The trip where everything tastes amazing, ESPECIALLY the F&G booths!-"Best of" Awards

[librarygeek]

Hoping to get dessert party reservations for DH & I anniversary trip in Sep! Never done it but DH has a huge sweet tooth & we are using our TS for lunch that day as to save room for the dessert! Lol. Wishes is also my favorite show/fireworks!!

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

I hope you get your reservation! It's also a very good idea to do TS for lunch - leave room for those desserts! That's why we did dinner at 4:45

 

[Tinker12]

I'm joining in! Great reviews!

 

[shalom]

Lovely BoG pictures. Your shrimp and scallops look terrific, but I should confess that I like... well, just about anything in puff pastry.

The dessert party plates look good, too, but it looks like your creme brule doesn't have enough sugar on it to make a true crust. Although I suspect that if it were served like plain custard I'd still like it, so long as it tastes like creme brule. The one I got at Sunshine Seasons this past January tasted like marshmallow and then eggs. Very disappointing. The one I got in France was good, though.

 

[librarygeek]

I'm joining in! Great reviews!

Thanks!

Lovely BoG pictures. Your shrimp and scallops look terrific, but I should confess that I like... well, just about anything in puff pastry.

The dessert party plates look good, too, but it looks like your creme brule doesn't have enough sugar on it to make a true crust. Although I suspect that if it were served like plain custard I'd still like it, so long as it tastes like creme brule. The one I got at Sunshine Seasons this past January tasted like marshmallow and then eggs. Very disappointing. The one I got in France was good, though.

Yeah, there's definitely not enough crust on the creme brulee... it had just the faintest of crunchiness, not nearly enough. The custard part was pretty good though. One trip we had it at Chefs de France, and it was amazing there!

 

[RGirl]

Oh, wow, that dessert party always looks so tempting!!! Someday, we will do it - someday!

 

[librarygeek]

Oh, wow, that dessert party always looks so tempting!!! Someday, we will do it - someday!

If you like desserts, it's pretty amazing! Definitely try to do it!

 

[librarygeek]

Backlot Express

I think it's a pretty well known fact that HS does not have much in the way of really good CS places. We decided to try Backlot Express this time, since I hadn't been there yet. It's basically your typical burgers and what not.

Both DH and my parents ordered the bacon cheeseburger with fries:



My mom gave it a 6.5 out of 10, and said it was "fine" and what you'd expect from a bacon cheeseburger and fries. Likewise, DH gave it a 6 out of 10, saying "it wasn't bad, but it was just a burger."

I went for the veggie sandwich. I know the vegeterian options can be rather hit or miss, but nothing else was really appealing to me and I didn't also want to get a burger. I requested it without the mushrooms (basil asiago artisan bread, mushrooms, red peppers, zucchini, tomato, watercress and cheese with sundried tomato pesto):



This was actually really tasty! I was pleasantly surprised. The basil asiago bread really made the sandwich, and all of the veggies blended well together. I would definitely order this again, it was certainly a pleasant surprise! I'd give it an 8 out of 10.

However, because my order was a custom order since I wanted something removed, they warned me I might have to wait a bit. I said that was okay, but I definitely did wait. I probably waited about 15 minutes for our food, while most people got theirs super quickly, within 5 or less. When they brought out our food they started chanting - it was on a magic tray, and I got a free dessert! I don't know if this was something totally random or if they gave it to me because I was waiting for so long, but it was very exciting!

For my free dessert I picked out a chocolate cupcake. It had "dirt" and gummy worms and flowers on top of it.



It was very chocolatey, which I love. There was a chocolate mousse inside the cupcake part. It was also a huge cupcake. My dad and I ended up splitting it, since my mom is allergic to chocolate and DH doesn't like overly chocolatey things. It wasn't on a menu so I don't know if it was a special time item, but it was so good - 9 out of 10.

Overall I'd give Backlot Express a solid 7.5 out of 10. Given that I'm always hearing about the poor quality of CS in HS, I wasn't expecting much. But Backlot Express gave me a very tasty meal, and I got some extra pixie dust there!

 

[wilma-bride]

I agree that the CS options at DHS are pretty dire. We discovered the pretzel dogs at Min & Bill's last summer - they were awesome.

Backlot Express looks to be a reasonable alternative though. Great that you got a little extra pixie dust

 

[TigerKat]

Agree with everyone on DHS CS options. I tried the turkey sandwich at Backlot one trip and it was really quite good!

 

[librarygeek]

I agree that the CS options at DHS are pretty dire. We discovered the pretzel dogs at Min & Bill's last summer - they were awesome.

Backlot Express looks to be a reasonable alternative though. Great that you got a little extra pixie dust

I've been wanting to try Min and Bill's! The pretzel hot dogs look good, and I'm also interested in that caesar salad sandwich!

Agree with everyone on DHS CS options. I tried the turkey sandwich at Backlot one trip and it was really quite good!

I was also looking at the turkey sandwich - glad to hear that one was good too!

 

[Linda67]

We've only eaten at Backlot Express once before and it was OK but not terribly exciting

Love that you got your food on a 'magic tray'

 

[shalom]

We discovered the pretzel dogs at Min & Bill's last summer - they were awesome.

Josh at EasyWDW also recommends those.

No suggestions from me, though. Far as I'm concerned, HS has some nice snacks, but I'd head out to the Epcot resorts for a real meal.

 

[librarygeek]

We've only eaten at Backlot Express once before and it was OK but not terribly exciting

Love that you got your food on a 'magic tray'

Yeah, I wouldn't say it was outstanding but good if you just want a quick meal that isn't bad!

Josh at EasyWDW also recommends those.

No suggestions from me, though. Far as I'm concerned, HS has some nice snacks, but I'd head out to the Epcot resorts for a real meal.

Yeah... though I actually don't like leaving the parks unless it's for a long period of time! Too much walking for me

 

[RGirl]

If you like desserts, it's pretty amazing! Definitely try to do it!

I really want to book it at some point. I have some real gluten issues, so I wouldn't get much out of the food, but my DD would LOVE it, and that would make me love it too.

You know, the pics of your Backlot food actually look really good. DHS gets such horrible CS reviews, it's almost scary. We have only eaten CS there once, and I will admit it was pretty gross, but lately, it seems like maybe things are improving. I hope so!!!

 

[librarygeek]

I really want to book it at some point. I have some real gluten issues, so I wouldn't get much out of the food, but my DD would LOVE it, and that would make me love it too.

You know, the pics of your Backlot food actually look really good. DHS gets such horrible CS reviews, it's almost scary. We have only eaten CS there once, and I will admit it was pretty gross, but lately, it seems like maybe things are improving. I hope so!!!

Yeah... if you have gluten allergies you could probably have the ice cream and fresh fruit, but I'm not sure about much else. However, I do think it's worth it for the experience especially if you have family members that would love it. My mom is allergic to chocolate and couldn't eat a lot on the dessert buffet but she still absolutely loved it.

 

[librarygeek]

Mama Melrose

This was my first time at Mama Melrose, having previously tried Sci Fi and 50's Prime Time in Hollywood Studios. I think the decor of the restaurant definitely has a rather quirky feel to it.







For drinks my dad had a glass of red wine, and my mom, DH and I shared a pitcher of sangria. I really liked this! It wasn't overly sweet like some sangrias are.



The meal started with bread and olive oil. For our entrees, both DH and I as well as my mom and dad decided to split entrees. Mom and Dad split the Penne ala Vodka. They were nice enough to bring it out already separated onto two plates, so this picture is actually half a normal portion:



My mom enjoyed it a lot, and gave it an 8.5 out of 10. She said it was very tasty. I had some of it too and it was good. You can probably tell that it's a huge portion, so it was a good one to split.

DH and I split the Piccata de Pesce (fresh fish sauteed in a white wine lemon butter sauce with caperberries, spinach, and whole wheat pasta). They also brought this out already separated onto two plates, so this is half a serving:



Unlike Mom and Dad's meal, it wasn't a huge portion and probably wasn't quite enough to satisfy two of us (though we fixed that problem with dessert!). I was not overly impressed, and gave it a 6 out of 10. To me the sauce was very watery and the pasta was very limp, though the fish was good. DH liked it a lot more than I did and gave it an 8.5 out of 10. He said it was yummy - he's not a huge fan of Italian food, but even so he found it delicious.

Since we had split meals it meant we could get dessert!

DH got the Chocolate Amarettini Cheesecake (Chocolate-flavored Cheesecake with a Cookie Crust, Almond Cream, and Italian Amarettini Cookies):



He absolutely loved it, giving it a 9.5 out of 10. He literally scraped his plate clean, getting every single crumb up. He said that the only thing holding it back from a perfect 10 was that it was just a little bit too much on the chocolatey side for him, but he still loved it.

I had the Chocolate Cannoli Cake (with cannoli and nutella filling):



This was also sooo good. It was very chocolatey, which I love. The cake was moist and the filling was delicious. I give it a 9 out of 10.

I also want to mention here that we had a really great server named Kevin. Apparently he's been there for a long time. He was very friendly and took good care of us - he was also nice enough to make sure the kitchen split up our dishes onto separate plates.

For dessert my dad had some sort of alcoholic coffee, and my mom had a glass of Brandy. I have a picture of his:



Overall I would give Mama Melrose a 7 out of 10. The desserts were outstanding but I at least was not bowled over by the entrees. Next time I would like to try the flatbreads since I hear a lot of good things about that. I think that would be the best way to do this restaurant - flatbreads and/or appetizers with dessert.

With Tables in Wonderland here we saved $22.69, bringing the total TiW savings on this trip up to $59.08. So far so good, seems to be worth it!

 

[RGirl]

Yeah... if you have gluten allergies you could probably have the ice cream and fresh fruit, but I'm not sure about much else. However, I do think it's worth it for the experience especially if you have family members that would love it. My mom is allergic to chocolate and couldn't eat a lot on the dessert buffet but she still absolutely loved it.

That is great to know! Thank you!

And thanks for the MM review. We are trying it for the first time in August as well.

 

[Linda67]

Wow those half servings at MM look huge!

Definitely good dishes to split

 

[librarygeek]

That is great to know! Thank you!

And thanks for the MM review. We are trying it for the first time in August as well.

Hope you like it! MM was definitely good, even if it wasn't one of my favorites!

Wow those half servings at MM look huge!

Definitely good dishes to split

Yeah, the penne in particular would be an absolutely huge portion for one person!

 

[shalom]

Yeah... though I actually don't like leaving the parks unless it's for a long period of time! Too much walking for me

But you get a boat ride out of it!

Next time I would like to try the flatbreads since I hear a lot of good things about that. I think that would be the best way to do this restaurant - flatbreads and/or appetizers with dessert.

Appetizers with dessert is how I'd like to do most WDW TS restaurants. A fair number of places don't have any entrees that seem worth the calories.

Although that penne dish looks pretty good, actually.