Mr & Mrs Barrowsmiths foodiemoon

[Bobsledwheels]

Next up, bright and early on our first day was Chef Mickeys breakfast at the Contemporary.



It was dark when we first headed down there and checked in at the podium, and we were some of the first people there, which is just how I like it at a buffet!

The buffet was looking lovely - here are some pics of it set up









I was going to try one of the Blintzs (is that what they are called?) but was still feeling full and a bit dodgy if I am honest so I went for my traditional first breakfast; Mickey waffles, french toast, maple syrup, bacon and strawberries with yoghurt on the side.



I love love love mickey waffles, I am drooling just thinking about them. The strawberries over there are always lovely as well. And if you've not tried maple syrup and bacon together... you are missing out!

We both had juices and I went for a chocolate milk, which was lovely and cold.



Adams first plate included eggs, vegetables, pancakes and some fruit (even more random than mine).



We were mid way through plate one and a good few visitors arrived!

Goofy was first



Followed by the main man himself!



With the duck of the day up next...



Minnie popped by to say hello (she liked my teeshirt and my ears... lovely mouse she is)



Then pluto came by (he's become one of my faves)



We got a few more plates in between, I went for a hot plate with eggs and sausages and the like, and my love for breakfast hash began (that stuff is amazing! need to recreate it here – it’s the mess at the top of the pic and is essentially corned beef and potatoes with onions – tastes amazing with ketchup!)



Adam went for the pastry options (i only have a photo of his response to mickey waffles...)



We then got given some celebratory cupcakes! This was one of the few places that did something for our honeymoon, it’s a cute gesture!



I think we saved these for later as I recall the waitress putting them into cups for us – we were stuffed!

Overall I liked the breakfast and the costumes are fab here but I think crystal palace is a nicer setting, and I think we will be doing tusker house instead next time as it got bumped!

If we had kids though chef mickeys would be a must I think – the noise and napin twirling is definitely a hit with the little people!

[Guest]

Great update. We are doing chef mickeys at 7.15 am on our first day in the hope it's quieter at that time.

[Ycryan]

Fantastic report, can't wait to read more x

[Bobsledwheels]

Contemporary sand bar lunch and cocktails

We didn’t have park tickets on our first morning, so we chilled around the resort a bit and also did a parasail! (I’ll hopefully do a trippie and put the pics in there) so we ended up getting lunch by the pool at the contemporary sand bar.

First up though were some cocktails when the bar opened (at like 12… its always 5 o’clock somewhere in the world!) Heres the cocktail menu if you fancy a look!



I went for a Banana Cabana and Adam had a draft bud light.



It was a tasty cocktail, just wish I’d sampled some more

A few hours later we got some lunch – again I have the menu if you’re interested! I quite liked the fact that they had some different options.



I went for the blackened chicken pita with a Black Bean Corn Relish, Chive Sour Cream, and Shredded Lettuce and a water.



It might not look great but it was well tasty! There were loads of chunks of chicken which had been marinated in a slightly spicy sauce which had a great kick to it, the salsa was really ineresting – full of black beans and sweetcorn and the sour cream was just the right amount to cool it down again and made it quite saucy once I’d smooshed it into the pita. The pita was very fresh as well, this one was a huge hit.

Adam went for the 1/3 lb Angus Bacon Cheeseburger with french fries and a fanta.



Again he enjoyed this one, I think this was one of his faves of the counter service burgers he had over the time we were there.

We were very impressed with the sand bar and although we wouldn’t stay at the contemporary again (wasn’t our cup of tea) we would highly recommend the sand bar for a quick and tasty lunch option!

[Bobsledwheels]

We’d managed to snag a be our guest reservation late in the day as they released more slots on party nights. So 6.30pm we had a date with the beast!

We initially walked right to the door – not realising the podium was up at the archway, so went back and were given a buzzer.

The theming around the castle is fantastic – love the waterfall and the gargoyles!







I’ve lost track of whose castle is whose now but they are all great.





We were led to a table in the corner of the ballroom (with our lumiere leading the way!), and were both gobsmacked – you see it in the photos and everything but in the flesh this place is utterly stunning.



I love the rose napkins as well - too cute!



We decided to skip starters but did get brought some bread rolls and salted butter, both of which were delish.



Adam ordered a french ale called saison dupont, and I went for a wine – Pinot Gris – so strange drinking in Magic Kingdom!





For mains Adam got the new york strip steak and pommes frites which came with veg and garlic herb butter.



This was easily one of his most fave mains we had – (day one was a great food day!) the steak was cooked perfectly and the butter was gorgeous. It was a nice cut of meat as well.

I went for the pan-seared salmon on leek fondue, served with creamy saffron crushed potatoes. [sorry for the dark photos! They get better later in the report!]



Honestly this was just melt in the mouth perfect. We eat out a lot and I often get salmon but this combo was heaven. The salmon was fairly standard – but well cooked, but the crushed potatoes and leeks – holy moly – gooooood stuff.

We skipped dessert as we had a special event booked in the evening and were still stuffed but they looked great – next time that chocolate pastry puff has my name on it!

The theming here is just so good – and I know everyone bangs on about it but its just awesome.

What I was really surprised about though was the food. The food was just fantastic. I’d go so far as to say it was one of the best meals we had, and we will be back for sure!

[KarenG]

Wow, Diane! That salmon looks great!

[*Lauren-J*]

Yum yum yum! Still so stuck between choosing steak or salmon when we go to BOG!

[missdopey]

Great report so far! Can't wait for more

[mossyflossy]

Yummy start, Diane, looking forward to more deliciousness!

[Bobsledwheels]

Villains sinister soiree; a wiked takeover of cinderella castle - Dessert party

The next one I know was one that split opinion on the dibb as well as the disney community in general!

The villains sinister soiree was announced as a special add on to the MNSSHP a few months before we left, and as a huge villains fan, not to mention desserts – I was sold. Sold it was, as it was about $90 per person from memory.

The party included reserved viewing for the parade and fireworks, with a villains meet and greet and dessert party to follow.

Originally I’d booked onto the early session as it was the only option but changed it to the later one when it came out in order to avoid missing loads of the party. This was at 11.45pm and to be honest I have no idea how we managed this on our first full day – we were shattered!

We waited outside of the castle in a queue – this does not impact where you are sat so don’t worry about queing early.



They take you into the castle where the queen of hearts and the stepsisters are in the lobby and you can get a pic – theres not really a queue system but its not too tricky to get one.



Following this you’re taken to your table, I’ve not got as many pics as I’d like as was so tired! Ha what a moose. We had the best table in the house – right at the front window with a view out over the carousel. The table was covered in confetti as well! Looked fab!

On the table was a dragon goblet filled with sweets as well as individual menus on each table.



We were started off with Captains not-so-poisoned potion – I really liked this but adam thought it was gross haha!



Then we were met with an impressive cheese plate which included a blue cheese with honeycomb, a cream cheese with raspberry sauce, a black diamond cheese fondue with walnut bread, figs and some salami.



I quite enjoyed the fondue and the walnut toast, and the salami was tasty as well. I had a nibble of the triple cream cheese and the blue cheese but neither were my cup of tea!

The villains were next round, the interaction was brilliant! Malificent was very upset that she wasn’t invited to our wedding and one of the step sisters egged this on – she then tried to eat the sweets in my vanellope hair! Love this pic!



Here are some more with the villains







At points throughout the evening the evil stepmother took to the stage and performed – she was fantastic. One of the most surreal points of the honeymoon was definitely listening to lady tremaine singing Lourdes that’s for sure!

Cruella was awesome as well asking about puppies etc.

I can’t quite remember the order in which things arrived – but the desserts – lets talk about them.

They all came together on a decorated plate – there was one for each of the four main characters in the room.



The Queens bleeding heart apple
Maleficents dragon toasted confection
Dr Faciliers chocolate tarot card
Curella de vils spotted chocolate mousse cake

The bleeding heart apple was a white wine poached apple with a cherry sauce, this was quite strong and the apple was quite crunchy still considering it was poached – I wouldn’t have this again if it was on a menu.

Maleficents dragon toasted confection was a pistachio mousse topped with crisp meringue was really delicious, easily the best on the plate. The mousse was really light and had a gorgeous flavour. It had a base of purple sponge which again was really tasty and gave it a great look (though saying that I only noticed it was purple the next day in the daylight!) and the meringue was light and fluffy.

Dr Faciliers chocolate tarot cake was a dark chocolate covered pecan praline and flourless chocolate torte. I was looking forward to this one the most, but I can safely say – that chocolate torte needed some flour! It was more brownie like in consistency than torte. The tarot card itself was a chewy praline. This sounds odd in itself… chewy… praline… it should have been a bit softer in my mind but the taste was nice enough.

Curella de vils spotted chocolate mousse cake was 101 layers of white chocolate and dark chocolate mousse with a hint of raspberry. This came second – the raspberry gave it a nice tang but I am not convinced there were 101 layers!

We were utterly stuffed though by this point... so ended up taking all this home!



Overall the experience was enjoyable – would we do it again though? No probably not, and we’d only consider it if it were less than $60. At $90 it was just too expensive for what it was, it was quite rushed and I’d rather spend the money on a meal we could choose the food ourselves. The parade spot was lovely, but the fireworks from the hub were too close to get the full effect.

The stand out was the interaction from the villains – it was fantastic and easily the best bit of the evening.

All in all – a mixed review – I am open minded about the add on events, but this one was just a step too far for us!