Pretty Sure They Created a New Festival Just For Us - 2 week Jan DR *COMPLETE

[kastoney]

Loving your almost no park day

Your flatbread and nachos at T-Rex look awesome!!!!! Especially those huge nachos. T-Rex was never on my radar as I just figured it was like Rainforest, which I"m not a fan of, but your meal looks great. And better yet free!!!!!

And the ice cream flight???? How did I not know this existed. Love that you can try so many different ones. Someone used to make a cinnamon ice cream with oatmeal cookies in it, I think maybe it was Ben and Jerry's. Anyway I love, love, loved it but it didn't stick around very long. Looks like I can finally have some again

 

[OasterP]

You have a dining report too!! I stopped by at a good time! I always love your movie reports too! Did you see beauty and the beast yet??

THat post made me so hungry for ice cream.

I still want to do the trip by train.

 

[inkedupmomma]

OK, I am here! I remember loving your trip reports years ago (and that you lived close to me) and then I feel off the face of the earth and stopped coming on here for a bit. So excited to see that you're still doing dining reviews, still happily and adorably in love with your husband and still entertaining. I read your October report as well too, and ouch, sorry! I was a non flyer up until this past September, so I get where Rob is coming from. Is there a reason he doest fly, or is his irrational like mine was? Excited to be on board, watching your thread and eagerly awaiting your next post. I know Homecoming is now on my list, if I can convince DH!

 

[Dixiemom]

We arrived at POFQ around 10:45am. I did online check-in ahead of time, but unfortunately there were no rooms available yet. It was MLK weekend, so this weekend was a little busier than the rest of our stay would be, but they promised to do their best to get us in a room right away. I felt grungy from the train and we did not feel like storing our bags to go do something in the meantime, so we just sat in the lobby and waited for a text that our room was ready.





Around 11:30 I got the text that our room was ready, so we grabbed our bags and off we went!

Our room was just to the right after walking out of the main lobby towards the pool. We were on the third floor and we wee right next to the main building. Sweet! Couldn't ask for a better location.



Gotta love walking into a Mickey towel!

We showered and unpacked and got ready to hit the parks.

Here we are waiting at the bus stop with our first day of vacation glow!



The bus came after a few short minutes and by 1:15pm we were walking through the entrance to Epcot!



We already had a plan in mind for our first meal. I didn't make an ADR because I had no clue when we would get into the park, so we walked to WS hoping for a walk up ressie.

Our first time at Nine Dragons!



We have never ever eaten here because I always thought, what's the point? I can get Chinese food at home. However, once I really looked at the menu and some Instagram pics I was swayed into giving it a try and so was Rob. We put our names in and our pager went off about 5 minutes later. Score!

I loved the Learning Chinese words paper on the table.



I swore I wasn't going to drink a lot this trip and waste money, but it's the first day of vacation, a celebration is in order!





I got the Shanghai Fusion which was light rum, cherry brandy, plum wine, grapefruit and pineapple juices. It was okay. I wouldn't get it again, but it was my celebration drink, so it's all good.

Rob and I both got appetizers to start. I got the General Tso's Chicken Buns. Steamed Chinese buns with battered fried chicken breast and General Tso's sauce.



These were very good. I picked off some of the red onion because there was a lot on there, but I loved the flavor it gave the chicken. The problem was that I was full already!

Rob got the Shanghai Xiaolongbao Soup Dumpling. Steamed Shanghai-style pork soup dumpling served with our house dipping sauce.



He loved these and really liked the tangy sauce that they were served with.

For my entree I got the Shrimp Typhoon. Golden fried shrimps with fried shallots, garlic spice and a touch of jalapeno.



It also came with a side of white rice and duck sauce.



This was so good! The shrimp dipped in the duck sauce was excellent. I was so full after I ate these!

Rob had the Peppery Shrimp with Lightly Spiced Spinach Noodles.



He said the shrimp were the best he has eve had! He loved the flavor. I tried a shrimp with the noodles and it was delicious. I liked his better than mine.

We were crazy full, but we were dying to try their dessert. We got the Banana Cheesecake Egg Rolls with Strawberry Red-Bean Ice Cream.



Holy smokes! You guys have to go just if only for this dessert. Heaven!

Service here was good and we had to be rolled out we were so full. A very successful start to the trip! we will absolutely be back here next trip as there was a lot more on the menu that we wanted to try!

 

[Dixiemom]

Love your review! We are planning to eat there during our trip in June. I saw the dish your husband had when I was eyeing the menu, and your pics and review have me sold!

 

[Cimicats]

I follow you on IG so it's great to read the full reports. Loving it so far!

 

[jerseytinkerbell]

Wow, what a great no-parks-okay-a-tiny-bit-of-one-park day! You're really selling T-Rex... May need to pick up some discounted Landry's cards before the next trip. You know, just in case.

Your pictures are gorgeous from this day! What a lovely blue sky - Rob may have been wrong about TRex and milkshakes but he sure picked the correct month for perfect Florida weather. The quintessential ice cream and Boardwalk day! I hope the weather holds out at "spring" temperatures and doesn't hit the high 80s/90s at the end of March. Orlando can be so unpredictable

We had just missed Paddlefish too, but it's on my general list of ideas for the next trip - maybe not a whole meal but I at least want to get drinks at their rooftop bar. Gotta love Disney for giving us plenty of options for "next time"!

T-Rex was such a pleasant surprise. I mean, it's no Homecoming, but it was tasty!

Oh, it was such a beautiful day. Unreal. We had a lot of beautiful days this trip. We are sold on January. How was your weather in March?

Yes, the rooftop bar looks like a must. I'm excited for Polite Pig too. Hoping that's a winner for the next trip.

YOu would think Ample Hills would at least sell water or soda to help you down your ice cream! Glad you enjoyed it. It seem the Sally Sea Shells people either really hate it or are fine with it. Very polarizing!
Glad you had a good meal at T-rex! We've never made it there either.

Right? You would think drinks would be a must. I was shocked I liked the Sally Sells Sea Shells because orange is not normally in my flavor wheelhouse, but it was excellent. It was good that it was a small portion size of it too. T-Rex is touristy for sure, but surprisingly good.

I've only been to T-Rex once, and it was when they first opened.....and I only had soup so it doesn't really count. After seeing your nachos, I booked it for our arrival day in September. Me and nachos go way back, and we're pretty tight. I think I could live off of nachos, and live a very happy and fulfilling life.

Awesome! I hope you and the nachos rekindle your beautiful friendship.

I am loving your no parks day!! I really need to book a longer vacation in August so that becomes feasable. Ample Hills sounds so delicious, and you've even made T-Rex seem inviting!

That's why we like going for two weeks. We love our no parks days!

Ample Hills was great! I can't wait to go back. I know, right? Who would have thought we would enjoy T-Rex so much.

My old company did this! I loved it. We ate at Yak and Yeti a few times. That's awesome that you can score one every month.


I have heard good things about Paddlefish!


Definitely! I haven't eaten there since 2009 but everything you had looked delicious.


Ah, SOOOOO good!! Between that and the Ooey Gooey butter, I'm not sure which I liked more.

It's a cool system! They used to give me Visa gift cards in their place which was a little better, but I'm not turning my nose up at freebies in any form!

Definitely excited to try Paddlefish next time and revisit Ample Hills.

Why do I always read dining reviews and dining reports when I'm hungry? I'm practically drooling on my keyboard here.

I just added an ice cream flight from Ample Hills to our list. YUM!

Right?! I think you'll enjoy Ample Hills. The flight was a must!

Yay, I love your reviews! I follow you on IG and loved seeing your pics there!

Nine Dragons...never gave this much thought....until now. The meal looks delish!

Ample Hills is on my list since we are staying at the BWV!

Love your pic of the flowers and BW in the background!

We love TREX. That flatbread is so good...I get it everytime. Glad you enjoyed it

Yay! Thanks for joining in again for this DR!

Well Ample Hills will be an easy trip for you. There's too much good ice cream close by when staying at Boardwalk. Yum!

Whoop! I'm in

We just got back Saturday. I'm feeling conflicted about our trip...so I think I need a do-over too! Now to just convince the hubs lol.

Thanks for joining in! Sorry you need a do-over. That's a bummer. But another trip is always good! I'm trying to talk Rob into a May trip. I'm losing the battle, but I feel like I have made some headway!

We used to go to T-rex a lot when DS was younger. Now that he's in the midst of "cool" teen-age stage, he could care less. But he mentioned about their food and how portion size is huge there. I guess one of these days when we staying longer than 5~6 days, we will make it to Disney Springs.

There's so much good food at Disney Springs now that it's hard to choose. Hopefully you do make it back there soon.

Wow those nachos look good. We stay at POFQ and that may be an arrival day lunch option. TREX always looks slammed at dinner time when we walk through DS. Lunch looks like a better choice (if we can tear ourselves away from WPE)

That's a perfect arrival day choice! Dinner does always look like a madhouse. Yikes! It is so hard to skip WPE though. I know your pain!

We tried T-Rex last August and really enjoyed it, our meal was free as well with my Landry card and Birthday credit! The nachos look really good and I love a good flat bread. The ice cream flight looks like a good choice, we tried the strawberry ice cream there in February and it was good but not great, we were boring I guess.

Free makes it taste better! I did like the strawberry, I just wish it had a little bit of a different twist on the straight up strawberry flavor. As I type this I am dreaming of Cold Stone's strawberry cheesecake ice cream. Heaven.

Staying at the BWV in May...just added Ample Hills to our "to do" list!

Perfect! Definitely the perfect time to give it a try!

The food at T-Rex looked good! I wouldn't mind trying it some time, but there are so many good restaurants at DS these days!

I know! It's too hard to choose! That's why we end up there every single day.

What a gorgeous day to spend goofing around (mostly) outside the parks! Perfect for the Boardwalk area. I am hoping to do the Ample Hills ice cream flight with my little guy after our "fancy" dinner at Flying Fish when we go in September. Looks like the perfect way to try all the yumminess!

It was the perfect day for it! Ice cream after Flying Fish sounds like the perfect end to an evening.

Glad Trex worked out. We are big trex fans too! I'm glad to know you used a landry's gift card because I have one too & thought I'd save it for TRex!!!! It looks like you had a perfectly relaxing day between DS & the boardwalk! This just gets me so excited to go,so excited to see all these new things.

Awesome! It was so fun there! Oh my gosh, all the new stuff is unreal. And now Pandora is just around the corner. I want to go back already!

Love the reviews so far!

Thank you!

That ice cream flight looks and sounds so delicious!!! I'm literally salivating! Must be because I'm reading this close to dinner time! What a pretty day!

It was so good! How had no one else thought of this idea in Disney before?

Great start. The weather looks fabulous. The ice cream flight does aswell we have never been there, adds to list.

The weather was unbelievable. We were so lucky with the beautiful days.

I am now mad at myself for not trying Ample Hills - that flight looks great. Joining in a little late . Loved homecoming! Stayed at pofq last year. I like the size of the resort and proximity to Disney springs

Well, now you have something to try for next time! POFQ is great. We loved taking the boat to Disney Springs. It's a great alternative to our usual stay at SSR.

 

[jerseytinkerbell]

Loving your almost no park day

Your flatbread and nachos at T-Rex look awesome!!!!! Especially those huge nachos. T-Rex was never on my radar as I just figured it was like Rainforest, which I"m not a fan of, but your meal looks great. And better yet free!!!!!

And the ice cream flight???? How did I not know this existed. Love that you can try so many different ones. Someone used to make a cinnamon ice cream with oatmeal cookies in it, I think maybe it was Ben and Jerry's. Anyway I love, love, loved it but it didn't stick around very long. Looks like I can finally have some again

It's been awhile since I have done Rainforest. I'll get back there eventually, but T-Rex was really good.

I know! I was thinking the same thing. So glad I saw it on Instagram. Too bad we can't get that oatmeal cookie ice cream in the store. Yum!

You have a dining report too!! I stopped by at a good time! I always love your movie reports too! Did you see beauty and the beast yet??

THat post made me so hungry for ice cream.

I still want to do the trip by train.

Yay! Glad you popped in at the right time! Saw Beauty and the Beast twice so far. Trying to go for a third time this weekend. LOVED IT!!! It was way better than I thought it would be.

I enjoyed the train so much more this time. I just wish it was a cheaper option.

OK, I am here! I remember loving your trip reports years ago (and that you lived close to me) and then I feel off the face of the earth and stopped coming on here for a bit. So excited to see that you're still doing dining reviews, still happily and adorably in love with your husband and still entertaining. I read your October report as well too, and ouch, sorry! I was a non flyer up until this past September, so I get where Rob is coming from. Is there a reason he doest fly, or is his irrational like mine was? Excited to be on board, watching your thread and eagerly awaiting your next post. I know Homecoming is now on my list, if I can convince DH!

Glad to have you back!

He would say it isn't irrational, but essentially it is. He really feels like he's going to die in a plane crash and he will hear no argument at all about safety compared to driving or anything like that. There is just no convincing him. And he refuses to take something to calm his nerves because he says he wants to be fully alert if something happens. SMH. His sister is getting married in Jamaica in October and he is having a huge internal struggle about going. He does not want to get on the plane. We shall see.

You must convince him! Homecoming is now my favorite.

Love your review! We are planning to eat there during our trip in June. I saw the dish your husband had when I was eyeing the menu, and your pics and review have me sold!

Thank you! Awesome, I hope you enjoy it!

I follow you on IG so it's great to read the full reports. Loving it so far!

Thanks for following here and on IG! Glad you are enjoying it!

 

[jerseytinkerbell]

After resting for a bit at the room we took the boat from POFQ to Disney Springs. I love the Springs from the boat in the evening with everything lit up. Paddle fish was really coming along at this point.



We made it to our dinner spot right at our reservation time. Raglan Road!



I was glad we had ressies this time. We checked in and put in a request to be near the entertainment. About 5 minutes later we were seated right next to the little stage the dancers use. Perfect!

I have no pics of the table or dancers or band because I was taking video on my phone the whole time, but if you have Instagram you can find all of my videos from that night on there. It was a blast! The night time entertainment here is fantastic. I love the band and the dancers. So talented and energetic. They keep you entertained the whole time.

Rob started out with the Four Provinces beer flight which is Guinness, Smithwicks, Harp and Kilkenny.



I had the Blueberry Mint Lemonade which was Smirnoff blueberry vodka, fresh squeezed lemonade and muddled mint.



I swore I was going to steer clear of vodka this trip, but this sounded too good. I loved this! It was very light and refreshing. I may need to make these at home this summer.

We started out with their bread service with the Guinness and honey dipping sauce which is always good.



Then we split the Scallop Forest. Georges Bank scallops in a golden batter served with a citrus lime dipping sauce and sweet chili jam.



These scallops are gigantic and so delicious! I loved the sweet chili jam and Rob loved the citrus lime sauce. Perfection!

For our entrees Rob actually went with another appetizer. He got the Dalkey Duo. Battered cocktail sausages with a Dalkey mustard dipping sauce.



He loved these and it was so much food that he was stuffed!

I was torn. I have gotten the burger the last few times, which I wanted again but felt like I needed to switch it up. So, I went with the Keen Eye for the Shepherd's Pie.



This was not my favorite. It was good, but the carrots were not cooked enough for me. They were still super crunchy, which was off-putting. The flavor was good, but those carrots...

Rob polished this off for me when I didn't finish it.

Even though my entree was not the best and our server was kind of odd, we still had the best time. Coming here at night for the entertainment is a must! I think from now on I'll just stick with my beloved burger here.

After dinner I couldn't help myself. I needed cupcakes. I mean, Sprinkles is like, RIGHT THERE. How can I not get them?





We grabbed ones inside. I still haven't used the cupcake ATM, which is honestly so cool.



I was nearly swayed by the seasonal options, but in the end I went with my two favs. Salty Caramel and Red Velvet!





I may or may not have eaten these in bed while watching tv after we got back to the room.

Our first full day that also happened to be park free was a success! It was one of my favorite days of the trip.

 

[inkedupmomma]

Glad to have you back!

He would say it isn't irrational, but essentially it is. He really feels like he's going to die in a plane crash and he will hear no argument at all about safety compared to driving or anything like that. There is just no convincing him. And he refuses to take something to calm his nerves because he says he wants to be fully alert if something happens. SMH. His sister is getting married in Jamaica in October and he is having a huge internal struggle about going. He does not want to get on the plane. We shall see.

You must convince him! Homecoming is now my favorite.

Gah, I TOTALLY understand where he is coming from. My exact thoughts on flying. I literally wok up with a fever one day and my brain switched how i felt, and thats the only reason I was even able to attempt it. NO ONE could have convinced me otherwise though. I think my subconscious kicked in during that fever. It knows DD is 16 and going to college soon. I swear thats the only thing that makes sense to me. I have flown 2 times now since that fever. Dont like it still, but i did it. I did take medication though. I had to or I would probably scare those around me....

 

[Vernie822]

I swore I was going to steer clear of vodka this trip, but this sounded too good. I loved this! It was very light and refreshing. I may need to make these at home this summer.

That sounds amazing! We encountered a few blueberry lemonade drinks on our trip. The Boathouse had one and so did Splitsville. I thought the Boathouse's take on it sounded really good but it was $15 and I couldn't bear to pay that much for just one drink.

I have always thought about getting the Shepherd's pie but I can't part from the fish and chips!

 

[PrncessA]

Loving your report, can't wait to see more!

 

[Mousemommy1]

Only 4 pages in, but I'm here - following along!!!

 

[disneyAndi14]

We tried Raglan Road for the first time in October and those scallops oh my so delicious! The burger was our fave as well. I still have to try Sprinkles one of these trips. Glad you had a great day.

 

[vettegirl]

Just catching up on your review!!!

 

[kastoney]

Looks like a great dinner at Raglan Road. We haven't been in a while and definitely need to get back over there soon. And I most definitely need your drink and those scallops!!! Both look delicous

 

[jerseytinkerbell]

Gah, I TOTALLY understand where he is coming from. My exact thoughts on flying. I literally wok up with a fever one day and my brain switched how i felt, and thats the only reason I was even able to attempt it. NO ONE could have convinced me otherwise though. I think my subconscious kicked in during that fever. It knows DD is 16 and going to college soon. I swear thats the only thing that makes sense to me. I have flown 2 times now since that fever. Dont like it still, but i did it. I did take medication though. I had to or I would probably scare those around me....

Wow, I'm glad you have at least been able to fly a few times now.

That sounds amazing! We encountered a few blueberry lemonade drinks on our trip. The Boathouse had one and so did Splitsville. I thought the Boathouse's take on it sounded really good but it was $15 and I couldn't bear to pay that much for just one drink.

I have always thought about getting the Shepherd's pie but I can't part from the fish and chips!

I agree! I really want the one at Boathouse, but that price tag. Yikes!

Loving your report, can't wait to see more!

Thank you so much!

Only 4 pages in, but I'm here - following along!!!

Thanks for joining in!

We tried Raglan Road for the first time in October and those scallops oh my so delicious! The burger was our fave as well. I still have to try Sprinkles one of these trips. Glad you had a great day.

Glad you enjoyed the scallops and the burger as well! Sprinkles is my new favorite. Rob doesn't get the hype, but I sure do!

Just catching up on your review!!!

Glad you're caught up!

Looks like a great dinner at Raglan Road. We haven't been in a while and definitely need to get back over there soon. And I most definitely need your drink and those scallops!!! Both look delicous

We had a long spell of not making it to RR, but these past few trips we have gone every time. Going at night for the entertainment is what made it a must do for us. I think going at lunch the other times made it not as great of an experience. They were both excellent! In fact I will probably get both the next time we go.

 

[jerseytinkerbell]

Hey everyone! Before I get to the next update in my DR I just wanted to share a non-food related post with you. This week I finished school and will be graduating from Southern New Hampshire University next month with my Bachelor's degree in Communications. I'm so excited! This is the main reason why this DR and the last two before this have moved at a much slower pace than I would prefer. But now I can focus on my DR and not essays and Power Point presentations and building websites and shooting videos and interviewing people. Yay! And because this is a Disney site after all, here is a pic of my graduation ears I just HAD to buy and the custom buttons I had made from Parkbound buttons for my commencement ceremony. Pretty awesome right?

 

[jerseytinkerbell]

Today we got up and ready and arrived at AK as the park opened at 9am. We used the special Passholder line today, which was not always a shorter line, but today it was way shorter than the other lines, so that was a cool little perk. I hope they keep that going.

But first, let me take a selfie.







We stopped to enjoy the view and the flamingos and kangaroos for a moment.



We went right back and walked on the safari. Then made our way to Everest which had a 10 minute wait, so we waited in standby and then rode again with a FP. We did the walking trail with the tigers, but saw no tigers. Then it was time for refreshments.



We went back to the Starbucks location. It was our first time at this one and it was very nice inside.



I got the seasonal smoked butterscotch frappuccino.



This was super yummy. Rob got some kind of seasonal latte that sounded weird. We sat outside because it was a gorgeous day and we people watched while we had our drinks. We were right next to a DVC sales area, so it was a trip to watch them try and sell to people the whole time. They are good, let me tell you.

Next is lunch!

 

[kastoney]

Congratulations on graduation!!!! What a huge accomplishment. Between school and work, I'm surprised you found anytime to be here. And lovin' the ears.

We loved the AP lines on our last trip. I think except for one time they were always shorter and saved us a ton of time. Though I was still surprised at how many people in that line seemed to not have a clue what they were doing.