Rogue One: A Deluxe Diner/Foodie Goes Quick Service - Jun '17 Dining Review *NEW 6/23 D-Luxe*

[JessRose]

Welcome all! It's time for another dining review! If you're reading along with my current dining review, A Girl's Gotta Eat, you know that things are winding down there - so it's perfect timing for me to start another review.

This one is a big change for me. After years of exclusively using the deluxe dining plan, in March I made the conversion to the standard dining plan (for one trip) and this trip I took the plunge and went with the quick service plan.

So - did I enjoy it? Are we done with the deluxe plan forever? You'll have to read on to find out! If you want to hear all about our trip to Pandora - you can follow the full trip report here.

The standouts for this trip are: Narcoossee's Brunch and Satul'i Canteen!

If we missed introductions the first time around -

That's me - the one in the fancy hat. I'm Jessica and I'll be your dining guide for this review. I'm in insurance operations by day - Disney autograph book designer and beginner Disney blogger by night.

I'm a self-proclaimed foodie and dining enthusiast. Join along to read about the latest adventure!

 

[JessRose]

Review Links

Day 1
Lunch: Friar's Nook
Cocktail Hour: Trader Sam's

Day 2
Breakfast: Satul'i Canteen
Lunch: D-Luxe Burger
Dinner: Flame Tree Barbecue

Day 3
Brunch: Narcoossee's
Lunch: Les Halles
Dinner: Fairfax Fare

Day 4
Breakfast: Pepper Market
Lunch: Liberty Inn
Snacks: World Showcase
Dinner: Delta One

 

[Raeven]

I'm here!

 

[suse66]

Looking forward to it!

 

[dnllmz]

Hi! Following along.

 

[JessRose]

I'm here!

Thanks for joining this crazy adventure too!

Looking forward to it!

Hi! Following along.

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you enjoy.

 

[JessRose]

Day 1: Lunch - Friar's Nook

When I arrived at Magic Kingdom for lunch - I realized that I was mistaking the location of Friar's Nook. I thought Friar's Nook was located where Sleepy Hollow actually is. No worries - I was able to use the MDE app for easy walking directions to Friar's Nook.

I also mistakenly thought that Friar's Nook had buffalo chicken mac & cheese. When I arrived, I learned it was actually barbecue chicken mac & cheese.

In hindsight, I don't know why I thought Mac & Cheese on a 90+ degree day sounded like a good idea. I also wish I would have just stayed at Sleepy Hollow and gotten the spicy chicken and waffle sandwich, or gone to Columbia Harbour House for their shrimp mac & cheese.

Anyway...here it is...

90 degree day or not...this just wasn't very good. I really really wish I could say that I loved this, because I love the idea of gourmet mac & cheese. I don't know why I was expecting something besides Stouffer's mac & cheese...but what I got was Stouffer's mac & cheese. Don't get me wrong...Stouffer's isn't bad, but it isn't great either.

The barbecue chicken on top of this lacked any type of smoky flavor. It was just regular chicken and barbecue. Very generic. I'm not quite sure that mac & cheese sauce + barbecue really go together. It was also just raw cabbage on top. It added some nice, and much needed crunch. But raw cabbage was a little off-putting. A light dressing - similar to what you'd find on coleslaw would have helped this along considerably - almost like a classic barbecue sandwich combination.

Overall, I'd give this a C+. I wouldn't order it again.

 

[Raeven]

Anyway...here it is...

It does not look very appetizing. Buffalo chicken mac and cheese sounds much better.

I really really wish I could say that I loved this, because I love the idea of gourmet mac & cheese. I don't know why I was expecting something besides Stouffer's mac & cheese...but what I got was Stouffer's mac & cheese. Don't get me wrong...Stouffer's isn't bad, but it isn't great either.

So that is exactly what I thought the mac and cheese part looked like! Stouffer's isn't bad...it's alright. I used to eat it A LOT growing up because my mom didn't really cook and I got kind of sick of it. I don't know how to explain it but mac and cheeses that are frozen or from the box they all kind of taste the same, and I would expect a "gourmet" type mac and cheese to taste better. I have found at Disney that a lot of the mac and cheese is very bland tasting too. Homecomin' has been the only good one so far.

Clearly I'm very passionate about mac and cheese

It was also just raw cabbage on top. It added some nice, and much needed crunch. But raw cabbage was a little off-putting. A light dressing - similar to what you'd find on coleslaw would have helped this along considerably - almost like a classic barbecue sandwich combination.

It really doesn't look good. That's definitely something that threw me off looking at it.

 

[JessRose]

It really doesn't look good. That's definitely something that threw me off looking at it.

I kept trying to convince myself that surely there was some sort of dressing on it and that it wasn't just raw, plain cabbage as I ate around it. I finally worked up the courage to try it and nope...yep, definitely was just raw cabbage.

 

[Raeven]

I kept trying to convince myself that surely there was some sort of dressing on it and that it wasn't just raw, plain cabbage as I ate around it. I finally worked up the courage to try it and nope...yep, definitely was just raw cabbage.

So strange and so gross

 

[wdwnut61]

Following along I agree mac and cheese when it's super hot not good.
I'm looking forward to hearing about Narcoossee's Brunch and how it compares to CG Brunch.

 

[nicoleakr]

Following along!

 

[gardengirl628]

Can't wait to read more. That is definitely some strange looking Mac and cheese!

 

[JessRose]

Following along I agree mac and cheese when it's super hot not good.
I'm looking forward to hearing about Narcoossee's Brunch and how it compares to CG Brunch.

I was blown away by the Cali Grill brunch, so I tried really hard to keep an open mind about brunch at Narcoossee's.

Following along!

Thanks for joining!

Can't wait to read more. That is definitely some strange looking Mac and cheese!

Good - I thought maybe it was just me that thought that haha.

 

[absolutmey]

following along!

 

[JessRose]

following along!

 

[ThreeBoyMama]

Following! That mac n cheese doesn't look good to me either

 

[JessRose]

Day 1: Cocktail Hour - Trader Sam's

Following Happily Ever After, it was time to enjoy some cocktails and nosh at Trader Sam's.

When attempting to park at the Poly, we were told we couldn't unless we had an official ADR there. We didn't have time to mess with the TTC and come back at this point - so I asked if we could just Valet park. We were told we could pay to valet. To me - the premise was a little silly. I know individuals abuse the parking situation at the Poly - mainly because the last time I had an ADR here in March, I couldn't self-park and was forced to pay for valet because there were no spots available - but maybe they need to make you go to valet, and after providing a dining receipt - waive the charge? I don't know - it was off-putting and basically made us feel like we weren't welcome there unless we made ADRs, which you can't do at Trader Sam's.

When we arrived at Trader Sam's there were no tables available. Last time we were here - the person at the host stand had a list of names and pagers. We were told this wasn't an option and directed to eat outside. Anyone else experienced a wait at Trader Sam's? I definitely have a memory of there being a list of names and pagers for a wait - but the girl was adamant they never did that, so I guess I just made that up in my mind.

Anyways - it was around 85 degrees outside, and muggy as can be - so - I guess I really wanted a cocktail and some snacks here, because we suffered through it. The food it is worth it, but I have to say - I'm grateful we're staying at the Poly next trip, because the experience certainly put me off any future visits if we weren't staying on site.

I started with:

HippopotoMai-Tai - Coruba Dark Rum, Bacardi Superior Rum, Bols Orange Curacao, Orgeat (almond), organic agave nectar, and fresh lime juice. Served in a souvenir Tiki Glass for $21; without glass for $11

The cost of the glass is less than what it is in the gift shop, and it says Trader Sam's Grog Grotto on the back of it. I was happy I finally got my glass after foregoing one on my last trip. And, in keeping with tradition, the drink was knock you right on your kiester strong.

Lisa decided to go with something a bit more mundane:

Mosquito Mojito - Bacardi Dragon Berry Rum, organic agave nectar, Falernum, mint and fresh lime juice topped with soda water $10.75

This was also delicious!

For snacks, we decided to share:

Hawaiian Poke - with Sriracha aioli $12.99

This was yummy, super fresh and a very large portion (we felt) for the price given the quality of the tuna.

Roasted Chicken Pork Pate Banh Mi Sliders $9.99

These were SUPER tasty. The bread was fresh - crusty on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside. The Pork Pate was more of a pork sausage in terms of flavor, and the pickled slaw on top was crisp and added a nice amount of acid. This was also a generous portion for the price!

I loved our "meal" here and this has, after two visits here, become a first day tradition! There are still lots of things I'd like to try on the menu here!

 

[wdwnut61]

Looking forward to try Trader Sam's both food and drink look delicious.

 

[dnllmz]

That all looks so good! I'm really regretting skipping lunch.