Disney at Home – Duplicating Recipes

Posted on July 28, 2016 by greenlisa9989@yahoo.com

Part of (I should really say much of) our Disney vacation happiness is about the food. Favorite restaurants, favorite dishes, trying new places – oh, boy, do we love to eat at Walt Disney World! What’s best about all this dining is when a particular dish really surprises us.

Disney at Home – Duplicating Recipes

Last December when Raymond and I were on our post-Christmas R&R, I booked dinner at The Wave (Contemporary Resort) for our last night. I knew we’d be tired and want to be close to our room at Bay Lake Tower. We’d never eaten in The Wave before, but had enjoyed snacks and cocktails in the lounge more than once. We knew the food would be good and were looking forward to the relaxing atmosphere.

As expected, we were exhausted, but had been having a fantastic trip. We arrived for our last dinner practically sleeping on our feet. If you’ve never been to The Wave before, it’s a lot like being in a cellar – no windows, cozy if a bit dark. The service is absolutely top notch. We ordered soup for an appetizer and, if I remember correctly, we both ordered fish for our entrees. I’m positive we ordered a bottle of wine from the cocktail menu.

The soup was a most pleasant surprise and made the entire meal for us. In fact, it was one of the most delicious soups we’d ever had. The ultimate comfort food – creamy soup full of sausage, gnocchi, and spinach. As we were exchanging Mmmmmm’s, I made the offhanded comment that I could probably recreate this amazing deliciousness at home. We enjoyed the rest of our dinner, made the short walk back to Bay Lake Tower and crashed. The next morning we headed for home.

Fast forward about at week and Raymond says, “Hey! Weren’t you going to try to make that soup?”. Yes! I had planned on that and I made my grocery list right then and there. I’ve cooked Disney dishes at home before, but always found a recipe online to use. This time I didn’t even search for a recipe, I made it up as I went. How hard could it be?

Turns out not really hard at all. I stared by browning spicy Italian sausage which I drained and set aside. While the sausage was browning (I added red pepper flakes to make it spicier), I defrosted, squeezed dry, and food-processed a package of frozen spinach (the food processing part was a total waste of time). After that I whipped up a simple roux of butter and flour. Then I stirred in a healthy amount of both chicken broth and real live honest to goodness cream.

I added the spinach and sausage and one store-bought package of gnocchi to the pot and let it all cook together for about half an hour. This gave the gnocchi time to become soft and all the flavors to blend together. While all that was going on, I toasted up some garlic bread as an accompaniment. The original version from The Wave had a crunchy toasted cheese topping which I’ll try to recreate in the future.

While the soups didn’t look exactly the same, the flavors were nearly identical. I was very proud of my soup! I will most definitely be making it again as soon as the weather starts to cool off a little in the fall.

Have you made a Disney dish at home? What’s your favorite Disney recipe?

Chef Mickey’s Character Dining Review

Posted on January 9, 2016 by greenlisa9989@yahoo.com

Happy Saturday, Disney Friends! Let’s talk character dining today! When our kids were little, Chef Mickey’s was a must-do for every visit to Walt Disney World and I’ve recommended this fun chance to meet the Fab Five many times over the years. Nick’s opinion of Chef Mickey’s is a little different than mine. I welcome all views and opinions here and now you can hear about Chef Mickey’s from someone who prefers to enjoy his character dining experiences elsewhere. What I want to know is this – How about YOU? Are you a fan of Chef Mickey’s or do you favor a different restaurant?

Chef Mickey’s Character Dining Review

By: Nick

I’ve eaten at Chef Mickey’s twice in the last several years. Once with our Godson, Flynn, back in 2009, and just a couple of months ago with our friends Kandi and John and their kids Jazzlyn and Grayson.

Me, Jazzlyn, Barbie, Kandi, Grayson, and John

I’m going to just come out and say it. It’s my least favorite buffet in Walt Disney World.

It’s not bad, but I have some issues.

Let’s look at the good first. The Fab Five, Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, Donald and Goofy, are here, and that is truly awesome!

None of our Minnie Pics came out well!

They come around often and spend quality time with each table. Periodically, there is even an opportunity for kids and adults to cut loose with the characters!

The not so great?
The layout of the restaurant, which is located in the Contemporary Resort, is just odd.

Somehow, both times we’ve eaten here, we have been put up in an upper corner. This past time, it was a very dark corner.

There really shouldn’t be any dark corners in a character buffet, in my opinion.

Then, there is the food. It’s not bad, I just don’t feel it’s on par with other Disney buffets, with the exception of the desserts.

There are a variety of salads and a soup du jour, as well as sushi and pick and peel shrimp.

There is Mac and Cheese, Chicken nuggets, pasta and meatballs.

Some of the better items were the small individual dishes, such as the Braised Beef. The Lemon Pepper Chicken was pretty good also.

There are a few other seafood selections as well as BBQ ribs.

The carving station included turkey and beef.

The desserts include a variety of cakes, cream puffs, and cookies, as well as ice cream.

I can see why this would be a top priority for kids with the Fab Five, but I don’t recommend this buffet when there are so many other better character dining options, such as Crystal Palace and Chip ‘n’ Dale’s Harvest Feast at the Garden Grill.

Don’t miss any of Nick’s Disney adventures! Follow along at the Disney Musings Blog, on Twitter, on Facebook, on Instagram, and on Pinterest. You can listen to Nick, our friend Dave and me on The Disney Exchange Podcast where we talk about…well, you can probably guess.

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

Walt Disney World Dining – Resort Loop Table Service (Part 1)

Posted on December 16, 2015 by greenlisa9989@yahoo.com

It’s time to talk about food (Big Surprise, right?). Pros and Cons of Walt Disney World Magic Kingdom Resort Table Service dining, to be exact. As always, I’m providing information mostly based on my own experiences and opinion – I like to be completely honest. This means I’ll do my best to give you balanced reviews. Since there are three resorts on the Monorail, I thought we’d, you know, make this simple and take one at a time. Thus, part one is Disney’s Contemporary table service dining options – it gets the #1 spot because it’s my favorite resort. Let’s talk food!

Walt Disney World – Resort Loop Table Service Restaurants (Part 1)

Hop on the monorail from the Magic Kingdom and you are just a stop or three away from some of the very best dining those genius Disney chefs can dish out! The best part of this deal is that you can easily avoid in-park dining if you want to. Not that the Magic Kingdom’s food is all bad, but it is somewhat limited if you want to get away from the crowds a bit and maybe have an adult beverage (currently only available in-park at Be Our Guest for dinner). On the resort loop, you will find quite a variety of experiences to choose from and while I’ve not eaten at every restaurant in every monorail resort, I’ve eaten at enough of them to make some well-informed recommendations. I’ll also include the number of table service credits each eatery requires for those of you who use a dining plan.

Contemporary Resort Table Service

Chef Mickey’s (buffet, 1 TS credit) – Character dining at its best. I’ve covered the joys of meeting the Fab Five (Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy, and Pluto) in a couple of previous posts because we have had many excellent times at Chef Mickey’s for both breakfast and dinner. Pros: No waiting in line in the Florida heat to meet these beloved characters – you get one-on-one time for plenty of prime photo ops. The buffet, while not extremely imaginative, is full of decent, basic food with plenty of choices that are sure to please even the pickiest eaters. Cons: It’s loud, super crowded (usually), and you can often find a bunch of families with ill-behaved children. It’s worth it, though, especially since boys and girls alike will enjoy the character lineup here.

The Wave (1 TS credit) – Raymond and I stopped in for a late lunch and ate in the bar. What a delightfully unexpected surprise! We shared several things which were all absolutely delicious and we each enjoyed a fantastic glass of red wine. The menu offers fresh, sustainable, locally grown ingredients. Pros: Good eats for breakfast, lunch, and/or dinner. Expect a decent selection that is designed to please almost everyone. The dinner menu includes beef, pork, chicken, seafood, and a couple of vegetarian options as well. Cons: Décor is Dark and a little dreary – feels like you’re in a basement.

California Grill (2 TS credits) – LOVE this place. I thought our dinner here on our 25th Anniversary Celebration trip (October, 2014) was absolutely fantastic with some extra-special touches just for us. Raymond wished we’d gone someplace quieter. To me, pretty much everything about this place is great – the atmosphere, the view, the food, the wine list. Yes, it’s expensive and while we’ve taken our kids to eat here, I would categorize the California Grill as a best-appreciated-by-adults dining experience. Pros: Excellent menu and service, great view of Magic Kingdom, guests are welcome to watch Wishes from the restaurant (If you had dinner there early, you can come back later the same evening.). Cons: If there are lots of children present, the noise and action can kind of kill the romantic atmosphere – make a late reservation to minimize the impact.

Check back soon for Parts 2 & 3 – Table service options at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort and Grand Floridian Resort and Spa.

Have you eaten at Disney’s Contemporary Resort? What restaurant(s) would you recommend?

DVC – Bay Lake Tower Studio Tour and Review

Posted on October 30, 2014 by greenlisa9989@yahoo.com

We have always loved Disney’s Contemporary Resort. More than the design and theme, which we like well enough (especially the Mary Blair mural in the Grand Canyon Concourse). We are crazy in love with the location – to us, the ability to walk to the Magic Kingdom just can’t be beat. And the restaurants – we love those too. And the monorail whooshing right on into the building. Well, you get the idea. We always knew if a DVC resort became available by the Contemporary, we’d be all in. That’s why Bay Lake Tower is our home away from home.

One of the most important aspects of the Disney Vacation Club for our family, is the ability to use your points how, when and where you like (based on availability). When we needed a place to sleep six, Bay Lake Tower’s two bedroom lock-off option was perfect for us – master bedroom (king bed) and bath, full kitchen with living room (pull-out queen sofa and chair-and-a-half) and a connecting studio (two double beds). When Raymond and I travel alone, we just need a studio. Able to book at our home resort 11 months in advance, we were, for our most recent visit, able to book a lake view studio (339 square feet) which was perfect in every way!

Arriving from the airport via Disney’s Magical Express, check-in is in the Contemporary lobby (we opted not to check-in online to see how the in-person version works). Greeted immediately upon stepping down from the bus by a very friendly and efficient Cast Member, we were promptly escorted into the lobby and handed off to the helpful young man at the check-in counter. The process was quick and easy and we were told our room was ready. We got our room number and informational materials and headed off for the short walk to Bay Lake Tower. There is now a new check-in counter in the Bay Lake Tower lobby, but it is not for guests arriving via Magical Express.

We were a tiny bit disappointed to find out our room was on the 3rd floor. The 5th floor is super convenient to the walkway between Bay Lake Tower and the Contemporary. The higher floors seem to have the best views. We were surprisingly happy exactly where we were! Our balcony overlooked Bay Lake and the grounds of the Contemporary and – as a bonus – was a perfect viewing area for the Electrical Walter Pageant on the evenings we found ourselves back in our room in time to enjoy it.

Our room had a queen bed, sofa, table and chairs, television, dresser, kitchenette, and bathroom. The tiny kitchenette makes amazing use of a small space! In the far left corner of the kitchen area is a little extra vanity with shelves, mirror and outlets. I was able to shower first then move into the kitchenette to apply makeup, style my hair, etc. The kitchen also boasts an incredible amount of storage – including a very cool pull-out shelving unit. We utilized the coffee maker for brewing the delicious Joffrey’s Coffee we picked up in the Animal Kingdom Lodge gift shop on our first day of vacation.

Location, view, comfort, amenities – our Bay Lake Tower studio did not disappoint.

Are you a DVC member? What’s your home resort and what do you love most about it? If you have questions about our experiences with the Disney Vacation Club, ask away!