First a Little Pomp & Circumstance,then a Whole Lot of Disney Dining! COMPLETE

[jabead]

It's snack time for Ginamarie & family back at their resort, Port Orleans French Quarter...

Beignets from Sassagoula Floatworks and Food Factory


Ginamarie said, "Love them! Hot, crispy and moist in the middle...perfection!" ​

 

[jabead]

And back at Magic Kingdom, Alice & Snow had lunch at...



The Plaza Restaurant

Potato Soup with chives, cheddar and bacon bits on top.


Alice said, "It was an excellent consistency, was not too salty and a perfect starter size.
Essentially it was like eating a soup version of a baked potato."

"Next up, we split the meatloaf and a club (no ham, double turkey...I don't like ham lunchmeat ).
Our PHENOMENAL server Khalid had the kitchen split everything for us before bringing it out!!"

Meatloaf Meal - Slices of home-style meatloaf served with red skinned garlic mashed potatoes, gravy and whole kernel corn.



"The meatloaf was good, tasted like homemade. We actually both ate the corn first."

Plaza Club - smoked ham (replaced by double turkey), turkey, bacon, lettuce, tomato and mayonnaise layered on toasted multi-grain bread



"The club was good, and the fries here are always perfect."

Brownie Sundae (split in half) - vanilla ice cream and a fudge brownie topped with hot fudge, whipped cream and a cherry



And a close-up shot...

"For dessert, we split the brownie sundae. It was good, but I would have liked it more if the brownie was warmed up first.
The ice cream that accompanied this dish was authentic vanilla bean and complimented the brownie well.
We also split a strawberry shake to go, which was phenomenal and had chunks of strawberries throughout."
​

NOTE from jabead: If you are teacherjmc, gardengirl628, nessz79, CupcakeLisa, ksack, Krissalee, or AeroKU...please see this post.

 

[ses1230]

ses1230 - is planning to have "Very Merry" time while staying at Saratoga Springs, beginning sometime around Dec. 8???

Hi

Just getting caught up on this awesome thread! Loving the live updates - great idea!

Update - our dates are Dec. 8 (my birthday ) - Dec. 15. We are staying at AKV Kidani unless our waitlist for BLT comes through. Me, DH, DD7, DD4, and my mom.

Our ADRs include:
CRT breakfast
Biergarten
Tusker House breakfast
The Plaza
Jiko
Via Napoli for our CP meal
and..... BOG!!!

 

[jabead]

Hi

Just getting caught up on this awesome thread! Loving the live updates - great idea!

Update - our dates are Dec. 8 (my birthday ) - Dec. 15. We are staying at AKV Kidani unless our waitlist for BLT comes through. Me, DH, DD7, DD4, and my mom.

Our ADRs include:
CRT breakfast
Biergarten
Tusker House breakfast
The Plaza
Jiko
Via Napoli for our CP meal
and..... BOG!!!

Hi ses1230!

I'll get your trip info updated right away! Just one more question, do you think you might do a Dining Report after your trip? Oh, and any interest in texting in "live" updates? Oops, I guess that's two questions.

 

[jabead]

Ginamarie & family had dinner at the Polynesian Resort again tonight, but this time they dined at...



Kona Cafe


Here is the menu they were given (which is different than any of the current online menus)...

Togarashi Spiced Ahi Tuna
Served with Tempura Fried Vegetable Maki Roll and Red Wine Reduction


Ginamarie said, "Hubby liked his tuna, but said the vegetable rolls were the best thing on the plate."

Kona Coffee-rubbed Pork Chop
Grilled and served with Wild Mushrooms and Bacon-Potato Gratin, and Seasonal Vegetables (Corn)




Ginamarie said, "I got the coffee encrusted pork...it was ok. The crust tasted more like pepper than coffee. The corn was good, but the potato casserole that sounded so good on the menu was a disappointment. It looked grey and tasted bland. The whole dish needed something bright and acidic."

Kid's Ravioli


Ginamarie said, "This was a tiny portion. The six year old didn't care for it, but the baby loved it. Baby also loved the chicken noodle soup, which I didn't photograph. Other son got the hot dog, which came with no side, just a fruit cup appetizer and ketchup. It was weird.



And for dessert...

Kilauea Torte
An explosion of warm liquid Chocolate inside Chocolate Cookie Volcano



Ginamarie said, "This was good, but the molten center was overcooked and solid instead of liquid."

Pineapple Upside Down Cake
with Lemongrass and Caramel Sauces


Ginamarie said, "Hubby ate every morsel!"

Kid's Ice Cream Sundae

Ginamarie said, "This was basic, tasty, and cute."

Kid's Yogurt Parfait


Ginamarie said, "Daughter loved it!"


Ginamarie's final thoughts, "Kona seemed a little off tonight. I'm hoping it was a fluke."
​

NOTE from jabead: If you are teacherjmc, gardengirl628, nessz79, CupcakeLisa, ksack, Krissalee, or AeroKU...please see this post.

 

[debrapagliasotti]

Sorry to hear Ginamarie's dinner at Kona was a bit disappointing.

Those beignets from earlier today sure looked yummy though! Might just need to hop over to POFQ on our DDD day just to snag some of those

**************

Alice & Snow's cinnamon roll looked ammmmazing (I sooo want one right now!)

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

Cool! I always enjoy seeing menu updates. A lot of WDW menu changes supposedly took place on Wednesday, but besides Beaches & Cream and Whispering Canyon Cafe, they haven't received much coverage. Here are some of my initial thoughts on the Kona menu:

-I was sad to see that the sweet potato and lemongrass bisque has been replaced by a Portuguese bean and sausage soup. The previous dish was vegan-friendly and featured a unique flavor combination.

-The new entrees sound quite interesting. On the previous dinner menu, there was just one entree I wanted to try (the sustainable fish), but now there are three more: the tuna, duck, and clams. Tuna with red wine reduction sounds like a great idea, since tuna is such a meaty fish.

I understand that the menu changes can be interpreted in a variety of ways. It wouldn't surprise me to hear praise for the new soup, while some people might be disappointed with the entree changes (such as the removal of the ribeye and the tuna Oscar). That said, the changes have piqued my interest in Kona - thanks to both of you for sharing this menu to before anyone else!

 

[jabead]

Alice & Snow were at the Grand Floridian Resort tonight, having dinner at...



1900 Park Fare

Cinderella's Happily Ever After Dinner

Alice said, "We both thought the food was ok, nothing spectacular. We didn't find any unusual choices, with the exception of the strawberry soup. Standard fare. An odd omission was that the only chicken was drumsticks on the kids buffet. There was a good vegan noodle salad that I quite enjoyed though."



On to dessert...

Alice said, "I wanted to love it, but...I didn't. The best thing on my plate was the crumble on the apple crumble and the raspberry on the cheesecake. The carrot cake was dry and sort of bland. The key lime pie didn't taste like key lime at all, but had a definite "fake" lime taste. The bread pudding was ok. The cheesecake was generic and I found the spice on the apples in the crumble heavy. Snow also tried a rice crispy, and even that didn't do well (she said not enough marshmallow)."

"Oh, Snow also had her birthday acknowledged with a cupcake."



Alice's final thoughts, "Overall, stepsisters and evil stepmother and the prince were excellent.
Cindy left quite a bit to be desired.
Would we eat here again? Probably not, at least not for dinner."

​

NOTE from jabead: If you are teacherjmc, gardengirl628, nessz79, CupcakeLisa, ksack, Krissalee, or AeroKU...please see this post.

 

[emmysmommy]

Ohhh that potato soup from Plaza Restaurant looks really good. I must have totally overlooked the meatloaf meal. I thought it was new but then looked at the photo of the menu I have and there it is - front and center.

I would love to dine at 1900 PF for dinner and see the step-sisters!

 

[debrapagliasotti]

Sorry to hear about the disappointing meal at 1900 PF.

The Tremaine's were AWESOME last time we were there! Some of our favorite memories of the trip

 

[ses1230]

Hi ses1230!

I'll get your trip info updated right away! Just one more question, do you think you might do a Dining Report after your trip? Oh, and any interest in texting in "live" updates? Oops, I guess that's two questions.

I would definitely do live updates! I really want to write a dining report but the thought intimidates me a little - I feel like I wouldn't know where to start. I guess I have to spend more time on the boards reading up, lol!

 

[Linda67]

I LOVE your idea! You know, I have experience with live/combined reviews! I'm up for this!

Great suggestion Barb

Well count me in Brenda

 

[jabead]

I would definitely do live updates! I really want to write a dining report but the thought intimidates me a little - I feel like I wouldn't know where to start. I guess I have to spend more time on the boards reading up, lol!

I think doing live updates would be the perfect start! You would then get a feel of what it's like to take pics of your food/beverages and adding a short description and maybe a comment on how well you liked it (or not) and why. I leave the subject matter and the number of updates entirely up to the live reporters. So you can do as many/or few as you are comfortable with and they can be simple or as detailed as you like. If you find that you do enjoy this, then you might want to do a dining report either after this trip or maybe your next trip to Disney World. Then again you might decide that doing a full dining report is not for you. Whatever happens, the important thing is to have fun...because you are on vacation at Disney World!

So to make a long story short...So you'd like to do live updates, works for me!

(Oh, and I'll send you a PM with my cell phone number when it gets closer to December. )

 

[jabead]

Great suggestion Barb

Well count me in Brenda

Sounds great! Have you two set a date yet for your DIS meet? 'Cause I'd like to add it to my list, of course!

 

[smile4stamps]

Alright it's official. I have booked the Jiko Wine & Cheese Pairing! We will see if we end up staying for dinner!

 

[jedijill]

Alright it's official. I have booked the Jiko Wine & Cheese Pairing! We will see if we end up staying for dinner!

Oh, I want to hear all about the Jiko Wine and Cheese pairing...this is on my bucket list and I haven't really heard any reviews.

Jill in CO

 

[smile4stamps]

Oh, I want to hear all about the Jiko Wine and Cheese pairing...this is on my bucket list and I haven't really heard any reviews.

Jill in CO

I've only seen one review from over a year ago on the Disney Food Blog. Wasn't even sure if they did them anymore! I had called the number listed with that and got a voicemail for group bookings. Took a chance and left a message. I received an e-mail back saying to call Disney Dining to book it or to e-mail them back. I called Disney Dining because I wanted to pay with Disney Gift Cards. It took FOREVER for her to locate it but she finally did and I am booked!

I will definitely be doing a review but it may take awhile for me to get to it in my reviews as it will be towards the end of the trip. I will text Barb with a little tidbit of it while I am there/shortly thereafter. If you are thinking of doing it for a soon to be trip let me know and I will try and provide additional info sooner rather than later!

 

[jedijill]

I've only seen one review from over a year ago on the Disney Food Blog. Wasn't even sure if they did them anymore! I had called the number listed with that and got a voicemail for group bookings. Took a chance and left a message. I received an e-mail back saying to call Disney Dining to book it or to e-mail them back. I called Disney Dining because I wanted to pay with Disney Gift Cards. It took FOREVER for her to locate it but she finally did and I am booked!

I will definitely be doing a review but it may take awhile for me to get to it in my reviews as it will be towards the end of the trip. I will text Barb with a little tidbit of it while I am there/shortly thereafter. If you are thinking of doing it for a soon to be trip let me know and I will try and provide additional info sooner rather than later!

No hurry! I won't make it on either of my upcoming trips but thinking about a spring trip next year (gotta take advantage of the DVC PAP!) and this would be great to do.

Jill in CO

 

[jabead]

Good Afternoon Everyone!

I am in need of your help/feedback/advice (or whatever you would like to call it ) regarding the future of this thread. It has been suggested to me by Roma (I believe) that I begin a new thread devoted to live updates. I would also include in this new thread my list of DISers (who frequent the Dining Boards) with upcoming trips to Disney World, along with links to their PDRs and/or PTRs. Initially when Roma suggested this, I was unsure as to how much longer my thread would be active with live updates. But since that time I’ve gotten positive responses from nearly everyone that I have asked, plus several volunteers. So I am now very happy to report that in addition to our two live reporters (Ginamarie and Alice BlueBonnet) who are currently there and will be until 9/29, we will have three more at Disney World (sarabear, vettegirl, and Smiling Chesire Cat) by the time that the Food & Wine Festival begins on Friday. With this awesome team of live reporters there, we should have very good coverage of the opening weekend of the festival, as well as various other current happenings around the World. Then beginning on September 30th and throughout the month of October, we will be covered by another great team of 7 reporters to do live updates for us here (basketlacey, auntfrannie, NoOrdinaryPrincess, smile4stamps, BlovesC, emmebear, and chocolateMinnie). [And of course, if there is anyone else who is going in October and is interested in either texting me (or emailing) live updates then please let me know, as my policy is the more, the merrier! ] So anyway, that brings us to the month of November. While my list of people going in November is fairly long, at this time I have only 3 (or maybe 4) who have agreed to do live updates (rachel09985, GoofySon’sMom, emmebear, and maybe happy2012). So I’m therefore looking for at least a few more volunteers to cover the month of November. And if we are able to keep this going until December and January, then I already have a few volunteers lined up (ses1230 and debrapagliasotti for December and butiflfeet and BlovesC in January), but would definitely welcome several more.


So that’s where things stand regarding the near future of live updates for this thread. My questions to those of you who follow this thread are:

1) Should I begin a new thread or just continue on with this one?

2) If you believe a new thread should be started, then should that be done now (within the next few days) or wait awhile longer?


I will go with whatever the consensus is, so please be sure to voice your opinion.


Also, I would like to thank everyone here for their participation in this thread. Whether you have already done, are currently doing, or will soon be doing live updates, please know how much I appreciate your efforts. It truly is fun for me, never knowing what Disney food/beverage or even DIS people are going to pop up on my phone next.

And of course, I would also like to thank those of you who have provided positive feedback and discussion. I really love what this thread has evolved into and with your continued help, I hope to keep it (or a new one in its place) going for as long as possible.


P.S. Our current live reporters are at AK and DHS today (parks without WIFI) so will probably not receive their updates until later this evening.

 

[GoofySon'sMom]

Good Afternoon Everyone!

So that’s where things stand regarding the near future of live updates for this thread. My questions to those of you who follow this thread are:

1) Should I begin a new thread or just continue on with this one?

2) If you believe a new thread should be started, then should that be done now (within the next few days) or wait awhile longer?

I am leaning towards a new thread devoted solely to live reports, maybe starting when F&W starts? Kind of a "new" episode of Disney dining so to speak. And if there are gaps, so be it. We can always resurrect the thread if it falls down a bit.

Curious to see what everyone else thinks ....