Let's Do It Again! - First Family Trip, May 2024 (Updated 2/28 x2 - Epcot and Garden Grill)

[Araminta18]

Thankfully I slept much better on our second night at the Polynesian. Yes, I was kept awake by the Happily Ever After Fireworks but fell asleep soon after it was finished. I slept all night and it was glorious!

Niiiiiiiiice! That's awesome

One nice thing about the stroller is I could bring along my coffee and have a spot to stow the cup once I’d finished!

oooh that is nice! I think it's such a pain that the refillable mugs can't be refilled in the parks, so it just seems like a pain to carry it around, but with a stroller...

One major advantage of the Polynesian over the other monorail resorts is its proximity to the Epcot monorail. Unlike the other resorts, you can bypass the resort monorail and walk straight to the TTC and board the Epcot monorail directly.

So jealous! That's such a nice perk.

M was excited to say hello to Chip. I’d explained the difference between the chipmunks so she knew which one was which. (In case you’ve forgotten, Chip has the black nose and Dale has the brown nose.)

I could never remember this until someone told me to think chocolate chips are black, so black nose = Chip.

We received an extra skillet of steak as I asked for steak without sauce:

oooh smart! I didn't realize you could do that! brilliant.

Pluto kept trying. After a bit more interaction with L... do I spot a smile?

nice job Pluto! Not gonna lie, I think my favorite part of your report is the pictures of L side-eying characters.

Those chipmunks were a delight. All the character interactions were good here but the chipmunks were next-level. They spent so much time at our table and interacting with both girls. M LOVED them and even L was intrigued. It was worth the cost for the character interactions alone.

I'm so glad you had such great interactions - special memories indeed! What an awesome start to your morning

 

[piglet1979]

Years ago when my kids were maybe 7 and 8 we did dinner at Garden Grill. We had the same type of interaction. They were so much fun. It is one of my favorite.

 

[mi*vida*loca]

We went to GG about 17 years ago and the characters were amazing back then! The best interaction of any character meal over the years. And the food isn’t bad either!

 

[missjackiemcg]

We haven't been to Garden Grill in a bit, and haven't done breakfast at all. I definitely think it's one we may hit in December. Nothing like a Mickey waffle skillet but the character interactions there really are top notch. How exciting that L was getting into the experience this time, too! I can't wait to hear if this continues for the rest of the trip!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Oh man... I'm jealous.
I've pretty much given up on a good night's sleep.

I’m sorry - that sounds rough.

I look forward to a few years from now when we don’t get interrupted by kids as frequently in the middle of the night. I didn’t realize how wonderful a full night of uninterrupted sleep was back when I had it regularly!

You is smart.

Actually, I love being able to lend a hand at Disney. I think most DISers do.

Yes, I think you’re right that those of us with more Disney knowledge are happy to help others with questions or misinformation. (Sometimes we give more information than people are actually asking for! )

Bet you wanted to linger there.

I could’ve stayed there or in the lobby for a while - I LOVE the Poly lobby. But the park was calling!

Huh!
Now that is something I've never thought of!
If/when I ever go again, I'll have to keep that in mind.

We still haven’t done it! You’ll see in a later post that the girls were done after fireworks so we bailed without riding. I’d still love to try it, though, as I think it would be a cool experience!

Not bad.

I was surprised when I looked at the timestamps - we were efficient that morning!

I've heard that.
Not sure if I'll ever get to experience that convenience, but... I have heard of it.

I hope you do get to experience it one day - it’s great!

Not bad!

Transportation was really on our side that morning. The monorail was there quickly and then didn’t have any delays. I’ll take it!

Guess again!

That is such a fun memory! It certainly made an imprint as it was more than 10 years ago and I remember it clearly. We were proud of ourselves that day!

I've never used a stroller, but have seen that particular parking lot.

I’m sure I’ve noticed stroller parking before, but that was one of the biggest anxieties I had before our trip. I didn’t want to lose too much time finding stroller parking or trying to find our stroller if it was moved. Thankfully, finding stroller parking was pretty intuitive and we never had any issues locating our stroller. (That doesn’t mean I’m not going to use the stroller flag and AirTag again! )

I've never eaten there.

It’s a shame that restaurant is in Epcot - I’d eat there all the time if it was in MK. There are so many great choices in Epcot!

I love them too... which is why I seldom eat them... just too dangerous!

You definitely needed a character do-over.

Yes, absolutely!

Black like a chocolate chip!
But I believe Dale's nose is described as dark red.

Yes, that’s how I explained it to M!

(And you’re right - it’s it a dark brownish red.)

Steak! Did not know that.

It was a nice addition to breakfast.

Correct. Not even close.

The bread was good but those cinnamon rolls looked GREAT. I’m sure it was to cut costs (or make serving easier), but I’m sad we missed out on that cinnamon roll skillet.

How rude!
Who does he think he is?? Does he think he owns the place?


Wait...

So many of my pictures of L with characters are funny. She has a healthy skepticism for most new people - a furry character brings it up a notch!

Interesting ranking so far.

More to come!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

What a great character breakfast! I love that L started to warm up to Chip and Dale

It was fantastic! Certainly some of the best character interactions we had the entire trip.

I’m glad L warmed up to the characters a bit. I don’t mind if she doesn’t like them as much as her sister (my sister certainly doesn’t like characters as much as I do! ), but I didn’t want her to be afraid.

Niiiiiiiiice! That's awesome

I really needed that sleep after two nights of poor sleep. It was one of the few nights of our trip that I slept all night and I was happy to take what I could get!

oooh that is nice! I think it's such a pain that the refillable mugs can't be refilled in the parks, so it just seems like a pain to carry it around, but with a stroller...

I absolutely agree. I used my refillable mug WAY more than past trips since I could stow it in the stroller. It was a nice perk of the stroller!

So jealous! That's such a nice perk.

That walkway to the TTC was awesome. I realize you can walk from the Grand Floridian (I think that walkway is open again) and I believe you can even walk from the Contemporary to the TTC, but those are MUCH longer walks. The journey is much faster with the two monorail rides!

I could never remember this until someone told me to think chocolate chips are black, so black nose = Chip.

That’s how I remember it, too!

oooh smart! I didn't realize you could do that! brilliant.

The sauce was listed as a ranchero sauce and we weren’t sure if it would be spicy. We are self proclaimed spice wimps so we thought ordering it plain was the way to go. I didn’t think they’d bring us the regular skillet and the extra steak - we had a lot of steak!

nice job Pluto! Not gonna lie, I think my favorite part of your report is the pictures of L side-eying characters.

Don’t you worry - there’s plenty of side-eye to come.

I’m just glad she wasn’t as afraid of the characters. I don’t mind the skepticism but I didn’t want her to be scared. The small smiles made me feel better.

I'm so glad you had such great interactions - special memories indeed! What an awesome start to your morning

It was a wonderful dining experience and the characters were excellent. I agree that it was a great start to our day!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Years ago when my kids were maybe 7 and 8 we did dinner at Garden Grill. We had the same type of interaction. They were so much fun. It is one of my favorite.

I was so happy with this meal - everything was great and I’d love to visit again. I’m glad you had a similarly stellar experience!

We went to GG about 17 years ago and the characters were amazing back then! The best interaction of any character meal over the years. And the food isn’t bad either!

I agree 100% that both the characters and the food are great. Chip and Dale are always excellent but it was nice that Pluto and even Mickey were also fun.

We haven't been to Garden Grill in a bit, and haven't done breakfast at all. I definitely think it's one we may hit in December. Nothing like a Mickey waffle skillet but the character interactions there really are top notch. How exciting that L was getting into the experience this time, too! I can't wait to hear if this continues for the rest of the trip!

I highly recommend Garden Grill - it was an excellent experience all around. The lunch and dinner menu actually appeals to me more than the breakfast menu (especially with the loss of the cinnamon roll skillet), so I think any meal would be great. I hope you get a chance to add it to your list!

Character interactions were hit or miss for L all trip (she has a healthy skepticism of most strangers), but some of the best interactions are yet to come!

 

[pkondz]

I look forward to a few years from now when we don’t get interrupted by kids as frequently in the middle of the night. I didn’t realize how wonderful a full night of uninterrupted sleep was back when I had it regularly!

I remember those years... having kids is not for the weak.

Yes, I think you’re right that those of us with more Disney knowledge are happy to help others with questions or misinformation. (Sometimes we give more information than people are actually asking for! )

Transportation was really on our side that morning. The monorail was there quickly and then didn’t have any delays. I’ll take it!

The bread was good but those cinnamon rolls looked GREAT. I’m sure it was to cut costs (or make serving easier), but I’m sad we missed out on that cinnamon roll skillet.

This is a travesty.
Come up here and I'll treat you to the best cinnamon roll you've ever had.

 

[vamassey1]

You really did good making rope drop at Epcot. I remember when Soarin' was the rope drop stampede and The Land was full of people at opening.

We haven't done Garden Grill since 2007 and that was dinner. Someday we'll get back there. Chip and Dale were the characters that broke through Danielle's reluctance to characters. We took her for her first trip when she was 3. She would not let the characters near her until Chip and Dale broke through at Chef Mickey's. They are still a favorite for us.