CRP | Epcot's Food and Wine Festival

The past six weeks or so have been crazy busy at work due to the 20th Food and Wine Festival at Epcot.  It's pretty much exactly what it says on the tin: a massive celebration of international food and drink in the World Showcase.  There have been 31 extra food kiosks around the lagoon and in Future World and it's been a great way to try some different cuisines!  It was initially our plan to try something at every food carts but due to hectic schedules and other plans, we only managed to try 21 out of the 31 - not too bad of an effort though! 

What was great about this festival was the fact that every single dish we tried was delicious!  The chefs did such a good job of making sure all the food was great quality.  Most of the dishes were around $5 too and tapas sized so it was pretty affordable.  

Along with the awesome food and drink, there were free concerts performed by some well known (and some less well known) bands and singers although I didn't manage to catch any of them.  

I think I visited the festival on three separate occasion as a guest and I have been thinking about what my favourite dishes were... it has been a really tough decision!  I think my favourite savoury dish was the Kalua pork sliders and favourite sweet dish was the liquid nitro chocolate truffle from the Chew Lab.  I was also really pleasantly surprised by the Pumpkin Cider from the Florida Farm Fresh stand - who would have thought that Pumpkin spice would make for a delicious cider?  It was like a refreshing mulled wine!  

A lot of guests have visited Epcot purely for the Food and Wine festival so it has been great hearing how the festival has grown and become bigger and better every year.  It seems as if Disney are striving to make it even more impressive and a few episodes of the Chew were filmed in the park, which I think must have been pretty exciting for foodies!

Now the festival is drawing to a close, I think Epcot is going seem quiet for a little while before Thanksgiving, Candlelight and Christmas kick into action.  It's been so much fun being able to get to take part in all of these incredible things that happen in the Disney parks; I still pinch myself to remind myself that it's all real... I think I'm pretty  much going to be saying that all year round!  

CRP | The breakfast blog

Warning: there is more eating involved in this blog! I think I said a couple of blogs ago that breakfast is one of my favourite meals and working a lot of evening shifts means that it's the easiest meal to eat out for.

A lot of the restaurants offer a la carte breakfast dining or buffet and to be honest, I have tended to just go for the buffet as its great value for money and the best way to fuel yourself for a busy day at the parks or work! I really must try and steer myself away from the buffet at some point though and try some of the delicious sounding breakfast options! I really need to try real American French toast (that's confusing!). 

First up, we have breakfast at Trail's Emd at Fort Wilderness. I really want to give them props for their guest service too; we arrived a little bit late for the breakfast sitting but as the buffet was still out, they allowed us to have that instead of ordering lunch. Although you have similar breakfast staples across all buffets, they also have individual twists suited to each resort. For example, at Trail's End, they had cornbread muffins straight up from the South! One of my favourite items from this buffet was the chocolate chip Mickey waffles (I will never, ever get sick of Mickey waffles!). It was also great to have loads of fresh fruit - something that we aren't really eating a lot of at the moment. I also unstandably enjoyed the huge selection of pastries: donuts, muffins, cinnamon rolls.... Yum! All, of course, washed down with bottomless coffee. 

Next up, we have The Wave at The Contemporary. Our second restaurant at The Contemporary, The Wave bases itself on modern American cuisine and this is evident in its buffet extras. They offered sweet potato pancakes, eggs benedict, salmon and an awesome build your own parfait station.  I stocked up on more Mickey waffles smothered in hot maple syrup served with crispy bacon. They also had a large selection of cheeses, ham, various fruit salads, breads and pastries. The Wave fits in perfectly in The Contemporary, it's design is almost 1980s like, but that fits Walt's vision of the future. I've really enjoyed both my meals at The Contemporary and I'm desperate to eat at Chef Mickey's, where you can watch the monorail soar silently overhead while you enjoy your meal! 

Thirdly, we took a little tour off property for a genuine American breakfast experience! Our American friends took us to one of their staple restaurants: Crackerbarrel! Crackerbarrel is Southern cuisine which, seems to me, means hearty portions of delicious food! The menu was HUGE! I struggled to choose what I wanted but ended up going for blueberry pancakes. These pancakes were some of the most delicious I have ever come across. They were light and fluffy with crispy edges and packed with blueberries. The portion was so generous I couldn't finish it and I really liked those pancakes!! While you're waiting for your food, they have a little peg game to play and you can also play board games there as well. Attached to the restaurant is a shop filled with all kinds of goodies, from food to holiday decorations to music. It was one of those places you could happily wander round for ages. 

America really knows how to do breakfast! 

CRP | Staycation #3 The Grand Floridian

It's been so hard trying to keep up to date with my blog but I'm going to try and catch up a little bit!! I've been busy staycationing so we'll start with probably my favourite so far....

The dream finally came true! I got to stay in The Grand Floridian and it really was everything I wished it could be and more. This resort is so beautiful and elegant without feeling stuffy or uncomfortable. If you couldn't tell, I loved it! 

We managed to actually see a little bit more of this resort as we had a bit longer there. The main entrance is a wonderful hub of activity: shops, hairdressers, restaurants and plenty of comfy chairs to sit and relax on. There's also a band that plays, which definitely helps transport you to a bygone era! 

The whole resort is reminiscent of a Victorian seaside town, complete with th architecture and areas to promenade around. We explored two of the swimming pools; one of which is nestled right next to the lagoon. 

We ate at the quick service restaurant (hurrah discount) that is right next to the jetty. Again, the food was delicious and wasn't too badly priced either. There were setting up for a wedding reception too and I really couldn't think of a more beautiful setting: in front of the lagoon, Cinderella's Castle on the horizon - a perfect view of Wishes. Of course, we came back later to watch the fireworks from this viewpoint! 

The rooms themselves were heavenly! They were so luxurious and the Grand Floridan provides a nightly turn down service including little chocolates on your pillow. There were also bathrobes (loved a hotel with bathrobes) and plenty of toiletries including a foot scrub and after sun. For me, it's little touches like this that put this hotel above the rest! I would put this hotel on par with the Four Seasons - it's really that good! 

I enjoyed myself so much that I would love to go and stay again and see what else this resort has to offer. They have restaurants that have amazing review and I hope to try a few of them throughout my program. 

Staying in the resorts is something I'm so glad I'm able to make the most of; they're so different and are a great way to escape some of the intensity of the parks and room sharing! 

  

CRP | Staycation #2 Fort Wilderness Cabins

IWow! I suspected this would happen but time is flying past at a rate of knots and I barely have time to sit back and take it all in. That being said, I'm having the best time and trying to make the most of all opportunities out here. 

To celebrate our month of being out here, our arrival group planned a little Staycation in the Fort Wilderness Cabins. At Fort Wilderness, you can rent a cabin in the woods or being your own motor home for a spot of camping. It's a really cute resort that lets you feel surrounded by nature and took me back to my camping trips in the UK! 

The resorts always have so many free activities to keep kids of all ages occupied and Fort Wilderness was no different. After stopping by the shop to pick up BBQ equipment, those of us who weren't working went to buy marshmallows and toasted them around a campfire! It was so much fun; we toasted, set alight to, and generally gorged ourselves on sugary goodness. After that, the fun continued! We had a little campfire sing along with Chip 'n Dale! It's moments like that which make Disney World truly one of the most fun places on Earth! 

Fort Wilderness is sat on the edge of Bay Lake which means that you can sit on the beach and watch Wishes! I can now cross another location off my "where-I've-seen-the-fireworks" list!! 

The cabins themselves were also adorable and cosy! Of course, they were decked out with wooden panelling and had a very in-the-woods feeling. There's a double bed, bunk bed and sofa bed in the cabins which means six people can stay. Out the front, there's also a BBQ and the store sells all kinds of goodies so you can have a whole camping experience! 

I love staycations! 

CRP | Breakfast at 'Ohana

Eating is something we do an awful lot of here in Florida so I'm going to continue the theme here on my blog!  Last week we ate breakfast at 'Ohana, which is a restaurant in the Polynesian resort.  The best thing about breakfast at 'Ohana is that it's a character breakfast and you get to meet Stitch!  I love Stitch - he is probably one of my favourite characters!  

 Our reservation was at 8.35am so we hopped on the bus from Housing to the Polynesian and checked in.   Our table wasn't quite ready yet but we were able to relax on some comfy chairs outside the restaurant until we were able to be seated.  We were welcomed into the restaurant as a cousin - afterall, 'Ohana means family and everyone is part of the family at the Polynesian!  

As soon as we sat down, we were brought coffee and some of Lilo and Stitch's favourite juice (made from guava, orange and mango) and a delicious bread/pastry basket.  The breads and pastries are always delicious at WDW so I would recommend giving them a go!  This was quickly followed by a fresh fruit platter of melon, rapsberries and pineapple.  Dena nor I are really big fans of melon so we were then brought another little bowl of berries and pineapple.  These little touches always make Disney resorts and service stand out to me.

We then were brought our hot breakfast pan: crispy bacon, scrambled eggs, sausages, potatoes, and Stitch and Mickey waffles!  My first Mickey waffle of the trip, I was beyond excited!  We helped ourselves to plenty of breakfast, served with maple syrup.  I'm quickly becoming a fan of breakfast foods and maple syrup... especially bacon!  I think it's the whole sweet and salty mixture.

The breakfast was an all you can eat but we were both full after one platter so didn't want anymore.  It was so good, breakfast is definitely one of my most favourite meals here.

While you're eating, different characters come round for your meet and greet!  We met Mickey Mouse, Lilo, Stitch, and had a selfie with Pluto!  It's so much fun because you have as much time as you want with the characters and you don't feel rushed or pressured to spend five seconds with them.  The sittings are also really cleverly allotted so the characters are able to get round everyone, fair and square!

Towards the end of the breakfast, the children are given maracas and do a little conga dance round the restaurant with the characters and they all love it so much!  It's such an unforgettable experience for them all.

I was so pleased to meet Stitch too! He's such a grumpy and mischeivous character; he really reminds me of my cat!  I enjoy the character breakfasts so much I've managed to reserve a table in one at Epcot for when the family come out.  It really does bring out the big kid in me!  

CRP | Birthday celebration at Beaches and Cream Soda Shop

As I mentioned in my last post, Dena recently celebrated her birthday over here in Florida.  Unfortunately Dena had a lovely ten hour shift on her birthday so we had to wait to the very last minute to celebrate!  Most of our arrival group got together after work to surprise Dena with a trip to the Beaches and Cream Soda Shop - home of the famous Kitchen Sink! - at the Beach Club resort.

The weather wasn't very ice-cream friendly (think: torrential rain and thunderstorms) but after finishing at Epcot we took a Friendship boat over to the The Boardwalk and hurried round to Beaches and Cream.  We managed to get a table together after begging (they didn't take reservations for groups bigger than eight) and indulged in a lot of American ice-cream parlour goodness!  

Of course, we just had to go for a Kitchen Sink, which involves eight scoops of ice-cream, all the toppings (Oreos, peanut butter, Snickers, cherries, sprinkles, brownie, cake...) and lashings of cream.  Dena is lactose intolerant and they used non-diary ice cream too - Disney are so good at catering for dietary problems.  All twelve of us ordered some kind of sundae and we quickly devoured them with the jukebox playing fifties songs in the background - I felt like I stepped into Grease and it was so much fun.

You've probably guessed how much I absolutely adore Disney's theming since I talk about it all the time - and will probably continue to do so - and I loved the little touches that Beaches and Cream had: banana split signs, juke box menus and of course, chequered lino!

As well as ice cream, Beaches and Cream offer traditional American diner food, we ordered fries to complement our "meal", all washed down with pink lemonade or soda.  With all the fun going on inside the parlour, we were able to forgot about the awful weather and celebrate Dena's birthday properly!

Beaches and Cream is quite the treasure hidden away at the Beach Club and it was so much fun discovering another one of Walt Disney World's secrets!  

CRP | Old Key West Staycation

It's Dena's birthday this week and after getting our schedules, we realised we wouldn't be able to have a staycation on her actual birthday.  So we decided on the next best thing and had a mini staycation in Old Key West, which is one of the Downtown Disney-area resorts.  Dena met me after work and we hopped on a guest bus to the resort and of course, it was beautiful.  You think by now I'd realise that if Disney are doing something, they do it well but oh no - each new thing I come across blows me away.

Old Key West is massive - we didn't get to explore much of it as we were only there for one night - but it's tranquil and peaceful.  I loved the look of all the 'houses'; they were painted soft pastel colours sitting between leafy palm trees or along a calm river.

One of the nice things about Old Key West is you can take a Friendship boat to Downtown Disney; there's something magical about travelling around Disney World on a boat -I think it's because you automatically relax a little bit more, you can't rush around so much!

We stayed in a villa in the reost and it was so big!  The villa was equipped with everything from coffee machine, washing machine and tumble dryers to a jacuzzi spa bath!  The bed was so soft and comfy - a million miles away from the Disney Housing bunk beds! Again, I love the detail and thought that is put into the decorating of the resorts; a cast member once said to us that everything you see in WDW is like that way for a reason and it's certainly evident in the resorts. Everything fits meticulously into the room and doesn't look out of place.

We also had breakfast in Olivia's, which is the on site restaurant.  I didn't fancy anything too heavy as I had to work later that day so I opted for the Southernmost Continental platter.  It was a delicious selection of pastries and fresh fruit (the kind of balanced breakfast you want in the morning!) and washed down with plenty of coffee!

Staying in Old Key West has got me so excited for our next staycation - our arrival group is planning to have a get together on our monthiversay so that'll be a great opportunity to explore another resort.