No miSTEAK about it, we're not too CHICKEN to PORK out! DxDP/GF Updated CrystalPalace

[CrabbyPatty]

Edit: I'm totally embarrassed to see that I never completed the dining review for our August 2010 trip! Since it has comments about gluten-free (GF) dining, I thought I'd just finish it up for those folks wondering about how Disney does GF - Answer: They do a fantastic job!

We just got back from our late August (2010) trip to WDW and I"ll be doing a review of our dining with the DxDP for myself, my sister and my 9-yr-old DD. We got free dining from a 2009 bounceback offer, and we upgraded to the deluxe plan since my DD will be a Disney adult next year. I figured this way we can try just about EVERYTHING and see which restaurants and shows she might want to do in the future.

I am eating gluten-free (GF), so I'll have pictures of the "regular" dishes as well as some of the special dishes prepared for GF dining. Here's the places we ate at:

Day 1:
Teppan Edo - Dinner POST #6 - Page 1


Day 2:
Tusker House Breakfast POST #10 - Page 1
Pepper Market lunch POST #13 - Page 1
Hoop-de-Doo Revue dinner POST #16 - Page 2

Day 3:
CRT Lunch POST #20 and #21 - Page 2
50's Prime-Time Cafe Dinner POST #27 - Page 2

Day 4:
Akershus Breakfast POST #30 - Page 2
Le Cellier lunch POST #31 - Page 3
Ohana's dinner POST #38 - Page 3

Day 5:
Cape May Breakfast POST #39 - Page 3
Spirit of Aloha dinner show POST #40 - Page 3

Day 6:
Crystal Palace breakfast POST #42 - Page 3

 

[DLo]

looking forward to your reviews. especially o'hana dinner. we are trying it for the first time this year.

 

[wdwfanatic316]

Let me be the first to say I love the title of your dining review! So clever

Can't wait to read the reviews!

 

[fourpeas]

I agree! Great title!


I'm looking forward to seeing your reviews!!!

 

[CrabbyPatty]

Alrighty ..... I finally figured out how to get the pictures from my camera onto the computer and then to Photobucket!

Our dining party for this trip is three - myself, my sister and my 9-yr-old daughter. I started Weight Watchers on April 1st this year, and so far I've lost 30 pounds. I LOVE Weight Watchers, love the whole point system, and love the appreciation I've gotten for eating good food in all the food groups, and in the right quantities.

My sister is the kind of person who has been skinny her whole life, and will leave a few bites of something on the plate because she's actually "full" - a concept, which until recently, had totally escaped me! Sis likes to eat and she does love her chocolate, but let's just say that she'll never win the "Clean Plate" award.

DD is a typical 9-yr-old eater in many ways, but she loves sushi and doesn't really have much of a sweet-tooth. Honestly, sometimes I wonder if she's mine - but I WAS sort of there during that whole birthing process, so ....... never mind.

The title of this food review is "No MiSTEAK about it, we're not too CHICKEN to PORK out!" mostly because I don't think I've eaten so much meat in one 6-day period for years and years!

With Weight Watchers, I've been eating these great salads loaded with veggies, having fruit smoothies for dessert, and I've gotten so used to eating ground turkey that I can't really recall how a "real" hamburger tastes anymore! But it's funny how the Disney DxDP can change your eating habits!

 

[CrabbyPatty]

DD and I ate at Teppan Edo last year, and DD talked about it All. Year. Long. She loved the food, loved watching the chefs make the food right at the table, loved the Nemo/shrimp routine our chef did, etc.

We arrived early afternoon at CSR and left within the hour for Epcot. DD wanted to do Kim Possible and while doing an impossibly long "Assignment" in Mexico, we got trapped by a downpour in the early evening. We killed time doing her mission, and waited until the last minute to don our plastic ponchos and head on over to Teppan Edo for our 7:40 p.m. dinner.

We were a few minutes late, and the Teppan Edo hostesses were standing right inside the door, passing out little white towels to guests so we could wipe our faces and any un-plastic poncho-clad body parts. A nice touch, I thought.

We were seated almost immediately, and shared a table with a group of 3 mid-20 guys travelling together, and a couple from Australia.

Sis and DD ordered the shrimp, and I got ........ wait for it ...... the STEAK and CHICKEN combo. I have a gluten intolerance, so the manager came out and discussed a few menu options with me, so I had the combo with rice and veggies, minus the noodles the rest of the table had. The rest of my dinner mates got three different dipping sauce, while I got a lonely bottle of LaChoy soy sauce (made without wheat) and some strange white mayo-based sauce.

Now, we just ate the same order last year, and I was still a bit soggy from the rain, so I didn't take any pictures of this meal. Here's a shot from last year's dinner:

The chicken and steak combo is a LOT of meat, and good tasting meat, if I do say so. It was well prepared and I enjoyed every last bite of it. DD and Sis liked the shrimp as well. One of our Oz diners didn't like the quality of his steak - thought it was tough - so the chef made him another one. Another dining companion had an appetizer that looked and smelled WONDERFUL. I can't find it on either menu (AllEars or DIS) but it was two small rolls of beef with something salty in the middle (it had gluten in it, or I would have ordered it in a heartbeat). The chef seared the meat at the table, and cut the rolls diagonally before serving it. Yummy.

We all had the chocolate ice cream for dessert - just a few bites since we were all stuffed from the great meal. FYI -- the ice cream doesn't have a creamy consistency - more of an ice crystal consistency which was a nice finish to the meal, in case you can't imagine following the meal with a bowl of ice cream.

Teppan Edo is a great meal, IMHO. Kids will enjoy having a front row seat for the cooking and entertainment, and the food is good quality and well-prepared. Here's a picture of my DD this year, along with the chef. I think Teppan Edo will be on her list for dining NEXT August as well!

 

[gellybean]

Love the title!!

Great review of Teppan Edo! So glad they were able to work with your gf requirements!

Congrats on the 30 lb loss!! I'm on WW online and the WISH boards here on DIS! Love them both!
We did DxDp last January! It definitely does change your eating habits in a hurry!!

Can't wait to read more reviews!!

 

[Ullis]

Great review of Teppan Edo - happy to find out it's good for kids! (we're going in october, also looking forward to find out how you liked Cape May, O'hana and 50's prime)

 

[bluejasmine]

Love it! Last pic made me laugh out loud very cute!

 

[CrabbyPatty]

Funny how so many WDW folks seem to be creatures of habit! We ate at Tusker House last year for breakfast, and here we are again at Tusker.

It's a nice breakfast buffet and one that we really enjoyed. The Tusker House restaurant is VERY close to the Safari, so you can have one person in your party get FastPasses for the safari while you wait to get seated.

We checked in at 9:00 for our 9:05 breakfast and were seated almost immediately. Please note you get a picture taken outside the restaurant with Donald Duck in his safari outfit, but he doesn't circulate inside the restaurant. But you can take a picture with your own camera (I think it costs something like $31.99 to buy the picture ......).

The jamba juice was poured right away (is it mango that makes it taste so darn good?) and then because I'm eating GF, the chef stopped by and took me to the buffet to show me what I could have. Other than the usual suspect (breads, doughnuts, etc.), the buffet is fill of great options for the gluten-free eater, as well as everyone else!

The chef offered to make me some GF Mickey waffles - which are NOT a regular item on the buffet, as I recall - they look lovely ......

.... but unfortunately didn't taste that good. They weren't cooked through enough. Later in our trip, I had some GF Mickey waffles at another buffet and they looked almost burnt, but were PERFECT inside.

The buffet has cereal for kids, two kinds of yogurt (strawberry and plain yogurt) with lots of items to put on top like nuts, granola, berries, etc. There was some nice fruit, and doughnuts and various breads. The buffet had the usual breakfast items - Disney does make good scrambled eggs, sausages, bacon, a scrambled egg/veggie fritata (it was VERY good) ..... and as you can tell from my plate, I tend to like the more non-breakfasty items! The corned beef hash had a great taste, and I also had some rice, sweet potatoes, plantains, carved ham and some roasted potatoes.

We really enjoyed this breakfast buffet - and while I can be a bit of a coffee snob (need that Caribou Coffee kick in the morning!) - I thought even the Disney coffee was good! The buffet has a nice selection and a wide variety of tasty items. I think just about anyone could find something to enjoy at this breakfast. It's a relaxing little oasis in the summer before you head out into the steam and heat of Animal Kingdom.

 

[butiflfeet]

Great start to your reviews! My mom is now eating GF so I'm looking forward to seeing what special things you were able to get to give her some idea of what to expect for our trip in December.

 

[Pooh&OurHunny]

count me in...

 

[LuvsTigger80]

So far youo have eaten at 2 of our must do resturants!! We love Teppan Edo...and can't wait to eat there in 2012. It is usually our last resturant of the trip. And love Tuskar House!!! Can't wait to read more!!!!

 

[CrabbyPatty]

Thanks for the comments - I appreciate 'em!

We had ADRs for Yak & Yeti at Animal Kingdom, but after doing the safari, the little Dino ride, seeing DeVine and Lion King, DD was ready to head back to CSR for some swimming, and it was hot enough that we were ready to go also. So, no Y&Y - and we ate a late lunch at the Pepper Market.

Now, I like the CONCEPT of the Pepper Market - a marketplace area with different choices for meals - a sandwich area, a grill withe fresh-made items, a pizza station, etc. However, in reality the place needs a few more signs, and a new batch of friendly people behind the counters. After standing in front of a station for a few minutes - with no one behind the counter making eye contact - we finally got to order a cheese pizza for DD. Sis stood in front of another counter for a few minutes, until she was told that she was in the wrong line [note to staff: maybe a sign like "ORDER HERE" or "PICK-UP HERE" might be in order?]. She then moved to the sandwich area where she ordered a tuna sandwich, which took about 8 minutes to prepare.

I headed over to the grill station and ordered ...... wait for it ...... a steak/rice/bean dish that took about 8-10 minutes to prepare, but was really good.

Under that mount of rice is a nice amount of well-cooked and well-seasoned steak. It wasn't "Le Cellier" quality steak, but it was good. The grilled veggies were SO good and the salsa had just enough "kick" that it was a really enjoyable dish. I would eat this dish agan and again and again .... and also it filled my daily steak requirement.

Sis' tuna sandwich was ...... okay ..... and DD hated the cheese pizza. Since we were eating at Hoop-de-Doo that evening, we just grabbed some packaged Rice Krispie bars as our dessert and headed for the pool.

We only ate at PM this one time during our trip so I can't imagine how difficult or frustrating it might be to order food from people apparently unwilling to make eye contact or break away from their conversations to take an order [sure, that sounds a bit snippy, but gosh, this place didn't leave me with a good impression service-wise] when the place is busy in the evening.

Next up ...... Hoop-De-Doo! The revue that will leave you singing "Hoop-de-doo, hoop-de-doo, dah, dah, dah, dah, dah-dah, Hooooop-de-doooooo" for about 4-1/2 days!

 

[pinkxray]

I love your reviews so far. I really want to try Pepper Market next trip for some reason. We will most likely be staying at the All Stars if DD has her way so maybe we can pop over there for lunch.

I can't wait to see your Hoop De Doo review. I have never seen the show and really want to. I just don't know how to fit it in. Also give up 2 ts credits? Is it worth it?

 

[CrabbyPatty]

In a nutshell, DD LOVED HDD. Loved it. LOVED it. LOVED IT. She has been telling me various jokes from the show almost nonstop since we left HDD about 10 days ago.

In reviewing my pictures for the night, I can't believe that I didn't actually take pictures of the FOOD. Probably because you're pigging out on the food as the show is going on! However, here's the menu

Everything is served in a metal bucket, and we got a bucket of salad, cornbread, a bucket of cowboy beans, mashed potatoes, a bucket of pork ribs and a bucket of chicken. Substitutions for GF was two tapioca rolls instead of the cornbread, and two HUGE grilled chicken breasts instead of the fried chicken. The salad was naturally GF, as well as the ribs, mashed potatoes and beans (or at least I hope so. I'm more gluten intolerant than a full-blown celiac - check with Special Diets on this to make sure!).

The salad was really tasty, DD and Sis loved the cornbread. The cowboy beans had a great flavor, while I thought the mashed potatoes were just ..... okay. Last year I raved about how good Disney mashed potatoes were ...... this year, IMHO, the potatoes throughout the World were ..... just okay. DD probably ate her weight in fried chicken and the pork ribs were great as well. They are served dry rather than dripping in sauce, and had an excellent smoked flavor.

We were really close to the stage - got Category 2 seating on the main floor just off to the side way up front under the balcony. After this trip, I'm really convinced that smaller parties (2-3) get some of the best spots. We got primo seating at HDD, Ohanas and CRT this trip with a table of 3. We were close enough to the stage that one of the performers (when they come down into the audience) asked us where we were from - MINNESOTA! - and sang a special song about Minnesota during the "States" song.

After STUFFING ourselves on chicken and pork ribs (sorry no steak for this meal!), we didn't have much room left for dessert. DD and Sis got the strawberry shortcake, which they said tasted pretty good. I was promised a GF brownie sundae, but didn't get it. No problem, however, because I wouldn't have been able to eat more than a bite of it. Sis drank the chardonnay and I had the sangria. (Don't plan on going to HDD to drink good wine, because it wasn't).

Now I'm proudly cheap in the "real world", so as far as the value of HDD or would we go again? With the Dining Plan, ABSOLUTELY. We had the DxDP, so it was a perfect use of 2TS credits each. In checking the prices, it cost $54.99 for an adult and $26.99 for kid in Category 2. Next year, DD will be a Disney adult so we'd be paying $109.98 for category 2 seating next time. Reluctantly, I would have to say YES even if we were paying for it. The food was good, the show was cornball to the 'nth degree, but it was a fun night. I've sat through regional dinner theatre for roughly the same price and can't say that it was half as fun as HDD!

 

[iloveeeyore]

Loving your report and thank you for sharing!

We adore HDDR, and try to fit it in every trip. We always pay OOP for cat 1, regardless of our meal plan status, though we haven't done DxDP yet. Maybe next time we will do DxDP, and we'll use two credits. Looks like you had great seats! Glad you enjoyed it.

 

[hill6]

We used to go to HDD every trip. Got a little burnt out on it so it has been a pass for three trips. Also we didn't like the change to the beans (yuck).

Love the rest of the show and food. The last two times we were there we were up in the balcony area and agreed those seats were the best. In fact only time we had anyone from the show stop by our table in all times we were there.

 

[ChristyWI]

Woo hoo! I know what you mean about WW changing your tastes...but it's SO easy to slip back into bad habits after a week at Disney.

 

[CrabbyPatty]

After stuffing our faces at Hoop-De-Doo, the next morning we had a light breakfast ..... DD ate a bag of Ritz Cheese-Bits and some orange juice, Sis had some skittles and I had a gluten free organic chocolate brownie bar (only 3 WW points though) - yes, sirree, we covered all the basic food groups - chocolate, candy and convenience food! See why we needed the DxDP and all that steak/chicken/pork? Left to our own devices, we would NOT be getting enough of that great Disney protein at every meal!

So, we got to Magic Kingdom, had a great time riding just about everything in Fantasyland, and headed over to the Castle about 11:30 for our lunch. After a bit of waiting in line, we got DD's picture with Cinderella and walked upstairs for lunch.

We got some GREAT seating this trip, and I think it's because we were a party of 3, because it seemed like the larger parties got stuck somewhere in the middle of the dining room, and not along the edges/windows with the tables for 4. We got a spot right in front of the window, overlooking the carousel:

Here's the lunch menu:

We were served a small appetizer plate - two brochetta (Sis had them and said they were very tasty), some artichoke salad as I recall, which was excellent, some slices of a salami-like substance ...... and for some strange reason, two small cubes of American cheese.

Sis ordered the Major Domo (brimming with beef):

DD had the mahi mahi with rice pilaf, green beans and yogurt:

And I had the Grilled Pork Chop

Sis ate almost all of her Major Domo, which is a BIG thumbs-up from her. She said it was very tasty. And let me tell you, that pork chop was WONDERFUL. The flavor was just soo good and the butternut squash was just perfect. All the various components went together so well that it was just a pleasure eating it! And for the gluten-free diner, it was all normally GF - no substitutions needed to make it GF.

Coming up ..... the desserts.