Notices
Reports and Reviews for Dining and Restaurants Trip Reports

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
Old 8 Aug 18, 09:18 PM  
Link to this Post
#1
wilma-bride
Imagineer
 
Join Date: Aug 05

wilma-bride's Reviews
Restaurant Reviews: 1
Million Dollar Food Baby - We're Ba-ack and We're Fa-at!



It has been such a long time since I last wrote a trip report and yet, on/after this trip, I am attempting both a trip report AND a food report. I must be mad! I won’t go into too many details about the trip itself, since they are all in my pre-trip report but we will have 17 nights of (hopefully) delicious food and – more importantly - cocktails from Universal, Disney, offsite restaurants and the Disney Dream.

Most of the places will be repeats to (some of) us but there will be a couple of new places along the way. We don’t have any dining plans and will be paying OOP for everything, although I do intend to buy the Tables in Wonderland (TIW) card when we get to Disney. I will summarise whether the card saved us money (although, admittedly, I have future trips planned for November and February so will be getting my money’s worth) and comparing the savings to the DVC/AP discount we would get without the TIW card. For the five of us, I have pre-loaded a Fairfx card with $3000 ($50 per person per day) for our meals during the ‘land’ portion of our trip. Snacks and drinks will generally be bought individually as needed. We have also adjusted our plans to include the first day of the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival, which we are very excited about.

So, to briefly (ha! – who am I kidding, I can’t do anything briefly) introduce me and my crew, from a food perspective:

Me – Joh, 45. I love, love, love cocktails. A day without a cocktail on holiday is a sad day indeed.

Favourite Orlando restaurant – Manny’s
Favourite drink (alcoholic) – Cosmopolitan
Favourite drink (non-alcoholic) – Pepsi Max
Favourite snack – Anything with cinnamon

DH – Gary, 51. Gary loves ribs and loaded mash.

Favourite Orlando restaurant – Texas Roadhouse
Favourite drink (alcoholic) – Amaretto Sour
Favourite drink (non-alcoholic) – (hot) tea
Favourite snack – Anything with peanut butter (the No Way Jose at Beaches & Cream is his jam!)

DS – Daniel, 15. Daniel is 15. He loves food. Full stop!

Favourite Orlando restaurant – Texas Roadhouse
Favourite drink (non-alcoholic) – Any milkshake ever
Favourite snack – In his words “it WAS the frozen s’mores at Food & Wine Festival” (they didn’t have that last year and, looking at the menus, nor do they have it this year so I guess my boy will be finding a new favourite)

DD – Rhiannon, 24. Rhiannon is my ‘skinny fatty

Favourite Orlando restaurant – Friendly’s
Favourite drink (alcoholic) – Sex on the Beach (or as Disney calls it ‘Fun on the Beach’)
Favourite drink (non-alcoholic) – Fanta/Tango
Favourite snack – Anything mac & cheese

DD’s Fiancé (DDF) – Ben, 31. Loves steak and onion rings. Not necessarily together. Not necessarily apart.

Favourite Orlando restaurant – none as he’s never been
Favourite drink (alcoholic) – Budweiser
Favourite drink (non-alcoholic) – coffee (that’s a guess, I will ask him later) – nope; apparently it’s Coke
Favourite snack – anything with bacon

We also have five of our friends along for the ride at varying times throughout the trip, although I probably won’t be documenting their food, especially as one is a veggie and there’s nothing more boring than vegetables and tofu She does drink like a fish, though, so I might include her cocktails.

So, with just 9 days to go until travel day, let the countdown begin.


Edited at 12:30 PM.
wilma-bride is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 8 Aug 18, 10:50 PM  
Link to this Post
#2
theCMG
Imagineer
 
theCMG's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 15

theCMG's Reviews
Hotel Reviews: 8
Restaurant Reviews: 1
haha love the favourite drinks idea already pinching that one for next time. Glad you decided to do this and looking forward to it (especially as I promised lots of comments only yesterday ) Have a great holiday!
__________________
Dining & Trip Reports:
50 Shades of Beige (2022) xxl rated food
DLP, EuropaPark & Efteling Roadtrip (2019) 3 parks, which is best?
The Prisoner of Vineland Mall (2019) Orlando passion, romance and fine dining...ok so it's mainly eating
Scream if you want to go Fatter! (2018) This report contains images some dieters may find distressing!
The 12 Days of Easter (2015) Rumoured to contain up to one good joke. Let me know if you find it

Edited at 10:52 PM.
theCMG is offline Boy Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 9 Aug 18, 12:05 PM  
Link to this Post
#3
dixonsontour
VIP Dibber
 
dixonsontour's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 09

dixonsontour's Reviews
Hotel Reviews: 2

theDIBB Guidebook
Guidebook Photos: 12
Mobile

Looking forward to this
dixonsontour is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 9 Aug 18, 12:17 PM  
Link to this Post
#4
Moleymole
Imagineer
 
Join Date: Jul 09
That title has made me lol 😂
__________________
Westridge Villa 2008/2009
OKW 2010/2011/and 2012 also Anna Maria
Saratoga Springs 2013 and Anna Maria
OKW again 2015 and Anna Maria
2017 Contemporary Resort & Anna Maria
ALWAYS AUGUST!

August 2022 my 50th! - Universal Hardrock Hotel, Bay Lake Tower, Boardwalk villas, Polynesian, Anna Maria Island.


Moleymole is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 9 Aug 18, 06:13 PM  
Link to this Post
#5
wilma-bride
Thread Starter
Imagineer
 
Join Date: Aug 05

wilma-bride's Reviews
Restaurant Reviews: 1
Originally Posted by theCMG View Post
haha love the favourite drinks idea already pinching that one for next time. Glad you decided to do this and looking forward to it (especially as I promised lots of comments only yesterday ) Have a great holiday!
Aw, thanks for reading and commenting. It makes it worth it when people reply. I hope you will follow along if you aren't suffering too much from Post Disney Blues

Originally Posted by dixonsontour View Post
Looking forward to this
Hey there, hoping we bump into you all at Universal

Originally Posted by Moleymole View Post
That title has made me lol 😂
Glad to have made you laugh and thanks for reading.
wilma-bride is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 9 Aug 18, 07:16 PM  
Link to this Post
#6
wilma-bride
Thread Starter
Imagineer
 
Join Date: Aug 05

wilma-bride's Reviews
Restaurant Reviews: 1
We don’t normally make many plans in advance of where we are going to eat and when. There are a couple of reasons for this: 1) We don’t eat an awful lot of meals at Disney restaurants (not TS ones anyway) and 2) We are normally only a party of 3 nowadays so don’t find it difficult to get in somewhere at the last minute. So the only meals we tend to book are Disney TS that are hard to get – Beaches & Cream, ‘Ohana, etc.

This trip, though, is different for a few reasons. Firstly, DD is desperate to eat at some Disney places that she either enjoyed previously or wants to try for the first time. Secondly, we are a group of 8 so, if we want to eat at a particular time or on a particular day, we need to have reservations. And lastly, the fact that we are a bigger group means our itinerary is less fluid than normal, so we have had to make those decisions so everyone knows what’s happening and can adjust plans accordingly.

DH and I weren’t prepared to compromise on all of our favourite offsite restaurants, but we have had to accept that dining on this trip will be more onsite than off. Since we were just there in February and we are going back together in January, we were prepared to be somewhat reasonable

As I previously mentioned, we have a good mix of old favourites, both on and off Disney property, together with the Universal dining and the Disney Dream (we haven’t sailed on the Dream before so it will be new to all of us, except Wendy and Rich). Here’s the lineup….

Nicholas Culpeper, Gatwick North Terminal

Our go-to bar/restaurant whenever we fly from Gatwick. Food is good, drinks are excellent and it’s a fab way to start the holiday.



Friendly’s

If all goes to plan, we will eat here on the day we arrive. This is DD’s favourite but the whole family loves it. It’s cheap and cheerful and a good choice to start the holiday off right



Toothsome

This place wasn’t open the last time we visited Universal so it’s new to all of us. We are planning a lunch here. I have read good and bad reviews so interested to see if it lives up to the hype or not…



Cheesecake Factory

No trip to the US is complete without a meal at Cheesecake Factory. We always swear we will leave room for cheesecake and invariably end up getting it ‘to go’.



Flame Tree BBQ

We are planning a cheeky evening at Animal Kingdom the day we check in to Animal Kingdom Villas, so this seemed like a good choice for dinner. Another new place to us and DD is dying to try the mac and cheese. I like the sound of the Mandarin Orange Vodka lemonade.



Sanaa

As I mentioned, Ben is from South Africa. One of the reasons we chose to spend part of our holiday at Animal Kingdom Villas was because DD knew he would love it. Sanaa gets great reviews and, as another new place for us, we are keen to try it. Obviously we will be getting the bread service….



‘Ohana

Linda will be joining the five of us for dinner at ‘Ohana. I know it gets mixed reviews but, again, Rea thought Ben would enjoy it. Gary, Daniel and I have been twice before – once was good, once not so much. Will we like it this time? The jury is out…



Beaches & Cream

Since the other half of our Disney stay is being spent at Boardwalk Villas, Beaches & Cream seemed an apparent choice. Kim and Terry haven’t been before and neither has Rea so they are all looking forward to it. I think it’s a safe bet that Gary will have a No Way Jose.



Yak & Yeti

Another firm favourite, this will be the first meal that will see all eight of us together for lunch. We have had to book two tables of four but are hoping we will be seated together. If not, we will do a boys table and a girls table. I always say I will have something different here but end up ordering the duck. I wonder if I will stray this time…



Liberty Tree Tavern

Four words – Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake – the sole reason for our lunch reservation here.



Manny’s Chophouse

Manny’s is my favourite so this was one I wasn’t prepared to compromise on. As a vegetarian, it is unlikely that Linda will join us for our dinner here. I love their frozen peach drink...



Texas Roadhouse

It is tradition to eat here with Kim and Terry. We love this place and only once, out of several visits, have we left disappointed.



And that completes our line-up. There will, of course, be additional snacks and QS eats to add to the TS restaurants we have planned.

Next up more on my favourite subject... cocktails


wilma-bride is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 9 Aug 18, 07:40 PM  
Link to this Post
#7
Unexpectedpenny
Imagineer
 
Unexpectedpenny's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 13
Ooo you’re eating at some of my favourite restaurants so I’m looking forward to this! I will now be humming ‘the final countdown’ for the rest of the evening, thanks for that
Unexpectedpenny is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 9 Aug 18, 07:43 PM  
Link to this Post
#8
Cinderella
Imagineer
 
Cinderella's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 04
Looking forward to this👍
Cinderella is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 9 Aug 18, 08:08 PM  
Link to this Post
#9
wilma-bride
Thread Starter
Imagineer
 
Join Date: Aug 05

wilma-bride's Reviews
Restaurant Reviews: 1
Originally Posted by Unexpectedpenny View Post
Ooo you’re eating at some of my favourite restaurants so I’m looking forward to this! I will now be humming ‘the final countdown’ for the rest of the evening, thanks for that
Haha, you're very welcome.

Originally Posted by Cinderella View Post
Looking forward to this👍
Hope it doesn't disappoint!
wilma-bride is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 10 Aug 18, 10:26 PM  
Link to this Post
#10
Dogwalker
VIP Dibber
 
Dogwalker's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 10
Tofu and tequila is my jam
Dogwalker is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Reply

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Forum Jump


All times are GMT +1. The time now is 10:32 AM.


Powered by vBulletin - Copyright © 2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
DIBB Savings
AttractionTickets.com

Get £10 off each Disney Ticket with the code ATDIBB10

Get up to £50 off per room at Disney or Universal with the code DIBBHOTELS


theDIBB Blog
One of the the five worlds found in Epic Universe, How to Train Your Dragon... Read More »
Disney announced that a new nighttime show, “Disney Dreams That Soar,” will run nightly at... Read More »
Walt Disney World Resort guests can get ready to have a “glowing’’ good time when... Read More »


theDIBB Menu


Exchange Rates
US Dollar Rates
ASDA  $1.2354
CaxtonFX  $1.2307
Covent Garden FX  $1.2498
FAIRFX  $1.2365
John Lewis  $1.2398
M&S  $1.2191
Sainsburys  $1.2351
TESCO  $1.2364
Travelex  $1.2361
Updated: 09:30 29/03/2024
Euro Rates
ASDA  €1.1447
CaxtonFX  €1.1420
Covent Garden FX  €1.1528
FAIRFX  €1.1468
John Lewis  €1.1477
M&S  €1.1289
Sainsburys  €1.1440
TESCO  €1.1445
Travelex  €1.1469
Updated: 09:30 29/03/2024

DIBB Premium Membership
Did you know you can help support theDIBB with Premium Membership?

Check out this link for more information and benefits, such as...

"No adverts on theDIBB Forums"

Upgrade Now



X