mikeyg1479
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Aug 30, 2010
- Messages
- 267
So, we are now back from our trip the week of 11/27 (myself, my wife and son 9 & daughter 3) and would like to report on my dining experiences, in case anyone cares to hear about what we experienced.
11/27 Skipper Canteen- I was greatly intrigued by this place, interesting menu, although I was traveling with the dining plan which we paid for, so we and wife opted to order the steak for my "moneys worth". One thing to note- various websites were advertising this as being a steak covered with chimchurri sauce, and served with "yucca planks" but the menu at some point changed to the steak being accompanied by Toasted Brazil Nut-Pesto topped with Farofa, and mashed plaintains.
All in all, the steak, while a decent piece of meat, was very bland and flavorless. It was topped with a powdery substance (the brazil nut pesto I presume) which added a little bit to it, but not much. The mash plantains were pretty good, but a real small portion. All in all, pretty underwhelming- I wish I ordered something else a little more exciting on the menu, especially considering the steak I ate later in the week was all much better. For desert we had the Kungaloosh which was decent- it had chocolate, and a little banana- not bad, but the chocolate did have a somewhat strange tase to me. I'll also note we got the Sweitzer slush- free as a drink with the dining plan- I liked it - VERY sweet, and the little green bulbs they top it with are entertaining how they dissolve and burst in your mouth (I think they are some kind of apple flavor)
11/28 Garden Grill
All in all a decent meal. Don't expect fancy from the food- but it was all well prepared basic stuff- sliced beef, turkey, and Italian Sausages, accompanied by mash potatoes, mac and cheese, and some veggies. Also, had some nice fresh salad greens, all served family style. And the desert- some sort of cake covered in red berry sauce- was delish.
Of course the main attraction here is the characters, and there are here in spades (Mickey, Pluto, Chip and Dale) and very accessible, stopping by multiple times. All in all, a pleasant experience if you are looking for a character meal, and food a little bit better than Chef Mickeys. The meal was a little too "manic" for my tastes between the "family style" format in having to plate your own kids food, as well as your own, the table is quite crowded with everything sitting on it, and all the little interruptions with the characters dropping by, but we did this for the kids, and it served its purpose well.
11/29 Sci Fi Diner
In all honesty, I loved this place- wife and I ordered their NY strip steak, and it was deliteful. So much so, it put the Jungle Canteen to shame. I mean, it was a pretty simple meal- the steak is plain, but covered in a garlic butter- but it managed to to be juicy and flavorfull which was completely lacking on Jungle Canteen's steak- just a good classic tasting steak. Good veggies, and onion rings came with. And you can get a milkshake as your drink on the dining plan which was delightful (we had the Oreo Cookie shakes) For desert, we had the sci fi house made candy bar- basically a chocolate moosey kind of cake in reality- it was delish and right up my alley.
11/30 Tiffins
We took a chance on this, wanting to do a signature restaurant this week, and it worked out since we would be at Animal Kingdom this day. In a word, this place was.. outstanding.
We had the Wagyu Beef and Shortrib entrée- absolutely to die for. Cooked and seasoned to perfection, melted like butter in the mouth. I ordered the lobster popcorn curry soup and the bread service- the soup was wonderful- a little spicy like you would expect from curry, and it really did have a piece of popcorn in it- along with a piece of lobster - weird, but it worked all the same. The bread service was fun and sharable, with 4 different dipping sauces which were all fun to try. The chocolate ganashe desert- basically a dark chocolate lovers paradise- don't miss it. Also, let me say our server was great-very knowledgeable, courteous, full of advise/descriptions of the food for all of our questions, and told us all sort of cool facts about the restaurant and its décor, which was beautiful. Don't pass this place up if you are looking for a new signature restaurant to try out. All in all best meal of the week (granted it should be due to its cost and signature status, but it didn't disappoint if you are looking for a splurge meal).
12/1 - Raglan Road- this place is kind of the "old dependable" place for us. I love the bangers and booz, the wife loves the fish and chips, and the band/dancers are always fun. If you love Irish/English pub type places, this place should be in your wheelhouse. The bread pudding desert is one of the best bread puddings you will ever eat.
12/2 Akershus princess dining. Needless to say I did this for our daughter and the princess face time offered. If I was going OOP, this would be too pricey, but its a good value right now for one credit on the DDP. I thought the food was good, not great. I had the meatballs- which was basically just what I expected- not mind altering, but a decent meal and something a little different from the norm. The wife had the braised beef which she said was good (but not Tiffins good). The appetizer cold buffet was fun, and gave everyone a nice variety things to try. (I particularly like the mackerel.) And the princess we're as advertised-we had meet and greet/photo ops with Belle, Ariel, Cinderella, Snow White, and Aurora.
All in all, a good week of eating- only minor disappointment being the Jungle Canteen, but maybe they would have fared better in another entrée that is more to their wheelhouse. Please try Tiffins, they are wonderful!
11/27 Skipper Canteen- I was greatly intrigued by this place, interesting menu, although I was traveling with the dining plan which we paid for, so we and wife opted to order the steak for my "moneys worth". One thing to note- various websites were advertising this as being a steak covered with chimchurri sauce, and served with "yucca planks" but the menu at some point changed to the steak being accompanied by Toasted Brazil Nut-Pesto topped with Farofa, and mashed plaintains.
All in all, the steak, while a decent piece of meat, was very bland and flavorless. It was topped with a powdery substance (the brazil nut pesto I presume) which added a little bit to it, but not much. The mash plantains were pretty good, but a real small portion. All in all, pretty underwhelming- I wish I ordered something else a little more exciting on the menu, especially considering the steak I ate later in the week was all much better. For desert we had the Kungaloosh which was decent- it had chocolate, and a little banana- not bad, but the chocolate did have a somewhat strange tase to me. I'll also note we got the Sweitzer slush- free as a drink with the dining plan- I liked it - VERY sweet, and the little green bulbs they top it with are entertaining how they dissolve and burst in your mouth (I think they are some kind of apple flavor)
11/28 Garden Grill
All in all a decent meal. Don't expect fancy from the food- but it was all well prepared basic stuff- sliced beef, turkey, and Italian Sausages, accompanied by mash potatoes, mac and cheese, and some veggies. Also, had some nice fresh salad greens, all served family style. And the desert- some sort of cake covered in red berry sauce- was delish.
Of course the main attraction here is the characters, and there are here in spades (Mickey, Pluto, Chip and Dale) and very accessible, stopping by multiple times. All in all, a pleasant experience if you are looking for a character meal, and food a little bit better than Chef Mickeys. The meal was a little too "manic" for my tastes between the "family style" format in having to plate your own kids food, as well as your own, the table is quite crowded with everything sitting on it, and all the little interruptions with the characters dropping by, but we did this for the kids, and it served its purpose well.
11/29 Sci Fi Diner
In all honesty, I loved this place- wife and I ordered their NY strip steak, and it was deliteful. So much so, it put the Jungle Canteen to shame. I mean, it was a pretty simple meal- the steak is plain, but covered in a garlic butter- but it managed to to be juicy and flavorfull which was completely lacking on Jungle Canteen's steak- just a good classic tasting steak. Good veggies, and onion rings came with. And you can get a milkshake as your drink on the dining plan which was delightful (we had the Oreo Cookie shakes) For desert, we had the sci fi house made candy bar- basically a chocolate moosey kind of cake in reality- it was delish and right up my alley.
11/30 Tiffins
We took a chance on this, wanting to do a signature restaurant this week, and it worked out since we would be at Animal Kingdom this day. In a word, this place was.. outstanding.
We had the Wagyu Beef and Shortrib entrée- absolutely to die for. Cooked and seasoned to perfection, melted like butter in the mouth. I ordered the lobster popcorn curry soup and the bread service- the soup was wonderful- a little spicy like you would expect from curry, and it really did have a piece of popcorn in it- along with a piece of lobster - weird, but it worked all the same. The bread service was fun and sharable, with 4 different dipping sauces which were all fun to try. The chocolate ganashe desert- basically a dark chocolate lovers paradise- don't miss it. Also, let me say our server was great-very knowledgeable, courteous, full of advise/descriptions of the food for all of our questions, and told us all sort of cool facts about the restaurant and its décor, which was beautiful. Don't pass this place up if you are looking for a new signature restaurant to try out. All in all best meal of the week (granted it should be due to its cost and signature status, but it didn't disappoint if you are looking for a splurge meal).
12/1 - Raglan Road- this place is kind of the "old dependable" place for us. I love the bangers and booz, the wife loves the fish and chips, and the band/dancers are always fun. If you love Irish/English pub type places, this place should be in your wheelhouse. The bread pudding desert is one of the best bread puddings you will ever eat.
12/2 Akershus princess dining. Needless to say I did this for our daughter and the princess face time offered. If I was going OOP, this would be too pricey, but its a good value right now for one credit on the DDP. I thought the food was good, not great. I had the meatballs- which was basically just what I expected- not mind altering, but a decent meal and something a little different from the norm. The wife had the braised beef which she said was good (but not Tiffins good). The appetizer cold buffet was fun, and gave everyone a nice variety things to try. (I particularly like the mackerel.) And the princess we're as advertised-we had meet and greet/photo ops with Belle, Ariel, Cinderella, Snow White, and Aurora.
All in all, a good week of eating- only minor disappointment being the Jungle Canteen, but maybe they would have fared better in another entrée that is more to their wheelhouse. Please try Tiffins, they are wonderful!
We then went back to the Nomad Lounge for a quick lunch on another day because we wanted to try it out too. Also very good. But we preferred Tiffins which was simply outstanding. Although we were able to walk in on that trip I went ahead & made a lunch ADR for our January trip just in case. We found the beef short ribs were amazing. I also loved the mussels. I can only imagine how good the Wagyu beef would be. Lunch just happens to fit our budget better - especially since we'll have DS 19 with us on this trip. I'm really looking forward to going back.
