WDW Weekend Eats: the More Flower & Garden Eats Edition

Well Dear Dedicated Readers, it’s that time again: time for a look back at a recent weekend of eats around the World (and a bit away from the World as well this time). Miss Bonnie and I, accompanied much of the time by Mama Ginny and Papa Harry, made our second trip to try the booth items we hadn’t hit our first go-round at this year’s Flower & Garden Festival (you can see our first visit in the post “Flower & Garden… and Food & Wine“), as well as some dining away from Epcot… so let’s dig in, shall we?

I was able to make it to property that Friday a bit before Miss Bonnie, so I went over to Animal Kingdom for a while to check out the new construction going on there (see “WDW Odds & Ends: More Construction Wall Fun!” for the results of that research). Needing a bit of something on my (seemingly-ever-expanding) belly to get me to dinner-time, I bypassed some more healthy options (yes, I did consider the Asian Noodle Salad at the veggie-only kiosk on the path between Asia and Africa)…

but something drew me to Flame Tree Barbeque (one of the better quick-service eateries on property in my humble opinion), but even there, I was able to keep it to a vegetarian afternoon snack…

of Fried Onion Rings and a Safari Amber draft beer… got to be a healthy start to the weekend, right???

I took a seat in the lower dining area, which has a great view of Expedition Everest, and leisurely downed the quite good rings. As one guest passed by my table he commented that “I want to hang out with this guy, onion rings and beer, he’s got it all figured out!”.

Now sans a grumbling tummy,  I returned to our resort and after Miss Bonnie arrived we made our way to Epcot and met up with Mama Ginny and Papa Harry.

Mexico Booth Menu

We headed over to Mexico in the World Showcase and started our trek for the evening with another of the delicious margaritas there.

Rosita Margarita

Someone may have had something to eat there… but I was paying to much attention to my drink to notice…

Where that tasty tequila comes from… planter near the Mexico booth…

Bonnie stopped in Italy to try the veggie lasagna…

Lasagna Primvera at Primavera Litchen

it was pretty good, but nothing spectacular…

Frushi, Hana Awake Sake, and Chirashi Hanazushi from Hanamai

We next picked up some items from the Japan Flower & Garden booth to dine on while we sat in the American Garden Theater for one of the evenings concerts.

Flo & Eddie

We watched a very entertaining and hit-filled (even if Bonnie didn’t recognize most of the songs…) set by Flo & Eddie of the Turtles. Before the show began we ate our Japanese vittles as we waited for the band to take the stage.

Chirashi Hanazuchi (Grilled Salmon, cooked Shrimp and Crab Stick over Ginger Rice with Volcano and Dynamite Sauces)

The Chirashi Hanazuchi is like a “scattered sushi” and in addition to the cooked seafood (yes kids, sushi doesn’t mean “raw fish”, it means “with rice”…) there was edamame and bits of cooked egg/omelet – the pair of spicy sauces set off the sweeter taste of the shrimp and fake crab and each bite was just a bit different – we loved this and it’s for sure on our “have-again-next-trip” list!

Frushi (Fresh Strawberries, Pineapple and Cantaloupe wrapped in Coconut Rice with Raspberry Sauce, Coconut and Whipped Cream)

We also had the Frushi which is perhaps the most fun item of the festival – fresh fruit wrapped up in seasoned rice and presented like a traditional sushi roll. Accented by sweet whipped cream and a berry sauce, this was an unusual and surprising item, and a great way to get some young finicky eaters to maybe try some fresh fruit (or even an adult that may be reluctant to consume the “F” word)… on both of our visits I overheard many guests talking about this item – I think this will wind up being one of the big hits here!

Tarte a la ratatouille et fromage de cheve (Ratatouille of Zuchinni, Eggplant, Bell Peppers, Onions and Tomato on a pastry crust with Goat Cheese)

From there we wound our way around to France and the L’Orangerie booth to sample the version of Ratatouille there. Served on a pastry crust, this was essentially a Ratatouille pizza, and was rich with veggie-goodness… it got me thinking about making something similar myself soon…

And of course we had to try the Sparkling Muscat as well…

Bonnie and I had been coveting the tomato dish being served at The Cottage in the UK since our first visit (and for some reason we never got around to trying it that time)…

Tomato fixins…

so we made sure to try it this time around.

Waterkist Farms Heirloom Tomatoes with House-made Mozzarella, Minus 8 Vinegar and Basil

Perhaps we were expecting too much from this, but it left us both a bit underwhelmed… the tomatoes weren’t bad, but also weren’t great, and considering the tomato flavor itself is critical to a dish like this, well… and the mozzarella I thought had a bit of an odd, tougher-than-I-expected texture – I was expecting a more creamy, fresh texture from the cheese, but it turned out a bit more firm and rubbery… this was a great idea to go along with the “garden” theme, but I felt the execution was a bit lacking.

So after that, we headed for one final stop to wind up our evening, and to a place we knew we wouldn’t be disappointed: La Cava del Tequila in the Mexico pavilion.

We ordered drinks all around, and I had the tequila shot selection to start… then I needed a bit of heat to round out the day and ordered a Jalapeno Margarita… “extra hot please”… so what I got was…

Jalapeno/Habanero Margarita (with remnants of shots in the background)

a Jalapeno Margarita turned up to 11 with the addition of a fresh habanero! A great lip-numbing,  tonsil-tingling end to a great day of eating & drinking around the World! And we were just starting the weekend…

Saturday AM Miss Bonnie and I made our way over to the east coast to do a recon mission… we’ll save the purpose of that trip for another time, but we did find a great place to have lunch in Cocoa Beach!

We had stopped into the DIS Welcome Center near Port Canaveral to pick their brains about a cruise later in the year and as we were leaving we asked about a good place for lunch – Rob and Walter both chimed out “Simply Delicious”.

We’d heard our friends at the DIS Unplugged talk about the Simply Delicious Bakery in Cocoa Beach, so the choice was easy…

This breakfast and lunch place is in a uniquely decorated old house, with tables crammed everywhere and odd nicknacks all over the place.

What was hard was deciding what to have – sandwiches on house-baked bread, soups, it all sounded so good… and they serve breakfast at lunch, so that even added to the dilemma…

Blackened Mahi Sandwich

we both independently chose fish sandwiches and sipped on tea as we waited for our lunch… they bring a tiny little pitcher of simple syrup to sweeten your tea if you don’t want any of the granular sweeteners (which happened to be on the table in a margarita glass!).

Bonnie had a blackened mahi sandwich, while I chose the Mahi Reuben – their take on a traditional Reuben sandwich with the fresh grilled fish standing in for corned beef.

Mahi Reuben

Both sandwiches were fresh, large and well, simply delicious! My “side” Grecian Salad took up half of the not-so-small plate… portions here are not skimpy, and the prices are right, with most items running about $10 or less. Our young server was attentive and well, just darn sweet!

We also drooled over some of the breakfast dishes we saw coming out to other guests, and I briefly contemplated coming back the next day all the way from Disney just to eat there again!

If you’re in the area I’d say this is a don’t miss place – perfect for a pre or post-cruise bite. You can read a breakfast review on Foodies Tales (which also has a link to the DIS podcast review).

We made our way back to the World (as Miss Bonnie shed a little tear as we passed by the Disney cruise ship moored at the Port) and contemplated where we should sup that evening…

and as we’ve done on more than one occasion, we decided to head over to the Wilderness Lodge resort and have a table full of appetizers-for-dinner at the Territory Lounge.

We once again met up with Mama Ginny and Papa Harry and settled into some comfy chairs at a corner table in the lounge. We (shockingly!) ordered a round of adult beverages whilst we decided on the evenings edibles.

House-made Northwest Chips with a trio of dips: Smokey Blue, Truffle Aioli, and Huckleberry Honey

We made our choices and shared all around the table… the crispy potato chips came with three sauces, the truffle aioli being the best of the bunch.

Cheddar Cheese and Beer Fondue served with two types of bread, Washington State apples, and dried fruit

We dunked the varied cubes of goodies into the tangy beer and cheddar fondue… the fresh apples and dried fruits going particularly well with the molten fromage.

Wild Mushroom Flatbread with caramelized Balsamic onions, Smokey Bleu cheese, figs, and arugula

We also had the flatbread topped with mushrooms, sauteed onions, blue cheese, figs and arugula. The meaty/fruity figs and the peppery arugula greens were a nice foil for the ‘shrooms and onions – an unusual combo that worked well.

Bag-O-Doughnuts

At dessert time we were joined by a Famous-Disney-Food-Blogger and we got an order of the Drunkin Doughnuts (so apropos for our group!).

The cake-like circles and holes come in a paper bag with a cinnamon-sugar mixture – you shake it up and pour them out onto the plate…

Drunken Doughnuts with Maple-Liquor Glaze

and then best of all, you dunk them into the Drunkin part, a ramekin filled with a melange of melted butter, maple syrup and Grand Marnier… hell yes… what could be bad about that combo? Carbs, sugar and booze! That’s the way to end your night, and we called it one then…

Sunday was going to be a short day in the World before we headed out, but we did make our way to Epcot again for some lunch in World Showcase before wrapping up the weekend.

Taste of Marrakesh Menu

Miss Bonnie wanted to go for a Lamb Wrap at the Tangerine Cafe in Morocco, so I opted to start my feeding with an item from the Taste of Marrakesh kiosk. We had eaten there on our first visit, but got a bit distracted right after we ordered, so I wanted to give the lamb there another try.

Spiced Lamb Kabob with Vegetable Couscous Salad and Iced Mint Tea

And it was worth trying again – the lamb was full of earthy, herby flavor. The side of couscous seemed to be the same (good) version from the Cafe, and the mint tea was a nice change of pace.

While Bonnie was sated after her wrap, I still needed something to top off my tummy, so we headed towards Germany.

Epcot Germany Stein

We stopped in the gift shop and came across a few new steins there, one with scenes from the Germany pavilion all around it…

Epcot Germany Stein

and another with characters added to the scene…

Epcot Germany Stein with characters

with Goofy, Donald, and of course Mickey, showing off their Oompah skills.

Epcot Germany Stein with characters

Each stein comes with the ever-popular “Certificate of Authenticity” and a brief history of the stein in Germany.

Certificate that comes inside the steins

Both of these steins were about $125 (or thereabouts to the best of my feeble recollection), and were hefty and seems to be of good quality if you were in the market for such an item. But if you wanted something with say, a bit more character, or at least one specific character, you could opt for the Grumpy stein…

Grumpy Stein

I guess Grumpy has been known to lose his head now and then…

but be prepared to drop an extra C note if you want this one!

Grumpy’s bottom

We decided to save our money for food and made our way to Bauernmarkt: Farmer’s Market for one last bite of the weekend.

We’d tried the savory bread pudding and the potato pancakes here on our first go-round and had enjoyed them both (especially the bread pudding), so I was eager to see what a German meatloaf would be like.

German Meatloaf Sandwich with Sweet Mustard and Fried Shallots along with a Krombacher Hefeweizen

The meatloaf itself was a lighter color than I expected, so I assume it was at least part pork (or maybe veal?). The meat(s) were obviously very finely ground and the texture was smooth and dense.

German Meatloaf Cross-section

The meatloaf flavor was fairly mild, but the sweet mustard added nicely to it and the crunchy fried bits of shallot gave it some texture. The bread could have been a bit softer for my taste, but overall not a bad dish, if still it wound up being my least favorite from this location.

After that we sadly had to bid farewell to WDW for this trip – it was a fun weekend with some good food and drink, and even better friends!

So there you have it boys and girls, another weekend of eats from around the World – hope you enjoyed another gustatory tour!

As always, it’s back to the kitchen – see you again soon!

Four parks, four margaritas…

well, sort of…

If you listen to any Disney-centric podcasts, or frequent any Disney related message boards, the subject of “Four Parks in One Day” inevitably comes up…

How feasible is it to visit all four Walt Disney World parks in a single day? What highlights would you show someone who’s never been to the World if you took them to all the parks in a day? And so on…

A while back this sort of talk got me to thinking about the fun that could ensue from having Four Margaritas in Four Parks in a Day… and after mentioning this idea (and some other, somewhat idiotic alcohol-related quests) to Miss Bonnie I thought not much more about it.

Until late February that is, and the Best Holiday of the Year, National Margarita Day, came around!

Miss Bonnie and I, along with several members of the Harem (Mamma Ginny, Papa Harry and Lori Loves Tigger) were going to be in the World on that most Holy-of-Holy Tequila Days, and the ever-wise Bonnie suggested we finally give my goal a try!

Okay, I know Dedicated Readers are saying Four Parks? Four Margaritas? Is there some Magic Place in the Magic Kingdom that serves the Best Cocktail Ever??? Well, sadly no, and even though there is now beer and wine during dinner inside the Beast’s castle, there is not a ‘rita to be had, so for one of the four parks, we’re going to have to fudge a bit…

One option for the “Fourth Park” could be Downtown Disney (the future “Disney Springs”), and the waterfront Margarita Bar, where they do make a nice beverage…

but as Miss Bonnie & I were lodging around Crescent Lake, we all decided to meet up there and start our Tequila Trek at Boardwalk Joe’s on (where else but) the Boardwalk.

Boardwalk Joe’s Margarita Menu

Like the kiosk at Downtown Disney, they also make a nice (and also not-inexpensive) drink here… the beverage of choice for this day was the high-end Patron Anejo…

Patron Anejo Margarita at Boardwalk Joe’s… do you know how sad it makes me that the sign on top doesn’t light up at night???

this was a nice start to the festivities, but from there we had to get a move on… whereas most of the “Four Park” type events start at rope drop and go to the last fireworks at night, we didn’t start until about 5 in the afternoon, and with two of the parks (Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios) closing at 7 that night, we had a lot of traveling (and drinking) to get in in a short amount of time! And to add to the time constraints, we were only going to use Disney transportation (and our legs) to get from place to place, everyone was taking part in the festivies, and with no sober designated driver no Harem member needed to be behind a wheel during this event!

So we hopped a bus from the Boardwalk Resort to take us to Miss Bonnie’s favorite park (and the home of one of my favorite bars on property) Disney’s Animal Kingdom.

Dawa Bar in Harambe Village

When we arrived we quickly hoofed it to the Africa section of the park, and right across the bridge on the left we came to the Dawa Bar in the busy village of Harambe.

If you insist…

The Dawa Bar is a spacious, open-air area next to the Tusker House restaurant, and is a great place to get a respite from the heat of Animal Kingdom. And yes, have a tasty cocktail, or three…

but on this day, we sadly only had time for one, and the choice du jour just had to be the African Margarita.

African Margarita

This refreshing beverage features a South African tangerine liqueur that is apparently-unobtainable-to-normal-humans (if you know where to find it, drop me a note!) – this flavor makes this different from any other margarita on property, and truly one of my favorites!

Even more African Margaritas!

We took a seat to have a quick rest, drank down about half of our drinks, then downed the rest on our way back out of the park to make our next stop in Hollywood Studios.

After the bus arrived at the Studios, we hustled in not long before the turnstiles closed and made our way to the Tune-In-Lounge next to the ’50′s Prime Time Cafe.

Dedicated Readers know that this is definitely one of my favorite haunts on Property, and home to my Favorite Blonde Czech Bartender (who unfortunately was not there for this weekends festivities, but Ivan, who has served us more than once, was there to take care of our tequila needs).

Bar at Tune In Lounge

In addition to drinks we also ordered some not-too-bad onion rings to help sop up the tequila.

Onion Rings at Tune in Lounge

I think the straight-forward Patron Silver Margaritas here are great (and goodness knows I’ve had plenty of them!) – if you’re looking for a good, basic ‘rita on property you could certainly do worse than the one here.

Patron Silver Margaritas waiting to quench our thirsts…

Now with three drinks, and three “parks” down, we had a bit of time to spare and made the scenic walk from the Studios to (my favorite park) Epcot, and what has become the epicenter of the Margarita World on Property…

La Cava!

La Cava del Tequila in the Mexico pavilion.

This cozy, and incredibly popular, spot in Epcot was luckily for us sparsely inhabited as we looked for our final drink of the quest, and we were able to snag a table while most of the other Epcot guests found their spots to view Illuminations.

Pineapple Margarita at La Cava del Tequila

To wrap up our Margaritafest I chose something a bit different, the Pineapple Margarita – I figured the healthy extra fruity goodness of the pineapple would counteract some of the deleterious effects of all the alcohol – yeah, right…

So there you have it dear Dedicated Readers, our festival of Four Parks and Four Margaritas as we celebrated National Margarita Day! It was sure fun and I can’t wait to do it again next year!

Have you done any unique “Four Park” things? Or any different adult-beverage-related trips around the parks? If so, please share in the comments!

Back to the kitchen – see you soon!

WDW Odds & Ends

Along with about 65,000 of our closest friends, Miss Bonnie and I made our way to Walt Disney World a couple of few ago to take part in Marathon Weekend.

It had actually been quite a while since we had been there (for us, that is), and in addition to the race-related events we were able to find a few new odds & ends of things from around the World that I thought I’d share with you, my dear Dedicated Readers…

Of course our trips to WDW almost always include a visit (or two, or three, or…) to the World Showcase in Epcot, and this long weekend was no exception.

Above the entrance to the new version of Boulangerie Patisserie

The new version of France’s quick-service eatery, Les Halles Boulangerie Patisserie, had just opened in the rear of the pavillion with a newly expanded menu (more on the food from the weekend in another post…).

Inside the seating area of Boulangerie Patisserie

The indoor seating/dining area has some nice decor for a quick-service location.

Plastic utensil dispensers in Boulangerie Patisserie

Even the utensil dispensers are themed!

The former site of the bakery is closed and will reopen later in the year as an ice cream parlor.

The Phineas and Ferb fanaticism continues…

Sign at the Refreshment Port

and at the Refreshment Port you can still get the Agent P Cookie and wash it down with a new diabolical beverage served in a lab beaker: The Doofenslurper!

Now over to the Magic Kingdom…

New Magic Kingdom entrance area for use with the “Next-Gen” wristbands

a new entrance area is along the right side, replacing the “now-old-fashioned” turnstiles. This is for resort guests who have their park tickets tied to their reservations and are using the new super-duper MyMagic+ wristbands… (see the official Disney Parks Blog word on this on their post “Taking the Disney Guest Experience to the Next Level”). We’ll see more of these later at other parks…

More construction wall fun at the entrance to the Magic Kingdom!

The center section in front of the train station is now sporting construction walls – was told it was for new ticket-selling booths…

Sign in the window of the shuttered Main Street Bakery

And it wouldn’t be a day at the MK if we didn’t come across some new construction, closings or openings…

the Main Street Bakery is now closed for the refurb that will (controversially to some) add a Starbucks location to the park. I’m not all up in arms about this as some other people are (remember that Walt said that the parks would never be finished or stay static, and sponsored food/beverage locations do go back to the opening day in Anaheim…) I’ll reserve final judgement until it’s been open for a while… but for the time being I think it will be a good thing (and hopefully be the beginning of the end of the Nescafe stranglehold on Disney’s coffee-drinking guests).

Tomorrowland Terrace temporary breakfast menu

While the Bakery is down, they are serving breakfast at the woefully underused Tomorrowland Terrace location.

Tomorrowland Terrace temporary breakfast menu. Beignets? Fry me some up please!

Tomorrowland Terrace temporary breakfast menu. Flavored Iced Green Tea sounds pretty good – wish they had that in the heat of the day and not just for breakfast!

And construction continues in Fantasyland…

Rapunzel’s Tower

over at the former home of the skyway station in Fantasyland (to the left of Small World) is what’s is supposed to be the new restroom location for this section of the park (the current ones near Peter Pan will reportedly go away as that attraction gets one of the expanded/interactive queue lines). Themed after the film “Tangled” it has a large tower and what (from behind the walls) looks to be a fancy-dancy-extra-themed place to relieve yourself!

New “Tangled” themed restroom currently behind construction walls in Fantasyland

With all the work that looks like it’s going into this area, you’d assume something more than just a place to pee would be here… the assumption is that the tower will be a dedicated meet-and-greet area for Rapunzel, and I’m sure the ladies (and a few gents as well) hope this also brings Flynn Rider back to the parks full time… smoulder and all…

Entrance area to New Fantasyland expansion with construction on the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train ride evident in the background

And nearby in the New Fantasyland expansion area, there is more construction (and even a few non-construction things) to view…

Seven Dwarfs Mine Train Construction Wall

the construction walls around the Mine Train area now feature some cool artwork…

Seven Dwarfs Mine Train Construction Wall

including the Dwarfs tools and time cards as well as several pieces of concept art showing scenes from the finished attraction.

Seven Dwarfs Mine Train Concept Art on the Construction Wall

Seven Dwarfs Mine Train Concept Art on the Construction Wall

Seven Dwarfs Mine Train Concept Art on the Construction Wall

Seven Dwarfs Mine Train Concept Art on the Construction Wall

There are even some places with peepholes in the wall and you are actually invited to take a look at what’s going on behind the scenes!

Peephole in the Construction Wall of the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train Ride

Not nearly as much fun to peek as when they don’t want us to look!

A look thru the Peephole in the Construction Wall of the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train Ride

There were some new items already in the Bonjour Village Gifts – and the egoistical Gaston would likely be pleased with some of the new offerings (though he’s likely to think he should have a gift shop devoted solely to him!).

New Gaston Tee-Shirt

He sports a Lefou’s Brew mustache in one new tee-shirt…

Another new Gaston tee-shirt…

and his more-than-impressive biceps are shown off in another.

Gaston’s Tavern (I’m sure not for beer) Steins

And there are nice, heavy Gaston’s Tavern steins now for sale.

Belle and Beast “Relationship Status” Shirt

And a couple of cute Facebook-inspired shirts are now available.

And yet another Gaston shirt…

Our base of operations for the weekend was our favorite resort, Kidani Village at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. And of course one of our favorite things about the resort is viewing the animals on the savannah right outside the room…

Ankole Cattle at Kidani Village

and one of the most common critters on view here (and on the savannah at the Kilimanjaro Safari at Animal Kingdom) is the Ankole Cattle. Also known as Watusi Cattle, every time I see one of these surely-delicious ruminants one of my favorite songs runs through my mind: Watusi Rodeo by Guadalcanal Diary… but that’s neither here nor there…

New-and-improved (and much prettier) Ankole Cattle

what was there is a new piebald/mottled/pinto/whatever-you-want-to-call-it color variety of Ankole Cattle.

Much more attractive than the usually seen form, the three new animals were just introduced to the Kidani savannah the week we were there. I don’t know if this delicious-looking morph will make it’s way to the Kilimanjaro ride or not, but keep your eyes peeled… or just make a visit to Kidani…

Animal Kingdom entrance area

Like at the Magic Kingdom, the entrance to the Animal Kingdom park has the MyMagic+ area for those with the new wristbands for park admittance.

Castmember at the entrance to Animal Kingdom

Castmembers were stationed outside the entrance area doing their best to direct guests to the correct areas to enter the park. The gentleman above told me that the new system was working “pretty well”, but that some guests were getting into the “new” line and if they didn’t have the wristband for entrance some were becoming quite irritated at having to then again go and stand in line again to get into the park.

Inside the park we noticed one of the food kiosks along the path between Africa and Asia…

Note the massive lines for veggie cuisine…

and how it was now serving 100% vegetarian items.

Menu at “Safari Egg Roll” Kiosk in Animal Kingdom

We also took a ride on the Kilimanjaro Safari as we hadn’t been on it since the new zebra area was opened…

There’s something missing between my legs…

the first thing we noticed when sitting down in the ride vehicle was that the net bags to hold your random goodies had been removed from the back of the seats… were too many people leaving things behind in them? Was just our safari vehicle being re-done? Inquiring minds…

We had several close-up animal viewings on this safari ride, and then eventually got to the new zebra area…

you get a pretty close encounter with the striped-horsey-looking-critters, but considering how much work looked to being done during the construction I though the zebra space was kinda small… I guess size matters after all…

On this trip we also made our way over to Downtown Disney, made our first visit to Splitsville (more on that in another post), and while there we ambled into D Street and found some nice new shirts….

one features an image of Walt on the front…

and there are several with famous quotes from Mr. Disney emblazoned upon them.

And considering the popularity of the Turkey Leg shirts and other Disney-food related apparel, it’s not surprising we get another piece of garb featuring an iconic Disney edible…

popcorn!

Okay kids, with a food reference we’ll call it a post… hope you enjoyed this look at some Odds & Ends form the World!

Back to the kitchen, see you soon!

WDW Odds & Ends: 2012 Year End Edition, Part Two

A few days ago I gave you an “Eating-and-Drinking-Around-the-World-Style” look back at some of the goings-on around Walt Disney World in the first half of 2012 (if you neglected to spend your spare time reading around the New Year, you can go back now and peruse WDW Odds & Ends: 2012 Year End Edition, Part One, we’ll wait for you here while you do so…).

So now it’s time to pick back up with our review…

Walk… or fly?… this way…

After we regained our land legs, Miss Bonnie and I took a July trip to check out the further updates to Fantasyland in the Magic Kingdom, and the newly reopened (and multiplied) Dumbo was on our list…

We were mostly interested in checking out the new “queue-less-queue”…

we found the indoor play/waiting area to be quite cute and nicely themed…

Dumbo play/waiting area

but our real goal was to “fly high buddy” and get an elephant’s eye view of the construction ongoing at the New Fantasyland…

but even from upon high, the apparently strategically placed foliage prevented us from getting a clear elephant’s-eye-view of the construction…

The mostly obscured view of the New Fantasyland construction from Dumbo

And yes, the construction continued behind the walls…

Construction walls in the Magic Kingdom

With the Agent P Adventure now officially open over in Epcot…

Agent P World Showcase Adventure Kiosk

floral versions of Phineas and Ferb greet guests on their way to the World Showcase.

Phineas and Ferb Topiary on the walkway between Future World and the World Showcase in Epcot

And yes…

Miss Bonnie’s new Happy Place…

there was another visit to Tutto Gusto – it was on this visit we learned about the upcoming menu change – you can see the details on this revelation in the post “Go for the Gusto!“.

Sign at new exhibit inside the Mexico Pavilion

The new exhibit on Life in Ancient Mexico was now up inside the Mexican pavilion.

Wanna shoot some hoops?

How do you spell “H-O-R-S-E” in Spanish?

And at the Happiest Place in the Happiest Place on Earth (aka La Cava del Tequila) we found a couple of changes to the specialty Margarita list since our last visit.

La Cava del Tequila Specialty Margarita Menu

The Organic Skinny Lime and Coffee Margaritas were new additions.

La Cava del Tequila Specialty Margarita Menu

We sampled both – the Skinny Lime was fine, but nothing special, but the Coffee was a frozen/slushy concoction that was delicious – especially good on a hot day!

We did eat someplace other than Tutto Gusto in July…

Kouzzina Trio (Cinnamon-stewed Chicken, Greek-style Lasagna and Lamb Burger)

We had a really good meal at Cat Cora’s Kouzzina on the Boardwalk – it was Miss Bonnie’s first visit there and afterwards she dubbed it her New Favorite Restaurant!

Landscape of Flavors Food Court at the new Art of Animation Resort

We also got our first chance to eat at the new Landscape of Flavors Food Court.

Indian-inspired eats at the Landscape of Flavors Food Court

We were very impressed with the Indian-style food offerings at the Art of Animation Resort and looked forward to coming back to try some of the other eats there!

You can see details of our dining from July at Tutto Gusto, Kouzzina and the Landscape of Flavors food court in the post WDW Weekend Eats dated August 5, 2012.

New Wine Flights at Tutto Gusto

August again found us at Epcot (is anyone shocked?) and one again at Tutto Gusto to check out the new Wine Flights and “Gusto Plates”.

“La Siciliana” Plate – Caponata, Cacciatorini Sausage & Fresh Mozzarella

We also checked out some merchandise…

An Eating & Drinking Around the World shirt!

tried a sparkling Sake in Japan…

Hana Awaka Sake in Japan

and scoped out the construction walls inside the gift shop in France.

Part of the bakery expansion in France

Also in August we ventured over to the Hilton Bonnet Creek Resort for their second annual Barbeque Weekend.

There we sampled several types of chili in a competition between chefs from the various restaurants at the resort.

Chili Competition at Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek Resort

We also tried a couple of the specialty cocktails being offered up for the weekend….

Watermelon Crawlita and BBQ Honey Bacon Bloody Mary

This year each of the bars and restaurants were offering different cocktails for the weekend – last year each of the locations were serving the same drinks – this was a nice change!

Cocktail Menu at the lobby bar in Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek Resort for Barbeque Weekends

The restaurants were also featuring special BBQ-inspired dishes, unique to each…

Zeta Lounge and Sushi Bar specialty items for Barbeque Weekends

We also gave the poolside barbeque grill a try….

Barbeque & Bikinis!

Poolside Barbeque Grill Menu

and lunched on a couple of the “Gourmet Dogs”.

Brooklyn Dog & Nacho Dog

Back over in the World, we went to check out some merch at Downtown Disney, and at the Team Mickey store we realized that you can’t really escape the Platypus…

Agent P taking it to the hole…

and that Mickey is a fan of the Crimson Tide!

Roll Tide, Roll!

September found us making our first stay at the new Art of Animation resort as the Little Mermaid section (the only part of the resort with “regular”/non-suite rooms) opened for business the middle of the month.

We loved the decor and detail in the room…

Beds and headboards in Little Mermaid room

Sheet Music for “Under the Sea” on table in Little Mermaid room

we even found a couple of Hidden Mickeys!

“Classic” Hidden Mickey in Little Mermaid Room at Art of Animation Resort

Hidden Mickey Watch in Little Mermaid Room at Art of Animation Resort

And where were these Mickeys?

Pull back the curtain…

In the shower of course!

Inside of the shower in Little Mermaid room

The exterior of the resort was pretty cool as well!

A Not-So-Little Mermaid

And a big scary Ursula!

One evening while there we took the bridge over to the food court at Pop Century and partook of an overly indulgent dessert…

“The King”

the King – a huge chocolate cupcake in honor of Elvis (Presley, not Costello). Filled with banana custard, glazed with a peanut butter icing and topped with candied bacon (hell yeah!) and chocolate, this is an homage to Elvis’ favorite grilled peanut butter and banana sandwich.

Stir-fried Veggie Noodles at Captain Cook’s

One night we went to the Magic Kingdom to check on the construction progress of the New Fantasyland expansion, and on the way we stopped at the Poly for a quick bite at Captain Cook’s.

Hawaiian Flatbread at Captain Cook’s

At the Magic Kingdom, we found some of the construction walls down…

and the new walls that mark the entrance to the New Fantasyland were out in the open.

New Fantasyland entrance wall

Detail on column of New Fantasyland wall

And a new place to nap…

We once again made our way to Epcot…

and found a few sultry Princess pics at the Art of Disney Store…

hubba, hubba!

And there was a new Haunted Mansion-inspired figure from  Jim Shore….

So want!

Play that funky music, Ghost-boy!

Moving out to the World Showcase I kinda got that Special Feeling…

Terra Vegan booth with Craft Beer booth in the background

as the booths for the 2012 Epcot International Food & Wine Festival had started to go up around the lagoon.

Belgium behind the hedges

The official opening of the festival was a couple of weeks later, and there was yet another runDisney race then – the inaugural Tower of Terror 10 Miler.

And once again, those attending the race expo could find plenty of “sustenance”…

Tower of Terror 10K Race Expo cocktails

The lines to get into Epcot were predictably long the first weekend…

but with extra-tasty foods…

Grilled Lamb Chop from Australia Kiosk

and fun in the cranberry bog awaiting…

Having a good time in the bog Deb?

And how about you Ms. Wolfe?

no one was complaining too much… certainly not us!

Karaage Hand Roll and Spicy Hand Roll from Japan Booth

We sampled plenty of foods and beverages…

Fruit Wines at the Florida Local Booth

and checked out the new Chase Lounge (see WDW Odds & Ends: 2012 Year End Edition, Part One to find out what this room formerly looked like!)…

Chase Lounge in the Festival Center of the Epcot Food & Wine Festival

and the merchandise offered up in the Festival Center.

Just some of the merchandise at the 2012 Epcot Food & Wine Festival

You can see many more details and my thoughts on the first weekend of the festival in the posts Epcot Food & Wine 2012: First Tastes, First Thoughts… Part One and the cleverly named Epcot Food & Wine 2012: First Tastes, First Thoughts… Part Two.

September also marked the 30th Anniversary of Epcot’s opening day…

Panel of men who were involved with the building and opening of Epcot hosted by Jason Surrell

and we had the chance to attend the D23 Anniversary Celebration.

Food & Wine Classic Banner

October saw more fun at the Epcot Food & Wine Festival, and what has become our favorite event of the fall, the Swan/Dolphin Food & Wine Classic.

Just a few of the booths being set up for the Food & Wine Classic

The Classic features beverage seminars, tons of food…

Shrimp Cocktail Shooters

Pork Belly!

even more to drink…

Beer anyone?

and celebrity chefs… some meet-and-greets are by design…

Yours truly with Big-Time chef and restauranteur Michael Mina

and some just a bit of serendipity…

That Retro-Rad Chic Emily Ellyn showed up for the festivities and I quickly accosted her – she got rid of me by giving me a gift of cherry tomatoes to go away…

all in all, the Food & Wine Classic is a blast! You can see more food pics in the post Food & Wine Classic 2012: Food Photo Gallery, and I will strive to finally get a full post/review up on the event soon… just don’t hold your breath…

The same weekend we also got to check out one of the soft openings (aka “Dress Rehearsal” in Disney-speak) of the Enchanted Forest section of the New Fantasyland expansion…

Part of the mural in the load area of the new Little Mermaid ride

The Little Mermaid attraction is a cute dark ride with a great queue…

Hello Ariel…

and after that Miss Bonnie, Mamma Ginny and I got to meet the red-headed-gal-with-a-tail.

Lumiere and Belle

Enchanted Tales with Belle was a wonderful experience – great effects, fantastic animatronics (especially Lumiere) and lots of guest interaction. The queue and cottage are full of details to keep you busy while waiting to meet the literature-loving Princess.

Entrance to the Beast’s Castle and the Be Our Guest Restaurant

We also go to poke our heads into the (at the time) yet to open Be Our Guest restaurant….

Lunchtime/quick service ordering area at the Be Our Guest restaurant

the interior of the restaurant is spectacular, and yes Virginia, there is alcohol…

Beers from France and neighboring Belgium…

at dinner beer and wine will be served – a first for the Magic Kingdom – and following the theme of the restaurant, the alcoholic beverages are all from France (or beer from nearby Belgium)… with one exception…

this sure is a Conundrum…

the white wine list includes the wine blend Conundrum from Caymus… a wine I actually like quite a bit, but why the inclusion of one single bottle from California in a French restaurant?

Enchanted Forest area of New Fantasyland with the Beast’s Castle in the background

The whole area just looks fantastic – can’t wait to see how it all looks when the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train area is finished!

Who’s that guy in the red shirt?

Belle’s Village was also looking good…

Hey Gaston! Watch those hands!

but you have to watch out for handsome egomaniacs trying to steal your girl!

Exterior of Gaston’s Tavern

Gaston’s Tavern was open and serving that day!

Surprised that Lafou got that many…

Not surprisingly, there are also tons of details in this fairly small quick-service establishment.

Roasted Pork Shank at Gaston’s Tavern – tender, juicy meat inside, crispy skin outside!

We tried the roasted pork and gave it two-greasy-thumbs-up!

Another view of pig…

This is not a big venue, and the entrance/ordering area is cramped and not easy to get in and out of if there are more than just a few people in line… this is likely to be a popular spot with “Lefou’s Brew” (aka Disney’s answer to Butterbeer) being served there and the cute, detailed seating areas, but it’s gonna be crowded… mark my words…

Seven Dwarfs Mine Train construction

Work continues on the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train attraction…

Seven Dwarfs Mine Train construction

The construction over at the Storybook Circus section of the expansion looked to be pretty much completed by mid-October…

Storybook Circus Entrance

with the mandatory gift shop, Big Top Souvenirs, now open…

Big Top Souvenirs

and inside we found snacks…

Some of the “Big Top Treats”

and castmembers eager to teach guests how to juggle!

The new meet-and-greet area, Pete’s Silly Sideshow, was also open.

Entrance to Pete’s Silly Sideshow

Inside you can meet a couple of Lovely Ladies…

Sign inside the Sideshow

or a couple of not-so-lovely Gents…

Sign inside the Sideshow

The characters are in sideshow-appropriate garb and eager to meet their fans.

The Great Goofini in the flesh!

There is also a covered Fastpass distribution area with some shaded seating…

Storybook Circus Fastpass area

and nearby food carts for the famished while waiting….

Food cart in Storybook Circus

Anyone for a weenie?

A week later we had a step-up from hot dogs and pretzels…

Thanks to Mamma Ginny, Papa Harry and (especially) their Offspring Jen, Miss Bonnie and I got to attend the Party for the Senses for the first time.

A nice selection of cheeses and accompaniments

Diver Scallop with Pea Puree and Micro Greens

This over-the-top event features a great variety of exciting food items…

Fry me a Quail Egg please…

to go on top of my Duck Confit Burger

and great wines and beers…

A really nice Riesling from Chateau Ste. Michelle & Dr. Loosen

and performances from Cirque du Soleil! Just pretend I got a good picture of them…

To top it off I even got to talk Doctor Who with a real Brit! And speaking of the time-traveling Gallifreyan…

Doctor Who Tee-Shirt in the UK pavilion at Epcot

that same weekend I found the first evidence of Doctor Who merchandise finally showing up in the United Kingdom at Epcot (see The TARDIS has landed… for more).

The first part of November was filled with more Food & Wine Festival goodness….

Dessert Trio at Epcot Food & Wine Festival

and another runDisney event, the Wine and Dine Half-Marathon, coincided with the last weekend of the Festival.

Wine & Dine Weekend schedule of events outside the race expo

And once again…

Get ready for the race!

those attending the race expo could find plenty of sustenance!

I always enjoy how many revelers at the Food & Wine Festival like to come in special attire…

Not that there’s anything wrong with that…

and I think this might be the favorite shirt I saw this year!

The second weekend of the month marked not only the end of the Food & Wine Festival, but the beginning of the holiday season at the World…

Goodbye Food & Wine Festival – hello Christmas – the Epcot Christmas Tree goes up…

and the first night of the Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights at Hollywood Studios.

In addition of the spectacular light display…

and a hidden Purple Cat to find…

Found it!

there were some special food items…

“Santa Mickey” Cupcakes

and cocktails to be had!

Holiday Cocktail Menu at High Octane Refreshments in the Studios

The Merry Margarita – nothing says the Holidays like Blue Curacao and a Glow Cube!

This would actually be the only Holiday Goodness we’d experience in the Parks for this year, but it wouldn’t be the last Disney Fun w would have in 2012.

The next Disney holiday decorations we’d see would be…

Atrium of the Disney Fantasy decorated for the holidays (photo by Miss Bonnie)

on board the Disney Fantasy as we set sail for our second Disney Cruise of the year.

Pool area of the Disney Fantasy at night (photo by Miss Bonnie)

The Fantasy was perhaps even most spectacular than the Dream that we had sailed upon earlier in the year.

Tequila Seminar in the Meridian Bar (photo by Miss Bonnie)

From drink demos…

Beef Tenderloin with two sauces at Palo

to fine dining…

Arrrgghhh… come with me wench!

to the frivolity of Pirate Night…

Mistress of the Fantasy

there’s just way too much to cover about a Disney cruise to squeeze into this already-too-long recap… so someday I’ll try and and give you some more details…

Okay, so there you have it – a look back at 2012 from an Eating (and Drinking) Around the World perspective – hope you enjoyed!

Now what will 2013 hold? We’ll see soon as this year’s Marathon Weekend at WDW is just days away…

Back to the kitchen… and the starting line! See you soon!

WDW Odds & Ends: 2012 Year End Edition, Part One

As the New Year looms it seems that most blogs, websites, etc have to have some sort of year-in-review post, and being the Internet Lemming that I am, I will follow suit… so here are some random things from this this past year around the World – many, of course, food & drink related.

Let’s hop into our TARDIS and go way back in time – all the way to January of 2012…

runDisney Event Medals

The first big event of the year at the Walt Disney World Resort is Marathon Weekend: thousands of runners, joggers, walkers and assorted hangers-on swamp the World to take part in the athletic endeavors that wind their way through property over the long weekend.

Disney Marathon Weekend Packet Pickup

One of the first stops for the participants is at the ESPN Wide World of Sports complex to pickup their bibs and other race paraphernalia and to browse and shop at the race expo.

The best booth at the race expo!

And in case the runners need sustenance to make it up and down the crowded aisles of the expo, one can avail themselves of some fresh fruit, an energy drink, or, thank goodness, a glass of bubbly or a beer!

Marathon Weekend Cupcakes

The Main Street Bakery in the Magic Kingdom was in the Marathon Mood during the weekend with some specially decorated cupcakes… can you say Carb-Loading?

Lots of things were going on in the brief month of February…

Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom Banner above the Firehouse on Main Street

The new Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom interactive game was now in full swing in (of course) the Magic Kingdom.

Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom Training Session

Valentine’s is always a busy time at the World (what’s more romantic than a cozy ride for two through the Haunted Mansion?).

Wild Caught Jumbo Prawn and Crab “Hot-Pot” at Artist Point

Miss Bonnie and I shared a nice dinner at Artist Point in the Wilderness Lodge to celebrate Valentine’s Day.

House-made Sweet Potato Gnocchi at Artist Point

Another popular runDisney event. the Princess Half-Marathon, is held the end of February.

Princess Half-Marathon Snack Box and Medal

After the race instead of the usual “grab-a-bannana-and-a-bagel” line at most running events, the finishing Princesses (and Princes) were handed a nice little box of post-race refueling items.

Also that month there was a debut at the Kidani Village:

Makemba the Okapi at Kidani Village

Makemba (an African name for “Goddess”) is a female Okapi calf that was born on October 1 of 2011 and was just making her first forays into public view for limited times at Kidani Village.

Makemba with mama Zoe keeping a watch nearby

The rare and reclusive Okapi are kept on Pembe Savannah at the resort – this is the smaller savannah near the pool area. Even if you aren’t staying at the resort you can always stop by and try to catch a glimpse of these gorgeous creatures.

Construction at Tutto Gusto in Italy pavilion

In Epcot’s World Showcase the refurbishment in Italy continued as we eagerly kept checks on the soon to open wine bar…

Temporary food kiosk in Italy

A kiosk was set up on the promenade to help service guests Italian food needs while Tutto Italia was closed.

Fancy-dancy restrooms at the new Storybook Circus train stop

March saw the first part of the New Fantasyland expansion debut – sections of the Storybook Circus area, including the refurbished train stop (and perhaps the nicest restrooms in the Magic Kingdom!) were opened to the public.

The Great Goofini’s Ill-fated Rocket Flight

Also in March I had the opportunity to attend the Food Blog Forum event that was held on WDW property for the first time this year.

Food Blog Forum opening reception at the Grand Floridian

“Hanging” Salads at the Food Blog Forum opening reception

In addition to a day of great seminars and the opportunity to meet many food bloggers from all over the country (as well as re-connect with friends made before), the attendees got a couple of chances to see how the Disney chefs can really strut their stuff when given the chance! An opening reception was held the evening before the seminars at a lovely outside venue at the Grand Floridian resort.

Food Blog Forum lunch in the Millennium Village in Epcot

Lunch on the seminar day was held in the Millennium Village in Epcot. Chefs from restaurants around property served a huge variety of great dishes that emphasized the healthier side of dining while still keeping the taste and style high.

Spreads and Dips from Sanaa at the Food Blog Forum lunch

The sign says it all… I ate two of these without getting a good picture!

High-tech Soda making!

The Kitchen meets the Laboratory

Chocolate Ravioli in Cognac at Food Blog Forum lunch

March also saw the opening of the 2012 Epcot Flower and Garden Festival.

Cheers to the Flower & Garden Festival!

Haiti area at Flower & Garden Festival

This year’s festival featured an area devoted to Haiti.

Haiti Refreshment Kiosk

And yes, there were cocktails!

Haiti Refreshments Menu

April saw the continuation of the Flower & Garden Festival…

Dragon in China pavilion

Bonsai in Japan pavilion

Construction walls in Italy

and the continued construction at the restaurant in Italy.

New signage up behind the construction walls

But the new signs were up and the refurb seemed near to an end!

While impatiently waiting for the wine bar in Italy to open, we took advantage of the Wine Walk in Epcot and sampled several wines in three countries.

Sampling wines in France…

Italy…

and Germany

The Wine Walk is available all year and makes a fun (and relatively economical) way to sample several varietals as you make your way around the World Showcase.

Illuminations: Reflections of Earth

And of course the best way to end any day at Epcot (regardless of the time of year) is with a viewing of Illuminations!

Illuminations finale

Over at the Magic Kingdom an old friend returned…

Poster at the Magic Kingdom

The Sunshine Tree Terrace in Adventureland re-opened after a bit of a refurbishment…

Sunshine Tree Terrace

and along with it came the return of the Orange Bird character to the park.

“Little Orange Bird…”

And at the very end of April in Epcot…

Italy sans construction walls!

the walls were down in Italy!

Almost open… but not quite

But staff posted outside (along with signage) informed guests that the restaurant and adjacent wine bar weren’t quite ready to open to the public.

Sign outside Tutto Italia

Which brings us to the merry month of May….

Italy at night…

The first weekend of the month we got to stick out heads into the much-anticipated wine bar (you can see some pics from that visit in the WDW Odds & Ends post from May 24, 2012)…

Tutto Gusto entrance

but it would still be a while before we got to eat and drink there… we’ll get to that later…

The first weekend of May also included Cinco de Mayo…

Inside the Mexico pyramid…

and not surprisingly the lines were long at La Cava del Tequila in Mexico.

Why yes, I’ll have a cocktail…

That weekend was also the weekend that the Flower & Garden Festival was highlighting the “Fresh from Florida” agriculture in the Festival Center (aka the Wonders of Life Pavilion). With the “Real Job” coming under the umbrella of Florida agriculture, and our company hosting a display at the Festival Center that weekend, Miss Bonnie and I were invited to a small private function “after hours” upstairs in the Festival Center and once again, I got to see the Disney chefs stretch themselves (and we also found out how easy it would be to wander around backstage fairly unnoticed if one wished to do so… but that’s perhaps another post for another day…).

Peanut Crusted Beef Skewers

They tailored the food items to represent several of the groups and companies that were displaying during that weekend: a peanut farm (who knew we raised peanuts in Florida?); kumquat farmers; a couple of ornamental aquaculture suppliers; and of course strawberry farmers .

Panna Cotta with Kumquat Jam

Koi Colored Chocolate Drops with Sugar Coral (this was incredibly impressive from both an aesthetic and taste perspective)

Strawberries and Cream

As we exited the event and took the tiny elevator down to the first floor, Bonnie & I (like the true Disney-nerds we are) took the chance to nose around a little in the closed building and found a fun room…

“Carnival” room in the Epcot Wonders of Life Pavilion

“Carnival” room in the Epcot Wonders of Life Pavilion

“Carnival” room in the Epcot Wonders of Life Pavilion

“Carnival” room in the Epcot Wonders of Life Pavilion

“Carnival” room in the Epcot Wonders of Life Pavilion

“Carnival” room in the Epcot Wonders of Life Pavilion

“Carnival” room in the Epcot Wonders of Life Pavilion

This is the room that became the Chase Lounge at this year’s Food and Wine Festival, so sadly it no longer exists in the cool decor we saw… but we were excited to see it and I’m glad to be able to share these pictures with my Dear Dedicated Readers.

There is another “Carousel” room upstairs (see the post at Zannaland about this room) that Bonnie and I got to see after the Food and Wine Festival Preview last year – hopefully the decor in that room will stay around for a while!

And yes, there was yet another runDisney event that weekend – the Expedition Everest Challenge – Miss Bonnie and I declined to run in that event, but we did volunteer and had a great amount of fun helping runners out with the scavenger hunt clues!

Flower Power Concert Poster

A couple of weeks later we once again made our way to Epcot for the final weekend of the Flower & Garden Festival. I specifically wanted to see the performance of Micky Dolenz who was taking the place of the late Davy Jones. It was a fun, nostalgic, and at times emotional show as Micky talked about his friend and band-mate who had just passed away in February.

Micky Dolenz

After the concert we finally got the chance to have a nosh at Tutto Gusto…

Polenta Funghu e Fontina at Tutto Gusto

and Miss Bonnie quickly fell in love with the place! For more details on the eats we had there (and lots of other eats from that weekend as well!) check out the WDW Weekend Eats post dated June 1, 2012.

Star Wars Weekends stage in front of the “Hat”

Another popular event opened up that weekend: Star Wars Weekends at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

R2D2 filled with Churros

And yes, there was food there as well!

Lord Vader turns out to be a sweetie…

The June fun started in Animal Kingdom…

Safari Guide Tip Board at Animal Kingdom

with the Sundowner Celebration.

There was food…

Indian Wine

beverages…

Bollywood, baby!

and dancing!

Even though they could have made more of it, it was a fun event – you can see more in the post Sundowner Celebration: A First Look.

“Brave” Billboard in Hollywood Studios

The publicity machine for the soon-to-open film “Brave” was in full motion with huge billboards in the Studios…

“Brave” Billboard in Hollywood Studios

a Merida meet-and-greet in the Magic Kingdom…

Merida

and the Highland Games going on in Epcot.

Highland Games Banner in Epcot

You usually don’t get to chose your family!

“Brave” Sand Sculpture in Epcot

And already merchandise galore…

Just a small sample of the Merida/Brave merchandise available even before the movie hit the big screen

Another part of the Storybook Circus opened up in June…

with the very well-themed and very wet Casey Junior Splash ‘n’ Soak Station in the Magic Kingdom.

I dare you to stay dry!

While nearby the seemingly ever-present construction walls could hardly hide the advancing work going on for the New Fantasyland expansion.

Construction wall in Fantasyland

The middle of the month found the Harem at Animal Kingdom for another run at the Sundowner Celebration.

Cheers from the Wine Walk!

Who’s having more fun that This Guy?

Spring Roll Making Demonstration

Miss Bonnie explaining the virtues of Rice Paper to Mama Ginny…

Mama Ginny doesn’t look so sure…

There were also things goings on over at Epcot…

Sign up!

We got to play-test the new Agent P’s World Showcase Adventure which replaced the Kim Possible Adventure.

Goodbye Kim, hello Perry

Inside Mexico most of the entrance area had been cleared out…

Inside the pyramid again…

to make way for a new exhibit.

Coming soon to a pyramid near you…

And down in La Cava…

Looks good to me!

they had introduced a new high-end tequila flight!

What a name for a drink!

And I finally got a chance to try a new beverage at the Joy of Tea kiosk in China.

And what a drink it was! Two Quacks up!

Towards the end of June Miss Bonnie and I got our first look at the Art of Animation resort.

Art of Animation Resort exterior (photo by Miss Bonnie)

Light fixture in the entrance way of the Art of Animation Resort (photo by Miss Bonnie)

Part of the main pool area at the Art of Animation Resort

Radiator Springs section of the Art of Animation Resort (photo by Miss Bonnie)

And to end up the month we stepped outside the World…

and onto the Disney Dream…

Dream a little dream…

You can check out a few food & drink pics from that trip in the post “Life could be a Dream…”

Wow… it was quite a busy first half of the year! And since the second half wasn’t much less busy, let’s take a break for a cocktail… or two… or three…

So much for a short little post with some odds & ends…

See you soon for part two! Happy New Year!

Off to the bar…

Food & Wine Classic 2012: Food Photo Gallery

Food & Wine Classic Banner in the lobby of the Dolphin Resort

This past weekend was the third (and I’ll go ahead and say now, most successful) incarnation of the Swan and Dolphin Food & Wine Classic.

I’ll give you, Dear Dedicated Readers, a more in-depth look at our weekend there in a future post, but I thought I’d tempt/tease/allow your taste buds to live vicariously through some pictures of the foods served this past Friday and Saturday…

So let’s take a look at the eats!

Carved Prime Rib with Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Horseradish Sauce from Shula’s Steakhouse

Jumbo Lump Crab Cake Sliders with Shredded Lettuce, Pickle Chips and Old Bay Aioli on a Sesame Roll from The Garden Grove

Texas-Style Beef Brisket with Fried Pickles and Brioche Puree from Cib’s Smokehouse

Smoked Pork Belly with Texas Toast and Baked Bean Foam from Cib’s Smokehouse

Custom Blended 2 oz. Burger on a Cheddar Cheese Roll with Truffled Aioli and Caramelized Onions from Fresh

Shrimp Cocktail Steam Rollers from bluezoo

Pan Seared Shrimp “n” Grits from bluezoo

Pork Carnitas with Brasied Pork, Sofrito and Pico de Gallo on Pita from Cabana Bar & Beach Club

Blackened Fish Taco from Cabana Bar & Beach Club

Assorted Desserts from pastry chef Laurent Branlard

Assorted Desserts from pastry chef Laurent Branlard

Falafel: Chick Pea Fritters with Tahini from the Fountain

Fried Calamari with Spicy Marinara Sauce from Il Mulino

Traditional Oysters Rockefeller with Creamy Spinach, House Bacon and Parmesan from Todd English

“Six Shooter”: Oyster Shooter with Bloody Cocktail, Horseradish, Celery, Corona, Lemon Foam and Old Bay and a Traditional Raw Oyster on the Half Shell with choice of sauce from Todd English

Crispy Fried Oysters with Old Bay from Todd English

“Frenchy” Oyster with Crème Fraiche, Hackleback Caviar, Pickled Onion and a  Quail Egg from Todd English

Hamachi Parfait with Crispy Rice Cake and Wasabi Tobiko from Chef Michael Mina

Dragon Roll with Crispy Shrimp, Tuna and Avocado from Kimonos

Spicy Yellow Fin Tuna from Kimonos

Okay… so there you have some food pics… but I can’t resist a couple more non-food shots…

as usual, the stalking of Celebrity Chefs continues (there will be more later)…

Yours truly with Emily Ellyn

and this weekend I got to meet the “Retro Rad” (and all-around-fabulous-babe) Emily Ellyn from the Next Food Network Star! I was a bit star-struck, but tried to hold it together… more on the celeb-chefs at this weekend’s Food & Wine Classic later… along with everything else…

Back to the kitchen…

You never know what will happen…

at the Swan and Dolphin Food & Wine Classic….

you might get rained on; or you might get to have your picture made with a handsome, tequila-infused celebrity chef (and if you have the right “equipment”, you may see him checking out your rack in the photo…); you might get an unexpected kiss; but for sure you’ll get to eat a lot of great food and consume mass quantities of adult beverages!

The third annual event will be held this coming weekend, and you can check out all the details at the Swan/Dolphin site.

Most of the Harem will be in attendance (Mama Ginny and Pappa Harry, Lil Sister Lindsay, Miss Bonnie and yours truly, BFF Laura and her Significant Other), so if you’re in the neighborhood, stop by and be on the lookout for us!

You never know what might happen….

WDW Weekend Eats

Last weekend Miss Bonnie and I made a quick trip to the World, and even though it wasn’t a full weekend, there was plenty of good and interesting eats to share, so let’s dive right in!

After a Saturday morning spent checking out the construction walls in the Magic Kingdom (more on that in another post), we boarded the monorail for the ride to Epcot for lunch.

On our way to Italy, we passed yet another construction wall in the World Showcase…

Outside our lunch destination, Tutto Gusto, was a sign touting their new wine seminars.

We made our way into the cool interior and were able to snag a seat on one of the sofas in the room next to the fireplace (of course you need a fireplace in Florida in July…).

View from the couch…

We ordered a couple of adult beverages while we perused the menu…

we ordered the marinated artichokes to start.

Marinated Artichokes (Carciofi)

Tender and nicely flavored from the olive oil, we both enjoyed this as a light starter to share.

We then decided to split one of the corkscrew pasta dishes…

and settled on the Gamberetti.

Gamberetti (corkscrew shaped pasta with shrimp)

With a few large, nicely cooked shrimp and a sauce with just enough bite from the calabrian chili to make me happy, yet not scare off Miss Bonnie, this was a “two thumbs up” from both of us (so I guess that would be four thumbs up?).

Chalkboards around Tutto Gusto now highlight several of the wines served

All in all a nice, relaxing lunch in the midst of a huge theme park.

It was during this meal we learned of the new menu change to occur at Tutto Gusto (see the post “Go for the Gusto“), and now we’re even more eager to return here to see what new is in store!

Afterwards we headed to the Mexico Pavilion to meet a certain Disney-celebrity-blogger friend at La Cava for margaritas (oh, twist my arm!).

La Cava del Tequila Margarita Menu

A couple of new drinks have been added to the margarita roster since our last visit.

La Cava del Tequila Margarita Menu

So of course we had to try the “Organic Skinny Lime” and “Milagro Pomegranate” margaritas. Both were good (the pomegranate the better of the two), but neither we thought among the best that La Cava has to offer.

We sadly said our goodbyes to our friend, and La Cava, to return to our room at the Dolphin resort.

And yes… as we left the pyramid in Mexico we were met with yet another (albeit small) construction wall…

Only the anticipation of our upcoming dinner could ease the sting of leaving La Cava…

As you might guess, that evenings repast was scheduled at Cat Cora’s Kouzzina restaurant on the Boardwalk, a short walk from the Dolphin resort.

I have dined at Kouzzina a few times, while this was Miss Bonnie’s first time there, and she was quite looking forward to trying the menu there.

No, Chef Cora was not there that evening, but I’ll use any tenuous excuse to show this pic of myself with the petite Iron Chef… so shoot me…

We ordered beverages (Miss Bonnie selected one of the wine flights that would highlight her eventual entree selection while I tried the Caymus Red Conundrum) and started by sharing the baked goat cheese appetizer.

Goat Cheese Sto Fourno: Baked Goat Cheese, Pequillo Peppers, Kalamata Olives, Artichoke Hearts, Olive Oil served with bread and a bit of salad

I’m a sucker for goat cheese, and this heated and adorned version was quickly downed (and yes, we did now have our Total Minimum Daily Requirement of artichoke). We were also served bread with a couple of types of Greek olive oil for dipping along with a few cured olives – Miss Bonnie adored the oil (and I couldn’t argue with her in the least about this simple culinary pleasure of nice, spongy bread and flavorful oil).

Not able to decide on a single entree, Miss Bonnie went for the Kouzzina Trio.

Kouzzina Trio (Cinnamon-stewed Chicken, Greek Lasagna and Lamb Burger ) with flight of Coranation wines.

This “combo platter” has tender cinnamon-scented stewed chicken served with herbed orzo pasta (we both liked), a nice portion of the Greek-style Lasagna (pasta, cinnamon-stewed meat sauce, and bechamel sauce – as a full dish this perhaps would have been too much, but in this sampler portion it was well liked) and a slider-size Char-grilled Lamb Burger (this was the only item that is not offered as a separate entree option).

Char-grilled Lamb Burger

The burger was actually quite good, and would be a nice lunch option if Kouzinna was open for lunch (which it isn’t…). Our served warned us that the burger was “very spicy”, but even Miss Bonnie’s more tender taste buds didn’t detect any excessive heat.

I was in the mood for some Serious Meat, so I was torn between the Braised Short Ribs, Wood-grilled Rib-eye and the Oak-fired Pork Tenderloin. I asked our server her recommendation and she quickly answered “the pork”.

Oak-fired Pork Tenderloin with Feta Gremolata, Broccoli Rabe and Corn Pie

The huge piece of pig was perfectly cooked to medium and topped with a feta gremolata. Broccoli rabe and a cornbread-like concoction rounded out the plate.

The back side of pork!

I was very happy with this dish and would certainly order it again.

Overstuffed, we passed on the dessert options and made plans to waddle ourselves to Epcot for a post-dinner viewing of Illuminations.

Miss Bonnie was enthralled by the restaurant, and now thinks she has found one of her new favorite eateries in the World. My only disappointment was not getting to speak to Chef Dee (Dee Foundoukis, who runs the kitchen) – I guess now that Bonnie has expressed a desire to return, the Chefs Table here will have to be in our future…

Sunday began with a visit to Animal Kingdom (we were a bit disappointed that we didn’t happen to come across any construction walls here…).

In Harambe, we noted that the Dawa Bar was still offering the tasty Sugar Cane Mojito even though the Sundowner Celebration has ended.

After a ride on the safari and some wandering around, we looked for some light sustenance and decided to take a another go at the Summer Rolls from one of the carts along the path between Africa and Asia.

Summer Rolls

Served cold, these rice paper enrobed veggie-and-rice pasta filled wraps are a refreshing change of pace on a hot summer day.

Summer Rolls

These now are served in a “two-pack” and comes with a yummy hoisin-based dipping sauce (the original offering here was a single roll served with a sweet chili sauce). I really like that we have a healthy and light alternative to most of the other snack options available in the parks.

Now sufficiently sated to trek elsewhere for Sunday lunch, we moved on to the recently opened Art of Animation Resort.

Exterior of the Art of Animation Resort

We had scoped out this incredibly well-themed resort a few weeks back, but despite the initial good reports on the eats at the food court, this was our first chance to eat there.

Part of the main pool area at the Art of Animation Resort

We wandered around and explored a bit – the “Cars” area had just recently opened.

Entering into the “Cars” section of the Art of Animation Resort

Cozy Cone Motel sign in the “Cars” area of the Art of Animation Resort

We then went into the main Animation Hall building to find the Landscape of Flavors food court.

The roomy food court area is, like the food courts at the other value resorts, broken down into sections, each with a similar food theme…

Video screens above each section show the menu for that area on one side and large pictures of featured items on the other.

Burger Shop Menu

Burger Shop Menu

The two pages of each menu alternate on the right side of the screen, while pictures of several of the featured items rotate on the left side.

The photos pixilate as they change from one image to another – a simple but cool effect.

The kitchen area, unlike most other of the food courts, is wide and open, allowing you to see the food actually being prepared. They even have shiny high-tech tandoori ovens for making several of the Indian-inspired items.

Tandoori Ovens in the open kitchen at the Landscape of Flavors

Based on what we’d heard from others who had already eaten then, as well as from one prior visit when we scoped out the eats but didn’t partake, we knew pretty much what we were going to have… but that didn’t stop us from eyeing the other sections menus before we ordered.

Salad and Sandwich Menu

Pizza and Pasta Shop Menu

Pizza and Pasta Shop Menu

We had decided to eat from the Tandoori and Mongolian Grill area, so the next decision was what exactly to have from there…

Tandoori and Mongolian Grill Menu

Tandoori and Mongolian Grill Menu

We eyeballed the display plates of food while chatting up the amiable castmembers behind the counter – asking them their preferences of the items being offered.

Display plates at Tandoori and Mongolian Grill station

Miss Bonnie chose the Acorn Squash as her main and I selected the Tandoori Chicken Thigh. We got a variety of sides (we were actually given three sides each, if you count the rice – not sure if the rice was considered part of the meal or if the servers were just generous on that day) and made our way to pay and find a table.

There are several large dining areas, each themed to one of the movies represented in the different sections of the resort. It was not crowded when we visited, and we found a table among many of the ones open in the Little Mermaid seating area.

Tandoori Acorn Squash, Spinach with Paneer Cheese, Lentils, Basmati Rice and Nann Bread… and yes kids, that’s real silverware… and a real plate…

We eagerly dove in, and were quite pleased with was was on our plates. Bonnie found the roasted acorn squash to be a revelation!

Tandoori Chicken Thigh, Spinach with Paneer Cheese, Roasted Cauliflower with Tomatoes, Basmati Rice and Nann Bread

The chicken held up well to the high heat of the tandoor, and was full of flavor while not being dry. Alongside was a spiced, yoghourt-based sauce. The veggies were good, even though be both thought the spinach could have had a bit more spice. The freshly baked naan was great, and if there had been more room in our stomachs we would have gladly devoured more of it.

I’ve eaten more than my share of Indian food in my day, and this certainly wasn’t the best, but it was far from being the worst… Miss Bonnie and I agreed that if we had been served the same meal in a sit-down establishment and charged twice as much, we would have still been very happy. The portions are generous (even without a third side, I don’t think we could have finished our plates without being overly stuffed), and the quality was very good. The food here is also a fairly good value – our two entrees and two non-adult beverages came to just over $20 after the Tables in Wonderland discount (yes, they do take it here – yea!).

Even though we were both feeling full, Bonnie couldn’t resist a trip for something sweet…

The Market Shop section of the food court has a variety of smoothies, specialty beverages, sweets, and Miss Bonnie’s choice for the day: gelato.

Smoothie Menu

Market Shop Menu

There were several flavors of gelato to choose from (along with toppings if desired) and Miss Bonnie was glad to take sample tastes of all of them before settling on a combo bowl of pistachio and torrone (don’t ask me what that flavor is, all I know is it’s Italian-something…).

Gelato at Landscape of Flavors

The gelto flavors are displayed in a fun way, with hidden (and not-so-hidden) Mickeys!

Gelato (pistachio on bottom, torrone on the top)

The food court also has a nice selection of grab-and-go items…

including sandwiches, sushi, fruit, and baked goods (including vegan goodies from Babycakes).

Pre-packaged Sushi

Even the beer and wine selection was a few notches above the norm, including several Florida-brewed specialties.

Mmmm… beer….

We’re looking forward to trying some of the other offerings here – has a food court actually become Destination Dining?

It will be interesting to see if the quality and service changes as the rest of the resort rooms are opened (at the time of our visit only two of the four sections of the resort had opened) and the number of dining guests increases greatly.

So there you have it Dear Dedicated Readers – some more vicarious dining for you… we really enjoyed our three main experiences (Tutto Gusto, Kouzinna and Landscape of Flavors) and are actually looking forward to re-visiting them all soon – not a bad percentage!

Time to get back to the kitchen – see you again soon!

Let’s Cook! Spicy Durban Style Chicken

With thoughts of the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival already running through my mind (yes, I’m already counting down, see Is it too early? if you don’t believe me…), I decided to finally try a recipe we saw demoed at last year’s festival: Spicy Durban Style Chicken.

Spicy Durban Style Chicken

Sanaa, the restaurant at the Kidani Village section of the Animal Kingdom Lodge, is one of my (and Miss Bonnie’s) favorites on property.

So when we saw that Chef Bob Getchell, who has headed the kitchen at Sanaa from day one, was doing a demonstration one day at the Food & Wine Festival we signed up right away.

He showed how to make one of the more popular (and spicy) dishes from the “Slow Cooked in Gravy, Simple and Well Seasoned” section of the Sanaa menu – the dish is right up my flavor-alley – a bit Indian, lot’s of spice, a bit hot – so without much further ado, let’s cook!

Okay, here’s a little bit of ado…

I’ll give you the recipe pretty much as presented, but as Dedicated Readers should know by now, I didn’t exactly follow the recipe to a tee… so I’ll give you some notes and comments where I varied from the recipe…

Okay, so now we can cook!

Spicy Durban Style Chicken

Ingredients

For the Dry Masala (Spice) Mixture:

2 Whole Star Anise

1/2 Tbl Whole Cumin Seeds

3 Whole Bay Leaves

4 Green Cardamom Pods (you may have to find an Indian market for these puppies…)

1/2 Tbl Ground Cinnamon (I also added a couple of whole cinnamon sticks during the cooking as you’ll see below)

3 Tbl Ancho Chili Powder

2 Tbl Chili Powder (the recipe doesn’t specify anything more than this, so I used the typical blended chili powder from the grocery, but if you have other specific, pure powders in addition to the Ancho, I’m sure that would be great)

2 Tbl Madras-style (hot) Curry Powder

1 Tbl Turmeric Powder

Some of the goodies…

For the Curry Sauce:

1 1/4 Lbs Boneless, Skinless Chicken Thighs, cut into bite-sized (about 1″) pieces

1/4 Cup Canola Oil

1 Cup Diced Onions (the recipe specifies yellow, but whatever you have around should be good)

2 Jalapeno Peppers, seeded and minced (or keep the seeds in if you like it hotter, of course I used 3 peppers…)

Hi there, Hot Stuff!

2 Tbl Ginger-Garlic Paste (I’ll show you how to make that later)

3 Cups Canned Crushed Tomatoes with their Juice (I used a 28 oz can of San Marzano Tomatoes and crushed them by hand and saved the extra liquid to use in place of the water called for in the recipe)

Water as needed, about 1/2 Cup

Salt and Freshly-ground Black Pepper to taste

1/4 Cup Chopped Cilantro

and most of the fresh stuff…

Procedure

For the Dry Masala (Spice) Mixture:

Put the star anise, cumin seeds, bay leaves and cardamom pods into a heavy, dry skillet and turn the heat onto medium high.

Stir and toast until fragrant and slightly browned…

be careful not to let the spices burn – stir often and reduce your heat if needed – if you do burn them, discard and start over. When done, remove the spices from the skillet and allow to cool.

The toasted whole spices

Put the toasted spices into a spice grinder (an inexpensive coffee grinder, kept to use just for spices, works great)…

and grind into a powder.

The now-ground, toasted spices

Measure out the rest of the Masala spices…

The dry Masala Spices

add the ground toasted spices, and put all back into the dry skillet.

Final toasting of all the spices

Heat and toast the spices as before until fragrant. Stir constantly and be careful not to burn. When it’s smelling good remove from the skillet and allow to cool.

For the Chicken Curry:

Heat the oil in a large, heavy skillet or Dutch oven until close to smoking.

Meanwhile, salt and pepper the chicken pieces and when the oil is hot, add some of the chicken to the pan.

You’ll want to get a nice browning on the chicken pieces, so don’t crowd the pan and turn/stir-fry the chicken as needed. Depending on the size of your pan, you’ll probably need to brown the bird in two or three batches.

When browned, remove the chicken pieces and set aside for now.

If you want, now add a couple of cinnamon sticks to the oil and stir a few seconds until the sticks start to unfurl.

An extra bit of cinnamon goodness…

Next add the chopped onion and jalapeno…

and cook over medium high until the onions start to get translucent.

Then add the ginger-garlic paste and stir well for about a minute…

Adding the ginger-garlic paste

then add the dry spices.

Getting your spice on…

Mix all well and cook another minute while stirring constantly.

It may not look so pretty at this point, but all the toasting, stirring and cooking will make a big difference in the finished sauce.

Add the tomatoes, stir and bring to a simmer.

Cook over high heat for three or four minutes, stirring frequently. If it seems a bit dry add some tomato juice or water (or even some of the beer you may be sipping on while you’re cooking).

Add the chicken to the sauce

Add the water (or tomato juice, or even beer or dry white wine) and stir well.

Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Cook until the chicken is tender (the recipe says 10-15 minutes, but you really can’t simmer this too long…), stirring occasionally. The sauce should be fairly thick, but adjust to your liking (simmer longer to thicken, or add more liquid for a more wet sauce… duh…). Taste for seasoning and salt and pepper as needed. If you want more heat you can add something like Sriracha or other hot sauce now, or allow each diner to add at the table as desired.

A little herbage at the end…

When ready to serve, stir in the cilantro.

Spicy Durban Style Chicken served with Basmati Rice and Roasted Cauliflower

Serve with rice (plain Basmati is fine, but would also be killer with Coconut Rice) and veggies of your choice (Simple Roasted Cauliflower would be a nice compliment to the spicy curry). A little sprinkle of cilantro to garnish won’t hurt a thing…

This same sauce is also used at Sanaa for the Spicy Durban Shrimp, so you can easily change the protein as you desire. It would even be great as a vegetarian dish – maybe use some roasted veggies in the sauce (cauliflower, carrots, etc.) or with some other protein source (such as seitan or tempeh).

With all the grinding and stirring and such, this certainly isn’t quick weeknight fare, but the results are well worth the effort. You can certainly make the spice mix a day or two ahead, and like most other “stewy” dishes, this seems to get better a day or two after it’s made, so make plenty and have leftovers.

I haven’t tried it, but I can’t see why this shouldn’t freeze pretty well.

At the demo, the dish was paired with a real nice Riesling from Loosen Brothers Winery in Germany.

A not-overly sweet Riesling (or other white wine) paired very well with the spicy curry – beer will also go well.

This is another one I hope you try – and as always, please let us know what you think in the comments section!

Back to the kitchen, see you soon!

Oh yeah, here’s how to make the Ginger-Garlic Paste (it’s real hard, hope you can follow along…). Take five or six big peeled garlic cloves and cut into chunks. Take some pieces of fresh peeled ginger that looks to be about the same volume as the garlic and cut into pieces about the same size as the garlic. Stick these into a mini-chopper/processor and add a tablespoon or so of olive oil.

Making Ginger-Garlic Paste

Process until the pieces make a fairly wet paste, added more oil as needed.

Any leftover paste will keep covered in the fridge for a few days, add enough extra oil if needed to keep all the paste covered.

Okay – now back to the kitchen again!

WDW Weekend Eats

Yes Dear Dedicated Readers, it’s time for another set of pics from a (fairly) recent weekend of dining at Walt Disney World… so let’s head on in…

On our first evening we sampled a few of the items at the temporary kiosk in the Italian pavilion at Epcot – this is open while Tutto Italia undergoes renovation, and features some items you wouldn’t normally expect to see at a quick-service location.

Caprese Sandwich and Pasta e Fagioli

We tried the Caprese Sandwich (fresh mozzarella, tomatoes and basil), the traditional pasta and bean soup Pasta e Fagioli, and to wash it down I had a Moretti draft while Miss Bonnie went with the fancy imported San Benedetto water (which pretty much tasted like, well, water…).

Caprese Sandwich

Overall the taste of the sandwich was a bit bland – the fresh cheese is naturally mild in flavor, but the tomatoes were not great and the basil was a bit skimpy. The bread was good, and if you had more flavorful tomatoes and upped the ante on the basil (plus maybe some fresh-cracked pepper) this would be a pleasant change-of-pace from the usual fare, but otherwise was not worth the hefty $10.00 price tag.

Pasta e Fagioli

On the other hand the soup was very good – a hearty mix of pasta, beans and a little bit of meat for flavoring in a nice broth. This was a good size portion and would be great on a cooler evening at Epcot.

The next day for lunch we made our was down Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood Studios and decided to try a couple of the “Gourmet” Hot Dogs at Fairfax Fare.

Macaroni and Cheese Hot Dog with Truffle Oil and Barbecued Pork and Coleslaw Hot Dog

High-end versions of the humble frankfurter have been showing up all over property the past year or two.

Macaroni and Cheese with Truffle Oil Hot Dog

The Mac & Cheese version wasn’t bad, but a little underwhelming – the aroma of the sprayed-on truffle oil hits you at first, but quickly dissipates – Bonnie & I were thinking of ways to make a more truffleious version at home…

Barbecued Pork and Coleslaw Hot Dog

More satisfying was the BBQ Pork and Slaw version. Similar to the one served at Casey’s Corner in Magic Kingdom, the bun holds a good portion of pulled pork (and better than was expected for this self-professed pig-snob) upon which rests the weenie that’s then topped with coleslaw. We both agreed we’d gladly down this version again.

We were at the World for the Princess Half-Marathon (I did say it was a fairly recent weekend, didn’t I?) and we next met several friends for our pre-race dinner at the Turf Club.

Turf Club was selected for the evenings dining as Lori Loves Tigger and her Hubby Erin (who after a bit too much tequila one day at La Cava also wound up somehow becoming my fiancee… don’t ask…) as they were staying at Saratoga Springs for the weekend – Doc Terminus and Running-Fiends Julie and James were along for the ride…

I had been to the nice bar area a couple of times before for apps and beverages, but other than that none of us had dined in the restaurant per se before.

A couple of plates of decent stuffed ‘shrooms and some onion rings were ordered for appetizers.

Roasted Mushrooms stuffed with spinach, cheese and garlic

I chose the stereotypical pre-race pasta while Miss Bonnie decided on a salad as her entree.

Turf Club Pasta with shrimp, garlic, olive oil, veggies & fresh herbs

Iceberg Wedge Salad with blue cheese, bacon & cherry tomatoes

Several other entrees were ordered around the table…

Surf & Turf Burger topped with watercress, lobster and Bearnaise Sauce

Roasted Free-Range Chicken Breast with red bliss potatoes, tomatoes, peas, fresh herbs and roasted broth and in the rear is the Prime Rib with Red Bliss mashed potatoes, broccolini, and red wine demi-glace

The Chocolate Espresso Torte was shared by some for dessert and was given a thumbs up.

Chocolate Espresso Torte

Overall the food was fine, but far from spectacular. If you’re staying at Saratoga and want a sit-down meal (and can’t make the long trek over the water to Downtown Disney for many more dining options) you should be able to have a reasonable meal here, but I’d say the Turf Club is not exactly destination dining.

The next day was the race itself, and afterwards there was actually an interesting edible…

At the end of most races you’ll find things like bananas, bagels, muffins, protein bars and the like offered to runners – at the end of the Princess Half we were also handed a snack box with some interesting, and good, options.

Interesting crackers with a squeeze container of hummus, roasted edamame (we both really liked these – we found the same brand at Whole Foods. Try the wasabi version – it’ll clear your sinuses!), fruit and nut mix and some semi-high-end chocolate… a nice change of pace from the usual post-race fare!

After a much-needed shower and a post-race celebratory Stella (me, not Miss Bonnie…) we made our way to Animal Kingdom to sample some of the new snack and quick-service offerings there.

Over the past several months there has been some new items (and a new kiosk) added to the path from Africa to Asia… this is a lovely walk, and we’ll see if it has been enhanced by the eats & drinks…

at Tamu Tamu Refreshments in Harambe they have a beef sandwich we’d been wanting to try…

Slow Roasted Pulled Beef Sandwich

we both really liked this (somewhat messy) sandwich, as well as the accompanying seasoned potato chips – we’ll be having this again. Our good friend Ryan also recently reviewed this item and I’d have to say that I concur completely with his assessment – you can check it out over at the Main Street Gazette.

As you travel on towards Asia you’ll come across the Safari Egg Rolls Kiosk…

while they have long offered the typical fried egg rolls (a veggie version as well as a pork and shrimp one), which are perfectly fine and for the fairly nominal prices are a nice snack, recently added was a Vietnamese-style cold Summer Roll.

Chilled Summer Roll

Rice paper encases glass noodles and fresh veggies… it could use a bit more herbs (Miss Bonnie found it a bit bland), and it really needs the sweet chili dipping sauce to enliven it, but overall I’m liking this item (which means it will probably be pulled from the menu soon)…

This crunchy, chilled roll is a good alternative to the fried rolls, and should be a great snack on those sweltering summer days in the often steamy Animal Kingdom park… and it’s only two bucks so it’s worth giving it a try… and yeah, it should be fairly healthy… shhhh… don’t tell anyone that…

Along the way is a fairly new structure primarily purveying beverages of the adult variety.

Frozen Margaritas are the beverage of choice here – if you’re not sure which to pick, try them all layered in the “Triple Yeti Blast”!

Triple Yeti Blast

Miss Bonnie really liked the mango flavor, while I was more partial to the lime. I’m not real big on frozen ‘ritas, but this will be nice during the heat of the summer (if you want a good non-frozen one in AK, try the African Margarita they mix up at the Dawa Bar).

We also wanted to try the new “Boneless Chicken Wings” (read sauced nuggets), but didn’t have the chance this time as we had to make our way towards Epcot for dinner… you can check out what our buddy AJ had to say about them over at the Disney Food Blog (she also covers the margarita kiosk in the same post – note how the offerings have changed since her visit just a few months prior to ours).

So yes, we arrived at Epcot and headed directly to (big shock) La Cava del Tequila…

We met the same motley crew as the night before (less the good Doctor) and Erin & I introduced Julie to the wonders of the tequila shot.

From there we went to dinner at Teppan Edo, the teppanyaki style eatery in the Japan pavilion.

The chef always puts on a good show…

The infamous "Onion Volcano"

While I think the food here is very average…

Ton (pork loin steak)

it is a very fun place to go, especially with a great group of friends!

Hotate (cold water sea scallops)

The tables here usually seat eight, and if your party doesn’t fill a table you will likely be seated with others (strangers at the start, but usually not by the end of the meal).

We were fortunate to be seated with a very nice young couple and their infant son. The husband was in the military and this was their last Disney trip before he was being sent for a tour of duty in the Middle East. This young gentleman and his wife were personable, bright and the perfect dinner companions – I was proud the shake his hand afterwards, thank him for his service to our country and wish him well. If he is at all typical of the men and women that serve us in the military, I’d say we are very well represented around the world. I hope to see the great couple and their adorable son very soon again in Disney!

So there you have it – another weekend of eating around the World – nothing spectacular this time, but some fun times and a few good finds nonetheless! Hope you enjoyed it!

Now, as always, back to the kitchen – we’ll see you soon!