Pretty Sure They Created a New Festival Just For Us - 2 week Jan DR *COMPLETE

A server can make or break a meal when there is a problem! I'm glad it worked out so well for you two with Rob's steak issue. That's too bad it came out that way!

I've been so spoiled by driving the last 9 years that I can't deal with breakfast reservations without it! I get the annoyance with getting to Fort Wilderness! I just couldn't do it.

You are so right! Thankfully this server was fantastic.

Yeah I think we are back to driving. It will be a rare time to take the train moving forward. I really hate not having my car. We just eat at other resorts too much to be without it.

The breakfast at TE looks great. Maybe some day we will get there.We also don't have a car when at WDW but have decided the last few trips to taxi for some ADRS . Make life easier and worth the $.
I am a big fan of lobster rolls too, the one Capt. Grille has at lunch is good. The last couple of visits their sandwich of the day was a shrimp salad on a croissant so DH and I share.

Well at least now there's the Minnie van option!

I have been intrigued by Captain's Grille lunch. We'll see what the menu looks like with the changes there this fall.

Dang woman, when you post an update you post an update! You two are just the cutest. And I loved your Boathouse review! Totally have my heart set on that lobster roll in September. Hope I'm not disappointed :)

Aww thanks! The lobster roll is yummy. You'll also have the lobster roll at F&W, so you can try a few different ones in September!

Has anyone heard any more about the uber-like service Disney was testing? That would make going from resort to resort a lot easier! I have yet to try Trails End but continue to hear so many good things. I love, love, love the Boathouse! Soooo many yummy items on the menu. Sounds like a terrific server. How rude of those guys to grab that table - what's the matter with people??

I'm so late on this reply that now the Minnie vans are here! It will definitely be helpful on future trips where we come without our car. For the $20 price tag we won't use it a lot but it may come in handy sometimes.

We love Trail's End for beast and lunch. So good!

Boathouse is awesome! I just wish they weren't so insanely pricey. The atmosphere there is terrific though.

Blaze pizza looks so good, it is popular with the wait lines. We have tried TE dinner because of your reports and loved it. We have not tried breakfast yet.

I hear you about the breakfast ADR's and relying on Disney transportation, ugh!

We tried the Boathouse in February and we had great food and wonderful service as well. I am glad you both had a great dinner and wow on the steak for free, that was so nice. I had the crab cake and it was delicious.

We love Blaze! I wish there was one around us. Actually, I don't wish that because I'd probably be 10 pounds heavier. :laughing:

Oh yay! Glad you enjoyed TE's dinner. Definitely give breakfast a try too.

Boathouse is terrific. I can't wait to go back in January.

Awesome update. We did Trail's End and Boathouse on our last trip too and they were both hits for us. Our breakfast buffet at TE ended up being a brunch (at 9am!) but you won't find me complaining about Mac and cheese in the morning. It is vacation after all :)

We did lunch at Boathouse and they had those same rolls, so I wonder if they made a change since your lunch reservation there. Either way, I think I ate 3 of them. So yummy!

Awesome! So glad you enjoyed both of them. I'm intrigued by the brunch. I will have to look into that!

Could be because we ate at the bar that we didn't get the rolls, but I'm not sure. Good to know that they are available at lunch. I could eat 3 as well. They are heaven!

OH NO!! I knew I shouldn't have started reading your reviews! Just booked a surprise 50th trip for my hubby and was able to score great ADRs to some places we have never tried before BUT now I'm rethinking everything because your reviews are making me drool and everything you order is exactly the meal I would order...oh boy!! :) Loving this!

:laughing: It's so hard to choose! There's so many good places to eat! Hope you have an awesome trip! So fun that its a surprise.
 
The next morning we slept in a bit and then took the bus to MK and then the monorail to TTC since the Express Monorail was just about to leave and then had a lovely walk to Poly.



Got love the lobby.



We arrived at our breakfast location. Kona Cafe!



We got there towards the end of breakfast around 10:45am. We both started with our favorite Liliko'i Juice which is an Orange, Passion Fruit, and Guava.



We also got the 100% Kona Coffee French Press Pot, which is our fav coffee ever.



This is before there recent menu overhaul, so behold my last steak and eggs from Kona.



My steak was cooked perfectly and the potatoes and biscuit were excellent. I loved my scrambled eggs with cheddar too. I'm so sad this is no longer on the menu. And don't even get me started on the loss of the Samoan.

Rob got a new menu item. The Loco Moco which is a traditional island brunch staple which features a tower of rice, a grilled hamburger patty, house-made chorizo gravy, two eggs-any style, and topped with a tomato salsa.



He really loved this! He has been talking about getting it again ever since our last trip.

With full bellies we took the monorail over to MK for a fun afternoon of rides and a viewing of Festival of Fantasy.

















No lunch for us in MK, but I did grab a snack staple of MK. A churro!





Yum!!!!!

We had a super fun day and did a ton of rides and had a great comfy spot for the parade. I love a great MK day!

Now it's back to Poly!
 
After the parade and a walk through the shops on Main Street we headed back to Poly for some fun at Trader Sams and Tambu.

We had a little bit of a wait for Trader Sam's to open for the day, so we decided to kill some time at Tambu Lounge.

First I started out with an Island Sunset. Seven Tiki Spiced Rum, PARROT BAY Coconut Rum, melon and peach combined with our guava-passion fruit juice.



Terrible photo, sorry. But I love this drink. I have been trying to stick to rum based drinks and this was definitely a winner.

I did not get a pick of Rob's drink, but I think he just got a beer. *Smacks forehead for being a terrible notetaker*

We also both got an order of the Pork Sliders that we love. Mini sandwiches with Kona Coffee Barbecued Pork topped with slaw.





These were very disappointing. The meat was fatty and there was no sauce on it. Theres usually very light sauce on the pork. Super disappointing. Not our best Tambu experience ever.

After that it was 4pm, so we went down to Trader Sam's and got an immediate seat at the bar.



I started with the Tiki Tiki Tiki Tiki Tiki Rum. Pyrat XO Reserve Rum, Cream of Coconut, and pineapple and orange juices dusted with cinnamon and nutmeg.





I really liked this! Definitely a new favorite drink here.

For my second drink I came very close to trying the Nautilus, but ended up going with a Dark and Tropical Stormy. Gosling's Black Seal Rum, fresh lime juice, ginger beer and Falernum.





Another yummy rum drink.

Rob got a Shrunken Zombie Head and shrunk in his seat. :rotfl:



He also tried to go for a black pearl and ordered the Polynesian Pearl. RumChata Cream Liqueur, Grand Marnier, and Cinnamon with Tropical Juices.



No such luck. Standard pearl for him. He agrees with me that this drink is not very good, but the thrill of possibly getting a black pearl makes you want to order it.

Rob's final drink was a Mosquito Mojito. Bacardi Dragon Berry Rum, organic agave nectar, Falernum, mint and fresh lime juice topped with soda water.



He and I love our mojitos and this was no exception.

While Tambu was a bit of a disappointment this time, Trader Sam's was not! The servers are so fun here and the rum drinks are awesome. Not a bad way to spend the evening.
 
After drinks at Poly we took the bus to the Springs for happy hour at Jock Lindsey's Hangar Bar. It was a beautiful night and the sun was just setting. Not a bad spot for happy hour.



Jock Lindsey's has happy hour 3-6:30pm Monday-Friday and they have appetizer, beer, wine and cocktail specials.



Rob had a Tank 7 beer.



I had a glass of wine and Bellog's Bacon Fries.



These were really good! They could have been loaded up a bit more, but they hit the spot.

After a drink we went to the movies (of course) and saw Gold, which started super slow but ended up being decent.



After the movie we decided to grab a late night dinner to go and stopped at one of our favorites, WPE.

I got the Chicken Meatball pizza which is one of my favorites and it did not disappoint. So good! The chicken meatballs are incredible and WPE's pizza is always delicious. I can't quit it!



Rob got his all-time WPE fav, the Bacon Wrapped Meatloaf Sandwich with Provolone, Garlic Aioli, Crispy Onion Rings and a side of fries instead of the chips.



We took these on the boat and enjoyed them back at the room. Not a bad end to the day if I do say so myself.
 


I absolutely LOVE Jock Lindsey's! This year alone, we popped in twice, and will be back in early November!!! My husband is a huge Indiana Jones freak (even named our cat Dr. Jones), so this is a MUST DO every time we visit...
 
Our last full day was spent closing out our time at Festival of the Arts.



We got to Epcot pretty early and did a few rides and roamed around WS. There was finally no line at the one picture spot, so Rob got some fun pics of me.



Then it was time for lunch at one of my fav spots, Via Napoli!



We were seated right away. Rob started with an appetizer. I wanted what he got but I knew I would be super full just from my entree so I refrained. He got the Arancini which is a fried risotto balls filled with mozzarella and meat ragu.



Yum! He gave me a couple bites and these are so good. I highly recommend trying them if you haven't done so already.

We both went with pizza for our entrees. I got the Pepperoni Signature Individual Pie.



OMG this is maybe the best pizza ever. It is my favorite. I can't seem to order anything but this the I come here.

Rob got the Piccante Signature Individual Pie with spicy Italian sausage, which he enjoyed.



While I LOVE the food here and the atmosphere is nice, their prices really turned me off this time. After $10 at Blaze, $20+ here was tough to stomach. We also had a weird thing with one of the servers. Anytime a server asks Rob if he wants a drink refill he always says, "Whenever you get a chance." Well I guess this did not quite translate to our server and when he came back to our table he told us he was confused and asked someone else to tell him what Rob meant because he thought Rob was being rude. The server apologized and was really nice and all, but it was just weird. Also, I hate when Rob says that anyway rather than just saying "yes please", but that's another story. :laughing: But anyway, it was a very good meal, I just don't know how often we will come back. This has gone from a must-do to maybe once every other or every third trip.

After lunch we did a loop around WS and before we left I stopped for dessert at the Decadent Delights booth and I got the Crisp Caramel Chocolate Mousse Bar for dessert.





This was just okay. I wouldn't get it again. Not really a lot of flavor.

We got to see more progress to the big mural on our way out, which was beautiful.





One last look at Spaceship Earth and just like that, our park time this trip has come to an end.

 
But wait! Just because our park time is done, doesn't mean we are done friends.

We went back to the room and since it was getting a bit chilly out I finally got to wear my Becky and Hei Hei sweatshirt that I ordered just for this trip. One last trip to the Springs!



We did a double feature of the new Resident Evil and since they brought back Hacksaw Ridge for Oscar time we got to see that as our final movie. Yay!

Here is a look at all of our ticket stubs from this trip.



So fun!

After the second movie we hit up Blaze for our late night dinner and took it back to the room. We met an awesome couple and their daughter on the boat back to POFQ. They were dropping her off for the college program and they asked a lot of questions about what to do and see while they were there. They were super sweet!

We enjoyed our awesome pizza back in the room. Fortunately it wasn't as cold as it was last time.

I got the same thing. Pepperoni, pineapple and black olives. Yummmmm!!!!



Rob had a bit of everything going on with his.



Love, love, love Blaze Pizza! It's awesome! You all have to try it on your next trip. We will be there a lot in the future.

It was time to start packing up for our long train trip home the next day. I hate the last Disney night! It's such a bummer.
 


I woke up the next morning feeling like GARBAGE! I was totally hit with a head cold. Ugh. At least it waited until the end of the trip. Thank goodness. Rob was an awesome hubby and went to the food court to bring me breakfast in bed.

Bacon, cheese danish and apple juice. Breakfast of champions. :laughing:



It hit the spot though.

Rob got the Grilled Steak and Scrambled Eggs served with breakfast potato casserole, buttermilk biscuit, and Creole mustard gravy.



Fortunately I had called the front desk the night before and secured a late check-out at noon, which I was super grateful for at this moment. Our train was set to leave at 1:35pm and the car service was picking us up at noon, so this way we could stay in the room until it was time to leave. Thank goodness. Around 11:45am we decided to head down with our stuff and wait outside for the car service. I don't wanna go!!!!



The car service was already waiting for us and they were super awesome! We had a bit of a wait at the train station, but we did make the good decision of checking our suitcases this time rather than carrying them on and off the train and trying to stuff them in the roomette with us. Very, very good decision.

The train was right on time and we were quickly situated in our roomette. NJ here we come!

IMG_0977.jpg



We did no dining car and brought food with us on the way down. For the way home I did not want to mess with trying to get food to bring with us and I definitely did not want the gross cafe car food, so e opted to take the earlier train with the dining car. We had enough Amtrak points for either one, so why not go with the nicer option and get home a little earlier.

Not long after we got on the train we were allowed to go to the dining car for lunch. They actually had a decent menu to choose from.



We weren't allowed to sit across from each other at the tables, so we were crammed in on one side of the booth with a couple seated across from us. It was SUPER awkward.

Rob and I both got the cheeseburger and chips for our lunch.



We got the chocolate lave cake for dessert.





Lunch was surprisingly pretty good!

For the next few hours we watched the world go by on the train and Rob played his PS Vita while I read a book on my Kindle.

Our dinner seating was at 8pm. We went to the dining car and had the same situation as before, except this time we were seated with a lone passenger. Again, SUPER awkward.

We started with a side salad and a roll.



Rob and I both got the steak and baked potato.



While the baked potato and green beans were nothing to write home about, the steak was actually very tasty and cooked to a perfect medium. We were once again surprised by how good everything was.

For dessert we both got the cheesecake which was super creamy and very tasty.



I was surprised by the quality of the food in the dining car, but the awkwardness of the seating will stop us from doing the dining car again. It comes with the cost of your roomette, but not every train on this line has a dining car. It's also cheaper to have the roomette on trains without the dining car, so it's not really worth the price, but only if you can bring some good food options with you. Like a bag of chicken biscuits. :laughing:

Our train got in about 7am, which was 2 hours before our scheduled arrival which was awesome! Fortunately my dad was set to pick us up and is an early riser, so he was able to get there when we got off the train. This trip home was really good! It was only a few hours longer than the car would have taken and we got to just sit back and relax. It was even better to not have to drive since I was feeling sick.

After my dad picked us up we all stopped at Cracker Barrel for breakfast.



What a trip! We had good luck with the train and car service this time, unlike last October. I loved the Festival of the Arts. We had AMAZING weather the whole trip. We did so many rides and movies and had great food. This was definitely one of our best trips. And... we are going back in October! We will be staying at the new Copper Creek Villas at WL from the 21st-28th and my SIL will be coming along with us for F&W adventures. We plan on lots of F&W at Epcot, lots of resort time, a little time at MK and AK for the new attractions and nighttime shows and probably no time at HS. We can't wait! Let me know if you will be there that week too and if you see me please be sure to say hi! I love meeting DIS peeps!

Thank you all so much once again for reading along and commenting on my DR! Sorry this one took forever! I promise to stay on point for my October DR!
 
Awesome wrap to your DR! So happy you two had a great trip and I look forward to following along with your adventures this fall! :)
 
Fun wrap-up. Wow! Your movie receipts are impressive. You are definitely convincing me to look at SSR for a Disney-Springs-focused stay. SO many good options there now.

The seating in the dining car does sound awkward! Yikes! But so nice to not have to do the driving!

Funny you say that about Via Napoli. I'm also thinking it's no longer an every trip must. I still love it but so many good choices.

Glad your cold waited til the end to emerge. And super happy to hear you're returning in Oct!! Can't wait to hear about Copper Creek! I will be there same time and keep en eye out for you guys.

Feel like there was more I wanted to comment on... sorry. Loved your report, as I always do. Made plenty of mental notes on things to try based on your experience!
 
Great report! Thanks also for the detail on the train, I'm glad you had a good trip.
 
Fab report!! Can't wait to hear about your October F&W trip, hard to believe my trip is 3 weeks away. How will I sleep lolz!!!
 
Great report as always, and impressive movie "collection"!

What on earth is up with the train car situation? Was there only a couple of seats? Yeah that would make me definitely grab some food from DS and take it with me on the train - I would hate that. I still wish dh would say yes to the train and I am quickly getting to Rob's level of "no more flying".

We will have to try Blaze pizza. I do love Via Napoli ( a lot), but my husband is less picky about pizza and cheaper will be better!

Your next trip is not far from ours. We are going in November for "free" dining, at least that's the current plan. I can't wait to hear about your next trip!
 
And don't even get me started on the loss of the Samoan.
I morn the lose of the Samoan as well..

The Loco Moco which is a traditional island brunch staple which features a tower of rice, a grilled hamburger patty, house-made chorizo gravy, two eggs-any style, and topped with a tomato salsa.

Good to know! This looks good and totally sounds like something they would serve in Hawaii

Bummer, the pic looks delish!



Yum! He gave me a couple bites and these are so good. I highly recommend trying them if you haven't done so already.
Yum!



One last look at Spaceship Earth and just like that, our park time this trip has come to an end.
You had a different picture than we did when we were there!

We enjoyed our awesome pizza back in the room. Fortunately it wasn't as cold as it was last time.
I don't know how you wait to eat that pizza. The small would kill me!

We weren't allowed to sit across from each other at the tables, so we were crammed in on one side of the booth with a couple seated across from us. It was SUPER awkward.
That sounds super awkward. I guess it wouldn't be too bad if you were a family of 4.
 
Spent yesterday & today catching up on your report! I haven't been on the boards too much over the last several months because of real life craziness, so it's great to be back & reading! Really loved reading all about the Festival of the Arts, and seeing all the great food booths! We leave four weeks from today for our F&W trip, and I'm definitely trying Blaze Pizza & Homecoming this trip after reading your reports! We, too, love POFQ. Staying Riverside for the first three nights this upcoming trip (I'm a little nervous about it, truthfully), then switching to Kidani for the remainder.
 

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