The Picky Kid and Foodie Mom (with less tiny tummy) Return!... and eat! Updated: Epcot!

Lisa F

is a very wise woman
Joined
Feb 22, 2000
Hi everyone!

This is my third dining report and maybe I'll even finish it this time! But we just came back from 9 lovely nights at WDW and I am ready to relive it with all of my foodie friends.

Some background for those who don't know me. I'm Lisa, a single mom to an amazing now 10 year old (Disney adult :sad:) son, the kid aka the kiddo aka the picky kid. He is on the spectrum but super smart and it does present some culinary (and other) challenges, and I am quite open about those hoping to say something that helps someone else in a similar situation.

I also had bariatric surgery in July 2017 and have maintained a 140 lb weight loss for the last 6 months or so. So my last dining report was in the middle of the weight loss phase and I could not eat a whole lot. I can eat a whole lot more now but still not enough to make buffets "worth it" for me... but I do them anyway because the kiddo wants to and because it is a much more pleasant character experience than standing in line for them. I'm happy to answer any questions anyone at any phase of the process has about vacationing or life in general living with the surgery, and will be posting my thoughts about it along the way.

I am NOT picky so finding places that satisfy both my more adventurous palate and the picky kid is really the biggest challenge, but with a little faith, trust and pixie dust we manage to both be happy wherever we go.

First a brag - here is a picture of me and the kid 2 years ago in December 2016 before I started this weight loss journey:

square bottom left b.jpg

and here we are now. My kid is a lot taller and and there is a lot less of me.

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I also love to do split stays as I can never decide where I want to stay...this also allows me to do a blend of DDP and OOP that I really enjoy... I love to wrangle value from the plan but really can only eat that way a few days before I'm over it. It also makes the buffet prices sting less being pre-paid. I will try to comment on the value of the DDP but I did pretty well on it if I do say so myself - we did the DDP for 4 nights/5 days at the VWL and then moved to the Poly for 5 nights and were OOP


Be Our Guest Lunch (QS#1)
Sleepy Hollow (snack credit)
Crystal Palace Dinner (TS #1)

Garden Grill PPO Breakfast w/Broadway package (OOP)
Sunshine Seasons Lunch (QS #2)
Festival of the Arts food booths (snack credits galore)
Ample Hills Creamery (snack credits)

Roaring Fork Breakfast (OOP)
Tusker House Lunch (TS#2)
Storybook Dining at AP Dinner (TS#3)

Be Our Guest Breakfast (QS #3)
Trail's End Brunch (OOP)
HEA Dessert Party with Garden Viewing and After Party (OOP)

Roaring Fork Breakfast to-go (aka "Mommy Room Service", OOP)
D-luxe Burger (QS #4)
Goofy's Candy Shop (snack credits)
'Ohana Dinner (TS #4)
Pineapple Lanai (snack credit)

Capt. Cook's Breakfast (OOP)
Plaza Lunch (OOP)
Mama Melrose Dinner (OOP)

EMM at HS/Toy Story Land Breakfast (OOP)
Capt. Cook's Lunch poolside (OOP)
Pineapple Lanai (OOP)
Kona Cafe (OOP)

Room Service Breakfast at the Poly (OOP)
Chicken Guy/D-luxe Burger (OOP)
California Grill (OOP)
Late Nite munchies Capt. Cook's (OOP)

'Ohana breakfast (OOP)
Via Napoli (OOP)
L'Artisan des Glaces (OOP)
Frozen Ever After Dessert Party (OOP)

Breakfast Leftovers in the room (OOP)

Here we go!
 
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Day 1, Arrival Day and Magic Kingdom!

So we had a 6am flight landing at 9:05 and used Magical Express for the first time ever. I am a control freak and generally rent a car but I was on more of a budget for this trip so we decided to give the Disney transport a whirl. It was actually awesome - the plane landed a bit early, I did not have to deal with my luggage, we got on the bus and WL was the first stop. I checked in to make sure the dining plan was active and then got on the boat to the MK where I was able to actually catch my earliest fastpass I made "just in case." Really couldn't have been a better experience.

Anyway I did what people say not to do and made a BoG ADR for the first day for 12:30 and we were STARVING by 12 and went up to the podium to check in early and were given a yellow rose for preordering and sent on our way.

This is actually my first time at BoG for lunch so I wasn't really sure what to expect... was it awesome or was it overhyped? We'll see!

One thing I never really realized is how the open seating works - it's not really open (like a regular QS where you find your seat yourself) but someone takes you to a seat. Which is fine by me because walking around with your tray is one of the things I detest about regular QS. But they bring you to a seat and they bring you your food (I did know the latter) which really elevated the experience for me.

The kid wanted to sit in the west wing but it was full so we sat in the music box wing, which I actually preferred greatly because it wasn't so dark and because we were at a table for 4 and sat side by side on a big plush bench (kid likes to do that when we have the opportunity) and we were able to get a picture with the music box without ever leaving our seat. Bonus!

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So I had preordered and since we're on the dining plan, we got meals and beverages.

The kid got the Carved Turkey Sandwich PLAIN (Happy to be able to order it that way on the preorder)... just bread and turkey, with fries and a chocolate milk.

20190117_121540.jpg

So the last time the kid was here with his dad, they didn't pre-order so waited on a horrendous line, his dad made him order the meatloaf off the kid menu (He only likes mine) and they lost his meal... so he spent over an hour waiting for a meal he did not enjoy. But I'm the mom and I know what the kid likes and turkey on bread is pretty much my go-to at any sub shop for him so I figured this would work. I was a little worried it would be dry since I ordered it without veggies or condiments but I tried a little bite and the turkey was actually astoundingly moist. The bread was warm and toasted lightly crispy and the fries were typical disney fries but basically crack. The kid REALLY enjoyed this and is now turned around on BoG. He did want to know why they put so many picks in his sandwich though. I did not have a good answer for that.

I had the Braised Pork (Coq Au Vin Style) with a glass of the Simi Cabernet Sauvignon, Alexander Valley

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So one thing to know about me is that I am not really a wine person. I mean I LIKE wine but I don't know much about it. I prefer a sweeter wine and I generally order a reisling but I had read beforehand that this wine goes great with the pork and it was $16 so why the heck not take the opportunity to give it a try?

Well I was glad I did! Not only was it delicious on its own but as mentioned by other people somewhere on the internet, it paired fabulously with the pork. Highly recommend especially on the DDP. The meal itself was also absolutely delicious. The pork was tender and flavorful and the mashed potatoes were creamy and delicious with the pork and the green beans with red peppers and onions were delicious - that is one of my favorite veggie combos at home. If anyone remembers from my Liberty Tree Tavern reviews last year, I found those green beans too "green beany" and someone actually knew what I meant. These were not, they were crispy and slightly sweet and basically the perfect green beans.

We both gave BoG lunch an A++ will definitely do again.
Dining Plan Value Tally ($604 total): 1QS, $55.35 value - $548.65 to break even

One thing though is that I was always struck by how HUGE this pork dish looks in pics online and it really isn't. I took a pic of the whole plate with my hand for scale (I probably have average woman sized hands, they are not tiny but they are not remotely big). This is not really a huge plate of food. We sat here for an hour and I ate about 3/4 of this (If I sit a while I can kind of eat slowly and eat more than if i limit myself to 20 minutes or so). It was more than enough for me but not what I would call a shareable portion unless it was two bariatric people or one and a small child with small appetite. I ate more like 3/4 of it but probably could have eaten only half and been ok, but with all of the walking would have been hungry later.

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Up Next: We try the famed Churro Ice Cream Sandwich!
 
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I haven’t had a chance to read it all but I’m about to. Just wanted to say you look great!
 


Looking good Lisa. Always live your dining reports and it looks like you have lots to report on this time! Should be fun.
 
Yeah I haven't missed much! I have really enjoyed your previous reports and look forward to following this one!
 


I’ve been terrible at keeping up with reports on here lately, but I’ve always enjoyed your dining reports so I’ll try and keep up when I can!

You look fantastic by the way!

Also - BOG Lunch has always been my favourite meal there of the three, I enjoy that pork!
 
I didn't know they had switched to seating people at lunch. Last time I went it was open seating/seat yourself.

Looking forward to the rest of your report!
 
Love your dining reports. Following along! Oh and you look wonderful :)
Thanks! I feel great, one of the better decisions I've made (along with buying into DVC 20 years ago!)

I haven’t had a chance to read it all but I’m about to. Just wanted to say you look great!
Thanks, I'm a little wordy!

Looking good Lisa. Always live your dining reports and it looks like you have lots to report on this time! Should be fun.
Thanks! The trip was fun, hopefully the dining report will help me relive it a bit!

Yeah I haven't missed much! I have really enjoyed your previous reports and look forward to following this one!
Nope, just started but I can't believe how long my list is, lol

Can't wait to hear about the churro ice cream sandwich and all your other dining adventures.
That is next!

Happy to see another of your reports!
:welcome:

that's for everyone, too, just trying to inject a little variety!

I’ve been terrible at keeping up with reports on here lately, but I’ve always enjoyed your dining reports so I’ll try and keep up when I can!

You look fantastic by the way!

Also - BOG Lunch has always been my favourite meal there of the three, I enjoy that pork!

I have been bad at keeping up with them also, life/work has been so crazy busy, I have a lot to catch up on. But I am having the post disney nothing to plan depressives and needed to get started.

Thanks!

BoG is now on my "must do" list in the MK! I really really enjoyed that meal!

Following along!

nice to see you!

Joining in. Great start

Thanks!

Yay, a new report! You look fabulous and your kiddo has gotten so big! :)

Thanks, he was just at the doc yesterday and he is officially only 6" shorter than I am. Won't be long now until he is taller!


I’m here to follow along:? Glad I haven’t missed much!!

Hardly anything. BoG was sooooo good!


I didn't know they had switched to seating people at lunch. Last time I went it was open seating/seat yourself.

Looking forward to the rest of your report!

They did it both breakfast and lunch so it must be a new thing, but it was not weird/awkward when we made a request like it can sometimes be with servers, they were just like "sure, let's see if there is a seat available." There wasn't but if we wanted a particular seat I felt like it would have been no big deal. I liked it because he seemed to have a handle on what was available where vs us just wandering that huge place aimlessly!
 
Day 1: Churro Ice Cream Sandwich

Would you believe I have never in my life had a churro? I've been going to Disney for so long, but I am really not much of a sweets person so it's not a snack I'd choose... but it was warm-ish (over 70) and sunny and we were about to sit for the parade and I had 16 snack credits burning a hole in my pocket. The kid wanted to get ice cream from the Plaza since you can pick your flavor but we'd been going since 4am so I wanted to sit right where I was along the parade route and just eat ice cream... when I checked the app and realized they had the churro ice cream sandwiches right there at Sleepy Hollow, he was convinced.

A friend of mine (hi @areno79) had one on her last trip she said it was messy, melted fast and hard to eat - now it was not super hot out but I kept that in mind and got a big pile of napkins and a couple of spoons.

Here is the lovely thing:

20190117_143948.jpg

Yes, we were on the sunny side of the parade route. Kind of sucked but we didn't plan ahead for a good spot.

Anyway like I said, I've never had a churro before so i do not know what the texture is supposed to be like, but I was surprised by how chewy these were. I don't know if it's chewy because it's round rather than long or what but I expected it to be more cakey than chewy. But I'm from Brooklyn originally so basically a bagel pastry is not a turn off to me and I did not mind the texture of it, but it was not what I was expecting.

But they were hot (you can see the ice cream starting to melt) and crisp and loaded with cinnamon and sugar, but because of how chewy they were, it doesn't really work as a sandwich logistically. What I ended up doing was disassembling it - I gave the kid the top and scraped the ice cream off and took the bottom and we each spooned individual bites of ice cream onto the churro before biting it. It was delicious, and there was the perfect amount of ice cream to completely consume both halves with ice cream, and what is not to love about fried dough with cinnamon, sugar and ice cream? I am not into cakes or cupcakes or cookies in general but if you make it fresh and warm and slap ice cream on it, I'm there (as you will see is the theme at my dessert parties.)

I would get this again for sure but if I was only doing ONE ice cream sandwich I would still choose the double chocolate cookie ice cream sandwich we had over at AK the last time we were there. I don't think I'd make a trip specifically to sleepy hollow for it but if I was in the neighborhood and craving an ice cream treat and had the chance to sit and eat it without making a mess, I'd put this in my mouth again.

I rate it a B+, would eat again but would not make a special trip for it.
Dining Plan Value Tally ($604 total): 1QS, 1 Snack, $53.35 + $7.45 = $62.80 ... $541.20 to break even


Up next: Crystal Palace Dinner, aka there's nothing quite as satisfying as a giant Pooh on travel day!
 
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Day 1: Churro Ice Cream Sandwich

Would you believe I have never in my life had a churro? I've been going to Disney for so long, but I am really not much of a sweets person so it's not a snack I'd choose... but it was warm-ish (over 70) and sunny and we were about to sit for the parade and I had 16 snack credits burning a hole in my pocket. The kid wanted to get ice cream from the Plaza since you can pick your flavor but we'd been going since 4am so I wanted to sit right where I was along the parade route and just eat ice cream... when I checked the app and realized they had the churro ice cream sandwiches right there at Sleepy Hollow, he was convinced.

A friend of mine (hi @areno79) had one on her last trip she said it was messy, melted fast and hard to eat - now it was not super hot out but I kept that in mind and got a big pile of napkins and a couple of spoons.

Here is the lovely thing:

View attachment 379393

Yes, we were on the sunny side of the parade route. Kind of sucked but we didn't plan ahead for a good spot.

Anyway like I said, I've never had a churro before so i do not know what the texture is supposed to be like, but I was surprised by how chewy these were. I don't know if it's chewy because it's round rather than long or what but I expected it to be more cakey than chewy. But I'm from Brooklyn originally so basically a bagel pastry is not a turn off to me and I did not mind the texture of it, but it was not what I was expecting.

But they were hot (you can see the ice cream starting to melt) and crisp and loaded with cinnamon and sugar, but because of how chewy they were, it doesn't really work as a sandwich logistically. What I ended up doing was disassembling it - I gave the kid the top and scraped the ice cream off and took the bottom and we each spooned individual bites of ice cream onto the churro before biting it. It was delicious, and there was the perfect amount of ice cream to completely consume both halves with ice cream, and what is not to love about fried dough with cinnamon, sugar and ice cream? I am not into cakes or cupcakes or cookies in general but if you make it fresh and warm and slap ice cream on it, I'm there (as you will see is the theme at my dessert parties.)

I would get this again for sure but if I was only doing ONE ice cream sandwich I would still choose the double chocolate cookie ice cream sandwich we had over at AK the last time we were there. I don't think I'd make a trip specifically to sleepy hollow for it but if I was in the neighborhood and craving an ice cream treat and had the chance to sit and eat it without making a mess, I'd put this in my mouth again.

I rate it a B+, would eat again but would not make a special trip for it.
Dining Plan Value Tally: 1QS, 1 Snack, $62.80


Up next: Crystal Palace Dinner, aka there's nothing quite as satisfying as a giant Pooh on travel day!

It looks so photogenic but I guess you’re right, it’s better to eat it disassembled and scoop the ice cream with the churro. It is a nice snack to eat while waiting for the parade. The churros look fresh at least. I’ve had stale churros the last time I had one in MK.

ETA: I’m excited to see how much money you saved with the dining plan. I’ve already told my TA to add DxDP on the first half of my stay!
 
That churro sandwich is my new favorite snack on property. I plan on having one in two weeks.
 
Congratulations on the weight loss. I love Be our Guest and it’s such a bargain on the qsdp but when we went last time you chose your seat
I love churros so the sandwich looks amazing.
Can’t wait for more.
 
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