Tip Tuesday: Boulangerie Patisserie

 

Welcome back to another Tip Tuesday!

We'll, I'm back from another week at Walt Disney World and I've got a slew of new things to share -- so let's get started!

As my friend Lou Mongello would do, let's start with food.

I finally had the opportunity to visit the new Boulangerie Patisserie located in the back of the France pavilion at Epcot.  What makes this counter service location different is that it also offers some of the same menu items you can find at Les Chefs De France, particularly the scrumptious lobster bisque and the croque monsieur (ham sandwich to you and me). 

And the Boulangerie Patisserie also brings something completely new to World Showcase counter service dining -- breakfast!  This is the first counter service restaurant to offer breakfast items in World Showcase.  Sure there's a kiosk located between the Canada and UK pavilions that offers a few items, but nothing that matches the quality found at the Boulangerie Patisserie.  From pastries to hot quiches, breakfast at Epcot just got a lot better.

But wait, there's more -- it's air conditioned!  Even summer mornings in Florida are warm and humid, so it's nice to be able to enjoy good French cuisine without having to face the summer heat.

This is still somewhat of an unknown location, being tucked all the way in the back, so there aren't many crowds just yet -- so be sure to check it out on your next trip!

Tip Tuesday: The BEST Burger in the World

Welcome to another Tip Tuesday!

I've often heard various discussions about where the best burger in Walt Disney World can be found.  I've often wondered where I might find that delectable delight that is an outstanding burger.

It's time I entered this debate and render my own opinion about the best burger in Walt Disney World.

Since the Olympics are taking place in London -- let's grant some medals here.

Bronze Medal (tie):  Pecos Bills and Beaches and Cream

 

Now I'm sure that already some of you are saying "WHAT?!?!?"  Pecos Bills doesn't take the Gold??? Others are saying the same thing about Beaches and Cream.  Hear me out.

I think Beaches and Cream (located at the Beach Club Resort) offers a better burger (pictured above), but Pecos Bills (located in Frontierland in the Magic Kingdom) has, by far, the best options for toppings -- especially the sautéd mushrooms and onions.  Both burgers are cooked to perfection - nice and juicy.  Taken together, they tie for third place.  I will give a side award to Pecos Bills -- best burger in the Magic Kingdom.

Silver Medal:  Rose and Crown

But the best burger in any theme park goes to an Epcot restaurant.  The royal burger at the Rose and Crown Pub in Epcot's United Kingdom Pavilion is topped with bacon, cheese and fried onions.   This burger is huge.  The fried pickle on the side adds just that extra bit of fried goodness.  The English chips (fries to us yanks) help this burger make it to the podium at the silver medal position.  It's a bit pricey, but it is exceptionally good.

Gold Medal:  The Fountain

Taking the Gold is the Fountain Burger at the Fountain at the Dolphin Resort.  If the Rose and Crown burger is huge, this burger is gigantic!  Topped with everything you can think of including chili, sautéed onions, mushrooms, mounds of bacon and more, this burger really is make for two.  It's that big.  The chips on the side are an afterthought -- there's so much burger to eat.  Add one of the Fountain's legendary shakes and you're in heaven.

So there you go -- the 2012 Best Burger Champion goes to the Fountain.  What do you think?  Where's your best burger?  Post a comment!

Tip Tuesday: Rose and Crown

It's time for another Tip Tuesday!

I thought I'd take you to the United Kingdom pavilion at Epcot and share a bit about one of my family's favorite restaurants -- The Rose & Crown Pub.

Themed after a genuine English pub (down to the panes of glass), the Rose & Crown has two sections - the dining room and the English pub.  The pub often will be packed to capacity, especially in the evening hours before Illuminations.

ADR's (advance dining reservations) are suggested, though I've been pretty lucky with walkups, especially during lunch.  Some of the Rose & Crown outdoor seating areas offer fantastic views of Illuminations, so dinner ADR's are just about a must, and there's no guarantee you'll get one of those few choice tables.

Ok, but really it's all about the food, so let's get to some of our favorites!!

By far the signature dish at the Rose & Crown has to be the English fish & chips -- served just like they do in England.  This is not your average fried fish.  Though (in my opinion) the portion size is too small (really for just about every entree, not just the fish & chips), the flavor and preparation is spot on.  My kids routinely devour this dish - even my picky eaters who prefer chicken nuggets.

Now if you ask my wife, she will say the UK burger is the best entree on the menu.  This is a gigantic burger complete with bacon and all the sides.  If you want, you can even ask for a fried egg (it used to be a standard item, but no longer).  In addition, it comes with a fried pickle, which, to my surprise, was pretty good!  My wife claims the Rose & Crown's burger is the BEST burger in all of Walt Disney World -- a high honor, and one that I don't share, but that's a post for another day.  I agree it's very good, but the best?  That's up for debate.

I have tried several dishes at the Rose & Crown, but I think my favorite has to be either the fish & chips or the cottage pie (pictured above).  Underneath this cheesy mashed potato goodness is ground beef, onions and mushrooms in a delicious brown sauce/gravy.  Again, the portion size could be bigger (I could have devoured two of these), but it still is worth the cost -- about $17 as of this post. 

The Rose & Crown isn't the cheapest place at Epcot -- entrees run from $14 to $27.  The fish and chips runs around $18, so be prepared for a large dining bill.  The Disney Dining Plan is accepted here, requiring only one table service credit, making the Rose & Crown a good value for guests using the dining plan.

And then there's the beer.  The Rose & Crown has a fantastic selection, so just get a pint and enjoy!

Some tips to keep in mind:  a decent amount of the Rose & Crown's seating is outside, though only a handful of tables offer the best views of Illuminations.  Keep this in mind, especially during the very hot and more chilly times of year.  We dined there last December and despite the heaters, we had to go indoors because of the chilly wind.  In a similar manner, when we ate there earlier this summer, we were seated outside and fortunately had a fan blowing on us or we would have withered from the heat.

If you're headed to the pub, keep in mind that there's not many seats, so you'll be doing a lot of standing.  Most evenings, the Hat Lady will come in to perform, so you'll want to be sure to catch her.

I'm getting hungry just writing about this place!!!  Go on -- get over to the Rose & Crown and enjoy!!!  And send me some fish & chips!

Tip Tuesday: ESPN Club

Welcome to another Tip Tuesday!

This week, I wanted to highlight an often overlooked dining option at Walt Disney World that may be the closest thing to nirvana for sports fans - the ESPN Club!

Located on the far eastern side of the boardwalk (closest to Epcot) is the ESPN Club.  This is a restaurant and bar that serves your typical sports bar fare from nachos to buffalo wings to hot dogs and hamburgers.  There are three sections - the SportsCentral main dining area, the Sidelines Bar and the Yard, which is a gift shop and arcade.

What makes this very different from your hometown sports bar is this little thing called ESPN.  That's right - the restaurant is a show.  Often the cast members will have camera going inside and will interview guests about sports topics.  The live events take place at different times, so you never know when you might find yourself on camera.  Sometimes sports celebrities will stop by, so keep your camera handy.

Beyond the live events, the ESPN Club is a fantastic place to catch the game, and watch another game, and another game and yet another game.  In all the ESPN Club has more than 100 monitors displaying more than 30 different channels.  In the center of the SportsCentral room is a 108-square-foot screen!  Talk about real-life sports!

I've spent many an afternoon watching baseball, football and soccer at the ESPN Club -- and I'm not alone.  On days when major sporting events are taking place, be prepared for a long wait. 

Why the wait?  Well, the ESPN Club doesn't take ADR's (Advance Dining Reservations).  Yep - all walk-ups.  Locals will flock to the ESPN Club on gameday, so it's not unusual to have a wait time of more than an hour (and sometimes a lot more than an hour) to get a table in either the SportsCentral room or the Sidelines Bar.

Here's a little tip -- the bar has seating areas too.  Being a bar, it's bar-style seating with smaller tables, but you can still order from the complete menu.  If the line for the SportsCentral room is pretty long, see if you can get a table at the bar - often the line's much shorter.  There are plenty of televisions there as well -- just not the jumbo screen.

The ESPN Club is a fun place for lunch or dinner even when there's not a huge game on.  We've often been able to walk right in for an early lunch around 11:30 a.m. or noon. 

One other tidbit about the ESPN Club -- no takeouts.  So if you're staying at the Boardwalk, unfortunately you won't be able to get a basket of dingers to take back to the room.  Sorry.

After lunch or dinner - take a moment to browse the Yard for some ESPN merchandise (though the selection is pretty limited -- if you really want ESPN stuff, I suggest the Clubhouse over at ESPN Wide World of Sports).

So check out the ESPN Club on your next trip - it's a great place to catch the game!

Tip Tuesday: Rice Cream in Norway

Welcome to another Tip Tuesday!

In light of the tragedies in Norway this week, I wanted to highlight some of the great things about Norway, one of the nations represented in Epcot's World Showcase.

As I thought about all the things about the Norway pavilion my family and I enjoy, one particular item came to mind: Rice Cream!

This is a classic Norwegian dessert and can be found both at the Akershus Royal Banquet Hall and at the Kringla Bakery.

Rice cream is a must-do for my family. Every trip to Walt Disney World includes at least one dish of rice cream. We enjoy this Norwegian delight so much, I've even tried my hand a few times at making our own rice cream using the actual recipe used at Epcot's Norway pavilion.

I highly recommend giving rice cream a try - it's just one more example of the charm of Epcot and how Epcot truly brings the world to you.

If you can't make it to Epcot to try rice cream -- try it for yourself. Here's the recipe (courtesy Allears.net)!


Rice Cream

YIELD: 10 servings

Ingredients:

1 pound short-grain white rice (not instant)
1 teaspoon salt
3 cups water
4 cups milk

2 cups heavy cream
4 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Strawberry sauce:

2 cups strawberry preserves
1 cup water
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Method:

1. Cook rice with water and salt for 15 minutes, covered. Add milk and cook for 30 minutes or until rice is tender and the mixture is thick. Chill rice in the refrigerator.

2. Whip cream and sugar and vanilla. Gently fold whipped cream into chilled rice. Set aside in refrigerator.

3. Place sauce ingredients in the work bowl of a blender. Mix until combined.

4. Spoon rice mixture into serving cups. Garnish with strawberry sauce.

Tip Tuesday: Getting the most "value" for table service dining

Welcome to another Tip Tuesday!

I, like many other Disney fans, listen to several Disney fan podcasts each week. I happened to listen to show 771 of WDW Today, where the gang was reviewing the "value" of the different table service restaurants in the Magic Kingdom. Each restaurant was evaluated as "excellent," "pass," or "fail" in terms of overall value.

This led me to consider how to get the most "value" out of those and other table service restaurants.

So I'll use the topic from WDW Today as a jumping off point and examine some of the restaurants at the Magic Kingdom.

The first (and most prominent) restaurant is Cinderella's Royal Table. This is, by far, the most expensive restaurant in the Magic Kingdom at more than $50 per adult for dinner. There's a reason CRT is so expensive: exclusivity and the included photo. While I agree with many who feel this restaurant is overpriced (price should be about $10/person lower), especially when you consider that the quality of the food is just ok, there's much more to dining at CRT than just the food.

Cinderella's Royal Table is an experience, one that I suggest Disney fans (especially those with young daughters) should do at least once. It's a right of passage for Disney park enthusiasts.

So how do you increase the "value" of a CRT reservation? I can think of two ways.
1. The first is to book a breakfast ADR for about 30 minutes to one hour before park opening. This gets you into the park well in advance and allows you to enjoy Main Street and get some great shots of Cinderella Castle without hoards of people in your shot. You'll experience some of the best photo conditions of the day.

2. On the flip side, try to book an ADR for about 30 minutes before Wishes starts and request a window table. You won't be able to see the fireworks all that clearly due to the stained glass, but it's still a neat way to experience Wishes through the stained glass that's lighting up with different colors - it puts a different perspective on the show.

Next up is Crystal Palace. This is a much better overall value than Cinderella's Royal Table, but it's still pretty expensive - more than $30 a per adult for dinner. The same suggestion for an early ADR will help add value to dining at Crystal Palace. As the WDW Today folks stated, a late breakfast, which becomes lunch, will help add some value to the dining experience.

Both CRT and Crystal Palace feature meet-and-greets with characters. This is a great way to get photos and autographs without having to wait in lines. This also is a great opportunity to have the characters autograph special items, such as custom maps or photos. If you can find ways to make those character interactions more meaningful, that will help increase the overall value.

Next, we come to the Liberty Tree Tavern. Everyone on the WDW Today team seemed to give this a "fail" in terms of value and I couldn't disagree more. Yes, it's expensive (about $30/per adult for dinner), but that dinner is all you can eat. Think of it as a never-ending Thanksgiving feast. That's a pretty decent value. Now if the characters were back, that would be an even better value.... but I digress. This is one restaurant I actually recommend, especially if you can get a window seat during the nighttime parade (Main St. Electrical Parade currently is running).

I will have to take a pass on the Plaza restaurant as I haven't been there yet, which brings me finally to Tony's Town Square Plaza. Alright, I admit the Italian cuisine here isn't something to write home about, but it's not that bad. I'm not Italian, so maybe I'm not qualified to make this evaluation, but I enjoyed Tony's. What makes Tony's a better value than you may realize is that it's usually an easy ADR or walk-up to get, the portion sizes are pretty big and it's fairly quiet, which can be a benefit if you're looking to take it easy for a little while before heading back into the hustle and bustle of the park. There is a decent selection on the menu and the prices aren't that horrible. The most expensive item for dinner is the NY strip steak at $27. That's a little higher than I'd like to see, but it's not a deal-breaker.

I guess the whole point is that "value" is a subjective term. Value is what you make of it. What's important to you may not be important to someone else. So when considering the value of a particular restaurant, remember to evaluate that value based on your criteria, not someone else's.

I'll examine other park restaurants in a future post sometime. Until then, happy eating!