Trip Report A Poly Girl in a GF World *COMPLETED*

*Gasp!*

Is it true? Tuvalu, the die-hard Polynesian fan, spent 4 recent nights at a different deluxe resort? Didn't she already have three magical stays at the Poly this year? Didn't she take her name from her favorite longhouse at the Poly? Isn't this blasphemy? (Actually it isn't, but you get the point.)

Yep, it's true. Like many of you who have broken loyal ties to a political party (don't worry, I'm not gonna go there) Woody and I decided to try another option for our Food and Wine Festival excursion.

In anticipation of the question, "Why didn't you stay at an Epcot resort?" I will say, "Cause I like the MK resorts better."

Tuvalu and Woody taking a trip to WDW specifically for F&W is a bit ironic, since:
1) We are not foodies and
2) We are not big drinkers
But as we approach our sunset years, we are determined to keep ourselves open to new experiences and embrace change (even when we don't like it.)

And really, who doesn't like to eat?

Now back to the resort. The Grand Floridian. Disney's Flagship resort. The resort people call "too stuffy." Or "I could never be comfortable there." Or "The Four Seasons is a much better resort for the price."

Well, Woody and I were quite comfortable, despite a couple of irritating incidents to be revealed later. We had no problem walking around in our Target and Kohl's clothes. And we got a room rate that wouldn't have paid for the janitor's closet at the Four Seasons. (Okay, a slight exaggeration.)

The deets:
Dates: October 1-5, 2016
Cast: Tuvalu and Woody

Follow along to find out how we filled that "rumbly in our tumbly."

 

[epcotisbest]

I think it's time for a little TR flashback! A "blast from the past" if you will.

Since @Gabe1 first mentioned it earlier (and additional comments were made by @MotherofaPrincessLover, @MinnieM123, @Longers, @Direwolf27, @MegRuss626 and now @DimpledDevil18) let's see the Tuvalu family's visit to the MK during the 25th anniversary celebration ~

View attachment 174681
Drumr, Woody, Em and soon-to-be-a-daddy Lego. Both boys are wearing 25th Anniversary tees.

Clearly this was before MK had a Welcome Show.....there would be no room for the Mayor and the Trolley Singers thanks to those 25 candles!

Do you see a stroller for 5 year old Em? Of course not! Do you see a stroller for hauling around our stuff? No! Woody carried the green duffle bag for all of us (which also included a camcorder.)

View attachment 174683

The final photo was taken another day. Look how empty Main Street was at 9:10 am ~ after park opening!

View attachment 174682
(We were not fans of the birthday cake castle, and often commented how sorry we were for those first or only-time visitors!)

Now back to the present....

Love the flashback photos. I think Tony is right...ageless, timeless.
As for the pink birthday cake castle, we loved it. Were amazed by it and were just in awe. Now, we had seen the castle many, many times before so it was a fun change for us. If it had been an only trip, I might have been disappointed not getting to see the castle in all its original glory, but count my blessings we see it often, then and now.

 

[Tuvalu]

Awwww, you are so sweet too @epcotisbest!

 

[MinnieM123]

The final photo was taken another day. Look how empty Main Street was at 9:10 am ~ after park opening!

My observation is probably wrong, but it seems to me like there were more trash receptacles back then. I mean it looks like they were placed at an (exactly) equal distance apart down the sidewalks. Then again, maybe nothing has changed--except the fact that it's so mobbed nowadays--and perhaps I haven't noticed. I've probably just been devoting my efforts to navigating through the crowds.

 

[SSH]

I loved the anniversary castle for the same reasons - I'm lucky enough to have seen the original many times and it was a fun difference as long as it was temporary. Frankly, I'd take that birthday cake castle back in a new york minute if I could have everything else that went with it - the lower crowds, original attractions - and my younger self!

 

[Tuvalu]

Monday, con't

After finishing the pork tenderloin, Woody and I entered the Promenade, where the majority of the food booths are located.

Hello, topiary Mickey!

We stopped at the next kiosk based solely on the recommendation of @ajrwdwgirl.

Patagonia ~ my pic cut off the name!

@ajrwdwgirl said her favorite dish at F&W is the Grilled Beef Skewer, so we had to give it a try!

SHE WAS RIGHT. So yummy. Two thumbs up. Love chimichurri? This is for you. (And for the unaware, boniato is a variety of sweet potato that does not taste sweet....consider that your Julia Child fun fact for the day!)

 

[Tuvalu]

The Chew was going to be taping shows from Epcot later in the week. (The hurricane ended up altering the show schedule ~ visit @samantha788's trip report for complete details! )

Among his many talents, Woody works as a sound guy. He was fascinated with the set-up for The Chew. I told him he could stay and watch while I got our next tasting.

If you read my last trip report, there's no way I was passing up this booth!

Probably my #2 favorite from this trip's F&W. (You'll have to wait a little longer to learn my favorite....as much as I enjoyed the Grilled Beef Skewer, it wasn't my #1.)

I think Woody and I fought over each forkful!

 

[blreinsel]

Love the cake castle pictures! I was either 4 or 5 on that trip and I didn't have a stroller either! Maybe that's why I can survive the long park days as an adult.

 

[mcstensrud]

The Chew was going to be taping shows from Epcot later in the week. (The hurricane ended up altering the show schedule ~ visit @samantha788's trip report for complete details! )

View attachment 174850

Among his many talents, Woody works as a sound guy. He was fascinated with the set-up for The Chew. I told him he could stay and watch while I got our next tasting.
View attachment 174851

If you read my last trip report, there's no way I was passing up this booth!

View attachment 174852

Probably my #2 favorite from this trip's F&W. (You'll have to wait a little longer to learn my favorite....as much as I enjoyed the Grilled Beef Skewer, it wasn't my #1.)

View attachment 174865
I think Woody and I fought over each forkful!

Something that yummy should come on a plate or in a bowl.That cardboard vessel doesn't do that mac and cheese justice! But I still enjoyed it also!

 

[Tuvalu]

We passed by the the food booth in Mexico, since there was nothing on the menu that enticed us.

We made China our next stop ~ not for food, however.

My brother T raved about the new exhibit in the China pavilion and insisted I had to see it.

I've been guilty of #BlameShanghai. I guess I should at least see what has caused the cutbacks at WDW.
Let's venture inside.

Does anyone else find the lower half of this statue a tad nasty?

After opening the door, we could go left or right. We chose left. One of the first things we saw was this ~

Rapunzel gets a bathroom at the MK. She gets a stunning mosaic inside the Castle at Shanghai.
#BlameShanghai

 

[HurricaneHanna]

We did not receive a window table but one in the center of the restaurant.

View attachment 173863

View attachment 173864

Citricos has a casual elegance vibe, similar to the California Grill. Likewise we could see the open kitchen from our seats.

We were not overly impressed with our server. She exuded a "fake enthusiasm" that became annoying pretty fast. She was also (obviously) pushing additional items and the priciest entrees. And she was slow in tending to us. We hoped she was not indicative of all Citricos servers.

We began with drinks. A glass of red for Woody and a Pina Colada for me.

View attachment 173865

Bread service
View attachment 173866

Our server "highly recommended" the arancini appetizer.
View attachment 173868

It was fine, but I think the arancini at Via Napoli is much better. FWIW I also like the pizza at Via Napoli, so take my opinion with a grain of salt @BuddyThomas .

I am so behind on this wonderful TR but I had to chime in after reading about your experience at Citricos. It used to be our favorite Disney dinner destination. A must do on every trip. That is until last summer when we had the displeasure of "Annoying Annie" as @BuddyThomas named her. She was soooo annoying. We made it clear that we'd been to Citricos before, many times, and recently, yet she proceeded to tell us about every single item on the menu, in detail. I was silently screaming, WE KNOW!!!! She pushed extra appetizers and extra cocktails. She watched us eat and asked our opinion of almost every mouthful. We just wanted to be left alone. When she tried to sell us dessert, my husband and I loudly said NO in unison. We couldn't get out of there fast enough. We haven't been back since, have no plans to return, and I actually wrote Disney to complain about how she spoiled our meal (I never complain).

 

[HurricaneHanna]

I have to stop looking at your Food and Wine pics. They're making me jealous of what I missed this year. Would you believe that we spent ten days at F&W in September and never tried a single kiosk food item? (We did manage some cocktails.) We had two ADRs every day (I do so love my Disney table service meals) so every time we were in Epcot we were full
#badplanning

 

[Tuvalu]

This would be the Enchanted Storybook Castle.

Okay, I have to give Cinderella Castle the edge here. (Pepto Bismol Birthday Cake notwithstanding .)

But Rapunzel gets even more love with her own attraction!!

#BS (That's short for Blame Shanghai....I know what you're thinking! )

Epcot has Test Track 2.0. Shanghai gets TRON!

#BS

I have seen the ride-thru video of Shanghai's Pirates. OUT OF THIS WORLD. Getting wet on that boat would be totally worth it.

#BS

AK has the Wilderness Explorers game. Shanghai gets Camp Discovery.

#BS

Mickey Avenue or Main Street? Tough call.

WDW wins in the Resorts category. Although Shanghai's offerings look pretty fab.

What can I say? Am I envious of our Far East friends? Shanghai looks like an amazing theme park.
Too bad it comes at the expense of WDW cuts.
#BS

 

[Tuvalu]

I am so behind on this wonderful TR but I had to chime in after reading about your experience at Citricos. It used to be our favorite Disney dinner destination. A must do on every trip. That is until last summer when we had the displeasure of "Annoying Annie" as @BuddyThomas named her. She was soooo annoying. We made it clear that we'd been to Citricos before, many times, and recently, yet she proceeded to tell us about every single item on the menu, in detail. I was silently screaming, WE KNOW!!!! She pushed extra appetizers and extra cocktails. She watched us eat and asked our opinion of almost every mouthful. We just wanted to be left alone. When she tried to sell us dessert, my husband and I loudly said NO in unison. We couldn't get out of there fast enough. We haven't been back since, have no plans to return, and I actually wrote Disney to complain about how she spoiled our meal (I never complain).

I think we had the same server.

Would you believe that we spent ten days at F&W in September and never tried a single kiosk food item?

I can believe it....we've done it!

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

I'm so glad you liked the beef skewer from Patagonia. Great picture, I wish I could eat some of that right now.

 

[blreinsel]

Your #BS has me cracking up. I want to experience Shanghai at least once, though! It does look pretty awesome.

 

[Tuvalu]

Woody and I departed never-gonna-go-there China. Though it was becoming increasing warm and humid, there was a spring in my step to get to the next food booth. The place that held my #1 favorite from last fall, and the delicacy I had already sampled on my visit last month.

Butter Chicken

Woody found a table while I stood in line for this and two bottles of water for hydration. My palate anxiously awaited the yumminess to come.

And then....


The naan was as hard as a rock. The chicken was lacking in micro cilantro (see pic) and was somewhat bland. It wasn't worth the effort to complain so I ate a few bites of chicken and tossed the rest in the trash.

But I was happily surprised by our next pick.

I expected Woody would want the Roast Bratwurst but he chose the Schinkennudeln ~ the cheesy ham and pasta dish.

THIS. WAS. AMAZING. So creamy, cheesy with just enough ham for saltiness. Since it was Woody's choice, I let him eat most of it.

Why hello, hidden Remy!

(If we had a child with us, you can bet we'd be looking for every hidden Remy! )

No visit to Germany is complete without stopping to watch the train. Woody had trains as a boy and misses them. He'd love to have this display in our yard!

 

[Tony the Tigger]

I do love the trains.

 

[21stamps]

@Tuvalu I have been in my own frantic Disney planning bubble and haven't had a time to read all of this yet. I LOVE your photos though and am looking forward to reading thru the entire report soon! So I apologize if you have already stated this somewhere, but could you tell me what kind of camera you use? Your pictures are great quality.

 

[Tuvalu]

@Tuvalu I have been in my own frantic Disney planning bubble and haven't had a time to read all of this yet. I LOVE your photos though and am looking forward to reading thru the entire report soon! So I apologize if you have already stated this somewhere, but could you tell me what kind of camera you use? Your pictures are great quality.

Thanks for your kind words @21stamps. I just used my iPhone 6S for the pics in this report.

 

[21stamps]

Thanks for your kind words @21stamps. I just used my iPhone 6S for the pics in this report.

Wow nice! I now have an iPhone 7, but had the 6s prior to that and my photos didn't look this good. Maybe user error was involved...lol