First Dining Report Ever-New 6/15...The Day We Didn't Want to Go Home - California Grill Brunch

So excited to read the rest of your report! Il Mulino looks very good indeed...trying to decide if we should switch this in to our rotation for August. We too are staying at the BWV so loved your room pictures!!!

BoardWalk Villas are beautiful...everything looked brand spanking new! We received an email prior to our stay with construction warnings but only noted some painting on Boardwalk exterior (Boardwalk side) and two rooms right near ours had Under Construction notices on the doors, but we didn't see or hear anything.

Il Mulino was delicious and a nice walk from the Boardwalk...we took the long way around the lake after dinner :)
 
Day 2 - Pool and Magic Kingdom

We started off the day slowly by enjoying breakfast prepared with our pre-ordered grocery items in our villa. Nothing fancy, yogurt and fruit for me, and eggs and an English muffin for my DD and then headed down to the Luna Pool Area. Here was our view!
Boardwalk Pool.jpg

I think the clown is a little scary looking...the pool area is nice but seems small given the number of rooms. There seemed to be a need to hunt for lounge chairs if you weren't out early. The quiet pool also seemed small as well. After a few hours of sunning and swimming we headed to the Boardwalk for something to eat. (Note: Our one disappointment was the lack of options at the Pool Bar Quick Service.) We ended up at the Boardwalk Bakery and ordered these:

Boardwalk Salad.jpg

Herb-grilled Chicken and Apple Mixed Greens Salad -Dried Cranberries, Goat Cheese and Pomegranate Vinaigrette...This was delicious and a perfect light lunch on such a hot day! My DD and I tended to save our splurges for dinner on this trip! Next up Tony's and the MK.

 
BoardWalk Villas are beautiful...everything looked brand spanking new! We received an email prior to our stay with construction warnings but only noted some painting on Boardwalk exterior (Boardwalk side) and two rooms right near ours had Under Construction notices on the doors, but we didn't see or hear anything.

Glad you are happy with your room! We are scheduled to stay in a Boardwalk View so I hope it all goes well!

The salad actually looks super good! My parents are coming along with us and will be staying in a 1 bedroom villa and as I know they will eat in their room in the evenings it's nice to see such a great salad choice at the bakery!!
 


Magic Kingdom

We headed out to MK around 2 PM and after arriving decided to head to Fantasyland before the 3 PM parade began. First up was Under the Sea (with a posted 30-minute wait.) Found some shade throughout the queue but it was hot! Having time to kill we headed over to Mickey's Philharmonic. Great way to cool off on a hot afternoon and then off to our FP for SDMT...what a fun ride! Thinking we would beat the crowd we headed over to Buzz Lightyear...Over 70 minute wait, no WAY!

So what are two girls to do but sample a delicious pretzel never had before....the Cream Cheese Pretzel from Launching Pad! We bought this on our way to People Mover to cool off and take a break...and it was unbelievably delicious!

Our dinner plans brought us to Tony's Restaurant. We booked this as we didn't want to have to leave the park for dinner and nothing else was available during times we wanted. I had been looking every day for weeks for a BOG opening to no avail.

After waiting, 20 minutes past our reservation time, we were seated in the glass-enclosed area and our bread service was brought right over to us.

Tony's 1.jpg

This was some sort of focaccia...maybe rosemary with olive oil. Whatever it was, we didn't care for it!

For appetizers, I had the House Salad...Mixed Greens, Salami, Olives, Peppers, Shaved Romano, and Italian Vinaigrette while DD passed on ordering anything.

Tony's 2.jpg

This was actually quite yummy! Just the right amount of dressing and loved the salty salami and olives...

For our entrees, my DD ordered the Chicken Parmigiana...Lightly-breaded Chicken Breast with Melted Mozzarella and Tony's Marinara Sauce over Spaghetti (Sorry no photo :( ) While I had the with Baked Rigatoni...Ricotta and Bolognese filling topped with Melted Mozzarella.
Tony's 3.jpg

This was floating with sauce on the top, in fact, this photo is after I scraped a good deal of it off! In general, my daughter and I agreed that this was probably our least favorite meal of the trip! Think mediocre pizzeria style food...Not terrible, but certainly not on my list to try again! We passed on desserts thinking we would get something while watching the new fireworks show, Happily Ever After. Sadly that didn't happen...this was our view a half hour before the show...

MK.jpg

Within fifteen minutes of taking that photo, a fierce lighting and rain storm struck! We tried to stick it out under cover by the Tommorowland Terrace but after waiting until 10 PM with no signs of the rain and lightning letting up we headed back to our resort. I later found out the show finally started at 10:40 PM...so no fireworks or dessert for us! We snacked on chips back at the room!
 
Day 3 - Pool Morning/DHS Afternoon

With the sun shining again, we decided to spend our morning by the pool. It was hot in the sun but we were down by the pool early enough to grab a table and umbrella and some chaise lounges in the shade. With an early ADR at Sci-Fi we decided to eat a light lunch and grabbed salads from the Boardwalk Pizza Window.

Trattoria Al Forno Salad.jpg

We went with Kale Chicken Caesar Salads with Kale, Romaine, Croutons, and Parmesan and brought them back to the pool to eat. This was good and filling, though the croutons were a little soft with no bite to them. It was enough to tide us over until our dinner at Sci-Fi.

We headed over to DHS in the early afternoon...I love that you're able to walk to both EP and DHS from the Boardwalk resorts. It's an easy stroll, gets in the extra steps, and eliminates waiting for the boats.

We started out enjoying the Great Movie Ride and The Little Mermaid...The film at the Little Mermaid is in need of updating, there were obvious flaws in the film reel and the projection was a bit fuzzy. We quickly headed over to the Sci-Fi after for our dinner reservations and there was a bit of a wait as it started to rain and people were ducking in looking for someplace to eat. We were seated about fifteen minutes after our reservation time...and scored a front seat!

Sci Fi 1.jpg

Really enjoyed our waitress...and we quickly ordered, starting with these...

Sci Fi 2.jpg

Crispy Onion Rings with Sweet Chili and Horseradish Dipping Sauce...Sorry for the poor pictures but it was hard with the lighting, but these were delicious! Perfectly crispy with an amazing battered exterior, worth every calorie! We enjoyed the Horseradish Dipping Sauce more than the Sweet Chili option.

For our entrees, we choose

Sci Fi 3.jpg

The Classic American Burger...Signature Blend of Beef served on a Brioche Bun with Caramelized Onions, American Cheese, Bacon, Lettuce, and Gourmet Tomato. The burger and accompaniments were really yummy...the bun was large and almost too much bread for me, so I ate the second half sans bun.

We really enjoyed our whole experience here...this was a first for us and we will definitely return. Too full for dessert, we opted to use our last fast pass for TSM and head over to Disney Springs for a movie as it was still raining pretty hard.
 


That grouper looks amazing! It's my boyfriend's favorite thing to order out so I think we might need to add that restaurant to the list for our next trip. I stayed at the Boardwalk too on my last trip and the clown is a bit creepy, it is an odd design choice, riding the slide was fun though.
 
That grouper looks amazing! It's my boyfriend's favorite thing to order out so I think we might need to add that restaurant to the list for our next trip. I stayed at the Boardwalk too on my last trip and the clown is a bit creepy, it is an odd design choice, riding the slide was fun though.

The Grouper was amazing...delicately cooked and so tasty! And yes, the slide was fun, the clown was creepy, and the pool is much too small for a resort of that size. I did hear the lifeguards talking about an update to the pool in the future, though they weren't sure when it may happen.
 
Day 4 - More Pool Time and Epcot

We changed things up a bit and hit EP for EMH...We had a FP for FEA but really wanted DD to experience new Soarin' for the first time. We walked to the International Walkway and arrived around 7:45 AM, quick bag check and scan and we waited about 5 minutes to get in and head to Soarin'...Waited about ten minutes total to get in the first time, got off checked the Stand By time...and it was only 15 minutes, but really only took us 5 minutes to get back on again. This was a great use of our time! Finished up and headed to Finding Nemo and Pixar Short Films...back to the hotel by 10 AM and sitting by the pool by 10:15!

So for lunch today, we had...The same salad from the Boardwalk Bakery...and it was as yummy as when we first had it!

The Herb-grilled Chicken and Apple Mixed Greens Salad with Dried Cranberries, Goat Cheese and Pomegranate Vinaigrette and here's another photo of the yumminess:

Boardwalk Salad.jpg

We headed back to Epcot for our FP for Frozen Ever After in the afternoon, and took time to see the Chinese acrobats who performed inside because of the heat. We were getting hungry and my DD was craving a crepe, so we headed over to Crepes de Chefs de France for a Strawberry Preserve Crepe:

Crepe 1.jpg

Crepe 2.jpg

Crepe 3.jpg

Total yummy deliciousness...and definitely worth every calorie!

We wandered through the World Showcase until it was time for dinner at Le Cellier...and I totally failed at food photos other than this:
Le Cellier.jpg

We had an incredible dinner, sharing the Porterhouse Steak for Two -Blue Cheese Fondue, Crispy Onions, Loaded Mashed Potatoes, and Mac & Cheese...

We passed on the Lobster Mac & Cheese as my daughter doesn't like lobster :( , that said, this was an amazing meal. The steak was perfectly cooked medium-rare, the accompaniments were delicious, and the steak dipped in the blue cheese fondue...Heaven! DD loved the Mac & Cheese and we both loved the potatoes, skin and all. This was served on a three-tiered tray and the steak was pre-cut...Sorry for the photo miss! Needless to say, we were too full for dessert.

So after dinner, it was spritzing a bit, and we decided we needed to walk after such a big meal...We wandered around until we came upon Karamel Kuche and needed to get these for later on:

Karamel Kuche.jpg

We came back to our room with Dark Chocolate Caramels with Sea Salt and Caramel Bacon Squares...Glad we put in over eight miles of walking today because we enjoyed these immensely.
 
Last edited:
so we headed over to Crepes de Chefs de France for a Strawberry Preserve Crepe:
That looks amazing! Did they have other fillings as well?

The Herb-grilled Chicken and Apple Mixed Greens Salad with Dried Cranberries, Goat Cheese and Pomegranate Vinaigrette and here's another photo of the yumminess:
I love the salads at BWI, so fresh!
back to the hotel by 10 AM and sitting by the pool by 10:15!
You had the most perfect morning!

We had an incredible dinner, sharing the Porterhouse Steak for Two -Blue Cheese Fondue, Crispy Onions, Loaded Mashed Potatoes, and Mac & Cheese...
Incredible is right! That sounds fabulous!

We came back to our room with Dark Chocolate Caramels with Sea Salt and Caramel Bacon Squares.
Hello deliciousness! The dark chocolate is my favourite but now I am going to have to sample the bacon ones too....you know, for research purposes.....right??
 
That looks amazing! Did they have other fillings as well?

Yes, there was a chocolate/nutella filling as well...so yummy and fresh!

Hello deliciousness! The dark chocolate is my favorite but now I am going to have to sample the bacon ones too....you know, for research purposes.....right??

Oh my...you do need to try the bacon ones as well! Enjoy!

Thanks for following along!
 
6/2 - The Day with No Plans - Part I

We originally had planned for this to be a Pool Day with Beaches and Cream reservations for lunch, but decided the night before that we would rather catch a movie in the am and spend the day shopping and lunching at DS.

We caught an early showing of Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Man Tell No Tales sans popcorn...it felt way too early to be eating popcorn ;) We were sooo hungry after the movie, and decided on lunch at The Boathouse. We requested an outdoor table and this was our view...BH 01.jpg

BH 1.jpg

Despite the clouds, it was beautiful to sit outside and watch several of the Amphicar tours...cars that drive on land and float in the water. The $125 price tag includes your own Car Captain and seating for up to three guests. Along the way, you'll have a great view of Downtown Disney, direct from the water. Seems pricey for a twenty-minute tour but looks like fun!

For lunch we ordered...Truffle Fries to share! These were soooo good! Total deliciousness and such a large serving, we only got through about half of these!

BH 3.jpg

For her lunch my DD ordered a Pulled-Pork Sandwich and substituted Corn on the Cob for the Fries. She really enjoyed this as well!

BH 4.jpg

While I ordered the special fish tacos which were swordfish with Jerk Spice, Crisp Vegetable Slaw, Avocado, Serrano-Chili Cream. These were prepared well and seasoned perfectly...

BH 2.jpg

Ate the last two sans wraps as they were very filling. With full bellies, we set off for shopping and finished up just in time to beat the rain drops at the bus stop.
 
Your meal at the Boathouse looks delicious, especially those fries! I shouldn't be looking right now, it's making me hungry!
 
Your meal at the Boathouse looks delicious, especially those fries! I shouldn't be looking right now, it's making me hungry!

I can't even begin to describe how delicious they were...will make a stop here for these on future trips!
 

6/2 - The Day with No Plans - Part II


After resting up a bit at our room, we decided to head over to the Grand Floridian, do some shopping and get something to eat at Mizners.

We decided to share the Seasonal Flatbread...Linguica Sausage, Manchego Cheese, Baby Kale, Onions, Cilantro Crema (sorry missed the photo!) which was really good washed down with a margarita. If you're not familiar with this lounge, it is located in the area behind where the band plays on the second floor. This hit the spot and the music was really good.

Because we missed the new fireworks show at MK with the awful weather, we decided to grab drinks and dessert at the Top of the World Lounge. BLT is our home resort and the Lounge is open to DVC members even if you aren't staying at BLT.

Here's what we ordered:

BLT 1.jpg

BLT 2.jpg

The Seven Layer Cake for Two with Salted Caramel Sauce...it was amazing and enough for four! I loved the little touches on the plate...painted dragon from the Electrical Water Pageant and personalized chocolate wafer. We probably finished about half of this...and then stepped out to see this.

BLT 3.jpg

Even without seeing the projections on the castle, we thought the music and fireworks were beautiful! The perfect ending to a great day!
 
6/3 - Flame Tree Barbeque and Tiffins

After spending the morning lounging by the pool, we arrived at AK around noon. We were both hungry and stopped by the first QS we saw...Flame Tree Barbeque where we split this:

Flame Tree.jpg

French Fries with Pulled Pork and Cheese...Yummy...we polished this off and headed to a new tour at AK...Caring for Giants. This was definitely one of the highlights of our trip. For only $30 (before DVC discount) we had the chance to go behind the scenes and experience the elephants up close. There were two tour guides, one from Africa letting us know about conservation efforts there. I highly recommend this!

We also had the opportunity to experience Pandora...and while we were hoping to do both of the rides, we had an FP for the River Ride which was beautiful and never made it back for FOP because of heavy rains later in the evening. This also meant we never saw Rivers of Light, which we bought the dining package for at Tiffins.

For dinner, we ate at Tiffins...Pictures do not even show how beautiful this restaurant is and our meal was outstanding...

We were seated in this room beyond the bar area:

Tiffins 1.jpg

And we both started with this:

Tiffins 2.jpg

Apple Walnut Salad...Artisan Lettuces, Heirloom Apples, Candied Walnuts, Apple Cider Vinaigrette...After a long, hot day this really hit the spot! Yummy, delicious, and perfectly dressed.

This was the bread service...which we both did not care for...particularly the Pomegranate Olive Oil.

Tiffins 3.jpg

Sticking we the theme of ordering the same thing...we both ordered this entree!

Tiffins 4.jpg

Wagyu Strip Loin and Braised Short Rib...Rainbow Carrots, Roasted Peruvian Potatoes, Chimichurri and everything about this dish was delicious. This meal definitely stood out as a must-do again event!

When dining with the ROL package, your meal also includes dessert and this is what we choose:

Tiffins 5.jpg

South American Chocolate Ganache...Caramelized Banana, Cocoa Nib Tuile and

Tiffins 6.jpg


Sorbet Tasting...
Kaffir Lime Syrup, Passion Fruit Curd, crunchy Vanilla Crouton.

We licked the plates clean on both on these, and we're not big dessert eaters. A great end to a great meal!
 

GET A DISNEY VACATION QUOTE

Dreams Unlimited Travel is committed to providing you with the very best vacation planning experience possible. Our Vacation Planners are experts and will share their honest advice to help you have a magical vacation.

Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!





Latest posts

Top