GEM
Mommy to Paul - 1lb 7oz wonder
- Joined
- Sep 23, 1999
- Messages
- 5,054
We did a quick five day trip at the AKL to celebrate our little guy's first birthday. This was our first trip with a baby, so we didn't do quite as many sit downs as we usually do. I will say, though, that every single place we ate was extremely accomodating and friendly toward our little birthday boy. He LOVED flirting with the waitresses everywhere we went and they went out of their way to bring him a little fruit or a roll or something to keep him entertained. We never ordered anything for him, as he doesn't eat much solid food yet. I usually just nursed him before we ate and then fed him some of his own food, which we brought from home, after we were finished.
Here is the low down on where we ate and what we thought -
Breakfasts:
Room service on our Animal Kingdom Lodge Balcony: This was so wonderful! I had the bananna stuffed french toast and a side of bacon. It wasn't quite as good as Tonga Toast, but it was very close. DH had a three cheese omlette with bacon that was WONDERFUL! He also had a Bloody Mary and I had orange juice. The food was great and it was so nice to sit and enjoy breakfast on our balcony while we watched the giraffes and zebras out playing in the morning sun. I highly reccomend this to anyone staying at the AKL! It was expensive, but worth it!
Mara: We had quick breakfasts from here two different mornings. Both times, I got ready first and then went down to get the food while DH got ready. We ate these on our balcony as well. One morning we just had pastries - including an absolutely fabulous cheese danish (very moist and yummy). One morning we had great breakfast wraps with cheese, eggs, and sausage. We were pleased both times and thought it was great for food court type food.
Boma: This was great! There were so many wonderful things that I know we didn't get to try them all. The veggie breakfast pizza, the omlettes, the seasoned potatoes, and the sausages were especially great! And that juice was too die for!
Crystal Palace: This was tons of fun and the food was much better than I remembered. We had an 8am ps for a day the park opened at 9am, and that worked out great. We had time to eat and make it over to Dumbo for the first flight of the day. The breakfast lasagna was my favorite and the puffed french toast was great as well. Everything was fresh, hot, and yummy! There was lots of great character interaction, too.
Lunches:
Mara: We had two great lunches here while we were enjoying the pool. We loved their outdoor dining area and it was so nice to sit out there under an umbrella and have lunch. The first time, I had the Tandori Chicken pizza which I thought was wonderful and the second time I had the African Stew in a Bread Bowl, which I also loved! My DH had fish and chips the first time and chicken ceasar salad the second time. He enjoyed them both. He also liked the Savannah Dry Cider and enjoyed several bottles of that during our stay. We had Zebra Domes for dessert both times. Yummy!
Tusker House: This was a decent lunch. We were looking for something quick and close by while waiting for our safari fast pass time, so this fit the bill. I had the Turkey Wrap with corn chowder and DH had the grilled salmon with mashed potatoes and green beans. They were both good, but nothing outstanding.
Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe: We were surprised by how good the food was here! We both had the stacked sandwhiches, which were great! The bread was really fresh and yummy. The topping bar was great, too. We were able to add mushrooms and onions to our sandwhiches. We also split an order of frieds. Everything was hot and fresh.
Fresh: This was one of our two great new finds on this trip! What a wonderful experience!! Everything was so yummy!! We had a little of everything - Italian Wedding Soup, spinach salad, couscous salad, egg salad on toast, grilled lamb paninis, swordfish with a wonderful sauce, mussels and steamers, and lots more! And don't even get me started on the dessert bar. It was the most beautiful bunch of desserts I've ever seen - with hands down the best cheese cake I have ever had in my life! We walked in at 1:00pm with no ps and no wait. This place is a little bit out of the way, but worth it! We will definately be back, and next time we want to try breakfast, too!
Dinners:
Matsunoma Lounge: This was our other wonderful new find and another new favorite! We had a wonderful dinner here about 6pm one night. We ordered several different kinds of sushi and tempura to share. It was very quiet up there - such a nice break from the heat and crowds. We loved the huge windows and enjoyed watching all the people go by. We will definately be adding this to our "must do" list for future trips.
Jiko: This was a wonderful dinner! We had been here before and had an amazing experiene, so we had high expectations. We weren't disappointed! For an appetizer, we shared the Lamb "Patis" - pulled lamb rolled in phyllo. DH had Roasted Monkfish - WONDERFUL! I had the kalamatta olive flatbread and asparagus soup as my entree. They were both SO yummy!! We split the Tanzanian Chocolate Candies for dessert. We also had a bottle of South African wine. A truly wonderful experience!
San Angel Inn: This is an old favorite that we try to hit every time. Love those margaritas! We split the Queso Fundido appetizer. DH had Combinacion Cozumel - Grilled beef tenderloin, marinated shrimp and roasted chipotle served with spicy ranchero sauce, chipotle pepper mashed potatoes and grilled vegetables! He loved it. I had the Mole Poblano - Grilled chicken breast served over a bed of chicken morsels, carrots, chayote chiles, with the classic sauce of spices and a hint of chocolate. This was SO good. I would have licked my plate if I hadn't been in public! We always enjoy our meals here.
Boma: We had been here before and enjoyed it, and we enjoyed it this time as well. There is so much food. It's impossible to try it all. Some of my favorites are the kalamatta olive humus, all the soups, and the Zebra Domes!
Well, that's it. If anybody has any questions or wants more details, I'd be glad to share!
Here is the low down on where we ate and what we thought -
Breakfasts:
Room service on our Animal Kingdom Lodge Balcony: This was so wonderful! I had the bananna stuffed french toast and a side of bacon. It wasn't quite as good as Tonga Toast, but it was very close. DH had a three cheese omlette with bacon that was WONDERFUL! He also had a Bloody Mary and I had orange juice. The food was great and it was so nice to sit and enjoy breakfast on our balcony while we watched the giraffes and zebras out playing in the morning sun. I highly reccomend this to anyone staying at the AKL! It was expensive, but worth it!
Mara: We had quick breakfasts from here two different mornings. Both times, I got ready first and then went down to get the food while DH got ready. We ate these on our balcony as well. One morning we just had pastries - including an absolutely fabulous cheese danish (very moist and yummy). One morning we had great breakfast wraps with cheese, eggs, and sausage. We were pleased both times and thought it was great for food court type food.
Boma: This was great! There were so many wonderful things that I know we didn't get to try them all. The veggie breakfast pizza, the omlettes, the seasoned potatoes, and the sausages were especially great! And that juice was too die for!
Crystal Palace: This was tons of fun and the food was much better than I remembered. We had an 8am ps for a day the park opened at 9am, and that worked out great. We had time to eat and make it over to Dumbo for the first flight of the day. The breakfast lasagna was my favorite and the puffed french toast was great as well. Everything was fresh, hot, and yummy! There was lots of great character interaction, too.
Lunches:
Mara: We had two great lunches here while we were enjoying the pool. We loved their outdoor dining area and it was so nice to sit out there under an umbrella and have lunch. The first time, I had the Tandori Chicken pizza which I thought was wonderful and the second time I had the African Stew in a Bread Bowl, which I also loved! My DH had fish and chips the first time and chicken ceasar salad the second time. He enjoyed them both. He also liked the Savannah Dry Cider and enjoyed several bottles of that during our stay. We had Zebra Domes for dessert both times. Yummy!
Tusker House: This was a decent lunch. We were looking for something quick and close by while waiting for our safari fast pass time, so this fit the bill. I had the Turkey Wrap with corn chowder and DH had the grilled salmon with mashed potatoes and green beans. They were both good, but nothing outstanding.
Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe: We were surprised by how good the food was here! We both had the stacked sandwhiches, which were great! The bread was really fresh and yummy. The topping bar was great, too. We were able to add mushrooms and onions to our sandwhiches. We also split an order of frieds. Everything was hot and fresh.
Fresh: This was one of our two great new finds on this trip! What a wonderful experience!! Everything was so yummy!! We had a little of everything - Italian Wedding Soup, spinach salad, couscous salad, egg salad on toast, grilled lamb paninis, swordfish with a wonderful sauce, mussels and steamers, and lots more! And don't even get me started on the dessert bar. It was the most beautiful bunch of desserts I've ever seen - with hands down the best cheese cake I have ever had in my life! We walked in at 1:00pm with no ps and no wait. This place is a little bit out of the way, but worth it! We will definately be back, and next time we want to try breakfast, too!
Dinners:
Matsunoma Lounge: This was our other wonderful new find and another new favorite! We had a wonderful dinner here about 6pm one night. We ordered several different kinds of sushi and tempura to share. It was very quiet up there - such a nice break from the heat and crowds. We loved the huge windows and enjoyed watching all the people go by. We will definately be adding this to our "must do" list for future trips.
Jiko: This was a wonderful dinner! We had been here before and had an amazing experiene, so we had high expectations. We weren't disappointed! For an appetizer, we shared the Lamb "Patis" - pulled lamb rolled in phyllo. DH had Roasted Monkfish - WONDERFUL! I had the kalamatta olive flatbread and asparagus soup as my entree. They were both SO yummy!! We split the Tanzanian Chocolate Candies for dessert. We also had a bottle of South African wine. A truly wonderful experience!
San Angel Inn: This is an old favorite that we try to hit every time. Love those margaritas! We split the Queso Fundido appetizer. DH had Combinacion Cozumel - Grilled beef tenderloin, marinated shrimp and roasted chipotle served with spicy ranchero sauce, chipotle pepper mashed potatoes and grilled vegetables! He loved it. I had the Mole Poblano - Grilled chicken breast served over a bed of chicken morsels, carrots, chayote chiles, with the classic sauce of spices and a hint of chocolate. This was SO good. I would have licked my plate if I hadn't been in public! We always enjoy our meals here.
Boma: We had been here before and enjoyed it, and we enjoyed it this time as well. There is so much food. It's impossible to try it all. Some of my favorites are the kalamatta olive humus, all the soups, and the Zebra Domes!
Well, that's it. If anybody has any questions or wants more details, I'd be glad to share!
Breakfast on your balcony sounded great. We never saw but only a few animals no matter what time of day we were at akl, thats why the ds refuse to stay there again, but sounds like you had a great time and happy birthday to little paul. He surely is your miracle baby boy!
