..............in this one, O'hana, Hollywood and Vine, Sassagoula Floatworks Factory, Sci Fi, Earl of Sandwich, Le Cellier...........
The night of the 31st, we went to MGM for Fantasmic package at Hollywood and Vine. We arrived 30 minutes prior to our reservation and were told we could not check in until 15 minutes prior. So, we went to a gift shop across the way. My kids were NOT on their best behavior, and we left without getting them the gold Mickey ears they wanted. We went back over and were seated right away. There was another man there trying to get a table, who didn't have PS. They told him they were booked for tonight. He tried to go to the door anyway, and was stopped by another CM who asked very nicely if she could help him. He said he was coming in to eat, but the podium CM said she'd already explained they were full for the rest of the day. He was very put out. Anyway, we had a seat by the windows looking out into the park, and when the 5:30 parade started, we could see it from our window from afar. Great buffet, pretty usual, but good food. My kids enjoyed more shrimp and the kid fare, they had prime rib, but we were kind of getting tired of it by then. I remember being more pleased with the veggies and salads here..........more variety than elsewhere. It was good, and we got our Fantasmic card. Kind of forgettable, but not in a bad way.
The next day, the 1st, we left up to the kids to decide where to go for the day. Older ds chose Animal Kingdom for the morning, so we had lunch at Flame Tree Barbecue. Mom and I shared a half chicken, dh had the beef sandwich, younger ds had a hotdog. Older ds didn't want barbecue, so got a burger on their way back from getting Everest fast passes. We got a table right on the dock of the "lake" there. A real baby alligator swam up while we were eating...........about 4 feet long. We always enjoy Flame Tree.
Later that day, as we left the park, I picked up Donald's Restaurantosaurus burgers and Mcfries for mom, older ds and I, and a happy meal for younger ds. It was unremarkable, but I include it so folks looking for happy meals will know where to find them, besides the McDonald's near the All Stars.
We went over to Epcot that night and had Le Cellier. This was actually our second time there this trip. We had made two reservations. This was the first one, then we'd changed trip plans and made another for earlier in the trip at Illuminations time. Realizing that our younger ds was really wanting to play with his bday toys that day, we decided to leave him with Gran in the hotel, and take just older ds with us that night. There was no trouble telling them we only had 3 instead of 5. Both nights were excellent. We had the cheddar cheese soup both nights, and we had to ask for extra pretzel bread, since everyone likes it best. We got this soup recipe as well. Older ds ordered the kids' 7 oz. steak both nights. I can't remember what younger ds had, though I can see his plate in my head! I know he had fries with it. Mom had the free range chicken, which she said was very good. I had the 6 oz. filet mignon with barbecue and cream cheese mashed potatoes both nights. It was excellent! Dh had the 14 oz. New York Strip the first night, and the 9 oz. filet mignon the next one. He thought both were excellent. We didn't order dessert this time. The first night we went late, there was no wait for our table. This night there was quite a long wait, but the Kidcot is right there in the cave nearby, the waterfall is down across the narrow walkway from the exit of O Canada, and both Kenai and Koda came out of the "mountain" and up to the top of the main thoroughfare while we waited, so we got them both for the kids' pictures and autograph book, so it was a very pleasant wait. We just love this restaurant, from the food to the atmosphere, it is just such a cut above everywhere else. Easily our favorite this trip.
The next day, June 2nd, was another off parks day. We had breakfast at O'hana. This one is a character breakfast with Mickey, Pluto, Stitch and Lilo. We enjoyed the sweetbread and fruit they gave first. Then they brought bacon, sausage, eggs and so forth. They brought us a second batch of fruit, because we'd finished the first quickly, and offered more sweet bread, though we declined. It was a good breakfast. The characters were funny and interactive, and came fairly quickly........except Mickey. They had the parade with maracas through the restaurant, and we'd already seen Lilo and Stitch at that time. We saw Pluto right after, and then we waited for Mickey. And waited. And waited. Lilo and Stitch and Pluto all came back a second time. And still we waited. Finally, Mickey came to our section and started working his way down the first row.........if he followed the pattern of the others, he'd then work his way back down our row. They then started up the song that precedes the parade song. It gives about 3 minutes before the parade for everyone to get ready. We'd been there for quite some time, and actually had finished eating a half hour before, and Mickey was now only two tables away from us. When we'd been seated, there were only 3 tables occupied in that area, and now all dozen or so were. Mickey had already seen the other two that had waited as long as us, and they were leaving. Not wanting to wait all the way through the parade a second time, I asked the character handler if it was possible for Mickey to skip over the middle two tables to visit us before the parade, so we could then leave, and then he could go back to his regular rotation, starting at those two tables after the parade. I half expected to get a "no", but thought I'd ask anyway. She said, "I have no idea where Mickey is now and where you are"........I said, "He's two tables away from us, but I wondered if he could see us real quick before the parade since we already were here through one parade, and then we could go". She said, "He has his rotation. It takes an hour and 45 minutes to make the rotation." I said, "Okay, I'm not really complaining about the time, it's just that we already did one parade and didn't want to do another if we didn't have to." She then said, "And what about all the other kids? Don't they deserve to see Mickey too?" I said, "I simply meant that we'd been in that section before those kids were there. They didn't do the other parade and we did, so I thought they'll want to wait through the parade while we don't really. But just thought I'd ask." So I started to walk away, and she actually called after me, "None of the characters can break rotation just for you." I let it go. How ridiculous. If she had just said, "No, I'm sorry," I would've been satisfied. But she first said she didn't know where he was, so I told her where, then she seemed to think I was complaining about the wait, so I told her I wasn't, and then she got accusatory. It kind of dampened the breakfast, really. I am sure they get people all the time who want to grab a character before they should, but I truly was JUST ASKING. I would've taken a no, just fine...............At first, I thought she wasn't understanding me, so I continued attempting to explain. When I realized she understood and was saying no without saying no, I walked away, and then she had to yell after me like that. I think she should really LISTEN to someone before deciding what she thinks they are saying. A little honey can go a long way, a smile and an I'm sorry but no is what should be given instead of all that roundabout way of saying no while making you feel as if you shouldn't have dared to ask. So, we did another parade, which was fine, and then Mickey came. Meanwhile, Lilo had come to our table for the third time, and another family came and pulled her away from the table next to ours for a picture, but the CM didn't stop that. We liked the breakfast though, and the restaurant is very pretty.
Later that evening, we took the boat to the Marketplace (enjoyable ride). We had dinner at the Earl of Sandwich. Both mom and I had the All American, though mom had to make some adjustments (no ranch, leave off the cheese) to hers. It was very good! I wasn't sure how the cranberry and ranch combo was going to go, but I was very pleased with it. The bread was a bit hard for my tastes, I like a softer roll, but very good. Younger ds had a grilled cheese, but with it on the same tough roll, and using swiss or provolone cheese (not sure which), it wasn't what he expected, and he didn't eat it. Older ds had a peanut butter and jelly, but the hard roll turned him off as well. Dh had the Boston Ham with hot peppers. He loved it. He wonders why we don't have this shop in Fort Worth. We think this one is the best counter service we had on the trip for the adults. Next time, we'd take the sandwiches to go, and pick up happy meals for the boys at McDonald's across the way so everyone could be happy.
The next day, the 3rd, was our last day in the parks. We flew out on the 4th. This day, we went to MGM for the Star Wars weekends (thoroughly enjoyed this day!). We had lunch at Sci Fi. We really like this restaurant. The kids enjoy the car, and we all enjoy the movie clips and the old-fashioned news and intermission clips. I had grilled chicken sandwich. I don't know what anyone else had, as I sat in the back of the car by myself. I enjoyed a few moments to myself. One thing I noticed, everywhere, is the iced tea is very strong. I had to use a lot of sweetener on it, as it was so strong. I first noticed it at Le Cellier, but it was the same way at all the menu restaurants, but not the buffets. Here, we are used to pretty weak tea in restaurants, and even though we make it stronger at home, not nearly that strong. I only drink it that strong as hot tea. Everyone seemed happy with their lunch.
We had dinner at Sassagoula Floatworks again. This time, younger ds had spaghetti with applesauce and mickey goldfish heads. Older ds got chicken strips and mom took it to him in the room with her lunch (didn't notice what she got). Dh got a cheeseburger, and I got chicken parmigiana, which came with a LOT of spaghetti and a breadstick. It was excellent. We enjoyed the food here very much, as we'd also had the Beignets a couple of mornings...........messy, but very, very good.
All in all, great dining experiences, but for a couple of CMs who might have been just fed up with certain questions (still, I think they should keep their irritation in check, since in my case, both times I was misunderstood). I found all tables clean and pleasant. They were all relaxing times for us, and apart from our last day at MGM, the character meals were just about the only times we saw characters, other than Mickey and Friends, who we always get our first night. That MGM day was a character smorgasbord though.
The night of the 31st, we went to MGM for Fantasmic package at Hollywood and Vine. We arrived 30 minutes prior to our reservation and were told we could not check in until 15 minutes prior. So, we went to a gift shop across the way. My kids were NOT on their best behavior, and we left without getting them the gold Mickey ears they wanted. We went back over and were seated right away. There was another man there trying to get a table, who didn't have PS. They told him they were booked for tonight. He tried to go to the door anyway, and was stopped by another CM who asked very nicely if she could help him. He said he was coming in to eat, but the podium CM said she'd already explained they were full for the rest of the day. He was very put out. Anyway, we had a seat by the windows looking out into the park, and when the 5:30 parade started, we could see it from our window from afar. Great buffet, pretty usual, but good food. My kids enjoyed more shrimp and the kid fare, they had prime rib, but we were kind of getting tired of it by then. I remember being more pleased with the veggies and salads here..........more variety than elsewhere. It was good, and we got our Fantasmic card. Kind of forgettable, but not in a bad way.
The next day, the 1st, we left up to the kids to decide where to go for the day. Older ds chose Animal Kingdom for the morning, so we had lunch at Flame Tree Barbecue. Mom and I shared a half chicken, dh had the beef sandwich, younger ds had a hotdog. Older ds didn't want barbecue, so got a burger on their way back from getting Everest fast passes. We got a table right on the dock of the "lake" there. A real baby alligator swam up while we were eating...........about 4 feet long. We always enjoy Flame Tree.
Later that day, as we left the park, I picked up Donald's Restaurantosaurus burgers and Mcfries for mom, older ds and I, and a happy meal for younger ds. It was unremarkable, but I include it so folks looking for happy meals will know where to find them, besides the McDonald's near the All Stars.
We went over to Epcot that night and had Le Cellier. This was actually our second time there this trip. We had made two reservations. This was the first one, then we'd changed trip plans and made another for earlier in the trip at Illuminations time. Realizing that our younger ds was really wanting to play with his bday toys that day, we decided to leave him with Gran in the hotel, and take just older ds with us that night. There was no trouble telling them we only had 3 instead of 5. Both nights were excellent. We had the cheddar cheese soup both nights, and we had to ask for extra pretzel bread, since everyone likes it best. We got this soup recipe as well. Older ds ordered the kids' 7 oz. steak both nights. I can't remember what younger ds had, though I can see his plate in my head! I know he had fries with it. Mom had the free range chicken, which she said was very good. I had the 6 oz. filet mignon with barbecue and cream cheese mashed potatoes both nights. It was excellent! Dh had the 14 oz. New York Strip the first night, and the 9 oz. filet mignon the next one. He thought both were excellent. We didn't order dessert this time. The first night we went late, there was no wait for our table. This night there was quite a long wait, but the Kidcot is right there in the cave nearby, the waterfall is down across the narrow walkway from the exit of O Canada, and both Kenai and Koda came out of the "mountain" and up to the top of the main thoroughfare while we waited, so we got them both for the kids' pictures and autograph book, so it was a very pleasant wait. We just love this restaurant, from the food to the atmosphere, it is just such a cut above everywhere else. Easily our favorite this trip.
The next day, June 2nd, was another off parks day. We had breakfast at O'hana. This one is a character breakfast with Mickey, Pluto, Stitch and Lilo. We enjoyed the sweetbread and fruit they gave first. Then they brought bacon, sausage, eggs and so forth. They brought us a second batch of fruit, because we'd finished the first quickly, and offered more sweet bread, though we declined. It was a good breakfast. The characters were funny and interactive, and came fairly quickly........except Mickey. They had the parade with maracas through the restaurant, and we'd already seen Lilo and Stitch at that time. We saw Pluto right after, and then we waited for Mickey. And waited. And waited. Lilo and Stitch and Pluto all came back a second time. And still we waited. Finally, Mickey came to our section and started working his way down the first row.........if he followed the pattern of the others, he'd then work his way back down our row. They then started up the song that precedes the parade song. It gives about 3 minutes before the parade for everyone to get ready. We'd been there for quite some time, and actually had finished eating a half hour before, and Mickey was now only two tables away from us. When we'd been seated, there were only 3 tables occupied in that area, and now all dozen or so were. Mickey had already seen the other two that had waited as long as us, and they were leaving. Not wanting to wait all the way through the parade a second time, I asked the character handler if it was possible for Mickey to skip over the middle two tables to visit us before the parade, so we could then leave, and then he could go back to his regular rotation, starting at those two tables after the parade. I half expected to get a "no", but thought I'd ask anyway. She said, "I have no idea where Mickey is now and where you are"........I said, "He's two tables away from us, but I wondered if he could see us real quick before the parade since we already were here through one parade, and then we could go". She said, "He has his rotation. It takes an hour and 45 minutes to make the rotation." I said, "Okay, I'm not really complaining about the time, it's just that we already did one parade and didn't want to do another if we didn't have to." She then said, "And what about all the other kids? Don't they deserve to see Mickey too?" I said, "I simply meant that we'd been in that section before those kids were there. They didn't do the other parade and we did, so I thought they'll want to wait through the parade while we don't really. But just thought I'd ask." So I started to walk away, and she actually called after me, "None of the characters can break rotation just for you." I let it go. How ridiculous. If she had just said, "No, I'm sorry," I would've been satisfied. But she first said she didn't know where he was, so I told her where, then she seemed to think I was complaining about the wait, so I told her I wasn't, and then she got accusatory. It kind of dampened the breakfast, really. I am sure they get people all the time who want to grab a character before they should, but I truly was JUST ASKING. I would've taken a no, just fine...............At first, I thought she wasn't understanding me, so I continued attempting to explain. When I realized she understood and was saying no without saying no, I walked away, and then she had to yell after me like that. I think she should really LISTEN to someone before deciding what she thinks they are saying. A little honey can go a long way, a smile and an I'm sorry but no is what should be given instead of all that roundabout way of saying no while making you feel as if you shouldn't have dared to ask. So, we did another parade, which was fine, and then Mickey came. Meanwhile, Lilo had come to our table for the third time, and another family came and pulled her away from the table next to ours for a picture, but the CM didn't stop that. We liked the breakfast though, and the restaurant is very pretty.
Later that evening, we took the boat to the Marketplace (enjoyable ride). We had dinner at the Earl of Sandwich. Both mom and I had the All American, though mom had to make some adjustments (no ranch, leave off the cheese) to hers. It was very good! I wasn't sure how the cranberry and ranch combo was going to go, but I was very pleased with it. The bread was a bit hard for my tastes, I like a softer roll, but very good. Younger ds had a grilled cheese, but with it on the same tough roll, and using swiss or provolone cheese (not sure which), it wasn't what he expected, and he didn't eat it. Older ds had a peanut butter and jelly, but the hard roll turned him off as well. Dh had the Boston Ham with hot peppers. He loved it. He wonders why we don't have this shop in Fort Worth. We think this one is the best counter service we had on the trip for the adults. Next time, we'd take the sandwiches to go, and pick up happy meals for the boys at McDonald's across the way so everyone could be happy.
The next day, the 3rd, was our last day in the parks. We flew out on the 4th. This day, we went to MGM for the Star Wars weekends (thoroughly enjoyed this day!). We had lunch at Sci Fi. We really like this restaurant. The kids enjoy the car, and we all enjoy the movie clips and the old-fashioned news and intermission clips. I had grilled chicken sandwich. I don't know what anyone else had, as I sat in the back of the car by myself. I enjoyed a few moments to myself. One thing I noticed, everywhere, is the iced tea is very strong. I had to use a lot of sweetener on it, as it was so strong. I first noticed it at Le Cellier, but it was the same way at all the menu restaurants, but not the buffets. Here, we are used to pretty weak tea in restaurants, and even though we make it stronger at home, not nearly that strong. I only drink it that strong as hot tea. Everyone seemed happy with their lunch.
We had dinner at Sassagoula Floatworks again. This time, younger ds had spaghetti with applesauce and mickey goldfish heads. Older ds got chicken strips and mom took it to him in the room with her lunch (didn't notice what she got). Dh got a cheeseburger, and I got chicken parmigiana, which came with a LOT of spaghetti and a breadstick. It was excellent. We enjoyed the food here very much, as we'd also had the Beignets a couple of mornings...........messy, but very, very good.
All in all, great dining experiences, but for a couple of CMs who might have been just fed up with certain questions (still, I think they should keep their irritation in check, since in my case, both times I was misunderstood). I found all tables clean and pleasant. They were all relaxing times for us, and apart from our last day at MGM, the character meals were just about the only times we saw characters, other than Mickey and Friends, who we always get our first night. That MGM day was a character smorgasbord though.
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