck with 5:30. Thank you, for any intel. Kristin

 

[Kat in GA]

I have seen quite a few nice reviews of Raglan Road lately - I am now feeling the need to figure out a way to schedule it for my girls trip!! Do you know if there is "entertainment" all the time? Just at dinner? Just on weekends?

 

[sjs314]

Enjoyed your review of RR. I had originally planned on going in the evening so we could catch the show, but when I had to change ADRs around after we switched resorts I opted to do lunch instead. We are going for the fish & chips mainly so we shall see how theirs rate in October.

 

[jecskc]

Awesome review!
Ok .. so we did Tutto in Feb b/c DH wanted a bigger/more filling meal for supper and it was VERY tasty. The pasta and sauces were hot and fresh. DD ordered something pasta off the kids menu which was a pretty good size -if I remember correctly. I had a strawberry prosecco drink (yum!) and DH had an adult something too. We were really hungry and it was a filling meal - and it was only bread plus main courses!
Now we don't do the dining plan - so I can't speak to how good a use of a TS credit it is - but the main courses and drinks were great!
We have Via Napoli booked for Oct - b/c we just really want to try it- again no dining plan as of yet...

Thanks again for the awesome review - can't talk DH into Raglan Road as of yet... don't know why not.. but honestly he'd be happiest going to epcot every evening for a week - doing a ride or two, seeing a character, eating a yummy meal, and walking around a bit before hitting the caramel shop or the patisserie.

I am struggling to decide whether or not to keep the Via Napoli or switch it to Tutto since my good friend Pixie Princess said Via Napoli was kinda meh. I need to think on it (think, think).

I would be happy doing that every day of our trip, too But ..... he needs to branch out. Raglan Road was a big hit for us.

Just curious what time did the music and dancers start? On the website it says 7:00. I keep trying to get a reservation around 6:30, but right now we are stuck with 5:30. Thank you, for any intel. Kristin

Our ADR was for 5:15 and the dancers came out about the time we had dessert, so 7:00 PM sounds about right. We really took our time with dinner. We even got drinks and appetizers before we even ordered dinner. So 5:30 PM should be a good time. You get to eat and see the dancers before it gets too crowded or too noisy. And you would have the whole night ahead of you for DTD or something else. I would stick with 5:30 PM, but I like to eat early.

I have seen quite a few nice reviews of Raglan Road lately - I am now feeling the need to figure out a way to schedule it for my girls trip!! Do you know if there is "entertainment" all the time? Just at dinner? Just on weekends?

I would definitely recommend Raglan Road. But that was the first time we had ever been there, so I don't know much about their schedule. The day we ate there was Wednesday and the dancers came out towards the end of our meal, which was about 7:00. Other than that, I'm not sure. Maybe you can do a search on the DIS and see if there is a thread about it ?? But I would recommend the restaurant to anyone for sure.

 

[jecskc]

Enjoyed your review of RR. I had originally planned on going in the evening so we could catch the show, but when I had to change ADRs around after we switched resorts I opted to do lunch instead. We are going for the fish & chips mainly so we shall see how theirs rate in October.

I would imagine lunch would be just as good. I had my eye on the fish and chips, too, but after having the fried calamari as an appetizer, I thought I should switch to ... well ... something less fried. The platters (or baskets) of fish and chips I saw going to other tables did look good. October is such a great time to go. You get a break from all of the heat. It was over 100 here again today and I am sooooooo ready for Fall !!

 

[jecskc]

I had forgotten my visor on this day …. Again …. So I had to buy another one. I went into the Emporium to look for one. And they really didn’t have that many. One of the CM’s that was helping me went into the back and brought out all of the kinds of visors they sold there which I thought was really nice of her. Two of them I already had, and three I didn’t really like much, so I chose this one.

Some Main Street photos

So I then joined DH and the kids who were trying to use up food credits in the Main Street Bakery.

This is what they got:

A cheese Danish

An apple turnover

A Powerade

Some orange juice

A coke

A bagel

Some grapes

And the all important coffee.

Everything was good and the only thing that didn’t get all of the way consumed was the bagel. DH had let the CM know that we a bunch of excess credits and instead of charging us 8 snack credits she evened it out a bit and charged us a couple of CS credits and some snack credits.

 

[tink too]

Just popped over after reading the rest of your TR - I'll be back later to catch up.

The S'mores Cheesecake at WCC looks devine!

 

[jecskc]

Just popped over after reading the rest of your TR - I'll be back later to catch up.

The S'mores Cheesecake at WCC looks devine!

Thanks for stopping by !! That cheesecake was awesome !! I want some right now !!

 

[nicole0992]

Thanks for taking the time to do such great reviews. I am enjoying reading them. The last meal at Main St. Bakery made me drool.... love those cheese danishes!!! I am going to have to try Raglan Road our next trip. Your meals looked delicious.

 

[jecskc]

Thanks for taking the time to do such great reviews. I am enjoying reading them. The last meal at Main St. Bakery made me drool.... love those cheese danishes!!! I am going to have to try Raglan Road our next trip. Your meals looked delicious.

Thanks for stopping by to read and say hello !!! Raglan Road was really good, definitely gonna try that one again. Just think how yummy everything would have looked if I was a better photographer !!! I need to try to take better pictures. DH says that it because my hands are shaky and they are. And especially so on this trip because I was taking meds for my bad back. I really should just let him take the photos.

 

[jecskc]

And then it was time for some lunch. So we cut through Adventureland back to Liberty Square to eat here

I ordered while DH snagged us a quiet place upstairs to eat.

DD and DS got Chicken Nuggets

He likes ketchup.

DH and I got the fried shrimp

DH and I really liked this. It was a lot of food. Our view was awesome. We were looking over the courtyard for the Haunted Mansion (and the wait at this time was up to 30 min). For dessert we had Apple Crisp and a Chocolate cake.

DD’s kids meal came with grapes and strawberry yogurt which DS ate while she enjoyed the Choc Cake

We loved this place and thanks to the DIS, we found the upstairs dining room super quiet and much less hectic than downstairs. This was the perfect little oasis for us for lunch and we really enjoyed it.

 

[jecskc]

Back at the resort, my feet were killing me along with my back, so I took some meds and started to pack and do a last load of laundry. DH and DD went up to Goods To Go to get dinner. And he basically got the same thing as Tuesday night. Burger, Chick nuggets and a hot dog. We had a glass of wine and packed up some more stuff, watched baseball and went to sleep. Our last night at OKW ……

The plan for today was to go to Epcot. Since we had toured Future World our first Epcot day, this day would be all about the countries in World Showcase. After packing and check out we got to the park about 10:15 AM. First on the agenda, breakfast at Sunshine Seasons.

DH got the breakfast platter,

French toast, eggs, potatoes and a biscuit. He had coffee to drink.

DD got a Powerade and a cinnamon roll.

DS ordered an adult French toast platter, but they gave him a child’s one.

He had water to drink.

I just shared with everyone.

I gotta say, Sunshine Seasons is just meh to me. Next time we meet at Epcot, we will give some restaurants in the countries a try for sure. The bad thing is that World Showcase doesn’t open until 11:00 AM, so not a great breakfast option for us.