Day 3 (12/27)
Lunch: Pizzafari
Dinner: 50s Prime Time Café
Once again we were up early at 5:00 for extra magic hour. It was quite cold, and the high for the day was only in the low 60s. We were all bundled up in sweatshirts and coats. Luckily, it was at least sunny all day, for the first time during the trip. We were at Animal Kingdom around quarter of seven. During the EMH, we were able to walk right onto Expedition Everest, and get fastpasses for later since mom didnt ride, and wasnt sure if she would want to later on. We also did all of the rides in Dinoland U.S.A. When the park officially opened, we did Kilimanjaro Safaris and Its Tough to Be a Bug. We spent the rest of the morning seeing the Lion King and Pocahontas shows. Around 11:00, we were all hungry, so we decided that pizza be a nice change. Mom wanted Tusker House, but the menu didnt really appeal to anyone else.
Pizzafari Lunch
Pizzafari is a basic Italian counter service. They have pizza and a couple of sandwich choices. Even at 11:00 am it was getting crowded in there, but they were able to keep up with the demand quite well. We were pretty boring and ordered similar things:
Me: Pepperoni Pizza
Apple Pie
Large Bottled Water
Dad: Cheese Pizza
Apple Pie
Large Bottled Water
Mom: Cheese Pizza
Frozen lemonade
Large Bottled Water
Andrew: Cheese Pizza
Frozen strawberry lemonade
Large Bottled Water
We all enjoyed this meal, but reflecting back on it, the food wasnt the best. I enjoyed my personal pizza, but it reminded me of a variation on frozen pizza. It wasnt bad, but by no means remarkable. We all agreed that the pizzas were good, but not memorable. They didnt look too large, but were deceptive. We all had trouble finishing our four slices, and could easily have shared two between the four of us. The pizza itself had a thick doughy crust, and a somewhat sweet sauce and cheese on top. I prefer a thinner, crispy crust, with a saltier sauce.
The apple pie for dessert was better than I expected. The crust was nice and flaky, and there was a perfect amount of apples inside. Im picky about apple pie; I dont like a doughy crust, and I dont like it to be oozing with apples that provide more texture than taste. This one met with my approval. However, dad wasnt as thrilled with it as I was. However, I would recommend it. Mom and Andrew loved the frozen lemonades. You actually get quite a large serving of frozen lemonade for the price. On a hot day, it would be great to take with you back into the park. They said that it was a refreshing treat, even though it wasnt a warm day.
The restaurant itself is very nice on the inside. Its a very unique counter service, with lots of beautiful murals and even painted chairs. Each of the several rooms is decorated differently. In addition, it is quite large, which made it easy enough to find a table. I was impressed that they could handle the crowds both on the ordering end, and the seating end on such a busy day.
I would go back to Pizzafari if I was in the area, but well probably try another place in Animal Kingdom next time. Its not bad, but not a lunch that will have you singing its praises afterwards. The restaurant interior itself is one of the major draws.
CS Credits Remaining: 12
TS Credits Remaining: 17
3 out of 5
After lunch, the park was getting unbearably crowded. The crowd flow in Animal Kingdom is poor. There are bottlenecks around every corner, and people are constantly backtracking through the same areas to move from one section to the next. We did Expedition Everest, convincing mom to go on the relatively tame new attraction that appeared to be so scary in advertisements. She ended up loving it. I got to ride in the front row, which was a great experience. After that, we did the Pangani Trail to see the monkeys, and attempted to see the 1:00 Nemo show. Unfortunately there wasnt an earlier show, or we definitely would have gone to it. By the time we got there, 45 minutes early, there was a line from the theater wrapped all the way to Primeval Whirl to get in. Of course, we didnt make it in to the 1:00 show, and were not interested in standing in line for at least another hour for the next show. We left the park around 1:00 for our daily afternoon break.
After relaxing at the hotel and exploring the grounds, we left for our 5:30 dinner at the 50s Prime Café around 4:30. We got there a bit early, around 5:15.
We were really excited for this meal. We did the Fantasmic dinner package at Hollywood & Vine twice, and both times we wished that we were eating at the connected Prime Time Café instead. So, this time we decided to forgo the package, and just eat dinner where we really wanted to. Were not into the more interactive meals (we hated Whispering Canyon Café in the past), so I wasnt sure how everyone would react to this meal. I read about some of the things that they do here, so I was a bit nervous.
50s Prime Time Café Dinner
We checked in early, and were told that we would probably have to wait until at least our ADR time, which was fine. We enjoyed waiting in the living room area. Its amazing how much detail and effort Disney puts into theming everything. Surprisingly, we were called in less than 5 minutes. Our server was Cousin Emily, and we were seated at the same time as our cousins at the table next to us. Cousin Emily was absolutely wonderful! She played her role so well, but wasnt over the top. From the start she was a lot of fun, treating us like family and making us set the table. She explained exactly what we were entitled to on the dining plan, and was very quick with the drinks and drink refills throughout the meal. Dad and I got strawberry smoothies, Andrew had a vanilla milkshake, and mom was boring and just got iced tea. The smoothie was very good, but also very sweet. I love lots of sugar, but it was a bit too much for dads taste. We all agreed, though, that the milkshake was excellent. There was so much, and it tasted just perfect. My parents loved Cousin Emily throwing the straws at us. Our cousins at the next table, over, though, didnt appreciate it when she did it to them.
For appetizers, I ordered the fried herbed cheese. I knew from reading about it on here that it wouldnt be like a mozzarella stick. I guess with a mozzarella stick it seems like the cheese is added into the breading. With this, the focus was more on the cheese, which happened to have breading sticking on it. Its hard to describe the difference, but there definitely is one! I really enjoyed it, and I enjoyed the strawberries that came with it. There were also grapes, and some hard bread to spread the cheese on. Dad got the onion rings, which were gone in a matter of seconds. They looked good; a little bit greasy, but not gross. He loved those. Mom got Caesar salad that she enjoyed. Andrew got chicken noodle soup. I tried it, and it tasted a lot like canned chicken noodle soup. I know it would be hard to make a wonderfully distinctive chicken soup, but it tasted so close to canned that I have suspicions that it is. Its not bad, but nothing special, and not worth getting.
The seating area we were in was fun, but a little dark. It wasnt a big deal, but for some reason our table seemed darker than the others. Otherwise, the room was, as mom called it, really retro and comfortable to be in. The atmosphere is very lively and fun, which is nice. We didnt get a table with a TV right next to it, but we could look over and see one pretty well.
Our entrees were brought out promptly after we were done our appetizers. I got the fried chicken, but with string beans instead of the southern greens. There was an awful lot of chicken! There were 3 large pieces and a drumstick. There was no way that I could finish, but I didnt want to get in trouble if I didnt! The fried chicken was wonderful. The breading was so crisp and flavorful. The mashed potatoes were good, better than the counter service ones, but not as good as some that I would get later in the trip. Dad got the pork tenderloin, which he enjoyed. It was presented a little too nicely, though, for that restaurant. It looked like it had been prepared in a restaurant kitchen by a chef, not by your cousin. That wasnt a bad thing, but it struck me as funny. It looked like the entrée was supposed to be from Chefs de France or something, but somehow made its way into the 50s Prime Time Café. Mom had the pot roast. It was very tender. I tried some, and it would definitely be my second choice, after the fried chicken, for entrée. Andrew got the kids macaroni and cheese. The portion was kind of small, but I let him eat some of my chicken. We were reminded once during dinner to keep our elbows off the table, and to my surprise (and delight) Cousin Emily told our cousins that they should eat more like us, and showed them our cleared plates. However, our cousins were one of the least fun families I have ever seen. Emily was not extreme at all. She knew exactly how far to go with the jokes, and did enough to give us the experience, but was no where near over the top. I was worried, but she ended up being perfect. She was a good server, and played the character well. Our cousins, though, had no sense of humor. They couldnt take any of the jokes lightly, and refused to participate in the easiest things, like setting the table or sharing ketchup with other tables. I dont know what was wrong with them, but I would hate to serve people who absolutely refuse to play into the theme at all.
It was fun to look at the desserts through the viewfinder. Mom and I decided on the brownie sundae, Andrew got another vanilla milkshake, and dad got the cobbler. The brownie sundae was amazing. It was pure heaven. A large brownie, covered in vanilla ice cream, with a huge pile of whipped cream, m & ms, caramel corn, hot fudge, and caramel. The sundae was huge, but I came close to finishing because it was so good. Mom shared her sundae with Andrew. Dad liked the cobbler, but didnt say much about it. I would recommend choosing a sundae or milkshake for dessert.
We were all extremely full after this meal, but had had a great time. The food wasnt gourmet, but it was good. There were traditional American favorites. It was a great meal, almost up there with Chefs de France, but for different reasons. The food was traditional, yet tasty, and the experience was so much fun. We wont hesitate to go back. It isnt necessarily one of our top choices for the future, but will be considered. Its an experience that everyone should at least try once, unless you really dont want to bring your sense of humor with you to dinner.
CS Credits Remaining: 12
TS Credits Remaining: 13
4 out of 5
After dinner, we went to see the Osborne Lights, which we always love. It was especially fun this year with the dancing version. We planned on seeing the 8:30 Fantasmic show, but our fatigue was finally catching up with us. We went back to the hotel and relaxed, before going to bed quite early, around 9:30
Can't wait to hear more 
