LIVE NOW (ish) food report - Eating our way across land and sea ~ including QSDP ~ September 2019

[Guest]

Originally Posted by 4holibobs

Good morning from the Virgin V Lounge at Manchester airport

I didn’t sleep very well as to be expected in airport hotels.. although I must have fell asleep as my alarm woke me up at 6.15am.

We got into security with our fastpasses as 7am and there was an hours wait!

We headed straight to boots for a meal deal (you’ll see that later), duty free for some perfume and sunglasses then into the lounge.

It’s quite busy in here, although we picked up a table quite easily. I think we could easily lose track of time!

We were told to help ourselves to cold food, we would be served hot food, coke and lemonade could be picked up at the bar and we would have to pay for any alcoholic drinks. WiFi is free.

Here’s some photos of what’s on offer...

To start we had a bacon cob and a sausage cob. The cobs were both soft and fluffy - just like what they wanted in this weeks Bake Off Technical

Then I’ve had a croissant- wow it tasted nice, I’ve not had anything pastry like for AGES!

DH went up for a cooked breakfast which he said was very nice...

And I’ve got what I believe is a tonic water with strawberry and mint in it.. it’s very fancy in the little glass bottle.

That’s our morning so far! Our flight is 9.55am and it says boarding is 9am so not much longer now. I may pop into accessorize because it’s kind of a tradition on holiday, right?

Thanks again everyone for following along... next time I update I’ll be in Orlando!

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Lounge looks good. Do you have to have a holiday booked in order to add it on or can you do it flight only?

[Unexpectedpenny]

Well done on the weight loss, that’s an amazing achievement.

Ooo I love those M&S buns. A great way to start the trip! I agree with -

Originally Posted by Loobylou_82

Just love those lemon curd buns from M&S, i like the spicy currant bun ones too.

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The iced and spiced ones are really tasty too. I eat far more of them than I should but they are just so good! 😋

Following along. I hope you have a lovely holiday

[Zellotape]

Well done on your weight loss! I too have been on WW and lost around 3 and a half stone. However my holiday isnt for a couple of months yet, so im going to have to try and maintain until then!
Looking forward to following a long with your report!

[4holibobs]

Hi from Port Orleans French Quarter!

We have arrived safe and sound.. it’s 1.55am here at the moment and I thought I would type up part 2 since I’m awake and then hopefully I can catch a few more hours sleep.

So we left off in the airport lounge, we needn’t had worried about missing the flight as they make announcements over the tannoy. We were leaving from gate A12 which was probably a 15 minute walk from the lounge - be aware!

We luckily had all 3 seats in the exit row 25 to ourselves. We got chatting to the cabin crew and she asked if we were celebrating anything. I told her it was my birthday next week and then when the seatbelt signs went off she asked if she could bring us some champagne to celebrate... a lovely touch!

When she came, she had bought us some crisps and sweets too. Really kind of her and our first but of pixie dust.

Cheers!

We didn’t have to wait long at all and they brought around drinks and the mini pretzel crisps.

I had an OJ to make a Buck’s Fizz and DH chose a Budweiser.

All the drinks were free of charge.

I settled down to watch Aladdin and it wasn’t long before we were brought our meals.

Here’s the menu for economy (I see a lot of questions about what the current menu is)

DH chose the macaroni cheese and I opted for the chicken in mushroom sauce. Both came with a starter of cucumber salad and dessert of a GU pot.

The cucumber salad wasn’t very appealing, the lettuce with it was old and flimsy not at all crisp. I didn’t really eat this..

However, my main was really lovely. Probably the best meal I’ve even eaten on a plane (in economy). The mash wasn’t powdery, and the chicken didn’t taste processed. They were big chunks in just enough sauce. I could have eaten it twice!

DH also enjoyed his macaroni cheese. He said it was quite cheesy..

The dessert was just enough as it was quite rich.. you had to dig down to find any caramel right at the bottom.. it was nice enough.

Next up tea and coffee were served. I asked for a cup of boiling water and made myself a peppermint tea.. not sure if they would have had this if I had asked but I sometimes find I have a bubbling stomach on flights, and having this really helped me. I picked up some honey in the V room to sweeten it a little.

To my surprise on this flight they never brought round any ice creams! I was quite disappointed in this... they did bring around a mini packet of skittles.. not much of a swap if you ask me!

I finished off the pick and mix I bought on Tuesday night whilst watching the IFE.

I was really impressed with the IFE. I watched Aladdin and Mary Poppins Returns as well as watching Mrs Doubtfire with DH. They had some old classics such as Big (with Tom Hanks) and the Goonies showing too. Thankfully the flight went really quickly.

Cups of water or juice were handed out during the flight. The water had been infused with lemon it was really refreshing actually.

About 90 minutes before we landed, afternoon tea was handed out.

I already knew I wasn’t going to eat the roll so I gave it to DH who said it was quite nice...

I opted for my boots meal deal sandwich instead which despite buying it several hours before actually tasted really good...

I did however eat and scone which came with just the right amount of ham and cream..

DH did a fab job of putting his together - much neater than mine anyway

I loved the little box it came in, the inside was so pretty it reminded me of something from Alice in Wonderland..

The seatbelt sign soon came on and after 8 hours and 40 minutes we landed at 2pm local time.

Our second bit of pixie dust came after we had mentioned we might hit the outlets straight from the airport, the same cabin crew who bought us the champagne said she would let us off the flight first (we were on the opposite side exit row to where you depart). Sure enough we were 4th and 5th off the plane and walked straight into an empty immigration hall. We couldn’t believe our luck after last year when we queued for about an hour and 15 minutes.

Our bags soon came and after collecting our $200 gift card from Virgin and picking out a dodge from the mid size SUV cars we were on the road and onto the Premium Outlets on Vineland.

I’d only got one shop in mind and that was the character warehouse. I picked up some bargains including a pair of Minnie ears for just $0.99c!

We did stop in Starbucks and picked up a salted caramel mocha frappe and a strawberry açai refresher but I didn’t take a photo- sorry. Bill came to $11.40.

After a quick dash to the outlets we were soon at POFQ checking in... we sent a room request via touring plans and our Virgin booking, but we didn’t get it. Never mind our room is lovely and in block 3 so we are super close to everything. I’m pleased that my magic band was in stock and I got the snack one I paid extra for...

We unpacked and headed for the boat dock to Disney Springs.

We looked in world of Disney for some reusable straws but it seems it’s the only thing in the whole shop they don’t sell! We did pick some up from Mickeys Pantry later in the evening.

There was only one place we were headed to and that was Blaze pizza! There was no queue and it wasn’t an issue to order the pick your own pizza on the QSDP.

I had classic sauce, grated most, grilled chicken, peppers, red onions, mushroom and fresh basil. DH has similar but with spicy sauce and some jalapeños on his.

Be aware when you collect them they are fresh out the oven, the trays nearly burnt my hands..

This is DH’s -

And mine which I asked for some BBQ glaze on when I picked it up..

To my surprise we both absolutely devoured the lot! There are take away boxes available though if you can’t quite manage it all.

DH has a classic lemonade with his and I had a blood orange lemonade. Both were refreshing.

We had a wander around the shops before heading for the boat back to the resort getting back around 9pm.

We headed straight to pick up our refillable mugs. They have the new Halloween design out which DH opted for and I chose the Mickey club house in black.

DH has a coffee and I had a super free Minute Maid lemonade.

Quick service balance - 40 credits - 2 used - new balance - 38

Snack credit balance - 40 - 0 used - new balance - 40

What an enjoyable first day. I enjoyed the flight, and landing at 2pm and heading to the outlets meant we felt like we did loads in a short space of time.

Food wise, I enjoyed my meal on the plane, and Blaze was as superb as ever.

Thanks for reading along.. I’m going to reply to comments now then see if I can get back to sleep. We are off to Magic Kingdom this morning

[4holibobs]

Originally Posted by jools1302

Have the best time! Will be following along... safe journey

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Thanks for following along

Originally Posted by OB1LukeLucas

I love your animal kingdom mug, I feel like I need one in my life! All your plans sound great. Hope you have a fab holiday °o°

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Thank you! I bought the mug in 2016, I have a look out to see if it’s still around and try and remember to post it if it is

Originally Posted by Claudette

Lounge looks good. Do you have to have a holiday booked in order to add it on or can you do it flight only?

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We were given the lounge for free as part of our package. I’m not 100% sure if it can be booked afterwards... I’m sure someone will come along and tell us? Hopefully your DH arrived safely!

Originally Posted by Unexpectedpenny

Well done on the weight loss, that’s an amazing achievement.

Ooo I love those M&S buns. A great way to start the trip! I agree with -


The iced and spiced ones are really tasty too. I eat far more of them than I should but they are just so good! 😋

Following along. I hope you have a lovely holiday

See more...

Thank you! Yes the bun was a real treat after quite a few weeks of being very good!

Originally Posted by Zellotape

Well done on your weight loss! I too have been on WW and lost around 3 and a half stone. However my holiday isnt for a couple of months yet, so im going to have to try and maintain until then!
Looking forward to following a long with your report!

See more...

Thank you and well done also on your weight loss. DH took my photo outside our room and I can’t telk you how nice it was to look at it and not be embarrassed about how I look, so all the hard work has paid off for me. Keep at it, it’s worth it! Thanks for following



Thanks for all the comments everyone!

[nursetina]

Really enjoying your report. We fly on the Wednesday 9.55 virgin flight from Manchester on 25th. We are also staying over night pre travel at Raddison blu so thanks for putting up menus. I think a pre holiday cocktail may be called for. Hope you have an amazing time and I look forward to your updates.

[Joosebug1987]

How have I only just found this? !

Just got myself all caught up and your trip plans sound amazing! Very excited for you!

Fab travel day - love the pixie dust on the plane too. Very nice gesture of them. I'm upset to see the menu has changed as I was looking forward to the pesto pasta they did last time we flew! Boooo!

That pizza looks incredible!

Have a wonderful time and enjoy Magic Kingdom today when you wake!x

[loves2plan]

LOVE the Halloween mug! Really hope they've got some left at the end of October!

[Pez01]

I love the Halloween mug! I want one! Blaze looks great too. Have a super first day at MK 😊

[4holibobs]

Originally Posted by nursetina

Really enjoying your report. We fly on the Wednesday 9.55 virgin flight from Manchester on 25th. We are also staying over night pre travel at Raddison blu so thanks for putting up menus. I think a pre holiday cocktail may be called for. Hope you have an amazing time and I look forward to your updates.

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Ah thank you! Won’t be long for you now.. the Raddison was lovely as usual but I just found it hard to sleep. I notice from your countdown your also on the QSDP - it’s our first time on the plan so I’m really excited to see how it works out for us.

Originally Posted by Joosebug1987

How have I only just found this? !

Just got myself all caught up and your trip plans sound amazing! Very excited for you!

Fab travel day - love the pixie dust on the plane too. Very nice gesture of them. I'm upset to see the menu has changed as I was looking forward to the pesto pasta they did last time we flew! Boooo!

That pizza looks incredible!

Have a wonderful time and enjoy Magic Kingdom today when you wake!x

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Ah I thought I’d mentioned it in the September club? Glad you found it now just as you are getting ready for your trip - won’t be long now at all... happy pre travel day! Hope your back is ok and you have a fabulous time!

Originally Posted by loves2plan

LOVE the Halloween mug! Really hope they've got some left at the end of October!

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When I saw them last year I hoped they would have them now.. they had loads. Fingers crossed they are still here for you!

Originally Posted by Pez01

I love the Halloween mug! I want one! Blaze looks great too. Have a super first day at MK 😊

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Thank you! I’ll post some more photos of the mug below