The Hudson's do Disney w/Tropical Storm Fay & the DDP!! Aug 16-23 with Pics!!

[workinmom]

I have been debating about doing a dining review since we returned from WDW, but finally decided we didn't take all those food pictures for nothing, so here goes....

This was our 2nd trip to WDW as a family although we had not been since 2001. Did not plan to take a vacation this summer since we did a cruise in Sept 2007, but when we received a 40% coupon for the resorts & recieved our stimulus check, realized we could do another "big" vacation. DH doesn't love Disney, but knows I do, so he happily agreed. We even splurged and stayed at the WL. First time using DDP.

First off, a bit about us: DH(Ray) & Myself(Lisa), both 43. We are both pretty adventurous eaters...not much we won't eat!! I love to cook & watch Food Network all the time. Even though I watch a lot of "Food" TV, Ray says that I "still make the same food all the time". I guess I'm just in a rut!!!

16 yr old DD, Amanda, who read food porn with me before the trip & was instrumental in capturing photos of our food. She also gave input as to where we should/should not eat during the trip. A good eater, pretty experimental, loves pasta.

14 yr old DS, Andrew, who actually celebrated his 14th birthday in WDW. A typical teenage boy, doesn't get too excited about much but video games. Never offered any advice about where to eat. He is also a good eater, but despises onions!!! After experiencing Le Cellier on our 1st night, he anxiously awaited each meal!

After reading the food porn thread for months before our trip, there were several places (mostly CS) that I had planned on trying. Unfortunately, Tropical Storm, Fay, came on vacation with us & altered our eating plans some of the days. We made the best of the rain, but didn't get to eat at some of the places I had hoped to try.

Here is a picture of us in our "uniform" for most of the vacation:

And on to the reviews:
1st up: Le Cellier

 

[Roxychica7]

Oh gosh! That is exactly what our photoalbum from 2002 looked like of my mom and I. Except it was a freak rain storm that came through. I hope you still enjoyed it all though. Although, I'm sure the food more than made up for it!

 

[iluvpluto27]

Count me in.

 

[butiflfeet]

I'm glad you decided to share! I can't wait to read your reviews!

 

[TarheelPrincess]

Glad you decided to do a review...I look forward to it.

 

[MickeyNicki]

Cant wait for more!

 

[Lisa D]

Hi Lisa -that pic was taken on Wednesday, right? We were right there at the MK with you, and wearing almost identical outfits! At least we were able to ride Splash Mountain with no wait and no worry of becoming wet (since we already were!) Looking forward to your report.

 

[Melisa1]

Can't wait!

 

[Minniespal]

Excellent

 

[raph_b]

Looking forward to hearing about Le Cellier.....

 

[workinmom]

Hi Lisa -that pic was taken on Wednesday, right? We were right there at the MK with you, and wearing almost identical outfits! At least we were able to ride Splash Mountain with no wait and no worry of becoming wet (since we already were!) Looking forward to your report.

Yes, that picture was taken Wed. That was our 2nd day at MK, so we did some filler attractions, as well as the big 3. Returned in the evening to watch Wishes. Even with the constant drizzle, Wishes was wonderful

 

[wilma-bride]

Looking forward to the reviews - shame about the lousy weather you had on your trip.

 

[workinmom]

Ok, on with the reviews:

We arrived in Tampa on Sat the 16th....got a rental car & drove to WDW. We did stop for a couple of cases of water (anticipating the heat, not the rain) & finally arrived at WL. Everyone was really hungry, as we had not eaten since the airport about 7:30 am. We voted to wait until we got to WL to get something. After finally checking in & getting settled, DH opted for a nap instead of food so the kids & I went to Roaring Fork for a "little something". We were eating at Le Cellier for dinner, so we didn't want to have a huge lunch since I think it was around 2:30 or 3.

Amanda & Andrew split the Turkey & Brie sandwich on Focaccia bread. It was huge & came with a little side of pasta salad. I just got a container of fruit from the case for Ray & I to snack on. I was saving up for our dinner.

Kids loved the sandwich, I ate most of the pasta salad, & the fruit was fresh. If I remember correctly, it was honeydew, cantaloupe, & grapes. This held us over until our dinner which was not until 8:05 pm. We paid OOP for this meal. I don't remember how much it was, but not terribly expensive. Sorry, we didn't take any pictures of these items.

Up next....the long awaited, Le Cellier!!!

 

[TigerKat]

So happy you decided to share your reviews with us!

 

[workinmom]

After booking our trip & reading the Dis, I realized I had to make some ADR's for our trip. We booked after our 180 day mark. Le Cellier was one of the 1st places I had decided on and since we had never eaten there, put it first on our list. Last trip we did Ohana on our arrival night & wanted something fun to "kick off the trip", but this was the only night we could snag an ADR at Le Cellier. I wasn't crazy about the time (8:05), but figured I could try to get an earlier ADR. I called about every week & even checked after we arrived at WDW, but this was the only time we could get.

We arrived at the restaurant just about our ADR time. This would become a habit....arriving just on time or a little late for our ADR's. We never quite timed the buses from the resorts correctly or walking times to & from places. I will say, we never had a problem being seated & in most cases, were being shown to our table within 10 min.

We were seated at a table which was right in front of a little fireplace, but also in front of the 2 doors to the kitchen!!! I mentioned to Ray that maybe we should ask to move, but in the end, were just glad to be in WDW & never asked.

I had spent many hours on the "food porn" thread, so I felt like I didn't even need to look at the menu to know what I was going to order. I really wanted to try the famous Cheddar Cheese Soup, but didn't want to have to pay for anything extra, so we decided to just order entrees & dessert. After opening the menu, we found about 6 items highlighted at the top of the menu that were "special packages" that came with an appetizer. They were items from the regular menu, but included the appetizer for DDP. What a great surprise!!! If I could convince someone from my family to order one of those items, I could sample the soup!!!

Andrew decided on the Herb Crusted Prime Rib and Ray chose the King Salmon. They were both selections from the special part of the menu. I coaxed Andrew into trying the soup & Ray got a mixed greens salad. Amanda & I both got the Mushroom Filet. Both kids got the Sour Apple Freeze to drink which was included in the DDP.

Our waited, Jessie, was very attentive throughout our meal & we laughed that everytime we ordered anything, his response was, "Perfect." He must have said it 50 times during the dinner!!!

When our food was served, Amanda pulled out her camera & told no one to touch anything. I hadn't really decided if I would have the nerve to take pictures of our food, but my DD was insistent. After the 1st meal, it became a habit. Even the boys knew not to eat until after the photo!!! In posting the pictures, I realized we forgot the appetizers.

We all sampled the cheddar cheese soup, which was indeed delicious. Ray's salad wasn't just greens, it had walnuts & blue cheese on it & was a generous size. We all loved our meals. The Prime Rib was really large & the salmon was served over some type of lentils. What can I cay about the Filet & risotto....we were in heaven. For dessert, Andrew tried the cheesecake, Ray had the smores, Amanda the chocolate moose, & I got the Chocolate Whiskey Cake. We sampled each other's and loved them all.

This definitely proved to be our favorite & best meal of the week. Maybe we shouldn't have eaten there first...it was hard for anywhere else to live up to that meal. I think we tipped 20%...our total was $36.78.

I know everyone has seen these pictures, lots of times, but we didn't take them for nothing!

This review is going to be long....I'm pretty wordy. Hopefully you will enjoy reading it as much as I'm enjoying writing it. Up next....breakfast at Crystal Palace & dinner in DTD at Wolfgang Puck Express!.

 

[butiflfeet]

As always, Le Cellier looks soooooooooooo good! Thanks for taking the pictures.

I'm anxiously waiting for Crystal Palace, it's my favorite

 

[raph_b]

Great review.

I'm in the same boat, never been to Le Cellier and have it as an ADR for our first night.

And I wont be needing the menu. 1 Soup and 1 Fillet for me please

 

[John's Mom]

Great start!

 

[DanaAustinChelsea]

Great pics & reviews! I can't wait to try Le Cellier next week Are the rain ponchos from the Dollar Store? I purchase some but haven't opened them yet.

 

[iluvpluto27]

Great start. Looking forward to the next installment.