We ate/drank whatever we wanted- a first time review!

[taramoz]

We just got back, I got pics of our meals (some better then others) and look forward to sharing our thoughts...

Background on us, we are a family of 3, me the Mom and major planner of everything. My DH, back in the day he worked at Disney (College intern program) and drove the monorail, he introduced me to Disney! And finally my sweet DD6 (almost 7), loves Disney and is a total daredevil when it comes to rides (less so with food).

Speaking of food (that's why we are here, right?), we did not do the dining plan but instead got the TIW card (we got annual passes this year). Dining plan just didn't seem to work for us... why you ask... I am not a red meat eater so I tend to order the cheaper menu items, my sweet DD6 dislikes kid food and much prefers the adult food, and we all prefer appetizers to desserts. So we decided to upgrade our ticket to AP's and eat what we like, and below is where we ate so you know what reviews are coming:

Day 1:

Lunch - Earl Of Sandwich
Dinner - The Artist's Palette (take our at SSR)

Day 2:

Lunch - Tusker House
Dinner - Spirit of Aloha Dinner show (will review the experience as well)

Day 3:

Lunch - Liberty Tree Tavern
Dinner - Cosmic Rays

Day 4:

Lunch - San Angel Inn
Dinner - Nine Dragons

Day 5:

Lunch - Crystal Palace
Dinner - DD6 El Pirata, DH and I Cosmic Rays
Late Night - Wish's Dessert Party

Day 6:

Lunch - DD6 and I ABC Commissary, DH Studio Catering Company
Dinner - Mama Melrose

Day 7 (half Day):

Lunch - Le Cellier

Now you will notice no breakfast, we didn't do any restaurants for breakfast, just had groceries from Garden grocer, I did grab some treats from Main Street bakery on day 3 that I enjoyed for breakfasts and plan to comment on!

So now I am off to download my photos and collect my receipts (to see how I did, I like a bargain!). First review coming soon...

 

[taramoz]

We arrived Dec 17 just after lunch time, got through Magical Express quickly and over to SSR where we stayed. Since we were so close to DTD we had decided we would go over for lunch and I REALLY wanted to try Earl of Sandwich after reading everyone's reviews, so that is what we did!

I decided on:

The Jerk Chicken sandwich. I love jerk chicken, I typically make it very spicy. This sandwich was not very spicy here, but boy was it tasty, I loved the jerk sauce and the peppers went well with it, not to mention the yummy bread, it definitely did not disappoint! Yum is the verdict.

My DH went with:

The Original. He loved it as well, said the meat was very tasty, and he agreed with me on the yumminess of the bread. Definite winner here.

And DD6 tried:

The tomato soup. She didn't care for it, found it bland. I tasted a bite and agreed, she added some salt, but it really just wasn't doing it for her. I made her eat some of it for good measure, then she dug into:

A strawberry angel food cake dessert! This she loved, she ate all the Strawberries and Cream, DH finished off the cake part (DD6 doesn't like cake, odd I know).

And finally the big bonus, when we got our food we had an extra sandwich that we didn't order, we let them know but they said keep it and try it, honest mistake, so yay, I got to try:

The Holiday Special Sandwich. I must admit I kinda wanted to try this anyway so what a great bonus it was. I found it to be a bit too salty for my taste, but the mesh of all the wonderful holiday flavors was a big winner for me. DH wouldn't try it because he is not into combining all his food (he thought having cranberry sauce on the sandwich was odd), so he missed out, it was good and I can see why so many people like it.

And now for the bottom line:

Would we recommend to a friend? Absolutely, the sandwiches were delightful and unlike anything we can get here in Houston.

Would we eat here again? Again yes, this was a winner. My DD6 would have to actually get a sandwich and not soup, but we all liked this place very much.

Cost: $27.62 (with drinks not mentioned above), savings, technically $0 but the bonus sandwich was worth $5.99!

 

[Marblies]

Mmmmm Earl of Sandwich is a must do for us. The Caprice(sp?) is yummo! We got super lucky and now have a franchise only one hour away in San Antonio. Looking forward to your continued report.

 

[taramoz]

Mmmmm Earl of Sandwich is a must do for us. The Caprice(sp?) is yummo! We got super lucky and now have a franchise only one hour away in San Antonio. Looking forward to your continued report.

Oh, the Caprice is another that I wanted to try, so many looked good! I had no idea there was an EOS near San Antonio, good news!

 

[exwdwcm]

subscribing- can't wait to hear more. i love Earle- we eat there 2x every trip.

 

[stephielela]

subbing!! I wanted to try that holiday sandwich SO BAD and we got shut out by long lines and not enough time! Oh well, maybe next time!

 

[sunnysideup3]

Yummy! Your pictures make me hungry!

 

[taramoz]

subscribing- can't wait to hear more. i love Earle- we eat there 2x every trip.

We are now in love with Earl too, I will definetly be going back on a future trip! Welcome to my report, I plan to do my next review today during my lunch break!

 

[taramoz]

subbing!! I wanted to try that holiday sandwich SO BAD and we got shut out by long lines and not enough time! Oh well, maybe next time!

You should definetly try it next time. One thing I found was the line moved quick!

 

[taramoz]

Yummy! Your pictures make me hungry!

Aw, thanks, they make me miss the yummy food for sure!

 

[taramoz]

After a trip to HS to upgrade our tickets to AP's, get the TIW card, see Osborne lights, ride ToT, and lastly DD6 rode Rockin Rollercoaster for the very first time (new favorite!), we headed back to SSR and were a tad hungry despite a late lunch at EoS so we headed to The Artist's Palette, SSR's quick service restaurant, to pick up some dinner/snack to bring back to the room.

I felt like they had a good selection, many items sounded good, and they had a special that night of Spaghetti and garlic bread. I thought DD6 would end up with the special, but she was being super picky and moody cuz she saw cotton candy in the store and it was all she wanted. I forced her to pick something, and she went with:

Peanut butter and Jeally sandwich with Chips and Grapes. Was an odd choice for my kid really, I didn't think she liked PB&J, but it is what she asked for. Turns out I was right, she does not like PB&J. But on the plus side, the homemade chips were great (we all tried them, they tasted homemade and fresh) and fruit is always good for her. I did also get her cotton candy from the store!

I was still feeling a bit full from sandwich's earlier, so despite many things sounding good I decided on something light:

Chicken Ceasar Salad. This was a good choice, the dressing had just the right garlic ceasar flavor, croutons were good, and I liked how the chicken was cut up into little pieces to enjoy with the salad. I like my salads all chopped up and this one was on the mark. In fact, when DD6 doscovered she actually didn't like PB&J I gave her half my salad, and she fully enjoyed it as well.

And last was DH, like me he wasn't very hungy and just wanted something small, so he went with:

A cup of chili. He liked it, it was definetly the right size for his appetite that evening. He compared the chili to the chili you get at Wendy's, it was good, it did the trick, but it wasn't fabulous.

DH also picked up a bottle of coke, now they had fountain drinks available, and I believe the foutain drinks were cheaper then the $2.40 bottle of coke we bought, but DH doesn't always do what is rational...

And now for the bottom line:

Would we recommend to a friend? If they were staying at SSR I would definetly say yes, I wouldn't reccomend a special trip here.

Would we eat here again? Similar to above, if we ever stayed here again it's a good choice for something quick and seemed to have good selection.

Cost: $23.42 (before discount), TIW savings $3.65, total paid $19.77.

TIW savings tally (running total): $3.65

 

[taramoz]

We spent the morning getting soaked in the cold rain (Dec 18 was very rainy), but got to ride all we wanted easily at Animal Kingdom (note to self chek weather report). We made it through to our lunch ressies at Tusker House!

This is a meal I really looked forward to. We LOVE curry in my household, all 3 of us. We typically cook curry a few times a month, all types and flavors. I had read lots of very mixed reviews for this place also, so I was a bit nervous. It is all served buffet style. The have the more exotic offerings such as curries, samasos and the like, plus they do also have some plainer offerings such as carved meat, salad and rolls.

So first with DD6, her plate below (sorry it is a bit dark):

Starting at the roll going clockwise she had, a roll, chicken curry, basmati rice, samosas (on top of her rice), and pita bread. She loved every bite and asked for more. She is used to this type of food and loves it.

As my plate...

Very similar to hers, starting at the pitas, then samasos, couscous, chicken curry, basmati rice with almond slivers. The samasos were fabulous. Potato and pea perfectly spiced on the inside, wonderfully flaky crust on the outside, cooked just right! I love couscous, this was whole wheat variety with little carrots, peas and corn mixed in and was tasty. The chicken curry was quite good, I didn't think there was alot of spice (heat wise), but plenty of flavor. The rice with almond slivers was so great, perfect to mix with the curry sauce for a yummy treat! My only complaint was the pita (bread). Only other bread choice I saw were the dinner rolls. I really would have liked to have a more exotic bread choice, this was plain room temp pitas you can buy in the grocery, nothing special there, but, I did go for plate #2 with more rice, curry (both the cicken and the veggie this time), and this time I added hummus (yum!) and I tried an african spiced jelly which was good, but low on spice, high on sweetness.

And DH, he decided to start with:

Some traditional fare to start, a mixed greens salad topped with vinegerette, the sliced beef with green beans and spiced potatoes. He said it was all just ok. Our guess is that that have this kind of food here in case you are less adventurous and don't want to try the african fare. His second plate looked alot more like DD6 and I's, and he also liked the curry and loved the rice.

Now at a buffet we had to try some desserts, so mine first:

Consisted of strawberry mousse in a chocolate shell, chocolate cake with fudge, and a chocolate and almond bar. First for the good, the strawberry mousse was delightful, loved it! The chocolate cake was ok, kind of plaine Jane for me, I like richer desserts. The bad for me was the chocolate almond bar, it tasted like it had candied coconut in it, which I cannot stand. If you like coconut you made feel differently about this dessert then me.

and DH's dessert (none for DD6, aside from cotton candy she detests sweets):

A donut, strawberry moouse in a chocolate shell, and a chocolate chip cookie (he took half before I got a pic). Much like me, he adored the strawberry mousse. I asked him to rate the donut and cookie, he said they tasted like a donut and a cookie. I can only take that to mean nothing special!

We both also finished off with a nice cup of coffee (perfect since we were still cold and wet from the day). The coffee here was particularly yummy, not sure what the flavor was but it was great, try it if you go...

And now for the bottom line:

Would we recommend to a friend? If they are adventurous and like exotic foods yes. But the more traditional fare left something to be desired...

Would we eat here again? Yes, it is our kind of food. We did Yak and Yeti a couple of years ago and enjoyed that too, so for us we have some good choices at AK!

Cost: $68.96 (before discount), TIW savings $11.19, total paid $57.77.

TIW savings tally (running total): $14.84

 

[taramoz]

So after our morning in the cold and rain at AK we went back to our room to clean up and relax before we toured the decorations at the monorail resorts on our way to the Polynesian for Spirit of Aloha.

So this review will include thought on the food, service, and show since it is about more then just food! I will start with why we picked this show instead of one of the others. My DD6 is freaky picky with food (freaky because she doesn't like what most kids do and such), so this show seemed to have the food most appealing to her (rice, chicken that is not fried, grilled veggies, these are things she likes). We also thought the show may be interesting to see, even though it had gotten not-so-great reviews. So anyway, onto our thoughts on it all...

First, we booked early and got tier 1 seating. Honestly the place was huge, I imagine decent views could be had from most tables, but we got so lucky and had a table front and center! Prior to seating us they really needed to have had a better process. We all were given flower lei's, photographed and then sent to wait in the crowded "garden". Could they at least offer bar drink or anything? Not ideal, especially with a youngster, but once we were sat it was fine.

Just before the show our server appeared for our drink order. DH and I both got the endless beer and let her know to keep it flowing, she did a great job all night! So the show starts and introduces the story, and Aunt is having a luau going away party for her niece going off to school:

Disney Vacation Christmas 2010 by Kristian Weber, on Flickr

Disney Vacation Christmas 2010 by Kristian Weber, on Flickr

The beginning of the show basically introduces the "characters" and gives you an idea of the story. It is true that it is all a bit cheesy, but I enjoyed it and my DD6 really liked it. After the intro the appetizers came to the table:

It was salad with a citrus vinaigrette, fresh pineapples and pineapple coconut bread. So I will start with the bread as I was worried to try this as I hate coconut (so does DH), but it was actually very tasty, a little sweet but not overpowering. The salad was satisfying, light and crisp, DH and I both enjoyed this as well. And DD6 ate every last pineapple chunk and we had to ask the waitress for more, she gladly brought out more!

The show was then back, more of the same from the start, a bit of a silly but enjoyably story with dancing included, it certainly kept us busy and entertained between courses:

Disney Vacation Christmas 2010 by Kristian Weber, on Flickr

The main food came out next:

Sorry I had served DD6 before the photo, but the food was Roasted Chicken, Steamed Veggies, Rice, and not really in the shot were pork ribs. DD6 really enjoyed the rice and Broccoli, she wasn't big on the chicken and doesn't eat ribs as of now. I on the otherhand really loved the chicken, it was moist and tasty, had a nice flavor, and went good with the rice. I let DD6 eat all the broccoli so no review of that. DH dug right into the ribs! He said they were great, meat peeled right off the bone. He liked them so much that I decided to break out of my odd food mold and try them, and to my surprise I liked them too. I don't normally eat ribs, so take my opinion as a newbie to ribs!

Soon, the show was back on. At this point the did something special and had the kiddos come up to learn some dances, DD6 loved this part! SHe was the first one to run up:

Disney Vacation Christmas 2010 by Kristian Weber, on Flickr
And a cheesy Hawaiian Santa even showed:

Disney Vacation Christmas 2010 by Kristian Weber, on Flickr

After the fun it was time for dessert, the infamous volcano dessert was served:

Now these were interesting. The chocolate part was quite rich, not bad, just different. That raspberry sauce spewing from the top, awful. Had the worst aftertaste, YUCK! DD6 didn't try as she doesn't like sweets, so the waitress brought her strawberries, I appreciated this. DH and I both agreed the desserts were not good mainly due to the raspberry sauce with the bad after taste!

Side note, I had mentioned to the waitress I got a TIW card and wondered how to get the discount applied. She inquired and sent me to the back and they quickly and easily applied my discount, which was way more then I was expecting!

Last and best part was the finish of the show. The end is where all the amazing dances are done! They were great, funny thing happened to us, a performer came out, he was tribal and a fighter, and he has a "peace branch" that you could pick up to signify peace. Well, my DH was busy snapping photos and didn't realize for a bit that the performer was choosing him to grab the peace branch:

Disney Vacation Christmas 2010 by Kristian Weber, on Flickr
Hubby finally caught on and made his peace!

The show ended with the most awesome fire twirler, he was amazing, no doubt the best part of the show:

Disney Vacation Christmas 2010 by Kristian Weber, on Flickr

And now for the bottom line:

Would we recommend to a friend? Sure, the show was actually cute, I went in expecting it to be a bit cheesy and it was, but it was enjoyable. The food was good aside from the funky desserts.

Would we eat here again? Probably no since it is one of those experience things, we'd pick something new to try next time. But we are glad we did this!

Cost: $175.97 (before discount), TIW savings $43.27 (shocked but happy), total paid $132.7.

TIW savings tally (running total): $58.11

 

[lilandvisma]

Love the reviews!

 

[bamaslp]

Subbing

 

[taramoz]

Love the reviews!

Thanks, has been so fun reliving our experiences!

 

[The 4 "Quay"balleros]

Subscribing- I can't wait to go back to Earl of Sandwich- that jerk chicken sandwich is yummy!

 

[taramoz]

Subbing

Welcome!

 

[taramoz]

Subscribing- I can't wait to go back to Earl of Sandwich- that jerk chicken sandwich is yummy!

Agreed, I loved it!

 

[Jonesloonybin]

Love the reviews so far! It is great to read reviews of children that don't care for the average kid's food. I have been a bit worried about that. Our youngest would prefer to eat off the adult menu. Since our 15yr old dd would rather have the kid's food, we figured they could just switch!