Trip Report From Batuu to the Boardwalk...and Beyond!

We're back from an absolutely wonderful trip that involved many firsts! As many times as we have been to Disney, we are always looking to try new things and find new favorites, and this trip was no exception! If you read my PTR (here) you will know that we actually went on two trips back-to-back; many of you questioned my sanity when I posted about the short trip, but you'll have to keep reading to find out exactly how crazy it was. If you're ready for food, drinks, and DRAMMA, you have come to the right place!

 

[Spash007]

Even though I've lived in Virginia now for over a year, there is a possibility I still have my NJ Driver's License. (Shh, I will be changing it out soon because it expires lol). Whenever I get ID'd I always have to show them where the birth day is, which then always turns into "Are you visiting or just moved?". Just is up for interpretation right?

 

[Rista1313]

2-3, cont.

This day happened to be M's grandpa's birthday, so she called him while we walked to Toledo. Ninety-five percent of the time he is a man of few words on the phone and ends the call within a minute and thirty seconds, but the other five percent he will talk your ear off. There is no in between. Guess which one he was tonight. He talked so long that M was still on the phone when we arrived at the fancy (and apparently confusing) elevators and the call disconnected in the elevator. She called him back after we arrived on the sixteenth floor and they continued to talk while I checked in for the reservation. The CM at the host stand informed me that they were running behind and I would get a text when our table was ready. Okay, no problem. I'll just stand here and take photos!

While we were waiting we saw @DisneyGigi and B again because they also had a reservation that night!

Eventually, a full TWENTY-FIVE MINUTES after our reservation time, we were seated. Some time in that period M's grandpa hung up. (For anyone who is thinking "WHAT A RUDE MILLENNIAL" because I keep talking about how long he talks on the phone...PLEASE. M's grandpa is the absolute best. He welcomed me into their big Italian family years before we were even married, and he has always been supportive of our relationship despite living in a relatively conservative part of the country, and despite some of the other family members taking a bit of time to come around to the idea of the LESBIAN COUSIN and her WIFE. He is just so full of love for the entire family!)

Back to Toledo!

We checked out the wine list but decided we were in the mood for another cocktail. Our server recommended a couple, and we chose the ones she recommended because they sounded great! She disappeared for a few minutes and then came back because she'd forgotten to check our IDs. And here we were thinking "Wow, we're finally old enough not to get ID-ed all the dern time, even in Florida!" Not quite, lol. She saw our NJ DLs and told us she's from Long Island. But the NJ licenses confuse everyone because the DOB is in red and is difficult to find. I'm pretty sure we've had many a server just give up without actually finding the date on there.

L: M's Tequila Daisy. R: My Gran Gin Tonic

We liked both drinks. Mine was very fragrant and reminded me of a Christmas tree!

A trip to the ladies' room was in order (all the drinks from our meetup were catching up to me!).

Up next: Food!

So, inquiring minds want to know, were those real succulents, or plastic?

 

[bee]

So, inquiring minds want to know, were those real succulents, or plastic?

I don't remember for sure. Maybe @Tuvalu or @DisneyGigi remembers?

 

[DisneyGigi]

I don't remember for sure. Maybe @Tuvalu or @DisneyGigi remembers?

They were real.

 

[Darstarr]

They were real.

Sorry, I couldnt resist

 

[DisneyGigi]

Sorry, I couldnt resist

 

[bee]

2-3, cont.

Our first round of tapas arrived as I was getting back from the bathroom.

Stuffed Piquillo Peppers, and Artisanal Manchego Cheese Vertical. And my nails lol

The cheese was good, but the peppers were OUTSTANDING. M and I each took a bite at the same time and both had the same experience of "holy ____ this is amazing." They were very flavorful and were cooked to the perfect tenderness.

We sort of barely had a view of some Hollywood Studios fireworks...

Our server came back and asked if we would like another tapas item to share before our entree came out, and we said yes and asked for recommendation. She was good at narrowing it down for us and soon we were enjoying:

Tronchon Cheese Gratinado

This was tasty, but the bread was just a bit tooooo toasty and became difficult to chew as it went on.

And finally our shared entree arrived:

Plant-Based "Seafood"

This was pretty enjoyable and was plenty to share. Nothing tasted overly fishy and none of the textures were tooo similar to real seafood. I think we both said our favorite was the "crab cake."

The end of my gin drink

We were too stuffed for dessert and didn't want any more drinks so we asked for the check. Then our server disappeared for a very long time. Like...a really long time. So long that we saw IllumiNations, which we'd learned from @Tony the Tigger was delayed a whole hour because of the weather.

Finally, she returned and we paid. On the way out I got to say hello (or goodbye?) to @DisneyGigi and her B one more time since their reservation was a little after ours. Read her TR for a wild story about a guest we didn't see!

Final thoughts: We didn't love it. The food and drinks were good. The environment was a little on the loud side. Our entire experience, from checking in at reservation to being seated to eating to leave took an entire two hours. Normally I wouldn't mind a slow meal but because it was so chaotic and we were waiting for a long time, it wasn't a relaxing two hours. It was just too long. In addition, Toledo is definitely not a place to go for the fireworks. Yes we could see some of them but the views weren't great and they don't pipe in the music like at California Grill. I know Disney hasn't really marketed Toledo as another CG-type of restaurant, but they have so many similarities that it was really hard not to keep comparing the two.

And let's talk pricing. At Toledo, 3 appetizers, 1 entree, and 2 drinks, plus tax and tip, came to $110.00. Last time we went to California Grill for a regular dinner we had 2 appetizers, 2 entrees, and 5 drinks for $120.00 including tax and tip. While this was a few years ago and I'm sure the same meal would be more now, the two experiences didn't even come close and I'd much rather spend my money at California Grill. So, while we are glad we tried Toledo, and haven't completely ruled out a future visit, we won't rush to go back, especially if we're not staying at Coronado Springs.

Up next: Seeing more of the new Coronado

 

[Rista1313]

2-3, cont.

Our first round of tapas arrived as I was getting back from the bathroom.

Stuffed Piquillo Peppers, and Artisanal Manchego Cheese Vertical. And my nails lol

The cheese was good, but the peppers were OUTSTANDING. M and I each took a bite at the same time and both had the same experience of "holy ____ this is amazing." They were very flavorful and were cooked to the perfect tenderness.

We sort of barely had a view of some Hollywood Studios fireworks...

Our server came back and asked if we would like another tapas item to share before our entree came out, and we said yes and asked for recommendation. She was good at narrowing it down for us and soon we were enjoying:

Tronchon Cheese Gratinado

This was tasty, but the bread was just a bit tooooo toasty and became difficult to chew as it went on.

And finally our shared entree arrived:

Plant-Based "Seafood"

This was pretty enjoyable and was plenty to share. Nothing tasted overly fishy and none of the textures were tooo similar to real seafood. I think we both said our favorite was the "crab cake."

The end of my gin drink

We were too stuffed for dessert and didn't want any more drinks so we asked for the check. Then our server disappeared for a very long time. Like...a really long time. So long that we saw IllumiNations, which we'd learned from @Tony the Tigger was delayed a whole hour because of the weather.

Finally, she returned and we paid. On the way out I got to say hello (or goodbye?) to @DisneyGigi and her B one more time since their reservation was a little after ours. Read her TR for a wild story about a guest we didn't see!

Final thoughts: We didn't love it. The food and drinks were good. The environment was a little on the loud side. Our entire experience, from checking in at reservation to being seated to eating to leave took an entire two hours. Normally I wouldn't mind a slow meal but because it was so chaotic and we were waiting for a long time, it wasn't a relaxing two hours. It was just too long. In addition, Toledo is definitely not a place to go for the fireworks. Yes we could see some of them but the views weren't great and they don't pipe in the music like at California Grill. I know Disney hasn't really marketed Toledo as another CG-type of restaurant, but they have so many similarities that it was really hard not to keep comparing the two.

And let's talk pricing. At Toledo, 3 appetizers, 1 entree, and 2 drinks, plus tax and tip, came to $110.00. Last time we went to California Grill for a regular dinner we had 2 appetizers, 2 entrees, and 5 drinks for $120.00 including tax and tip. While this was a few years ago and I'm sure the same meal would be more now, the two experiences didn't even come close and I'd much rather spend my money at California Grill. So, while we are glad we tried Toledo, and haven't completely ruled out a future visit, we won't rush to go back, especially if we're not staying at Coronado Springs.

Up next: Seeing more of the new Coronado

One thing to note for those on the dining plan, is CG is 2 credits per person, but right now Toledo is only 1 credit per person.

 

[bee]

One thing to note for those on the dining plan, is CG is 2 credits per person, but right now Toledo is only 1 credit per person.

Interesting. I wonder if that will change.

 

[bee]

2-3, cont.

After dinner we once again used the fancy elevators:

But apparently, fancy elevators cannot prevent tragedies from occurring:

How will I Wilson myself this time??

Once we arrived downstairs we called a Lyft. We had to wait a few minutes for our ride to arrive so took the opportunity to explore the Gran Destino lobby.

(Obviously I wasn't the only one taking pictures!)

It's definitely a pretty lobby and tower. I wouldn't not stay there for the right price on the right trip.

We took the short ride to Pop and saw this in the lobby on the way back to our room:

And we also witnessed another tragedy:

And with that, we showered, and got ready for bed, because we had a big day tomorrow!!

Up next: Moving day! Will we LOVE the Boardwalk???

 

[Rista1313]

Interesting. I wonder if that will change.

I was definitely surprised that it wasn't 2.

 

[DisneyGigi]

I don’t think Toledo would be 2 credit worthy on the dining plan. I enjoyed the food but we paid for our food this time rather than buying the dining plan. It was good but nothing stand out spectacular. I will definitely visit again though just in case the whole about to throw up lady affected my opinion. I love that Coronado has so many dining options now though.

 

[bee]

I don’t think Toledo would be 2 credit worthy on the dining plan. I enjoyed the food but we paid for our food this time rather than buying the dining plan. It was good but nothing stand out spectacular. I will definitely visit again though just in case the whole about to throw up lady affected my opinion. I love that Coronado has so many dining options now though.

Me too! Next time I stay at Coronado I'll probably eat there again because I'll already be there. If I go again I will wait awhile because (hopefully) they will get their act together with time.

 

[bee]

Trip 2, Day 4: Tuesday, August 27

We slept in (surprise!) and started the day with coffee (surprise!).

Mickey's blend is pretty good!

We took our time getting repacked and left over Pop room behind.

I hadn't gotten a room ready text for the Boardwalk and we weren't in a big rush to get there, so we stopped in Everything Pop for some breakfast pastries. We grabbed enough for the next morning as well, since we had a 20% Tables discount at Pop!

I saw this online and had to save it:

While we waited for our Lyft ride we enjoyed the displays in the Pop lobby.

Home Improvement! But no Wilson here...

Oh, the 90s!

Up next: Boardwalk time!

 

[dizfan917]

Excited to read about your BoardWalk experience. We had another great stay there September 14 - 21.

My only complaint was how absolutely TERRIBLE that pizza from the take out window was. It was probably the worst food item I've had in the last 13 years at WDW. I was excited about just having a casual late meal and it was so disappointing. boo. Kevin's grilled cheese and tomato bisque from the BoardWalk Bakery was delish. I was pretty jealous.

 

[riverside]

Mickey’s blend is pretty good. I enjoy it! Esp. with the liquid creamers that I make sure to grab from the food court!!

 

[bee]

2-4, cont.

We decided to just take our luggage with us to the Boardwalk instead of leaving it with Pop Bell Services because we didn't have any immediate park plans and wanted to have it handy if our room was ready. Soon we pulled up here:

M watched the stuff while I waited to speak with someone at the front desk. Our room still wasn't ready so we hung out in the lobby for awhile.

RobPlays did a video on the real-life inspiration for the elephant in the lobby.

Castle!

More castle!

I explored a bit on my way to the bathroom...

Love this "historical" version of the Boardwalk!

Up next: Lunch!

 

[bee]

2-4, cont.

When it became clear we wouldn't be getting into our room until closer to check in time, we decided it was a good time for lunch! We moved outside to the porch area on the lobby level, where M watched our stuff so I could go order lunch and bring it back.

Jalapeno pretzel

AND

Veggie pizza

We were both pleasantly surprised with the pizza! We are normally snobs and don't get any pizza at Disney but this one was quite good! We liked the pretzel as well.

After eating we went back inside the lobby (aka back to air conditioning!).

At one point some loud music started and we looked up to see that the carousel was rotating!

Just after two my phone buzzed and I got...THE TEXT!

Up next: The room!!!

 

[bee]

Excited to read about your BoardWalk experience. We had another great stay there September 14 - 21.

My only complaint was how absolutely TERRIBLE that pizza from the take out window was. It was probably the worst food item I've had in the last 13 years at WDW. I was excited about just having a casual late meal and it was so disappointing. boo. Kevin's grilled cheese and tomato bisque from the BoardWalk Bakery was delish. I was pretty jealous.

Wow! We actually got some pretty good pizza from the pizza window! I wonder why our experiences were so different.

Mickey’s blend is pretty good. I enjoy it! Esp. with the liquid creamers that I make sure to grab from the food court!!

That's the only way to drink it!

 

[bee]

2-4, cont.

We had heard about the legendary LONG hallways at the Boardwalk and were prepared for the worst.

Not so bad!

And then...the moment of truth...

Up next: More room!