Disney Dining Review – Whispering Canyon Cafe

Posted on February 11, 2016 by greenlisa9989@yahoo.com

Need a Magic Kingdom park-break? Craving a terrific meal in a great setting? Got a hungry group or family to please? Have I got a restaurant for you!

Whispering Canyon Cafe, located in Disney’s beautiful and majestic Wilderness Lodge, offers guests a unique, and delicious dining option just a quick boat-ride away from the Magic Kingdom or a bus-ride from the other three parks. Didn’t I make that sound wonderful? The real deal is that Whispering Canyon is plain old fun! Worth the trip no matter how you get there. The theme is western, the food American, and the service will be either hilariously ridiculous or the usual service of the excellent Disney variety – you get to decide if you are ready to be part of the action or if you just want to watch and enjoy some tasty comfort food.

Raymond and I booked lunch at Whispering Canyon based on reviews we’d read and recommendations from Disney World food fans like us. Having had poor luck with meals in the past at Artist Point, we were hoping Whispering Canyon would become our go-to dining choice at Wilderness Lodge – a resort we love to visit! We booked for lunch on a Magic Kingdom day and the break could not have been more perfect. The weather was gorgeous and our FastPasses were spaced just right to have enough time to get to Wilderness Lodge, enjoy a leisurely lunch, and get back to rides and attractions.

Our first impressions were great! We gave our name at the podium and were seated immediately. The décor is adorable! We were seated near the middle of the room which gave us an excellent vantage point from which to view the action. If you’ve been to 50’s Prime Time Café at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Whispering Canyon’s experience is a bit like that one, but (to me) better. I don’t want to spoil it for you, but if you have a good sense of humor and don’t mind being picked on a little, you’ll enjoy Whispering Canyon. (If you’re on the Disney Dining Plan, you’ll use one table service credit to eat there.) The crowd during our lunch was mostly made up of families and groups of friends who were there to embrace all that this special place has to offer.

After a quick glance at the menu, we decided to split the Slow-smoked Pulled Pork Spring Rolls with Sweet Chili Dipping Sauce for $12.49. These were absolutely fantastic! We each ordered a different beer to try (both brews were new to us) and Raymond decided to go with a burger and sweet potato fries (Bacon-Cheese Angus Burger -Thick-cut Praline Bacon, Sharp White Cheddar, and House Ketchup with your choice of House-made Idaho Potato Chips, French Fries, Sweet Potato Fries, or Cucumber Salad -$17.49). I thought a basic tuna melt sounded exactly right (Tuna Melt on Sourdough Bread with Vine-ripened Tomatoes, Sharp White Cheddar, Arugula, and Herb-Olive Oil – $14.49). We were very happy with our choices and before we knew it, our bellies were too full for dessert and we could hear our FastPasses for Space Mountain calling to us. We headed to the boat dock and enjoyed the scenery on our way back to Magic Kingdom.

Absolutely we will be making a return visit to Whispering Canyon at the earliest opportunity! Our expectations were high and we were not disappointed. Good food, fun atmosphere, excellent service…all in gorgeous Wilderness Lodge.

Have you eaten at Whispering Canyon? How’d you like it?

Disney World – Chosen for Extra Security Screening

Posted on February 10, 2016 by greenlisa9989@yahoo.com

You may have heard about Walt Disney World’s new park security screening involving the use of walk-through metal detectors. In December of 2015, Disney began to randomly screen guests entering Disney World’s four parks. Initially, this screening is (was?) being conducted by a third party company until Disney is able to hire, train and implement their own in-house screening process. Certainly for many Disney fans, this latest reminder of the outside reality of mass shootings and other acts of violence signaled a certain loss of innocence for Disney World and Disney park guests – an intrusion on the carefully crafted magic that makes a Disney vacation particularly special. I have something to say about this based on recent experience.

I’ll admit it – when I first heard about metal detectors being installed near the bag-check areas of Disney World parks I was sad. The units would detract from the beauty of the park entrances, the reminder of the real world would negatively impact my enjoyment of the Disney Bubble. Heck, the lines would move slower and take much longer. Nothing good would come of this…except safety and added peace of mind, that is. This is the world we live in today. How horrible would it be if our favorite vacation destination became tainted with tragedy? I’m all for this new security screening and, after having experienced it myself, can tell you it is absolutely no big deal.

I was chosen for extra security screening. Raymond and I came down the monorail ramp, making our way to the entrance for Epcot. As is our custom, Raymond went on through the entrance for guests without bags while I headed for the bag-check area. Once my bag had been inspected, I started forward looking for Raymond when I security guard addressed me by saying, “You’ve been chosen for extra security screening, Princess, please step this way.” I was asked to place my bag on a table and step through a metal detector (with no wait). I retrieved my bag and was on my way in mere seconds. This was no major inconvenience – nor even a minor one. It was a less than a minute of time and absolutely no big deal. The screening personnel were professional yet friendly and being called “Princess” didn’t hurt my feelings either.

I’ve heard much feedback on social media about Disney’s newest security measures. Many remarks involve mixed feelings and criticisms about the process. I’m all for anything necessary to keep my family and our memories safe. I hope Disney continues to develop and implement whatever screening processes are necessary in the volatile and complex world we’re living in today.

What are your thoughts on the new Disney World metal detectors? Should Disney be doing more? Is this newest protocol too much? Please leave a comment.

Heimlich from A Bug’s Life

Posted on February 6, 2016 by greenlisa9989@yahoo.com

Happy Saturday, Disney Friends! This week we’re taking a look at yet another amazing item from Nick’s collection. I’ve always been a fan of A Bug’s Life and Heimlich in particular. Enjoy!

Heimlich from A Bug’s Life

By Nick

Stuffed Heimlich. Is that a redundant statement?
(See, Heimlich eats a lot, until he’s, you know, stuffed!) Tap-tap, is this thing on?

Today, I share a couple of Heimlich’s from the Pixar film, “A Bug’s Life’, from my wife’s collection. The 1st one is a fairly large stuffed figure.

Obviously it’s from the Disney Store, but I have no other info, as my wife cut the tags off.

This next stuffed Heimlich is much smaller, and has a plastic face.

Like the bigger figure, the tags have been removed, and there is no indication as to where it came from.

What, you may ask, is a squishy Heimlich?

This is a squishy Heimlich:

Heimlich is from Pixar’s “A Bug’s Life” released in 1998. While it isn’t my favorite Pixar movie by far, it has a special place in my heart as it was the first movie my wife and I saw in a theater together.
Having this special place made me collect Bug’s Life everything. Heimlich, however, is from my wife’s collection.

What drew my wife to Heimlich the caterpillar? His accent, for one. And his love of food for the other. In fact here he is going in for the kill now!

He is rubber, and filled with some sort of, well, squishy, material. Sadly, 14 years on, the squishy material has hardened into a ball inside of Heimlich’s belly, and he is not nearly as much fun to squeeze anymore.

Made by 4 Kidz Inc. for Disney/Pixar.

Here is another squishy Heimlich. This is a keychain. I think. A REALLY big keychain. I have no idea who would need such a large key chain, but, as I don’t know what else the hook would be used for, I’m calling it a keychain.

Alas, he suffers from the same fate as the larger figure, as he has lost his squishiness.

Also made by 4 Kidz.

To read more about Nick’s amazing Disneyana collection and all his Disney adventures, visit the Disney Musings Blog and follow him on Twitter, on Facebook, on Instagram, and on Pinterest. You can also listen to Nick, our friend Dave, and me on The Disney Exchange Podcast where we talk about….well, I bet you can guess.

Headed to Walt Disney World in 2016 for the Princess Half Marathon? The Disney Exchange Podcast will be having a meet-up on Sunday, February 21st! Details will be available on The Disney Exchange’s Facebook Page and also on Twitter. We’d love to see you there!!!

Disney Planning – Disney Dream 4-Night Cruise

Posted on February 5, 2016 by greenlisa9989@yahoo.com

I am so stoked about our upcoming Disney Cruise. Sure, I have a little weekend at Walt Disney World first during which I need to run 19.3 miles, but hey! Once that’s behind me, Raymond and I are off to Port Canaveral to catch our ride…uhm boat…I mean SHIP for our first cruise aboard the Disney Dream.

This will be our 7th Disney Cruise, but the first one sailing from Florida since 2010. We’ve missed the Disney land-and-sea combo! We’ve missed Castaway Cay! I’m admittedly feeling a teeny bit apprehensive about sailing on one of Disney Cruise Lines newer, larger ships. All of our previous cruises have been on either the Magic or the Wonder. Will the Dream seem foreign? Will I get lost? Will I like it as well as our two favorite ships? We shall see. I am, however, really excited about our plans. So today I’d like to share with you the five things I’m most looking forward to!

Disney Planning – Disney Dream 4-Night Cruise

Dining at Remy! If you’ve read any of my previous cruise trip reports then you already know that we are HUGE fans of the adults-only dining aboard Disney Cruise Line. We always have at least one meal at Palo (this cruise is no different). Since this will be our first opportunity to check out Remy, we decided we should have both brunch and dinner there. In the interest of research. For you. We are totally doing it for you. (Seems awesome now that we have Remy in our kitchen in the form of cruise art we purchased a few years back on another Disney Cruise.)
Nassau. We are looking forward to this port of call because we are staying on the ship! We have no excursion plans. We are hoping all our fellow cruisers will get up and go…right off the ship so we can have the place to ourselves. We’ve booked dining and spa treatments and personally, I’m planning to rest my feet with this in mind…
The Castaway Cay 5k. I’m a little disappointed that there’s no runDisney, post-Glass Slipper Challenge, official Castaway Cay 5k the way there was last year. It meant an extra medal and was a very cool deal. In fact, if I remember correctly, Raymond thought we should book this very cruise just so I could take advantage of the opportunity should it again be offered. Oh, well, the regular 5k on Castaway Cay (Disney’s private tropical island paradise) should still be available and I bet Raymond will run it with me to keep me company…which will be excellent. (Love you, Honey!)
Senses Spa – We’re spoiled. We love the Senses Spa and also the on-board exercise facility. This cruise, we’ve once again booked a couples massage. After the Glass Slipper Challenge and the Castaway Cay 5k, this will be such a welcome treat!
All the rest – the special, unique, magical Disney Cruise components that keep us coming back for more. The adults-only areas of the ship, the shows, the roomy stateroom, the rotational dining – all of it! This will be our first cruise alone. I know we’ll miss our kids – especially since we had such an incredible time last year on the Disney Magic as she made her inaugural trip through the fjords of Norway. In contrast to that epic, action-packed, fun-filled, super busy vacation, this one will be more low-key, but with new and exciting elements for us to experience for the first time.