"We're basically here for the food..." A September 2016 TR**Updated 4/21/17

[Roxyfire]

Heya just found your trip report and it looks great so far, following!

Also, love those UP shirts. Your son doing the Dab make me crack up, mine did not think of doing that and I'm never giving him the idea either!

 

[DexLabDeeDee]

If we ever meet up in WDW... we are TOTALLY having shirts made that say: #EEForever !

Yes!! TOTALLY! I would love that!!

 

[VACamm]

Heya just found your trip report and it looks great so far, following!

HI! Thank you for reading, and I'm so glad you are enjoying it!

Also, love those UP shirts. Your son doing the Dab make me crack up, mine did not think of doing that and I'm never giving him the idea either!

Good idea, because I"m pretty sure almost ALL of our ride photos for the entire week show my son doing the DAB! Ugh.

Yes!! TOTALLY! I would love that!!

 

[VACamm]

Day 3 Part 1


6:30am the alarm clock on my phone went off, again way too early! Ugh. It felt like Groundhog Day! I got into the shower, and my dad volunteered to make the trek up to the food court to get us all coffee. Works for me! We all got ready, grabbed some blueberry muffins, granola bars, bananas, and gluten free breakfast pastries sort of like poptarts (they are delicious!), and headed to the bus stop at 7:30am. We only waited for about 10 minutes for a bus to Hollywood Studios which is a pretty short wait time in my eyes!


We made it to Hollywood Studios, went through bag check, and got in line behind the tapstyles with only 7 people in front of us! YAY!! We have Rope Drop at Hollywood Studios down to a science! We TRY to get there about an hour before park opening and eat our breakfast in line. Yes, it’s a long time to wait just standing there, but we usually take photos, look at park maps, read the news on our phones, eat breakfast, drink coffee, and we usually talk to our ‘neighbors’!


We took an early morning photo while waiting at the front of the pack at the tapstyles!




Finally they let us all in, and we walked into the park. Its so pretty!!








They held us one more time in front of Starbucks for about 10 more minutes, and then we were OFF!! We have a plan that works super great for us, and we were NOT to be deterred!


We were walking….




And walking…..




As quickly as possible to get to Rock N Roller Coaster! We love love love this ride!


We were able to walk right in and right on the ride with zero wait!






Look at this ride photo! We literally LOVE this ride!!




After riding with our friends named AEROSMITH… we decided to run around and hop back on in the single riders line! We walked right on AGAIN for a 2nd time! Our plan is proven and it once again worked perfectly!

Continued in Next Post...

 

[VACamm]

After our 2nd ride, we went over to Tower of Terror, and walked right on with no wait. Well, maybe we waited 90 seconds or so. My dad gets nauseous on ToT, so he took our orders and headed to Starbucks to get us some coffees.




I love the theming in ToT… its spectacular!









I must admit I get a tad bit nauseous on this ride when it goes up and down and up and down. I can only ride this 1x, and then I’m done!




After ToT, we met my dad right outside of Starbucks, and enjoyed our delicious Frappuccino’s while having a mini Photopass photo shoot! We were getting so many comments with our StarWars Coffee shirts from guest and cast members it was crazy!










Continued in the next post...

 

[VACamm]

We had our first Fast Passes for Star Tours, but I was feeling a bit icky / nauseous from Tower of Terror. My dad and Ethan decided to go to Star Tours, while Kevin and I skipped it. We both thought it would be fun to go to the Olaf Meet and Greet.


But first, we had to visit Walt!




I think we waited maybe 10 minutes in line and then we were in front of this cutie!! He was so much fun, and we were so happy that we decided to take the time to go see him!








About this time, Ethan called me to tell me that they didn’t even have to use the Fast Pass for Star Tours because it was a walk on. He asked if they could go on again, and I said ABSOLUTELY! They ended up riding 3x in a row with n wait!


Kevin and I all of a sudden had more free time, so we hopped in line to go see Minnie and Mickey in their fancy Hollywood outfits!






Mickey was amazing! He spent so much time with us, and he really made us laugh. He LOVED our shirts, and he was asking me to go get him a Starbucks Coffee! He was so funny!








We met up with Ethan and my dad and we then went to use our 2nd Fast pass of the day at Toy Story Midway Mania!

Ethan and I rode together, and he beat me. Kevin and my Dad rode together, and Kevin beat my dad! Bragging rights is everything in our family, and I was a little bitter that I lost.



Continued in the next post...

 

[VACamm]

We then went over to the Star Wars Launch Bay and checked it out for a few minutes. We had spent a long time there last December, so there was nothing new to see but we still think it’s a cool atmosphere in the Cantina area!










Kevin tried to make a trade with the Jawa’s… but they didn’t like his item!



We walked over to Walt Disney – One Man’s Dream. We LOVE LOVE LOVE this attraction. Its amazing that they kept all of the original Mickey Mouse toys, ride models, and original movie drawings! I think its so special!!



The Jungle Cruise model!





Continued in Next Post...

 

[VACamm]

It was about lunchtime, and we were starving! We had an ADR for Mama Melrose Fantasmic Dining Package…. Pure Deliciousness!


Of COURSE I have only 1 pic of this entire lunch and 0 pics of our food, so I’m hoping that Kevin took some!!


We checked in at the Mama Melrose podium, and soon we were sitting at our table in the dining room. Fun Fact: This was our 5th year in a row eating lunch at Mama Melrose! I know it sometimes gets bad reviews, but we absolutely LOVE Mama Melrose! The title of this Trip Report sort of comes from our love of our yearly favorites such as Mama Melrose!




I didn’t have to speak to the chef, because Mama Melrose has a separate Allergy Friendly Menu! How cool is that?!!?


We all got salads to start as appetizers. Kevin ordered an Italian Beer, while my dad and I opted for the Sangria!

Mama Mia!! The Sangria at Mama Melroses is highly recommended…. By me! Its really good… trust me on this one!


The server brought out the warm bread and butter for the table, and I was a little bit sad…. UNTIL he came back to the table when he brought out my OWN basket of warm Gluten Free dinner rolls with my own margarine! YAY Bread!! I was in heaven!


For entrees, Kevin got the Steak. Ethan got a Pepperoni Pizza. My dad got the Penne Alla Vodka. And I got the Seared Tuna, which was SO SO SO SO good!


For gluten free desserts, Mama Melrose had a very impressive list of choices. I chose the flourless chocolate cake, which was warm and very chocolaty! PERFECTION! I honestly don’t remember what everyone else got for dessert, because I was shoving my chocolate flourless cake into my mouth.


Mama Melrose’s has been serving my family food for 5 solid years in a row, and we have NEVER had a bad meal there. We actually look forward to eating there each vacation… its our ‘thing’ I guess?!?! We always tell people that we know who go to WDW that it is a Disney Must Do!


Stay Tuned for next time when we continue around Hollywood Studios and accidentally bump into Darth Vader!

 

[kfcamm]

I got Chef Matt too! He was AMAZING!!!!!! Hands down the best chef interaction on my trip too!

I remember telling Aimee as we were leaving that we needed to write a recognition card for him to say how awesome he was. I honestly can't remember if we did it or not, but I know I did at least one this trip...those magical moments get you every time

 

[Raeven]

We waited, and waited and waited for 30 minutes, and no cab came. We missed our dinner reservation

I would've been livid! I'm glad you were still able to make it there.

We love Boma. This was our 3rd year in a row eating at this restaurant. We LOVE LOVE LOVE Boma! The service is always wonderful, and the food is unbelievable even though it is a buffet!

We're going there for breakfast and dinner for the first time in December!

Do you see this FANCY GLUTEN FREE DESSERT PLATE? Its all for me!

That looks delicious.

The Tree of Life Awakenings were breathtaking, and emotional, and brought tears to my eyes, they were amazing! If there is one thing that Disney does right, its their Night Time shows. You can quote me on this, but THIS may be Disneys greatest night time show. They are short, but they are amazing. I Loved every second watching this!

I hope they keep doing this because I can't wait to see it!

 

[Raeven]

I think we waited maybe 10 minutes and then we were in front of this cutie!! He was so much fun, and we were so happy that we decided to take the time to go see him!

So cute! I want to meet Olaf.

I know it sometimes gets bad reviews, but we absolutely LOVE Mama Melrose!

It looks delicious! I'm planning to go there for our trip in May.

 

[VACamm]

I would've been livid! I'm glad you were still able to make it there.

It was a very stressful time... even now when I think about it, my blood pressure goes up!!!

We're going there for breakfast and dinner for the first time in December!

YESSSS!! You're going to LOVE it! The Gluten Free options are terrific and they will make your boyfriends experience so memorable!

I hope they keep doing this because I can't wait to see it!

I hope you get to see it too! You're going to love it!

So cute! I want to meet Olaf.

The set up that they have for him is so cool, they are playing the song 'In Summer'... and it SMELLS like sunscreen! We were so impressed!! I would definitely add this to your list for December too!

It looks delicious! I'm planning to go there for our trip in May.

Oh my gosh.... Raeven... if there is one restaurant that I recommend it is this one, purely for the the atmosphere and Sangria haha!! Trust me though, the food is delicious!

 

[kfcamm]

Sorry I'm a bit late posting this. I had to get some work done last night, but here goes my alternate update!


So the memories on our day to Hollywood Studios were by far – the best of the week! I think that is because of two things: 1) Our shirts were out of this world! (HA HA, my Star Wars pun) and 2) Aimee and I had the best time together – slow walking – and doing things that we had never done nor seen before. You will see more of those in a bit. But the way we roll at HS is we head straight to the Rockin’ Rollercoaster and then hit up Tower of Terror. We know what we like! We had to stop on Hollywood Boulevard outside of Starbucks and wait for rope drop …. rope drop #1. I love that the Chinese Theater is the main thing that you see.



Then we head to rope drop #2 and walk so S L O W…then it began! We literally walked onto Rockin’ Roller Coaster. And it was awesome!



By the way, the next time you are in the queue for this ride, look for hidden Mickey's. There are quite a few of them right in front of you, you just need to look at everything. Looking for Hidden Mickey's allows me to take more in of the environment / atmosphere that WDW created.

Then we hopped on over to one of the best-themed attractions in all of WDW (arguably, I know) – the Tower of Terror. I love this ride. The way that it looks just draws me in and I wish that I could see what it ‘used’ to look like.



And we HAD to get our pictures on the Sunset Boulevard with Starbucks in our hands and wearing Starbucks (sort of) shirts. YES! I wish we could have gotten some sort of endorsement money or something



Off to Pixar Place to battle each other in Toy Story Mania. We got to ride in the new section so, of course, we were excited.



Aimee always battles Ethan and I always battle Rob. I’m not too worried about the accuracy as much getting the top score!



But I did end up with the TOP score in the car...just sayin'



After Toy Story, Rob and Ethan went to Star Wars Launch Bay. This is another that I am so upset that I can’t enjoy without feeling queasy, but when Aimee and I had a chance to meet some characters, it made up for that tenfold!

**More to come**

 

[DexLabDeeDee]

Your shirts are so great! I need to spend more time in the Launch Bay - we were in and out quickly this last trip. I love that there is always something new to do each time we go!

 

[Grumpy's Wife]

I've mentioned how cute your shirts were before but now I can't wait to see what each day brings. Did you make all the shirts?

 

[VACamm]

Your shirts are so great! I need to spend more time in the Launch Bay - we were in and out quickly this last trip. I love that there is always something new to do each time we go!

Me too... I also love that there is always something new to see or do! I think the Launch Bay area is really cool for sure!! You guys should check it out when you have more time!!!

I've mentioned how cute your shirts were before but now I can't wait to see what each day brings. Did you make all the shirts?

Thank you so much!! I wish I was that crafty haha.... but I actually ordered all of our shirts from different Etsy Vendors!! I found so many more that I wanted to buy... so many shirts but so few days!

 

[annie170]

You guys have the coolest shirts everyday! I think you should have gotten free Starbucks for wearing those!

Two rides in a row on Rock N Roller Coaster is a great way to start a day! So smart to get there early.

You had such cute meet and greets with Olaf, Minnie and Mickey. Olaf is so adorable.

One Man's Dream gives the warm fuzzies. I often wonder what Walt would think of WDW today.

We love Mama Melrose, too! We've always had great food and service there. For our upcoming trip in January, my daughters selected Sci-Fi instead of Mama Melrose because she thinks the grandkids (ages 7, 5, and 2) would enjoy that more than Mama Melrose. This trip is very much geared for grandkids, so we're just going along with the program.

So Kevin, you're a guy who goes for score over accuracy? Hmmmm.......

 

[VACamm]

You guys have the coolest shirts everyday! I think you should have gotten free Starbucks for wearing those!

Two rides in a row on Rock N Roller Coaster is a great way to start a day! So smart to get there early.

You had such cute meet and greets with Olaf, Minnie and Mickey. Olaf is so adorable.

One Man's Dream gives the warm fuzzies. I often wonder what Walt would think of WDW today.

We love Mama Melrose, too! We've always had great food and service there. For our upcoming trip in January, my daughters selected Sci-Fi instead of Mama Melrose because she thinks the grandkids (ages 7, 5, and 2) would enjoy that more than Mama Melrose. This trip is very much geared for grandkids, so we're just going along with the program.

So Kevin, you're a guy who goes for score over accuracy? Hmmmm.......

Have you ever been to Sci Fi? If not, your family is going to have so much fun eating there! In my opinion, the food may not be a good as Mama Melrose, but the ambiance is PRICELESS!! I think that's the perfect choice for your grandchildren!! The films are sooooo much fun! Their desserts are out of this world too!

You're right, Walt's One Man's Dream definitely produces the warm fuzzies!! I'm guessing that Walt may be confused at EPCOT!! LOL

 

[kfcamm]

So Kevin, you're a guy who goes for score over accuracy? Hmmmm.......

Always. Second place is the first loser!! Ha ha I shoot so fast, I can't control it, but I only go for the 500's and 1000's

 

[kfcamm]

So while they were riding Star Wars Launch Bay, Aimee and I decided that we would just walk around and while we were doing that, we noticed that Olaf was eager to meet us! So we had to oblige. Of course when we walked in, I sang “In Summerrrrrrrr!!!!” HA HA. They probably get that crazy stuff day in and day out, but oh well, Its Disney World!!

It smelled so great in there, like suntan lotion and it was really surreal. Of course, it was selfie time.



When we got word that they were going to ride it again, we did something that each of us had never done in Hollywood Studios – met Minnie and Mickey. Of course, it was awesome meeting Minnie all dressed up.



But when we met Sorcerer Mickey, we never had this awesome and magical of an experience.



When we walked in, seeing him as Sorcerer Mickey was pretty surreal. I know Aimee and I were humming in our head – Da-dum…da-dum, dum, dum, dummmm (supposed to be the song from Fantasmic, haha). Anyways, it was the typical banter back in forth, like all character meets are, but this got crazy. All of a sudden Mickey looked at her shirt and gestured that he wanted a coffee. Aimee at first didn’t understand, but then she told him she would get him one and bring one back. He mentioned that he wanted one now and Aimee started laughing…Mickey then looked at me and gestured something to the effect that females are crazy. We took so long, but it was AWESOME. So after a five-minute meet and greet we finally left with HUGE smiles on our face. Aimee mentioned that she started laughing harder when Mickey laughed out loud, so much fun.

In case this video doesn't embed (never tried this before) I will put a backup in - check out this short video: Aimee and Mickey

Off to lunch at one of my favorites – Mama Melrose! And we get the Fantasmic package which is great. This year I didn’t take too many pictures of my food, but I did of my beer.



I did that only because of untappd. But as you can see, we are all happy!! Still happy and this is only half the day…told you this was a good day.