Ready, Set, Let the Games Begin! - Link to new PTR/TR!

[podsnel]

You are making me so excited to attend F&W next fall! This is the second review I have read about the tequila lunch- it really does look fabulous!

I haven't been to CA Grill in ages- I am anxious to go again though- it is getting such mixed reviews! Really want to see for myself, ya know?

Very pretty Wishes pics- I am going to have to do that too, one of these days....

 

[jedijill]

Catching back up. I'm not a huge tequila fan but the tequila tasting looked really good.

I love the redo of CA Grill but the menu is leaving me ho-hum the more I think about it. I ate there for my birthday and the service was horrid. I really don't care for the dessert menu anymore either.

The Wishes cruise sounds wonderful especially as a big DisMeet!

Jill in CO

 

[rentayenta]

I love love love the meet shot with Ariel. Looking good girls.


You ate the worm? I knew I liked you. I ate the worm. I don't recall much after. Thank G-d the Internet and cell phones weren't around during my younger years.


Dinner look supreme and the Coke Float dessert looks amazing.

 

[podsnel]

I just wanted add- I am a worm girl too- in college. TWICE.

I am sure this does NOT come as a surprise....

 

[franandaj]

That meal was a little hit and miss, wasn't it?

My chicken was excellent and I think DH enjoyed his meal. The sushi was okay; but not outstanding in the way I thought it was written up to be.

That sundae dessert was one that DH, DS and I shared. It was a lot of fun!

I had a great time on this night. It was so nice to see everyone and meet up in 3D.

Yeah, it was definitely hit and miss. Our tomatoes were good, and the ravioli thing was great! The two sushis were, meh. The acclaimed sushi chef Yoshi left, so who knows what the new one does. I did like the sundae sampler. I'm glad we went with CA Grill, but I'm not sure that I'll be scrambling back to go there.

Fantastic update.

The Tequila Lunch Pairing at La Hacienda de San Angel must have been so fun to try all those different tequila and food.

That is great that you were able to have a big DISMeet at the California Grill restaurant at the Contemporary Hotel. It is so nice to see the remodeled California Grill restaurant. I have to go eat at that restaurant one day since I did enjoy staying at the Contemporary. All of the food look very appetizing and delicious.

It was neat that you were all able to do the Wishes Cruise and watch HalloWishes that night from the boat. The picture of the group is so nice and all looked happy during the meet.

Fantastic update again.

As you have read in my TRs, we love a good tequila tasting, and have done quite a few, but this one was nice since we got to sample food pairings with the tequila.

I was really a big fan of the Wishes cruise since I knew I probably wouldn't be getting back to WDW with a group like that anytime in the future and it's an expensive event. By splitting it 10 ways, we had a fairly affordable night and good times with DIS friends!

Great update! It's still a shock to me about the retirement of backlot tour! Like you say with all that land! I thought the whole point Walt choose Orlando was due to the size of the plot when he realised that DL in CA was restricted.

Anyway .... Tequila lunch pairing looked a lot of fun. How interesting they gave you vodka to compare. Nice touch. Yum I do love a good margarita but it's amazing as you get older and the bar gets move higher and your taste develops or just gets exposed to better quality goods you could not dream of when younger. I recall trying my first champagne being enchanted by it but it was just a basic type then eventually trying Crystal which blew me away. Now drinking basic non vintage Champagne tastes less appealing with the balance of flavours all wrong. I was a cheap date back then. The bliss of ignorance! Same with food. A basic steak seems the best thing ever till you have had a cut of meat that just melts in your mouth because it is cooked perfectly and is the best piece of the beast!

The Hallowishes looks great I love the sound of that cruise we were disappointed by the CA grill but haven't tried it since the remodel. That sundae sampler sure looks good though

You're right about getting older and the bar gets higher on your beverages. I'm surprised that some of the things I enjoyed in my youth are no longer even interesting to me! I don't want to think I'm a snob, but my tastes have definitely improved!

All caught up! Sorry I fell behind again.

I have never been to DL, but judging from the pictures and descriptions I'd have to agree that their Fantasmic is better. I usually skip it at WDW because I hate the long wait and crowds.

Whaddaya mean, no redneck photos? You wouldn't expect Disney to have the Fun Police out there.

I will readily admit that I can't pronounce half the dishes/drinks you guys are trying out, but it is fun to read about it.

You definitely need to get to DL! It’s a whole different experience.

I couldn’t believe the Fun Police were there on my day at DHS.

When I started on this whole “adventurous eating” thing, (sometime in my first apartment following my freshman year of college), it first began with vegetables other than iceberg lettuce. Soon I had tried most of the things that normal people ate regularly. Pretty soon all that was left was the unpronounceable and things that I have no idea “what” they are!

You are making me so excited to attend F&W next fall! This is the second review I have read about the tequila lunch- it really does look fabulous!

I haven't been to CA Grill in ages- I am anxious to go again though- it is getting such mixed reviews! Really want to see for myself, ya know?

Very pretty Wishes pics- I am going to have to do that too, one of these days....

I have one more day until I get to the Frunch, but I’m actually writing that chapter now…or it’s the chapter I’m working on.

Catching back up. I'm not a huge tequila fan but the tequila tasting looked really good.

I love the redo of CA Grill but the menu is leaving me ho-hum the more I think about it. I ate there for my birthday and the service was horrid. I really don't care for the dessert menu anymore either.

The Wishes cruise sounds wonderful especially as a big DisMeet!

Jill in CO

That cruise was definitely one of the highlights of the trip!

I love love love the meet shot with Ariel. Looking good girls.


You ate the worm? I knew I liked you. I ate the worm. I don't recall much after. Thank G-d the Internet and cell phones weren't around during my younger years.


Dinner look supreme and the Coke Float dessert looks amazing.

You are so right! Thank goodness for no cell phones or internet back then. I didn’t think I was all that bad, but the more I talk to others, I find out otherwise!

I just wanted add- I am a worm girl too- in college. TWICE.

I am sure this does NOT come as a surprise....

Nope! Not a surprise at all.

 

[TifffanyD]

That meal was a little hit and miss, wasn't it? My chicken was excellent and I think DH enjoyed his meal. The sushi was okay; but not outstanding in the way I thought it was written up to be. That sundae dessert was one that DH, DS and I shared. It was a lot of fun! I had a great time on this night. It was so nice to see everyone and meet up in 3D.

I agree. Ravioli was delicious... Fishwife as ok... But I did not care for the salmon cakes

 

[ACDSNY]

Phew I'm all caught up. Love the dismeet pics you all look like you had a great time.

 

[franandaj]

I agree. Ravioli was delicious... Fishwife as ok... But I did not care for the salmon cakes

I didn't know you got the ravioli, it was really good! That was probably the stand out item for me that night. I wonder if they will revamp the menu again. We don't plan to go back anytime soon.

Phew I'm all caught up. Love the dismeet pics you all look like you had a great time.

It was a lot of fun, at least for me. I don't see us getting to do something like this again anytime soon so it was a great idea for when we had a crew getting together!

 

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

What is this tequila bottle with a worm I am curious? Sounds grim lol. Is it a real worm? And you guys don't allow 'meat haggis' lol..

 

[franandaj]

The next morning we slept in a little bit. We really didn’t have anywhere to be until 2:30 that afternoon, but I was motivated to get to the kiosks before the crowds hit. I knew we would never finish all the kiosks, but at least I had to give it a try!

But first, Bacon! I’m not exactly sure what we did for breakfast, if we just had bacon, but this is the only picture I took. I know my plan was breakfast would be at the first kiosk (you’ll see in a moment).



We headed out so that we would hit World Showcase right at 11AM when the kiosks open. Our first stop (for breakfast was Belgium). Notice how empty the queue area is and how short the lines are.





We chose one of each of the waffles and got the Chilled Coffee with Godiva Liqueur. OMG! They were all so so so good! Even the potato leek waffle! It’s the first one, and the Braised Beef Sauce was just perfect with this almost like a hot roast beef open faced sandwich, but even better!



The sweet waffles were just divine, I liked the berry one best, but the one with the chocolate ganache was pretty darned good too!



Our next stop was New Zealand.



Here we enjoyed the Lamb Meatball. And I have to say it was tastier than the slider, but I think they still need to somehow work on the lamb offering. The puff pastry shell it was served in was a little bit odd, although the tomato sauce was very tasty.



The venison sausage was good, but I didn’t really need all the greenery that came with it.



Our last stop on the Food & Wine Train for today was Morrocco.



We got one of each of the food items. We both really liked the Kefta Pocket.



The Harissa Chicken Roll was OK, it might have been better if we hadn’t eaten at the other two booths and weren’t so stuffed. But maybe not.





After that we decided to head over to Mouse Gears for some shopping. We still had a couple of hours until our Grand Marnier tasting. As we passed Belgium, I knew we had made the right choice to arrive right at opening. It was noon and already the place was filling up fast.



When we were at DHS the day before, I had seen a pair of Mickey earrings, but we were short on time and I didn’t want to wait in a check out line, so we took this picture to remember the set. I found them at Mouse Gears and we bought them.



I also got a Mickey cutting board for the villa. Ours had no cutting board and whether or not it was an included item on the list, I like having my own personal supplies in the OL. Then we headed over to one of the newest additions to the parks so that I could get one of these.





Then we decided to head here and get some samples.



I confirmed that I don’t like Beverly either. My favorites were one from China and the one from Israel.



We went back to France since it was getting closer to our time for the tasting. We went to check out the new bakery in France and Fran got caught up in the gift shop. We decided that it would be nice to have Marie to take along with us on trips so that we are not always taking the evil Lucifer with us. Although our cabin steward on the Wonder had great fun with him and our towel animals!



And so began our waiting game.

 

[franandaj]

What is this tequila bottle with a worm I am curious? Sounds grim lol. Is it a real worm? And you guys don't allow 'meat haggis' lol..

No tequila doesn't have a worm, Mezcal does. Much like Champagne, you can't make tequila in any other region than Tequila, Mexico. Mezcal is evidently made from a different plant than the Agave, but for young college kids, it's something that is comparable to Tequila and usually less expensive.

Each bottle has a worm in the bottle and we are all told that it has hallucinogenic properties, so once the Mezcal is consumed, people fight over who gets to eat the worm. Yes it is a real worm! Only Disney doesn't allow meat haggis. I have been served the real thing. It wasn't my thing.

















That was one of my "new things I was trying" things. Didn't go over as well as I had hoped. My Scots friends who made it loved it.

 

[franandaj]

The doors to Monsieur Paul opened just before 2:30PM and they began welcoming the guests for our Grand Marnier tasting. As we ascended the staircase, I admired the décor of the remodel.



The had goodie bags for us on the table.



We were led into the main dining room. I don’t remember what exactly the room looked like before, but I remember it being darker than the current décor.











This was our place setting.



We started our tasting with a Mimosa.



We were to use these items later on in the tasting to make a cocktail. Well, not the chocolate, and there is also an orange Madeline peeking out the back there. They told us to go ahead and eat that.



Here were the other ingredients for our cocktail.



This is the manager of the restaurant who introduced our hostess.



Our hostess



[Continued in Next Post]

 

[franandaj]

[Continued from Previous Post]

We started off by tasting the Cordon Rouge, I believe that this was your every day run of the mil Grand Marnier.



Then we had the 100th Anniversary Grand Marnier. There was a definite difference in taste between the two.



After that we got the 150th Anniversary Grand Marnier. This was by far the best of the tastes! Then we had a raspberry peach flavored Grand Marnier, it was OK, but nothing compared to the lovely aged versions.



There were two place settings next to us that were no shows, so we began stealing their shots about the time we started on the 150th Anniversary taste. A gal from another table actually got up, walked over and stole the bottle of Grand Marnier from the place setting next to me! Fran took the bottle from the place setting next to her.

Then we made our cocktail.









Shake, Shake, Shake…







While we enjoyed our cocktail, the servers demonstrated Crepes Suzette for us.









Here are the desserts that we enjoyed with our drinks. There was no way we could finish all these, they were very tasty, but just way too much.



These are all the special types of Grand Marnier that we tasted in the afternoon.





And with that we headed back to the Villa to play with fire!

 

[PrincessInOz]

I definitely remember you telling me about the GM tastings. Aside from the shots, you should have swiped those extra bottles earlier; rather than having to share.


Looking forward to the playing with fire.

I get to relive that here; and then hopefully on my TR as well; when I eventually get to it....slowly.

 

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

No tequila doesn't have a worm, Mezcal does. Much like Champagne, you can't make tequila in any other region than Tequila, Mexico. Mezcal is evidently made from a different plant than the Agave, but for young college kids, it's something that is comparable to Tequila and usually less expensive. Each bottle has a worm in the bottle and we are all told that it has hallucinogenic properties, so once the Mezcal is consumed, people fight over who gets to eat the worm. Yes it is a real worm! Only Disney doesn't allow meat haggis. I have been served the real thing. It wasn't my thing. That was one of my "new things I was trying" things. Didn't go over as well as I had hoped. My Scots friends who made it loved it.

oh I see thank you! Mezcal is like Cava to Champagne. Cava being the sparkling wine from Spain but because it's not from the Champagne region in France they have to name it something else. Got it! Great explanation thanks! Oh my the worm being hallucinogenic! More like if you got to the worm at the bottom you are probably fully loaded on Mezcal hick!

 

[TifffanyD]

I didn't know you got the ravioli, it was really good! That was probably the stand out item for me that night. I wonder if they will revamp the menu again. We don't plan to go back anytime soon.

LOL yes we talked about it! You asked if I had the ravioli and I said yes and you said "Wasn't it fantastic?"

I agree it was the best thing I had that night (besides the company)!

 

[podsnel]

Ohhhhh.....Gran Marnier is my absolute favorite liquor EVER! How incredible to have all of those tastes in one sitting. How was the cocktail? They have a gran marnier cocktail over at the Crew's cup that I LOVE- which i hope is still there...thanks for reminding me I need to go get one on Dec 27th when we are staying there before the cruise!

Oh- just wanted to add something about the worm-

The first worm I had was hard, it was very easy to swallow. The second one was soft and squishy- gotta say, that was DEFINITELY not as much fun!

And FWIW- neither one had any hallucinogenic effects- they were just freakin worms that used to live in a cactus and were now completely pickled!

 

[Pinkocto]

How sad dinner did not live up to expectations. I've dined there twice pre changes, and really enjoyed it.

The tequila tasting confirms my thoughts that I shouldn't chance anything like that. There's no way I could eat some of the courses. The tasting itself would be nice though. Hearts of Palm is one of my favorite things, glad you tried them.

How nice you were able to enjoy lots of lovely company

 

[rentayenta]

Hilarious, I can just see you guys, after a few *tastes* of Grand Marnier, saying forget it it to the no shows and grabbing their bottle. What a fun event.

I think I'm white trash though. I'm more of a chugger not a sipper.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Hilarious, I can just see you guys, after a few *tastes* of Grand Marnier, saying forget it it to the no shows and grabbing their bottle. What a fun event.

I think I'm white trash though. I'm more of a chugger not a sipper.

That's still better than being an up-chucker (me! ).