A Salute To All Things Disney, But Mostly Food - A Feb 15 Dining Report - That's a Wrap 7/18

[Wood Nymph]

Overall the Plaza was a great find for us and one we'll definitely do again as we aren't enamored with the MK counter service options. Our server was nice and attentive and the food delicious and well priced. With our tables in wonderland card we saved $8.72 bringing the total bill to less than $40.

I have mostly read good reviews about the Plaza. I never think about dining here when I am making my ADR selections. Maybe I should choose it for October, since my one "must do", Liberty Tree Tavern, will be closed during the time we are there.

We have a TiW card now, too, and it really seems to make it more sensible to eat table service meals where we can get the discount instead of eating at CS places. And most CS options are pretty bad.

 

[jabead]

I love the photo of Jason and Elsa riding the purple carpet!

As for the Plaza, your great review has reminded me of just how good those fries are. For my upcoming trip in May, I let my three kids choose where we would be dining. Unfortunately they didn't pick the Plaza. I might just have to do something about that.

 

[AndiMarie]

Love your photos and writing style! Your little girl is so cute! Interesting to learn about the chef's code! I had no idea such a code existed!

 

[vettegirl]

I would love to try the Plaza one of these trips! I always have the dining plan and it is not be best use of credits, so I just need to pay oop to try this place!! Love the Tinkerbell pic.

 

[senadler]

We have never tried the Plaza, but had it tentatively scheduled for our next trip. Based on your review of the reuben alone, I am sold. That is probably my favorite sandwich, and you don't find that many really good ones. We will have TIW, and the Plaza looked like a great choice for lunch since there is no discount at counter service locations.

 

[Vernie822]

The Plaza sandwiches (and milkshakes) look delicious. That's somewhere we haven't been to yet but I'm sure we'll end up there soon. Plus it doesn't seem too pricy!

I'm a popcorn fanatic but I haven't tried Disney popcorn yet either. I'll definitely have to try some next time. I usually get 2 bags of the Karamell Kuche caramel corn and savor those throughout the week

 

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

I've eaten at the Plaza many times, but never tried either of your entrees. Even after the milkshakes I can't believe you could pass up the ice cream, it's so yummy.

Totally agree with you about the CS places at MK. And with the TIW card for us the price for lunch at the Plaza or LTT ends up being just a little more than CS but totally worth it.

 

[kastoney]

Some more good food....you are making me hungry as usual. That reuben looked good...I'm not usually a fan of them but...it looked tasty. Funny..I'd never considered the Plaza...something to think about...great location lol. I think I remember my mom scaring me on a whole bunch of rides when I was a kid lol...hopefully she will come around one of these days. Popcorn was a nice recovery though!

Definitely consider The Plaza. It really wasn't on my radar either, but I'm glad we went. Its a great option for lunch.

I have mostly read good reviews about the Plaza. I never think about dining here when I am making my ADR selections. Maybe I should choose it for October, since my one "must do", Liberty Tree Tavern, will be closed during the time we are there.

We have a TiW card now, too, and it really seems to make it more sensible to eat table service meals where we can get the discount instead of eating at CS places. And most CS options are pretty bad.

We're going again in September and will definitely be back to The Plaza. Its a good, solid choice and a great option with LTT out of the mix. No ooey gooey cake, but ice cream can help you get over that ; )

The TiW card is awesome. This was our 3rd trip with it and we've easy saved a couple of hundred dollars.

I love the photo of Jason and Elsa riding the purple carpet!

As for the Plaza, your great review has reminded me of just how good those fries are. For my upcoming trip in May, I let my three kids choose where we would be dining. Unfortunately they didn't pick the Plaza. I might just have to do something about that.

Jason and Elsa make a nice couple don't they ; )

French fries and ice cream, how could anyone deny that ; )

Love your photos and writing style! Your little girl is so cute! Interesting to learn about the chef's code! I had no idea such a code existed!

Thanks so much. I didn't know there was a code either. Not sure if its a real thing or just my controversy adverse husbands excuse for eating bad food.

 

[kastoney]

I would love to try the Plaza one of these trips! I always have the dining plan and it is not be best use of credits, so I just need to pay oop to try this place!! Love the Tinkerbell pic.

It is definitely not a good dining plan value, but "cheap" in comparison take for OOP meal. If nothing else just stop in for some fries and ice cream. Quality "meal" there.

We have never tried the Plaza, but had it tentatively scheduled for our next trip. Based on your review of the reuben alone, I am sold. That is probably my favorite sandwich, and you don't find that many really good ones. We will have TIW, and the Plaza looked like a great choice for lunch since there is no discount at counter service locations.

Hope you enjoy it as much as we did. I can almost taste that reuben now, it was oh so good. And of course you can't beat 20% off.

The Plaza sandwiches (and milkshakes) look delicious. That's somewhere we haven't been to yet but I'm sure we'll end up there soon. Plus it doesn't seem too pricy!

I'm a popcorn fanatic but I haven't tried Disney popcorn yet either. I'll definitely have to try some next time. I usually get 2 bags of the Karamell Kuche caramel corn and savor those throughout the week

Glad to hear I wasn't the only one in the Disney popcorn virgin club. I hadn't realized we'd never had it until we went to order. I haven't done the caramel corn though. Not sure it could last a week for me though ; )

I've eaten at the Plaza many times, but never tried either of your entrees. Even after the milkshakes I can't believe you could pass up the ice cream, it's so yummy.

Totally agree with you about the CS places at MK. And with the TIW card for us the price for lunch at the Plaza or LTT ends up being just a little more than CS but totally worth it.

I know right. I'd planned on getting a sundae for dessert for us to share, but with my sugared up dining companions figured that would have been overload.

TiW and a cheaper TS for lunch is definitely the way to go. Better food, better service, and better bottom line.

 

[Dis_Yoda]

Your flight story sounds so horrible! That is insanity.

Glad you meals are seeming to go rather well outside of the Lobster dish.

 

[kastoney]

Your flight story sounds so horrible! That is insanity.

Glad you meals are seeming to go rather well outside of the Lobster dish.

Complete and utter insanity. Would you believe Frontier said they couldn't refund me because I didn't cancel my flight before it departed, though that was humanly impossible? Clearly they don't believe in disney customer service. Fighting it through my credit card now.

 

[DLFan123]

I keep reading your Flying Fish reviews and wanting to go there! It's too bad we just don't have time during our coming trip! We need to make it for a longer visit so we can do it. The draw of Epcot is just so strong that we always get pulled away.

What a brave girl-sushi and tartar at age 5?!

This Magic Band drama does not sound great! We have ours already...since we are staying at two resorts, we have two sets (all the more room for error, if you ask me), plus our annual passes. I'm told the annual passes are the "tickets" that hold all our info...so maybe we can scan those at FP+ and our hotel rooms. I bet not.

It certainly sounds like you made use of your time at MGM (HS?).

Congrats on becoming passholders!

 

[danjoan14]

So what to do after a situation like this? Eat of course ; ) It wasn't quite time for lunch so we elected to try a Disney first for us POPCORN!!! Now clearly we've eaten popcorn before, just never at Disney for some reason. Blasphemy right?

Disney Popcorn! My favorite!! Always get at least one per day when we visit.....yummy!!!

 

[kastoney]

I keep reading your Flying Fish reviews and wanting to go there! It's too bad we just don't have time during our coming trip! We need to make it for a longer visit so we can do it. The draw of Epcot is just so strong that we always get pulled away.

What a brave girl-sushi and tartar at age 5?!

This Magic Band drama does not sound great! We have ours already...since we are staying at two resorts, we have two sets (all the more room for error, if you ask me), plus our annual passes. I'm told the annual passes are the "tickets" that hold all our info...so maybe we can scan those at FP+ and our hotel rooms. I bet not.

It certainly sounds like you made use of your time at MGM (HS?).

Congrats on becoming passholders!

Woohoo, a trip next month. When are you all going and which resorts are you staying at? So envious. We aren't head back until labor day so its a long wait.

I think we have something like 30 magic bands scattered throughout our house. Perhaps our issues were because we are magic band hoarders?

Good thing I never warmed to Hollywood Studios so I won't have to learn a new name for MGM ; ) I have serious problem where I refuse to learn new names for things. Costco = Price Club; Boston Market = Boston Chicken; KFC = Will always be Kentucky Fried Chicken; and Whatever that park is called with Toy Story Mania = MGM forever

Disney Popcorn! My favorite!! Always get at least one per day when we visit.....yummy!!!

So yummy, so yummy!!! Glad I finally partook

 

[kastoney]

I have a confession to make. I made an ADR. Not that day or even the night before, I made one a couple of weeks before our trip. I know, I know I did something completely out of character and unspontaneous and for that I am not proud. But I knew while we were staying at Wilderness Lodge we'd want to take advantage of our location, so California Grill was a must do. I'm happy to report it wasn't that bad and we all survived and in even more of a confession, I have an ADR booked for our September trip already. #WhoAmI?

Ok, I feel better after getting that off my chest....
So after a quick boat ride to the Contemporary, we were on our way up the special elevator to our of our favorite places on property.

We were quickly seated at some of the booths near the kitchen, which proved a fun vantage point into all the action.


Our server was fabulous and highly attentive, so he quickly noticed the little girl who was still milking her birthday for all it was worth and present our table with some of this....

Which of course promptly ended up here...


While we contemplated our dining choices, we enjoyed some of their rolls

Which despite taking a picture I wrote nothing else down about. But I'm gonna go out on a limb and say they tasted like.....rolls ; )

For our appetizer, we went for the Charcuterie which we had ordered last trip but they'd forgotten to bring us. So of course we weren't going to miss out twice, may I present a plate of meaty and fatty goodness

From left to right we have the following (I think):
Kielbasa - Traditional Smoked Sausage from Eastern Europe, flavored with fresh Marjoram and Garlic. Paired with House-pickled Mustard Seed

Duck Liver Pate - Classic Liver and Onion Pâté whipped light and airy. Paired with Black Cyprus Sea Salt and Red Onion Confiture
Bison Terrine - Great Plains Buffalo, House-cured Bacon, Chestnuts, and Onion paired with Cabernet-Fig Gelée
Organic Honey Picnic Ham - Pork Shoulder cured with Sonoma Sea Salt and Orange Blossom Honey, hot smoked and served chilled. Pairs nicely with spicy Beer Mustard and House-made Pickle Chips
Pork Belly Rillettes - Slow-braised Pork Belly shredded and whipped with Duck Confit and Duck Fat. Served with spicy Mayonnaise and Tempura Crunch.

Going from least to most favorite, we first have the kielbasa. It was kielbasa, it was fine, Casey enjoyed it, and thats all I have to say about that. Next was the ham. Now truth in advertising I'm not a huge ham fan and this did nothing to win me over to the ham fan club. And then we move along to the stars of the plate. Coming in third was the pork rillette. I was expecting a first place finish from this one, but it had a spice to it from the mayo that overpowered the flavor of the pork and duck fat for me. My second favorite was the bison terrine. This had a great beef flavor, but also some sweetness from the fig gelee that was a great combo. And the winner was.....

The duck liver pate. This was creamy and fatty and indulgent and completely perfect. I can almost taste it now as I type.​

We enjoyed a bottle of Gundlach Bundschu (Gun-lock Bun-shoe or Gun Bun for short) with our meal, which is a Sonoma blend of Cab, Merlot, and Zinfandel. We visited this winery on our last trip to California so it not only tasted wonderfully but brought back great memories.

For entree's Jason decided to stick with the pork theme he'd started at Artist Point and he ordered the Pork Two Ways, which is a Grilled Tenderloin and Pork Belly with Goat Cheese Polenta, Mushrooms, and Applesauce

Per Jason the tenderloin was a smaller version of a full dish they used to serve and he'd enjoyed before the renovation. He said it was good, but the artist point pork was better. This side of the plate had mushrooms - my food nemesis - so I stayed away. Conversely I could eat the pork belly side of the plate which was extremely tender and flavorful and paired nicely with the pear and apple.

I had a hard time deciding on my entree, as I had seafood the previous two nights and not wanting that again none of the meat options were speaking to me. Instead I decided to get a couple of appetizers for Casey and I to enjoy as our meal. First we had the Lobster and Butter Squash Bisque

Loving both lobster bisque and butternut squash soup I figured this would be right in my wheelhouse and while it was good it was a little underwhelming. The squash lent nothing but an odd color and while the soup had overall good lobster flavor it was a bit on the thin side for me.

We also tried the flatbread of the season which was Chili & Coffee Rubbed Pork Flatbread with
Washington Red Pear Butter, Pepper Jack Cheese, Fresh Pear, and Coffee BBQ Sauce.

The pork and pear combination worked very well and the coffee lent a surprisingly good flavor profile to the barbecue sauce. While the flavors were good, the flatbread itself was a little soggy and I think it would have worked better with larger pieces of pork vice such a tiny dice. But for $16, it couldn't hold a candle to Via Napoli pizza ; )

For dessert our waiter was kind enough to bring Casey some cookies and ice cream to celebrate her "birthday"


She liked the dessert, but loved blowing out the candle even more.


I'm sure no one will be surprised to know that my betrothed and I elected a liquid dessert for ourselves. With a little help from our waiter we were able to surmise the port we'd enjoyed last trip which was a Fonseco 20 year old tawny port

This was smooth and delicious as it tasted like butterscotch with some cinnamon undertones. It was so good there is now a bottle sitting in my bar ; )

After dinner it was almost fireworks time and by accident Jason discovered a second observation deck back by the private rooms. We headed out there to watch Wishes and I promptly headed back inside as my fear of heights was not having any part of an open platform on the 13th floor.

I'm happy to report though that I had a lovely view from the window inside and Casey and Jason thoroughly enjoyed a fireworks show and balcony all to themselves.

Bellies full of food and wine, we boated it back to the lodge where we enjoyed the evening as we had the previous, in bed sipping even more wine. I just love vacation.

Next up....Waffles for lunch?
​

 

[KathyM2]

Looks like a great meal....and an even better view!! I guess that's one place you might never get in without an ADR...but well worth a personality change for lol

 

[jabead]

​

We also tried the flatbread of the season which was Chili & Coffee Rubbed Pork Flatbread with
Washington Red Pear Butter, Pepper Jack Cheese, Fresh Pear, and Coffee BBQ Sauce.

The pork and pear combination worked very well and the coffee lent a surprisingly good flavor profile to the barbecue sauce. While the flavors were good, the flatbread itself was a little soggy and I think it would have worked better with larger pieces of pork vice such a tiny dice. But for $16, it couldn't hold a candle to Via Napoli pizza ; )​

I felt the same way about my BLT flatbread on my last visit to California Grill. I enjoyed all the toppings but the flatbread itself was pretty much a soggy mess, especially in the middle. I saw that the pork flatbread that you had is actually still listed on their online menu. I was thinking of trying it if it still was when we visit next month. But after seeing your review, I think I'll pass. Thanks for saving me the $16!

 

[Anesthesia Fine]

Ohhhhhh. That all looks amazing. We made a Cali Grill ADR for early September based on a friend's enthusiastic rec and now I am doubly impatient to get there.

 

[Pfau]

So sorry the rillettes didn't win the top spot! It was my all-time Disney favorite. The pate was, of course, delicious but a bit too airy for my liking. Well - I liked it so I suppose I should say a bit too airy for out-loving the rillettes.

We, too, viewed Wishes from the lesser used platform. Enjoying a glass of wine while watching Wishes is one of my most favorite memories of our trip.

Oh oh oh! Waffles for lunch? PLEASE tell me you're eating a Spicy Chicken Waffle!

 

[DLFan123]

What an awesome view! Too bad about your fear of heights. I, too, am afraid of heights, and I can manage a lot of high places, but anything that feels too exposed or open bothers me.

We are staying at AKL CL and YC. It will be our first time at YC, but we've stayed at BC lots of times (BC was all booked for the spring discount by the time we decided on the trip). Our trip is only 5 nights, so I know it will go fast with the split stay. It is DP's (er DW's) birthday, so she got to pick the resorts, and since our last stay at AKL was pretty much her favorite trip ever, this was a must-do. For proximity to Flower and Garden, we love to stay at the Boardwalk/BC area.

Where are you all staying for Labor Day?