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Reports and Reviews for Dining and Restaurants Trip Reports |
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25 Mar 18, 09:20 AM |
#81
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Imagineer
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Loving this! We have trails end booked excited to see your pics exactly what my hubby is hoping for 😀
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25 Mar 18, 11:28 AM |
#82
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VIP Dibber
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Every time we book I think about the DxDDP but we struggle with the ordinary DDP not so much the TS credits but we have lots of QS & snack credits left.
Hats of to you guys having 3 meals a day! We love our buffets too but I end up like a kid in a sweet shop and have to try everything, which usually means I have to be rolled out Loving your report so far, can't wait to read the rest. |
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25 Mar 18, 12:06 PM |
#83
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Guest
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I must be a right old greedy guts lol! I cant figure out why everyone thinks deluxe ddp is too much food...a TS brekkie at 8am followed by a signature dinner at 8pm at night doesnt seem like too much to me. Im starting to feel ashamed that I want to upgrade to deluxe now haha!
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25 Mar 18, 12:30 PM |
#84
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Thread Starter
Imagineer
Join Date: Oct 11
Location: Dundee
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Nik’s sundae was definitely better, I’m glad I got to try it as it’s not often he can be talked into a snack!
Thank you for reading Nadya, You should definitely give ‘Ohana a go if it appeals to you, my strongest belief about restaurants is that you shouldn’t be put off by other’s experiences, and try things out for yourself. Thank you for reading. It definitely didn’t spoil the magic, I think it actually made me appreciate it more, I really recommend it. Day 4 will be up today. Thanks for reading Sam! We had done the dinner buffet, they had plantain chips, but not the stewed (?) ones from breakfast, the menu there also rotates so you’re not always guaranteed the same dishes every night. You definitely do forget the tiredness, I’ve booked my ADRs today and I’m now considering a TS ADR for the first night My original plan was to go to Disney Springs (if we stay at the resort I’ll go to bed far too early) and get QS there, maybe you could try out Wolfgang Puck? A QS restaurant with TS quality, a good compromise. I should also take my own advice haha. Thank you for reading! Welcome back to the dark side Eilidh Definitely a hubby pleaser! In hindsight, we should have probably done it more towards the end of the trip, we would have probably appreciated some ‘normal’ food even more then. Thank you for reading! So jealous of your countdown. We often struggle to use up our QS credits, the years when we haven’t done DxDP we have usually paid OOP for extra TS meals (and I don’t think this year is going to be any different!). We actually really enjoy QS food, but I just love the whole experience of TS meals. Thank you for reading! TS breakfast and Signature dinner (or a dinner show!), is the perfect use of DxDP. For us personally, I don’t want to say that we felt like the plan was too much food, because we allowed ourselves the flexibility to make it not too much food (skipping starters and/or dessert), but if we had stuck rigidly to the plan (all 3 courses, 3 times a day) then it definitely would have been too much food (for us). I hope that makes sense. Take the plunge! I don’t think you’ll regret it. Thank you for reading. |
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25 Mar 18, 01:04 PM |
#85
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Thread Starter
Imagineer
Join Date: Oct 11
Location: Dundee
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DAY 4
Sunday 24th September 2017 Another early start today for Early Morning Magic at Magic Kingdom. A buffet breakfast at Pinocchio Village Haus is included in the price of the package so no need for breakfast on the go this morning! EARLY MORNING MAGIC We rode Peter Pan's Flight, then Pooh, then headed for Mine Train. I had visions of us riding Mine Train six times in a row, but after two goes I felt queasy , so we headed for a second ride on Winnie the Pooh. After Pooh we decided to go check out the food that was on offer and have a drink. It was very quiet in the restaurant, I think everyone was riding the Mine Train. EasyWDW (him again haha) has a good review of EMM with some good buffet pictures here. The hot food on offer is sausages, bacon, scrambled eggs, breakfast potatoes (these were liked wedges, and looked nice), frittata and waffles. There was also a small selection of cold meats and cheese, lots of fruit, pastries and yogurt. For a quick service restaurant this was quite an impressive spread! I was conscious the clock was ticking so didn't want to load up our plates, we just helped ourselves to some fruit and pastries. The pain au chocolat was tasty, as always and the fruit was beautifully coloured and very tasty, just as I always find Floridian fruit to be. Nik also had a kid’s yogurt drink, as he loves these (right now we have some Frubes ones in the fridge ). Adult yogurt was also available haha. After eating we had a go on the carrousel (this was a bit of a bonus as I didn’t realise this was open during EMM), and then a second ride on Peter Pan’s Flight, then it was opening time! Early Morning Magic costs $69 per adult and $59 per children, it is pricey, but when you consider that a QS breakfast at Be Our Guest costs $25 + tax, then EMM doesn't seem to bad a deal considering you unlimited rides on Fantasyland's headliners. The breakfast buffet is open until 10am, and you can come and go as you please. The best value for money would mean doing rides solely between 7.45-9 and then eating breakfast. This plan didn't work for us, as we wanted to make the most of the park whilst it was still quiet between 9-10. For us, EMM was worth the money and a lot of fun, and we'll absolutely be back on a future visit. *** BE OUR GUEST We were originally planning lunch at The Plaza today, but as I mentioned ‘yesterday’, we had switched up some of our ADRs after our ‘Ohana experience. I had settled on a QS lunch, possibly Columbia Harbor House as we were going to be in Fantasyland all morning and it's close by. But then I saw a 11.40am Be Our Guest ADR pop up, and thought I’d be crazy to turn it down. We have eaten lunch here previously and left disappointed, so we arrived today with low expectations, but excited to be eating in the Beast’s Castle. We had pre-ordered our food, which was a good idea, as when we arrived at the restaurant there was two lines – a short one for those who had pre-ordered, and a very long one snaking outside the restaurant and over the bridge, for those who hadn’t. They were not accepting any standby reservations. When we checked in we were given a yellow rose (loaded with our pre-order), which we gave to the cast member on the till once we were inside. We have eaten in the ballroom here three times previously, I think it is beautiful, but it is very noisy, and there was long lines for the self-service drinks, so we opted for the Rose Gallery, which was much more serene. We didn’t even consider the West Wing as I don’t enjoy eating in the dark . Potato Leek Soup – we have had this every visit to Be Our Guest, it is probably the nicest soup I have ever had; very salt, very creamy. A great value snack credit! It’s not a huge portion but I do think it would be a sufficient lunch on its own. I opted for Croque Monsieur – Grilled Sandwich of Carved Ham and Gruyere Cheese and Bechamel with Pommes Frites. I have had this before and didn’t enjoy it, and sadly, felt the same today. The bread is soggy, I feel like it should be crispy. We ate at Tiffins later in the trip and we were chatting to our server about the food here, he said that it can be hit and miss due to being mass produced, but if you’re not happy you should complain and you’ll receive a fresh meal. I told him we are British and don’t like to moan . The last time we ate here the fries were so salty I couldn’t eat them, but this time they were perfect. French Dip Sandwich – Served on a baguette with au jus and pomme frites – this dish was the reason we were here, after the disappointment of missing out on the French Dip at Olivia’s I wanted Nik to be able to try this one out. Unfortunately, it was all bread and very little meat, I think the previous incarnation of this sandwich was better. My dessert was Éclair a l’Orange – Custard filling with zested orange and finished with chocolate ganache, the pastry was light and area and the filling tasted like a giant orange cream chocolate from a box of Roses, I liked it. Nik had The Master’s Cupcake – chocolate sponge cake topped with Lumiere’s special ‘Grey Stuff’, he isn’t a dessert person but loved this and ate it all, I was shocked! When using DxDP in a QS restaurant an appetizer and dessert are not included, only a main and a drink as with a regular QS dining credit. The sandwiches and drinks came to $40.01. We used 3 snacks for the soup and desserts, these came to $17.01. You can see the Be Our Guest lunch menu here. *** THE BOATHOUSE We were supposed to be eating at California Grill tonight, but I was keen to see Happily Ever After for the first time in the park rather than from somewhere so far away, so I decided to switch up our plans. I was desperate to try The Boathouse, and as the days went by I started searching MDE for a reservation there. I was having no joy, but then remembered some of the non-Disney owned restaurants are on OpenTable, and to my surprise, The Boathouse was there with all time slots available. When we arrived, we were seated straight away, but there was a huge line of guests waiting when we were leaving. We were seated in the bar, there was a football game being shown on the TV and it was a little rowdy, even the servers were cheering along. Our table was also right next to the stage, the musician was just setting up as we were leaving, I would have hated to have been there whilst he was playing. Our server was Matthew, I had to tell him that we were on the dining plan, but other than that he was great, very knowledgeable about the menu and was great with topping up drinks, he even offered us some to go at the end. Oh my goodness, this bread was delicious. I loved it, it was my favourite bread of the trip, the rolls were slightly sweet but served warm, mmm. I had already eaten two before I remembered to take a picture haha, I was starving as all I’d eaten for lunch was some fries and an éclair! I started with BOATHOUSE Pimento Cheese – mixed vegetable pickles, white corn tortilla chips. This was nice, the texture was very thick, like a cream cheese, but I really enjoyed it. You can’t really go wrong with a cheese dip as far as I’m concerned! Pimento cheese has a kick to it, but this was mild enough for my spice averse palette. Nik had a bowl of one of his favourite things Maine Lobster Bisque. He fell in love with this restaurant the second he tasted this. I had been certain I would order a steak here, but as we were being taken to our table I saw a diner at another table with cedar plank salmon, which I loved at Artist Point a few years ago, so I decided I had to have this. But then I saw the Specials, the Potato Wrapped Red-Snapper dish that used to be a signature of Flying Fish is my favourite Disney dish ever, so I couldn’t turn down snapper here if it was on offer! Caribbean Red Snapper – asparagus, roasted mushrooms, spinach, tomatoes, shallot butter. I was disappointed, the fish was overdone. I love mushrooms but I’m not convinced about them being paired with fish. I wish I’d ordered a steak. Nik went for the Yacht Club Club – roasted turkey breast, cucumber, bacon, lettuce, tomato, avocado, chipotle honey mayo, swiss cheese, multigrain bread served with fresh cut fries. A real hit, one of his favourite things of the trip. How awesome does it look!? This was the dessert menu we were shown, the one online is now different, which is a shame. We were originally intending to skip dessert again, but Macadamia Turtle Pie – Haagen Dazs vanilla ice cream, macadamia nut vanilla wafer crust, chocolate and caramel sauce, sounded too good to be true, so we ordered this. Our server said it was as good as it sounded, then he came back to tell us it was sold out! We decided to just take some Strawberry Shortcake to go, this looked incredible, I never did get around to eating it, and I really regret this, and think about it all the time haha. This meal came to $107.03 The Boathouse is a Signature restaurant using 2 Table Service credits, you could argue we didn’t get our money’s worth, but we had a great experience at the restaurant, so we didn’t feel short changed. When I was planning our trip it was easy to get caught up in the idea of getting the 'best value' out of the DxDP, but whilst we were actually living it, I was conscious that I had booked for the flexibility to eat what we wanted, when we wanted, and it absolutely gave us that. If Nik had his way we would have eaten here again later in the trip, we definitely will be back. You can see The Boathouse menu here. TOTAL SPEND SO FAR $756.52
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Edited at 11:12 PM. |
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25 Mar 18, 02:50 PM |
#86
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VIP Dibber
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I agree Nik's yacht club club looks really cute the way the sandwich is cut. It's difficult with dining plans to eat where you fancy and order what you want. One of the things I like about the credits system is that I can order the expensive N.Y. strip steak if I want, which I probably wouldn't do if I was paying oop, but I do have to remind myself that I don't have to have the steak for every meal.
The early morning magic does seem like a good deal, as you say if people are planning on a QS breakfast anyway and deduct that from the cost then it's not prohibitive. Apart from your queasiness from the mine train it sounds like you had fun. Your soup at BOG looks good so does the eclair. I have booked a lunch ADR as I want to try out the French onion soup. I figure we could use up some snack credits here and have starters and puddings.
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Abby New pre trip report - Summer 2024 Link to all my completed trip reports 2017: NYC and Orlando. Salzburg. Boston. 2018: Orlando. Berlin. 2019: DLP. Orlando. Washington DC. 2020: DLP. 2021: Jamaica. Rome. 2022: Orlando. 2023: Orlando. Niagara and Toronto. |
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25 Mar 18, 04:14 PM |
#87
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VIP Dibber
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I love the sound of the breakfast at Pinocchio's, I would have had to try many more things than you did! The morning magic hours doesn't sound too bad value wise, considering breakfast is included along with the empty park
We were so impressed with Be Our Guest last year (dinner) that I struggle with all the negative reviews. Soggy bread certainly doesn't appeal. Wow, Nik's main at the Boathouse Looks amazing... enough said
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All of my trip reports are in this INDEX My most recent reports are below: *Complete* A Tale of Two Cities - Washington D.C. & Boston - March 2023 We Love Food! An Offsite Dining Report - May 2022 |
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25 Mar 18, 07:14 PM |
#88
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VIP Dibber
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What a shame about BOG. It's one of our favourite QS places as I love the soup and have always found both the turkey and beef baguettes to be really good and full of freshly carved meat. Never had over salted fries either. Last trip we tried the braised pork and that was DELICIOUS! We'll definitely be going back next year and I'll be having one all to myself rather than sharing it with DH again
Such a shame about your overcooked fish. That's really disappointing when you're looking forward to something. The turkey club looks good, but it seems a slightly strange offering for a signature restaurant. When I think of spending 2TS credits, I expect something more upscale and refined. Still, it was enjoyed and that's what really matters Looking forward to seeing what's next!
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POFQ: Our 'once in a lifetime' trip, 31st Oct - 14th Nov 2012 SSR: 40th birthday trip, 2nd - 16th Jan 2014 SSR 2 bed villa: my mums first trip, 7th - 21st Feb 2015 POR: An unexpected Easter break, 2nd - 15th April 2016 CBR: Another unexpected Easter trip, 29th March - 12th April 2017 CBR: 18th birthday surprise trip, 21st October - 4th November 2019 Food report - the unexpected Easter QSDP extravagana! April 2017 What do we want? FOOD! When do we want it? NOW! QSDP food report, Oct 2019 |
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25 Mar 18, 10:27 PM |
#89
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Trading Disney Pins
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Following with interest - we are looking at trying DDP next year so thanks for the great write ups
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25 Mar 18, 11:07 PM |
#90
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VIP Dibber
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Just found this tonight, have read and really enjoyed the report so far. Am looking forward to more, some of the meals you’ve had look delicious! Must try Olivia’s next year when we return to the Magic! X
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