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Review: New Le Cellier Signature Dinner

Epcot Restaurants
Disney World Restaurants

You remember when we analyzed the brand new Le Cellier Steakhouse Signature dinner menu a few weeks ago, right? Well, I finally had the chance to try it myself.

For those who are just tuning in, one of Disney World’s most popular restaurants, Le Cellier in Epcot’s Canada pavilion, began offering a signature dinner menu (e.g. super expensive) at the beginning of March 2011. While the restaurant remained priced at one Disney Dining Plan credit for lunch, the dinner menu cost two Disney Dining Plan credits. For those of us who don’t purchase the dining plan, that means that the dinner menu was renovated and all prices bumped up a few bucks…or more.

Atmosphere
The decor and atmosphere at Le Cellier hasn’t changed at all. You’re still dining in a very small “cellar,” featuring candlelight sconces on the walls (not real candles, of course), rich woods and deep maroon fabrics, and stone archways creating the structure of the restaurant.

Le Cellier Dining Room

Le Cellier Ceilings and Chandeliers

The only thing upon arrival that makes you think something might be slightly different is the presence of some snazzy new napkin rings (I’m pretty sure I’ve never seen napkin rings at a Disney World restaurant…) and candles on the tables… [Read more…]

Disney Food Post Round-Up ‘n’ More: March 27, 2011

By AJ 3 Comments

Honey Lemon Cupcake Topped with Edible Glitter & A Chocolate Bee

I have a LOT to share with you today, so bear with me! We’ll start with Disney news, then head over to the e-Book update, and finally, the round-up!

Disney Food News

Here are a few of the fun newsy things that happened this week:

We review the new menu at the Hungry Bear in Disneyland!
AND head over to the Wave in Disney World’s Contemporary Resort to try out the new breakfast buffet…
But don’t forget that Disneyland was honored this week with some great food awards!

In other news, don’t forget to join me on the WDW Today monthly live show, where you can call in with your questions and comments. The special guest will be yours truly! Tune in tonight, Sunday, March 27, at 8:00 pm Eastern time!

DFB Guide Reviews!

And after a week at WDW filled with fun (and food!), I look forward to sharing lots of restaurant reviews and photos with you guys! Best of all, positive reviews on our e-Book, The DFB Guide to Walt Disney World Dining, continue to pour in. If you are undecided about purchasing the book, check out these insights:

A World View explains the usefulness of an E-book over a paper book.
DVC Mom says “First timers should not even start to plan without this guide…” and notes that Disney veterans will find great information, too.
DisneyBiz notes “No otherresource that I’m aware of goes into this much detail on how to plan dining.”
Military Disney Tips Blog declares “It’s a must have for any Disney food lover!“

The Round-Up!

WDW For Grown-Ups

shares a delicious glimpse of the tempting caramel work done by a Karamell Küche cast member. My insight? I want to enjoy the fruits of their labor on my next visit!

Main Street Gazette zeroes in on a fun menu item in the Magic Kingdom that not many folks even know is there!

Watch Me Eat stops by Orlando’s House of Blues restaurant in Downtown Disney for some Cajun cuisine.

Cookie Madness reviews a voyage on the Disney Dream and gives the cookies served on Castaway Cay a thumbs up!

Food and Drink Digital reminds us to check our produce aisle for a new line of Disney fruits and veggies. Disney Consumer Products calls them “new and refreshed Disney-branded products that capitalize on synergistic promotional opportunities tied to Disney entertainment content and beloved characters.” Yum.

Whew! And that’s all she wrote! See ya next week!

Dining in Disneyland: The Hungry Bear Re-Opens with a New Menu

By Heather 19 Comments

Dining in Disneyland columnist Heather Sievers shares her review of the brand new Hungry Bear Restaurant menu today!!

After weeks of renovations, the Hungry Bear Restaurant in Disneyland’s Critter Country has reopened with a brand new menu. We had seen the tarps and boards up for some time; we even took a sail on the Columbia to see if we could get a sneak peek at what was going on behind the scenes. No such luck. So, when the restaurant opened back up this past week, we headed over for an early dinner to check it out. Hungry? Why yes, we are!

Eager Beaver Welcoming You to The Hungry Bear

Location and Atmosphere
Let me start by telling you that Hungry Bear is in the way way way back of Disneyland. I mean, we’re talking outskirts. If you’re looking for a semi-quick way to get there, hop on the train and get off at the New Orleans Station, head left, pass the Haunted Mansion & Splash Mountain, follow the curve around to the left and you will find the Hungry Bear just before the Winnie the Pooh ride on your right side.

When we first walked up to the restaurant, we were a little nervous. There were ZERO people in line, which isn’t really a great sign for a restaurant. Especially for a Saturday evening during Spring Break. I’m going to assume this was because people really didn’t know it was open. There are still lots of walls up around the area due to the Splash Mountain refurbishments in progress. So at the moment, Critter Country doesn’t look too inviting. Though, as soon as [Read more…]

Review: New Breakfast Buffet at The Wave in Disney’s Contemporary Resort

By AJ 20 Comments

We’ve been reporting the news, and now I get to share the pics with you! The Wave…of American Flavors in Disney World’s Contemporary Resort has a brand new meal — a breakfast buffet! They’ve been testing it since December, and according to one of the managers I had a chance to speak with, it looks like it’s going to stay. I’m glad to hear it; the buffet is delicious.

Atmosphere and Background
As we know, The Wave focuses on a sustainable menu full of local products. In fact, The Wave was just approved to change their menu every few months — they’re one of the only non-signature restaurants able to do this — so that they can offer an even wider variety of seasonal, local ingredients. I’m looking forward to the updates!

Contemporary Resort's The Wave Restaurant

Regarding atmosphere, you can see a lot of great photos of the restaurant in our review of dinner at The Wave here. But here’s a quick pic from this week that shows that the [Read more…]

Disneyland Resort Restaurants and Chefs Win Awards

By Kim LaPaglia 2 Comments

Traveling to Disneyland soon? You’ll want to add these resort restaurants to your dining list! We give a foodie shout-out to the winners of the Southern California Restaurant Writers awards!!

With a 36 year history, the Southern California Restaurant Writers, Inc. selects winners from south Santa Barbara to the border of Mexico. With such a large region, it’s a testament to the food quality at Disneyland that so many awards were presented to Disneyland restaurants at the annual banquet Sunday night.

Join me in congratulating Executive Pastry Chef Jean-Marc Viallet named the Pastry Chef of the Year! For the last ten years, Viallet has been dreaming up creative pastries for Disneyland guests.

Jean-Marc Viallet, Executive Pastry Chef, Disneyland Resort

Disneyland Resort received top honors in five categories! The Golden Bacchus is presented to restaurants with an extensive wine collection. The Golden Sceptre is considered the “top restaurant” award.

Special Award Category

* Pastry Chef of the Year: Jean-Marc Viallet, executive pastry chef, Disneyland Resort

Golden Bacchus Wine Award

* Napa Rose (Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel)
* Steakhouse 55 (Disneyland Hotel)

Golden Sceptre (Five Star)

* Napa Rose (Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel)
* Steakhouse 55 (Disneyland Hotel)

Gold (Four Star)

* Ariel’s Grotto (Paradise Pier, Disney’s California Adventure park)
* Blue Bayou (New Orleans Square, Disneyland park)

Sterling (Three Star)

* Goofy’s Kitchen (Disneyland Hotel)
* Storyteller’s Cafe (Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa)

Source: Disney Parks Blog
Chef Photo copyright Disney

Disney Food Post Round-Up: March 20, 2011

By AJ 5 Comments

Cupcake from Hollywood Studios

Hi, all! My biggest and favorite news of the week is the launch of The DFB Guide to Walt Disney World Dining! A hearty THANK YOU to those who have purchased a copy; it’s been such an honor to hear positive comments and feedback this week. I’m truly grateful.

Also, I’ve been reporting from Disney World since Thursday and will continue to do so until Wednesday. Watch my feed on facebook and twitter for real-time updates and photos from the World!

And now, on to the round-up!

DisZine shares the news about The Wave’s new breakfast buffet in Disney’s Contemporary Resort.

About Theme Parks shares the results from the Readers’ Choice Awards!

Main St. Gazette takes us to Mexico’s San Angel Inn in Epcot!

Pooh’s Travels writes about Ralph Brennan’s Jazz Kitchen in Disneyland!

Studios Central follows up on last week’s Sunset Ranch Market post by explaining the trucks of produce nearby in Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

(Miniature) Additions at the Confectionery

By AJ 9 Comments

Found a couple of mini items at the Main Street Confectionery in Disney World today that I had to share!

Cookie Bites
First — three kinds of cookie bites. These look just like the giant “normal sized” cookies you can get in the parks, but they’ve been shrunk down to what many of us would consider to be the size of the standard cookies we bake at home. However, at Disney, these are considered bite-size!

Three Kinds of Mini Cookies

You can purchase Raspberry White Chocolate cookies (which have chocolate chips in them as well for some reason), Chocolate chip supreme cookies, and delectable [Read more…]

The DFB Guide to Walt Disney World Dining Grand Launch!

By AJ 15 Comments

Hooray! The day is finally here! The DFB Guide to Walt Disney World Dining e-Book is now available for purchase and download!

The DFB Guide to Walt Disney World Dining e-Book is an instantly downloadable PDF guide, featuring over 250 full-color pages of photographs, information, and advice about our favorite things — food and dining in Walt Disney World.

It’s guaranteed to help you make the most of your Walt Disney World dining!

As you know, the Guide includes:

A 5-Step Strategy for Disney Dining Planning, covering everything you need to know from budgeting and booking to kids’ meals and fireworks.
A comprehensive and in-depth look at Disney World dining, including tips and tricks to ensure a positive and stress-free dining experience.
The ability to be read on a smartphone, iPad, or computer!

To celebrate the grand launch and to thank you for your support of the blog, we’ll be offering the Guide for 20% off its standard rate for one week only! Order your copy now for only $14.95 (regularly $18.95).

And we’ve also included several bonus features that I know you’ll be excited to use!

For more detailed information and screen shots from the e-Book, head over to DFBGuide.com!

With a 100% money-back guarantee, you have nothing to lose! 🙂

Disney Food Post Round-Up: March 13, 2011

By AJ 1 Comment

Rose and Crown Pub

It’s been a busy week around here! I hope yours has been a good one! Welcome to Spring (hopefully those of you who lost an hour last night will catch up with a nice nap today!).

Don’t forget to plan some fun-ness for St. Patrick’s Day on Thursday! Here’s what’s happening around WDW and Disneyland this week!

This week in Disney food news:

We analyze Le Cellier’s new 2-credit signature dinner menu…
New refillable mugs are available!
The Via Napoli pizza window is back open!
Disney is extending dining times for the busy season
Disneyland’s Mother’s Day Buffet is open for booking

And now, on to the round-up!

Progress City USA analyzes Herb Ryman sketches for the “World Buffeteria,” a dining establishment slated for EPCOT Center that never came about.

Bakerella shows us that a little “homemade love” can result in adorable Mickey and Minnie cake pops! I’d probably get as far as the silhouettes 😉

Main Street Gazette attempts a feat I myself have not — and possibly will not — attempt: to eat a Turkey Leg. Oh, and I love the title reference.

Zannaland reported a while back on Disney’s AMC Theatre 24’s plans to launch Dine-In movies beginning in May. Food, film and fun!

Studios Central shares the back story to Sunset Ranch Market in Disney’s Hollywood Studios. One of our favorite spots for Imagineering detail!

News: Refillable Mugs, Extended Dining, and Via Napoli Pizza-by-the-Slice

By Kim LaPaglia 13 Comments

Hey Disney die-hards and foodie fans! Here is some news for your nourishment.New Refillable Mugs

New refillable mugs for the 2011 “Let the Memories Begin” promotion are on sale now for $13.99 at your WDW resort.

2011 Refillable Mug

Lids (and handles) are now in blue, black, yellow and pink. Yes, pink! I know a few moms that will be grabbing up the “princessy” mugs! 😉

Make sure each member of the family gets a different lid color. That way Mom doesn’t have to sip Dad’s coffee and Dad won’t be taking unintentional gulps of Mom’s diet soda. Note that not all the resorts appear to have the black lids. Let me know which mug types you spot during your WDW resort stay!

Extended Dining Options
It’s almost Spring Break time! WDW is extending dining times at Boma, Cape May Cafe, Chef Mickey’s, Garden Grill, Le Cellier Steakhouse, ‘Ohana and [Read more…]

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Review: New Le Cellier Signature Dinner