Disney Dining Archive

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Must-Have Disney Foods

MBGreen Logo 2013 300x144 Must Have Disney Foods  Welcome to those of you joining me from Mouse on the Mind and those of you just hopping aboard. I am the  4th stop on our Magical Blogorail.


This month, the Magical Blogorail GREEN loop is talking about our Top Disney Foods.  Randy and I share a love of quick-service goodies at Walt Disney World; so we’ve decided to collaborate on this post.  But, rather than focus on all the greasy, quick-service sandwiches that we can eat, we’re going to give you our top snack,  top quick-service sandwich, and top table service meal instead.  We don’t want anyone getting hardening of the arteries by reading our post.  So, here goes . . .

Snack

Disney pics 803 300x225 Must Have Disney FoodsThis one is a no-brainer for me!  I didn’t even let Randy chime in on the voting.  If I were only allowed to pick one snack to eat during my Disney trip, it would – without a doubt – be a Dole Whip Float.  Pineapple all the way, baby!

I had been reading about this heavenly creation all over the internet, but hadn’t actually tried it ’til our trip in January of 2009 (picture at right).  We had some cold days on that trip; and it wasn’t ’til our last day on property that it warmed up and I finally got a chance to try it.  One taste and I was hooked!

Now, we don’t make a trip to Walt Disney World without me enjoying at least one Dole Whip Float.  The soft-serve is good; but there’s something extra special about the addition of the pineapple juice to it.  While my husband might prefer the orange version, I’m a die-hard pineapple girl.

If you haven’t tried one yet, please make plans to do so on your next trip.  Promise me, ok?

Quick Service Sandwich

DSC 9932 300x200 Must Have Disney FoodsAwhile back, Randy posted – right here at Your Highway in the Sky – about this amazing sandwich that he enjoys at Captain Cook’s in the Polynesian Resort.  I read that post and saw the picture he posted (shown at right, with the pork nachos) and I knew that I had to add this restaurant – and this particular sandwich – to my must-do list for our next trip.

The Hawaiian Style Chicken Sandwich is like eating a bite of Polynesian Heaven. Randy described it as “greasy pineapple goodness” and “tasty, full of sweet flavor, and incredibly messy”.  He’s right.  But, it’s so much more.  Chicken, cheese, bacon, pineapple “salsa”, a delicious bun.  My only regret is that I split this one with my daughter.

Table Service Meal

046 300x225 Must Have Disney FoodsFor years, I had heard hype about Le Cellier in the Canada Pavilion of Epcot’s World Showcase.  I’m not sure why, but we’ve never done much table service dining back there (with the exception of the princess breakfast at Akershus).  Hindsight tells me that is really stupid, because World Showcase is my favorite part of Walt Disney World.  I guess I’ve always been so busy taking in all the sites that I haven’t taken time to think much about the food.  Go figure!

The kids and I made plans to try Le Cellier last September.  Honestly, we couldn’t resist the peer pressure – a bunch of our friends were dining there, so we decided to check it out for ourselves.  I decided on the infamous Mushroom Filet Mignon.  Needless to say, there is no turning back.  I don’t even care that it’s a 2-credit meal.  I will be back and I will be enjoying this meal again (and hopefully again and again and again).  The steak literally melted in my mouth.  Oh my gosh.

Alright, I’m drooling now.  I think I need a Disney Dining Fix.  I need to go find a calendar and count down the days ’til my next visit!

What about YOU?  What are your must-have Disney foods?


Thank you for joining me today. Your next stop on the Magical Blogorail Loop is Disney Living. mb green map 300x247 Must Have Disney Foods

Here is the map of our Magical Blogorail should you happen to have to make a stop along the way and want to reboard:

1st Stop ~ A Disney Mom’s Thoughts

2nd Stop ~ Walt Disney World: Not Just for Kids

3rd Stop ~ Mouse on the Mind 

4th Stop ~ Your Highway in the Sky (your are here)

Final Stop ~ Disney Living

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New Year, New Fantasyland: Be Our Guest Restaurant

Sign 182x300 New Year, New Fantasyland: Be Our Guest Restaurant

For more images, check out the gallery at the bottom of the post!

The Be Our Guest restaurant has been, without question, one of the most anticipated portion of Walt Disney World’s new Fantasyland.  And, at first glance, the fact that a restaurant is among the most talked-about portions of a “legendary” expansion may seem odd. In all actuality, however, it makes sense…

Back in 1971 when the Magic Kingdom opened its doors, Americans’ ideas of eating out and of eating in a theme park were very, very different than they are today.  Most Magic Kingdom guests expected basic food offerings; eating in the park wasn’t of much interest.  And, of course, many guests were more than a little resistant to paying for a fancy meal in a theme park; more than a few were like my parents – they brought lunch in a cooler and ate in the parking lot.

Gargoyle 150x150 New Year, New Fantasyland: Be Our Guest Restaurant

Gargoyles guard the bridge to the restaurant

But times have changed.  Today’s theme park guests want dining options, and the Magic Kingdom has found itself woefully lacking in offerings.  For years, “flagship park” of Walt Disney World has regularly offered only three table service offerings to its hundreds of thousands of guests: Liberty Tree Tavern, Tony’s Town Square, and Cinderella’s Royal Table.  Liberty Tree and Tony’s offer fairly standard fare, but Cinderella’s Royal Table, even after decades, remains one of the hardest reservations on property.  Why?  Well, part of the problem lies in space.  Cinderella’s Royal Table has only 122 tables, a dismal seating capacity for character dining.  And, of course, it is character dining – and Disney princess dining at that.  But there’s something more that makes Cinderella’s Royal Table so irresistible …the restaurant is in the castle.  No, really, it’s in Cinderella Castle.  You can eat in the castle.  You know that old adage “location, location, location”?  Yeah, well CRT has it.  And whether the food is mediocre or the value is lackluster is really irrelevant in the end because you’re being visited by Disney princesses while dining in the castle.

entrance 150x150 New Year, New Fantasyland: Be Our Guest Restaurant

Elaorate mosaics & carvings decorate the entrance

That was the standard against which Be Our Guest would be measured.  Disney Imagineers had to know that they were trying to create a restaurant where reservations would be as highly prized as those at Cinderella’s Royal Table….and they weren’t designing a character meal.

They did it.

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