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STEP 2 – CHOOSE YOUR RESTAURANTS!

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I don’t mean choose your dates and times or anything. I mean make a list of all the places you really want to eat. But why is this next?

Because different restaurants are in different locations in different parks, and sometimes in different hotels. If you want to have a particular dining experience or eat at a particular place, it doesn’t make sense to spend the evening hours in the Magic Kingdom and then rush out to have dinner in Epcot and then run back to see Fantasmic at MGM. It’s just not an efficient use of time.

Dining at Disney is an often overlooked thing. People assume all there is is the fast food in the park. AU CONTRAIRE, MON FRERE! The dining at Disney is AWESOME! It can be quite a bit of money too, so we actually plan most of our budget for food.

Notable restaurants in each park are (and this is not a complete list, just a list of the things that, in my personal opinion, are really notable for being either high quality, unusual, or offering a unique experience).

AK

Tusker House – an African themed restaurant with exotic cuisine

Rainforest Cafe – many animals and animatronics during dinner. Fun, but mostly blah food. We used to have one here in Westbury, so we don’t go there, but if you have a kid, it’s pretty awesome.

MK

Be Our Guest – A Beauty/Beast themed restaurant…we’ll be trying that this trip as it’s new to us

Cinderella’s Royal Table – a restaurant inside the castle. There’s always Cinderella characters there in the waiting room. I’ve met Cindy, which I thought would be the peak of everything, but then I met the Fairy Godmother…awesome!)

Pecos Bill Tall Tale Inn and Cafe which I often confuse with the Diamond Horseshoe – I remember a stage show here, kind of like a mini Hoop-de-Doo Revue, but I especially remember them telling ghost stories during Halloween and having the lights flicker and such. Nothing really scary (lots of children of course) but fun, Thinking about it, maybe that was at the Diamond Horseshoe, I’m not sure now…

Liberty Tree Tavern – serves really good American Food. We like to be there around the Thanksgiving season. They serve all the Thanksgiving stuff and it’s pretty nommy.

The Crystal Palace – character meet and greet during food. I think primarily Pooh focused.

Tony’s Town Square Cafe – themed after Lady and the Tramp, so it’s Italian.

Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Cafe – this is straight up cafeteria style, but there’s an alien animatronic stand-up comedian. Totally worth it.

Oh yeah…another little known secret the smoked turkey legs can be found over in Frontierland. That is totally a cheap lunch. One leg can feed two people, and they taste AWESOME. We usually actually plan this in so we don’t miss it in all our running around. They are also available somewhere in the AK (I want to say over by the Dinosaur playground thing I think) and in MGM near the Rock-n-Roller Coaster entrance. omg….SO GOOD. And a cheap and awesome lunch.

In later steps we’ll be talking about coordinating these dinners with special events (one of the reasons we’re not planning dates yet). This is especially true in the Magic Kingdom, where coming out of the right restaurant at the right time can mean prime viewing seating for something like the fireworks or a parade. But it can apply in EPCOT too.

MGM

– AWESOME food options here too, if you know where to look.

Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater Restaurant – tables are cars like in Pulp Fiction, but all seats face forward towards a giant screen. Watch classic sci-fi trailers for stuff like “attack of the 50 foot woman” while dining. Waitresses are sometimes on roller skates. Best milkshakes EVAR.

50’s Prime Time Cafe – this is like you live in Happy Days World, and you went over your friend’s house for dinner. You eat in the kitchen (each table is set up so they have their own kitchen, it’s really surreal and very cool) and you’re in a 1950’s mentality…so you help set the table, you don’t use foul language, and you eat your veggies before dessert. They don’t FORCE you to eat the veggies, but if you’re of the playful sort they kind of pick up on it will actually spoon feed you a bit. This place makes the most amazing PB&J shakes…it’s like drinking a sandwich and honestly, if you want to have one for lunch, your stomach won’t notice at ALL that you just skipped a meal, very filling. Oh…and Mom’s Meatloaf is on the menu, too.

Hollywood Brown Derby – This restaurant simulates the “golden age” of hollywood. I can’t get over the atmosphere…you almost expect a movie star in a fox wrap to go and sip soup in the corner. It feels amazing. The food is really good too, but the food and atmosphere together is amazing.

Toluca Legs Turkey Co. – another stop for Turkey Legs. Can’t get enough of them. I wish I could get them here. Really. One leg is enough for two people. Cheap and very very tasty lunch. This is over by the Rock N Roller Coaster.

EPCOT

– Now here’s a biggie. LOTS of REALLY good restaurants in EPCOT.

The Coral Reef (inside the Living Seas)- This is more for atmosphere, I think. When we went the food wasn’t so awesome, but then when we got married this is where we had our reception. The walls are all aquarium, so you get to see dolphins and such swimming by over dinner.

The Garden Grill (inside The Land) – This is one of my favorite places. The veggies and such are grown here and served in the restaurant. (You see that Kristina?) You just don’t get any fresher! Food is generic American fare. Also, Mickey, Chip, Dale and Pluto are usually hanging around, and the whole restaurant revolves.

Biergarten (Germany, duh) – It’s a big ale-type house with an Oompa band (I don’t know what they’re really called, that’s just what we called them when I lived in PA…it’s kind of a one man instrument that doubles as banjo and percussion and bouncy cymbal things….Hard to explain. But anyway…German flair. And of course, seeing as it’s October, we’ll be there for Oktoberfest!

Chefs de France (France, duh) – We tried this on our last trip. I have to say it was the first time that an appetizer did exactly what they say appetizers are supposed to do….make you hungry for dinner and not fill you up. All the food was awesome.

La Hacienda de San Angel (Mexico) – This is new. It used to be an outdoor food stand outside of Mexico, but apparently they built a shelter so you can dine overlooking the Lagoon. I’m betting that the best thing to do would be to time that with the Illuminations fireworks show.

Heeey….this is new, too! There’s now a Tequila Bar in Mexico called La Cava de Tequila! I’m on THAT one for sure.

Le Cellier Steakhouse (Canada) – I love the steak here. The Chocolate Mousse is really good and is actually a moose….but the creme brulee is incredible! It’s a maple flavor kind of a thing.

Restaurant Marrakesh (Morocco) – Not only is the physical atmosphere awesome (It’s really like you stepped into a foreign country, not like they faked it) but the food is really good and there’s a bellydancer during dinner. The restaurant has that intricate complicated tile work all along the floor walls and ceiling and it’s just beautiful

San Angel Inn (Mexico) – this is one of Rob’s favorite places to eat. I love that it’s always late sunset/early evening there, and the view is of the Temple in the distance, while the boat ride passes under you, so there’s always this kind of lazy lapping river noise….very relaxing.

So here’s the often overlooked bit – Restaurants INSIDE the Hotels and other miscellaneous

Inside the hotels are often some amazing dining experiences. Also, some things just don’t fit into other categories. One of these items is the Hoop-de-Doo Revue.

You do not have to stay in a particular hotel to reap the benefits of their dining experiences and shows.

You can take a bus to the Grand Floridian, have dinner with Mary Poppins, and then sod off to the MK via the monorail, if you like. All up to you. We do it whenever we feel like it.

Hoop-de-Doo Revue

(at Fort Wilderness Campground ) – a stage show simulating a wild west kind of comedy show. Live piano player, some improv, and volunteers from the audience are selected. Food is American, Fried Chicken, smoked BBQ Ribs, cornbread, etc. We love the show, and even I don’t mind seeing it over again. For a bonus during the Halloween season, it’s right near the Haunted Hayride where you get chased by the Headless Horseman. Really cool.

Water Parks

I’m not really addressing that. If you eat, you’re not supposed to go swimming for x amount of hours after, so who really eats anything more than a snack at a water park?

The Boardwalk and Downtown Disney

– many restaurants here in many price scales. Some are chains, and some are owned by famous people.

House of Blues is here, as is Bongos Cuban Cafe created by Gloria Estefan (it mimics a 1950’s havana club) and Planet Hollywood and Wolfgang Puck’s.  But my absolute favorite is Fulton’s Crab House which mimics eating on a river boat. It’s high end, but damn…is it good!

AK Lodge

There are several restaurants here, and I really want to go. Staying at the Lodge means waking up on the Savannah…a room with a view means there might be giraffes outside your window in the morning. From what I know of Disney, I’d bet they time their feeding schedule to make sure that happens. Anyway, we’ve never stayed at the AK Lodge, and never even been inside it, though it was designed by the same person who designed the Wilderness Lodge, so it looks beautiful from the pictures. Maybe someday. This is also a dream when I win Lotto. They have a storyteller by a campfire at night that tells African myths and legends. I would SO be there, every night, in my pajamas.

Old Key West

This is primarily for Vacation Club members, so this is where we usually stay. There is a restaurant there called Olivia’s which is my faaaavorite way to start my vacation. I like to arrive late, sleep late, get up late, and stroll over to Olivia’s and have their poached eggs and sweet potato hash…but they have more exotic things too, like a shrimp and conch omelets which I’ve never gotten around to. It’s the Hash, you see. The hash is awesome.

The Contemporary this has kind of a character meet for rich folk.

Chef Mickey’s has a higher end dinner that’s an all you can eat buffet that also has characters that come through.  There’s also the California Grille, which we’ve never tried.

Coronado Springs – one of the conveniences of Coronado Springs is that it’s primarily used as a business convention center…so the amenities there are very nice, but if there’s no convention, there’s no lines and it’s not crowded at all. I liked it a lot. I think it was on the lower end of the mid-range spectrum. There’s not as much theming for children, but with the pool they have, I don’t think they really need it.

The Maya Grill – a nice mexican restaurant. Good food. We were very happy with it and would be willing to go back.

The Pepper Market – this is one of the open-air kind of cafeteria places, but honestly, the food was really good, and in order to keep it more in the Mexican theming, it’s got much less of a “factory” feel and much more of a personal feel. Out of all the cafeteria dining, this place is my favorite.

The Grand Floridian

1900 Park Faire – this place is where you find Mary Poppins and friends when she’s not off doing nanny-stuff. There is a SuperCaliFragiListic Breakfast (I guess it’s not Expi-Ali-Docius) and a Cinderella Happy Ever After Dinner where you are the guests of Cindy and Prince.

Garden View Tea Room – There’s a “My Disney Girl’s Perfectly Princess Tea Party” here, so there’s that. Naturally, we haven’t done that. I may be a big kid…but I’m no princess.

The Polynesian

In addition to having a lovely Hawaiian atmosphere from the moment you step in front of the hotel, some of the food and dining here is awesome. BTW…The Polynesian is the only place that serves Kona Coffee all the time whenever you want. It’s regular coffee in the other hotels.

Spirit of Aloha Dinner Show – this mimics a luau with hula dancing and fire dancing and poi dancing. It’s a good show, and if you time it right you can watch the afore-mentioned water parade from the beach before walking in to the Luau.

‘Ohana’s – for dinner, this is an all-you-can-eat bbq. Everything was really nommy. For breakfast, there’s a Best Friend’s Breakfast featuring Lilo and Stitch. I love Stitch.

The Wilderness Lodge

Whispering Canyon Cafe – This will always be a soft spot for me. This is where we went for photos between our wedding and reception, so we had a light meal here. If you’re playful, everyone gets to ride in on these little pony-on-a-stick things. Our groomsmen came in hooting and hollering like it was The Last Roundup….our friends are awesome. Food was good. Service was fun and playful.

Artist Pointe – Honestly, this was so high end and gourmet that I didn’t really like it. It wasn’t the atmosphere…it was the food. For example, there was a cheese sampler that had a bleu cheese that was so strong and aromatic I couldn’t enjoy it. That is a failing on my part, and not the restaurant. If you’re looking for gourmet fare, this is definitely the place to check out..

= = = = =

Naturally, there’s a lot of places I’m skipping. But what we do is this:

First – we list all the places we definitely want to go and have DINNER.

Second – we list all the places we want to try for new things, or where we just want to have lunch.  Lunch is cheaper and less of a price investment…so if we don’t like the food we don’t feel like we’ve spent an arm and a leg for something we didn’t enjoy.

We then figure out how many nights we have, and whittle down the dinners to the amount of nights. If we have any leftover places, we move them to the lunch choices.

Then we move to Step 3, which is planning Special Events. That will be another note

How’m I doing so far? Is it all making sense?

So far we have chosen DINNER – Ohana’s, the Biergarten, Be Our Guest, the Hoop de Doo Revue, The Tusker House, and the Grand Floridian.

LUNCH – Sci-Fi Drive In Diner, The Plaza (I’m not sure what that is. Mom made that reservation, and I know it’s not too far from Splash Mountain, so I’m guessing it’s over by Pirates of the Caribbean). Other lunches are still being discussed, but Dinners are planned and resolved because of Special Events.

Planning Disney – STEP 1 – Where and When

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STEP 1 – choose when and where for how long

Now that I’ve listed all the parks, the earliest and first step is choosing which parks you’re going to, when you’re going, and for how long. Although it’s warm in Florida for most of the year, one of the water parks close down during different months in the fall/winter for maintenance…so if you have your heart set on snorkeling with sharks, you better make sure they’re not shutting the Lagoon for maintenance. Also the time of year affects what special events are available.

So we’re going during the Halloween season, and we’re going for a decent length of trip. (I’m fuzzy for security reasons.) We’re not hitting any water parks, though mini-golf MIGHT be on the menu, we haven’t decided yet. We’re hitting MK, AK, Epcot for sure. We now hit other places in Orlando, so we’ll hit Universal this trip (No Seaworld this time) and we’re deciding on how long and when still as we’re not that far in planning yet.

In this step, I really want to emphasize how much better it is to stay ON DISNEY PROPERTY.

I used to think that was a bunch of hype-ey crap, but now that I’ve done this a few times, here are the reasons why, and here are some budget solutions as well:

A) Driving in and parking means having to find a place, having to remember where it is. It also means fighting the lines of folks to get in, finding your car to get back, and driving back out along with every other tourist. There’s also about 16 bucks a day for parking. You can stay off site, but then you’re stuck with their schedule for their shuttles, which may not be as convenient, as opposed to the constantly running buses at the hotels on site. The nearby hotels aren’t as nearby as they could be (it’s certainly not New York) and if you’re driving on unfamiliar roads at night while exhausted, that just sucks. The parking lots are so huge they have trams that drive around to give you a ride to the park. This is incredibly time consuming, which doesn’t sound like it’s such a big sacrifice until you consider:

B)How exhausted you and your children will be. Almost no child gets tired at Disney World. There’s too much stimulation. But by the time you start to leave and the park closes down (different times of night for different parks and events) we see it all the time, every time. The kids pass out. They’re asleep sometimes before they even get to the gate, and they’re dead weight, along with all the souvenirs you’ve bought. If you have the type of kid that needs a nap and then wakes up ready to run again, you have to make sure you don’t wake them up while finding the car, strapping them in, driving to the hotel, unpacking them and the car, putting them to bed, etc., and if they wake up and realize they’re in the land of the Mouse, getting them back to sleep might be a problem.  By contrast, when you stay on Disney property, you get on a bus, someone else drives, you arrive very quickly without having to negotiate unfamiliar roads, and your hotel room has of course been Disnefied in your absence (often with your stuffed animals posed around the room watching TV or looking out the windows waiting for you to get there. Once ours were on the bed which had been turned into a “swimming pool” with towels, and my teddy bear was holding on to the TV remote.) It’s really nice for the kids, if they’re still moving.

C)Speaking of souvenirs – when you stay on Disney property, you can sign a slip of paper, and they will send the items directly to your room. It takes a day for delivery, so you can’t do it on your last day, but when you come “home” all your items are in your room waiting for you. No carrying it around the park. **addendum – Rob says that he believes they no longer deliver to the room, only to the main desk. We’ll confirm that when we get back, if someone remembers to ask**

D)Early open hours – One of the parks (it rotates which ones) will open early every day for the guests that stay on property. If you can get your kids up and moving early, that means you can get first crack at some of the newer more hard-to-get-to rides. We find, however, that most people with children INTEND to do that, but don’t actually get to do that, because kids are kids and foil plans. Our usual plan is to hit the early-open park really early, and then leave around lunch and hit any park that is NOT an early-open, as the early-open park tends to get crowded by all the people who tried to get there hours ago. The non-early-open is, by contrast, much less crowded.

E) Another little known secret – Disney Wake Up Calls – When you stay in a Disney hotel, call and ask for a wake-up call, and then get your kid to answer the phone.  Have a video camera ready.

Wake up calls come from the Disney characters themselves, so Mickey, Tigger, Goofy, you name it, call and tell you how glad they are that you came to the park and how they can’t wait to see you. Rob and I have to share the phone in the morning, it’s pretty awesome.

SO – Budget solutions on that…..

DELUXE

– MONORAIL CIRCUIT – The hotels go by order of convenience, really. The most expensive hotels are the ones that are on the monorail circuit. The monorails run to both the MK and Epcot and are truly the quickest methods of transportation. I don’t know all the hotels by heart (I’m sure Rob does) but among that list are the Grand Floridian, the Contemporary, the Polynesian (which has a Hawaiian theme) and I think the new one they just built is on the circuit as well. So with a monorail hotel you not only get to ride the tram (“por favor mantengense alejado de las puertas!”) which is a nice experience in itself (if you have a small child, ask for the front car. The view is great, and when I was little they used to give out little co-pilot wings) but really is super-super convenient.  Rob has just piped in to tell me that not all the deluxe hotels are on the monorail circuit. AK Lodge and Wilderness Lodge are two examples. Also epcot resorts the Yacht and Beach Club (those are for really rich folk as far as I can tell. They have their own restaurants and dining experiences, and sometimes have more than one.

MODERATE – The mid-range hotels are nice. I rather like them. I think my favorite so far has been the Mexican themed one, Coronado Springs…I meant to get to their swimming pool but I never did. Port Orleans has a mardi gras flair, but there’s also the French Quarter which has theming there as well, and a third part called Dixie Landings which has a plantation style theme. The mid-range hotels have large group dining, but they also have a restaurant. There’s others, but those stand out to me.

VALUE – there are many many other hotels on the property, each one with it’s own design and flair. The budget ones are called the “All-Star” hotels, and believe me, you’re not really sacrificing. Each of them also has theming, All-Star Movies, Pop-Resort, Music, and I think Sports are the themes, and there’s everything from giant toys to climb on to memorabilia all over the place. The rooms are smaller, the pools aren’t as themed, but really…how much time are you going to spend in your room anyway?

BONUS VALUE: As far as I’m concerned, if you like camping, Fort Wilderness is totally the option! If you can drive to Disney and bring your camping equipment, you can camp on the grounds and get all the benefits of being on property (I don’t know how they take care of your souvenirs…they probably send them to the courtesy desk and you pick them up there) for much cheaper. I remember my very first trip the year Disney opened and we camped on the grounds. They sent a little tram around to pick up all the kids and take them to a place where they showed old Disney movies on a screen (Mouse and Goofy cartoons I think) in order to give the parents a little down time and privacy. I don’t know if they still do that, but it’s something to consider. Rob and I have never done this, though if I ever win Lotto, this is totally on my list of things to do. I’ll probably rent one of their log-cabins, though.

STEP 2 – CHOOSE YOUR RESTAURANTS.

…in the next note. But why is this next? I’ll explain that too.