Day 3 - Dinner - Brown Derby

Wanting to see the Fantasmic show this night, I did the Fantasmic dinner package that gives you reserved seating for the show. In retrospect, the reserved seating is simply a cordoned off set of bleachers on the far right side that only people with a signed dinner ticket can access. I do not think we would have had any difficulty getting normal seating, and being so far off of center made the "reserved seats" not all that great.

Dinner
The Brown Derby
Disney's Hollywood Studios

Laid out like the real Brown Derby in real Hollywood, I would presume. Pictures of celebrities are all over the walls, and the place is very classy and upscale (except for all the tourists in white t-shirts).

Appetizer

 

Corn Bisque - $8

This was delicious - one of the best corn bisques I've ever had. It was sweet and smooth, complex and creamy. There was a small amount of sweet blue crab meat in it that was fabulous.


Entree

 

Char-grilled Rib Eye - $34

Grilled steak is never a bad thing when cooked right. This one was cooked right. Had that nice seared char taste that a really hot grill can provide.


Dessert

 

Banana Chocolate Toffee Tower - $9

Had kind of a Bananas Foster taste to it. I don't really remember anything that special about this dessert, either to the good or to the bad.

Drink	$3
Appetizer	$8
Entree	$34
Dessert	$9
Total	$54

Dining Credits - 2
Credit "Value" - $44
Overall Savings - $10

Day 3 - Lunch - Mama Melrose's

We used a couple of our snack credits to snag blueberry muffins from the cafe at Coronado Springs to eat as breakfast this morning. Our first table-service meal of the day was at the Italian restaurant at Disney's Hollywood Studios.

Lunch
Mama Melrose's
Disney's Hollywood Studios

I think this was attempting to be, not exactly the way an Italian restaurant would look, but the way it might look in the Bronx. If it were, like, the 80s.

Appetizer

 

Calamari - $13
The appetizer is portioned for two. The calamari itself tasted fresh, and was freshly breaded and fried. The spicy marinara sauce went well with the rest of the dish, and had a respectable amount of bite.

Entree

 

Chicken alla Parmigiana - $17

It's chicken parmesan, but freshly prepared and baked. Compared to, say, what you might get at the Olive Garden, this is miles away above that. This is plain, good food.


Dessert

 

Tiramisu - $6

I'm a sucker for tiramisu - it's probably one of my favorite desserts. This one did not disappoint. The ladyfingers had that "soaked in coffee" taste and the mascarpone and whipped cream were silky and sweet.

Drink	$3
Appetizer	$13
Entree	$17
Dessert	$6
Total	$39

Dining Credits - 1
Credit "Value" - $22
Overall Savings - $17

Day 2 - Dinner - Narcoosies

Since I didn't see any point in hitting the Liberty Tree Tavern for both Lunch and Dinner, but didn't have any good thoughts on where in Magic Kingdom another good restaurant might be found, I decided that we'd go to one of the signature resort restaurants.

Dinner
Narcoosies
Grand Floridian

Nautical decor, with a nice open view of their kitchen when you first enter. There's a relaxing view from most of the tables out over the lake that the Grand Floridian sits on, which was pleasant after a long day in the park.

Appetizer

 

Crab Cakes - $13

This was the low point of the meal for me. These crab cakes were good but not great. I didn't really like the "southern slaw" they were served over, and the cajun remoulade was understated.


Entree

 

Surf and Turf - $58

This meal was very good. While I didn't particularly care for the sauce the filet was served with, the meat was of excellent quality and cooked perfectly. The butter-poached lobster was firm, of good size, and absolutely delicious. The potato gratin and broccoli made for a good pairing with both the steak and lobster. One of the best entrees of the entire trip.

Dessert
Imperial Orange Pekoe Tea - $6

I was much too stuffed at this point in the meal to do justice to any full-sized dessert, so when I saw they had a full menu of fresh-brewed loose leaf teas I went for one. My wife had their gelato sampler and shared a few bites with me - all of the flavors were good but their pistachio gelato was divine.

Drink	$3
Appetizer	$13
Entree	$58
Dessert	$6
Total	$80

Dining Credits - 2
Credit "Value" - $44
Overall Savings - $36

Day 2 - Lunch - Liberty Tree Tavern

My research online and through the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World lead me to the unfortunate conclusion that the Liberty Tree Tavern was pretty much not only the best table-service restaurant in the entire Magic Kingdom, but the only good table-service restaurant. So we found ourselves trying it out for lunch. I went in expecting typical pub-style fare, and it didn't disappoint.

Lunch
Liberty Tree Tavern
Magic Kingdom

Very patriotic interior. New England pub decor through and through. My wife enjoyed the overall layout of the place, which managed to feel somewhat cozy despite being pretty well packed.

Appetizer AND Drink

 

New England Clam Chowder - $7
Patriot Punch - $6

A very thick chowder. Filling and tasty - they certainly provided a large bowl of it, enough for two people I would think. The drink was a blend of Sprite, orange juice, vanilla ice cream, and came out tasting a bit like a Dreamsicle. This was my first experience of a restaurant providing something outside of soda, coffee, or tea as the drink option covered under the plan.


Entree

 

Pot Roast - $18

A tender pot roast served over mashed potatoes. It made for, again, a decent meal that I can't complain about, but which didn't really shoot off any flavor fireworks for me.


Dessert

 

Apple Purse a la Mode - $6

What's could be more patriotic than apple pie and vanilla ice cream? While apple pie really is more of a European-origin dessert, I simultaneously would expect no less than that in Disney World at a restaurant themed on, essentially, Yankee Doodle and all that, they'd be serving this one up. I couldn't resist trying it out, but this version of the classic didn't do much for me. I think I enjoyed the vanilla ice cream more than the apple purse itself.

Drink	$6
Appetizer	$7
Entree	$18
Dessert	$6
Total	$37

Dining Credits - 1
Credit "Value" - $22
Overall Savings - $15

Day 2 - Breakfast - Crystal Palace

Our first full day in Disney World. My plan was to do the Magic Kingdom first off, starting out with a breakfast at the Crystal Palace. This reservation allowed us entry into the park before normal opening hours, which was nice in and of itself.

Breakfast
The Crystal Palce
Magic Kingdom

Not really that impressive looking on the inside or the outside - the overall decor looks very dated to my eyes. This is a "character dining" experience so we were able to meet Pooh and his friends Eeyore, Piglet, and Tigger. This was kinda cute, but my main focus is on the food.

Buffet Meal

Breakfast Buffet - $19

Just a basic breakfast buffet. Eggs, bacon, sauage, pancakes, etc. Nothing outstandingly good or bad - a mediocre meal that was not memorable in the slightest.

Drink	-
Appetizer	-
Entree	$19
Dessert	-
Total	$19

Dining Credits - 1
Credit "Value" - $22
Overall Savings - -$3

It's remarkably hard to find anywhere that you can get more than $22 worth of value out of breakfast. My best advice would almost be to just not use dining credits on breakfast if you can help it - as you'll see in future days I try to use 1 credit for lunch and 2 credits for "signature" dinners.

Day 1 - Dinner - Jiko

Arrived in Disney World and got checked into Coronado Springs Resort. Have dinner reservations for Jiko - since we didn't get in until 6PM, we will only have time for dinner tonight.

Dinner
Jiko - The Cooking Place
Animal Kingdom Lodge

The decor of Jiko is wonderfully African. Overhead there are light fixtures shaped like birds, and the tables are made of zebrawood. Service was prompt and helpful.

Appetizer

Barbeque Chicken Flatbread - $10

Cooked in the brick oven, this was a delightful blend of flavors, with an African barbecue sauce and julienned apples and onions. Had too strong of a cilantro taste for me, but was wonderfully executed.


Entree

Maize Crusted Halibut - $36

The onion straws on top were wonderfully crispy, going well with the fish and its light corn coating. Vegetables and sauce were very good and well seasoned. My only complaint was that I felt the halibut could have been cooked a little less.


Dessert

Kenyan Coffee and Koeksisters - $8

The "koeksisters" are fried doughnuts, and the coffee refers to a coffee ice cream served in the cup pictured above. This didn't do much for me - the doughnuts were huge but bland. The ice cream was good - the best part of the dessert by far.

Drink	$3
Appetizer	$10
Entree	$36
Dessert	$8
Total	$57

Dining Credits - 2
Credit "Value" - $44
Overall Savings - $13

Overview

 

My wife and I took a trip to Disney World from August 16th through August 23rd, 2009. I bought the Disney Deluxe Dining Plan for our 7 night vacation and took notes on every meal purchased with the plan. My goal was to analyze how much actual value the dining plan provided along with a look at actual food some of the highest rated restaurants Disney World has to offer.

Going into this trip I was armed with information from Mouse Savers and the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World. I felt both were invaluable for making this vacation a success.

Here's an overview for how this all works.

For me, a major part of this vacation was going to be trying out all the different restaurants Disney World had to offer. The Deluxe Dining Plan provided the credits I needed to try out all the restaurants I wanted, and also provided appetizers - an important part of a meal for me.

Going into this, I had read that the dining plan could provide savings up to 40%. For something on offer from Disney World, I was a bit surprised by this - Disney offering more for less? Crazy.

I use the following math to figure the actual "value" of each dining credit by looking at the total amount paid and subtracting the value of the snacks and mug.

Deluxe Dining Plan - $72/Day

7 Days X $72 = $504

-Cost of Resort Refillable Mug - $10
-14 Snacks, which on average were worth $3 apiece to us - $42

Cost of 21 table credits - $452

Cost per credit - ~$22

Based on this, I'll be comparing the cost of any meal using 1 dining credit against $22, and the cost of any meal using 2 dining credits ("Signature" restaurants) against $44.