The 12 days of... the Disney Deluxe Dining Plan! 11/16 Update ...Complete!

[englishrose47]

I tried Boma for dinner and didn't like the african spiceing although I didn't leave hungry !! Breakfast at Boma is a fav.!!! I am thinking of TH for breakfast next time !!

 

[sydneysmom]

fantastic reviews and pictures !!! I can't wait to see more !!!

 

[Cat0727]

Hey, I love the rating system you have going for your dining reviews. Your pics are great! Can't wait to read more

 

[MrBean]

Day 7: Dinner at Citricos

One of our goals this trip was to make sure to dine at as many of Disney's signature restaurants as possible, especially the one's we haven't been to before.

The entrance to Citricos is a bit interesting in the fact that it is shared by Victoria and Albert's. It has an odd feeling in the fact that you see people dressed to the nines for V&A (per their dress code), but also people in T-Shirts and shorts for Citricos, in the same small area.

Regarding the atmosphere of Citricos, I would regard it as the most formal of the signature restaurants, and although we saw many people in park attire (a few groups wearing matching loud/brightly colored T-Shirts), it's definitely a place to dress up a bit more for.

Our server here was wonderful. He presented us with special menus which were printed specifically for us, as well as anniversary buttons to wear, and then started us off with a champagne toast (sparkling cider for the DW). Very professional and attentive, although he did disappear for a while and another server had to step in to take over, only to have him reappear at the end of the meal. Perhaps that's just how they do it there?

For our meals, I started off with the oft talked about Sauteed Shrimp (with Lemon, White Wine, Tomatoes, and Feta Cheese). Many of my favorite things in one tasty dish. Delicious!

My DW had the Gateau of Crab (with Jumbo Lump Crab, Orange Fennel Cream, and Tomato Fennel Slaw). She described it as good, but pretty runny/wet for a crab dish.

For my entree, I had debated over which dish to try here, as I want to branch out from getting steak at every restaurant, but nothing else really caught my eye here. So I went for the Oak-grilled Filet of Beef (with Spanish Onions, Peppadew and Banana Peppers, Quattro Formaggi Crushed Potatoes, and Veal Glace de Viande), and am glad I did! They have a unique spin, and the flavors really are pretty amazing..

The DW went for the Braised Short Ribs (with creamy polenta, sauteed greens, and blood orange demi-glace), which was good, just not amazing

This was the time our server disappeared, and our dessert order and presentation was handled by a different server. If a restaurant had Tiramasu (with chocolate and vanilla sauces), I'm going to get it! Thankfully this didn't turn out like the Mama Melrose fiasco (if y'all remember back that far, haha), and this became the best of the trip by default.. so far that is

The DW went in a different direction to the "over the top" Warm Chocolate Banana Tart (with vanilla ice cream and caramelized bananas). This was a very rich dessert, with a huge chocolate tiara. Impressive to look at.. just a bit too much to end a meal.

This was a pretty long meal timewise, and unfortunately we were in a hurry at this point since we had a reservation for the last carriage ride of the evening at Port Orleans. In order to get there on time, we had to grab a taxi.. which luckily we made it in the nick of time! Although we really enjoyed our carriage ride, when we were talking to the driver we made the mistake of telling her we were staying at the French Quarter. Although it was nice of her to take us from Riverside right to our building at French Quarter, our ride was cut short by over 10 minutes which we had paid for!!

The Ratings:
Food

Summary: Excellent Mediterranean influenced food makes this a unique dining destination among Disney restaurants

Decor

Summary: Most formal signature restaurant. Very elegant feel, but make sure to dress for the atmosphere!

Service

Summary: Our initial server was very professional and attentive. Not sure if the server switch is part of their normal operation, but they would have received higher marks if he served throughout.

Cost
$135.14 (2 credits per person)

Overall

Summary: I'm glad we tried this restaurant as the meal was excellent, although the atmosphere is a bit more formal for a Disney restaurant then we would have liked. The personalized touches were appreciated.. we'd definitely come again.

On Deck: Day 8: Breakfast at Kouzzina

 

[englishrose47]

The shrimp appie really appealed to me !!!!

 

[onelilspark]

drool...I love Citricos

 

[PrincessBetsy]

Yummm, everything looks so good, especially the Tiramasu! I'm glad that it worked out for you this time around.

 

[Cat0727]

I've always been interested in trying Citricos. The quattro formaggi crushed potatoes sound amazing!

 

[Jiminy_78]

Day 8: Breakfast at Kouzzina

Our dinner at Kouzzina was underwhelming, but we were willing to give it another chance. We arrived for our breakfast ADR and were sat promptly in a mostly empty restaurant. Our server checked in with us and we ordered our drinks, DH ordered a pressed pot of coffee and I ordered a Mega Berry Smoothie.

For his entrée, DH ordered the Stacked Kouzzina Breakfast (Two Poached Eggs, Kalamata Olive Toast, Artichoke Spread, and Sweet Potato Hash with choice of Bacon or Chicken Sausage). He loved the sweet potato hash, crisp bacon, and dill sauce. He’s not a big poached egg fan but enjoyed this meal. DH also ordered an orange juice to go with his breakfast.

I had debated between the french toast and waffle and decided to go with the Classic Golden Waffle (with Whipped Mascarpone Cheese, Honey, and Chopped Pecans with bacon). It was a big waffle and the cheese, nuts, and honey combination was very yummy and filling. I also ordered chocolate milk with my waffle to wash it all down.

As we finished our breakfasts and were ready to head to Epcot the manager came to our table with a cupcake and candle and announced to everyone that we were celebrating our anniversary. It was really sweet of him. But that early in the morning, a cold Disney cupcake was not too appetizing but we each took a bite for good luck.

The Ratings:
Food

Summary: We both found the breakfast food to be much more satisfying than our dinners had been. Everything was fresh and hot and came in a timely manner.

Decor

Summary: We were sat by the window overlooking the boardwalk so there was more natural light during breakfast than dinner. But the rest of the restaurant was the same as it had been during our previous visit.

Service

Summary: Our server was very personable and as soon as she realized that I was pregnant she wanted to share lots of stories about her recent pregnancy including what foods she craved and how it impacted her breast milk. A little bit of over sharing but she was so great otherwise we tried to overlook it.

Cost
$41.16 (1 credit per person)

Overall

Summary: Our consensus is that we’d return for breakfast but not dinner. It was a great way to start our day at Epcot, and we still made it in time to get fast passes for Soarin'.

On Deck: Day 8: Lunch at Rose & Crown

 

[englishrose47]

I have been thinking about Kouzzinas for Breakfast!! I have my eye on the stacked breakfast, I love poached eggs and all the other stuff sounds yummy!!

 

[bearbear]

I've enjoyed looking at your reviews. I won't be going to disney until next oct so I am enjoying living through everyone else. Especially with being pregnant, I am enjoying the pictures. Good luck with the your upcoming new little one. We are having a boy also.
I will keep checking back to see more reviews

 

[MizzouTiggers]

That breakfast looks delicious!

 

[rodeo65]

Kinda late to the party, but I'm enjoying your reviews! I was hiding from the boards for a while since I didn't think we were going to have an upcoming trip and I couldn't bear to read about all the yummy food I would not be eating but now we've booked for January so I'm LOVING reading again!!

 

[oboedm]

Great update! We ate at Kouzzina's for breakfast last year and liked it, so we are going back. I had the waffles as well and thought they were good. I was talked into the chicken sausage by our waiter, and I was glad he did! That was great as well!

 

[AshClan]

I'm glad you had a better Kouzzina experience this time! The stacked breakfast looks and sounds fab to me. I may have to give it a try in October.

Love that Filet at Citricos! It's one of my favorite WDW dishes

Thanks for all the great reviews!

 

[MrBean]

Day 8: Lunch at Rose & Crown

Since this trip we had a ton of dining credits to use, we wanted to hit many restaurants we haven't tried before, along with our old favorites. Rose & Crown is one of those restaurants which looked like a really cool place, with the whole pub atmosphere, as well as being the only restaurant right off the water. We hadn't tried it up until this point mainly because it's a lower priced restaurant and we usually try to maximize our dining plan usage, but this trip was a little different

I've heard mixed reviews about this place from different sources, from it being great, all the way to it being horrible, but I have to say I really like this place! Fairly reasonable prices for some pretty great food! We chose to eat indoors this time to get a chance to really soak up the atmosphere of the restaurant, but I could easily see dining on the patio on a future trip for the great water view.

Recently my DW and I had gone to a Renaissance Festival in which I was disappointed to find they didn't have Scotch Eggs, which I used to be able to get at a similar festival when I was younger. Well to my surprise, Rose & Crown does serve them! So that's "eggsactly" what I got (with Frisee and green bean salad served with mustard sauce)! It was everything I remembered and more.. I'm salivating just thinking of it with the great mustard sauce!!

My DW got the Potato and Leek Soup, great flavor!

To help wash it down, I got the Imperial flight, a great deal if your in the mood for beers. It was at this point that we had gotten the attention of our neighbors and we struck up a conversation. They were so jealous of our choices as they had gotten something different (escapes me exactly what they had gotten), but they asked to take a picture of the Scotch Egg and beers to send to someone

For my meal, I order the Bangers and Mash (with braised cabbage and bacon, mashed potatoes and shallot gravy). This meal just gets better and better. These had great flavor and were very filling!

My DW got the Harry Ramsden's Fish & Chips (with English Chips). You really can't go wrong with these, they are perfectly battered, light and delicious!

If there was a weak point to my meal, it was the dessert. I got the Scotch chocolate cake. It's not that it was bad, in fact it was pretty good, just nothing special.

Luckily, my DW picked a winner (alright, I wanted to pick this too, but we usually pick different things so we can try them out). She picked the Sticky Toffee Pudding. I think the picture says it all!

The Ratings:
Food

Summary: Everything was fantastic from start to finish. Great flavors and unique dishes.

Decor

Summary: Cool pub setting, right on the water, best Epcot restaurant view. Does get crowded and loud indoors.

Service

Summary: Great server, kept drinks full. Love the accent!

Cost
$67.11 (1 credit per person)

Overall

Summary: Excellent restaurant in the heart of Epcot. For an in-park restaurant, this is a winner!

On Deck: Day 8: Dinner at Narcoossee's

 

[englishrose47]

I ate at Rose & Crown in February and LOVED it !! I had the Pork dish it was sooooooo good !!Different flavors that just went so well together !! I had the Lemon Tart for dessert and it was delish !! I sat on the patio as well !! It was an excellent meal!!!

 

[Overexcited]

I liked your review. I was worried when my parents booked this ADR, but I am glad to see it was good. British food is not always wonderful! (Sorry to any Brits reading this) I spent a year there and was not thrilled with all my food options.

 

[FaithTrustPixieDust*]

I'm in loved reading these! The pictures are great - good work!
Rachael x

 

[Jiminy_78]

Day 8: Dinner at Narcoossee’s

DH and I first ate at Narcoossee’s in September when we were at WDW for MNSSHP and we loved it! We were really excited about going back, in fact at one point we had two ADRs set up, but we decided to give one up to go to CRT. This meal was extra special because we were going to be dining with DH’s sister and her boyfriend. As previously mentioned, she is part of the Disney college program so she’ll be in Orlando from February until August. Her boyfriend was visiting her for his spring break from college. We had told her that as part of her college graduation present that we wanted to treat her to dinner at Narcoossee’s since she had never eaten there before.

Parking at the Grand Floridian is kind of a pain so DSIL and her boyfriend were running a little late for dinner but we were all there and sat within a few minutes of our ADR time. Our server came by and introduced herself and we explained that two of us were on the DxDDP and that the other two were not. Once all the technicalities were out of the way we decided on drinks. I think that everyone tried a different wine except for me. I had a pina colada smoothie.

Everyone in our group decided to order an appetizer. For my appetizer I ordered the Crab Cakes (with Southern Slaw and Cajun Remoulade sauce).

DH ordered the ahi tuna appetizer, this was a special item that day and not on their regular menu. He thought it was very good.

DSIL ordered the Crispy Duck Roll (with savory lentils, cucumber, tomato, red onion relish, and Cilantro-mint vinaigrette). We didn’t take pictures of their food but she said that she really enjoyed them. Her boyfriend ordered the Shrimp and Crab Chowder (with Dill Créme Fraiche, micro onions, and Narcoossee's Oyster Crackers) and he thought it was delicious.

For our entrées, I went with the same thing that I’d had on my previous trip to Narcoossee’s, Surf and Turf (twin medallions of filet mignon, lobster tail, potato gratin, broccolini, and shallot-red wine butter). I thought that this meal was better the last time we were there, but the difference is more my fault than theirs. I had to order my steak cooked medium well (I would usually order Medium) because of my being pregnant. Then for some reason I chose to eat the medallions before I ate the lobster so by the time I got to the lobster it was a little rubbery.

DH also ordered the Surf and Turf as did DSIL, everyone loved their meals. DSIL’s boyfriend went with the salmon and said it was really good. DH said his lobster was delicious and I was kicking myself for not eating it first.

After we finished our dinner we went outside to watch Wishes from the wrap around deck. It’s a great place to watch Wishes from and we all enjoyed the show. After going back inside, we ordered coffee and dessert to end our wonderful evening.

I ordered the Gelato Sampler (chocolate, raspberry, pistachio and cappuccino) which was just as refreshing and tasty as when I had it in September. It’s a great light way to end a large meal.

DH ordered the Almond-crusted Cheesecake (with lambert cherry sauce). I have to admit that this is a really delicious dessert and I was tempted to order it myself but I was so full. He also ordered a café mocha with his dessert. I can’t remember what DSIL and her boyfriend ordered, she may have also gotten the cheesecake, and I think that her boyfriend may have gotten the chocolate mousse or something like that. But again, we didn’t take notes on their meals or pictures. Sorry.

The end of the night consensus was that everyone enjoyed their meal and experience with Narcoossee’s. We were celebrating DSIL’s college graduation, our anniversary, and her boyfriend had just found out that he’d been accepted to graduate school.

The Ratings:
Food

Summary: Everyone enjoyed their appetizers, entrees and desserts!

Decor

Summary: Nautical theme with windows all around providing a great view of the lagoon and Magic Kingdom. Outdoor wrap around deck provides a great viewing of Wishes with the music piped in.

Service

Summary: Our servers at Narcoossee’s have always been very professional and not always personable, but they get the job done. My only complaint was that when we went outside to view the fireworks, all of our dishes were cleared away including my smoothie that I had not yet finished.

Cost
$183.26 (2 credits per person)

Overall

Summary: Narcoossee’s is one of our favorite signature restaurants and we’ll gladly return someday, when our son is older or we bring along a grandparent for babysitting.

On Deck: Day 9: Lunch at Tutto Italia