The One Where Brett Turns 40- Day 8 MK, Caseys, GF, Enchanted Rose, Cheddars 13/11/22

[princessnicki]

We got ready and got an Uber over to the Contemporary. Today was the first of our Magic Kingdom days and the park was super busy due to Veterans Day weekend. The weather didn’t look too great but the cast members said any rain that was due wouldn’t last long. The rain arrived so we took shelter in the stores on Main Street. We ended up in Casey’s just as it opened so decided to split Holiday Dinner Dog (All-Beef Hot Dog with Cranberry Mustard, Savory Stuffing Funnel Cake, and Cheese Curds). and a side of Chilli Fries

I really wanted my beloved Corn Dog Nuggets but we said we wanted to do as many new or seasonal things this trip rather than repeat the same as last time. The hot dog was actually really delicious, the crispy salty funnel cake paired really well with the meat and the sweet cranberry, plus who doesn’t love a cheese curd. We have a soft spot for the Disney fries too! I was a little disappointed that the toppings bar isnt back but sadly not surprised!

The rain was really starting to pour down and our table was getting soaked so a lovely lady from Idaho let us share her table as she was fully under cover. She had the cutest little boy with eyelashes to die for and he kept blowing kisses and pointing at our fries- she told us she had adopted him as a baby and was celebrating his 1st birthday in Disney with her husband and family.


I had booked a slot for Seven Dwarfs and was praying the rain would stop as I didn’t fancy getting soaked and luckily it did. This is one of Bretts favourite rides and it didn’t disappoint. Unfortunately we didn’t get our picture or video- this is something that happened to us a lot on this trip which was really frustrating

After walking around Fantasyland for a bit, we picked up a La Fou’s Brew (Frozen Apple Juice with a hint of Toasted Marshmallow and topped with All-Natural Passion Fruit-Mango Foam) from Gaston’s Tavern.

This sadly wasn’t as good as we remember, the toasted marshmallow and apple were now overpowered by the Passion fruit foam. I heard someone else make the same comment and the cast member told them to mix it all together and it balances the flavours out more so I wonder if this was an occurring complaint. She was correct though it improved a lot once mixed

We headed over to Tomorrowland for our return time on Space Mountain. This is such a classic fun ride

We saw Buzz doing a distanced meet and greet on the stage so Brett grabbed a quick selfie. The characters on this trip were definitely a let down for us, we miss the traditional meet and greets- there isnt many of them anymore and so that means long lines for the ones they do have. There is also a lack of Photopass photographers and the camera boxes just don’t capture the special moments. I think we met 5 characters this time and we easily did double if not treble that amount last time

It started to drizzle again so we jumped on Carousel of Progress- we had the coolest t-shirts for this ride but we didn’t manage to get a picture for some reason. I cant help but love this ride, pure Disney nostalgia

The sun was back when we came out and walked back to the hub. It was packed and we saw that Ne-yo was filming the Xmas Day special for Disney+ in front of the castle

Brett said he fancied a Dole whip so we headed into Adventureland and picked up a Tropical Serenade (Pineapple-Orange-Guava Juice, Coconut Soft-serve, and an Upside-down Pineapple Cake Pop) from Aloha Isle.

This was amazing! It is probably my favourite version of the Dole Whip that we have sampled so far. The icecream is so creamy smooth and coconut heavy, the POG juice is pure fruity tropical heaven and the cake pop was delicious too.

We noticed that the Jasmine meet and greet surprisingly had a short line, we timed it right as we were the last people in before it closed for her break. This was a really short interaction but we don’t mind that on the face characters- she loved Bretts genie tattoo and wished him a happy 40th and invited us to party in Agraabah

It was now time for our Big Thunder Mountain timeslot and we absolutely love the wildest ride in the wilderness!

We walked past the Spring roll cart and got one Cheeseburger and one 50th anniversary special (Pastrami and Pepper Jack). The cheeseburger one tasted like a spring roll version of the Cheeseburger pods (so basically a McDonalds Cheeseburger) and the 50th was quite salty and a little spicy. We found these nice and crispy rather than soggy with a decent amount of filling in the 50th one

We had a return time for Jingle Cruise in two hours and our pre-booked timeslot for Splash Mountain but we decided to cancel them. I think Magic Kingdom is our least favourite park even though we love the theming of each land and walking around the park.

Instead we decided to spend some time at the Grand Floridian and I wanted to try the new walkway- it feels like such a long walk compared to the Contemporary walkway but we enjoyed it. We saw what we thought was a snake in the grass- Brett was not happy, they are his kryptonite! He always says he isnt scared of anything or anyone except snakes!

We entered the hotel through the back door and was hit by the amazing smell of the lobby- I don’t think I will ever not be blown away by the lobby. The piano player was playing classic Disney tunes and we saw the Gingerbread House for the first time, it was so beautiful!

We wanted to try the cocktails at Enchanted Rose. It was very busy so we couldn’t sit at the bar but managed to get a lovely table in the side room.

I wanted to try the Garden Daisy which was Tequila and Midori but they couldn’t do it for some reason so our server offered me the Sunny Margarita (Patrón Silver Tequila, Grand Marnier Cordon Rouge, Juices of Orange and Lime, and Agave) Marg #13

This was really nice, very citrus heavy and refreshing with a good hit of alcohol, but I’m still not 100% sure if a Marg needs orange juice

Brett ordered Seasonal Old Fashioned (Widow Jane 10yr Straight Bourbon Whiskey, House-made Seasonal Syrup, and Bitters)

He really enjoyed this- it was the winter version so was garnished with fresh rosemary. It was very spirit heavy and the whiskey had cinnamon notes so it had a very Christmas feel about it- it was a little on the sweet side too, there may have been vanilla or caramel in there

Lavender Fog (Nolet’s Silver Dry Gin, Rothman Crème de Violette, English Breakfast Tea, Vanilla, and Cream)

Hands down the best cocktail at Disney! Wow this is so good- it is rich, creamy, smooth and has sweet hints of Parma violet

Brett said he fancied a glass of wine and our server helped him choose Selbach-Oster Riesling Kabinett.

He absolutely fell in love with this and ordered it several times over the trip- he decided that Riesling is his new go to wine. It is light and sweet with peach and pear notes- we have found that Brett definitely loves his wine with peach undertones

We were enjoying ourselves so much and encouraged by our server, we decided to order the same round again- totally worth it as that cocktail is absolutely fantastic and I am constantly craving this since we got home. This bar is absolutely stunning, it has such a chilled out atmosphere and the servers are amazing. We really enjoyed just relaxing here and chatting over a drink. The cocktails are pricier but they are some of the nicer ones on Disney property. It is a shame they no longer do the fancy table side ones though.

We had another walk through the lobby and the Greeter came talking to us- he was so funny and chatty. He was telling us how he visited London and found out by chance that his favourite band, The Rolling Stones, happened to be playing at Hyde Park and managed to get a last minute ticket. He said it was one of the best trips of his life.

We definitely needed some food now as we hadn’t had much to eat at all today. Brett said he fancied something hearty and substantial- I knew just the place! We got an uber over to Cheddars Scratch Kitchen and it looked absolutely heaving, but luckily they said it was a 15 minute wait. We had a wander around the area and found a Liquor store so Brett got himself a bottle of Riesling to enjoy at Thanksgiving. We were soon called to our table and were seated in a lovely booth. Our server was the coolest guy and chatted away to us- he asked if we wanted to use the ipad and we said no, he said don’t worry I got you. The menu is huge so we had no idea what to order- our server recommended Brett ordered a combo if he was hungry so he could try a couple of things

We started with the famous Honey Butter Croissants and these are as amazing as everyone says. Flaky croissants dripping in sticky sugary honey butter, what more could you want

Ribs and Chicken Tenders with Caesar Salad and Corn

Brett absolutely loved this- the chicken tenders are so fresh and not greasy with a lovely crispy seasoned batter, I believe they are home made on site. The ribs were really good quality and the meat just fell off the bone- they were smokey and marinated in a gorgeous sweet BBQ sauce. The salad was delicious too and had a decent amount of Parmesan on top.

Lemon Pepper Chicken over Rice with Broccoli and Mash and Gravy

This was a generous portion with two pieces of chicken- it had a nice peppery seasoning and was cooked really well and wasn’t dry at all. The mash was the traditional American version with skin on potato and was so buttery smooth and rich. The broccoli was tender and had a slight crunch to it. I really enjoyed this dish, it was a good combo of light and hearty.

To drink we had Painkiller (Pusser's rum, cream of coconut, pineapple juice, orange juice, toasted coconut rim, topped with nutmeg)

We were told this is the strongest drink they sell by our server but it was another dangerous drink that probably masks how much alcohol is in there. It was delicious and so easy to drink- it was tropical, coconut heavy and had a nice hit of rum. Brett absolutely loved this and couldn’t believe the size of it

Grande Top Shelf Margarita Marg #14 (Sauza Hacienda Gold tequila, Grand Marnier, on-the-rocks)
Oh my gosh i dont know what i was thinking when i ordered this but i didnt realise Grande meant the size of the drink- it was huge! As the ice started to melt, it kept filling the glass back up and in the end i admitted defeat and left most of it as it was just too much liquid. I really enjoyed it though and such a bargain price compared to other cocktails in Orlando.

We genuinely enjoyed this meal and it was our cheapest sit down meal of the whole holiday- we would definitely return here as I had my eye on the Monte Cristo. This group of restaurants really has amazing service and food- we tried here, Capital Grille, Yard House and Seasons 52 and couldn’t fault any of them. It was clearly full of locals enjoying family Sunday night dinner which was lovely to see. We got home and watched Sunday night football in bed