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

DisneyJo said:

Brilliant report, thanks so much for sharing

Click to expand...

KathyM2 said:

Yes thanks for sharing! Gonna go check out your new TR now!

Click to expand...

totebagg said:

Love how you wrapped it up and now onto your June trip!

Click to expand...

ursalita said:

Nice summary! See you over there!

Click to expand...

AllyinWonderland said:

Great summary! Thank you again for such a well written report!

Click to expand...

bama belle said:

Sorry- haven't figured out how to reply to part of a quote! I'll be there September 5-9 at the Poly too! It is me and my 14 year old son, so we'll be hitting the parks hard. Right now we have reservations at BOG lunch, 50's PTC, Tusker House breakfast, and Raglan Road. We have done all of these before except for Raglan Road. Trying to figure out if I can fit Kona Cafe breakfast into the schedule because it looks so good! Thanks for your dining review- looking forward to the next one!

Click to expand...

jerseytinkerbell said:

Sorry your last meal at Disney wasn't the best. Those type of overall bad experiences are hard for me to get past, but the food doesn't look like it would make up for a poor check in experience. I have never eaten here because the food looks too boring for the price and I think your review just helped solidify that opinion. At least your little one enjoyed herself and really that's what it's all about in the end.

Click to expand...

cinderkelly said:

Nice wrap up! I like your " best and worst" summary! I'm excited to try Jiko, it looks amazing!

Click to expand...

disneyAndi14 said:

I have really enjoyed your dining reviews, I have silently read along on all of them, so just wanted to chime in on how much I have liked them. Your family looks like you all really enjoy dining at Disney! My dd and I have been going to Disney on mom/daughter trips since she was 5 and she will be 16 this year yikes! and dining is a big part of our trips as well. We will be heading back in early September and have some new ADR's and some all time favs on our list. We are trying Yak and Yeti for the first time so nice seeing your pics and review. Thanks and I will be following along on your new report.

Click to expand...

misscmac said:

Great dining review! Looking forward to reading the next one as well. I wish my daughter would be willing to eat (or even try) foods like yours does!

Click to expand...

vettegirl said:

Thanks taking is along on your adventures and the wonderful summary at the end! Looking forward to the current report you have

Click to expand...

kastoney said:

First and foremost my sincerest thanks to everyone for following along on our dining adventures.

Click to expand...

kastoney said:

Sleepy Hollow - We didn't do many this trip, but that spicy chicken waffle sandwich gets me every time

Click to expand...

kastoney said:

Kona Cafe - Clearly we don't skimp when it comes to adult beverages and we had a lot of really good wine, but there is something about mary, a bloody one that is, and its perfect start to the day

Click to expand...

kastoney said:

Jiko - This Piri Piri Snapper was the best fish I'd ever eaten. Combine tomatoes and butter in a sauce, add a perfectly prepared fish, and top it off with some truffle pap and you've got a winner

Click to expand...

kastoney said:

Overall Best Meal

Click to expand...

kastoney said:

Jiko

Click to expand...

DLFan123 said:

Hi! So I started reading your new report, but I guess your thread is closed??? So I can't comment or anything. Was that something that you requested? Or did that just happen? (Now I really fear they are going to shut me down!!! I better get cracking after work tonight.)

Anyway, I think it's so neat that you just had your first stay at the Poly! Waiting to hear how the rest of your trip turns out. I'm on day 1 now.

Click to expand...

kastoney said:

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?
​

Click to expand...

kastoney said:

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.

Click to expand...