Disney Dining at Chef Art Smith’s Homecomin’

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When the new restaurant boom started at Disney Springs in 2015, Raymond and I couldn’t wait to start including those new places in our vacation plans.  Always up for a new dining experience, we started with Morimoto Asia, The Boathouse, and Jock Lindsey’s Hangar Bar and enjoyed them all.  Then Chef Art Smith’s Homecomin’ opened to rave reviews last July and it went straight to the top of our to-do list.  Unfortunately, we weren’t able to squeeze in a visit during our December, 2016 Christmas trip or on our Dark Side Challenge trip in April.  Every time we planned to visit Disney World, I tried to find a way.  It finally worked out.

Disney Dining at Chef Art Smith’s Homecomin’

When I realized Raymond and I would be arriving at Disney World early in the day on November 10th, I immediately made and ADR for lunch at Homecomin’.  As soon as the Magical Express from Port Canaveral dropped us off, we delivered our suitcases to our room in Bay Lake Tower and caught a bus from the Contemporary to Disney Springs.  We killed time before our 12:25 pm reservation by doing a little Christmas shopping and stopping in at The Polite Pig to try some craft beer.

At long last – it was time for lunch.  Everything about Homecomin’ was welcoming.  In an upscale farmhouse way, the atmosphere does much to contribute to the overall experience.  It’s bright, cheerful, and has just the right number of whimsical touches.  I especially loved the selection of chicken-themed merchandise and décor.

In the dining room, our table was right in the middle of the action.  We were surrounded by groups of cheerful people.  Ladies lunching, families vacationing, everyone happily enjoying the food and hospitality – all signs of a great restaurant!  We ordered up a couple of beers and settled in for a visit.

Here’s when Raymond and I miss our big family vacations – with only the two of us, we can’t realistically order lots of dishes to try when we’re in a new restaurant.  After giving the menu careful attention, we decided on the Jasper Board appetizer (“An array of Southern goodness perfect for sharing with the table. Smoked fish dip, pimento cheese, shaved country and Tasso hams, bread and butter pickles, candied pecans and buttermilk crackers“).  For his entrée, Raymond chose Art’s Famous Fried Chicken (“Buttermilk-brined for 24 hours then perfectly fried and served with creamy mashed potatoes, a cheddar drop biscuit and love.”) and I ordered the Florida Grouper (“Fresh grouper grilled and served KC Greens with iron skillet sweet potatoes“).

First, the Jasper Board.  Oh, YUM!  If you’ve read some of our other reviews, you know we love charcuterie boards and cheese plates.  The Jasper Board was everything we love and more!  For many people, I realize “smoked fish dip” sounds dubious, but it was absolutely fantastic.  We tried (really, we did) to save room to do our entrées justice and maybe share a dessert, but failed miserably.  Like ravenous dogs, we fell upon poor Jasper and, well, were somewhat ashamed of how quickly those meats, cheeses, nuts, and pickles disappeared.

Raymond’s fried chicken and mashed potatoes tasted as good as they looked.  Comfort food with attitude.  The flavors were wonderful!  My fish was seasoned well, as were the sweet potatoes – both delicious.   I had deliberately ordered the grouper because it came with greens.  Completely unfamiliar with greens when I moved to Louisiana, I found them to be an acquired taste.  I love them now, but they must be prepared exactly the right way.  I judge all greens by the ones I get at a little BBQ place in Jackson, Mississippi called the Pig & Pint.  I expected Chef Art Smith’s to be the weak link in an otherwise perfect dining experience.  I’m delighted to say I was wrong!

When our server came by to check on us, I mentioned how the greens tasted exactly the way I’d hoped and they must have been made with the right ingredients, then he and I said at exactly the same time, “with apple cider vinegar and brown sugar”.  It seems that Chef Art also adds a bit of cayenne for a little extra kick.  Very tasty.

So full we could barely push away from the table, I was glad I’d made no dinner plans for that night!  As we waddled off, we were hoping all the walking we were about to do in the parks would wear off some of those calories.  Of course we want to go back to Homecomin’ to try more dishes and maybe even save room for dessert.  We can’t wait to take the rest of The Fam.  With our next family vacation coming up in May, I’ll be booking our ADRs mere days from now.  Fingers crossed!

Have you been to Chef Art Smith’s Homecomin’?  How did you like it?  If you haven’t had the chance to try it yet, we highly recommend it!

 

 

Magical Disney Moments are Alive and Well

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In the weird way of coincidences, Nick, Dave and I recorded episode 153 of The Disney Exchange on my 53rd birthday.  I was filling the guys in on my recent trip and afterwards remembered a story I meant to share about one particularly awesome Disney moment in a vacation chock full of them.  Before I tell you all about it, let me emphasize something…

Magical Disney Moments are Alive and Well

In my last post, I mentioned the perfect same-day FastPass I managed to snag for Tower of Terror while we were finishing up our touring plans at Magic Kingdom.  Raymond and I hopped to the Studios, arriving about an hour before our FastPass window opened.  We took our time soaking up the Christmas-y atmosphere on our way to 50’s Prime Time’s Tune-In Lounge for a beer.  It’s our go-to place now that Min & Bill’s Dockside Diner doesn’t carry good craft beers anymore.

We couldn’t have been happier or feeling more Disney-ish.  Peppy Christmas music was playing and one of us might have actually been dancing down the street in joy.  I was wearing my favorite Darth Vader holiday shirt.  As we made our way along, we spotted a couple of Storm Troopers on patrol.  I’ve been super excited about Galaxy’s Edge and have loved the build-up to it with more and more Star Wars action in the park.  I soon found myself walking right behind one of the Storm Troopers and quietly said to his back, “I’m with the Resistance.”

Much to my surprise, he heard me!  Before I took another step, that Storm Trooper spun around and jumped back, pointing at me!  Very loudly, he informed me, “The Resistance will be crushed by the weight of the First Order!”

I can’t imagine what my facial expression must have been.  I was shocked!  I was thrilled!  And slightly embarrassed (I actually blushed).  What a cool thing to happen!  Then the Trooper abruptly spun back around and continued on his way.  I looked at Raymond and found him very clearly amused at this unexpected turn of events.

To remember the occasion, we made sure to get a picture of us channeling The Force in front of Tower of Terror.

In case you’ve heard some negativity lately about the decline of Disney magic at Walt Disney World, I’m happy to say that it’s alive and well and still making us happy after nearly 30 years of visits.  When we arrived at Tower of Terror, a bellhop named Michael was so amazing, he had the entire group in our service elevator laughing hysterically before the doors closed.  It’s still there, the magic, you just have to watch for it!

Have you had a magical Disney moment lately?

Disney Sea-and-Land Vacation 2017 Highlights

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We got home late Monday night from a whirlwind 10 nights away from home!  Was it everything we’d hoped for?  Absolutely! It was vacation perfection!  Everything went exactly as planned and we soaked up every bit of Disney magic that came our way.  I have heaps of restaurant, resort, and stateroom reviews to write, but today I wanted to share with you our…

Disney Sea-and-Land Vacation 2017 Highlights

The Disney Dream and Stateroom #6086 – There was something extra special about this room.  It was cozy, in a great mid-ship location and, most importantly, quiet.  We could detect no vibrations or engine/mechanical sounds at all.  The room could sleep up to five and we enjoyed having all that space to ourselves with lots of storage for all of our stuff.  The very subtle creaking of the ship at night was soothing and our veranda allowed us to enjoy the picture perfect tropical sunshine.

Incredible November Weather – Calm seas, no wind, clear skies, water and air temperatures in the low 80’s.  We couldn’t have asked for more.  Castaway Cay especially was absolute paradise.

Nassau Scuba Excursion – After all that work on our PADI Advanced Open Water certifications, we finally got to see absolutely amazing sights!  We swam with sharks, we explored a gorgeous reef, two shipwrecks and, like Nemo, made it to the drop-off.  I’ll give this one an entire post of its own because we were blown away by the experience.

Bonnie, Santosa, Gede, Nanad, and Baruk, and Kirk – Bonnie and Santosa were are main dining room servers and went above and beyond when we were tired and hangry.Gede was our amazing stateroom host and called us by name from the moment we met and each and every time he saw us.  Master of the towel animal, Gede made his first ever shark just for us after our scuba excursion.  Nanad was our lunch server and soon became our friend – he was so interesting and we loved talking to him about his home country of Croatia.

Baruk was the man in charge of changing dining assignments.  He took pity upon us after we had to take a nap in order to go to dinner (late seating) on the first night and found us a table for early/main dining.  We would not have had nearly as good a time if we’d kept late seating.  Finally, Kirk in the Cove Café knew exactly what coffee we wanted after the very first morning and greeted us cheerfully every day with caffeine and a smile.

Snorkeling at Castaway Cay – We did this once before back in 2010 and it was very similar.  This time we opted for the adults-only version of this excursion.  We had plenty of time to leisurely explore a beautiful reef in shallow water before zipping off through the waves for a party on a sand bar.

The New Beauty and the Beast Show – Words cannot describe how fantastic this new stage show is on the Dream.  Wow!  It’s unlike anything else we’ve seen on a Disney Cruise Ship and will be the measurement everyone uses for all other shows.  Outstanding!!!

Dinner at Palo – Igor from Croatia took great care of us as we stuffed ourselves on all those delicious Palo dishes.  We didn’t know the famous Chocolate Soufflé came in an Amaretto version…and it is positively scrumptious!

Coming Home to Bay Lake Tower – We caught the first bus out of Port Canaveral to get a jump on the “Land” portion of the trip.  We arrived at Bay Lake Tower ready to store our luggage until our room was ready, but no need!  Victor at the front desk had a room waiting for us on the 11th floor.  We dropped off our suitcases, fixed up a small park bag and were off!  FYI:  That lobby scent gets a little extra cinnamon boost for the holidays and it is amazing!

Chef Art Smith’s Homecoming in Disney Springs – We’d heard so many great things about this new-ish eatery and we were not disappointed!  Full review coming in the next few days.  (Spoiler: We cannot wait to go back!!!)

Pass-Holder Seating for Eat to the Beat – We heard there was special seating available for pass-holders for the Eat to the Beat concerts, so we headed on over to the Festival Center to see if any seats were left.  There were!  We ended up center-stage about midway down in the reserved section for Big Bad Voodoo Daddy and it was GREAT!  All we had to do was show up about 15 minutes before the 6:45 show time wearing the stickers provided.  Wonderful perk!

Unusual Happenings on the Boardwalk – We were going to visit the AbracadaBar before dinner Saturday night at the Swan’s Il Mulino.  Raymond and I, having detoured through World Showcase for a couple of orders of Brazil’s Crispy Bork Belly, arrived to find the entire ESPN-side of the Boardwalk had been evacuated!  It took us a few minutes to find out there was a suspected (or actual, maybe) fire in the ESPN Club.Thankfully, we found the Belle Vue Lounge nearly deserted and grabbed a table there.  After a few minutes, a couple of firemen walked through and it appeared the hullaballoo was over.  The ordeal was handled very professionally and wasn’t chaotic at all.

Dinner With Friends – We were lucky enough to be at Disney World at the same time as our friends Linda and Phillip.  Our night out was tons of fun and we found out that Linda will be back at Disney World again in February when we will also be there!  Disney friends are the BEST!!! (Thanks again for the coffee mug, Linda!  You know me too well!)

Finally Meeting @DadForDisney for Citrus Swirls – I’ve mentioned Tim Brooks here and on social media many times before.  Tim has been my friend via blogging, Facebook and Twitter for about four years and this is the first time we’ve ever met face-to-face.  We’re both big Orange Bird fans, so it was only right for us to meet up at Sunshine Tree Terrace for some Citrus Swirls.  Again, Disney friends!

The Unexpected FastPass – After spending most of Sunday in Magic Kingdom, we found we had some time on our hands before our reservation at Yachtsman Steakhouse.  Out of curiosity, I decided to see what FastPasses might be available at the Studios since we didn’t keep our original plan of being there that morning for rope-drop.  Imagine my surprise when Tower of Terror popped up at precisely the right time for us.  It was like a little last-day pixie dust.

Feeling Young(er) – There’s something about it being just the two of us.  We did miss our kids!  Absolutely!  There were many moments when we lamented their absence because of how much they would have loved certain moments and experiences.  That being said, Raymond and I were footloose and fancy free.  We laughed a lot, we were excited about our adventures.  We were able to take in each day of this vacation at our own pace and as a couple.  Something about being alone on vacation allowed us to remain more in the moment while recapturing that long ago time when we were all there was.  I wouldn’t change a single thing.

Thanks for reading!  Have you taken a Disney vacation without your children?  How did it go?

 

 

 

 

 

Walt Disney World – Great Places to Explore Outside the Parks

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There are lots of magical little corners of the World to be found outside the hustle and bustle of the parks.  Today I want to talk about a few of our favorites.

Walt Disney World – Great Places to Explore Outside the Parks

The walkway between the Grand Floridian and the Polynesian Village Resorts – For us, this is a must-do anytime we’ve dined at Citricos or Narcoossee’s.  We’ll walk off our dinner with a stroll from the Grand Floridian to the Poly.  It’s a beautiful, peaceful way to end the evening.  If we time it right, we can stop on the boat dock at the Polynesian and watch the Electrical Water Pageant go by.  Disney World's Electrical Water PageantOnce we arrive at the Polynesian, we’ll catch the monorail back to Magic Kingdom for a resort bus if we’re not staying in that area.  If we’re staying at Bay Lake Tower (more likely than not), we’ll take the monorail home.  

Fort Wilderness – This is one of my favorite places in the World and we’ve never stayed there!  Sure, the Hoop Dee Doo Musical Review is a draw for many, but the entire resort is incredibly interesting.  Feels like no place else at Walt Disney World and has the added bonus of being the home of the Tri-Circle-D Ranch!  We got to explore the ranch’s horse barn during our Wilderness Back Trail Adventure Segway Tour (highly recommend!).  While we were there, we also took the time to visit the gift shop (very cool!) and explore the resort.  If you’re looking for something different, consider either the Segway Tour or a carriage ride or horseback riding at the ranch.    The Boardwalk at Walt Disney World

Disney’s Boardwalk – A great place to explore anytime of the day, but evening is when the Boardwalk really comes alive.  Live performers like mimes and magicians, lounges for a pre-dinner cocktail, ice cream, snacks, and more.  It took us years (and years!) to visit the Boardwalk for the first time and now that we know what’s there, we visit an almost every trip to the World.  We especially love the Flying Fish Café for a nice dinner and the AbracadaBar for a well-themed libation stop.  

Animal Kingdom Lodge and the Savannah Overlook – If you’ve never taken the time to visit Animal Kingdom Lodge, you need to squeeze it in on your next visit.  The place is spectacular and, you know, ANIMALS!  It’s very cool to step out of the lobby and check out the wildlife.  Whether you’re at Jambo House or the Kidani Village area of Animal Kingdom, there’s a lot to see.  We try to go over in the late afternoon straight from Disney’s Animal Kingdom (park) to see the sights and maybe enjoy an adult beverage at the Victoria Falls Lounge.  If we can add dinner at Boma, Sanaa, or Jiko…all the better!  Tip:  If you only have time for a snack, visit Sanaa after you check out the savannah at Kidani Village and order their famous Indian-Style Bread Service!  You won’t be sorry.

When you’re at Disney World, where are your favorite places to visit outside the parks?