The Miscellaneous Thought Thread

NobodyElse

Well-Known Member
I knew it smelled good. Honestly the burger is probably better there than down below at Beachcomber. The first time we ate at Beachcomber the standby wait was so long I took that little hike up to the Shake Shack to investigate and almost ate there instead if it wasn’t for the logistics of getting my grandma up that steep flight of stairs.

BTW, Maybe wait a while before giving the Beachcomber another try...
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mickEblu

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Some miscellaneous thoughts from my first trip since early June yesterday.


We are fast approaching my least favorite time of the year at Disneyland. 90 degree days, snow on the Haunted Mansion and pumpkins everywhere. With that said yesterday was 85 or so and Haunted Mansion was closed. And the pumpkins aren’t out yet for the most part.


Speaking of Mansion, that new store still is so bothersome to me. Especially when walking from Bayou Country to NOS. From that vantage point it’s downright awful. I’ve been saying for years how it was never my favorite thing how you had two large iconic facades so close together with Mansion and Splash. With that said they made it work with the Italian cypress trees and the little bit of breathing room that was there. To shoehorn in that scale shattering store with that high roof line is just awful and so not Disneyland. I pray they knock it down one day and start over. The park deserves better. Especially that part of the park.

Why didn’t anyone tell me Magic Key Terrace is such a vibe? Really enjoyed our lunch there. Had the perfect table along the ledge/ glass with a view of the Pier. Between the breeze and the fans on it was rather pleasant up there. Jazz music playing. Really nicely designed indoor/ outdoor space. The whole area including the outdoor terrace. It’s kind of reminiscent of some of our favorite spots in Montecito. The menu is kind of limited. I got the fried Cornish hen and it was good but I probably wouldn’t get it again. My wife really enjoyed her tomato soup and Caesar salad. Overall really enjoyed my time at Poor Man’s Club 33. A real nice break and change of pace up there from the rest of the park. I can see us doing it every once in a while. The outdoor terrace is really nice too as you are completely in the shade of the mountain and mature trees. That whole Wine country complex has great place making and it deserves better than being dumped in “Performance Corridor” on the map.

Sat first row on Tiana and got absolutely destroyed by a tidal wave that drenched me from head to toe on the second drop. That was after barely drying up from my first drenching on GRR where I made it pretty much unscathed until the geyser at the end.

Saw the Walt Disney show but ill leave my thoughts over on that thread.
 
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Disney Irish

Premium Member
Why didn’t anyone tell me Magic Key Terrace is such a vibe? Really enjoyed our lunch there. Had the perfect table along the ledge/ glass with a view of the Pier. Between the breeze and the fans on it was rather pleasant up there. Jazz music playing. Really nicely designed indoor/ outdoor space. The whole area including the outdoor terrace. It’s kind of reminiscent of some of our favorite spots in Montecito. The menu is kind of limited. I got the fried Cornish hen and it was good but I probably wouldn’t get it again. My wife really enjoyed her tomato soup and Caesar salad. Overall really enjoyed my time at Poor Man’s Club 33. A real nice break and change of pace up there from the rest of the park. I can see us doing it every once in a while. The outdoor terrace is really nice too as you are completely in the shade of the mountain and mature trees. That whole Wine country complex has great place making and it deserves better than being dumped in “Performance Corridor” on the map.
I haven't done the Terrace yet, always seemed nice just never got around to it yet. So may try it when I try to go toward the end of the year.

Glad you had a good time there.
 

PiratesMansion

Well-Known Member
Mattel is creating two new theme parks; under construction right now.

I read somewhere that they want to expand to 6 locations, but I don't recall where I read that.

Main site:
Mattel Adventure Park

Mattel Adventure Park - Wikipedia

Opening 2025 = Glendale, AZ
Opening 2026 = Kansas City, KS


They ought to focus on getting that first one open first before they plunge so confidently forward with six. That Phoenix-adjacent location has already been delayed several times.
 

mickEblu

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I haven't done the Terrace yet, always seemed nice just never got around to it yet. So may try it when I try to go toward the end of the year.

Glad you had a good time there.

Every time I order fried chicken at DLR from anywhere other than Plaza Inn I regret it. Also, the entrees offered were more autumn / winter type dishes fried Cornish hen on mashed potatoes / mushroom sauce or short rib on mashed potato’s. Interesting choices in August . Especially with a such limited menu.
 

PiratesMansion

Well-Known Member
Every time I order fried chicken at DLR from anywhere other than Plaza Inn I regret it. Also, the entrees offered were more autumn / winter type dishes fried Cornish hen on mashed potatoes / mushroom sauce or short rib on mashed potato’s. Interesting choices in August . Especially with a such limited menu.
Not quite the same thing as Plaza Inn's chicken, but during my July visit, the Chicken Karage sandwich (basically Japanese fried chicken) at Lucky Fortune was still just as good as it was two years ago, as was the Baymax Macaron.

Also ended up with a fried chicken sandwich for River Belle Terrace brunch that was decent, with a wonderful river view from the outside seats too.

Apart from those, the best thing I ate this trip was the seven grains gumbo with meat from Tiana's Palace.

Plaza Inn underwhelmed a bit this time around, honestly. At least my mother liked her pot roast, after otherwise feeling she had a relatively underwhelming experience with Disneyland food compared to what she remembered from a few years ago. I wouldn't quite go that far, but we did have a very disappointing run with snacks this time around.

I've never had cornish hen before, but I would absolutely order it if it wound up on a less exclusive DL menu.
 

Disney Irish

Premium Member
Every time I order fried chicken at DLR from anywhere other than Plaza Inn I regret it. Also, the entrees offered were more autumn / winter type dishes fried Cornish hen on mashed potatoes / mushroom sauce or short rib on mashed potato’s. Interesting choices in August . Especially with a such limited menu.
Hmm, I don't consider either dish autumn/winter, especially short ribs. Ribs I've always associated with summer and picnics. And Cornish game hens, one of my favorites, is an all year dish in my opinion.

Interesting how different people associate different foods with different times of the year.
 

mickEblu

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Not quite the same thing as Plaza Inn's chicken, but during my July visit, the Chicken Karage sandwich (basically Japanese fried chicken) at Lucky Fortune was still just as good as it was two years ago, as was the Baymax Macaron.

Also ended up with a fried chicken sandwich for River Belle Terrace brunch that was decent, with a wonderful river view from the outside seats too.

Apart from those, the best thing I ate this trip was the seven grains gumbo with meat from Tiana's Palace.

Plaza Inn underwhelmed a bit this time around, honestly. At least my mother liked her pot roast, after otherwise feeling she had a relatively underwhelming experience with Disneyland food compared to what she remembered from a few years ago. I wouldn't quite go that far, but we did have a very disappointing run with snacks this time around.

I've never had cornish hen before, but I would absolutely order it if it wound up on a less exclusive DL menu.

Ah that’s too bad. Plaza Inn has disappointed me before but it’s usually pretty good. The last time I went it was particularly good. I think it was some time in April or May.

Still haven’t tried the karage… I don’t think. I tried something similar from the backlot food truck a while back and those were good. And oh I lied… if we’re including sandwiches the fried chicken baos at Docking Bay were great.

Yeah the Cornish hen was fine but apart from the bed of mashed potatoes and mushroom sauce it was as on it didn’t have much flavor.

I thought my wife’s Caesar salad was pretty good. Nice dressing and I enjoyed the saltiness the green olives and capers added.
 
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mickEblu

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Cornish hens are amazing. While often they are baked, I have a little countertop toaster oven that has a rotisserie feature. Occasionally I’ll just sprinkle one with celery salt and cook it in there.

Yeah when I see one on a menu I usually order because they are usually more tender and succulent.
 

mickEblu

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Hmm, I don't consider either dish autumn/winter, especially short ribs. Ribs I've always associated with summer and picnics. And Cornish game hens, one of my favorites, is an all year dish in my opinion.

Interesting how different people associate different foods with different times of the year.

Just so we’re clear I’m specifically talking about short rib. Usually served on some sort of stew on a bed of mashed potatoes. Not like baby back ribs.
 

chadwpalm

Well-Known Member
In the Parks
No
Speaking of Mansion, that new store still is so bothersome to me.
I finally saw the inside of it for the first time 2 weeks ago (the structure was there, but not open in my previous November trip) and it's so small that it doesn't even seem worth the space. It's like a reverse Tardis where it's smaller on the inside than the outside lol.

They should have put the merch in the old Le Bat En Rouge (now the Eudora Boutique) shop if their goal was to move it out of the Port Royal space which now has merch in it anyway again! Oy vey.
 

mickEblu

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I finally saw the inside of it for the first time 2 weeks ago (the structure was there, but not open in my previous November trip) and it's so small that it doesn't even seem worth the space. It's like a reverse Tardis where it's smaller on the inside than the outside lol.

They should have put the merch in the old Le Bat En Rouge (now the Eudora Boutique) shop if their goal was to move it out of the Port Royal space which now has merch in it anyway again! Oy vey.

Exactly. They could fit most of that merch on a couple carts. None of it makes any sense.
 

mickEblu

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
When was the last time Disney knocked it out of the park with a new attraction? I realize with social media and what the internet has become everyone these days has a platform. Everyone has a podcast. Everyone is an expert. We’re all food critics on Yelp. But like when Indiana Jones opened in 1995 did theme park nerds have notes? Or even RSR in 2012. I didn’t get active in the fan community until about 2014.
 

Disney Analyst

Well-Known Member
When was the last time Disney knocked it out of the park with a new attraction? I realize with social media and what the internet has become everyone these days has a platform. Everyone has a podcast. Everyone is an expert. We’re all food critics on Yelp. But like when Indiana Jones opened in 1995 did theme park nerds have notes? Or even RSR in 2012. I didn’t get active in the fan community until about 2014.

Can only speak for what I enjoy... but Rise of the Resistance blew me away, and I really really enjoyed Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway (I think the fact it was a gain for Disneyland helped, if it replaced something beloved maybe I'd feel differently). The updated tree house is wonderful charming.

If we are including international... Frozen Tokyo, BaTB Tokyo, new Peter Pan Tokyo, all seem like winners.
 

mickEblu

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Can only speak for what I enjoy... but Rise of the Resistance blew me away, and I really really enjoyed Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway (I think the fact it was a gain for Disneyland helped, if it replaced something beloved maybe I'd feel differently). The updated tree house is wonderful charming.

If we are including international... Frozen Tokyo, BaTB Tokyo, new Peter Pan Tokyo, all seem like winners.

Lol wow forgot about ROTR when writing that post. It happens often with GE and its attractions in these kinds of exercises for some reason. Yeah I’d definitely say ROTR qualifies even if it didn’t exactly hit the bullseye for me personally for various reasons.

I’m not sure about Frozen or Pan Tokyo but I did see a ride through for BatB for the first time in a while the other day and I think I was too hard on it when it first opened. I remember critiquing the fact that it felt like another boxy warehouse ride with a lack of intimate spaces and who knows maybe my expectations have gone down with some of the recent projects stateside but I think they did a great job with BatB. They showcased the fact that is the basically the greatest Disney musical. And then the Beast transformation through the finale is fantastic. Having those vehicles glide around the ballroom to the title song. Ive long wanted DLR to have an attraction where we can experience the magic of some of those classic songs without having to sit around waiting for fireworks or a parade. Mermaid could have been that but alas. I think the preshow for BatB is great too but it kind of sets up expectations that you re going to get a ride with some suspense/ mystery/ adventure.
 

Phroobar

Well-Known Member
When was the last time Disney knocked it out of the park with a new attraction? I realize with social media and what the internet has become everyone these days has a platform. Everyone has a podcast. Everyone is an expert. We’re all food critics on Yelp. But like when Indiana Jones opened in 1995 did theme park nerds have notes? Or even RSR in 2012. I didn’t get active in the fan community until about 2014.
I've been here since 2005. We had opinions of RSR in 2012. We had opinions of the Country Bears leaving. We had opinions on the Tower of Terror and Flick's Fun Fair and the Extreme Sports in the parking lot. Lets not forget what DCA stood for, "Don't Come Again."
 
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