Figment's Summer of Heroes and Return of Old Favorites Trip, August 2017, Continued...
Blue Bayou Fantasmic Dining Package
Figment was excited to see the new Fantasmic so he opted to do the Blue Bayou Dining Package. It was also one of the last weekends for the Main Street Electric Parade, so he opted to do the Premium Blue Bayou Dining Package which included viewing for both MSEP and F!. Figment checked in a little before his reservation time and requested a water side table. The CM said it would be about a 30 minute wait. We were seated right by the water, near the middle of the railing area. It was a great table!
The Fantasmic! dining package includes a starter, entree, and dessert from a special menu. I think the only different item was the Sorcerer Mickey dessert (the Spiced Shrimp starter was included without the upcharge). The Premium Package upgrade included a FP for the reserved MSEP viewing area, a souvenier light-up lanyard and a Premium Specialty Beverage (Soda or Mint Julep).
Mint Julep - The mint julep at the Blue Bayou is the same as elsewhere in NOS. This one tasted like the one at Cafe Orleans...sweet, hint of mint, yummy!
Bread Service - the meal starts with bread service, which includes rolls and corn bread.
Louisana Spiced Shrimp - Spiced Shrimp in a Rich, Buttery Sauce with Louisiana Popcorn Rice. The shrimp had a slight bite to the sauce, but overall really good flavor. The rice was kind of bland, but the corn bread medallion was good.
Gumbo - A Rich Flavorful Stew with Chicken, Andouille Sausage and Tasso Ham Served with Louisiana Popcorn Rice. The Blue Bayou gumbo is very good. It has a nice, deep, rich flavor and lots of chicken. It's mild (no bite).
Blue Bayou Bouillabaisse - Sustainable Fish Filet, Mussels, Clams, Shrimp, and Spiced Sausage in a Saffron-infused Broth and served with Herbed Bread. The bouillabaisse was really good; it had a bite, but was still very tasty. Lots of seafood and the bread was great for soaking up the sauce.
Bone-In Rib-Eye - Blue Bayou House-made Rub, Seasonal Vegetables, and White Cheddar-Smoked Gouda Mac and Cheese. The ribeye had good flavor, but wasn't quite as tender as the one at WCT.
Surf & Turf - Petite Lobster Tail and Broiled Filet Mignon served with Blue Bayou Au Gratin Potatoes, Seasonal Vegetables, and Béarnaise Sauce. The petite lobster tail was very tender and had good flavor. The filet mignon was tender and good. The au gratin potatoes were really peppery (too peppery, it masked all other flavors), but the veggies were good.
Sorcerer Mickey - Mile Chocolate Pound Cake with Milk Chocolate Mousse and Banana Foster Sauce with Chocolate Glaze. From a visual perspective, this was probably the biggest disappointment of the evening. The Sorcerer Mickey desserts were missing their signature Sorcerer Hat because they'd melted in the delivery truck. The dessert was still tasty (the red dot was a berry sauce, the yellow dot was mango, and the blue was vanilla), but it didn't look as pretty as in the picture. I know it's not the server's fault, but she did have a "whatever - it doesn't matter" kind of attitude that a little disappointing when we asked about the hat (we thought maybe they'd forgotten to add them).
At the end of the meal, the server brought the cushions, light-up lanyards for MSEP, and the FPs (for the first MSEP and the second F!).
Overall, the dinner at the Blue Bayou was generally good. The food was pretty tasty (although, Figment does think our last visit - for the MHP Dining Package last September - was better), but the service was a little lacking. Our server was hard to find and the busers had a tendancy to want to clear the plates before we were finished.
After dinner we headed over to the MSEP viewing area in Town Square (facing the train station). The FP said to return at 8:30 pm, but when we got there (around 8:15 pm), there were already guests in the area. All of the curb spots were taken, so we ended up sitting on the ground in the "second" row. Overall, the view was pretty good and the area wasn't all that packed (there was plenty of room to move around if you wanted).
After the parade ended (around 9:20 pm), we decided to head over to the F! viewing area rather than watch fireworks from Main Street. The F! FP said to return anytime between 10:00 pm and 10:30 pm (for the 10:45 pm showing). We caught a glimpse of fireworks from the Rivers of America area. It seems like you really need to be the far side of the river to have the "best" view (i.e., mist screens and fireworks at the same time). Probably somewhere about even with French Market/Cafe Orleans might be the best bet. We glanced over near Stage Door Cafe and you had to choose either the mist screens or the fireworks.
They were allowing guests to line up near Harbor Galley prior to 10:00 pm. It was a bit confusing because there were two lines; one was for dining packages (all) and the other was for standby. The standby guests were let into their area first, which looked to be around the raft docks. It was to the left of the dining package area and didn't seem to be the best of views.
The dining package viewing area was divided by package (at least kind of). When we got to the front of the line, the CM looked at our FP and said to go to the next CM (down the way). The sections were only divided by tape on the ground, which was kind of hard to see. Everyone was sitting on the ground (all dining package areas). The view for the Blue Bayou dining area was near the center and offered a pretty good view of the whole show. The wind wasn't blowing towards us, so we didn't get wet! I have to admit, the parade cushions made it much more comfortable to sit on the ground! I saw one stroller in the dining package area (I couldn't tell if the child was sitting in it or not), but I did not see any ECVs or wheelchairs (that doesn't mean they weren't there, I just didn't see them).
Overall, I really liked being able to sit (albeit on the ground) and watch the show. I'd never had a parade cushion before and I was surprised at how comfy they were. They really did make sitting on the ground easier!
I have mixed feelings about the new Pirates sequence; I like the use of the Columbia, but I wasn't a big fan of the new sequence. I miss the use of the cannon to start the sequence and Elizabeth Swan felt like she's just stuck in there because they needed a damsel in distress. (Also, her costume is pretty atrocious - I don't recall her ever wearing a pink baby doll type outfit in any of the movies.)
Overall, the show itself was good...I liked elements of the new show and I miss elements of the old show.