One Veggie and One Not Eat The Whole World....Showcase, That Is! *UPDATE 6/4*

[laur roo]

This will be another one of those quick updates. Mom and I were still pretty full from our late lunch at Tony's, so we weren't super hungry for dinner. We were touring the World Showcase yet again, so we decided the have a light dinner. We ended up at Liberty Inn in the American pavilion.

They have a southwest black bean burger that I figured mom would want, but she surprised me and joined me in getting a kid's mac and cheese meal. I know, I know, pasta twice in one day, but well....we were at Disney so the food doesn't count, now does it?

Our tray with two identical meals. We both had the mac and cheese with carrots and grapes and a bottle water. We had our mugs with us from filling them up at the resort before we came over, so I think we saved the waters for later on. I remember pestering mom the next day for drinking "my" water cause she ended up drinking both of them, but I was just joking around with her.

So not a super exciting meal by any means, but it gave us fuel to get around the rest of the Showcase (and buy more snacks for later, ). I'll talk about those snacks in the next post.

 

[laur roo]

We ended up getting a couple snacks on our showcase tour this evening. I had wanted popcorn all day at Magic Kingdom, but they had out the holiday souvenir popcorn buckets for some reason (I didn't see them earlier in the week, maybe because it was the weekend??) Anywho, I already had a holiday bucket from a few years back and I didn't want another one. So I was on the lookout while we were at Epcot.

Right after dinner at Liberty Inn, we walked by the Fife and Drum Tavern where I had the delicious "American Dream" earlier in the week. They had a cool looking popcorn bucket, so I called mom over and we decided to get one and munch on the popcorn throughout the night. The pictures are from when we got back to the room. It's cool because it had an Illuminations theme and a purple lid. Purple is my fav color, so I really was liking this bucket!

By the time we got around to Norway, we were thinking some pastries might be in order. So of course, a stop to Kringla was in order! We got our items to go so we could eat them back in the room later. I got a sweet pretzel with almonds (it also has raisins in it) which I loved. I've had it before and it's the right mix of sweet and crunchy because of the almonds. Mom got the school bread because she didn't see anything else she liked and couldn't remember what it tasted like. I loved my pretzel, mom said her school bread was okay, but not really something she would get again.

We ate about half of the popcorn while watching Illuminations again and walking back to the Beach Club, and then ate the rest of it the next day. We both ate our Kringla snacks when we got back to the room.

 

[TigerKat]

I am a self proclaimed pasta lover. I was actually disappointed that Tutto Italia was closed during our visit.

You really need to try Il Mulino, it is fabulous!

 

[jedijill]

Great reviews!

Jill in CO

 

[Linda67]

It's great to see a positive review of Tony's as it seems to get lots of negative reviews

I am 100% getting one of those sweet pretzels on my next trip

 

[iloveeeyore]

I'm so glad that both of you enjoyed lunch at Tony's. It gets pretty bad reviews consistently on these boards, but we have decided to give it a try for lunch, anyway. I am torn between the fried zucchini and the calamari for my appy and the eggplant and the shrimp scampi for my entree. DH and DKs will have to help me out (both by ordering something different and by doing lots of eating to rescue me). Something tells me we're not going to hate it!

 

[laur roo]

You really need to try Il Mulino, it is fabulous!

I've heard about it on here a few times, but never really thought to try it. Thanks for the advice!!

Great reviews!

Jill in CO

Thanks! I've still got a few more up my sleeve!

It's great to see a positive review of Tony's as it seems to get lots of negative reviews

I am 100% getting one of those sweet pretzels on my next trip

Yeah, I've eaten at Tony's on my last two trips and I thought it was great both times! I don't know why it gets such a bad rep? Maybe because people can make pasta easily at home they are more judgemental??

And yes, get one of those pretzels, they are huge, delicious, and one of the best snacks at Disney, IMO!

I'm so glad that both of you enjoyed lunch at Tony's. It gets pretty bad reviews consistently on these boards, but we have decided to give it a try for lunch, anyway. I am torn between the fried zucchini and the calamari for my appy and the eggplant and the shrimp scampi for my entree. DH and DKs will have to help me out (both by ordering something different and by doing lots of eating to rescue me). Something tells me we're not going to hate it!

I'm glad you've decided to give it a try, I always like to see for myself if I like a place or not. I do read a lot of reviews on the Dis, but they don't 100% influence my decision.

The fried zucchini was amazing, I cannot recommend it enough! I should try to learn how to make it myself...And yes, employ your family to help you with the eating, you don't want to be too stuffed! Hope you guys enjoy it as much as my mom and I did!!

 

[laur roo]

This is the one review I've been most looking forward to writing. I knew as soon as the mother/daughter trip was in the works that I wanted to do the afternoon tea with my mom. We are both big tea drinkers, and plus it just seemed like a cool, girly, casual afternoon for us. For those of you that don't know, the Garden View Tea Room is on the first floor of the Grand Floridian exactly opposite of the main entrance at the end of the lobby area. It's a small, open room with a few half booth/half tables and some couches with tables and a couple large round tables for larger parties. So we booked it for a Sunday afternoon. First, a couple pictures of the floor outside of the tea room:

Mrs Potts! So cute!

And of course, Chip! I thought it was quite fitting since we were going to have some tea that outside were a teapot and teacup! Love those Disney details!!!

There are 5 different offerings, plus a la cart things as well. We both chose the Buckingham Palace tea, which is the cheapest and smallest of the 4 adult tea offerings (the 5th offering is a child's "tea" which is chocolate milk). The Buckingham Palace tea is "traditional tea sandwiches, scones and jam tarts complemented by fresh strawberries and cream, or a selection of freshly baked pastries, along with your choice of tea." It's basically your choice of a flavor of tea (they have a lot of choices) and 3 courses: sandwiches, scone/tart, and pastries/strawberries.

Mom and I actually chose the same tea, gingerbread tea. It was a seasonal offering (keep in mind it was January when we went) and just sounded yummy! It came in a press pot and we each got our own. I think it was about 4 cups worth of tea in each one! I took a picture of the pot when it was about empty with all the pieces in the bottom.

Mom did ask what kind of sandwiches came with the first course to see what was available to her as a vegetarian. Three of the five were vegetarian, but she only wanted the one, so they brought her five of that one type of sandwich. I had one of each just to try them all.

The five sandwiches were: cucumber and watercress (that's what mom picked), egg salad, shrimp (i couldn't remember exactly what it was called so in my notes it says "shrimp something"), curry chicken, and pear and gorgonzola. The sandwiches were served with a small onion tart.

The close up on my plate. I'll start with the onion tart...not my cup of tea (pun intended, lol!) I took a bite of it and then gave it to my mom. She liked it though! Mom liked her cucumber and watercress, but wished she had a mix of sandwiches. She chose not to get egg salad because she does not eat eggs, and not to get the pear and gorgonzola because she does not like gorgonzola. But she still ate all of her sandwiches. I also enjoyed the cucumber and watercress. The egg salad was nice and creamy and I liked that one too. The shrimp one I was on the fence about getting, but I did end up enjoying it. The curry chicken was not too spicy as I thought it might be and was good also. My least favorite was the pear and gorgonzola, just because the pear was quite crunchy and the cheese did not have too much flavor either. But it was a great first course despite that one sandwich.

Here's mom with her sandwiches and you can see the press pot of gingerbread tea also.

Now please forgive me fellow Disers, because on the second course, both mom and I forgot to take a picture until we were partway through the course! So sorry! But to make up for it, mom arranged her plate like a hidden Mickey!

The second course included a warm scone with raisins, a strawberry tart, a small jar of jam, and a dish of devonshire cream. If you want to know why we both forgot to take a picture, it's because this course was DELICIOUS!!! The warm scone was fantastic with a bit of the cream and jam on it. And the strawberry tart was to die for.

When it was time for the third course, we could choose if we wanted strawberries and cream or two pastries of our choice. We both picked the pastries, mom chose the mini eclair and a blondie, I chose the mini eclair and a chocolate covered strawberry. I took a picture of both of our plates as well as the whole pastry tray since it was so pretty!

The desserts were fantastic! I was however surprised that my eclair was stuffed with chocolate and not cream so I didn't like that as well as I thought I would. I think I ate half and gave the rest to mom. The strawberry was better than I hoped though! Mom liked both of her pastries equally.

All in all, the tea was one of the best experiences we had on our whole trip! It was quiet and relaxing, and we took our time. I don't remember exactly how long we were there, but it may have been close to two hours. The courses were all good and the timing was nice between them all. I was surprised that I was full when we left since each item itself was so little. I would not hesitate to do the afternoon tea again in the future! To finish, here's a picture of the mirror behind where we sat and a pic of mom and I together!

 

[laur roo]

These two stops were to cross a few more countries off our list of the eat/drink around the world adventure! Since we were still full from our afternoon tea, we just got some snacks. We first stopped at Sommerfest in Germany for a pretzel. If you're gonna be at the world, you better get a pretzel from the place that does it best!

It kinda looks like a yelling face or something, lol. I ate a few bites before wrapping it up for just a bit later. Our next stop (although not directly since we were halfway around the world) was to be the UK so I could get something to drink from the pub!

I wanted to see what the souvenir cup looked like and it was cool, so I got that filled with Strongbow. Mom was taking a few pictures of the lady playing in the pub while I was at the bar, and then we moved over to the garden area so I could eat the rest of the pretzel and drink my Strongbow. I posed like I was sipping my drink for the camera, lol.

We got to hear the British Invasion group playing while we sat there which we could hear from our balcony over at the Beach Club, but it was cool to see them in person with the crowd. It was a nice way to spend the evening! But our night wasn't over yet, we were headed to MK for some evening EMH and dinner. I'll post that maybe later tonight or tomorrow.

 

[jedijill]

GF Tea and Strongbow! Two of my favorites...well not at the same time.

Jill in CO

 

[kelleigh1]

I've had the school bread in Norway before, but not the pretzel. That looks so good. I'm going to have to remember to try one on our next trip. YUM!!

 

[vettegirl]

I love your pics from the tea room!

 

[laur roo]

GF Tea and Strongbow! Two of my favorites...well not at the same time.

Jill in CO

Mmmm, my strongbow was delish! And the GF tea was one of my favorite Disney experiences of all time! And I agree, not at the same time, lol!!!

I've had the school bread in Norway before, but not the pretzel. That looks so good. I'm going to have to remember to try one on our next trip. YUM!!

Yeah, the almond pretzel is my fav snack from Norway! You should definitely try it!

I love your pics from the tea room!

Thanks! I posted so many because I haven't really seen too many reviews of it here on the Dis. Glad you liked them!

 

[NoOrdinaryPrincess]

Just caught up! Everything looks fabulous. I totally want to go to tea now.

 

[Linda67]

The afternoon tea looked like a lovely way to spend time with your mom

Also happy to see that you kept up the British theme of your day with a pint sitting outside a pub

 

[GretchenG]

Hello from a fellow NE Ohio Disney fan!

That GF tea looks wonderful! I don't think my hubby would want to go, but maybe someday I'll get a chance to try it.

It's good to read such a good review of Tony's! I LOVE Lady and the Tramp and pasta, so I was planning to go there, but I read so many bad reviews that I decided against it. Maybe I'll rethink that decision. I still have room in my schedule to add in another meal.

Now I'm really wishing that I had a pretzel...

 

[nutz2notz]

More great reviews. The tea looks so fun. I'm hoping my girls and I can do that if we get to go in December.

Looking forward to more.

 

[laur roo]

Just caught up! Everything looks fabulous. I totally want to go to tea now.

Yeah the tea was amazing! You should go if you get the chance.

The afternoon tea looked like a lovely way to spend time with your mom

Also happy to see that you kept up the British theme of your day with a pint sitting outside a pub

Yeah, the tea was a great mother daughter afternoon. We don't get too many of those anymore since I work six days a week!

I didn't even think of it being a British themed day, but that's so funny now that you point it out!

Hello from a fellow NE Ohio Disney fan!

That GF tea looks wonderful! I don't think my hubby would want to go, but maybe someday I'll get a chance to try it.

It's good to read such a good review of Tony's! I LOVE Lady and the Tramp and pasta, so I was planning to go there, but I read so many bad reviews that I decided against it. Maybe I'll rethink that decision. I still have room in my schedule to add in another meal.

Now I'm really wishing that I had a pretzel...

Yay for the Ohio peeps! Glad you found my reviews!

I loved the tea, and I would even do it solo if I could because it's such a small intimate setting that it wouldn't seem awkward to me. But if you need to convince your hubby, there were plenty of men there when we were!!!

Do try Tony's for yourself to judge it! It does seem to get a bad rap, but I really did enjoy it! Too bad I was too full for dessert though!

And I wish I had that pretzel right now too!

More great reviews. The tea looks so fun. I'm hoping my girls and I can do that if we get to go in December.

Looking forward to more.

Thanks!! The tea was quite enjoyable and you should definitely try to go with your girls when you go!

 

[laur roo]

Hi all, are any of you still reading? Lol, I've gotten so busy the last few weeks that I haven't had much time to spend online. March is a very busy month at work, we work six days every week and five of those six are spent on the road and doing presentations, etc. It's a very draining month and sometimes I get home at night, eat dinner, and just go to bed. So not much time for the DIS. But never fear, more reviews are here!!! This will be a quick update, so I'll be able to do a few today.

So when I last left off, I was enjoying a Strongbow in the UK. But it was off to MK for some EMH and rides, but first, dinner! First we went to Columbia Harbour House because we were not sure how late they would be open. Mom ordered her food to go because I didn't really see anything I wanted that night. Although I enjoyed my fish and broccoli earlier in the trip, I wanted something different. Mom ordered the lighthouse sandwich with broccoli and another side of broccoli (told you she liked her veggies!) The lighthouse sandwich has hummus, tomato, and broccoli slaw on it.

Once she had her food, we went over to Cosmic Rays. I was hoping that the chicken/ribs side would still be open but of course it wasn't. Bummer. I settled for a grilled chicken sandwich with a side of apples. Service was really slow and I waited quite awhile for my food. Once I got it, I hit up the toppings bar for cheese sauce, tomatoes, and lettuce. The meal wasn't anything too special but it hit the spot.

Half of mom's sandwich and half of all the broccoli. She basically had two containers like this full! Wow! For some reason, I didn't get a good pic of my tray, but you can see my sandwich in the background of the lettuce and tomatoes, which I got extra for mom so she could make a small salad out of.

 

[laur roo]

Also on our late night MK adventures, we were in Adventureland headed back towards the hub and I discovered Aloha Isle was still open! I want to say this was about 12 or 12:30am. And to mention, this was the coldest night of our whole trip. But gosh darn it, I needed ice cream!

I got an orange/vanilla whip, and mom got a pineapple/vanilla whip. I loved mine!! And mom loved hers too. Even when it's cold out, you can't go wrong with a dole whip!!!

I posed with both, and then we chowed down on them! There was practically no one else in the park at this time, it was cool. We ate our whips slowly as we headed out of the park. It was a good end to the day!