Who Invited My Mother In Law? A Moderately Deluxe TR All New X 3 & PTR Link 2/3 !!

[merbobear]

I don't remember our waiter's name from our 2011 CRT dinner either, but I shall assume it was Tony! Our waiter was wonderful and had great suggestions for food choices, took a few family pictures for us, and was generally just really awesome! We loved seeing Wishes through the castle windows, and in fact 'Tony' had clues us in that we were there on the first day that the windows were opened up and able to be looked through (they had been covered for a refurb prior to that).

We had other issues at our CRT meal that made us not really pick it as a favorite (actually it was our least favorite for various reasons), but Tony's service was impeccable. The food was really great too. I had that cheese tasting plate and the dessert trio :mmm heaven in my mouth: !

 

[shan23877]

Wow, that looks like a wonderful meal/evening at CRT!

I have never been there. I really haven't had much desire to either, but if the food and the service are that good, I'd say it is well worthwhile.

I'm sure in a few years, we'll be making an ADR to take our DD there.

It was a great meal, and I'm sure when the time comes you'll love taking your little girl there too!

What a wonderful time and meal you had at Cinderella's Royal Table! I think my favorite pictures are the one of Maddie during the wishing ceremony and her talking with Belle.

It was an awesome evening! Thank you, those are my favorites too, especially the wishing ones.

Wow!! I'm sure this will shock and surprise you, but CRT has never been on our radar. Did you notice if there were boys there? It obviously doesn't seem like the sort of place my kids would care about, but your reviews make me think otherwise.

I can't believe that your boys aren't begging you to take them there! There were boys there, but mostly with their sisters. The food was great, and you can't beat the location.

I have to say how much I love how the princesses really talk to Maddie and how well they pick up on things that other princesses have said to her before. That just makes the magic even more incredible, you know? Sounds like the speaking CMs have a pretty difficult job sometimes.

I would make it difficult, and the CMs rocked. I couldn't believe how well they kept up the stories that someone had told her. It was amazing.

Your food looked really, really, good. I love beef and would have gone for that, too. Sorry Bryan's chicken wasn't as good as he'd hoped.

"Tony" rotfl sounds like a true gem. I love how he brought you guys the extra food when you were on the fence about something. You cannot do better than that! I hate when I can't make up my mind at a restaurant.

He was awesome! I loved the little touches that he provided.

And of course Maddie was just lovely as always. I LOVE the wishing pictures!!! And so sweet that she curtsied and thanked everyone for a lovely evening. So precious!

What an awesome update. This princess day for Maddie is the best thing ever.

Thank you! The wishing pictures are some of my favorites from the whole trip. She did have the best day ever! And now we'll probably be on the hook to re-create it again and again.

We love CRT it is very special to us DH proposed here in October 2008 my favourite place in the whole world and we are taking DD to celebrate her 2nd birthday there x

How amazing! That's an excellent place for a proposal. DH gets 2 thumbs up! How sweet to be able to take your DD back there!

Love your update of your meal at CRT. We'v never eaten there...but we have two boys who refused to eat in a castle with princesses (I am sure had they still been going with us, they would have changed their tune as they got older ).

What wonderful service you had and what great photos of Maddie and the Princesses.

I bet they would have come around in their teenage years!

We had great service, some of the best of the trip, and thanks!

Thank you.

We will eat at CRT again for sure. Xander enjoyed it both times, so I do not need to have a girl to go there. Crap gets this now, I think. When he was three, he enjoyed it almost as much as my nieces. I guess it wears off a little as he gets older.

I agree that you should take her as often as you can while she still finds it magical. If Bryan ever needs a reminder, show him that wishing photo. That would melt him for sure. Excellent cast members make a huge difference. Hopefully, you find the receipt to give him a glowing review. Crap is all about quality assurance and providing reviews (especially positive ones). That is what he does for a living.

Since I'm a server, I really like to give positive feedback as well. I do hope that I find that receipt. That server really deserved a special mention.

Aww. I feel so close to you as well. I was just saying I cannot get over how close you feel to people you've never met on these boards. The DIS is awesome like that.

It's so great for that. I seriously have no 'real life' friends with kids. It's so nice to have people to talk to who are interested in some of the same things that I am.

It sounds like an awesome preview. I cannot wait to read about it.

I would love to work from home. After looking for a while now, I do not think I am going to get lucky enough to have that happen again. At this point, I would settle for a solid shift (the second interview I went on said you can work anytime during opening hours each week) with a job that does not require me to travel away from my kids for weeks at a time (like the first interview). It is hard to arrange childcare when I will not know what my shift will look like until right before the week starts. Crap's job is too important to our family, so he cannot miss work for me to work an odd shift if we do not have a sitter.

The second interview sounds better! I know what you mean, it's rough to figure out who's going to keep Maddie with only a few days notice. I'd been so lucky in my old job to choose my own schedule. My little brother lived with us too, so I was really spoiled with a live in babysitter.

It is hard to leave them with someone else. I know how you feel. The idea of starting a new job and leaving them with someone I do not know well scares me a lot. Hopefully, it works out for both of us that some family member will have them most of the time. I worked four tens Mon-Thurs. Crap worked Thur, Fri, Sat evenings as well as Wednesday and Sunday during the day. Wednesday was the only day we needed help, since I just did my last two hours from home on Thursday evenings. I started working full time from home when he got promoted to a job that had him working all hours of the day Mon-Sat (salary so no overtime). I've never worked with Connor, so he is used to having me around all the time. Crap's previous job often had him working seven days a week. He would be gone before I woke up and not home by the time I put the boys to sleep, so the idea of me getting a job was out of the question. His position getting eliminated there was one of the best things that ever happened to us. At his new job, we actually see him. I could really work too with a little help, especially if I could work on the weekends.

It's rough to be apart all of the time, but I try to remind myself that it's short term. I'm glad that you can see the positive in Crap having to switch jobs. I was just telling Bryan the other night that it's hard to see it when it's happening, but in hindsight all of the jobs he's had to leave in the last 10 years have been really good in the long run. Every one of them has set us up to be where we are now.

I hope that you can find something that works for your family!

Maddie is way too adorable! I love the look on her face when she is meeting the princesses, so precious. I had to laugh when she stopped CMs and said thanks for the lovely evening - that is way too cute.
I agree with your MIL, it's hard to look at little kids at Disney and not realize it is truly the best place on earth!!!

Thank you so much!

I just don't understand people who aren't "Disney People". It's the look on their little faces that make it all worth while.

I don't remember our waiter's name from our 2011 CRT dinner either, but I shall assume it was Tony! Our waiter was wonderful and had great suggestions for food choices, took a few family pictures for us, and was generally just really awesome! We loved seeing Wishes through the castle windows, and in fact 'Tony' had clues us in that we were there on the first day that the windows were opened up and able to be looked through (they had been covered for a refurb prior to that).

We had other issues at our CRT meal that made us not really pick it as a favorite (actually it was our least favorite for various reasons), but Tony's service was impeccable. The food was really great too. I had that cheese tasting plate and the dessert trio :mmm heaven in my mouth: !

I'm so glad that you had such excellent service there as well! We didn't have a great view of Wishes, but it was cool to see it starting from the table.

What happened at CRT? That sounds like a story!

The dessert was so good, but the soup is what I've gotta have again!

 

[laura74]

As you may have guessed, on Maddie’s special princess day we were dining at Cinderella’s Royal Table. We checked in at 8:20 and were directed inside to have our photo taken with Cinderella herself.

A princess needs to eat in a castle.

Maddie decided that for the photo she’d need to be fully outfitted in Jasmine garb. The new gloves and purse went on, and she was ready to meet her people.

She looks adorable!

I really wish that her underpants hadn't been hanging out.

Cute anyway.

We thought it was a little strange that they were served before we had even ordered, but it was 8:40 and Maddie was starving so it ended up working out really well.

I guess they know to keep the kids occupied.

Tony returned quickly with my soup and Bryan’s cheeses as well as an additional cup of the soup for Bryan. He brought him both since he’d been on the fence. He also brought a wand for Maddie as well as a wand for me and a sword for Bryan. Maddie thought that was amazing, and frankly so did we. Tony was really going the extra mile already.

What a great waiter.

When we were almost finished with our appetizers, Tony returned to take the orders for our main course.

Wow! They really space the meal out!

yran was once again torn. He wanted to try the beef, but didn’t want to order the same thing as Maddie and I did so he went with the Friars Stuffed Chicken Breast.

I think Bryan's going to have entree envy.

Right after we ordered, it was time for the Wishing Ceremony. The lights are dimmed in the room, and everyone is encouraged to close their eyes and make a wish. Maddie found this to be one of the best parts of the evening. I’m not sure what she wished for, but she swore that it came true and to this day is convinced that it was her wish that made the lights flicker on and off. I showed these photos to my MiL recently and said that I’d challenge anyone to look at these photos and tell me that trips to WDW aren’t worth it.

Love it! My daughter still thinks she started Illuminations from Rose and Crown when she was five.

Bryan wasn’t as impressed with his chicken as we were with our beef. He liked it, but after trying our meals he wished that he’d gone with the beef as well.

Yup. Entree envy.

While we were partaking in the veritable dessert buffet, Belle came by to say hello. She was by far the best of the princesses that we met that evening. She chatted for a long while with Maddie and then stopped back by once she’d met everyone on our level for another visit. She again picked up the “Beast has tangled fur after Test Track” storyline seamlessly and made Maddie giggle with tales of him riding the ride until he’s dizzy and saying that she makes the FGMIT at the BBB put blue bows in his hair when he’s there. She was very glad to hear that Maddie loves to read books like she does, and was of course flattered when Maddie explained that she’d dressed up like her for Halloween. I could have kissed that young lady. She really made a little girl’s day.

You had great princesses! Each one had a story for Maddie. Awesome!

So would we eat at CRT again? Of course we would!! In fact, Bryan and I would probably eat there without Maddie! It was so great for us to be able to have such wonderful food and service at a character meal. Maddie counts it as her “favorite place to eat in the whole world” and wants to eat there every trip. We ate breakfast there on our last trip and didn’t feel that the food lived up to the “2 credit charge” but for dinner we found it to be more than worth it.

Make your reservation as early as you can because they can be tough to get, but I’d 100% recommend that everyone try Cinderella’s Royal Table.

So glad you had a great dinner! Great update and beautiful pics of Maddie!

 

[TanzUnited99]

Great pics of Tiana with Maddie and I think it's fine for the little ones to have fun whilst one person is in the line.

Yay on little Jasmine meeting the big one as well as Aladdin...am glad he made Maddie smile!

All these pics of the castle is making me pine lol...hopefully I'll get to see it again next year.

Aaw love the pics of Maddie making her wish and am glad you all enjoyed your royal meal.

 

[jenniferma]

I've been enjoying both of your trip reports all day! It's gotten me thinking about our trip and putting me back into "Princess Mode". We've three girls 10,8 and 5 and I remember so fondly the trip we took when our oldest DD was MADLY in love with Peter Pan and we went to see him four times and did the Peter Pan ride at least five times! Such sweet memories!

your report is making rethink my ADRs too.. my 180 day mark is on Thursday and I need to really figure out tomorrow what I am going to do! I loved your report on Yak and Yeti.. and you've cemented my thoughts about the CRT dinner.

can't wait to read the rest! your DD is adorable! thanks for the great report

 

[jenniferma]

ps-- I forgot to ask... which resort did you like better-- POFQ or CBR? sorry if I missed this in your report!

 

[RGirl]

Shannon! Did you get the 25%-off email for the Disney Store (online and off) when you use the Disney visa? Will you be able to resist?????

BTW, I may or may not have the DHS "hat" playset in my cart right now and my finger poised to "add to cart" either the Space Mountain or Spaceship Earth playset.

 

[shan23877]

Shannon! Did you get the 25%-off email for the Disney Store (online and off) when you use the Disney visa? Will you be able to resist?????

BTW, I may or may not have the DHS "hat" playset in my cart right now and my finger poised to "add to cart" either the Space Mountain or Spaceship Earth playset.

I did! I erased it right away to avoid temptation However, Maddie's been earning money with the intention to spend it at the Disney Store. She'll have enough to get what she wants by this weekend so I promised to take her Sunday.

I'm much weaker when I see the stuff in person.

Is Willow into Jake and the Neverland Pirates? They have stuffed Jakes and Izzys now, and the fall PJs look adorable.

I haven't yet been tempted by the Hat and SE playsets, but now that you mention it, they'd be the perfect compliment to the Castle that we already have.

I'm so bad.

 

[shan23877]

Hey Guys! I promise to get some replies done tomorrow and I'm aiming for an update this weekend. I started a new job on Monday, and the week has been jam packed with training and learning and such. I've been severely lacking Dis time. Thanks for bearing with me!

 

[hstrickland]

Hey Guys! I promise to get some replies done tomorrow and I'm aiming for an update this weekend. I started a new job on Monday, and the week has been jam packed with training and learning and such. I've been severely lacking Dis time. Thanks for bearing with me!

I completely understand that! We start school next week Wednesday, or at least teachers. That will severly cut into my Dis time

 

[elphie101]

Caught up! CRT looks like it was the perfect end to a fantastic day - and it looks so beautiful inside! I know I've eaten there before but I can't remember

Talk about OUTSTANDING service! That'd be enough to make me want to go back anywhere.

Can't wait for more!

 

[shan23877]

A princess needs to eat in a castle.

I'm glad that you understand.

She looks adorable!

Thanks![/FONT



I guess they know to keep the kids occupied.

It was perfect.

What a great waiter.

He was amazing!


Wow! They really space the meal out!


They did, but it wasn't a slow meal. We were in and out in 1 hour 10 minutes.



Love it! My daughter still thinks she started Illuminations from Rose and Crown when she was five.


That's awesome! She probably did start the show.

Yup. Entree envy.

Luckily for him, I'm never able to finish my meal. He always gets a taste.

You had great princesses! Each one had a story for Maddie. Awesome!

They were all awesome. We had great character luck in general this trip.

So glad you had a great dinner! Great update and beautiful pics of Maddie!

Thanks! The meal was amazing as a whole. We can't wait to go back.

Great pics of Tiana with Maddie and I think it's fine for the little ones to have fun whilst one person is in the line.

Yay on little Jasmine meeting the big one as well as Aladdin...am glad he made Maddie smile!

Thanks! I think it's ok too, but I know that some disagree. Little Jasmine was so happy to meet her prince. It was great.

All these pics of the castle is making me pine lol...hopefully I'll get to see it again next year.

Me too, I so hope that you'll be able to visit again next year. I think one of the best things about Disney is that it never disappoints. It's simply not one of those things that you build up in you mind and then are let down when you experience it again. It's different and magical every time.

Aaw love the pics of Maddie making her wish and am glad you all enjoyed your royal meal.

Thank you! It was an awesome meal.

I've been enjoying both of your trip reports all day! It's gotten me thinking about our trip and putting me back into "Princess Mode". We've three girls 10,8 and 5 and I remember so fondly the trip we took when our oldest DD was MADLY in love with Peter Pan and we went to see him four times and did the Peter Pan ride at least five times! Such sweet memories!

Thanks so much for reading the TRs! I really appreciate it! That's the sweetest thing! I'll bet Peter was harder to find than the princess though!

your report is making rethink my ADRs too.. my 180 day mark is on Thursday and I need to really figure out tomorrow what I am going to do! I loved your report on Yak and Yeti.. and you've cemented my thoughts about the CRT dinner.

can't wait to read the rest! your DD is adorable! thanks for the great report

Happy ADR day! If you have any questions/concerns about them, feel free to ask! The places we'll cover in the rest of the TR are: SOA Luau, 1900 breakfast, Ohana breakfast, H&V breakfast, Akershus breakfast, Cape May dinner, Via Napoli lunch, 50's PT lunch, Chef Mickey dinner, Tony's lunch, and Cali Grill. Let me know if you if you need any help with any of them!

Thanks for joining in!

ps-- I forgot to ask... which resort did you like better-- POFQ or CBR? sorry if I missed this in your report!

We honestly liked them both.

POFQ is the way to go if you'd like a small, quiet resort. Everything is close by including the bus stops, and the grounds are gorgeous-very New Orleans. The food court doesn't have a ton of choices, and there's only the one pool. My DD loved it, but she's 5 and not very adventurous in the water. There's a boat launch to DTD which eliminates bus hassles to and from there, and there's lots of little garden areas to relax in the mornings. The gift shop is smallish, but the CMs there were outstanding and really went the extra mile. Also, there are elevators which helps with tired kids at the end of a long park day.

CBR is for if you'd like a larger, more spread out resort feeling. It's huge but gorgeous,and because of our room location (Aruba 51!!) we were never far from anything. There are 7 pools, and the pirate pool is pretty cool. Tons of choices at the food court, and 2 gift shops. Bus stops can be a little further away from the rooms, and there aren't any elevators. We carried a sleeping Maddie and her stroller up those stairs many days. The grounds are really stunning and give the relaxed tropical feeling that I love. I spent quite a bit of time out on a bench each morning just soaking in the atmosphere.

Honestly, we would (and probably will) stay at either of them again. They were both great in different ways. I would lean towards CBR for the beachy feeling, but DH would probably choose POFQ for the small quiet aspect. I don't think that you can go wrong with either!

I completely understand that! We start school next week Wednesday, or at least teachers. That will severly cut into my Dis time

Stinks doesn't it? I have only spent about 15 minutes DISing each day! Not ok.

Caught up! CRT looks like it was the perfect end to a fantastic day - and it looks so beautiful inside! I know I've eaten there before but I can't remember

It is lovely inside! It's perfectly themed in my opinion. Very royal but not stuffy. It was the perfect dinner for Princess Day!

Talk about OUTSTANDING service! That'd be enough to make me want to go back anywhere.

Can't wait for more!

That service was amazing! I'm really kicking myself for loosing the receipt. That server deserved to have some positive feedback. I'd have loved to send a glowing email about him. He made the meal for us.

I'll have more up this weekend!

 

[kmedina]

Hey Guys! I promise to get some replies done tomorrow and I'm aiming for an update this weekend. I started a new job on Monday, and the week has been jam packed with training and learning and such. I've been severely lacking Dis time. Thanks for bearing with me!

No problems. How is your new job going?

 

[cindianne320]

I know this is out of context, but I'm thinking ahead, and noticed your list above.

For a 4 year old, 1 year old, mom, dad, aunt and grandma- which of these would you choose?

Garden Grill, Le Cellier or Via Napoli? Thanks for your help!!!

 

[kmedina]

I know this is out of context, but I'm thinking ahead, and noticed your list above.

For a 4 year old, 1 year old, mom, dad, aunt and grandma- which of these would you choose?

Garden Grill, Le Cellier or Via Napoli? Thanks for your help!!!

I know you're asking Shannon, but I just happened to see it. Garden Grill actually has good enough food and the rotating room for the adults. The characters come around for the kids.

 

[shan23877]

I know this is out of context, but I'm thinking ahead, and noticed your list above.

For a 4 year old, 1 year old, mom, dad, aunt and grandma- which of these would you choose?

Garden Grill, Le Cellier or Via Napoli? Thanks for your help!!!

I know you're asking Shannon, but I just happened to see it. Garden Grill actually has good enough food and the rotating room for the adults. The characters come around for the kids.

I'd take Kimberly's advice. We've never been to Garden Grill or LeCellier. LeCellier is on the permanent maybe list, and GG gets bumped for more girly characters. You might want to pop into Le Cell before it goes 2 credits for lunch in 2013 though.

 

[shan23877]

No problems. How is your new job going?

Thanks for asking! It's going ok. A lot of information to absorb in a short time. The restaurant industry is so different from other ones. You HAVE to know your stuff, or you're not going to make any money. And, they don't give you long to learn it. I have a stack of almost 100 flashcards that I made myself to try to learn everything I can this week.

It's a bit of culture shock too. I went from running the place I worked last to being the low man on the totem pole who knows NOTHING here. I hate not knowing what to do and having to ask everyone a million questions. Plus, getting comfortable with a whole new group of people. I'm hoping that it'll turn out ok.

If I can get through Saturday and then Monday I'll breathe easier. And, we have tickets to 2 baseball games next week, so that will be a nice "reward" for surviving this week.

Thanks again for asking! You ask an innocent friendly question, and I ramble on and on.

 

[shan23877]

Shannon! Did you get the 25%-off email for the Disney Store (online and off) when you use the Disney visa? Will you be able to resist?????

BTW, I may or may not have the DHS "hat" playset in my cart right now and my finger poised to "add to cart" either the Space Mountain or Spaceship Earth playset.

They sent me another one today! This one is a "friends and family" discount. It's as though they know I erased the first email!

 

[kmedina]

Thanks for asking! It's going ok. A lot of information to absorb in a short time. The restaurant industry is so different from other ones. You HAVE to know your stuff, or you're not going to make any money. And, they don't give you long to learn it. I have a stack of almost 100 flashcards that I made myself to try to learn everything I can this week.

It's a bit of culture shock too. I went from running the place I worked last to being the low man on the totem pole who knows NOTHING here. I hate not knowing what to do and having to ask everyone a million questions. Plus, getting comfortable with a whole new group of people. I'm hoping that it'll turn out ok.

If I can get through Saturday and then Monday I'll breathe easier. And, we have tickets to 2 baseball games next week, so that will be a nice "reward" for surviving this week.

Thanks again for asking! You ask an innocent friendly question, and I ramble on and on.

I never mind a detailed response to a question. As a matter of fact, I prefer it. Nothing gets left open to interpretation. While I do not have a new job yet, I know exactly how you feel. After over 11 years at my old job, every place I am applying for wants me to start over again at the bottom. That's a hard adjustment, I bet.

I love being as knowledgable as possible, so I know the stress to learn as quickly as you can.

We have so many things in common, but I dislike baseball. My reward would need to be dinner and/or a show. Since you like it, I hope you have a great time.

You will probably be a rock star at your new job in no time at all. I cannot wait to read about how everything worked out with Maddie and her potential sitter.

 

[Lisa29]

I completely understand that! We start school next week Wednesday, or at least teachers. That will severly cut into my Dis time

That is mad, the schools here in the UK only finished for summer last Friday (13 July) and you are back next week! Our holidays really are different!


Great updates about CRT. I had always looked at the menus and thought there wasn't really much we would like but after seeing this, it is another definitely definitely on the list!

Hope the new job is ok.