Two first timers take on free dining...was it a success? 13-27 Sept 2011- Complete...

[librarygeek]

Agree that I'm surprised they weren't more accommodating at AP, especially as a signature and after you had so many good experiences elsewhere! But the salmon looks delicious, I love a good salmon dish.

And the CP breakfast looks great! I did the dinner there once and it was a lot of fun, I love meeting the Pooh characters

Looking forward to your final thoughts!

 

[TanzUnited99]

I'm so glad you enjoyed CP! It's my favorite breakfast at Disney. I didn't like the chocolate Mickey waffles either....you'd think it's a no brainer that they'd be good, but something just doesn't work.

I am as well and am so happy that I saved the best breakfast for our second to last day! I know...when I saw them I got so excited but that excitement sure faded once I got to taste them. The chocolate waffles sure need some work

Oh me oh my! Everything looks so delicous! Both restaurants have been on my wish list for a while now, so this just re-affirms that. And that icecream cookie sandwhich just looks divine.

For being a Signature restaurant I'm really surprised the chef didn't come out, did the server even ask? I'm disappointed by that, especially since you had been treated so well by other chefs.

Oh, it sure was delicious...I loved all the food and can't believe the amount we put away! I would highly recommend CP. I'm afraid although I enjoyed AP it wasn't my favourite Signature restaurant but please don't let that put you off as there are plenty of positive reviews of this place.

I was surprised as well and if I'm honest I don't think she asked but hey it was our last night in Disney and I wasn't going to let anything spoil it! We sure were treated really well though out our stay

Agree that I'm surprised they weren't more accommodating at AP, especially as a signature and after you had so many good experiences elsewhere! But the salmon looks delicious, I love a good salmon dish.

And the CP breakfast looks great! I did the dinner there once and it was a lot of fun, I love meeting the Pooh characters

Looking forward to your final thoughts!

Yeah, I have to say I was a bit disappointed especially after our meal at the beginning of this trip at California Grill which was amazing! Oh, I was so happy to have chosen the salmon dish...it was great.

I haven't heard many great reviews of the dinner at CP so am glad to read you really enjoyed it. Meeting the Pooh characters makes the experience even better.

Coming up soon!

 

[vettegirl]

Enjoying the reviews

 

[dizneeat]

Glad to hear you enjoyed CP! I am not a huge fan of the chocolate waffles myself, mine tasted a bit burned.

Sorry to hear that your service wasn't up to par at AP, but at least the food was nice. Good to hear!

 

[rndmr2]

Great review of Crystal palace. This is on my list of Restaurants to get to someday, I love Pooh and Tigger!

If I ever decide to spent the $$ or credits on a signature dinner, AP would probably be the one I try. That salmon did look pretty good.

That ice cream sandwich looked yummy! Can I ask, were the cookies soft or crispy?

 

[emma212010]

I love CP breakfasts!!! They are so delicious! I'm glad you liked AP too, but I wished they were more accommodating though!

 

[KatMark]

I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOO happy that you liked Crystal Palace. It is the one place that I must go to every trip as I love the puffed french toast (I could eat just that...and I've often had three or four pieces at breakfast).

We've never been to Artist Point (actually we've never done a Signature except for Brown Derby which we did not like at all); I'm sorry they could not be more accomodating to you.

 

[TanzUnited99]

Enjoying the reviews

Thanks!

Glad to hear you enjoyed CP! I am not a huge fan of the chocolate waffles myself, mine tasted a bit burned.

Sorry to hear that your service wasn't up to par at AP, but at least the food was nice. Good to hear!

Thanks! Yeah, I'm not a huge fan myself but ugh on getting burnt chocolate waffles. They sound horrible.

The food more than made up for the service at AP

Great review of Crystal palace. This is on my list of Restaurants to get to someday, I love Pooh and Tigger!

If I ever decide to spent the $$ or credits on a signature dinner, AP would probably be the one I try. That salmon did look pretty good.

That ice cream sandwich looked yummy! Can I ask, were the cookies soft or crispy?

Thanks! I hope you get to eat at CP one day as it is a great meal and Pooh and Tigger are just the icing on the cake!

AP was good but we enjoyed our meal at Cali Grill even better...the food, service and overall experience was just that little bit more enjoyable. That salmon was amazing though.

Of course you can ask! Some parts of the cookies were soft and gooey however most parts were crunchy. We loved this snack.

I love CP breakfasts!!! They are so delicious! I'm glad you liked AP too, but I wished they were more accommodating though!

CP breakfast sure was the best!!! I wish AP were more accommodating as well especially as it was our last sit down meal.

I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOO happy that you liked Crystal Palace. It is the one place that I must go to every trip as I love the puffed french toast (I could eat just that...and I've often had three or four pieces at breakfast).

We've never been to Artist Point (actually we've never done a Signature except for Brown Derby which we did not like at all); I'm sorry they could not be more accomodating to you.

Lol I thought you would be very happy that we liked CP!! I can see why you love the puffed french toast!

I'm sorry as well but one out of two great signature meals isn't bad...we had a great time at California Grill. I'm sorry to read you did not enjoy Brown Derby when you tried it.

 

[TanzUnited99]

Okay so I have reached the final day and I did not have breakfast as had to go to Epcot for a DIS meet - will reveal all over in the TR.

We did have 2 CS credits left and whilst I went to Epcot Zaheer headed to DTD and got us some yummy sandwiches from EoS. We ate these at the airport and think we had the desserts on the plane. Sorry I have no pics of this food.

So my favourites were:

Most favourite Signature restaurant: California Grill without a doubt. I am so happy this was our first sit down meal as we loved it. The food, service and atmosphere was excellent!!
Least favourite Signature restaurant: None. Although the service was not great at AP the food was lovely and I enjoyed it.

Most favourite restaurant: Boma. We loved the variety of food and the way we were treated. Sanaa was nice as well but Boma was just that bit better.
Least favourite restaurant: 50s PTC. The food was okay but we WANTED some antics!!

Most favourite entree: A tie between the salmon at Artist Point and the cod at Akershus.
Least favourite entree: The chicken at 50s PTC.

Most favourite TS dessert: Valrhona chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream...my mouth still waters thinking about this dish!
Least favourite TS dessert: None - you can tell I have a sweet tooth!

Most favourite CS place: WPE hands down...great value for money! CHH is a close second.
Least favourite CS place: Tangierine Cafe - I did not enjoy this place at all though am sure Zaheer would disagree.

Most favourite CS dessert: Easy - Strawberry Shortcake at Sunshine Seasons...simply amazing!!!
Least favourite CS dessert: Churros from Mexico. I might give them another try but didn't care for them at all.

Finally I have to give a special mention to Mickey waffles with syrup. I could happily eat these for breakfast every day!!

Overall we loved having the dining plan and having everything paid for. It sure was great knowing we could get a snack etc and not have to worry about carrying cash for it. The only issue was that in some cases we would have liked to have had an appetiser and maybe would have skipped dessert but am pretty sure this issue has been raised and covered on these boards in detail. I wish I had gone to Disney when appetisers were included in the plan.

Would I get the dining plan again? Without question yes I would.

Thank you everyone for reading and sharing your opinions on Disney food. I have enjoyed writing this DR and hope to return to the World in 2013 (hopefully next year will fly by!) to taste some more great food.

Tanz

 

[Tracerr00]

I loved your reviews! Sad that they have come to an end but happy that you had such a great trip to WDW It's so fun to get to know people through their reviews!

 

[librarygeek]

Great recap! I would love to try either Boma or Sanaa on my next trip!

Also, I agree about the dining plan. I love the convenience of it, but it didn't always work for us. We just planned our next trip (for April 2013!), and we're staying at an off-property timeshare so no option to do the dining plan. So at least I'll get to compare that to this time and see what truly works better for us!

 

[Linda67]

Thanks so much for your wonderful reviews; you really have done a fantastic job

Now go and book another trip so you can do this all again

 

[dizneeat]

Thanks so much for your reviews! I really enjoyed reading them ......... it was fun coming along for your vacation!

 

[rndmr2]

So sad to see this review come to an end, it was a great one! Here's hoping the next year goes by fast so you can go again!!

 

[cbg1027]

I totally agree with you on the favorite CS place! I got two meals there on my last trip (ate there for dinner and took pizzas on the drive home right after, so I got to have WPE the next day at home!)

Thanks for sharing Tanz! It's been great reliving your Disney food with you!

 

[emma212010]

Your reviews were great!! They've inspired me to try some new things! Too bad it's over, but at least your TR is still going!!

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

Thanks for the great reviews!

Sorry that Artist Point didn't deliver a truly wonderful experience. It seems like the most recent AP reviews haven't been great, which makes me sad, as it's been wonderful every time we've been there over the past two years (our last disappointing meal there was February 2009). On the other hand, I'm glad California Grill was such a hit for you even though our most recent meal wasn't incredible. I looked at the autumn menu and it looks fabulous, so I definitely want to return to CG now after reading about your wonderful experience.

 

[Pinkocto]

Thanks so much for such a detailed TR! You showed food that I didn't even know were at Disney. I will definitely be trying new things thanks to you

 

[KatMark]

Great recap, Tanz. Thanks so much for doing ther reviews. I enjoyed reading someone with new restaurants that we've not tried, etc., and learning so much. You did an awesome job.

 

[TanzUnited99]

I loved your reviews! Sad that they have come to an end but happy that you had such a great trip to WDW It's so fun to get to know people through their reviews!

Thank you! It's been great to have you reading along and I am also sad that the reviews have come to an end. It definitely is fun getting to know people on these boards

Great recap! I would love to try either Boma or Sanaa on my next trip!

Also, I agree about the dining plan. I love the convenience of it, but it didn't always work for us. We just planned our next trip (for April 2013!), and we're staying at an off-property timeshare so no option to do the dining plan. So at least I'll get to compare that to this time and see what truly works better for us!

Thanks and thank you for reading along I really hope you get to try Boma or Sanaa as they are great restaurants!

Yes, the dining plan is handy to have but it's sometimes better not to have it as well. I think it depends on the situation. Yay on planning a trip for 2013!! I'm planning on returning that year as well. It'll be with my sister so the month depends on when she finishes her exams. I look forward to reading all about your trip without the dining plan as well as the rest of your current DR!

Thanks so much for your wonderful reviews; you really have done a fantastic job

Now go and book another trip so you can do this all again

Thank you for reading along Linda! I'm glad I was able to deliver with my first DR!

I will be booking another trip for 2013...unfortunately there is nothing planned for next year

Thanks so much for your reviews! I really enjoyed reading them ......... it was fun coming along for your vacation!

Thanks for reading along Karin! I'm happy to have been able to taken you along on our vacation!

So sad to see this review come to an end, it was a great one! Here's hoping the next year goes by fast so you can go again!!

Thank you for reading along! I'm with you on next year passing us by quickly so 2013 is here!!!