Stuffing my face @ Disney (holiday style): TUSKER HOUSE LUNCH! [3/26/13]

[emmebear]

We haven't ventured outside of WDW in Orlando yet. My DH loves banh mi ... To the point that he wanted to start his own banh mi food truck. Ha! I love bun...we might have to venture out of the bubble!

Best bahn mi I've had was at lee's bakery in Atlanta. They make their own bread which is sooooo delicious! The bahn mi's where I live are pretty good too. The most offensive bahn mi's are made on hoagie buns. Ew!

There's a large Vietnamese population in Orlando & so many places to eat! I can feed 3 people for the price of one buffet in Disney. Ha! Sad but true.

I'm trying a lot of new places on my next trip and revisiting flower & garden so I'm excited. But I'll probably stop and get pho on my way home. I tend not to eat Korean out because noone cooks better than my mom. I'm kind of partial.

 

[emmebear]

Ps: bahn mi truck would be great!!! I love that idea.

PPS: in eating pho now. Ha!

 

[emmebear]

updated 3/17/13



CINDERELLA'S ROYAL TABLE BREAKFAST



CRT is one of emme's favorite place to eat. it is on the expensive side. however, how often do you get to eat inside of a castle? i stumbled upon an ADR a few days before our trip. i called to make the ADR and the cm took the TIW discount off as she booked our ADR. this was probably our 6th time eating at CRT. i've never had dinner but out of breakfast & lunch, breakfast is my favorite meal.

our breakfast was a late breakfast. i normally like to get a pre-park ADR but since we were spending all day at the park, including MVMCP, i did not mind the 10:30 time.

after you are checked in at the podium, you wait until your family name is called. then you are escorted inside of the castle where you then wait in line to meet none other than cinderella. the photo package is included with your meal.

and this is the picture that came with our meal:

one of the rare moments that emme is smiling AND looking at the camera. it's a small miracle!



after the picture, you then walk up red stairs to the dining area. i was hoping for a table by the window but we got stuck at a table that was in an awkward area as it was directly across from the stairs. i sat at a bench that was shared by the table next to me. but that's ok. i was hungry enough to forget about where i was sitting as i was starving.


up first:

Assorted breads & pastries

on this trip, the biscuits weren't hard as a rock & the pastries were very flaky. i took a bite out of each one & tried everything.

here's emme before her face was covered in strawberries.


and for emme:

Strawberries

emme loves her some strawberries. the cm was kind enough to bring her a bowl of strawberries. since emme was 2, she got french toast sticks for her breakfast & there was no extra charge. didn't get a picture of the french toast sticks. notice that emme always eats the tops of her strawberries first!


while we were eating, the "wishing star" portion of the meal started. the lights flicker & everyone makes a wish on their wishing star.

after the wishing star portion, one of emme's friends made a visit to our table.

and then my entree was delivered:

entree w/ flash.

Lobster and Crab Crepes - warm cheese-filled crepes topped with spinach, sauteed lobster, and blue crab meat with a poached egg perched on top and draped in Hollandaise sauce

i am a sucker for hollandaise sauce & a perfectly poached egg. i was skeptical about the amount of lobster but i was pleasantly surprised at the amount of lobster on my plate. i had 2 lobster claws & a handful of blue crab meat. the egg was poached perfectly (mmmm runny yolk) & the yolk paired perfectly with the warm sauteed spinach. i loved this entree so much, i ordered it again. although, i don't remember tasting much cheese in these crepes as the hollandaise was pretty powerful. but i love me some hollandaise sauce.

emme & her she-ra pose.



as we're eating breakfast, some more of emme's friends came by.

even though the lunch turnaround began as we were finishing our meal, we were never rushed to eat and leave.

this was one of our better visits to CRT. my visit to CRT for lunch in november was pretty lackluster but this trip made up for it.


after our breakfast, we took advantage of the empty foyer.

the beautiful christmas tree!!



after breakfast, we ran into another friend!

as we were waiting in line for the fairy god mother, someone called my name & it was my cousin's wife. i knew they were in disney but we just didn't have the time to meet as we were on different schedules. it was such a nice surprise & so random!

emme & her cousin, jeremy.

this is my cousin jason. he was adopted when he was a little baby but he's korean all the way! he lives in virigina & is a police officer. i was so happy to see him.

the carousel is something we always ride after a meal at CRT.



after our meeting with family, it was time for a treat.

Vanilla ice cream from Storybook Treats


up next, DINNER @ Be Our Guest!

 

[rachel09985]

Yes your cousin is a packer fan! Awesome!

Haha in the pic with Ariel emme has a red mouth. You can tell it is from the strawberry and how she eats the tops off! Too funny.

Aurora is really squeezing her tight! lol!

 

[emmebear]

Yes your cousin is a packer fan! Awesome!

Haha in the pic with Ariel emme has a red mouth. You can tell it is from the strawberry and how she eats the tops off! Too funny.

Aurora is really squeezing her tight! lol!

Strawberry mouth! Haha.

Aurora had a death grip on her but I'm sure emme enjoyed it.

Discount double check!

 

[emmebear]

updated 3/19/13



DINNER @ BE OUR GUEST

i made a dinner reservation @ BOG before MVMCP. this was our second time having dinner @ BOG.

we had a long morning & emme decided she would nap at this time. when i was checking in, i asked if i could have a corner table so that i could park the stroller with a sleeping emme. while i was waiting, i took a few pictures.

menu outside.

prince eric's castle.

my ADR was at 445pm. i thought it was pretty silly to be waiting 15 minutes when dinner had just started. but i was still waiting. i didn't mind the wait all that much as i was hoping emme would wake up at any time but by the sound of her snoring, she was going to be sleeping at least an hour.

me & my sad friend.



finally, it was time for us to be seated.

gorgeous entry way.



after waiting to get a table, they attempted to sit me in the middle of the main dining area...with my jogging stroller. at this point, i was pretty perturbed as i specially stated that i needed a corner table because emme was sleeping. she then wanted me to wait AGAIN until she could find me a table. so now, 30 minutes has passed since checking in for my ADR and i still didn't have a table. i did voice my displeasure & i think the look on my face hit home because within 2 minutes, i was finally seated....in a corner, like i had asked.

place setting with emme's stroller in the background.

it was kind of lonely with emme being asleep. i really wished she would wake up so that we could enjoy the experience together. but, she was still snoring.

main dining area - ballroom.



i decided to have a beer with dinner. mmmmmm beer.

i ordered the salad as my appetizer.

Salad with champagne vinagrette

this salad was total "eh". for $4.99 i expected a bit more. the vinagrette was bitter & so were some of the greens. it was not a good match. maybe some almonds would have helped to bring some sweetness to the salad.

the bread was warm & the butter was tasty.



on my last trip to BOG, i ordered the pork. this time, for my entree, i ordered:

Rotisserie Cornish Hen - with roasted fingerling potatoes and seasonal vegetables $15.99

i thought this cornish hen was a total bargain at $15.99. it was very well roasted, juicy & tender. the meat was quite flavorful! it was very comforting & reminded me of the chicken i roast at home in the home. the asparagus was crunchy & the potatoes were perfectly roasted.

the cornish hen's wing was holding a garlic baguette. very cute & funny. i did feel like a total carnivore eating this cornish hen. it was quite delicious & i'm glad i ordered it.


emme finally was awake! hoooray!! she said she was hungry so we ordered this:

i asked the CM if emme's pasta could be tossed in butter with some cheese as emme will not eat red sauce. at least make an effort to melt the cheese just a little bit. it was pretty bland & tasteless. le cellier did the exact same thing! it was such a waste of $7.00. she did eat the broccoli.


so instead, emme ate the insides of about 10 dinner rolls. i don't blame her one bit.


for dessert, we shared this:

Strawberry Cream Cheese Cupcake - vanilla sponge cake, strawberry mousse filling, and cream cheese icinng

this cupcake is very good. the cake itself is moist & there is a strawberry mousse filling in the center. the only negative is that the wrap is next to impossible to remove without crushing the actual cupcake. so we ate the cupcake with a spoon.



our CM also brought emme a little surprise as i had mentioned that we were celebrating one year of being seizure free.

our CM was one of the best i've had at disney. she was wonderful!



one of the special features of BOG is that you get to take a picture with this guy after your meal is over:

overall, this dinner @ BOG was a vast improvement with our experience in november. they were still working out their kinks but i was happy with my entree & our CM was exceptional. it was a great start to MVMCP. i've had the opportunity to dine @ BOG for dinner twice & i'm not quite sure if i would return in the distant future. maybe i'll try towards the end of the year...but i'm sure all the ressies will be all booked up.

 

[thejman]

We will be trying BOG in April and hopefully will have a good experience. I keep hearing mixed reviews. Thanks for your review

 

[emmebear]

We will be trying BOG in April and hopefully will have a good experience. I keep hearing mixed reviews. Thanks for your review

BOG is definitely hit of miss. However, I think it's worth trying once as there is do much to see!

Hopefully they have all their kinks worked out by April.

Enjoy!!!

 

[rachel09985]

I am glad you had a good server after waiting a 1/2 hour longer than your ressie!

I am not sure why but I Just have no desire to eat there for dinner! I mean I would, but I won't go out of my way for it especially when I can go for lunch.

 

[Sydnoahmom]

Love your report! Oddly enough, I have never eaten at any of the restaurants you just reviewed, but now I really want too.

Your pictures are fabulous (mainly because you have a beautiful subject) so it makes me wonder what brand and model of camera you have?

Thanks for sharing!

 

[emmebear]

Love your report! Oddly enough, I have never eaten at any of the restaurants you just reviewed, but now I really want too.

Your pictures are fabulous (mainly because you have a beautiful subject) so it makes me wonder what brand and model of camera you have?

Thanks for sharing!

thank you so much for the compliment!

i shoot with a canon 60D & use a canon speedlite 580 EXII flash sometimes in the evenings.

 

[pumba]

we didnt even try to get a reservation at BOG...but decided on tier one at the Luau...our granddaughter and her fiance will be joining us...I am so excited..

Your little princess is adorable and even if she doesnt like to look at the camera some of the time...she is just so sweet..and photogenic..
thanks for taking the time to do these reviews and photos.

 

[happy2012]

Nice review of BOG!! It sure is a beautiful restaurant!! Ur daughter is precious.

 

[vettegirl]

Great review! I am do getting that Cornish hen in Sept, thanks for posting the pics.

 

[emmebear]

we didnt even try to get a reservation at BOG...but decided on tier one at the Luau...our granddaughter and her fiance will be joining us...I am so excited..

Your little princess is adorable and even if she doesnt like to look at the camera some of the time...she is just so sweet..and photogenic..
thanks for taking the time to do these reviews and photos.

i've never done the luau...i'd love to get your opinion.

thanks for the sweet comments about emme. i've seriously traumatized her with my camera. i won't be home for easter (i'm being flown into atlanta for a photo shoot) so i'm hoping to squeeze in some pre-easter shots of emme in her dress.

THANK YOU for reading along! i'm tweaking that chicken recipe for you!!

Nice review of BOG!! It sure is a beautiful restaurant!! Ur daughter is precious.

thank you so much!

i'm going to be posting my review of my first BOG experience soon!

Great review! I am do getting that Cornish hen in Sept, thanks for posting the pics.

thanks for reading!

the cornish hen was pretty good. i've also had the pork and it was "eh". i'm posting that review soon. enjoy that cornish hen. i think it's a great entree AND great value.

 

[emmebear]

updated 3/26/13



TUSKER HOUSE LUNCH!

after a very loooong night at MVMCP (we stayed past midnight!), we had a leisurely morning, packed up our bags & headed to animal kindgom. we would only be spending a few hours at AK before heading back home to jacksonville.

emme & safari donald.


we had an early lunch ADR at tusker house at animal kingdom. i think tusker house is hidden gem as it's pretty "cheap" in terms of a character meal. also, there is a HUGE variety of food. it's not your standard buffet you'd find say at crystal palace. i feel like tusker house is a toned down version of boma in some aspects. it definitely isn't "african" (kind of like sanaa is more indian than african) but there is indian/middle eastern/asian/african influences found on the buffet. but don't let that scare you away. standard american food as well as a kid selection and a large selection of desserts are also on the buffet.


after having a beer at the dawa bar (which is located right by tusker house), i checked in for our ADR. even with an ADR, you will wait before being seated. to help time pass, you can take a picture with safari donald. the picture is not included with the meal however.

donald #1!



our name was finally called & we were shown to our table. i really dislike the two top tables. the table felt so small for the amount of "stuff" on the table. i ditched my dslr camera for most of the meal as there was just no room for anything extra. but i digress....


here's my first plate of food:

i really loved the curry dish on this plate. the samosas and mango chutney were also quite tasty. the meat as you can tell was pretty well done (ick). the rice in the back had a peanut flavor similar to the peanut rice found at boma. i love the pearl couscous as it had great flavor. like i mentioned earlier, there is a ton of flavor & variety at tusker house.



and this is what emme had for lunch:

rice, watermelon & american cheese.


during the meal, a sort of "congo" line forms & the characters along with patrons, shake instruments and parade inside. it's really cute but very chaotic. the kids love it though. emme went three times during our meal.

shake it emme!

here's my second plate:

the shrimp stew was really good on this plate as was the tofu! i love me some tofu. tofu is a great vessel for flavor and i was even happier that they used firm tofu. no mush here! the taboulleh was very refreshing. and you can't deny the power of disney macaroni & cheese. there's something magical about the nuclear orange color.



as we were enjoying a (loud) lunch, some friends came by to visit:

daisy looks so cute in her safari outfit.

in case you didn't notice, donald does not come inside for pictures.


emme decided it was time for dessert:

i don't have much of a sweet tooth & finished with this:

overall, it was a great meal at tusker house. it was a lot louder than my last visit for breakfast. this would be a great place for a vegetarian to eat but it also satisfies carnivores as well. i love the variety of flavors too! ADR's are easy to get for tusker house but the quality of the food is fantastic. there is just so much to eat & not enough space in my tummy.

here's a tip: grab a late breakfast ADR & you can also have lunch. it's BRUNCH! i did this on the trip before for a breakfast ADR. it's the best of both worlds.



after lunch, we made our way through animal kingdom.

very cold beer on an unusually hot december day.

and lastly,

she had to get her face painted!

 

[rachel09985]

Great update!! Emme looks like shes having a blast with those characters. She looks like a little diva with Daisy!

 

[emmebear]

Great update!! Emme looks like shes having a blast with those characters. She looks like a little diva with Daisy!

Thanks Rachel! She loves daisy!

2 weeks left!

 

[candekisses]

so I know the princesses that come around to the tables at akershus can vary but is it always belle that you get to have your picture with in the beginning as your souvenir pic or does she vary also? thanks for sharing your great tips & pics

updated 3/3/13


BREAKFAST @ AKERSHUS & EPCOT SNACKS!


ok, so i knew i would mix up my dates at some point! too many meals in such a short period of time...in addition to too many pictures has left me a bit confused (just slightly).

the akershus post prior to this happened in january of 2013 during my dismeet weekend. the akershus post below occurred during my holiday extravaganza in december. SEE...i told you i love the cheesy potatoes @ akershus. we go EVERY trip!

emme & belle.

my plate: i get the same cold offerings each time & each time these items are so delicious. i love love the blackberries!



this was another enjoyable breakfast at akershus. it was a really nice surprise to see cinderella instead of jasmine & emme had a total blast. i tried not to totally pig out at breakfast so that i could make room for some snacks at epcot. but two big thumbs up for akershus breakfast! it is my favorite spot for breakfast at disney. pricey yes but we do enjoy it, very much.



SNACKS!


emme & i began our day at epcot & i was hoping to walk off breakfast to make room for a few snacks & drinks.

we ran into some friends on our way to Boulangerie Patisserie.

jasmine & aladdin

belle

this is one of my favorite character photos with emme. she's actually looking AT the camera.



time for some snacks:

Grey Goose Citron Slushie

this drink never disappoints. it's very refreshing!


we finally made it to boulangerie & the line was out the door & almost around the building. i've never had a croissant or an eclair from this place but i've only read good things so i had high hopes. after waiting such a long time, i was thinking that this better be the best ham & cheese croissant & eclair of my life.

Croissant Jambon Fromage - ham, cheese and bechamel in a croissant $4.75

i had the option of heating this or just taking it "to go" in a box, unheated. i opted for the unheated choice and she put it in a nice box for me. i wasn't hungry yet & wanted to save this for later. after eating the croissant, i really wished i could have tasted this heated and with the cheese melted. by the time i had gotten to the croissant, the cheese was hard & the ham was kind of slimey. the croissant was still flakey but i didn't taste the difference between the croissant at akershus & the croissant at boulangerie. needless to say, the croissant does not travel well & i was disappointed.

Chocolate eclair

hoping for another life altering experience, i can say that like the ham & cheese croissant, this eclair does not travel well. i did eat it about 1.5 hours after purchasing so maybe therein lies the problem. the outside had hardened and just was not any good. another sad moment for me.



onto a happier snack:

Perry cookie

this massive cookie was bought at a random booth that sold coffee & water. the perry was edible & emme looked pretty funny devouring perry's face off. it was a pretty huge treat for only $2.95. at least one of us had a tasty treat so the day wasn't a total loss.



we were heading to the seas & then left epcot.

ominous clouds.

the boat ride from world showcase to future world.

our friend stitch & the half- eaten sign.



and at pop century, we had this lovely towel awaiting us:

 

[emmebear]

Hello.


You've resurrected this thread from the Disboard grave..ha ha!

Yes, it is always belle for the souvenir picture.

Thanks for the nice comments.