food IS a theme park
Thanks to @GoofyBeast, here are a few great photos — including food shots! — of Kouzzina on Disney’s Boardwalk:
Kouzzina Lobby
Kouzzina Dining Room
Kouzzina Sampler: Prawns and Chicken on Skewers, Olives, Spiced Cashews, Dolmades, Tzatziki, Hummus and Pita
Spanakopita
Fisherman's Stew
Red Snapper
Some of our favorite WDW websites are starting to report from the Boardwalk that Kouzzina is indeed in soft opening — and they have photos!
Cedric Chang guest blogs for AllEarsNet — he was the FIRST GUEST at Kouzzina during its soft opening: Cedric’s Adventure at Kouzzina
Orlando Attractions Magazine has photos from inside the dining room: Kouzzina photos and blog by Jackie and Matt Roseboom
WDWMagic has a great opening day gallery of the outside signage and some inside shots: WDWMagic Kouzzina photo gallery
Mousesteps.com has some outside shots of the Boardwalk with the Kouzzina signage: Kouzzina and Boardwalk outdoor shots And a great review with TONS of photos and a couple of videos: Kouzzina breakfast review and restaurant photos/video
Check out the actual menus for Kouzzina by Cat Cora, now in soft opening at Disney World’s Boardwalk:
Dinner Menu
Breakfast Menu
Dessert Menu
Make a reservation at: (407) WDW-DINE (Hopefully online reservations will be available soon here.
As many folks know, Disney World Resorts offer Disney Refillable Mugs for guests to purchase and use for free refills! Here are a few of the most popular Frequently Asked Questions about the Disney Refillable Mug Program (also known as Rapid Fill):
“Refillable mugs” are 16 oz. insulated coffee mugs sold at Disney hotels. Guests are entitled to unlimited free refills on fountain drinks, coffee, and tea from self-service beverage locations at Disney resorts for their length of stay.
The Rapid Fill program began in August 2013 and allows Disney Resort guests to buy (or receive as part of the Disney Dining Plan) a Resort mug which can be refilled for a certain period of time as designated at time of purchase. These mugs are enhanced by an RFID bar code which enables the mug to deactivate when the designated time is complete.
Mugs used to be considered collectibles, with each Disney resort offering unique patterns for their mugs. But starting with the Year of a Million Dreams, the mugs have been one standard design and shape no matter where you purchase them.
I’m not on a Disney Dining Plan, so I’ll be purchasing my mug separately. How much do they cost?
$19.99 for Length of Stay (up to 14 days)
Refillable Mug Price Increase October 2019
I’m resort hopping. Do I need to purchase a new mug at my second resort?
Nope! Upon purchase, simply purchase the amount of total days that you’ll be staying on Walt Disney World property. Note that if you are switching to a non-Disney-owned resort (for example, WDW Swan and Dolphin), then you’ll only want to purchase for the part of your stay that is at a Disney-owned resort.
What beverages are available for Disney Refillable Mug refills?
You can refill your mug with coffee, iced or hot tea, soda-pop (these will be ALL Coca-Cola products — Disney does not sell Pepsi products due to Coke’s long-time sponsorship agreement), and hot chocolate.
*COOL INFO:* It’s interesting to note that most refillable mug stations have some sort of Hi-C lemonade/fruit punch option OR red/blue Powerade.
Beverage Station
What beverages aren’t available for Disney Refillable Mug refills?
Most notably, milk and “real” fruit juice (e.g. no OJ or Apple Juice).
Will they refill my frozen margarita at the pool bar?
No. But you get points for creativity.
Where can I buy the mugs and get refills?
Purchase/Refill stations are located in food courts, quick service locations, and pool bars at all Value/Moderate/Deluxe resorts. Check with your resort front desk to be sure you know of all the locations at your hotel where you can get refills.
Rapid Fill Mug on tray
Do I get a Disney Refillable Mug if I’m using the Disney Dining Plan?
Yes! As of 2012, all Disney Dining Plans now offer refillable mugs for everyone on the plan.
May I only use the Disney Refillable Mug at my resort?
No. Mugs may be used at any Disney-owned resort on property.
While you can’t use your resort mug in the parks (unless you’re getting water), you CAN purchase refillable mugs in the water parks. Disney’s also been rumored to be testing refillable mug programs in the theme parks.
Refill date notice
Can I save my mug when I get home and bring it back to use on all my subsequent Disney trips?
No. Mugs are for the specific number of days that you purchase.
What do the current mugs look like?
New mugs were recently released in February 2014. Take a look!
The new mug
If I’m paying an exorbitant amount for my room and there are Disney Refillable Mugs already in there, does that mean they’re free?
The mugs are never free (unless you get them as part of an already paid for Dining Plan). The cost will be placed on your bill as a charge.
Okay. So how do I use my Rapid Fill mug with RFID bar code?
It’s easy! Follow our step-by-step directions for using your RFID refillable mug.
Any other cool stuff you should tell us about the Disney refillable mug program?
YES! Each self-service refillable mug location has a MUG WASH! That’s right — there’s a little sink right next to the soda-pop dispensers that you can use to wash out your mug. Comes in very handy when switching between your drinks of choice…say between Coffee and Powerade?
MUG WASH!
Do YOU buy the mugs, DisneyFoodBlog?
You know, I used to buy the mugs at every resort as collectibles, but I always ended up in rooms far away from the refillable mug stations and never really used the mugs enough to justify the purchase (I wish Disney would put in more mug stations, but I know that would probably be taken advantage of by non-mug-buyers). That said, when I’ve taken trips to Disney World where my primary activity has been reading by the pool, having the mug for free refills has been a real blessing!
If you can’t live without your coffee, or if you need a travel mug for your morning commute at home, buy the mug. It’s fun to see that little Mickey face every morning!
Four colors to choose from
Rapid Fill mugs are here to stay!
We want to hear about your own refillable mug experiences. Share in the comments below!
Pinvestigator Cody, of the Global Disney Pinvestigator Blog, is back with another round of comments and photos about a recent meal. This one, breakfast with Mickey and Friends at ‘Ohana, is one of his favorites; you’ll see why when you see these amazing photos! Thanks, Cody!
‘Ohana means “family,” and the restaurant stretches that feeling throughout the meal! Opening at 7:30am, we arrived at 7:20 for a 7:40 Advanced Dining Reservation (ADR). There were about 20 families in front of us waiting to check in, but we were the second family to be seated (they really do pay attention to those ADR times!)
'Ohana Breakfast Open Kitchen
The hostess took us to our table, giving us a short tour of the restaurant along the way. We briefly stopped by the open kitchen where the hostess took our appetizer plate from the rows and rows of Pineapple and Cinnamon Raisin Bread (both are delicious, by the way), explaining that giving bread to family is one of the ‘Ohana customs celebrated at the restaurant.
Pineapple Bread and Cinnamon Raisin Bread
We sat at our table, which included a great view of Cinderella Castle.
Right away, a server came out with our “POG Juice” — Orange, Pineapple, Guava! It was delicious.
POG Juice
Not less than 5 minutes later, we got our food. It’s served family-style at ‘Ohana, with all-you-can-eat bacon, eggs, sausage, and potatoes.
Another server also came around regularly with a bowl of Mickey Waffles, hot out of the “iron.”
Mickey Waffle
Additionally, we received a small fruit platter, with pineapple, cantaloupe, grapes, and more.
'Ohana Fruit Platter
Finally, the characters made their appearances! They were great and spent an equal amount of time at each table. Every 30-45 minutes is the ‘Ohana Family Parade, where the characters invite everyone to dance and sing and “shake!”, all to the song “Hawaiian Rollercoaster Ride.”
Mickey Mouse
Stitch
Pluto
Lilo
Overall the meal was really enjoyable, and definitely delicious. This has to be my FAVORITE
Disney resort character breakfast.
Rating: 4.5 of 5
Tables in Wonderland: yes
Characters: 5 of 5
Food: 4.5 of 5
In addition to eating Disney food, a lot of us like to try our hand at it at home! For those of you who want to bring Disney into your kitchen, I’ve compiled a few Disney-themed cookbooks for consideration.
Some of these I’ve used, and some simply come highly recommended. There are cookbooks that have recipes for dishes you can get in Disney parks and cookbooks that have “Disney-inspired” recipes — many of them will be fun to use with kiddos in the kitchen, too!
As always, I’d love to hear your favorite Disney recipes. Are there any you’ve tried?
COOKBOOKS FOR EVERYONE TO TRY
Disney Recipes: From Animation to Inspiration by Ira L. Meyer and Marcello Garofalo: This is a great option for adults cooking with kids (or adults who feel like kids!). The colorful book contains recipes connected to Disney movies and Disney entertainment (think: “Lady and the Tramp’s Spaghetti Bella Notte” and “Pocahantas’ Savory Indian Corn Pudding”).
DisneyFoodBlog Notes:
Delicious Disney by Pam Brandon
Written in 2006, this will likely be one of the most “true to life” cookbooks for those of you hoping to duplicate dishes you’ve had in Disney Parks, Resorts, and Cruise Ships. With modern recipes from today (including your favorite dishes from the likes of California Grill and Jiko) and classics from yesterday (some date back to the 60’s!), there’re lots to try.
DisneyFoodBlog Notes:
Pam Brandon is a guru of Florida travel and Disney cookbooks. An author and foodie extraordinaire, Pam is working on another cookbook for Disney and writes a Divas of Dish column.
Cooking With Mickey and the Chefs of Walt Disney World Resort by Pam Brandon: 224 pages of Mickey’s finest! This is another book that contains recipes from Disney World restaurants and chefs. This was one of the original Disney Resort cookbooks!
DisneyFoodBlog Notes:
Cooking with Mickey (Gourmet Mickey Cookbook) Volume II: The Most Requested Recipes from Walt Disney World and Disneyland by The Walt Disney Company:
This 298-page tome contains recipes from the chefs of Walt Disney World as well as Walt Disney’s personal recipes! You can also find recipes from the parks and resorts, including Disney World’s Yacht and Beach Club Resorts and Polynesian Resort, and the Disneyland Hotel. Published in 2000.
DisneyFoodBlog Notes:
Word has it that this is the same book, word for word, as “Mickey’s Gourmet Cookbook” (not mentioned in this blog post). Probably no need to buy both!
The Disney Bakery: 30 Magical Recipes by Adrienne Berofsky: If your sweet tooth has been clamoring lately, this little book contains recipes inspired by Disney movies. Within its colorful pages, you’ll find Cinderella’s Cream Puff Coaches, Canine Crunchies, and Peanut Butter Dumbo Dunkers, among many others. The table of contents is arranged by movie, so be sure to decide what you want to watch before you head for the kitchen!
DisneyFoodBlog Notes:
If you couldn’t tell, this is another great one for adults and kids to enjoy together. The book won’t serve as a challenge for my professional baker friends, but it’s fun for a rainy afternoon!
COOKBOOKS TO USE WITH KIDS
Tiana’s Cookbook (The Princess and the Frog), Recipes for Kids by Disney Press: Here’s what Disney says, “This kid-friendly cookbook features recipes inspired by Tiana’s restaurant in The Princess and the Frog. With simple instructions, large photographs, and charming character art, the book features everything from Tiana’s famous beignets to a bayou smoothie. A star-rating system lets kids know how difficult the recipes are and the characters offer cooking tip. This charming cookbook is sure to please!”
The Disney Magic Kitchen Cookbook by Stephanie Karpinske: This is basically 128 pages chock full of your kids’ favorite Disney characters, end-to-end pictures, fun activities, and healthy eating ideas. Dory and Nemo’s Breakfast Cookies and Buzz’s Blast Off Burritos are just a couple of the interesting dishes you’ll be making together.
DisneyFoodBlog Notes:
With a “School Lunch” section, fruits and veggies guide, and fitness log included, this can be a helpful learning guide for your kids when it comes to making healthy decisions in their everyday food and activity choices.
Yachtsman Steakhouse is one of those Disney Resort restaurants that I didn’t even know was there for several years. Then one day I caught Samantha Brown on the Travel Channel eating steak at some hoity-toity restaurant during the Yacht and Beach Club “Great Hotels” special, and I knew I had to try it!
Restaurant Forum Plaque
I was lucky enough to do so during Disney’s first free dining stint several years ago. It’s now become a standard in our Disney restaurant rotation whenever we need a special treat or celebration.
Located in the Yacht Club Resort, Yachtsman Steakhouse is a high-end dinner spot with a view of Stormalong Bay. Specializing in delicious grain-fed beef steaks, the restaurant has a glass-walled butchering room where guests can actually see their steaks being prepared!
Butchering Room
Led into the restaurant past the open kitchen, guests can catch a glimpse of the dessert offerings before being seated in a dining room furnished in sturdy knotty pine, leather, and brass. If you’re lucky enough to be seated in my favorite section – the semi-circular room with plenty of window tables – be sure to take a glance upward at the simple, elegant chandelier above.
Open Kitchen
Dining Room
The View From Our Favorite Table
Chandelier
As I said, this restaurant is a permanent fixture on our “fancy places” rotation; and I will say that spots only get on that list when we know we can expect excellent service, fabulous food, and a comfortable atmosphere. We’re picky, and this place fits every one of our guidelines.
That said, there are always little changes and updates being made to the menu. Desserts are tweaked, the cheese plate is rotated, and even steak offerings can be different from time to time (we were sorely missing the boneless rib eye), but we always walk out happy. It’s like a miracle.
This evening, we ordered our dinners and were faced with the first change: weird butter. Usually, Yachtsman brings a basket of gorgeous onion and sourdough rolls along with a HUGE pat of butter topped with sea salt. Today, the butter was in a dish with oil and balsamic vinegar. Butter’s my favorite, so I was a bit concerned; but this stuff was amazing. Yes! Please add weird oil and balsamic vinegar to my butter!
Yachtsman Steakhouse Onion Rolls and Roasted Garlic
Sourdough Rolls
Butter with Olive Oil, Balsamic Vinegar, and Salt
We moved on to salad and my cheese plate. The salad was simple and elegant; the cheese plate was delicious as always. I know I owe you guys a cheese plate blog, which I’ll do soon, but for now, here’s the pic and description of the plate.
Cheese Plate
Cheese Plate Descriptions
Caesar Salad
From there, we enjoyed our entrees (…steak) and extra order of fries (what can I say? We were in the mood for fries!). My steak — the Cowboy Steak — was a bone-in rib-eye. I substituted gratin potatoes for the fried onion strips on the menu.
Cowboy Steak and Potato Gratin with White Diamond Cheddar
Yachtsman Filet with Mashed Potatoes
French Fries
At this point, you can imagine we were stuffed, so we skipped dessert. But no worries; I took a shot of the dessert tray for you!
Desserts
Here’re the specs! Enjoy!
Dinner menu here. All other menus (including wine and dessert) can be found here.
Cat Cora and Mickey
*Update August 17, 2009*: Disney World has posted menus for Kouzzina!
Kouzzina Menu: Dinner
Kouzzina Menu: Breakfast
Kouzzina Menu: Dessert
You can see some photos of some new Kouzzina menu items here!
The restaurant had a “soft” opening on August 15th. Grand opening is still scheduled for September 17th.
________________________________________
Also, thanks to DisBoards poster, StepDisney, here’s another sneak peek at what might be on Kouzzina’s menu!
Appetizer:
Saganaki
Spinach Salad
Spanakopita
Goat Cheese Stuffed Grape Leafs
Vongole (clams, Sausage, Wine Broth & Garlic Croutons
Calamari & Lemons
Brick Oven Bread
Kouzzina Spread
Kouzzina Sampler
Dinner Entree:
Oak Fired Pork T-Bone
Wood Grilled Flank Steak
Fisherman’s stew
Cinnamon Stewed Chicken
Char grilled Lamb Burgers
Traditional Whole Fish
Spiced Briami (Oven roasted Veggies, Oregano & Mazithra Cheese with Orzo)
Greek Spinach Pie
Tastitsio ( Greek Lasagna)
Slow cooked lamb shank
Dessert:
Baklava
Chocolate Budino Cake
Galaktoboureko – Custard in Baked Phyllo Dough & Vanilla Praline Ice Cream
Loukamathes – Freshly made greek donut dipped in warm honey
Yogurt Sorbet with fruit & mint syrup
Greek Cookies
Thanks to @jlovely for the tip!
That’s right. What started with an innocent campfire sing-a-long at Fort Wilderness has turned into one of the most-loved (and most unknown) activities for Disney World Resort Hotel guests — campfires, movies on the beach, and…s’mores!
Yacht and Beach Club Resorts Campfire and Smores
In addition to the original Chip & Dale campfire sing-a-long and movie at Fort Wilderness, free (yep — I said it) “movies on the beach” can be found at several resorts, including the Yacht and Beach Club Resorts, the Contemporary Resort, the Grand Floridian Resort and Spa, Saratoga Springs Resort, and All Star Music.
Movie on the Beach at Yacht and Beach Club Resorts
The best part, in my humble opinion, is that some of these include campfires! And where there are campfires, there are s’mores! You can either bring your own s’mores fixin’s or purchase a s’mores kit (around $5) at nearby refreshment stands.
Movies are shown at varying times (usually beginning between 7-9pm EST); check with the front desk of each hotel for an activities sheet, which will give dates and times of movie nights, and a listing of which movies will be showing.
Grey Goose Citron Slush and Pomegranate Kir — Photo (c) Kelly Tressler
A giant THANK YOU to everyone who made a suggestion for my next favorite drink at Disney World!
As you know, my beloved Leisure Suit has been retired, and I’ve long needed a replacement so that I can stop bugging bartenders to flip through their rolodexes.
Here are the suggestions I received, and, seeing as that Grey Goose Citron Slush was suggested 3 times, I think that’s the most serious contender!
Thank you again, and be sure to check out what everyone else recommended below (If anyone has any photos of these drinks, please let me know — I’d love to post them on the blog!):
Suggestions from Blog Comments:
Cotton-tini, T-Rex in Downtown Disney: A fruity martini poured into a glass filled with cotton candy
Octopus Juice, Coral Reef in Epcot: A Pina Colada fusion with Chambord
Grand Marnier Orange Slush, France Kiosk, World Showcase: Grand Marnier and Orange Fruit Smoothie frozen Drink Mix (Florida Natural Flavours)
Grey Goose Citron Slush, France Kiosk, World Showcase: Grey Goose Citron Vodka and Polynesian Pleasure Lemon Frozen Drink Mix (Florida Natural Flavours)
Backscratcher, Polynesian Resort: Meyer’s Rum, Light Rum, POG (passion fruit, orange, guava) Juice, Jack Daniels
Mai Tai, Polynesian Resort: Myers Dark Rum, Orange juice, Pineapple juice, Sour Mix, Lime juice, Orgeat syrup
Ultimate Long Island Iced Tea, 50’s Prime Time Cafe: Grey Goose Vodka, Hendrick’s Gin, Bacardi Rum, Patrón Citrónge Liqueur, Sweet-and-Sour, Coke
Dad’s Electric Lemonade, 50’s Prime Time Cafe: Bacardi rum, Skyy vodka, Blue Curacao, sweet and sour mix, Sprite
Strawberry Margarita, Mexico Kiosk, World Showcase
Orange Creamsicle, Contemporary Resort: Couldn’t find the actual DISNEY recipe, but others I found online included Vodka/Orange Vodka, Triple Sec, Orange Juice, and Cream or Ice Cream
Territory-tini, Territory Lounge, Wilderness Lodge: Captain Morgan, Grand Mariner, Sour mix, Splash of OJ, shake with ice
Polynesian Signature Drinks
Suggestions from Twitter:
Antioxidant Cocktail, various locations serve this, including The Wave: Finlandia Wild Berries Vodka, Chambord Black Raspberry Liqueur, Bossa Nova Açai Juice with Agave, Aloe Juice, Lychee, Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice
PeachTree Punch, Hollywood Brown Derby: Skyy Vodka, Peach Schnapps, Orange Juice, Sprite, splash of Grenadine
Sunken Treasure, various locations–mostly Polynesian Resort and pool bars: Malibu Coconut Rum, Midori, Orange Juice, Pineapple Juice, Sprite, Blue Curacao
Backscratcher, Polynesian Resort: Meyer’s Rum, Light Rum, POG (passion fruit, orange, guava) Juice, Jack Daniels
St. Germain Cocktail, Les Chefs de France, World Showcase: champagne or dry white wine, St. Germain Elderflower Liqueur, sparkling water or club soda
Suggestions from Facebook:
Takara Plum Wine, Japan Pavilion, World Showcase
Pomegranate Kir, France Kiosk, World Showcase: sparkling wine with a shot of pomegranate liqueur
Grey Goose Citron Slush (x2), France Kiosk, World Showcase: Grey Goose Citron Vodka and Polynesian Pleasure Lemon Frozen Drink Mix (Florida Natural Flavours)
Grand Marnier Orange Slush, France Kiosk, World Showcase: Grand Marnier and Orange Fruit Smoothie frozen Drink Mix (Florida Natural Flavours)
Chocolate Mintini, Rix Lounge, Coronado Springs Resort: No recipe found
Thanks again, everyone! I’m looking forward to stumbling around Disney World for most of my trip thanks to you folks! 😉
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