Ole!

June 11, 2010

We’ve shown you some lovely views of the construction walls in Mexico over the past several weeks (see “Now it makes sense…” and “Waterfront dining…”). This week Pam Brandon of the Disney Parks Blog served up some info on the restaurants behind the curtain including some info on expected menu items and concept art of the finished edifice. You can check it out for yourself at Disney Parks Blog.

We here at Eating and Drinking Around the World are managing our expectations… we can’t be too disappointed in the food-to-be as long as we’re not expecting too much…

As long as there are reasonably good margaritas and more than one brand of cerveza, there will certainly be something there we’ll like!

Time to run now – literally – we’re off to the World for the Expedition Everest Challenge – it will be our third year for this event and we’ll report on it for you soon… or at least eventually… and yes, there will be food and drink during the weekend… see you soon!




Fireworks!

June 8, 2010

Summer Nightastics has begun at Disney. Mistress Sandra and I traveled over last weekend to view the new fireworks display on the debut night at the Magic Kingdom.

I’m not going to go into many details or spoilers in case you’re planning on going to view them for yourself, but let’s say that the new fireworks display was, well, fan–freaking–tastic!

Okay, yes, this is from "Illuminations", but we were enjoying the new Magic Kingdom fireworks so much we didn't want to take any pics during the first viewing!

I’m sure that there are plenty of videos and detailed descriptions already in the Interwebs if you want to search them out…

The Nightastics fireworks are an updated rendition of the Pirates and Princess Party display – and I’m sure some will dis Disney for recycling and older set of fireworks – but these are so spectacular I don’t think anyone should complain in the least! Perimeter shells and incredible effects on the castle make this a much different show from “Wishes”…

Mmmm... food...

Oh yes, there was food to be had on the trip – but we’ll get to that at another time…

Time to pick back up with our perambulation around the World Showcase during the 2009 Epcot Food & Wine Festival… gotta get this puppy finished before this year’s event starts after all…


We left off down under in Australia, so we have to make our way all the way to Thailand…


In Bangkok (no silly comments – grow up, would you?) we have only a couple of choices, but both were pretty darn good, so we’ll have no complaints about the paucity of choices.


First up was a creamy Chicken and Coconut Soup with Mushrooms, Lemongrass & Ginger. The “creamy” comes from coconut milk, with great flavor in the broth added by the ginger and lemongrass. This is a fairly representative Thai soup, and was well done.

Chicken and Coconut Soup with Mushrooms, Lemongrass & Ginger and Green Papaya Salad with Shrimp

The other dish here was Green Papaya Salad with Shrimp. One large and freshly-grilled shrimp sits atop a julienned and dressed mixture of papaya, carrots and onion. The shrimp was perfectly cooked, and the crunchy salad was a nice contrast.

The only complaint I could possibly have was that there could have been a bit more spice (heat) for my tastes, but overall I think the food here was great. Okay, I will complain a little that we only had two dishes… but just a little…

And yes, there was Thai Singha Beer… life is good….

Now we make our way from Asia to the bottom of Africa, specifically Cape Town, South Africa.

We discussed this booth quite a bit in the post Mission Impossible??? (and yes, you can go back and read, or re-read that post, now can’t you?), so we’ll revisit here only briefly…

Again here we only had two menu choices, but like Thailand, they were both winners…

For a starter we have the unfortunately named Mealie Soup with Crabmeat and Chili Oil (mealie actually is a South American word for corn…). Thick and flavorful, this hot soup would have been much better if it hadn’t been something like 1,000 degrees out during most of Food & Wine…

Mealie Soup with Crabmeat and Chili Oil and Seared Beef Tenderloin with Sweet Potato Puree and Mango Barbeque Sauce

And also available was a hearty Seared Beef Tenderloin with Sweet Potato Puree and Mango Barbeque Sauce. Grilled in the booth, the beef was done nicely, and the sweet potato was something nicely different from the usual potato side. The sauce was a bit sweet for my taste, but not horribly so…

A nice selection of South African wines rounded out the offerings here.

Again, for a more detailed look at the Cape Town culinary creations, take a peek at Mission Impossible???

Next around the way, we cross the bridge from Africa to the subcontinent of India for a visit to New Delhi.

I’ll say up front that I’ve been disappointed in the past with the Indian offerings during Food & Wine. Indian cuisine is one of my favorites – perhaps my number one – so maybe I’ve had unrealistic hopes here before…

First on the menu was a Chilled Mango Lassi – a popular yogurt-based drink. Didn’t try this one, don’t know why as the cold beverage would likely have been refreshing on the hot days of October…

I did have the one savory item presented here, the Rice and Lentil Crepe with Potato and Onion Filling. The crepe is better known as Dosai, and is a thin, slightly crispy, pancake-like concoction (often served in restaurants pretty darn crispy, and rolled into a long cylinder). This was folded over the potato filling and on the side was a stewed veggie concoction (according to the recipe in the Festival cookbook it contained, among other things, tomato, onion, eggplant and potatoes). The stew was actually nicely spicy (of course, not quite hot enough for moi as usual) and flavorful – I was pleasantly surprised how much I wound up liking this dish!

Rice and Lentil Crepe with Potato and Onion Filling

The sweet item here was Gulab Juman with Rose Syrup and Pistachios – read that as fried dough in a sweet syrup – actually not bad, especially since India isn’t exactly world-renowned for it’s desserts…

And yes, there was Kingfisher…

I was much happier this year than in years past with the Indian booth, but I’m still mystified as to why we’re not served some sort of curry, or even a rice-based dish like a Biryani… curries should be really easy to prep and serve in this type of environment, and no, I wouldn’t expect a throat-searing Vindaloo, but a nice creamy Korma should prove popular… oh well, we can hope for even better this year, can’t we?

We’ll pause here for a bit on our tour, hit the loo so we can make room for a Tsing Tao… yes China is next…

Ahhh… the Epcot Food & Wine Festival… the Best Time of the Year…

This week Disney sent out some more info on this year’s festival – big news includes the new additions for this year, Belgium, South Korea and Singapore – I love, love, love Korean food so I’m really looking forward to seeing what all dishes they will present (and of course, how well they do with them!) – and Singapore – how great can that be?

Some big-name celeb chefs will be there: Cat Cora (no surprise there), Todd English, Andrew Zimmern (will he be demonstrating eating gross stuff?), Robert (“Dinner Impossible” meets Kim Possible in Epcot???) Irvine and more…

For more details, we’re going to send you over to AJ and the great folks at The Disney Food Blog – click here for their Food & Wine Festival page.

Back to the kitchen… maybe something Korean should be on the menu this weekend…

Okay, it wasn’t a full weekend at the World this time, actually less than 24 hours – but there were a few things consumed… big surprise, huh?

Went over Friday afternoon (weekend before last by now…) and was going to meet up with Little Karen see The Littlest Monkee (aka Davy Jones) in Epcot.

Started my trek around World Showcase with my usual first stop at Promenade Refreshments for a refreshing Stella draft. We must have our proper sustenance when getting ready to walk through multiple countries, now don’t we?

Stella!

Had a little time before the shows started, and decided to stop by the Yakatori House in Japan for a bit of a snack. For a long time they have had a couple of types of pre-packaged sushi available, but the items were just listed on a small sign on the counter –  three sushi items have now been added to the “official” menu.

There is the ubiquitous California Roll, a Spicy Tuna Roll and my choice for the day, Sukiyaki Beef Sushi Roll. Described on the menu as “Sukiyaki Beef, green onions and sesame seeds reverse rolled in sushi rice and seaweed”, this roll was just the right size to tide me over… the flavor was good, and it was a nice change of pace from a typical sushi roll. This would be a nice intro for someone you’re trying to get into to the world of sushi… unless they are a vegetarian of course…

This is served cold – it’s not the same grilled beef sushi that was available during Food & Wine .

Sukiyaki Beef Sushi Roll

After the enjoyable walk down memory lane with Davy Jones, we took that Last Train out of Clarksville and Little Karen and I decided it was time, yes friends, to eat…

Davy Jones. Great photo by Little Karen.

We decided to check on the wait time at Tokyo Dining and the fairly short 20 minutes gave us just enough time to wander over to France (and back) for a couple of Grey Goose Slushies prior to dinner.

After much bowing and politeness we were shown to our table near the chefs. More bowing ensued as we were given our menus. There was more bowing as the Kirin arrived and we placed our order for a few sushi items – a simple Shrimp Roll, crispy Tempura Roll, and the spicy Volcano Roll. Sadly they were out of the Yam Roll that night, which has become a surprising favorite of mine.

Shrimp Roll

Tempura Roll

Volcano Roll - yes we couldn't wait to dig in before the picture was taken...

All items were good, with the Volcano Roll being the favorite of both of us.

I’ve found this restaurant to be consistently good quality with good, if perhaps overly polite, service. It is usually fairly easy to get into, and if can snag one of the tables by the window, you have a great view of the World Showcase Promenade, and if you time it right, Illuminations.

There was much more bowing as we made our way out of the restaurant into the beautiful nighttime of World Showcase.

We made our way out of the park after a nice walk and I headed to my luxurious digs at All Star Sports for a good nights sleep.

I was planning a fairly quick exit the next morning as there was much work to do back at the Eating and Drinking Around the World Kitchens, but I can’t leave any of the All Stars (or Port Orleans) without my favorite guilty Bad For You Breakfast: Biscuits and Sausage Gravy.

Biscuits and Sausage Gravy

Disney, perhaps a bit surprisingly, actually makes a damn good biscuit, and that’s coming from a true Southern Boy, and when it’s drowning in tasty cholesterol-laden-sausage-flecked gravy, it’s even better. Add a generous amount of black pepper and some Tabasco and I’m a happy boy… just don’t tell my cardiologist…

After a quick visit to the Magic Kingdom (during which I discovered the new murals in Fantasyland shown in the prior post “Picture This…”) I made my way back along I-4 after an all too short visit.

More cooking, eating and of course, drinking are on their way…

Picture This…

May 9, 2010

True Disney Fanatics are well aware of the Fantasyland makeover going on in the Magic Kingdom – just a few weeks ago construction walls went up around the area that had housed Ariel’s Grotto meet-and-greet and Pooh’s Playful Spot.

This past weekend we noticed that the usually drab walls had been enhanced by the addition of three large murals showing fanciful renditions of some of the upcoming additions to Fantasyland (one of which, yes, involves food!).

You can see the sign for the now-closed Scuttle's Landing over the top of the wall.

Nearest to the Teacups is the painting highlighting the new Little Mermaid themed Under the Sea attraction. If this is anything like the ride once proposed that was shown on the Little Mermaid dvd extra, it will be a wonderful addition… but then, how can anything featuring a young redhead in a clamshell bra be a bad thing?

And if we’re not getting a version of the submarines back, at least we’re getting something ocean-related in the same general area.

At the other end of the wall, right by Dumbo (or at least the current version of Dumbo), is a mural titled “Enchanted Tales With Belle”. Seems like the lovely and erudite Princess will be moving her story time to a new venue…

And as we’ve heard all the Princesses (as well as Tink and her Pixie friends) will be having their own homes (and meet-and-greets) in the new expansion, this looks to be just a small preview of much more to come… be still my beating heart…

In between the two (across from the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh) is the image highlighting one of the upcoming eateries – the Beauty and the Beast themed Be Our Guest Restaurant.

It says basically nothing about the actual food that will eventually be served here, but we’re looking forward to a new dining option in the Magic Kingdom nonetheless.

We’re back to the kitchen – see you soon!

A couple of weeks ago I told you about the Fried Cheese Ravioli I came across at a kiosk on Disney’s Boardwalk (see WDW Weekend Eats…).

Someone looks to have a headache...

Now it’s time to cook some of these goodies for ourselves, so here we go! Really more of a technique (and not much of one, I’ll admit) than a real recipe, these are pretty easy to prepare, and a surprise to some people who are only used to the standard boiled ravioli in tomato sauce.

Fried Ravioli

Serves ??? (depends on your mood… I’d say 3 or 4 pieces per person as a minimum as a snack or appetizer)

Frozen or fresh Ravioli (I used your basic cheese-filled frozen)

1 or 2 Eggs, beaten

Bread Crumbs (I’d say Italian Style would be appropriate here. If all you have is plain, add some crumbled oregano, salt, pepper, garlic powder, etc.)

Oil, for frying (Canola will work fine)

Dipping Sauces (your choices, I like a tomato sauce of some type – jarred Marina is good, contrasted with a Blue Cheese or Ranch Dressing)

You can make the ravioli either “naked” or breaded. I’d say try a few naked first, then do some breaded ones and see if you have a preference. I like the breaded a bit better – yes they are a little more work, but still pretty darn easy…  and when I say naked, I’m referring to the pasta, not the cook… but whatever works for you…

Cook the ravioli according to package directions until just done.

Bubble, bubble...

Drain and run under cold water to cool down a bit so you can handle them. Carefully dry on paper or cloth towels. Be careful not to pierce the pasta. Don’t leave the ravioli sitting too long on paper towels, or the starch will glue them to the pasta and you’ll be peeling paper off them… trust me, I know…

Heat about a half-inch of oil in a skillet on medium-high. When hot, (or when you think it’s hot) add one of the raviolis as a test – it should bubble a bit around the edges. After about a minute check the underside, it should be starting to brown and getting firm. If too dark cut back on the heat a bit. When golden brown turn over and brown the other side. You can turn another time or two until evenly done and crisp. Remove and drain on paper towels.

Cooking them "in the raw"

Once you have the feel of it, add as many to the pan as will fit easily without crowding and fry as above.

Naked Fried Ravioli ready to serve

For the breaded version, take an egg or two (depending on how many ravioli you’re going to fix) and beat in a shallow bowl. Pour some of the breadcrumbs into another bowl.

Prepping the pasta pockets... (like the alliteration?)

Dip the ravioli into the eggs, then cover well in the crumbs (you can do this  ahead a bit if you want and stick on a plate in the ‘fridge until ready to cook). Fry as above.

Frying the breaded raviolis

Serve as is or with your choice of dips. Just be aware that the filling will be hot!

"Golden brown and delicious."

Tough stuff, huh? Crispy outside, creamy inside, something a little bit different, yet still pretty easy! If you have a deep-fryer, knock yourself out and drown those puppies, but I think the pan-frying is easy and works well. There are plenty of different types  of these filled pasta pockets available, so try some stuffed with meat, or mushrooms, or whatever you can find… or if you’re really energetic you can even make your own! Yeah, right… like that’s gonna happen…

Back to the kitchen… I hear rumor that there is some holiday or celebration of some sort next week and might require the involvement of tequila…

Last weekend I was forced to visit the World once again (don’t hate me because I go so often…).

Okay, so by the time I get this finished and posted, it will actually be “weekend before last” – so shoot me…

Lil’ Sis Lindsay was down from lovely Janesville for her annual birthday-slash-anniversary trip and I, of course, went over to spend some quality time with her.

It was a solo trip for Lindsay, as her husband Big Josh is away working on flying machines in Iraq. She often refers to me as her “Disney Husband”, while I consider her the “Little Sister I Never Had”… take that for what you will…

Along the way, we met up with some other friends, and good times were had by all.

And once again, there was plenty of food and beverages involved… here’s a few notes about some of what went down (my throat, that is) those days…

Friday Dinner at Sanaa

The Indian/African inspired cuisine of this restaurant in Kidani Village has made this one of my current favorite dining stops in the World. And now that I’ve had several visits, I’ll (eventually) give you a full review of my experiences there…

Prior to dinner was, to no one’s surprise, cocktails… Lil’ Sis Lindsay had heard me waxing eloquent for months about the pleasures of the African Starr Mojito, so she tried one…. She didn’t like it… I’m blaming her medications… sad for her, more for me…

African Starr Mojito

For food this night we started with the Bread Service – three Indian-style breads with a choice of three dips. We selected the Coriander Chutney, Mango Chutney and the Roasted Red Bell Pepper Hummus. All were quite good, and we pretty much finished all of it off (and considering that this is plenty enough for up to four to share as a starter, well…).

Bread Service

The Dips: Coriander Chutney, Mango Chutney and the Roasted Red Bell Pepper Hummus

Also as a starter I ordered the Pulled Duck with Red Curry Sauce which comes served atop a five-grain bed of rice. The flavor was good, but to my personal tastes, I would have liked a bit more spice/heat.

Pulled Duck with Red Curry Sauce

For entrees I (on our servers recommendations between two items I hadn’t had there before) had the Tandoori Shrimp, while across the table was the Tandoori Lamb Chops.

Let’s just say that Lil’ Sis Lindsay became a lamb fan that night – once I told her it was okay to pick those bones up and gnaw away, all bets were off! I had this same dish on my last visit here, and yes, it was really good.

Tandoori Lamb Chops

My shrimp was good, but probably the least favorite entrée I’ve had at Sanaa. Just nothing too special about it.

Tandoori Shrimp

As Lindsay was on the dining plan, we sampled the Dessert Sampler, even though we were about to soon go into Dessert Overload at the Magic Kingdom after dinner.  The sampler consists of Chocolate Cake, Passion Fruit Kulfi, and Chai Cream – the last being my favorite among the three.

Like tea? Your server will gladly bring out a box-full of bottles filled with tea leaves for you sniffing pleasure…

After her post dinner tea, Lil’ Sis Lindsay and I made our way to the Magic Kingdom for:

Wishes Dessert Party

A section of the Tomorrowland Terrace is cordoned off for those willing to pony up the funds to attend the Fireworks Dessert Party.

More sweets than you can shake a fork at are on a long buffet for your happy caloric consumption. I won’t even begin to try and describe all the items offered (take a look at the pics for some representative choices), but I’ll say that all we sampled were top-notch… coffee, soft drinks, water, etc. was also there for the taking. And yes, if you insisted on something healthy, there was a selection of fresh fruit that wasn’t dipped in chocolate.

You’re allowed in up to one hour prior to the fireworks, and the sweets are refilled constantly up until show time. You’re assigned tables, and even though we were among the last to arrive (note to Lil’ Sis Lindsay – try not to leave your car keys on the table at Sanaa next time…) we were taken to our table that was front and center – score!

At five minutes before the start of the fireworks, you’re allowed to move up to the front wall if you wish to stand during Wishes. There is enough room for pretty much everybody along the wall without crowding to get their own “Front Row” seat (okay, “Front Row” stand) for the always emotional “Wishes”. Even thought the show is designed to be viewed from right in front of the castle (and this vantage point is off to the right), not having to push and shove a crowd for a good view is a great trade-off… and best of all, Tinkerbell’s flight path comes down right over your head!

This is one of those extra-cost things at Disney that people often ask “is it worth it”? If you only come down once every year or two, or for a special occasion, I’d say the answer is a big “Yes”. No, it’s not cheap  – $21.99 to  $25.99 for adults (depending on the time of year) – but for the entire experience, it’s well worth it.

Now in a diabetic coma, we made our ways to our respective resorts to await:

Saturday Breakfast at O’hana

This eatery based in the island-themed Polynesian Resort is probably best known for it’s decadent banana-stuffed Tonga Toast.

We sipped Mimosas as we considered that menu option as well as the delicious sounding Macadamia Pineapple Pancakes… but something else caught my eye…

Our server asked us for our choices, and when I queried her about “The Somoan”, she started into a nearly orgasmic description of the dish… Their version of the classic Eggs Benedict features a base of crispy fried potatoes in lieu of the usual English muffin. Then taking the place of Canadian Bacon is a very generous helping of succulent pulled pork. Poached eggs with an extremely flavorful hollandaise sauce top off the pork and potatoes… damn… go there… now… even if you’re a vegetarian you have to try this!

The Somoan (okay, the picture sucks, but the food doesn't!)

This is now (at least for this week) my favorite breakfast dish ever… I will most definitely go back to Kona just to have this dish…

Lindsay chose the massive Big Kahuna plate, which included the aforementioned Macadamia Pineapple Pancakes along with French toast, eggs and three pork products (ham, bacon and sausage). Oh yeah, potatoes too…

Big Kahuna

This was more than any normal human could, or should, eat… so fortunately there was plenty extra that she didn’t eat for me to sample. The pancakes were a nice change from the normal, but I really liked the flavor of the spicy sausage.

After such a huge breakfast, we were pretty well sated until dinner… Lindsay had decided she wanted to be adventurous and have her first sushi experience, so we had:

Dinner at Kimonos

I’m a long-time fan of items wrapped in and served atop rice, but had yet to make my way to the Swan to try the offerings at Kimonos. Having heard it was a really good sushi spot from many, including that gustatory great, Doc Terminus, when Lil’ Sis Lindsay decided she wanted to give sushi a go, it was our choice for her initiation.

When I notified the good Doc that we were planning on dining there, he gladly agreed to join us for the repast.

Located on the ground floor of the Swan resort near Disney’s Boardwalk, the space is very attractive and the staff was very attentive and pleasant… and how was the food? Well… let’s see…

We started with a couple of hot appetizers. The Chicken Satay was tender “chicken on a stick” with a peanut dipping sauce. The sauce was thinner than usual for this dish, but the flavor was fine.

Chicken Satay

Also along for the party was the Filled Eggplant with Crab and Chicken. These were batter-fried and served with a sweet chili sauce. The chicken was the predominate flavor and texture here, and this item rocked! It was delicious, and I’d return to Kimonos just for this item.

Filled Eggplant - Yum!

We ordered a variety of sushi rolls, and I only subjected my naïve companion to one (half) raw dish. The rolls were the usual Spider (tempura soft shell crab), a Tempura Asparagus, the tasty and visually stunning Dragon (tuna and crispy shrimp) and the Alaska roll (a crab salad inside with smoked salmon and roe on the top) that was the favorite of Doc Terminus.

Sushi!

I also ordered some Sweet Shrimp, which offers you up the contrast of raw shrimp meat with the crispy fried heads. Yumm… this was some of the best fried heads I’d had, and even though my tablemates gave them a try, neither was too crazy for them, so yea! More for me!

Good heads!

Lindsay bravely tried everything, including the raw shrimp. Even though she wasn’t crazy about either end of the shrimp, she seemed to enjoy the rolls, and I give her props for giving all a try.

All in all Kimonos was a big winner. On this night we were able to walk right in and get seated immediately – I think this location is just enough “off the usual Disney beaten path” to be a somewhat hidden gem, and I’ll definitely be back.

Later in the evening, Kimonos turns into a karaoke establishment, and the fairly small space may fill up a bit more later in the evening… I do believe further research is in order…

Kimonos does not offer discounts for Disney Passholders, nor honors the Tables in Wonderland card, but does give 20% off for DVC members… go figure…

Lastly for the weekend was:

Sunday (early) Lunch at Le Cellier

Lindsay had garnered one of the much-sought-after reservations at this uber-popular World Showcase restaurant. We arrived a few minutes before our scheduled 11:30 AM seating. At the opening of the restaurant, the staff gathered outside the doors to serenade us with a rousing and enthusiastic rendition of their national anthem, “Oh, Canada”.

After we were seated we perused the familiar menu. Despite the early hour, Lindsay decided she just must have the Mushroom Filet, while I chose to have two appetizers: the renowned (I’m sure somewhere there is a song dedicated to this) Canadian Cheddar Cheese Soup, and as my “entrée” the Prince Edward Island Mussels.

We were soon presented with our selection of breads, and as usual, the pretzel bread disappeared quickly.

My bowl of soup came soon thereafter – this is one of the best-known and most revered dishes at WDW. Hot, thick and full of cheesy bacony goodness – even lactose-intolerant vegans fall to their knees in praise of this Canadian concoction. Just don’t tell my cardiologist…

Canadian Cheddar Cheese Soup

When our entrees arrive, Lindsay tucked into her tender steak while I had a go at the mussels. The bivalves were a hearty portion (18 to be exact, one of which didn’t want to open, so I passed on that potentially dead soldier) in a scant, but tasty broth of aromatics and coconut milk.

Mushroom Filet

Prince Edward Island Mussels

We shared tastes of a special Flower and Garden Festival dessert – a pineapple cake with chocolate butterfly wings – it wasn’t bad, but nothing too special – prettier than it tasted…

Shortly after lunch, we met up with Miss Bonnie and parts of her brood for a boat ride through Mexico – sadly I had to drive back to the lovely Bay area shortly thereafter, or of course a visit to La Cava del Tequila would have been in the offing (I did make the appropriate genuflections to it’s honor as we passed by).

All in all another wonderful weekend at the World filled with great and dear friends, and of course, food and drink!

I hope you’ve enjoyed another look at some of the items ingested recently at the World… now back to the kitchen!

A late lunch…

April 25, 2010

One of my favorite lunch spots in WDW is the Yakatori House in Japan in Epcot’s World Showcase.


Shrimp Udon (and of course, a Kirin…)

— Post From My iPhone

Saratoga Snack…

April 24, 2010

Onion rings (and a cocktail, of course) at Turf Club Lounge at Saratoga Springs.


Not bad, but nothing to write home about…

— Post From My iPhone