Mom & Son with Dad + One - Going to say Goodbye to the Lights! Kona Cafe & now Complete!

[GoofySon'sMom]

Hi all! Just a quick post a I still have to pack. I really, really wanted to get down to WDW to see the Osborne Lights one last time. Thankfully we found awesome deals on flights and are able to make it happen. Course that means we will be in the air at midnight on New Year's Eve but that is a small price to pay!

Yes, it is going to be crazy crowded. My only real goals this trip are to see the Lights and have some good food. Anything else will be a bonus.

Most of you know us ... here is a pic from our recent August trip ....



And one of my favs of DS and his DGF



We are spending 4 days ... no park hoppers. That will be a first for me. But I figured it will be crowded everywhere so why spend the extra money.

Now the important stuff ... where are we eating?

Hollywood Brown Derby Lunch
Merry & Bright Dinner Reception (not expecting much with this but as I said, the Lights are a priority!)
Disney Springs Food Trucks - Changed to GFC Breakfast
Morimoto Asia - Changed to Bongo's Cuban Cafe
Be Our Guest (very late, probably just dessert dinner) - Cancelled
Garden Grill Breakfast - Cancelled
Beaches & Cream - Changed to San Angel/Les Chefs
Flying Fish (one last time before the renovation)
Liberty Tree Tavern (DGF must try Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake) - Changed to Skippers
Il Mulino - Changed to Kona Cafe

And I am sure some snacks along the way. (How have we never tried to the BLT waffle fries?!)

We come home Tuesday and I am back to work on Wednesday. May not actually get started with this til next weekend.

Til then - Happy New Year!

 

[chocolateMinnie]

How exciting - have a wonderful time and I can't think of any better way for you to start 2016 than on your way to WDW

 

[kastoney]

Woohoo!!!!!!!! Ya know I'm gonna be following along. So jealous u get to see the lights, as we never got to

 

[vettegirl]

That is a great lineup for sure! I am sure glad I was able to see them one last time as well.

 

[momof3princes]

Following along! So glad you were able to make one last trip to see the lights. Looking forward to hearing all about it, have fun and Happy New Year!

 

[GoofySon'sMom]

Hi all! Thanks for coming along! Already made one dining change. It is supposed to rain all day Sunday so we swapped Beaches and Cream for San Angel. DS wanted to try it last trip and we didn't get there. With the expected rain we figured it would be easier to stay in EPCOT. It is HOT and sticky today. Supposed to cool down tomorrow and then rain all day Sunday. *sigh*. At least we are here!

 

[vettegirl]

Hi all! Thanks for coming along! Already made one dining change. It is supposed to rain all day Sunday so we swapped Beaches and Cream for San Angel. DS wanted to try it last trip and we didn't get there. With the expected rain we figured it would be easier to stay in EPCOT. It is HOT and sticky today. Supposed to cool down tomorrow and then rain all day Sunday. *sigh*. At least we are here!

Glad you guys made it all right. Enjoy San Angel, I had a wonderful meal there last month.

 

[GoofySon'sMom]

Ok so I didn't go to San Angel! In fact we made many many changes! Lol. DS and his DGF went and they loved it. DH and I went to Chefs. So sad to be heading home in about 12 hours. GREAT trip! Will update soon!

 

[Redwitch]

I'm so jealous! I really wanted to see the Lights one more time and booked a Thanksgiving trip. The Lights hold a special memory for me and I am sad to see them leave MGM (always MGM to me!) Alas, trip was canceled, I'll have to live through yours!

 

[GoofySon'sMom]

Hello all! Sorry for the delay - once again I brought an unwanted virus home with me! Struggled to get thru my 3 days of work and now resting up this weekend. Just a cold so far. Hoping to keep it that way!

Our flight was due to land at 11:55pm but landed about 30 minutes early. We were on the ME heading towards WDW when the clock struck midnight on New Year's Eve! And we could be fireworks all around the bus from the various Parks and other places along I-Drive. So cool and definitely a magical way to start our trip! Got to our rom with no issues and had lights out by 1am.

We expected crazy crowds New Year's Day at DHS about it really wasn't all that bad. We walked right in - no line at bag check & no line at the band scan. I was chosen randomly to go thru the metal detector. Odd but Ok!

First stop - Starring Rolls ...



Cherry Danish for me, apple for Julia and a chocolate croissant for Andrew. Perfect as always. Very fresh tasting. Jay didn't want anything so he went over to Starbucks to get ...



I really do not go to Starbucks at home. I am a Dunkin' Donuts girl but I really do enjoy it at WDW.

Then we were off to the Launch Bay for great Meet with Chewie ...



He made a big fuss over Julia's lightup ears. The photographer stated she must be part robot!

Then it was over to the Dark Side ....



I just admit that Mr. Vader was quite intimidating!

All in all took about an hour to get thru both lines. Not bad at all. A great start to our day!

 

[GoofySon'sMom]

I'm so jealous! I really wanted to see the Lights one more time and booked a Thanksgiving trip. The Lights hold a special memory for me and I am sad to see them leave MGM (always MGM to me!) Alas, trip was canceled, I'll have to live through yours!

It took me a long time to stop saying MGM but I admit, I have converted! The lights were truly wonderful. I feel so blessed that we were able to get there and share them with Julia. We heard rumors that they could be moved to Animal Kingdom (?) and stronger rumors that they could go to California Adventure. That would get me back out to DLR for sure! I just hope they are able to find a home for them!

 

[kastoney]

Welcome back!!!! Hope you're feeling better soon. But better to be sick after vacation than on vacation.

Starring rolls is a great way to start the MGM day. Though when we've stopped for breakfast I believe I've always made the very healthy decision to get a cupcake instead ; )

Love the Star Wars pictures. My hubby is doing the half marathon in April and he is so pumped to meet all the new Star Wars characters. I'm trying to bone up on my non existent Star Wars knowledge so I can pretend I know why I'm talking about ; ) Good to know lines weren't too bad.

 

[Vernie822]

Hello all! Sorry for the delay - once again I brought an unwanted virus home with me! Struggled to get thru my 3 days of work and now resting up this weekend. Just a cold so far. Hoping to keep it that way!

Boo! The Disney plague always makes its way home with me too. I hope you feel better soon!

I really do not go to Starbucks at home. I am a Dunkin' Donuts girl but I really do enjoy it at WDW.

ME TOO! The best. Their coffee is so much better IMO.

Cherry Danish for me, apple for Julia and a chocolate croissant for Andrew. Perfect as always. Very fresh tasting. Jay didn't want anything so he went over to Starbucks to get ...

YUM. I love Disney's chocolate croissants. Starring Rolls is always a great choice!

Looks like you have Julia converted and she is a fan now too!

 

[Mainemama]

Joining in! We left the day before you arrived! I did not get to meet Chewie and Vasar, but my DH and DS did. The high point of trip for my son. Good for you for getting in to meet them!

 

[GoofySon'sMom]

Welcome back!!!! Hope you're feeling better soon. But better to be sick after vacation than on vacation.

Starring rolls is a great way to start the MGM day. Though when we've stopped for breakfast I believe I've always made the very healthy decision to get a cupcake instead ; )

Love the Star Wars pictures. My hubby is doing the half marathon in April and he is so pumped to meet all the new Star Wars characters. I'm trying to bone up on my non existent Star Wars knowledge so I can pretend I know why I'm talking about ; ) Good to know lines weren't too bad.

I will forgive your lack of Star Wars love! LOL I have been a geek for SW since the original movies and Andrew followed my footsteps. Really loved meeting Chewie and Darth Vader!

Boo! The Disney plague always makes its way home with me too. I hope you feel better soon!



ME TOO! The best. Their coffee is so much better IMO.



YUM. I love Disney's chocolate croissants. Starring Rolls is always a great choice!

Looks like you have Julia converted and she is a fan now too!

I don't drink coffee but much prefer DD's iced tea! Julia is a definitely convert. She was more excited about this trip than Andrew! (Course he knows we are going in March!)

Joining in! We left the day before you arrived! I did not get to meet Chewie and Vasar, but my DH and DS did. The high point of trip for my son. Good for you for getting in to meet them!

One of the high points of mine as well!

 

[GoofySon'sMom]

Lunch was a Hollywood Brown Derby. I knew Julia would love the décor. I was looking forward to trying the burger and the chicken sandwich but since it was a holiday, they only had the dinner menu. Ended up Ok having huge lunch as we weren't expecting much from the Merry & Bright Dinner reception.

Loved the HBD gingerbread house in the lobby ...



And the Menu ....





And the obligatory pic of my "kids" ...



Iced teas and waters all around. Alas it was going to be too long of a day for me to have the martini flight!



Rolls with salted butter ... these were very good. Warm and crunchy.



The only appetizer choice for me was the cobb salad ... first unmixed ....



And then mixed. Perfection as usual. DH said that I should have gotten something else as I could have cobb salad anytime. Not this cobb salad!



Everyone else had the brie soup with oyster fritters ...



I tried this and it was awesome! Very rich and creamy.

I loved the filet so much at the Dine with An Imagineer in August, I decided on that again



It was good. Not as tender as the one in August but still very good. The mashed potatoes were silky and very well flavored with the truffle.

Julia got the pork chop with the spaetzle. I didn't try the pork but the spaetzle was good. She loved it and ate every bite.



Andrew loves lamb. DH and I no so much so he eats it out fairly often. So he got the lamb chops. He enjoyed this. I didn't try any of it.



Jay had the salmon. He really enjoyed this. I don't eat salmon so again no bite for me. Jay also loves lentils so this was the perfect dish for him



Dessert menu ...



We shared three ... the grapefruit cake, the crème brulee and banana toffee cake ...



As you can see, we hated them all!



Everything was very good but a very heavy meal for the middle of the day! I felt someone sluggish for quite a while afterwards.

Ending this with one of my favorites pictures of the trip!

 

[GoofySon'sMom]

Since the main purpose of this trip was to see the Osborne Lights, I booked the Merry & Bright Dinner Reception. I had wanted to go Sunday as that was supposed to be the last night but it was sold out. Turns out that I was very happy that we went Friday. One because it was rainy and cold Sunday night and also because they extended the Lights thru the 6th so it ultimately wasn't the last day. Everything happens for a reason!



Ok, so I am going to have to say that I majorly failed as a food reviewer for this one. The lines were crazy so I didn't take any pics of the buffet itself. And once the lights came on I totally forgot all about the food!

Here is the area the party was set in ...


And the view from our table ....



Just before we sat ...


And the only food pic I took ... turkey, collard greens, mac & cheese and I am not sure what else



None of this was very good. It was edible but that's about it. Once of the other stations had a pot roast type of beef and salad. Those were actually quite good. And the baileys hot chocolate was really good!

But we weren't there for the food, we were there for the lights. It was nice to be able to sit and enjoy several of the "dancing" songs. The crowds looked nuts. We were able to say until 8 and about that time people started leaving maybe for Fantasmic! We then took our time walking around and soaking it all in.















I feel so blessed that we got to go enjoy this. It was truly magical getting to be there one last time.



I hope Disney is able to find a home for them in the future!

 

[kastoney]

Your meal at HBD looks great, especially that brie and oyster soup. YUM!!!! Our last experience there was so bad I don't think I'll ever get the hubby back there, but one of these days somehow I'll taste that cobb salad and grapefruit cake as it looks divine.

So glad you all got to see the lights for the last time. Even if the food wasn't all that, it sounds like it was worth it to be away from all the crowds. Hate that we'll never see them, but pictures like yours bring them to life for me ; )

And love your pictures of your son and Julia.

 

[Kari0180]

Joining in, loving your review so far ! I'm so sad this is the last year of the Osborne lights, I wish we would've been able to go back one more time. I can't wait to read more!

 

[vettegirl]

HBD looks like it was a top notch meal, I would love to try it sometime, even it's just for the cobb salad. Love the pics of the lights, especially of the Lady and the Tramp table, I can't believe I missed seeing that!!