BlovesC
home is where the Yeti is
- Joined
- Apr 1, 2008
- Messages
- 2,613
Hello all! This might be the briefest dining review ever! But I've been really dying to check out the new Art of Animation resort...DH and I finally had a day off together and decided to check it out!
BUT FIRST! We spent the morning at MK, and after a few hours of the sun beating down on us, I decided we were due some ice cream. On a whim, I purchased my FIRST! EVER! MICKEY BAR! And I need to apologize to all you reviewers out there...because I've always been confused by the adoration heaped upon these bars on the board. I grew up with those cheap generic grocery store ice cream bars and I never liked them, a rectangle of crappy vanilla ice cream covered in waxy chocolate, ick. I always assumed the mickey bar was so popular ONLY because it was shaped like Mickey. And while I'm sure that does add to the magic, I have to say:
This is sooooooo much better! I finally get it, and you're NOT all crazy! The ice cream was super rich and the chocolate was very thick and tasty, not at all like those run of the mill ice cream bars! Lesson learned, if legions of DiS board members swear by something, they MAY be right!
Anyway, we headed over to AoA after our MK fun and I literally squee'd when we approached the entrance to the main building:
I looooooooooooove the artwork everywhere, the fun colors, and the stunning chandelier in the lobby! Anyway, we headed to the Landscapes of Flavor and took in all the options. Like most food courts, the offerings are separated by cuisine. I headed to the burger line while DH went to the sandwich line.
Now, placing was my order was a little interesting. The CM who took my order seemed to be new and was asking for a lot of help from her partner. I was called up and said "one vegetable burger please". CM: *glazed look* "Veggie burger?" Me: "Yes, the veggie burger." CM: "You...you want...ok..." *calls her partner over* Partner CM: "And did you want the popcorn shrimp on that?" Me: "...on the veggie burger?" CM: "OH! Veggie burger!" It was so odd...but I think they just maybe haven't really familiarized themselves with the menu yet? It was a bit of a wait for my burger to be done, because they already had a row of regular burgers cooking and ready to be customized, so several customers came and went while I stood there. My burger was scooped out and plopped onto the grill only after I ordered, but at least that means it was super fresh! 
Anyway, here's what we got!
I chose the "House-made vegetable burger topped with pepperjack cheese and a fried green tomato on a brioche bun".
I'm not a vegetarian, but I love a good veggie burger, especially if it's spicy. This had a nice kick to it, but most of that was from the cheese and from the spicy dressing they topped it with. This was nothing like any veggie burger I've had before...I was expecting the typical meat-lookalike Boca patty deal. It looked and tasted like soybeans, corn, carrots, breadcrumbs, and spices were thrown into a food processor, and this mixture seems to be plopped onto the grill from the fridge in a rather loose form. So it formed a sort of giant GREEN ball on the bun. It wasn't the most appetizing looking thing, and it would have been nicer if they had pressed it down into a patty form more, I had to cut it in half to keep the ball o' burger from oozing out when I ate.
I so wish I'd taken a second pic....that bright green stuff, right under the cheese? THAT is the burger. DH thought it was guacamole!
BUT! Looks can be deceiving! I LOVED this meal! The brioche bun was amazing...soft, fluffy, and rich. The fried green tomato offered a good crunch that the burger and bun didn't have...and the pepperjack and spicy dressing offered that slight kick that I love. The fries were hot, crispy, and tastier than the typical QS spuds.
DH chose the "Buffalo-style Turkey Sandwich", sliced turkey, blue cheese, arugula, and buffalo sauce-mayonnaise on a multigrain bread.
It wasn't quite as small as it looks, because he took a couple bites before I got the pic.
It still seemed like a wimpy portion compared to my meal, though. DH loves buffalo sauce and blue cheese, but this didn't "WOW" him. The turkey was pretty thick slices, which most people would prefer, but DH thinks it would have been better with thinner lunchmeat and moooooore buffalo sauce. Also, his sandwich was two halves that didn't match up...one was very thick, one was sort of thin. It was sort of odd. I tried a bite and I agree, for something with "buffalo" in the name it was kind of bland. Also, you can't really tell from the picture, but the coleslaw was served in a thimble-sized bowl. It's seriously the type of bowl you usually get served, say, tartar or cocktail sauce in. It was two forkfulls! So, not a success here, which made me feel bad for DH.
Luckily, he'd been so starving that he'd already picked out a second entree.
He got the spicy tuna sushi from the refrigerated grab & go case:
Nothing new and exciting about refridgerated sushi, but he likes the fact that it has a sticker on it saying it was prepared in the Japan pavillion in Epcot. He enjoyed this more than his sandwich.
I also couldn't resist picking up one of the AoA rice krispy treats!
Sooooo cute! I have no idea what it tastes like, I'm not sure I'm even going to open it. The CM who rang us up said I should keep it forever, then when they no longer make these rice krispy treats anymore I can pull out my collector's item and reminisce about back in the day! That guy sounds like a DiS member!
After eating we strolled around the resort some more...or at least as far as we could, considering only one section of it is open yet! And then we stopped back in so I could snag the cupcakes I saw to take home. Leave no cupcake unturned, and all!
This is the bakery case, featuring NY's finest overpriced hockey pucks
and some yummy treats!
And one of the grab and go sections, this one with dessert (and sushi on the bottom). Those mini cheesecakes look awesome and are my target for next time!
And the cupcakes, which we ate at home! First, the "Oreo Mickey Mouse Cupcake":
So cute, but don't expect this to be like the Boardwalk's oreo cupcake...I did, and I was kind of disappointed. This is a plain, but moist yellow cake with buttercream on top. NO filling! And no oreo flavor inside the cupcake at all. The buttercream was so sweet and heavy I was certain it was cream cheese, but the wrapper says buttercream, so I'll take it's word for it. It was pretty tasty for such a simple cupcake!
And the "Macaroon Cupcake":
Almost too pretty to eat! But like the other cupcake, this was a plain yellow cake with a plain vanilla buttercream. The only excitement is in the topping. The macaroons get a little spongy from sitting on the buttercream, but a nice almondy flavor and melt in your mouth. The cake was moist like the other cupcake, but the buttercream somehow didn't taste as sweet.
This would greatly benefit from a FILLING!
And thus concludes our AoA lunch. We were really impressed with the variety in the menu...it would take quite a long time for us to get bored with the choices there! It's nice to see some slightly healthier entrees and more choices for vegetarians, too. The theme and decor in the restaurant is gorgeous! And, aside from the slight weirdness when placing my order, the CMs here were all very outgoing and friendly. The CM working the gelato stand even offered us free samples when we lingered by the case, haha! We really look forward to staying here and trying more options!
(Also, we were stopped on the way out and participated in a WDW research survey...I wrote them a message about the firmness of the veggie burger, so if one of you goes there soon and orders it and gets a perfectly firm patty, I'm taking ALL THE CREDIT!
)
BUT FIRST! We spent the morning at MK, and after a few hours of the sun beating down on us, I decided we were due some ice cream. On a whim, I purchased my FIRST! EVER! MICKEY BAR! And I need to apologize to all you reviewers out there...because I've always been confused by the adoration heaped upon these bars on the board. I grew up with those cheap generic grocery store ice cream bars and I never liked them, a rectangle of crappy vanilla ice cream covered in waxy chocolate, ick. I always assumed the mickey bar was so popular ONLY because it was shaped like Mickey. And while I'm sure that does add to the magic, I have to say:
This is sooooooo much better! I finally get it, and you're NOT all crazy! The ice cream was super rich and the chocolate was very thick and tasty, not at all like those run of the mill ice cream bars! Lesson learned, if legions of DiS board members swear by something, they MAY be right!
Anyway, we headed over to AoA after our MK fun and I literally squee'd when we approached the entrance to the main building:
I looooooooooooove the artwork everywhere, the fun colors, and the stunning chandelier in the lobby! Anyway, we headed to the Landscapes of Flavor and took in all the options. Like most food courts, the offerings are separated by cuisine. I headed to the burger line while DH went to the sandwich line.
Now, placing was my order was a little interesting. The CM who took my order seemed to be new and was asking for a lot of help from her partner. I was called up and said "one vegetable burger please". CM: *glazed look* "Veggie burger?" Me: "Yes, the veggie burger." CM: "You...you want...ok..." *calls her partner over* Partner CM: "And did you want the popcorn shrimp on that?" Me: "...on the veggie burger?" CM: "OH! Veggie burger!" It was so odd...but I think they just maybe haven't really familiarized themselves with the menu yet?
It was a bit of a wait for my burger to be done, because they already had a row of regular burgers cooking and ready to be customized, so several customers came and went while I stood there. My burger was scooped out and plopped onto the grill only after I ordered, but at least that means it was super fresh! Anyway, here's what we got!
I chose the "House-made vegetable burger topped with pepperjack cheese and a fried green tomato on a brioche bun".
I'm not a vegetarian, but I love a good veggie burger, especially if it's spicy. This had a nice kick to it, but most of that was from the cheese and from the spicy dressing they topped it with. This was nothing like any veggie burger I've had before...I was expecting the typical meat-lookalike Boca patty deal. It looked and tasted like soybeans, corn, carrots, breadcrumbs, and spices were thrown into a food processor, and this mixture seems to be plopped onto the grill from the fridge in a rather loose form. So it formed a sort of giant GREEN ball on the bun. It wasn't the most appetizing looking thing, and it would have been nicer if they had pressed it down into a patty form more, I had to cut it in half to keep the ball o' burger from oozing out when I ate.
I so wish I'd taken a second pic....that bright green stuff, right under the cheese? THAT is the burger. DH thought it was guacamole!
BUT! Looks can be deceiving! I LOVED this meal! The brioche bun was amazing...soft, fluffy, and rich. The fried green tomato offered a good crunch that the burger and bun didn't have...and the pepperjack and spicy dressing offered that slight kick that I love.
The fries were hot, crispy, and tastier than the typical QS spuds.DH chose the "Buffalo-style Turkey Sandwich", sliced turkey, blue cheese, arugula, and buffalo sauce-mayonnaise on a multigrain bread.
It wasn't quite as small as it looks, because he took a couple bites before I got the pic.
It still seemed like a wimpy portion compared to my meal, though. DH loves buffalo sauce and blue cheese, but this didn't "WOW" him. The turkey was pretty thick slices, which most people would prefer, but DH thinks it would have been better with thinner lunchmeat and moooooore buffalo sauce. Also, his sandwich was two halves that didn't match up...one was very thick, one was sort of thin. It was sort of odd. I tried a bite and I agree, for something with "buffalo" in the name it was kind of bland. Also, you can't really tell from the picture, but the coleslaw was served in a thimble-sized bowl. It's seriously the type of bowl you usually get served, say, tartar or cocktail sauce in. It was two forkfulls! So, not a success here, which made me feel bad for DH.Luckily, he'd been so starving that he'd already picked out a second entree.
He got the spicy tuna sushi from the refrigerated grab & go case:
Nothing new and exciting about refridgerated sushi, but he likes the fact that it has a sticker on it saying it was prepared in the Japan pavillion in Epcot.
He enjoyed this more than his sandwich.I also couldn't resist picking up one of the AoA rice krispy treats!
Sooooo cute! I have no idea what it tastes like, I'm not sure I'm even going to open it. The CM who rang us up said I should keep it forever, then when they no longer make these rice krispy treats anymore I can pull out my collector's item and reminisce about back in the day! That guy sounds like a DiS member!
After eating we strolled around the resort some more...or at least as far as we could, considering only one section of it is open yet! And then we stopped back in so I could snag the cupcakes I saw to take home. Leave no cupcake unturned, and all!
This is the bakery case, featuring NY's finest overpriced hockey pucks
and some yummy treats!
And one of the grab and go sections, this one with dessert (and sushi on the bottom). Those mini cheesecakes look awesome and are my target for next time!
And the cupcakes, which we ate at home! First, the "Oreo Mickey Mouse Cupcake":
So cute, but don't expect this to be like the Boardwalk's oreo cupcake...I did, and I was kind of disappointed.
This is a plain, but moist yellow cake with buttercream on top. NO filling! And no oreo flavor inside the cupcake at all. The buttercream was so sweet and heavy I was certain it was cream cheese, but the wrapper says buttercream, so I'll take it's word for it. It was pretty tasty for such a simple cupcake!And the "Macaroon Cupcake":
Almost too pretty to eat! But like the other cupcake, this was a plain yellow cake with a plain vanilla buttercream. The only excitement is in the topping.
The macaroons get a little spongy from sitting on the buttercream, but a nice almondy flavor and melt in your mouth. The cake was moist like the other cupcake, but the buttercream somehow didn't taste as sweet.
This would greatly benefit from a FILLING!
And thus concludes our AoA lunch. We were really impressed with the variety in the menu...it would take quite a long time for us to get bored with the choices there! It's nice to see some slightly healthier entrees and more choices for vegetarians, too. The theme and decor in the restaurant is gorgeous! And, aside from the slight weirdness when placing my order, the CMs here were all very outgoing and friendly. The CM working the gelato stand even offered us free samples when we lingered by the case, haha! We really look forward to staying here and trying more options!
(Also, we were stopped on the way out and participated in a WDW research survey...I wrote them a message about the firmness of the veggie burger, so if one of you goes there soon and orders it and gets a perfectly firm patty, I'm taking ALL THE CREDIT!
)
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