DOING DISNEY ebook!

Think I'll just put this one up here. 

This is the book I wrote about our family's travels to Walt Disney World in Florida.

It's not supposed to be a comprehensive, tell-all travel guide.  I describe it as a template for a week (give or take a couple days) long visit to that Florida resort.  It discusses the resorts we like the most, the restaurants we like the most, the way we structure our days in the parks, how and why we rent a car, why we recommend Disney's Magical Express for getting to one's on-property hotel, a little bit (actually a very little bit) about the surrounding area, and how and why we decide which options to put on our theme park tickets.  I talk about our experience with Disney Vacation Club, the Disney Dining Plans, and a little about the California resort.  I talk about FastPasses (which are almost obsolete now, I guess) and about the extras at the resort that we've never experienced.  Finally, I provide a bit of a bibliography for books about Disney that I've found either useful, entertaining, or both.

Christmas is coming, so consider purchasing a copy.  It's only $2.99 for 101 pages of reading enjoyment.  I try to write it in an entertaining style, like I do my fiction.  So maybe even if you don't find it useful, you might find my anecdotes entertaining.  Or not.  Sample at will, if you'd like, to get an idea about my style of writing.

Here's the link: DOING DISNEY:  HOW TO SPEND A WEEK AT DISNEY'S FLORIDA RESORT  One caveat: It's only for Kindle and the Kindle app! Hope that will work for you! Thanks for looking at it.

*****

Disney Files Magazine

The DVC-published Disney Files came yesterday, and in addition to neat features by Disney historian Jim Korkis and others, it contains a nice overview of the new Fantasyland at the Magic Kingdom.

As I don't have it in front of me, I can't say too much about it.  But the photos and artwork look pretty interesting.  The "Be Our Guest" restaurant looks pretty interesting, and Maurice's cottage looks to be a fun little place to visit.

We all know what sorts of things are going to be there.  It seems to me that it will make Fantasyland out to be a really fun and much more ride-intensive area to visit. 

*****

Disney Books: The Dark Side of Disney

Ok, I finally read this book.  Hadn't heard anything good or bad about it, really, before buying it, but I was intrigued by the description and read a bit of the first review.  Heck, it was only $2.99 on my Kindle, so it wasn't like I was paying a lot.  Plus, with that cover, I thought that it might be a book better confined to my Kindle in our house.  In any case, here's my Amazon Review:

I love most things Disney, and this book kept popping up on my "recommendations" (since I have a "list" here on Amazon of the books on my Disney Bookshelf, I guess). The cover was intriguing - so un-Disney! So I finally bought it, and read it very quickly.

What I found were a lot of fun stories and 'tips' that really are of no use to me. But so what? It was well written enough, and interesting enough, that I don't really care that I'll never do the things that the author or some of his subjects do at Disney. The irreverence comes through loud and clear in the sometimes 'R' rated language and depictions of occurrences. I find that refreshing in a way. It's sort of a way of experiencing some things at Disney vicariously, things I'll never experience in person. There's no way I'm jumping off a ride vehicle to explore the sets in a particular ride. I'm not going to crash the Utilidors, or look for a place to have sex or score drugs. I'm not all that concerned about saving money while I'm there; I'm on vacation and it's all about convenience for me. The most useful information I got was about the DVC point rentals and about the scams for discounted tickets that are so prevalent just off-property. I'd wondered about both of those things. This book talks in a general way about these and other issues.

If you're easily offended, or if you hold your Disney experiences to an almost-religious standard, this book might not be for you. But if you just like reliving your own Disney experiences and maybe getting some of those questions you might have answered, this is a fun fast read!

I wrote the review without reading too many of the other reviews, just the first couple, which were positive.  But after my review went live, I read a sampling of the other 81 reviews, and was amazed to see how differently people see things. 

First, it is definitely NOT for kids, or for those who are easily offended.  I'm not offended by "bad" words in a book, and I thought that this author's use of them fit his irreverent tone perfectly.  He uses them almost conversationally.  I actually know a few people who talk like that.  The words have lost their shock factor for them; they're just a handful of extra words that help convey meaning.  I'm always amused by people who say that using "swear words" shows a lack of intelligence; why would that be true?  We could say that people who used "hot" and "cold" and "straight" and "curved" have a low intellect just as easily, since there are plenty of words that are more colorful and nuanced that convey the meaning.  Neither is accurate.  There is a time and place for those words; this book uses appropriate words for its tone.  If "swear words" offend you, don't buy this book.

Second, why does telling a story about something that happened, whether perpetrated by the author (Leonard Kinsey) or someone he interviewed, and whether legal, illegal, or borderline, make it a bad book?  I for one will never use 99% of the "tips" offered in this book, but it was still sort of fun to read about them.  I thought the stories were interesting and made for a good read.  If you don't want to read about drug use, or people having sex on Disney property, or tresspassing backstage at the parks, this is not the book for you.

Personally, I thought it was pretty fun to read, and that was a tribute to the author's style, because there was plenty in there that I wouldn't really care about otherwise.  He made reading about bedbugs and fireants sort of fun! 

I'll probably try his fictional work, Kingdom of Dust, because if he can make bedbugs entertaining, he might do even better with a made-up story!

*****

Disney Parks: Dining in the World (continued)

Besides the California Grill and the Yak and Yeti, we also dined at many other fine restaurants at Walt Disney World. I'm going to try to list them and say a few words about the experience, though not in any order.

The Hollywood Brown Derby was our lunch destination on Wednesday. It's a "signature dining" experience, and we'd not had the opportunity to eat there before. It's sort of pricey, but we figured that it would be worth trying. We split a Cobb salad to start, then I had the Sterling Silver Pork Chop, while my wife had the 6 oz Char Grilled Filet of Beef. The service was good though not outstanding, and the ambience was nice. The food was good but after eating the night before at Emeril's, we may have been spoiled. It didn't stand up to that experience, although the prices were right up there.

We also dined at Le Cellier on Friday night. This is a small restaurant with a limited number of tables, and though we called exactly 90 days in advance of our vacation to make the reservations, the only time we were able to get was at 8:20 pm. A little late when you're dragging 2 kids ages 8 and 10 around, but we (I) really wanted to dine there, so we took it. As it has been in the past, it was one of our best meals. I had the Le Cellier Mushroom Filet Mignon, which is served with a wild mushroom risotto. That risotto is excellent. My wife had the same thing. I can't remember what we had as an appetizer; perhaps we didn't get one. I know I ate my kids' soup, and we did get an order of onion rings for the table. But I thought we did order something. Oh well. The food and service were both top notch. I see on the Disney website that this restaurant is considered "signature dining" also, but I thought it used to only take one table service point. No matter to us; we weren't on the dining plan.

The 50's Prime Time Cafe was another dining destination. We ate there on Wednesday night right after watching the Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights. The greeters couldn't have been nicer. Our service was a little slow, but was she a riot! She was so funny! My kids were laughing so hard that we were worried they'd lose their supper. The food - eh. It's okay. My steak was so-so, and the kids' chow was average at best. My wife had the fried chicken, though, and said it was really good. The server made this experience, however, with her performance. I tried to remember her name but I didn't write it down so of course it's gone from my memory.

Les Chefs De France was the location of our first night's meal, and it was decent. I started with lobster bisque, and my wife had the Soupe a l'oignon gratinee (French onion soup). Both were excellent. I followed it with the Trio de fruits de mer au bouillon de homard (scallops, mahi mahi and shrimp), while my did the Filet de boeuf grille (grilled tenderloin of beef). Mine was quite good. She said hers wasn't as good as she remembered. Our service was excellent. It's pricey but worth it for the atmosphere and the service as well as the good food.

On Thanksgiving, we dined at Sanaa, the restaurant at our hotel. This was terrific. We started with the bread service, which consisted of Naan, Onion Kulcha, and Paneer Paratha. We selected the Mango Chutney, the Garlic Pickle and the roasted red bell pepper accompaniments. They were all excellent. For dinner, we both went with the "Slow-cooked in Gravy, Simple and Well-seasoned" dishes. I selected the Chicken with red curry sauce and beef short ribs. My wife had the same chicken but did the Shrimp with Green Curry Sauce. She loved hers. I really enjoyed mine, too. (The waiter told us that we were one of the only tables to order off their regular menu, but we figured we're at this restaurant NOW, and we want to try what they have to offer, not an American Thanksgiving meal. We were getting that on our return home anyway.) For dessert we did the sampler, with Chocolate cake, passiou fruit kulfi, and chai cream. I really loved the chai cream. I'd highly recommend this restaurant.

I'll post separately, later, about the dining experiences at CityWalk and Universal. It won't be as long, thank God.

*****

Disney Parks: Dining in the World

We had many fine dining experiences during our WDW visit last week. Among them were stops at California Grill, Chefs De France, Le Cellier, the Brown Derby, the 50's Prime Time Cafe, Sanaa, and the Yak and Yeti. We also ate at Pastamore and at Emeril's at the CityWalk, but I didn't take pictures of those meals.




My dinner was the Grilled Pork Tenderloin, and my wife did the Oak-fired Filet of Beef, and both were done to perfection. The presentation was beautiful, and the tastes were incredible. I know I wasn't feeling all that well, and it was late, but this restaurant, while pricy, has been the highlight of our Disney dining experiences the last two times we've gone to the World.



Dessert was also excellent. If I'm remembering correctly, this was the California Bread Pudding, and we shared it. It was delicious and we cleaned our plate! (Well, I did, anyway...my wife has willpower.)

We started with one of the flatbreads (I believe it was the Spring Vegetable flatbread) and the Sonoma Goat Cheese Ravioli. Both were excellent. (The kids helped with the flatbread.)

We were also lucky enough to get what I think was about the best table in the house - the one with a perfect view of the Magic Kingdom fireworks, which we were able to enjoy without leaving our table. A very nice finish to our Sunday in Disney.





Thursday we went to the Yak and Yeti for lunch. This was a really good day. The weather was perfect, the crowds were manageable, and the park was beautiful. And the Yak and Yeti's food was excellent. We started with Pork Pot Stickers (not pictured) and they were excellent, though about what you get from most Asian (and some non-Asian) restaurants. I followed it up with the Shaoxing Steak and Shrimp, and my wife had the Stir-Fried Beef and Broccoli. Both of these dishes were presented nicely, and were quite tasty. We did order the Fried Wontons for dessert, but I don't have a picture of it.

This is one of my wife's favorite restaurants in any park, and I have to agree with her that it's a culinary treat.

I'm going to stop here but I'll be back with another post about dining, though sadly it won't have pictures (because these were the only ones I took). Or maybe not so sadly. Bon Appetit!

*****

My Top Disney Dining Choices

*****

Now that our reservations are all made, I thought I'd do my own top WDW restaurants list. I just have my impressions from our previous visits since we don't go THAT often and there are a bunch of restaurants we haven't tried yet. But here are my faves:

1. Le Cellier

This is an excellent steakhouse that I personally feel rivals the preparation at some of the best steak restaurants I've been to, including David Burke's and Capital Grill in Chicago.


2. California Grill

A signature dining experience at Disney, the menu here offers enough twists on the usual to open eyes. A really tasty treat.


3. Le Chefs de France

We have never had a bad experience here in three visits. The food has always been good if perhaps a bit overpriced.


4. Yak and Yeti

We've really enjoyed this Asian themed restaurant in Animal Kingdom. Food and service have always been very good.


5. 50's Prime Time Cafe

Okay, the food isn't anything special, particularly, but the place is totally fun.

I could go on, I suppose, but I wouldn't necessarily put the others on a "best of" list. Tony's (at the Magic Kingdom) is okay, and I need to experience Coral Reef again before I put it on my list. I was not impressed with San Angel Restaurant in the Mexico pavilion, and while I liked the Japanese restaurant, I've had better outside of Disney. The ambiance of the Sci Fi Dine In is great, but the food is average at best. (Even so, we like to go there BECAUSE of the ambiance.) The one that was tough to decide on for me was the Moroccan restaurant - it was very good the time we ate there, but it is another of those that I need to experience again before putting it on a "best of" list. And neither my wife or I are fans of buffets, so Crystal Palace and the Liberty Tree Inn (?) don't make it.

I almost put the Columbia Harbor House on my list, even though it isn't a table service restaurant, because I love that hummum sandwich they serve. We will be trying Sanaa on our next trip (at Animal Kingdom Lodge) and maybe even Jiko if we get the chance, so they may make the cut next time.

Bon appetit!

*****

Disney Dining and other stuff...

*****

Our 180 day window for making our Disney dining reservations has opened. Actually we thought we would be able to book all of our reservations, but we are too early for the later days of the trip. So...we wanted to go to Le Cellier on our first night there. But alas, it is not to be. Le Cellier has no availability for that Saturday.

We're only about 2 or 3 days past the day when one could make such a reservation, but I guess it books up fast. We were actually sort of shocked. We've made reservations there before at less than 180 days (considerably less, actually) and while we might not get the exact time we wanted, we've generally been able to get in at some point on the DAY we've desired. I know it's small, and I know it's popular. But...wow!

So we're going to try Coral Reef on our first night. When we were last there, my wife got so sick that she doesn't remember much about it, and consequently, neither do I. What I do remember about it was that my food was pretty good and our service was outstanding that night. So we'll see how it is this time. We've also got reservations for California Grill and Boma (for breakfast). We'll be getting the other ones in line in the next couple of days.

*****

We're going to be traveling to New York City this summer, and we've booked one Broadway show. Bet you can't figure out which show it is.

Did you guess Mary Poppins? If so, you got it right. We've seen it in Chicago, but we needed something kid-friendly and we all loved it when we saw it at the Cadillac Theater in Chicago. I'm looking forward to seeing the theater that Disney renovated there. I'm sure it will be incredible!

*****

For my birthday my sister-in-law gave me two tickets to the musical Billy Elliot, which was playing at Chicago's Oriental Theater, another beautifully restored venue in the Second City. I didn't know what to expect, and I felt like it started off slow, but it turned into an engrossing story about a boy from a coal-mining family who has an aptitude for and a love of dance, specifically ballet. This is set against the historical backdrop of the coal-miners' strike in (I believe) the 1970's.

A young man from my hometown had one of the main parts. His name was Patrick Mulvey and I know his father and his aunt quite well, having gone to high school with them. I was glad to see Patrick (who I don't know) do so well.

I know this was a movie, but I had never seen it. It's hard to imagine it as anything but a musical. Elton John did a terrific job with the music.

*****

Last year I wrote a post about Kiddieland, one of the nation's oldest amusement parks, closing due to a dispute between two sides of the family. The owners of the park had wanted to sell the rides as a package, hoping that someone would see fit to open another incarnation of Kiddieland in some other location. I guess they were not successful in finding a buyer. But I heard recently, then saw an ad today, that Six Flags Great America had bought their old wooden roller coaster, called the Little Dipper. I don't know where they are putting it, but I'm sure it will look really nice with maybe a fresh coat of paint and some good maintenance.

*****

We're going to visit Michigan's Adventure soon, with their collections of smaller coasters and other rides. I'll post something about how that park looks this year after our visit.

*****

Have a great Memorial Day!

******

Almost time for Restaurant Reservations!

Since you can book your table service restaurant reservations 180 days in advance of your visit, we are now in the process of trying to figure out what we might have a taste for 6 months down the road. And once we figure that out, we will start making our reservations for the nights we plan to be at the parks.

As I pointed out in a previous post, we are going to spend at least two days of our seven day trip at Universal Studios, and one of those evenings will certainly be taken up by a visit to one of Emeril Lagasse's restaurants. We have dined with Emeril in Vegas and New Orleans and have never been disappointed by either the food or the service at any of his restaurants. So either Tchoup Tchoup (spelling?) or Emeril's will make the final cut there.

But at Disney itself, we are planning on dining at least once at one of the restaurants at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, and perhaps at two of them. The menu at Sanaa looks pretty good; African cuisine, but with an Indian flair. Jiko is the buffet, I believe, and we looked at it last time and wished that we had made it there.

At the parks, I hate to miss Le Cellier, so we probably won't...but I wouldn't mind giving Coral Reef another try. The last time we ate there, my wife was so ill that it cast a pall over the entire experience. We plan on doing Yak and Yeti for lunch when we go to the Animal Kingdom park, and we're thinking of trying the Brown Derby when we are at Hollywood Studios. As far as the Magic Kingdom goes, well of course we'll spend at least one day there, probably two. But I'm not overwhelmed by the dining options in that park. So we'll likely take the monorail over to the Polynesian at least once and try 'Ohana for dinner. (To this point, we have only done it for breakfast.)

The trouble with booking more than one meal at Epcot is that we were thinking that we wouldn't get park hopper options on our tickets. On our last visit we didn't use that option a single time. And on other visits we have rarely neede the option - perhaps only once or twice. It hardly seems worth adding it just so we can go to Epcot for dinner on a night that we otherwise wouldn't be visiting the park.

But then again, that's where most of the best dining at WDW seems to be for us. Besides the two I mentioned, we have always liked Chefs De France, and we wouldn't mind trying the Chinese restaurant, which is one we've never gone to. So...maybe we will be buying that park hopper option after all.

I'll post what the final dining itinerary is when we figure it all out.

*****

Disney Dining - counter service

I was reading a spirited discussion on MiceChat, where someone asked about the new policy of not allowing guests to sit at tables while someone is waiting in line for food.

It seems that this policy has been at times overzealously enforced (at least judging by some of the anecdotes), like not allowing a father with trays of food to go with the kids to get a table while mom gets her tray. They ask if your entire party is present, and if you're honest and say, "Mom's still waiting for her tray," they make you wait for her.

We experienced this at the Magic Kingdom's Columbia Harbor House the last time we were there, having to wait for all food to be present before finding a table. When we went, it was in January of 2009, and we did find a table within minutes of starting to look. And it used to be (and still is at some restaurants at Epcot and Hollywood Studios) frustrating to see a woman and a kid saving two big tables, waiting for their food to come. I never minded seeing a family of four or five sitting at one table waiting for mom or dad to come with the tray of food, but maybe a lot of people did.

So I understand the reasoning behind this. But it's still darned inconvenient if you're the parent trying to chaperone 2 or 3 kids while the other adult waits in line. Kids don't understand the whole "wait till you have your food to sit down", they're tired and want to sit down NOW!

One solution would seem to be to add more seating. This is not easy, since the space is pretty well set. Can't add more space easily.

But you could open up existing space and food service areas. At the Magic Kingdom, Tomorrowland Terrace is closed way more than it is open. Why is this? Is it because it doesn't make enough money to justify staffing and cleaning it? Because I can't imagine that. That area should be open for lunch every day. If people don't like the noodle dishes they serve there (I personally liked them the one time I ate there on our first trip to Disney), then add some stuff that everyone wants. Pizza, burgers, or dogs would seem to be easy to add. (Hopefully keep a few noodle choices for people who like them...like me.) It's cooler and shady there even on the hottest days, or so it seems.

I'm sure there are other locations that could be opened, even if it's just a cart and some tables.

I wrote a post about a month ago which was a response to a Kevin Yee question about how to cut costs at Disney Hollywood Studios, and my thought was to not cut value from what we are getting for the price of admission to a park. Raise prices as little as possible to avoid making any cuts. The reasoning applies to this issue, I think, as well. This lack of seating space cuts into the value of what we get when we go to a Disney park. So rather than cutting further, or making it even less convenient, do the opposite and "plus" it, as Walt would say. I think the investment would pay off in the end.

Compare and Contrast...

Disneyland Resort vs. Walt Disney World Resort...hmm.

At first glance it would seem to be apples to oranges. I mean, how can you compare all those hotels, those four theme parks, two water parks, golf, miniature golf, and sports facilities (including motor sports) to the little plot of land in California?

Having been to WDW in January of 2009, and DLR in April of 2009, I was struck by the differences. First among them is, obviously, size. Though DLR is small, it packs a lot into that area. We stayed at the Grand Californian, which had a private entrance to DCA, and is steps away from Downtown Disney and the Disneyland park. That in itself is a plus, in my opinion. Steps, not miles. We would walk out of the hotel and find ourselves among several additional dining choices, including House of Blues, Tortilla Joe's, Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen, an ESPN Zone, Catal and a pizza place (that I won't attempt to name since we didn't go there and I don't really want to look it up at this moment). We did check out the World Of Disney store briefly, and I checked out the Compass Books (which I really like), but other than those two, the Lego store briefly, the Alamo rental car place, and the Pin Traders, we really didn't experience the shopping. But some of them look to be on a par with what you find in DTD in Florida. I like the intimacy of this setting over the expansiveness of the WDW acreage.

Second is the quality of the parks. Well, DCA is undergoing its makeover, but it was still the park my kids wanted to go to, mostly because they're both now lovers of rollercoasters and they wanted to do California Screamin' over and over again (we did it 3 times on our vacation). They also really enjoyed Toy Story Midway Mania. (So did I.) And Soarin' is better in CA. The queue is better, and the film quality is better, also. (It's the same film, just not as beat-up, in my opinion. The print is just a little better.) I enjoyed the Blue Sky Preview Center. And the other, smaller rides were enjoyable for the boys too...like Mike and Sully to the Rescue, the Muppet show, and even the Orange Stinger.

The crowds in the park were not unbearable, and the size felt more manageable than some of the Florida properties, even when they don't have much more to offer than DCA does.

Disneyland compares to the Magic Kingdom, and while I really like Florida's TTA and the Carousel of Progress, I enjoyed the ride on Space Mountain quite a bit more than the Florida version (pre refurbishment). The Haunted Mansion experiences are similar, but I like the California Pirates more. Star Tours felt well placed to me in Tomorrowland, unlike that Stitch attraction, and unlike the Monsters Inc Laugh Floor, which we liked, but which I think would probably be better in the Hollywood Studios). Big Thunder Mountain is the same, as far as I can tell. I like Everest over the Matterhorn as both a themed experience and as a thrill ride, but of course, now we're including DAK in the comparison.

Florida's dining options in the parks blow away the California alternatives, though some of this might be because the hotels and downtown, not to mention the real world, are in such close proximity to these parks that they don't feel the need to offer great dining options in CA. But I much prefer the dining in Florida, and that's before including Epcot into the equation. Then Florida runs away and hides.

Of course, Epcot has to be mentioned. One resort has it, one doesn't. As it is probably my favorite park, I think it tips the scales in the direction of Florida. But it isn't by as much as I thought it should be.

More on this topic? Perhaps. Lately life intrudes on my blogosphere existence, so my blogging is likely to get less frequent. But I hope to have something to add to this comparison later. Thanks for reading.

Best Dining Experiences at Disney World

I qualify this entry by stating that I'm by no means a restaurant reviewer, nor do I play one in the blogosphere. I just know what I like, and sometimes I know why I like it. (Much like my commentaries on books, movies and music.)

So here's what I really liked. I was totally impressed with the meal at Le Cellier in the Canada pavilion of Epcot. The steak was done as well as the best places I've been in Chicago, including David Burke's, Wildfire, and Capital Grill. It was tender, juicy, and tasty. And the mushroom risotto is excellent as well. Of course their Canadian Cheddar and Ale soup (I don't remember the exact name) is a tasty treat. And their iced tea is nice and light; I could probably drink it without a sweetener.

I was also quite impressed with the California Grill. It's the first time we've eateh there, and I was a little disappointed that they couldn't accomodate us as far as a seat with a view of the Magic Kingdom fireworks, especially since we got there early and we had requested such a table when we made the reservation, then earlier in the day. (It was my birthday that day, and they were aware of that also.) We were a party of six, which makes it harder... But the food and service made up for it. Their soup was excellent. I could have made a meal out of just that. And the duck was sensational. It was pricy, no doubt, but it was also the best meal we had while there.

Our lunch at the Yak and Yeti was pretty darned good, as well. I had a dish which featured skewered shrimp, and I didn't leave a single one. I love the Asian flare there, and our service was almost as good as at the California Grill.

Other meal stops were the SciFi Drive In, Tony's, Chefs De France, and Portobello's in Downtown Disney. And we went offsite one night for a meal at a local Persian restaurant called Shiraz (on Westwood Blvd, just off of I-4 and north of DTD). The meal at Shiraz was excellent also.

I have to say, though, that we've had better service in all of those restaurants in the past. The service was excellent at California Grill, and at Yak and Yeti, and it was very good at the Sci Fi Drive In. I can't say that the service was BAD at any of the other Disney restaurants. It just was - well, maybe uninspired is a good word. In the past, even when the food was pedestrian, the service has been outstanding.

I regret not sampling either of the dining establishments at our home resort, Jiko or Boma. Next time.