*Live* "Don't fall off your chair" Day 11 - Bob Evans, Shopping & Longhorn Steakhouse - Sun 11th Nov

[Fuellady]

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Day 11 - Bob Evans, Shopping & Longhorn Steakhouse

Sunday 11th November 2018

I woke around 7.20am today feeling hungry, a good sign I thought. Neil was still sleeping but I started getting ready in anticipation of getting out for breakfast - there was no way I was having toast again! When Neil woke up he still didn't feel great, not ill, but as if he were still full from his meal the night before. Still, he agreed to try eating out, and I chose Bob Evans. It was Veterans Day, and I knew that everywhere would be busy, but thought that the one near Posner Park on the US27 would be a better bet than the one on the 192. Whether it was or not we'll never know, but regardless, we had a half hour wait for a table when we arrived at 10am. We waited outside in the sun, they had a loud speaker system to summon the customers when their table was ready.

We were seated at a table for 2 just after 10.30am, and Cindy was our server. We got some coffee to drink, and water as well then placed our food orders. Neil wanted something relatively light, so chose an omelette with a fruit bowl as his side. I chose the Rise n Shine with ham, fried eggs over easy and home fries as my options. It came with white toast, which was much nicer than the toast I'd been having in the villa. I'm sure there used to be an option for hot cakes with this in place of the toast, but I wasn't offered that today. I finished mine (or course), and Neil managed about 1/2 of his omelette and all of the fruit which wasn't bad. It all cost $23.07. I like that there is no tip suggestion on Bob Evans receipts, it's up to the customer. We did, of course, leave Cindy a tip, she was very good.

We were soon on the road again, joining the I4, which was slow in places but reasonable considering how many cars were on the road, it really was very busy. We were headed to the Premium Outlets at Vineland, because I had a 30% off voucher for Roz & Ali (Dressbarn) which expired today. I was all organised today, with screenshots of my vouchers on my phone due to wifi being very limited at the shops. We arrived around 12 noon and as expected, the car park was heaving. We drove round for about 15 minutes, but it was absolute chaos, with cars speeding in front of others to get to a potential space, tooting horns if you dared to stop to let someone manoeuvre etc. We decided it would be better and safer just to pay the $10 and park in the multi storey car park at the end. We are so glad we did, there were loads of spaces and compared to outside it was an oasis of calm!

These outlets are so much easier to get around than the I-Drive ones, being that much smaller. They still have pretty much everything we need and we had a pleasant afternoon shopping. I was annoyed with myself that I had bought quite a few things in Roz & Ali the other day when I didn't have a voucher, and the only purchase I managed today from there was a cardigan. Very disappointing. The other disappointing store for me today was Ann Taylor where I normally manage to stock up on smart workwear, but despite trying on a few things today I left empty handed. Purchases were made in quite a few other stores though, jeans for Neil from Levi's, and a new bag from Kate Spade for me (70% off then a further 25% off = bargain!) amongst others.

As we were finishing up our shopping, we discussed where to eat dinner. Neil was concerned about having anything too heavy but in the end we decided to go to Longhorn Steakhouse, our favourite one right outside the Vineland Outlets. As we were approaching the restaurant there was a few spits of rain, the very first we have seen since arriving in Orlando. The weather really has been outstanding, it's a shame we haven't been able to enjoy it much. We were seated immediately and our sever brought our drinks and bread quickly. Strawberry lemonade for both of us.

I had a couple of slices of the lovely bread, but didn't want to fill up too much on it and Neil only had a tiny corner which is unlike him. We then had a bit of a wait for our steaks, perhaps because our server was now busy behind the bar? Eventually a different server brought our meals over. Neil had chosen the Delmonico, a special that they only have on the menu occasionally. He had been swaying towards it anyway but our server highly recommended it so that made up his mind. He asked only for a salad with this, no other sides. When it came it was really quite overdone (burned!) on the outside although it was cooked perfectly inside. Neil only managed about 1/2 of each of the steak and the salad before he had had enough. He has made me promise to only let him order the Filet next time as I've never had a bad one!

I had ordered my usual here, the 8oz Flo's Filet with mashed potato and broccoli as my sides. The second side is meant to be a salad but I asked to substitute it for broccoli instead which wasn't a problem. It was all very nice, although the broccoli was very garlicky. The total for our evening meal was $61.20 + tip.

It was dark when we left Longhorns but we found our way back to the I4 easily. There are so many cheeky drivers who come all the way up the wrong lane, then squeeze in in front of everyone else. This happened several times on our journey back to the villa tonight. The I4 was slow in parts, mainly where the nearest junctions to Disney join it and our journey was very stop/start. We made it home by 6.40pm and settled in for the evening where we both felt up to having a cider each and some crisps. Things are looking up!

[mick]

Sounds like hubby is starting to feel a little better a nice little shopping haul

Joan

[clubhouse]

Glad you are feeling better. Looks like not a bad shopping haul! We’ve been avoiding the outlets unless we can get there for opening, sounds like parking is terrible. Don’t think I’d be able to convince my other half to part with $10 for the pleasure of me spending even more money!

[margyloveswdw]

Glad to hear you are getting better!

Look forward to reading more.

[JanetteP]

Just had a catch up on your trip report - glad you're feeling better. Don't think I would have eaten the steak at Longhorn though. The villa you are staying in is one I have on my shortlist - it looks lovely, although I agree - you do expect a few bits to be left (which I always replace). I would have panicked too if I couldn't find the key. Would you recommend the villa? - I know it's not a Dibb villa, which I usually choose.

[Fuellady]

Originally Posted by mick

Sounds like hubby is starting to feel a little better a nice little shopping haul

Joan

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Yes, thankfully he is on the mend. We enjoyed our shopping, although we have noticed the bargains aren't the same as they used to be. Thanks for reading Joan

Originally Posted by clubhouse

Glad you are feeling better. Looks like not a bad shopping haul! We’ve been avoiding the outlets unless we can get there for opening, sounds like parking is terrible. Don’t think I’d be able to convince my other half to part with $10 for the pleasure of me spending even more money!

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Thanks you, yes we (me) managed to get a few things. I was surprised when Neil suggested paying for parking, but it was such a good idea. It's not really a massive amount out of holiday spends for peace of mind parked away from all of the chaos. Thanks for reading

Originally Posted by margyloveswdw

Glad to hear you are getting better!

Look forward to reading more.

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It such a relief to be getting on with our holiday now! Thank you for reading

[Fuellady]

Originally Posted by JanetteParker

Just had a catch up on your trip report - glad you're feeling better. Don't think I would have eaten the steak at Longhorn though. The villa you are staying in is one I have on my shortlist - it looks lovely, although I agree - you do expect a few bits to be left (which I always replace). I would have panicked too if I couldn't find the key. Would you recommend the villa? - I know it's not a Dibb villa, which I usually choose.

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Thank you, the steak was definitely burned, they're normally so good at Longhorn as well.

Yes, we would recommend the villa. It's spacious, and spotlessly clean. The furniture is certainly not new, but is of good quality and I think the washer and dryer in the utility are new. There isn't cable TV, only a few channels to choose from, so we've normally had Wesh 2 on most of the time.

The master suite is huge, although the little sitting room on the end seems a bit unnecessary, for us anyway. The only thing that bothers me slightly is that the master suite is completely open plan, no door between the bedroom and the bathroom, although the bedroom door does lock. I do prefer a bit of privacy in the shower! The toilet has a door though, thank goodness!

There are only 2 of us so we are only using one side of the house but the other rooms seem nice enough as well.

This is the only villa we've stayed in where we've paid for pool heat, and the pool heat is clearly on. The water is not freezing like most pools, just pleasant. The spa heats up really nicely when it's been on a while. If you like a shady place to sit, the lanai is always in the shade. It's now 12 noon on a mid November day, so the sun isn't very high in the sky and the pool deck is half in sun, half in shade (excluding the lanai).

The owner was great to deal with, extremely efficient with lots of details provided re alarms, pool doors, directions etc.

Hope this helps. Good luck choosing, there are so many nice villas out there. Thanks for reading

[tonaldsmum]

This afternoon I’ve read your report and my husband and I go at the end of the month, staying on HR also. We love the shopping and Disney springs and eat out most nights and I’m glad of your report in some restaurants we haven’t tried yet.
Enjoy the rest of your trip.
Jayne 😀

[Goldia]

Oh good I'm glad you managed a proper breakfast and dinner, well you did and Neil tried. But hopefully now he's got some proper food inside him he starts to really feel better.

[WileyCoyote]

Pleased you managed to get out for breakfast and dinner.. both excellent choices too ! Flos filet .. it really is the best.
Good you picked up some bargains although the shopping sounded a bit hit and miss.
Hope that this means Neil is properly on the road to recovery .