The Best Laid Plans of Mice and Menus - 4/2013: La Hacienda COMPLETE! 7/26

[wilma-bride]

I am so determined to actually try Yak and Yeit - we have had to change our plans so many times and not got there. Fingers crossed for November.

 

[LittleStinkerbelle]

I am so determined to actually try Yak and Yeit - we have had to change our plans so many times and not got there. Fingers crossed for November.

I hope you make it!!!

 

[LittleStinkerbelle]

Day 3, Part 2

After lunch at Y&Y, we rode KRR and decided it was time to head back to the resort. We relaxed for a bit and then freshened up for the carriage ride around POR that we had booked for 6:30 p.m. The carriage ride was such a lovely and relaxing experience - I highly recommend it .

By the time we finished it was about 7 p.m. and we hopped on the boat for DTD. It's been a few trips since we've eaten at Wolfgang Puck Express, so that was my pick for dinner.

We placed our order and since it was a nice evening out, we headed to the outdoor seating to wait for our food to be delivered. DH and I decided to share two dishes. We started with the Butter Lettuce salad:

This was a very nice salad with bruschetta on the side. The bruschetta had a little bit of goat cheese on it, but it was pretty mild (I'm not a huge fan of goat cheese so it couldn't have been too strong or I would've objected ). The salad itself had a nice tangy vinegrette and plenty of Parmesan cheese shavings. I really liked the butter lettuce - it reminded me of they hydroponic lettuce I like from home.

For our entree we got Spaghetti and Meatballs:

I noticed that the portion doesn't look all that big in the photo, but it was actually pretty substantial and the meatballs were quite large. There was some seasoning in the meatballs that you don't typically taste in an Italian style meatball. I couldn't put my finger on what it was, but I liked it. DH was on the fence about whatever that flavor was though. I really enjoyed this dish and wanted to order it again later in the trip but that didn't end up happening.

DD had the kids pizza but I didn't get a picture.

I really enjoyed our meal here and I like the hybrid CS-TS style.

For dessert I was sure the gang would want to head to either Ghiradelli's for a sundae or Goofy's for make-your-own treats but they surprised me and said they wanted Italian ice! I had read a while back about an Italian ice stand at DTD, which I hadn't heard about before, and must've mentioned it to them.

So off we went in search of the stand, which I couldn't seem to find on the map. When we found it we were each happy to see that our personal favorite flavors were all on the menu: cherry for me, chocolate for DD and rainbow for DH.

We are big fans of Italian ice but don't have any shops near us so we're relegated to the little cups from the grocery store, which don't in any way compare to the delicious scooped kind like this! It was smooth and almost creamy (not ice-particle-y) and full of flavor! DD's chocolate, which I didn't get a picture of, was so rich and creamy it was hard to believe it's dairy free! I also thought this was a pretty good deal, $12 even for three smalls, which were quite generously sized. This was a tasty, refreshing end to our day's eating!

 

[MrsB1228]

Sorry you had so-so service at Yak & Yeti! We've found the service can be on-again, off-again there. We've been a couple of times when the server was rather lacklustre, almost indifferent, but other times we've had really outstanding service. I guess that's true of any restaurant, but we experience it more often at Y&Y (and Kona) than any other restaurant in WDW. Glad you enjoyed the wontons! They're one of my all-time favourite desserts on Disney property.

We love WPE and have to go at least once every trip! I'm a huge fan of their grilled salmon and DH loves their sandwiches. I really don't think you can go wrong with anything there.

Mmmm! Those Italian Ices look fantastic!! I don't remember ever seeing this stand at DTD, do you remember where it was located? There's nothing more refreshing than an Italian Ice on a hot, humid Florida day!

Loving your reviews!

 

[wilma-bride]

What is Italian Ice? Is it like sorbet?

Great dinner at WPE, always a great counter (but not quite counter) service option

 

[stewie]

Great report and pictures Thanks for posting

 

[LittleStinkerbelle]

Sorry you had so-so service at Yak & Yeti! We've found the service can be on-again, off-again there. We've been a couple of times when the server was rather lacklustre, almost indifferent, but other times we've had really outstanding service. I guess that's true of any restaurant, but we experience it more often at Y&Y (and Kona) than any other restaurant in WDW. Glad you enjoyed the wontons! They're one of my all-time favourite desserts on Disney property.

We love WPE and have to go at least once every trip! I'm a huge fan of their grilled salmon and DH loves their sandwiches. I really don't think you can go wrong with anything there.

Mmmm! Those Italian Ices look fantastic!! I don't remember ever seeing this stand at DTD, do you remember where it was located? There's nothing more refreshing than an Italian Ice on a hot, humid Florida day!

Loving your reviews!

I'll definitely give Y&Y another try - I find so-so service more forgivable when the food is good, which it was! The Italian Ice cart was just to the right after you cross the bridge into the West Side. Near the Characters in Flight ticket booth.

What is Italian Ice? Is it like sorbet?

Great dinner at WPE, always a great counter (but not quite counter) service option

Sorbet is a good comparison. I'd say Italian ice is even smoother and a little softer. Yum!

Great report and pictures Thanks for posting

Thank you for reading!

 

[Cshel85]

Joining in

 

[LittleStinkerbelle]

Joining in

Thank you for reading!

 

[LittleStinkerbelle]

Day 4, Part 1

Today was our resort switch day and since we were taking the morning a bit slower than usual, we decided to head down to the POR food court for a hot breakfast. It was a little after 9 a.m. when we got there and I was expecting that maybe the crowds would've dwindled a bit as everyone headed for park opening, but it was quite hopping in there! The lines were huge and tables were hard to come by. I'm sorry that I don't have any pictures to share from this one, by the time we got our food we were famished and dug right in! DD had the kids' buckwheat Mickey waffle platter. I was intrigued that they made the kids version buckwheat, but she didn't object and gobbled them right up. I had the kids pancake platter (I was saving my Mickey waffle appetite for 'Ohana the next day!), and DH had oatmeal. There was nothing really stand-out about this meal and unfortunately, the lines to pay were so long that the food was not really all that hot by the time we got to eat.

Today was another Epcot day for us and we didn't have any specific plans for lunch. One of our first stops was Spaceship Earth and when we came stumbling out into the daylight, the first thing we saw was Electric Umbrella and we figured why not?

Oh my, what can I say about this meal. In short, it was not good . DD had a burger and DH and I split the veggie flatbread.

This may be in the running for the worst thing I've ever eaten at Disney! It tasted like cardboard with a really spicy spread topped with rubbery veggies. Blech! I took a couple of bites of my half and that was more than enough for me. The best part of the whole meal was the few packaged grapes that I stole from DD's meal! I think it's safe to say I won't be running back to Electric Umbrella any time soon. I'm still asking myself why we didn't turn the other direction and walk the extra paces to one of my favorites, Sunshine Seasons, but I guess that's what happens when you don't have a plan.

Since I basically left lunch hungry, we decided to stop at the Smokehouse booth over in the America Pavilion. I'd seen pictures of the pork slider and rocky road mousse brownie before we left and was very interested in trying them so that's what we got.

The slider was tasty, although I think it could've benefited from some extra sauce on top (it was a little dryer than I like my pulled pork sandwiches). DD commandeered the brownie as her own so I was only able to muscle in for one small bite but I liked what I tasted.

 

[wilma-bride]

Oh no, somebody should have warned you about Electric Umbrella. It's a mistake that many of us have made at one time or another

Things could only get better after that, surely?

Every time I see a picture of that rocky road brownie, I hope and pray that they have it at next year's F&G festival.

 

[jecskc]

I agree about the Electric Umbrella. Consistently bad food. They had extra sauce you could use at the Smokehouse booth. I wouldn't have known wither but DH thought to ask and they gave him some. The mousse brownie thingy was soooo good !!

 

[wdwpirates]

Hopping on board a little late! Great reviews and pics so far!

DH and I do pop into Electric Umbrella every now and then because DH likes the chicken nuggets! He's such a 5 year old! LOL!

Can't wait to read more!

 

[Linda67]

When I saw that you had ordered the veggie flatbread from the Electric Umbrella I though "ooh that sounds like a nice option" ..... seems I was wrong

We've never eaten anything nice in that place which I have to remind DH of everytime we walk by it and he says "let's go in here"

 

[LittleStinkerbelle]

Oh no, somebody should have warned you about Electric Umbrella. It's a mistake that many of us have made at one time or another

Things could only get better after that, surely?

Every time I see a picture of that rocky road brownie, I hope and pray that they have it at next year's F&G festival.

I definitely could've used a warning! I hope they have the brownie for you next year!

I agree about the Electric Umbrella. Consistently bad food. They had extra sauce you could use at the Smokehouse booth. I wouldn't have known wither but DH thought to ask and they gave him some. The mousse brownie thingy was soooo good !!

Aw, too bad I didn't know about the extra sauce.

Hopping on board a little late! Great reviews and pics so far!

DH and I do pop into Electric Umbrella every now and then because DH likes the chicken nuggets! He's such a 5 year old! LOL!

Can't wait to read more!

Thanks for joining in!

When I saw that you had ordered the veggie flatbread from the Electric Umbrella I though "ooh that sounds like a nice option" ..... seems I was wrong

We've never eaten anything nice in that place which I have to remind DH of everytime we walk by it and he says "let's go in here"

Yeah, I was hopeful that the veggie flatbread would be a winner but we see how that turned out!

 

[LittleStinkerbelle]

Day 4, Part 2

Our dinner reservation for this evening was at San Angel Inn. DH and I hadn't eaten here since 1999 and hadn't really considered it but when DD mentioned wanting to eat here, I went ahead and booked it. DD was hoping to sit near the water so she could watch the ride boats go by. Knowing that was probably a popular request, I stopped by the podium earlier in the day and asked the manager what was the best shot at that request. He said to check-in about 15 minutes early and note our request then.

So we did just that. The CM checking us in said that he'd have to check with the manager (different one that the one I met earlier). But no sooner did we step away than we were called to be seated. We were shown to a cramped little table in the furthest row from the water so I mentioned to the hostess that the CM at the podium was supposed to be checking on a water table for us. I sensed a slight irritation and she said we'd need to go back up front. She looked at something at the podium and came back and said there were no water tables and I asked if she had checked with the manager. After a bit the manager came over and was quite abrupt with me. He said that everyone wants a water table and there were none available (I could see two empty but I guess that's besides the point). He told me he couldn't even give me an estimate to wait for one because, "the longest seated table has been there an hour but that means nothing - sometimes people stay for two or three hours."

At that point I just felt he was being quite rude with me and it'd already been a frustrating day (major problems with our switchover to the BC, but that's not a story for this report) and I guess my patience ran out and we decided to go elsewhere. It wasn't the fact that we couldn't get a water table as I understand it's just request, I just felt there was no need for the manager to be rude about it.

We made our way outside and I hopped on Mobile Magic to look for an ADR. Unfortunately, it was a minute or so after 7 p.m. so it wouldn't let me search for anything earlier than 8:30 p.m. I thought for a moment and realized that we were planning to eat at Marrakesh later in the week and that seems to have pretty good availability, so DH ran ahead to put our name in. I had barely even made it to Canada with DD when he texted that he'd already been seated!

Marrakesh has been on our to-try list for ages so I was happy to be trying it, even if it wasn't exactly how I'd planned it in the itinerary.

We were seated on the upper level right near the railing so we had a nice view of the restaurant and eventually the show.

DH and I split an appetizer - chicken bastilla:

I really liked the pastry and the cinnamon but I was half and half on the filling. I don't love the flavor of dark meat chicken and that was the predominant flavor coming through for me.

For entrees I had the chicken kabobs:

And DH had the chicken couscous:

I really enjoyed my entree! I was torn between the kabobs and the couscous but I'm so glad I went with the kabobs because I prefer the boneless chicken. The couscous was nice and flavorful with some sweetness from dried fruit. I didn't try DH's entree but he said he really enjoyed it.

Shortly after our meals arrived the show started.

I knew I wanted baklava for dessert as I always enjoy the baklava that comes with the schwarma platter at Tangierine. This is the Moroccan Symphony, which is a sampler of three baklavas:

DH and I split this but I thought the portion was really small. I didn't enjoy it as much as the baklava I've gotten from Tangierine or the coffee shop in the back. It seemed dryer - the kind I've had before practically oozes with honey. I think next time I'd just go outside for dessert after.

All and all, I enjoyed our meal here and would consider returning.

 

[wilma-bride]

What a shame about how you were treated at SAI - I totally get why you left, I think I would have too. Chances are you were probably a little less tolerant, given your earlier frustrations when changing resort but, nonetheless, it sounds as though the staff were less than accommodating - not very Disney

Looks like Marrakesh was a good stand-in - so, what did you replace it with later in your trip, I wonder...

 

[LittleStinkerbelle]

What a shame about how you were treated at SAI - I totally get why you left, I think I would have too. Chances are you were probably a little less tolerant, given your earlier frustrations when changing resort but, nonetheless, it sounds as though the staff were less than accommodating - not very Disney

Looks like Marrakesh was a good stand-in - so, what did you replace it with later in your trip, I wonder...

Yes, I think you're right - maybe I would've been a little more likely to let it roll off my back if it hadn't been a trying day already!

You'll have to wait and see about the replacement ADR.

 

[wilma-bride]

Yes, I think you're right - maybe I would've been a little more likely to let it roll off my back if it hadn't been a trying day already!

You'll have to wait and see about the replacement ADR.

Are you doing a trip report? I want to know what the problems were that you had at BC

 

[emmysmommy]

Hi there! Oops! Didn't see this sooner but I suppose it is better late than never??

Sorry about the Manager's attitude at SAI. It was probably better to just walk away from there and move on to something that won't have you feeling like you were an annoyance. That's too bad that they had that attitude for a Disney place.

Em and I loved Marrakesh last trip. I loved the food, the atmosphere, and our server was great. I ordered the same thing as you.

Oh and as for Electric Umbrella.. we made the mistake of going there our first WDW trip in 2006. We haven't repeated it since.