Trip Report Buffalo, Bugs, and Beer - A lostpro9het Surf 'n' Turf report.

Alright, alright, alright let’s get this beast going! As pointed out in the PTR, this trip had some purpose to it and I wont rehash the reasons why here. I will say that we had an amazing time saying goodbye with some great surprises along the way. With that, lets go!

Saturday May 11th
We got up bright and early at 04:00 and were pulling away by 04:30. This seems to be the only time one can navigate through Atlanta without hitting traffic, sadly the same cannot be said for Henry County’s traffic. Anyway, our go-to pit stop is always Tifton where we fueled up and grabbed some breakfast at Starbucks, we skipped ChikFilA for some reason. About an hour later and we passed the boarder.
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All was going swimmingly until around the time we hit Gainesville. Then it was tick….tick…tick..tick. The swarm made its first appearance. The windshield started to look like a Jackson Pollock painting that could not be undone with wipers and fluid. I swear, lovebugs bleed quick dry contact adhesive, more on this later. Soon we were hitting the turnpike and then 429 to Western Way. We made right for home.
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imahistorygeek

imahistorygeek

Well-Known Member
We had not been to LTT in quite a while. I believe the last time we were there I ordered Thanksgiving food. I just remember the Florida water. This latest meal was actually really good. I think I remember a long time ago getting fish at Columbia Harbour House, but it's not served anymore. It was nice meal at LTT and I would definitely eat again. UFO by Harpoon is pretty dang good, too. Pumpkin UFO is my absolute fav pumpkin beer.
 
imahistorygeek

imahistorygeek

Well-Known Member
Captain Barbossa said:
It’s still served at CHH, you just can’t get it by itself like you could in the past. It’s now served as a combo with shrimp and/or chicken.
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That's good to know. I'm always on the lookout for fried fish. I really just want the fish, not the other stuff. Of course the last time we went, it was part of the great egg debacle and I'm not sure why didn't look for fish on the menu.
 
lostpro9het

lostpro9het

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Friday May 17th, cont.

So after an excellent lunch at LTT our next FP was up, BTM. We took the back way to BTM and bumped into this cat.
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This FP ended up paying off and actually got us train pretty quickly.
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Sadly, the same could not be said for our next FP. Pan always amazes me. For a ride that is constantly, mostly, moving there is always such a queue. Still, worth the wait. Love the nostalgia that this attraction carries.
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While waiting to take off to Neverland, the internets were blowing up about the new DVC pin that was released today. This immediately triggered my DW's "gotta have it" gene and she scoured the shop Disney site to see where we could purchase it. As chance would have it the gift shop at CR had the pin! Additionally, while waiting in the queue our room text came in! So we made our way to CR to grab this beauty before heading to BLT.
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As we headed to the bridge connecting to BLT we passed this bit of Disney art that struck me.
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lostpro9het

lostpro9het

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Friday May 17th, cont.

So we've stayed at BLT a few times and this would be the first time we were on the ground floor. As we arrived it was obvious they were doing some building maintenance in the form of pressure washing the outside of the facility. This meant there were planks down to protect the ground as the lift made its way around the facility. We could still see the planks from our room but the cleaners had already passed our room so no water raining down on us. The view from our room
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The rooms at BLT are not our favorite as they are more sterile and modern feeling than themed. Still, the room was vary clean and the BLT aroma wad heavy in the room as we were only a few doors down from the main lobby.
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MinnieM123

MinnieM123

Premium Member
lostpro9het said:
The rooms at BLT are not our favorite as they are more sterile and modern feeling than themed.
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I've never stayed at BLT, but many years ago I did stay at the Contemporary, and I loved it. The futuristic theme was fun and fit perfectly with the A-shaped building frame, with the monorail gliding through it. When I go on vacation, I like interior designs that are completely different from "home" -- it just adds to the excitement of being away! :happy:
 
lostpro9het

lostpro9het

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Friday May 17th, cont.

So after getting settled into our room we decided to head to EC for a bit before dinner. We hopped in the car and were soon parking. We were a ways back in Discover and just missed the tram but decided to hike it. We got a few steps when a CM in a golf cart pulled up and said "you want a lift?". Heck yes we do! So our private parking lot chauffeur CM, Ryan, took us up to the entrance in style.
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The park was hopping, bordering on madness. We had no real plans other than to walk around WS taking in the festival.
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I was excited to pop into Garden Terrace to try some new beer only to find out it was an all cider menu, boo.
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We continued around and ended up in the DVC lounge for some refreshments and AC before leaving the park for dinner.
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lostpro9het

lostpro9het

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Friday May 17th, cont.

We legitimately attempted to try a new bottle of wine tonight and our server, Alejandro who was amazing, brought out some samples of various wines based on our preferences. They were all decent but at the end of the day we couldn't break away from our go-to.
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As we like to do, we went tapas style and tried a few things. We shared a pair of flatbreads:
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The DW ordered the poached shrimp
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And I cant come to Jiko and not get the Bobotie mac & cheese, sooooo good.
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We enjoyed dinner for the better part of two hours and couldn't eat another bite but Alejandro insisted we have one more bite so we obliged him ;-)
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I can't praise Jiko enough. Despite them swapping chefs a few times since we've first visited here we have never had a bad meal here. The service is always amazing and I think the semi exotic menu keeps the straights away.
 
imahistorygeek

imahistorygeek

Well-Known Member
Y'all...that flatbread with the deep fried mushrooms was amazing. We've never had a bad meal and it really feels like a true signature experience. The poached shrimp was good, but not a repeat. The mint tea in the beginning is very good. I'd like to have it as a regular drink. Jiko is probably my favorite resort restaurant and maybe even my favorite WDW restaurant. Homecomin' is very good, but I think Jiko just beats it out by a hair.

I remember buying my first Unofficial Guide way back when we had no idea what WDW was all about and reading up on Jiko. It was intriguing, but I thought the food was maybe too much out of our comfort zone. It took a fair amount of convincing to get Sean on board with trying it out. We ended up trying it at some point and were hooked.
 
dizfan917

dizfan917

Well-Known Member
lostpro9het said:
Friday May 17th, cont.

We legitimately attempted to try a new bottle of wine tonight and our server, Alejandro who was amazing, brought out some samples of various wines based on our preferences. They were all decent but at the end of the day we couldn't break away from our go-to.
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As we like to do, we went tapas style and tried a few things. We shared a pair of flatbreads:
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The DW ordered the poached shrimp
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And I cant come to Jiko and not get the Bobotie mac & cheese, sooooo good.
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We enjoyed dinner for the better part of two hours and couldn't eat another bite but Alejandro insisted we have one more bite so we obliged him ;-)
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I can't praise Jiko enough. Despite them swapping chefs a few times since we've first visited here we have never had a bad meal here. The service is always amazing and I think the semi exotic menu keeps the straights away.
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UGH!!! that mac & cheese. soooooooo good. I framed a picture of it and hung it in my kitchen. no, really. I did.
 

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