Reliving 10 Glorious and Gluttonous Disney Days (TC and LC Updates page 2)

[bekkiz]

I had totally planned to take pictures of all the food we ate, but I kept forgetting until we were halfway through the meal. I feel bad, as pictures are some of my favorite parts of the dining reports!

We were on the dining plan for the week of Dec. 2nd to the 10th. We only had a couple of problems using it which I’ll detail below. Service across the board was very good, and at no point did we feel the DDP put us at any disadvantage. I am proud to say we used every credit—none leftover!

Snack credit wise, we used them on a variety of things from fountain sodas and bottles of water to boxes of cookies and mints to bring home as gifts. My personal favorite use was the chocolate dipped Mickey head rice crispy treats—I liked it with dark chocolate and peanuts—from Goofy’s Candy Kitchen in DTD. I even got one to bring home with us!

We brought granola bars for breakfast in the room, although we sometimes used snack or dessert credits for breakfast pastries at the Pepper Market. I had a waffle one morning that I paid OOP for. It was pricy (like $8) but pretty good.

Here’s a list of where we ate by date. I’ll put the reviews by day in their own posts so it’s easier to find them.

Dec. 2: Earl of Sandwich (DTD)

Dec. 3: Pizzafari (AK) and Pepper Market (CSR)

Dec. 4: Whispering Canyon Café-lunch (WL) and Boma-dinner (AKL)

Dec. 5: Raglan Road (DTD)

Dec. 6: Columbia Harbor House (MK) and Kona Café (Poly)

Dec. 7: Tangerine Café (Epcot) and Le Cellier (Epcot)

Dec. 8: Earl of Sandwich (DTD) and San Angel Inn (Epcot)

Dec. 9: Pepper Market (CSR) and Yachtsman Steakhouse (YC)

Dec. 10: Mexico and Japan Counter service for lunch

 

[bekkiz]

Earl of Sandwich

We ate here twice, ordering the exact same thing both times. DH had the 1762 (roast beef, cheddar and horseradish) and I had the Beef n’ Blue (roast beef and blue cheese). We each got a fountain drink and a cookie as part of the DDP. The sandwiches were great as usual; I really want one to open near us. I think I’d eat there all of the time. We saved the cookies for snacks later (and brought 2 home with us!). I also ordered a side of cole slaw each visit. I love their cole slaw, and the $1.55 price was worth it.

 

[bekkiz]

Pizzafari

Another one of our favorites. We try to eat here every vacation. I had the hot Italian club (probably my favorite CS meal of the trip) which comes with chips and DH had the pepperoni pizza. Both were exactly how we remembered and were very, very tasty. We both had the frozen strawberry lemonade as dessert, which we ate as we walked out to the bus stop. I think each of us ate less than half! Those babies are huge. Because we chose a common time to eat, it did take a minute or two to find a table, but we did get one. As an aside, I just love the music they play all around AK, and especially on Discovery Island. It's so fun!

Pepper Market (Dinner)

We had been at MGM that evening and I do not like the choices there for CS meals. I had read pretty good things about PM, so we headed back to have dinner. I personally like the way PM is run, as you don’t have to worry about standing in line to pay or to find a table while your food gets cold. This visit we had a very attentive server who refilled our drinks and helped us out.
I ordered the chicken quesadilla—which was HUGE and came with black beans and rice. It was delicious. DH had a wet burrito which I think he liked, as he ate most of it. PM is picky about the desserts for the DDP and we weren’t particularly hungry anyway, so we ordered breakfast pastries instead and saved them for our breakfast the next morning. I highly recommend the cherry danish.

 

[Disney owl]

Great reviews awaiting more

Thanks

 

[MamaKate]

I'm really looking forward to trying the Hot Italian sandwhich at Pizzafari for our February trip. I'm just hoping I can order it without ham. Do you know if they are pre-made or can you make special request . I hope so, because it sounds good.

We've eaten at all the other eateries in AK, but we never seem to be around Pizzafari when we're hungry. But I'm determined to try it this trip.

Thanks for the reviews & I look forward to the rest.

 

[Daisy14]

Great reviews! can't wait to hear your reviews on Raglan Road and Boma

 

[TigerKat]

Thanks for your reviews, waiting for more!!

 

[bekkiz]

I will warn you, the reviews kind of get long from here on out.

WWC (lunch)

We had never eaten here before and couldn’t really fit it in with all of our planned dinners, so luckily we found an opening for lunch. I know it’s not the BEST use of a credit, but it was a nice break in the day. Our server was very nice and helpful, but not super into the antics. Not that I minded! I’m much more of an observer than a participant in these sorts of things. I felt bad for him, as a party of 41 just didn’t show up! That’s a big table to lose. And how do 41 people just not show up without calling?

To start, I ordered the Southwestern Chicken Soup. It was a creamy potato and corn chowder type soup with crunchy tortilla strips on top. Yummy! It was hard not to finish the whole bowl, but I was saving room for my Buffalo Chicken Salad. Our server made sure I knew they were going to be spicy before I ordered, and boy, were they! The dressing was very light (a vinaigrette) which usually I would like, but I think a little more dressing or perhaps a creamy dressing would have cut the spiciness a bit. It was still delicious. For dessert, I ordered the banana dustbowl—bananas and caramel over ice cream and cinnamon sugar tortillas.

DH started with the nachos. I tried them too! I liked the chili they used instead of the normal ground beef, but I don’t think we made a dent in them. It was a huge serving. He had the hamburger as an entrée. It was your basic hamburger, tasty but nothing special. DH had ordered the “all-you-can-drink” vanilla milkshake (delicious! and with sprinkles) so he didn’t have room for dessert—he had a bite or two of mine.

All in all, a very good lunch and fun entertainment.

Boma
I will preface this by saying for the past 5 years, Boma has been my favorite WDW restaurant. I love it so much we had planned to eat here twice on this trip. I love the variety of foods, the staff—everything.

We were disappointed this trip. I’m not sure if we hit a bad night (with a rotating menu, it’s possible) but this was the first time I wasn’t overwhelmed with choices. Frankly, many things seemed somewhat mundane from what I’m used to. For example, the soups, which are typically my favorite things there, were very ordinary. Tasted great, but ordinary, like Cream of Mushroom and Potato Bacon. In the past we’ve enjoyed things like Oxtail Stew and different kinds of seafood curries. The only sort of different one was the Mulligatawny Soup, which I was very thankful for, it’s delicious! I also found many of the dishes were not replaced in a very timely manner. I love the Papaya, Grapefruit and Avocado salad, however on each of my 3 trips up, the bowl was practically empty. The banana bread pudding was also quite a disappointment. I’ve made it using their recipe before, and the dense, unsweet loaf that was being served was nothing like it used to be.

I’d like to point out that everything (save the banana bread pudding) tasted wonderfully. The coconut tiramisu was fabulous, as was the prime rib; we just felt the selections have been made more accessible to the typical American palate, and that made us sad. But I understand that restaurants do what they have to do! And Boma was PACKED, so they must be bringing people in somehow.

We did have quite an exciting experience at the end of the meal, but you’ll have to read my trip report for that one!

 

[Lexxiefern]

Wow, WCC sounds so yummy!! We are going there the first night of our next trip and I cannot wait! Thanks for all the reviews!

 

[PrincessNED]

More PLease

 

[Minniespal]

Enjoying reading your reviews ~ More please.

 

[kimwim8]

Great dining report, Bekki! Thanks so much for sharing!

Keep it comin'!!

 

[bekkiz]

This one's a doozy!

Raglan Road

We had spent the day at Islands of Adventure, so no lunch review for today. We took a cab directly from Universal to Downtown Disney. Even with some shopping on the Marketplace side, we were still about 30 minutes early for our ADR. No problem, they sat us right away. Our server was quite good and we left a little extra tip to thank him. He made some wonderful recommendations which led to a fantastic meal.

I started with the house Sangria. It was sweet and strong, but not too overpowering. I have no idea what was in it, but it cost almost 10 dollars. I’m not a big drinker, so I’m not used to overpriced drinks. I almost ordered another one, because I liked it so much, but once we got the bill I was happy I didn’t!

I began with the herbed goat cheese “terrine” with fruit compote and crackers. I’m a sucker for cheese, especially when paired with fruit, so this was a no brainer for me. The portion size was HUGE, so even sharing a bit with DH, well over ½ was left. I really enjoyed the combination of flavors, and the goat cheese was the main flavor you got—the herbs were simply side notes.

DH had the drunk chicken. I didn’t expect it to be so sweet, but it was very good as well. The same marinade is also served with the delicious soda bread and olive oil, so we doubled up on the sweet whisky goodness.

As we had been seated, the hostess mentioned the salmon as one of the best dishes. Our server also recommended it highly. Generally when everyone mentions the same dish, it means the kitchen asked them to push it (over ordered from the fish monger or whatever), but I ignored my gut instinct and ordered it anyway (after checking that the smoked salmon part is hot smoked. Cold smoked salmon gives me the willies). I tasted the maple based sauce at first and immediately thought the dish had made a side trip to the pastry station in the kitchen. It was SWEET. However, when eaten with the baked salmon and smoked salmon together is melded extremely well and lost much of it’s sweetness. I loved the flavor combination, salty, sweet and good! The mashed potatoes seemed a little dry, but were good when eaten together with the fish. DH had the steak. I believe he enjoyed it, but had similar reservations about the mashed potatoes. It was a nice peice of meat and cooked approtriatly, but not a standout meal for him.

We were both very full at this point, but being on the DDP and all, you couldn’t very well turn down dessert! I asked the waiter if it was possible to get it to go, and he said no problem, but the chef wants you to see the presentation and then we can box it up. DH had the crème brulee (this will be a theme!), which was unlike any crème brulee we’ve ever seen. It was much closer to a cheesecake but tasted just awesome! I ordered the bread pudding and boxed it up to go. It comes with both vanilla and caramel sauces which I poured over the top. Even though it had cooled down significantly by the time I ate it later that night, it was an excellent bread pudding and I wouldn’t hesitate to order it again.

Our table was right next to the stage, but unfortunately, because we had come about 30 minutes early, we were just finishing up when the band came on. We stayed for one song before heading out. I think I would make a later ADR in the future so we could enjoy the music a bit more. Over all, I was very, very happy with this restaurant. The food and service was great from start to finish.

 

[swankybeth]

Great reviews, I'm looking forward to the next installment.

 

[bekkiz]

Columbia Harbor House

This is probably our favorite lunch spot at MK, simply because the food is good and the rooms are quiet. DH had the chicken strips and fries. He also ordered the apple crisp for dessert. As many people know, the WDW chicken strips are the best, so obviously, he was pretty happy with his choice. They had a wide variety of sauces, including some hot sauce for him to dip. That was nice to see they didn’t just cop out with ketchup.

I had the ham and cheese sandwich. I really like the broccoli slaw they put on it, but there was just a bit too much filling. I took off about ½ of the ham and some of the cheese, so it wasn’t a totally overwhelming sandwich. Neither of the desserts sounded great, and I wanted to grab a treat at the bakery later, so I declined dessert. The server seemed a little confused at first and offered me another side instead, so I had an order of fries too! I had not heard of the happening before (subbing a side—they also had carrots—for a dessert) but it was a nice gesture. I ended up using a snack credit later for a slice of key lime cheesecake from the Main Street Bakery to eat back in the room. It was very good, with just a hint of lime. A sort of weird color though.

Kona Café

We had eaten here for breakfast a number of years ago, but the menu for dinner sounded so good, I knew we had to give it a try. We were NOT disappointed. It was probably my favorite meal, start to finish.

We started with the crab cakes and the pot stickers as appetizers. The crab cakes were a little different from ones I’ve had before, as they were crunchier around the outside. They were full of crabby deliciousness. I think I would have enjoyed a little more sauce on the plate, because they were basically solid crab and needed a touch more something. DH had a bite and found it good as well. His order of pot stickers was fantastic. I really like the sauce and the filling was very flavorful. DH pronounced them “awesome.”

I ordered the macadamia mahi-mahi as my entrée. OMG, was this good. The fish (only very slightly on the dry side) had an awesome flavor and I just loved the nut crust. I asked for mashed potatoes, instead of the rice, and they were to die for, and the lemon butter sauce really tied things together. There was also a little bok choy—I think I would have like a little more. It was really hard not to scarf the whole thing down! I kept saying “this is my last bite….ok, now that was my last bite.” DH ordered the prime rib. It was a good cut of meat, without too much fat. It seemed well seasoned and came with the same mashed potatoes I ordered and some yummy garlicky broccoli. I believe he ate most, if not all of it, and enjoyed it immensely.

For dessert I ordered the Chocolate Macadamia Nut Tart. It was two little slices and was very similar to a pecan pie (except with mac nuts, instead of pecans, obviously) and came with a little scoop of vanilla ice cream and a chocolate palm tree. Yum-O! I only ate one of the little slices (I took the other home with us for breakfast the next morning) but I think it may have been the best dessert of the trip. Adam ordered the crème brulee, but without the sugar crust. He’s not a fan of burnt sugar. It had some banana slices and was a very straightforward and delicious custard.

Our server was very attentive and kept our drink refilled. I did order a “Sand in the Pants,” which is basically a pina colada mixed with a strawberry daiquiri. It was good, and not too strong. Kona was an excellent meal and an excellent value on the DDP. I think it’s a must visit for us in the future.

One small complaint. A few days later, we noticed our TS credits were wrong (we were missing 2). Upon checking with the front desk, apparently Kona had charged us 2 meals the night we ate and another 2 a few days later. Kind of weird, but the resort was able to fix it for us.

 

[sarah4770]

I am enjoying your reviews. I will have to try one of the hot italian club sandwiches next trip, sounds pretty good.

 

[dixiedizfan]

Thanks for the reviews ... they were spot-on!

 

[kimwim8]

Lovin these....(you're making me HUNGRY)!!

Keep 'em coming!

 

[MA pigletfan]

OOOHHH yum! I have Kona booked the first night of our stay ( at the Poly, how convenient)...I already had it in my mind to have exactly why you did....YUMM-O is right!

 

[dawgfan]

Thanks for the helpful review.