The NOT SO SUNNY Flordia DR- COMPLETE

[MrsB1228]

This wasn't just a 'changed salad', it was a partially rotted salad, judging by the picture.

Why defend it as if the OP didn't like it because it was 'changed'?

If I was paying $10 for that salad I would have sent it back. Definitely not magical.

I wasn't 'defending' it, I was simply using the same wording Rachel used. She said:

"I also got the mixed field greens salad. I love salads and remember this being one of the best I had eaten at WDW. Sadly it has changed and that wasn't the case this time."

I don't feel it's my place to instruct the OP on what she should or should not have done with regard to a dish she was served. I have faith in her judgement and believe if the greens were rotted, she would have complained to her server about it.

 

[kastoney]

Mmm your Sammie's look delish. Earl is always on my list but we rarely make it to DTD and the construction pics I've seen certainly hasn't warmed me or a visit. It will likely be disney springs before I get to break the earl seal ; )

 

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

I read so many times that people were served something that was so unappetizing that they just 'tossed it in the trash' or 'took only one bite'. It doesn't seem that anyone ever takes anything back for a refund.

The salad that was served to you at Artist Point was unacceptable. I would have asked that this be taken off the bill. I am sorry that you didn't! This is a signature restaurant!

Please people, do not accept substandard food at these prices!

You are right that we shouldn't accept substandard food without sending it back. I have certainly been guilty of this in the past. Something would have to be totally inedible or something would have to be in the food, like a hair, for me to send it back. But that's just me.

But it never occurred to me to send the salad back even though I can't say I enjoyed it. The greens were a little slimy, but I think it was more of the taste was not to my liking anymore.

Love the view from your room!

Our favourite meal last year was from Artist Point, so I'm happy to read your family also had a good experience, despite the changed salad. It's always sad to find a favourite dish has been changed, and not for the better.

We love Earl of Sandwich! DH usually goes for the Earl's Club and I'm a big fan of the Italian. Your ham and swiss looks delish and that mac and cheese looks amazing!

Great updates Rachel!

Thanks so much Carol! Glad you enjoyed AP and Earl of Sandwich. The Club and the Italian both sound delicious. There's just too many good choices.

This wasn't just a 'changed salad', it was a partially rotted salad, judging by the picture.

Why defend it as if the OP didn't like it because it was 'changed'?

If I was paying $10 for that salad I would have sent it back. Definitely not magical.

I wasn't 'defending' it, I was simply using the same wording Rachel used. She said:

"I also got the mixed field greens salad. I love salads and remember this being one of the best I had eaten at WDW. Sadly it has changed and that wasn't the case this time."

I don't feel it's my place to instruct the OP on what she should or should not have done with regard to a dish she was served. I have faith in her judgement and believe if the greens were rotted, she would have complained to her server about it.

I tried to find a picture from my last dining review of AP's salad and unfortunately I didn't take a picture of it. But here's a link to my review of our last meal at AP.

Just to clarify, I can't say the greens were rotted. I didn't like the addition of the figs instead of apples to this salad and I think the vinaigrette is different. I described it as a champagne vinaigrette in my earlier review, but Allears says it is served with an ice wine vinaigrette. But we still like AP and will definitely return since every other element of our meal was good.

I appreciate both of your comments and hope you'll continue reading.

http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=44031900&postcount=53

Mmm your Sammie's look delish. Earl is always on my list but we rarely make it to DTD and the construction pics I've seen certainly hasn't warmed me or a visit. It will likely be disney springs before I get to break the earl seal ; )

DTD parking has been a real mess our last 3 trips. But I hope you do get to try Earl someday. They have really good sandwiches.

 

[Eastern]

I don't feel it's my place to instruct the OP on what she should or should not have done with regard to a dish she was served. I have faith in her judgement and believe if the greens were rotted, she would have complained to her server about it.

Too many times I read that Dis posters were really unhappy with something, and instead of complaining, they just throw it away or take a bite and leave it. I read this on a regular basis!

The picture on this thread prompted me to make a comment. I was not singling out the OP's judgement; I just wanted to make a point that there is an alternative to just paying for substandard food, and that is to make a complaint.

I think that many Disboard posters are extremely courteous, maybe to a fault. When you get something that looks like the picture I saw, imo, I would make a complaint. "Please take this off my bill, the greens are slimy". I think OP said they were 'slimy'. Unacceptable.

Just to reiterate, 'slimy greens' should not be acceptable. One should not pay $10 for 'slimy greens'. Rant over!

Sorry for the off topic post OP.

 

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

BEACHES AND CREAM

I want to start this one out by letting everyone know how easy it is to get to any resort restaurant if you are staying at the Wilderness Lodge. We took a 5 minute bus ride over to the Magic Kingdom and then hopped on a bus to the Beach Club. This was all in the rain too and we never got wet! Another thing to love about WL.

Beaches and Cream has become a favorite of mine. I love the ice cream shop motif, the food and the ice cream.

We had our best service of the trip here at Beaches and Cream. Our waiter was Brian who told us he had been a server a long time at WDW.

Chase and I both decided we wanted hot dogs and fries. This is a picture of Chase's also loaded up with cheddar cheese.

IMG_0335 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr


I rarely ever eat hot dogs, but love these at Beaches and Cream.

Brian decided on the pork belly Cuban sandwich with a side of apples.

IMG_0334 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

Unfortunately Brian wasn't happy with his choice. I don't think he understood that the pork belly was going to be so fatty. And why are the apples always Granny Smith that are served as a side? I've always thought Granny Smith's were more for cooking than snacking.

Brianna had this kids cheeseburger and loved it.

IMG_0336 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

Of course what we really came for was the ice cream.

Here's Brianna's kids ice cream. So cute looking like a mouse!

IMG_0337 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

And us big ones decided one ice cream was not enough so we got 2 to share between the 3 of us, the Milky Way Sundae and the Fudge Mud Slide.

IMG_0340 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

Sadly I didn't get a close up of the Milky Way and that is a shame because it was by far the better of the 2 sundaes. Love the caramel syrup.

Here's the Mud Slide close up. This guy was okay but not nearly as tasty as the Milky Way. Everyone at the table agreed that the Milky Way was superior since it was all gone and quite a bit of the Mud Slide was left.

IMG_0338 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

As good as the Milky Way was, I think the No Way Jose, which we had on a previous trip, is even better. But I think there is no better marriage of food than chocolate and peanut butter.

Here's our receipt. We saved $10.76 with our TIW card.

Beaches and Cream receipt by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

Love Beaches and Cream for a sandwich and ice cream and got my eye on trying the Frozen Sunshine next time!

 

[bangzoom6877]

Great review of B&C! I can't believe we haven't tried it yet and we always stay at BWV! One thing that makes me nervous though, is that DS9 is allergic to peanuts and tree nuts, so they would have to scoop his ice cream from a brand new container with a clean ice cream scooper. I'll have to ask on the restaurant board at a later date if anyone has experienced this over there. It is a restaurant I'd like to consider for our next WDW trip, but that's not until summer 2016, so plenty of time!

 

[kastoney]

Mmm I'm suddenly craving a hot dog right now and have no idea why ; ). Think we are trying beaches for the first time next month since we will be right there at boardwalk. Can't wait.

 

[HeidiGW]

Great reviews..thanks for writing. You have a lovely family.
I think those almond pastries look like Leia's hair!

 

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

Great review of B&C! I can't believe we haven't tried it yet and we always stay at BWV! One thing that makes me nervous though, is that DS9 is allergic to peanuts and tree nuts, so they would have to scoop his ice cream from a brand new container with a clean ice cream scooper. I'll have to ask on the restaurant board at a later date if anyone has experienced this over there. It is a restaurant I'd like to consider for our next WDW trip, but that's not until summer 2016, so plenty of time!

You should definitely try Beaches and Cream, Bonnie. Especially since it would be so easy to get there from BWV.

My cousin's son also has a severe peanut allergy so I understand a little bit about your worry. But I've heard Disney does a great job accommodating food allergies. Hope it works out for your family to try Beaches and Cream.

Mmm I'm suddenly craving a hot dog right now and have no idea why ; ). Think we are trying beaches for the first time next month since we will be right there at boardwalk. Can't wait.

Hope you get to try Beaches and Cream. It's a favorite of ours.

Great reviews..thanks for writing. You have a lovely family.
I think those almond pastries look like Leia's hair!

You are totally right! The pastries are supposed to be Leia's hair. I never saw that until you mentioned it.

Thanks for reading and the sweet comments.

 

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

HOLLYWOOD AND VINE BREAKFAST

Hollywood and Vine was the one character meal we hadn't tried in all our trips to Disney. When I saw that Sophia and Doc McStuffins had been added to the character line up I decided to book it. Brianna is 8 but still loves those 2 characters.

We had a 10:30 ADR and were seated shortly thereafter. I did have a few worries about the buffet being changed over to lunch before we could really enjoy it, but this wasn't a problem at all for us. They did eventually close down one side to change over to lunch while we were there, but we got to enjoy all the breakfast foods we wanted.

Here's several pictures of the food we chose.

IMG_0320 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

IMG_0319 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

IMG_0318 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

IMG_0317 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

IMG_0321 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

The guys really enjoyed the omelet stations. And I liked the breakfast burrito which was something I hadn't seen on other buffets. The French toast was a favorite of mine and kids liked the tater tots.

Honestly the food was excellent. There were lots of variety and everything was hot and fresh.

But I'm not planning any more trips back to H&V and wouldn't recommend it to any friends unless they had young children. It was probably the noisiest, loudest restaurant I have ever eaten in. Between the music, the dance around the restaurant that the children are encouraged to participate in (which seemed to take place every 10 minutes), and the crying unhappy children I left with a headache but a full satisfied belly.

Here's Brianna with the 2 characters she was most happy to see- Sophia and Doc.

IMG_0325 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

IMG_0327 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

Looks like there's a photo bomb in both of these pictures.

And here's a copy of our receipt. I saved $17.79 on this meal with my TIW. That's like getting Brianna's breakfast for free!

Hollywood and Vine receipt by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr


Summing it up, we really had a great meal at H&V and loved the food for breakfast. But unless you don't mind lots of chaos and noise as you eat, sadly I would have to recommend skipping it.

 

[kastoney]

We have a 3 year old so H&V is the only character meal we usually do just so she can see her favorite disney jr peeps. We think the food has improved since the first visit but agree the disney jr set is not known for their quietness or manners. I think it will be many, many years before they understand what we endure for them. But oh no, 8 year olds like Sofia and Doc too? I don't think I can sustain 5 more years of this ; )

 

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

We have a 3 year old so H&V is the only character meal we usually do just so she can see her favorite disney jr peeps. We think the food has improved since the first visit but agree the disney jr set is not known for their quietness or manners. I think it will be many, many years before they understand what we endure for them. But oh no, 8 year olds like Sofia and Doc too? I don't think I can sustain 5 more years of this ; )

You're right, Kari. We must love, love our kids to eat in that chaos. I'm guessing you will be dining there next trip for your daughter.

Sorry to say that my 8-year old loves Sophia. But she likes anyone with the name princess attached to them.

 

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

HOLLYWOOD BROWN DERBY

The Brown Derby has been a favorite of ours, but our last experience there was so bad (terrible service, salty steak) that we had been on a break. But Brian requested to eat there again and I'm happy to say the experience was back to what we had come to expect at the Brown Derby.

Since we were one of the early reservations for the day, we got to experience the ribbon cutting ceremony, which was a couple on their honeymoon. There was also some recognition for another family, I think it was family of the day. So it several minutes to get seated for our lunch.

Here's a copy of the menu and the lunch menu:

IMG_0273 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr
IMG_0274 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

Here's the bread basket that's delivered to the table. Sorry, but there's nothing too special about these guys.

IMG_0275 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

I don't think Brian has ever been to the Brown Derby and not ordered the cobb salad. He chose the entrée sized portion with no eggs. The man will eat anything except cold eggs. Once again, he loved the cobb salad and I'm guessing he will order it again next trip.

IMG_0278 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

I wasn't too hungry so I chose the appetizer greens salad. This was seasonal so it had peaches, candied pecans, and goat cheese strips. It was light and delicious.

IMG_0277 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

Chase decided to have the fettuccine alfredo. He wasn't sure about the prosciutto brittle but I encouraged him to try it telling him it was Italian bacon. I'm not sure how accurate a description that was, but he bought it and tried the prosciutto and liked it. Chase really liked the fettuccine, but said it was very rich and not very garlicy. He's lactose intolerant so it was a good thing I brought him so medicine.

IMG_0276 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

Looking at my receipt I see Brianna just ordered fries. I must have not had my good mom sense on because I also let her have this hidden treasure dessert. Chase had one too and I wish I would have gotten a better picture of what was hidden under the cookie, which if I'm remembering correctly was ice cream and gummy worms. Chase said the cookie was way too hard, but the ice cream was okay.

IMG_0280 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

Here's a copy of the dessert menu...

IMG_0279 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

I'm not a fan of mini desserts. I really want to indulge when I eat dessert, not just have a taste. So when I expressed my dissatisfaction to our server, I found out that I could still order a whole piece of grapefruit cake.

That's what I did, because I love it and no one else in my family likes it so it is all mine

IMG_0281 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

Brian decided to skip on the mini desserts, so we asked for our check.

receipt from Brown Derby by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

I saved another $12.90 with my TIW card.

We are so glad to be back on track with HBD, our favorite dining spot at the Studios. I'm also happy to see they now have lunch options.

 

[MrsB1228]

Just getting caught up with your reviews again so going back to:

Beaches & Cream: This is also a favourite of ours, you just can't beat those sundaes! DH and I split a small No Way Jose on our last trip and loved it. I have to say I was also very tempted by the Milky Way as I love caramel. Glad you all enjoyed it so much! I think the Milky Way will now be added to my ever-growing "must-do" list, LOL!

Hollywood & Vine: Since we no longer have young kids, this restaurant has never been on our radar. We have a 10-month old grandson though so it just may be included in our future plans. I've been reading a lot more positive reviews of H&V lately, it's good to know they've stepped up their game. Love the pics of Brianna with Sophia and Doc, she has such a beautiful smile!

Brown Derby: I'm very intrigued by the new lunch menu. Your salad looks divine and the photo of Chase's Fettuccini Alfredo is calling my name. I was sorry to hear it didn't have a lot of garlic flavour though, which is a must for a good Alfredo, IMO. LOVE the grapefruit cake!

Thanks for continuing to share your reviews and lovely pictures!

 

[kastoney]

You're right, Kari. We must love, love our kids to eat in that chaos. I'm guessing you will be dining there next trip for your daughter. Sorry to say that my 8-year old loves Sophia. But she likes anyone with the name princess attached to them.

Yep, we are leaving tomorrow and will hit up H&V at some point. I'm just oh so excited about that one.

Your meal at HBB looks great and fairly inexpensive all things considered. This is one restaurant we would actually like to eat at next week. We r staying close at BWV so hopefully it works out. I'm jonesing for some of that grapefruit cake, never even had it but I can only fathom how good it is

 

[crazycatlady]

I just got done reading your reviews and enjoyed them very much! We have never tried Brown Derby, but I think I will be adding it to our next vacation line up. I am very curious about the grapefruit cake. It seems people either love it or don't like it at all, so am interested into which category I fit in.

 

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

Just getting caught up with your reviews again so going back to:

Beaches & Cream: This is also a favourite of ours, you just can't beat those sundaes! DH and I split a small No Way Jose on our last trip and loved it. I have to say I was also very tempted by the Milky Way as I love caramel. Glad you all enjoyed it so much! I think the Milky Way will now be added to my ever-growing "must-do" list, LOL!

Hollywood & Vine: Since we no longer have young kids, this restaurant has never been on our radar. We have a 10-month old grandson though so it just may be included in our future plans. I've been reading a lot more positive reviews of H&V lately, it's good to know they've stepped up their game. Love the pics of Brianna with Sophia and Doc, she has such a beautiful smile!

Brown Derby: I'm very intrigued by the new lunch menu. Your salad looks divine and the photo of Chase's Fettuccini Alfredo is calling my name. I was sorry to hear it didn't have a lot of garlic flavour though, which is a must for a good Alfredo, IMO. LOVE the grapefruit cake!

Thanks for continuing to share your reviews and lovely pictures!

The No Way Jose is probably my favorite sundae too, Carol. But the Milky Way is definitely worth trying. I was pleasantly surprised by the food quality at H&V's breakfast. I'm sure your grandson will enjoy it when he gets a little older. And I am so glad that the Brown Derby has a lunch menu. We generally ate lunch there anyway so I'm glad to have more choices.

Yep, we are leaving tomorrow and will hit up H&V at some point. I'm just oh so excited about that one.

Your meal at HBB looks great and fairly inexpensive all things considered. This is one restaurant we would actually like to eat at next week. We r staying close at BWV so hopefully it works out. I'm jonesing for some of that grapefruit cake, never even had it but I can only fathom how good it is

Hope you had a great trip Kari. Hope you're planning to write reviews so we can find out how it went at H&V and if you made it to the Derby.

I just got done reading your reviews and enjoyed them very much! We have never tried Brown Derby, but I think I will be adding it to our next vacation line up. I am very curious about the grapefruit cake. It seems people either love it or don't like it at all, so am interested into which category I fit in.

Thanks so much for reading! I'm in the love it group on the grapefruit cake, but the rest of my family not so much. If you like tangy, but sweet desserts I think you will like it.

 

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

First, my apologies for totally neglecting my dining review if there any readers still out there. I'm getting close to being done, only 3 more reviews to go. So our next best meal was...

TRAIL'S END BREAKFAST

Trail's End wasn't on my list, but after reading so many positive reviews here on the DIS, I decided I must try it. Since we were staying at the Wilderness Lodge, it was an easy boat ride over to Fort Wilderness. Here's Brianna waiting to catch the boat.

IMG_0076 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

And here's the view of the Wilderness Lodge from Bay Lake. Just lovely!
IMG_0083 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

From the dock it was a quick walk to Trail's End. We didn't make a reservation thanks to Disney's 24-hour cancellation policy, so we were told there would be a bit of a wait. But there were things to occupy us, like the checker board the boys enjoyed.

IMG_0085 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

And the playground was nearby for Brianna to check out.

IMG_0086 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

After about a 20 minute wait we were seated, and the restaurant was full. We ordered juice and headed to the breakfast buffet. They had a variety of cereal, pastries, fruit, hot items. Here are some pictures of our plates. I was most thrilled to see they had donut holes, which we probably ate a dozen. I was also really excited to try the pulled pork eggs benedict, which was also excellent. The only think the only disappointment was the French toast casserole, which was just ok. We had a late seating, around 10:30, so the buffet was getting a little scarce, but there wasn't anything that we didn't get to try.
IMG_0090 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr
IMG_0092 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr
IMG_0093 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

IMG_0094 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

IMG_0097 by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

Here's my receipt. I had read that Trail's End charges different buffet prices depending on the day of the week and the time of year. I was thrilled to see that on a Saturday in June I only paid $15.99 per adult and $9.99 per child. And I saved another $11.59 with my TIW card as well so that made Trail's End breakfast definitely the bargain meal of the trip.

Trail's End receipt by Smiling Cheshire Cat, on Flickr

We were so glad we tried Trail's End. The boat trip over was pleasant. The food was great and the price even better. It definitely gets a and also wins the award for the best breakfast of our trip.

 

[kastoney]

I'm still hanging in there with ya ; ) Your meal looks great. I don't think I've read a single bad review of trails end lately. Definitely gonna have to cruise that way some day.

 

[mom2my3kids]

We are going to try the trails end buffet for sure..