~If you are what you eat, then I only want to eat the good stuff~ COMPLETE

[TinkerBelle_325]

Have a wonderful trip! I've really enjoyed your countdown reviews, especially your V&A review. We've been there once and are really looking forward to going on our next trip.

Thanks for reading V&A was heaven again this trip. Can't wait to write my review.

Signing on!

Our family is going for our first F&W Festival this year, too... the food looks scrumptious. Cannot wait for your reports!!

The F&W Festival was so much fun this year. Sadly, we missed several booths as my last planned F&W day ended up being torrential rain

I can't wait for you to post some of the new offerings from the kiosks!

The new offerings were great in general! I have a few more booths left to post.

Thanks for the V&A review! I'm dining there for the second time on 10/16 and cannot wait! It is absolutely the best meal I've ever had.

Have a great trip! I'm right behind you.

Jill in CO

Yay to V&A. I swear, once you dine there the 1st time you are hooked. Enjoy your meal on the 16th.

So, I missed the pre-party fun, but glad I'm in time for the event itself!

Sorry that the LIVE reviews were a bit of a non-event I assure you, there are plenty of reviews to come.

I'm signing on!! Just finished all your Pre trip stuff love your rating system!! And cant wait to read all the reviews !! I am leaving in a few weeks and am already getting Disney brain!!

Ah Disney brain. For me, it hits about a month out and my productivity slides further and further each day until my trip!

It all looks amazing!

Thanks! It was!

Some of those things don't look anything like I envisioned them. Particularly the Coq au Vin. I hope they get their act together by the end of the month. I would like to try that one. I've heard from others it was pretty good.

Belle_373 and her DH goodvibes woohoo, they are married now!) tried the Coq au Vin a few days after us and said it was fantastic! Guess we got a batch that had been sitting a bit too long.

Thank you so much for posting the reviews and pics from the F & W festival. I can wait to read more!

You're welcome. Thanks for reading.

Everything looks so delicious! I hope we can make it to Food and Wine next year.

It is definitely an event worth scheduling a trip around. This was our 5th festival and we are planning on returning in 2012 if we can.

Looking so far, love all the F & W reviews cant wait to be there!!

Thanks!

YAY to all the F&W pics! Going for the first time next month and I'm so excited! Thanks for the great pics and reviews

Oh you'll love it!

Loving your reviews so far! Can't wait to hear about your experience at California Grill.

CG was great the 1st time, and while the food was great the 2nd time, the service was subpar

I'll try to get some more reviews up soon!

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

The Best Laid Plans...​

When you are dealing with a Disney Fairytale Wedding, events involving nearly 20 people, an incredibly indecisive DDad, unpredictable weather towards the end of the week and the fact that I honestly do like to deviate from my plan sometimes (Shhh...don't tell DDad...) it results in a much different outcome than what you originally predict!

Here is a run down of our changes, outlined in red against my original Dining Itinerary & Plan.

Itinerary & Dining Reservations

Saturday, October 1st
Breakfast: Airport
Lunch: Kona Cafe (This didn't happen as our flight was delayed by an hour (I'll tell that story on my trip report )
Wedding Event: Garden View Tea (Meg only)
Dinner: Via Napoli (This didn't happen either lol) & Food & Wine Festival Booths (this did!) and we added Kona Island Sushi Take-out!

Sunday, October 2nd
Breakfast: King Kamehameha Club
Lunch: Liberty Tree Tavern
Dinner: Kona Island Sushi (Mom & Dad) (Again, no dice....instead they decided on..) The Wave
Wedding Event: Ohana (Meg only)

Monday, October 3rd
Breakfast: King Kamehameha Club (Mom & Dad)
Wedding Event: Bridal Party Room Service Breakfast @ Grand Floridian (Meg only)
Wedding Reception: Brunch at The Attic at Disney's Boardwalk Resort
Lunch: ESPN Club (Mom & Dad)
Dinner: Jiko

Tuesday, October 4th
Breakfast: King Kamehameha Club
Lunch: Les Chefs de France & Food & Wine Festival Booths
Dinner: California Grill

Wednesday, October 5th
Breakfast: King Kamehameha Club
Lunch: Flame Tree BBQ
Dinner: La Hacienda de San Angel (this didn't happen...we changed it to....) Via Napoli & Food & Wine Festival Booths

Thursday, October 6th
Breakfast: King Kamehameha Club
Lunch: Via Napoli & Food & Wine Festival Booths (again, nope to this, we moved our Cabana day and had...) Captain Cook's
Dinner: California Grill

Friday, October 7th
Breakfast: King Kamehameha Club
Lunch: Kona Cafe in our Private Cabana at the Polynesian (man, we really did change our plans a lot...this became) Food & Wine Festival Booths
Dinner: Victoria & Albert's

Saturday, October 8th
Breakfast: King Kamehameha Club
Lunch: Liberty Tree Tavern (negative....yet again...I've seriously lost count of the changes. We ended up at...) Red Lobster
Dinner: Les Chefs de France & Food & Wine Festival Booths (You guessed it, nope! It was pouring rain and we didn't want to brave it in ponchos so we hit...) Romano's Macaroni Grill

Sunday, October 9th
Breakfast: King Kamehameha Club AND SWEET SUNDAYS w/ BUDDY VALASTRO!!
Lunch: Food & Wine Festival Booths (not enough time for this!)
Dinner: Airport...ah glamorous Burger King

 

[MickeyNicki]

Your dad's name wouldn't happen to be TODD by any chance would it?

 

[vettegirl]

Wow, how could you give up dinner at LTT for Red Lobster, that place is horrible. Unless you maybe had a better experience than I at a Florida location.

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

Saturday, October 1st​

As we arrived later than expected due to a 1 hour flight delay in Buffalo we weren't able to make it to our Kona Cafe lunch.

(As an aside: the reason given was "crew rest" Yes, I understand that the FAA won't permit flight attendants to fly unless they have accumulated a certain number of "resting" hours. But wh would the gate agent simply tell us "crew rest" without giving the FAA background?? I bet you anything those flight attendants got a good number of "So, feeling well rested?" from irritated flyers )

We arrived at the Polynesian around 11:30 and we proceeded right to the Hawaii longhouse. By noon or so we were relaxing in the lounge. As I was set to meet Belle_373 (Jaclyn) at her room at the Grand Floridian in less than an hour, we simply nibbled on some trail mix at the lounge.

As you can see, DMom & DDad grabbed Longboard Lagers as well.

Garden View Tea (Bridal Tea w/ Jaclyn)​

My first real "meal" at WDW this trip was the Garden View Tea with Jaclyn, her mother, future mother-in-law, future sister-in-law and future grandmother-in-law!

I didn't take any pictures at that particular tea, but DMom and I enjoyed tea later in the trip. So, if you can use your imagination, just pretend these photos are from Oct 1st

Place Setting & Menu

Sparkling Wine with Strawberry

There is a bit of a funny story to tell here. Melissa (Jaclyn's future sister-in-law) forgot her ID back at her room. She didn't realize there would be alcohol involved at the tea. Now, you have to understand that in Canada the legal drinking age is 19 (18 in Quebec!) so at 25 and 26 we aren't exactly used to being IDed anymore.

Well, our server asked for her ID, she explained she had forgotten it and the server was adamant. We were a bit frustrated as we were all dressed and none of us look under 21. Anyways, Melissa ordered "sparkling cider" and figured she would just have to deal with it. When the drinks arrived, Bev (Jaclyn's future mother-in-law) switched glasses with Melissa. At the end of the tea, Melissa deemed the cider "magical"!

Tea Sandwiches

From left to right, my plate had
- Cucumber, Cream Cheese & Watercress
- Curry Chicken Salad
- Shrimp Salad
- Pear and Gorgonzola
- and another Cucumber, Cream Cheese & Watercress

The last sandwich should have been Egg Salad, but I'm not a big fan, so I substituted. I also requested an extra onion tartlet in place of the pate.

White Raisin Scone, Jam, Devonshire Cream and Strawberry Jam Tart

This course has a cute story as well. Jaclyn, myself and Patti (Jaclyn's mom) detest raisins. We were hoping they had plain scones available as they sometimes do. Sadly, they did not. So, picture three grown women picking through their scones in an attempt to rid them of any raisins yet still enjoy the scone at the same time (and try to look proper and lady-like...it is a tea afterall!)

Once the raisins were removed the scone was delicious. The tart was great as well, even better if you spread a bit of the cream on it!

Chocolate Eclair filled with Chocolate Mousse and a Pina Colada Pastry Swan

This is the only *real* picture I have from the Oct 1st tea. Everyone though the pastries were so adorable that they all started snapping pictures.

Both pastries were delicious and a wonderful end to the tea.

In case anyone was wondering, the actual tea I ordered (which is not pictures) was Vanilla Roiboos. It is smooth, sweet and spicy. I love it!

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

Your dad's name wouldn't happen to be TODD by any chance would it?

No but they are freakishly similar aren't they?

Wow, how could you give up dinner at LTT for Red Lobster, that place is horrible. Unless you maybe had a better experience than I at a Florida location.

LOL. It was raining cats and dogs! We originally planned to hit Cracker Barrel but the wait was 30 minutes. So the next thing we saw was Red Lobster. We've had great experiences at Red Lobster in Florida. But I agree with you otherwise, all the Red Lobster locations we've been to in Canada are terrible!

 

[MickeyNicki]

Love the tea pics...you have me even more excited for our afternoon tea lunch this month. We have not done it since 08 and I cannot wait!

 

[vettegirl]

I adore the pictures of tea room. One of these days I need to have lunch there.

 

[bowbat]

Reading this thread is absolute TORTURE. I'm sitting here drooling, and it isn't pretty.

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

Love the tea pics...you have me even more excited for our afternoon tea lunch this month. We have not done it since 08 and I cannot wait!

DMom & I love the tea and try to make a point to attend every other trip. It is so relaxing!

I adore the pictures of tea room. One of these days I need to have lunch there.

You should! The food is very tasty and the atmosphere is so calm.

Reading this thread is absolute TORTURE. I'm sitting here drooling, and it isn't pretty.

LOL I've gotta say, I think you win the prize for the best comment on this thread so far! Sorry for the torture

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

Saturday, October 1st

Kona Island Sushi Take Out​

We spent the first part of Saturday night at the Food & Wine festival. The items we sampled are included in my previous F&W post. As it was Saturday of the opening weekend it was a zoo! The crowds were a bit more than we could handle so we decided to forego our plans of eating dinner at Via Napoli and watching Illuminations.

Instead, we went back to the Polynesian, ordered Kona Island Sushi to go and took it to our room in Hawaii. As we were fortunate enough to have a Theme Park View and that night was the 40th anniversary of the Magic Kingdom we thought that sushi and fireworks from our balcony was a great alternative!

Volcano Roll

This is my favorite roll from Kona Island. I love that it is a non-traditional variation on a spicy tuna roll. The tuna itself isn't spiced, but nice fresh strips of tuna, accented by sweet and tart pickled vegetables. Then the spicy mayo, the creamy seafood salad and the tempura crunch add texture and heat. I ate the majority of this.

Cali Luau Roll & Shrimp Tempura Roll

These are quite tasty as well. I like the substitution of pineapple for cucumber in the Cali roll. It still retains the freshness and crunch but adds an unexpected tart sweetness.

The shrimp tempura roll is good, but in my opinion it lacks in comparison to the California Grill's. The shrimp are a bit bigger and a bit tougher and the sauce is good, but not as addictive.

Sweet Hawaiian Bread and Macadamia Butter

We had to get an order of this bread as well. It is simply heavenly! We can't get Hawaiian bread at home, and that butter is drool worthy.

It was so nice to be able to enjoy this meal from the comfort of our room. This is definitely something we will repeat!

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

Sunday, October 2nd​

King Kamehameha Club - Breakfast​

DMom and I woke up early, as it is a tradition of ours to watch the sunrise from our Theme Park View balcony.

It was beautiful as always:

Then we wandered down to the King Kamehameha Club to grab some breakfast. The offerings were the same as last year.

Beverages (Apple Juice & Chocolate Milk were available on request)

Cereal (Fruit Loops, Rice Crispies, Corn Flakes and Raisin Bran)

Pastries (Bagels & Croissants, not pictured: Cinnamon Rolls, Mini Muffins in bran, blueberry and chocolate chip) There was also Oatmeal with brown sugar, nuts & dried fruit.

Overall, we liked the breakfast offerings. Typically we just grab a quick pastry on the way to the parks, so the CL breakfasts are perfect for our family.

Magic Kingdom Snacks & Fall Decor!​

We spent our 1st morning at the Magic Kingdom. We arrived at the entrance at about 8:45 and while it seemed like there were a lot of people, once we got into the park the crowds thinned significantly.

After tackling Splash Mountain (walk on) and Big Thunder Mountain (DDad and I got the entire back half of a train to ourselves!) we decided to grab a few snacks and enjoy the atmosphere of Liberty Square.

Mickey Waffle with Powdered Sugar and Maple Syrup, Bottle of Water

This is my favorite MK morning snack! Sleepy Hollow makes them to order so they are piping hot, perfectly crispy on the outside and fluffy and soft inside. Sadly, I could only eat about half as they are HUGE! They are also very nostalgic for me as it is the first item I remember eating at WDW

Box of Popcorn, Bottle of Water

DMom & DDad shared this (and I might have stolen a little bit). We love Mk popcorn and think it tastes better than popcorn purchased at any other park, even though we know it is technically the same. This was hot and salty and really hit the spot.

We sat at the little market behind Columbia Harbour House and I fell in love with the fall decor this year!

Display at Sleepy Hollow

Looking towards Frontierland

Pumpkins!

Fall arrangements

Close up

Liberty Tree Tavern - 1 & 1/2 lunches!​

Why 1 & 1/2 lunches you might ask? Well, I was spending the morning at MK with DMom & DDad, but I was meeting Jaclyn & her other bridesmaid, Priscilla, at Liberty Tree for lunch at 12 or so. DMom & DDad had an 11:30 lunch reservation, so I joined them to nibble of an appetizer and then had had lunch itself with Jaclyn & Priscilla.

Tavern Fried Cheese

This is what I nibbled on during DMom & DDad's lunch. I know it is JUST fried cheese, but it is darn good fried cheese! I can't decide if I like the mozzarella sticks or the bits of cheddar better!

Colony Salad

DMom loves this salad but can't understand why they wouldn't offer it with turkey instead of chicken as it would pair so well with the dried cranberries. Regardless, she thoroughly enjoyed this.

Pilgrim's Feast

DDad ordered this, as did Jaclyn (actually, Jaclyn & I agreed that she would order the turkey and I would order the pot roast, then we would switch halfway through. Best of both worlds! (Ugh...I hate that I think of Hannah Montana whenever I say that now...)

As always, it was delicious! Tender and juicy turkey, yummy corn bread stuffing, garlicy green beans and super creamy mashed potatoes.

New England Pot Roast

Priscilla and I both ordered this (though mine was shared with Jaclyn as mentioned above). This was a recent discovery and I love it. I think I actually like it better than the pilgrim's feast. It is a bit heavy for a hot Florida day, but so comforting that it is totally worth it!

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

Sunday, October 2nd continued...​

'Ohana - Wedding Welcome Dinner​

Sadly, I have no pictures from this night! But pretty much everyone knows what the food at 'Ohana looks like so please use your imaginations with me

We had a party of 17 and were seated at one of the large tables in the centre of the room. Thankfully, our "cousins" didn't try to super speed us through the meal and we were able to enjoy ourselves.

The food was all very good, with my favorites being the potstickers, wings, chicken and noodles. We were all given leis and when the singer came out to start the evening entertainment, Jaclyn & her fiancee Chris were called up to celebrate "love, engagements, weddings and anniversaries"

The cutest part of all of this is that they were expected to slow dance! Well, Jaclyn & Chris have never danced together! The experience was adorable and awkward all at once and you can bet that everyone was taking pictures and video

As always, the best part of the meal was dessert. The bread pudding here is simply out of this world and well worth dining at 'Ohana once every few years.

Monday, October 3rd​

This was Jaclyn's wedding day!! And it was an amazing whirlwind of fun.

Again, sadly I have very few pictures. But I can tell you that I was awake at 4 a.m. (The things we do for our best friends ) and at Jaclyn's room at the Grand Floridian by 5:15 a.m.

Did I mention that Jaclyn and I could literally see each others rooms across the lagoon? She was in Big Pine Key and I was in Hawaii and we could stand on the balconies and wave. So magical!

Unfortunately, the hair & makeup team ended up sending a late night email that they would arrive at 6 a.m. instead of 5:30 a.m. Oh well....room service anyone??

Grand Floridian Room Service​

I've got to admit, in the hustle and bustle of getting ready, I barely remember what any of us ate

I'm pretty sure I got a continental breakfast and ended up eating a croissant, a danish and some juice. I think Jaclyn and her other bridesmaid Priscilla had omelets of some kind. And Jaclyn's mom...had a fruit cup and a biscuit? Regardless, what I did have was very good!

Brunch Reception at The Attic, Boardwalk Resort​

I am going to hold off on the full review of Jaclyn's reception until I get the green light from her. But I will tell you that everything was delicious!!

I promise there will be pictures in the next post! Jiko ~ coming right up.

 

[habg1]

Thank you for the pic of the Pot Roast @ Liberty Tree. What I wouldn't give for a bowl of that right now. Yum.

 

[Belle_373]

You have the green light for the attic brunch review!

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

Monday, October 3rd​

Brunch Reception at The Attic, Disney's Boardwalk Resort​

My friend Jaclyn's (Belle_373) reception was held at The Attic at the Boardwalk and let me tell you, the space is absolutely beautiful! Pictures can't fully convey how light and airy and comfortable the venue is.

For those that don't know, The Attic is located above Jellyrolls and was originally intended as a DVC Members Lounge like Top of the World at Bay Lake Tower. However, it is located quite a ways from the lobby. Who am I kidding? It is literally a 5 to 7 minute walk to get there but when you arrive, it is so worth it! When the resort found that members weren't using the space, they gave it to Disney Conventions and Disney Fairytale Weddings to use as an event venue.

Beautiful & Simple Centerpieces

Sweetheart Table

Beverage Station with Coffee, Tea, and Assorted Juices

Cake Table (with patio and buffet area in background)

Tables

Pastries

Patio (buffet area to the left)

View of Beach Club

View of Boardwalk

Sitting Area

Wedding Cake!

Complete with hidden Mickey!

Omelet Station (Cheese Soup Station too! In that silver pot...yum!)

Full Buffet

Cheesy Hashbrown Potatoes and Mixed Vegetables

Pasta with Cream Sauce and Breakfast Sausage

Orange Chicken, Bacon and Mickey Waffles!

As you can see, Jaclyn went all out and provided her guests with quite an elaborate brunch!

I tried a little bit of everything (except the omelet station as I'm not a huge fan of eggs and the mixed vegetables...again, not a huge fan).

The Cheesy Hash browns were delicious! Creamy, cheesy and the top was nice and crunchy. The breakfast sausage was nice, crispy on the outside and well seasoned. The bacon was surprising! Disney bacon is usually very floppy but this was thicker cut and crispy! The orange chicken wasn't quite what I was expecting. I had pictured it breaded, but it was very good. The sauce was tangy and made it blend well with the breakfast items. The pasta with cream sauce was surprisingly light and impressively fresh.

My favorite items: Mickey Waffles and Cheese Soup! Not together

The Mickey Waffles were crisp and fluffy and had maple syrup, fruit preserves and whipped cream as toppings. These were mainly for Chris, as Jaclyn knows they are one of his favorite things at Disney

The Cheese Soup was a special request. I believe the specific request was for Le Cellier's Cheese Soup. While this wasn't quite Le Celliers, it was awesome! It didn't have chunks of bacon, but was still salty, rich and smokey. They even had pretzel bread to go with it! Which, by the way, was better than Le Cellier's pretzel bread!

The Cake was adorable and so yummy. It was chocolate cake with buttercream frosting (Jaclyn's favorite) and was so rich that I was barely able to eat half a slice after all the yummy brunch items.

The reception was fantastic and so much fun. Jaclyn, I was honoured to stand up for you as you started your Happily Ever After. Thank you again for including me in your day

 

[Tracerr00]

Oh my goodness, what a fantastic looking brunch! The food looks amazing and it sounds like a good time was had by all. I get the feeling that you would be fun to travel with! I also haven't seen many reviews of the tea and now I think I'd really enjoy this. I love your reviews, they are so fun to read. I can't wait to read more! And by the way, I'm now humming the Hannah Montana song.

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

I AM SO SORRY!!​

I have been the worst DIS-reviewer ever! I just left you all hanging here with no explanation

Well...I AM BACK!!

I have been living under a rock since November as I have been studying for my GMAT (Graduate Management Admissions Test).

I am so pleased to say that I took the exam on Feb 11th and I aced it! It was a long journey, where I had practically no social life but it is over!

Now, I just have to finish up my MBA (Master's of Business Administration) applications and cross my fingers.

I'll post more reviews this weekend! AND I have another trip coming up in just over 2 months!!

 

[GoBirds]

Welcome back. Can't wait to read more .. especially F&W posts and, of course, Victoria & Albert's. Good luck with the MBA!

 

[PrincessBetsy]

Welcome back! I have to confess that I just got caught up... Gosh darn college and its ability to take up all of my free time.

Well anyway, excellent reviews, as always! My next trip is in May with my family and best friend and I would love to go to the GF for tea. It looks like so much fun and quite delicious. And the Attic looks absolutely beautiful, as does the wedding cake. I'm so glad that Jaclyn had such a wonderful wedding - Congrats to her!