Guest Review: Evergreens at Shades of Green Resort

A big salute to Steve Bell of Military Disney Tips for the intel on this Shades of Green restaurant.

Evergreens is a sports pub styled light eatery located at the Shades of Green Resort at Walt Disney World. Evergreens, located next to the Magnolia pool (the only pool on Disney property shaped like Mickey’s head icon) is a convenient spot to grab your lunch while enjoying some R&R by the pool.

Shades of Green Magnolia Pool

As the prices are reasonable, it’s also a budget-friendly place to grab a light dinner after a day in the parks. Evergreens serves sandwiches, wraps and burgers as well as salads, pizzas and snacks. The salads, wraps and sandwiches are quite good but the 8″ pizzas need improvement. (If you are in the mood for pizza I definitely would [Read more…]

A Hot Spot for Great Coffee in Disney World: A Tip From the DFB Guide

By Kim LaPaglia 7 Comments

We continue to celebrate our new e-Book — The DFB Guide to Walt Disney World Dining — with fun info from the book! To give you an idea of what you’ll be getting, here’s another helpful tip from the e-Book!

Kona Island Coffee Bar at Polynesian Resort

As many of you know, it can be difficult to find a great cup of joe in Walt Disney World. Oh, sure, there’s plenty of that Nescafe instant stuff to wake you up. Yet, for those guests that want more than a morning jolt from their mug of coffee, you’ll have to arm yourself with a treasure map (or a copy of our e-Book!).

For travelers staying at the Polynesian Resort, you have two locations for a great cup of coffee. Try the Kona Cafe and/or the Kona Island Coffee Bar next door! Guests visiting the Magic Kingdom can easily stop at the Polynesian to grab a cup to go. The coffee bar is located just inside the doors on the second floor — just steps from the monorail!

The Kona Blend used by these locations is grown in Hawaii and is served regular and decaf, and you can order a Regular or Grande size. (We recommend the Grande since it’ll be a while before your next good cup of coffee.)

Read more about the Kona Cafe plus 2 more pages full of information on great coffee hot spots in Walt Disney World!

Find it all here in the The DFB Guide to Walt Disney World Dining!

What are your favorite hot spots for coffee in WDW? Let us know in the comments below!

(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…]

Unique Meals for Kids: A Tip From the DFB Guide

By AJ 3 Comments

We can’t wait to share more awesome Disney dining info from our 2013 Edition of the The DFB Guide to Walt Disney World Dining e-Book! Today, let’s check out some more great tips from the Guide!

Pork Egg Roll

Making Food Fun for Kids
At first glance, the kids’ meals at WDW seem boring. But they don’t have to be! There really are locations to get more than chicken nuggets or mac ‘n cheese. With some advance planning, your family can visit restaurants that offer some very tasty alternatives for kids!

Take the monotony out of your menus for kids and plan to dine at Yak & Yeti in the Animal Kingdom where they have egg rolls and lo mein on the kids’ menu!

Need a table-service restaurant that offers more than kid pizza? In the Magic Kingdom, Tony’s Town Square has a fun menu for the kids in your party. One option is a cheeseburger calzone! Now that’s definitely more interesting than another personal pizza.

And at Tokyo Dining in Epcot, your kiddos can have teriyaki chicken or tempura shrimp!

Ready for All of Our Best Disney World Tips?

We’ve got TONS of Disney World Dining Tips in our big, bold, 450-page DFB Guide to Walt Disney World® Dining 2014 — and the guide is your ticket to planning your best Disney trip yet!

The DFB Guide to Walt Disney World® Dining 2014 is full of tips and planning tools developed by Disney World experts over 20+ years of visits. We’ve done the research for you, so you’ll know just which spots will uniquely suit your family’s needs!

With sample dining itineraries, plus our “Disney Dining at a Glance” section, featuring “Where Can I Find?” options, you’ll have everything you need to plan the best vacation ever. Click here to get your copy of The DFB Guide to Walt Disney World® Dining 2014 E-book — and use code 2014 for an extra $4 discount for a limited time!

Dining in Disneyland: Tortilla Jo’s Taqueria in Downtown Disney

By Heather 5 Comments

Dining in Disneyland columnist Heather Sievers spices things up at Tortilla Jo’s Taqueria in Disneyland’s Downtown Disney district!

When you’re in the mood for Mexican and don’t have the time or budget for a full sit down restaurant meal, the small Taqueria outside of Tortilla Jo’s is the perfect dining solution. My family and I LOVE Tortilla Jo’s, however, a meal inside the “regular” restaurant takes a minimum of one hour (worth it if you have the time) and that’s with a reservation or without a wait.

Tortilla Jo's Taqueria

The colorful Taqueria can not be missed as you are walking through Downtown Disney. It is located directly across from Ralph Brennan’s Jazz Kitchen, closer to the hotels than the parks. Their outdoor-only seating consists of [Read more…]

Counter-Service Money-Saving Tip from the DFB Guide

By AJ 2 Comments

As many of you know, we launched the latest Edition of our awesome Disney Dining e-Book — The DFB Guide to Walt Disney World Dining! And we’ve got some great Disney dining info from the e-Book for you today!

Cosmic Ray’s Bacon Double Cheeseburger with Fries

First up, one of our favorite counter-service money-saving tips! Some folks would rather not have the side items with their counter-service meal, but they feel strange asking to get the entree alone. Well guess what! Not only is that not strange, it can also save you some dough!

If you’re thinking that you’d rather skip the fries, ask the cast member for the “entree-only,” without the side dishes. This should knock off the cost of the fries or other side dish and leave you paying only for the main event!

So I guess this means that not only will you save money, but also calories… we could be onto something here!

Find this and over MANY other top money-saving tips for eating in Walt Disney World in The DFB Guide to Walt Disney World Dining e-Book! We also have a full chapter dedicated to how to find and make use of Disney World dining discounts, coupon programs, membership programs, and more!

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WE KNOW DISNEY.
YOU CAN, TOO.

Oh boy, planning a Disney trip can be quite the adventure, and we totally get it! But fear not, dear friends, we compiled EVERYTHING you need (and the things to avoid!) to plan the ULTIMATE Disney vacation.

Whether you're a rookie or a seasoned pro, our insider tips and tricks will have you exploring the parks like never before. So come along with us, and get planning your most magical vacation ever!

What are some of your favorite money-saving tips in WDW? Let us know in the comments below!

Disney Food for Families: Learning Opportunities for the Budding Chef

By Erin 6 Comments

Disney Food for Families columnist Erin Foster captures some great ways to encourage your kids’ love of cooking!

Obviously one of the many reasons that families find Disney destinations to be such compelling vacation spots is that the parks and resorts are fully prepared to accommodate the interests of children. At various points, all of my girls have been captivated with the idea of becoming a chef (well, at least until they began to realize that kitchens have to be cleaned after they are used).

Disney does a wonderful job of indulging the interests of the budding chef by allowing children, and their parents, plentiful opportunities to observe and interact with the real-life culinary craftspeople that make the food magic happen.

Where to Learn from the Masters: Sweets

Our favorite Walt Disney World venue for chef interaction is at Goofy’s Candy Company at Downtown Disney. On one recent trip, my girls and I spent over an hour standing at the candy prep counter there watching a cast member make pan after pan of swoon-inducing fudge.

Fudge prep at Goofy's Candy Company

We have found that the cast members there are particularly gracious in taking the time to explain to curious bystanders exactly what they are doing, and why. We’ve even been offered small tasting spoonfuls of warm fudge batter to better assess the product as it transforms from [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 Trend: Trios

By AJ 12 Comments

Obviously Disney’s keen on the fact that most of us can’t make up our minds about what we want to try in their restaurants! They’ve slowly, but surely, started introducing ways for us to sample a little bit of everything — even when we’re not at a buffet.

Trios of dishes — small portions of three menu items served together as one dish — are popping up everywhere, from casual to signature dining. And while these used to be relegated to the dessert menu, we’re now seeing trios pop up in the appetizer and entree sections of the menu. Here are a few examples…

Appetizer Trios
Epcot’s Le Cellier put a trio of appetizers front and center on its menu a while ago, giving guests an opportunity to sample three of their most beloved apps: Cheddar Cheese Soup, Lump Crab, and the Tomato Stack.

Le Cellier Lunch Menu Appetizer Trio

Sanaa, in Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge, has followed suit with trios of salads and appetizers. The one below includes [Read more…]

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!

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