Disney Food Post Round-Up, December 6, 2009

Eat here

The holiday season at Disney Parks is upon us, and that means we get some deee-licious photos coming our way of the holiday treats available! Thanks again to Erin Foster for the fantastic chocolate Mickey waffle and holiday Dole Whip photos! And be sure to check out the info about the candy canes in Disneyland — you need a ticket to get one this year!

In other Disney food news, read up about the latest Disney holiday treats special on the Food Network, a great merch discount you can get just for eating counter service in Disney World, and the newest Tables in Wonderland holiday dinner event (ressies are first come, first served!).

**Stay tuned to the Disney Food Blog next week for a photo blog of the famous Gingerbread displays in the resort hotels of Disney World (I can’t wait), along with some great info about how those displays are made!**

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Here we go to this week’s Disney Food Post Weekly Round-Up!

Speaking of candy canes, Dis Unplugged has an awesome post with pics of Guy Fieri at Disneyland — making the holiday special I just watched last night!

Heather McPherson at the Orlando Sentinel shows us how Disney bakers make holiday cookies at Disney World.

George at Imaginerding.com sent along a cool post about re-creating recipes from literature — including Alice in Wonderland’s “eat me” cookies! This one’s from a couple of weeks ago, but it’s a really fun read if you’re a bookworm like me.

Scott Joseph’s Orlando Restaurant Guide shares the bad news that the Bocuse d’Or US Finals will be leaving Disney World and heading to New York City.

Disney Geek Dad has posted his take on Disney dining. Take a look and leave a comment with your thoughts.

Cooking With Mickey makes Bread Pudding from 1900 Park Fare via video!

DisneyFotoBlog has some stunning shots of Disney World gingerbread houses

Watch Me Eat reviews the Celebration Tavern in Celebration, FL, but we’ve also got to share his Christmas 2008 post from Celebration while we’re here!

MousePlanet has the third and final Best of WDW 2009 post, including some great WDW dining polls. We’ll be doing polls throughout the year, and I can’t wait to see if the percentages match!

Speaking of polls, be sure to cast your vote in our first poll, Best WDW Steakhouse, in the right-hand sidebar of this blog! Thanks for reading!

Get Discounts on Disney Merch…By Eating! (And Other News)

By AJ 4 Comments

A few good notices that couldn’t wait until the round-up tomorrow:

Discounts on Disney Stuff When You Eat Counter Service
Hooray! I knew eating burgers and fries would come in handy someday! If you’re headed to Disney World in the next two weeks, your counter service dining receipt might include a coupon for 20% off purchases at stores in the theme parks and Downtown Disney between the hours of 9AM and 12PM! Check out specs on the offer over at DIS.

Guy Fieri and the Food Network Talk Holiday Food at Disneyland
We mentioned it in our Disneyland Candy Canes post, because Guy has a segment on the candy canes in his Disneyland Holiday Foods Special. There’s a lot more to see, however! Set your DVR for Saturday at 9PM. If you miss it, you can catch the special again on Dec. 11th, at 8PM.

Tables In Wonderland Holiday Harvest Dinner
If you’re a Tables in Wonderland member, you can take part in a private Holiday Dinner, followed by the Candlelight Processional and Illuminations. Join other members at the Norway Lounge for a delicious menu of spicy seared tilapia, a medly of winter greens with cranberry vinaigrette, prosciutto and sage wrapped pork tenderloin, and olive oil bruised yukon gold potatoes followed by chocolate ganache brulee or asian apple crumble. Yum!

The event is limited to 80 guests and costs $98 per person. If you’re interested and a Tables in Wonderland Member, email [email protected] with your daytime phone number, home address, and the people in your party — you’ll be notified on a first come, first served basis.

holidaydinner

Stay tuned tomorrow for our regularly scheduled round-up of Disney Food links from around the web! Also, be sure to vote in our “Best Steakhouse” poll in the right-hand sidebar 😀

Disney Foodie Gifts, Part 2

By AJ Leave a Comment

It’s Friday again, which means our “Foodie Black Friday” gift guide continues with Part 2 this week! Still wondering what to get for that Disney Foodie in your life? Well, our Disney Food Blog t-shirts aren’t ready yet, so maybe one of these options will be a good stand-in! (If these don’t float your boat, check out our first Disney Foodie Gifts post for more inspiration!)

disney pez

Pez Disney Mickey Assortment Candies – 12 Pieces: This is the “best gift ever” for your Pez-collecting friends, or just for those of us who loved this treat as kids. FYI: Amazon has pez refills for sale, too.

Disney Winnie The Pooh Hundred Acre Treats Ceramic Kitchen Canister: This is an adorable addition to any grandma’s kitchen. Or bachelor son’s kitchen if he likes Winnie the Pooh.

Fruit Dubble Bubble Candy Wreath With Disney Princess Ribbon: Yum! Bubble gum, ribbons, and princesses for your favorite little princess! This will be fun for the holidays or year round…although I don’t expect it to last that long!

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.

Never Met A Chocolate I Didn’t Like Disney Tinker Bell Figurine: A fun, sassy figurine for that Disney foodie in your life who loves both Tinkerbell and chocolate!

pixiedust

Pixie Dust Pictures has two fun photos of Disney World’s Crystal Palace Restaurant. Be sure to stop by the site and check them out if you’re an MK restaurant fan! Be sure to use code “santa” when you check out to get 20% off!

Send Your Suggestions for Disney Food Gifts!
If you see any fun Disney foodie gifts, let me know so that I can highlight them for other Disney Food fans! You can contact me via twitter, facebook, or email. Looking forward to your suggestions! 🙂

Please note: By making purchases via certain links, a tiny percentage of what you spend goes toward supporting the Disney Food Blog. This week, the first five links will return that benefit. Thank you for reading!

Disneyland’s Homemade Candy Canes — Reserve Ticket Required!

By AJ 12 Comments

FOR 2010: 2010 Disneyland Candy Cane Reserve Ticket Dates Here.

Disneyland’s homemade candy canes are a Christmas tradition… so much so that you now have to get a reserve ticket to buy one! This holiday delicacy is returning to Disneyland’s Candy Palace this Friday.

According to the OC Register:

This year, the Candy Palace on Disneyland’s Main Street is issuing tickets so park guests can reserve candy canes ahead of time, avoiding the massive lines that mark candy cane day at the Palace every Christmas.

Disneyland-goers can find out when candy canes are being made by calling a special phone number, updated each Sunday with information about what kind of candy is being made each day that week. The Candy Kitchen Menu line is 714-781-0112.

Check out this article for more information about Disneyland’s Candy Canes, including how they’re made, why they limit the number sold, and more!

Also, set your DVR for Saturday night, when you can see the Food Network’s Guy Fieri highlight the candy cane-making along with other Disneyland holiday treats on Guy’s Disney Holiday!

Mickey’s Country House Kitchen

By AJ 2 Comments

From Chef Mickey’s restaurant to Mickey’s Country House Kitchen, this is one gourmet guy!

Mickey's Country House

You’ll recall our visit to Minnie’s kitchen a couple of weeks ago, so, of course, we had to visit Mickey’s as well! His, however, is a bit less organized…

Mickey's Mess

But we can blame this on the kitchen remodeling contest that Goofy and Donald have entered…using Mickey’s kitchen as their canvas!

toontown fair kitchen remodeling

And, YIKES! Don’t set that towel on fire!

Mickey's Stove

At least Mickey’s shopping list is in order. This looks surprisingly like Minnie’s list… Hmm…

Mickey's Shopping List

Now, if we head outside, we’ll see what Mickey’s been doing while Goofy and Donald have been “remodeling!” He’s been working in his garden, hoping to cultivate some prize-winning veggies for the Toontown Fair!

Welcome to Mickey's Garden

And these are prize-winning pumpkins and tomatoes to be sure!

Mickey's Pumpkins

Mickey's Tomatoes

Hopefully Mickey doesn’t forget where he left those overalls!

Mickey's Garden

Call Good Luck to Mickey as you pass by the judge’s tent and head into his garage!

Huh? What’s this? Seems like even Mickey has some left-over appliances that he doesn’t use anymore and has tossed into his garage! Check out that great juicer!

Mickey's Garage

Thanks for visiting Mickey’s Kitchen with me! We’ll miss it when it’s gone!

Chef Mickey’s Restaurant

By AJ 21 Comments

Can you believe it?! Nearly a year of Disney Food Blog posts I haven’t done a Chef Mickey’s post yet! Well, this oversight shall now be rectified. I’m headed to Chef Mickey’s for breakfast…care to join me?

Chef Mickey's Sign

Found in the middle of the Contemporary Resort, Chef Mickey’s stands as one of the most popular character buffets in Disney World. With great food, lots of characters, and a convenient location, this buffet is a must-do.

Chef Mickey's Entry

What makes it so popular?
Here’s my analysis:

The Fab Five: You can find every member of the fab five — Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy, and Pluto — right here for breakfast, dinner, and, in the very busy seasons, lunch.
The Monorail: Kids love the monorail. It’s sleek. It’s up high. It’s like space transport. And it goes into the hotel — that’s right, it doesn’t just park outside of the hotel like it does at the Polynesian and the Grand Floridian — it goes into the hotel. That’s just cool. No matter how old you are.
Proximity to the Magic Kingdom: When you’re at the MK all day and need a respite, Chef Mickey’s gives a nice change of pace without taking you too far from the park.
Cheesy Potatoes and the Sundae Bar: Chef Mickey’s has legendary cheesy potatoes for breakfast, and it has a fantastic sundae bar for dinner. That’s enough for me.

Cheesy Potatoes on the Left

What’s the Atmosphere Like?
Dropped into the middle of the Contemporary’s Grand Canyon Concourse, the restaurant’s decor is a taste of Toon Town meets Tomorrowland. Lots of big splashes of color, cartoon-y cut-outs, Mickey shapes, and space-age banquettes.

Seating Area and Buffet

Chef Mickey's Seating

After checking into the restaurant, you’ll be sent to a line where you’ll wait to have your photo taken with the Chef Mickey’s iconic statue, and then you’ll head over to one of the newly-renovated waiting areas until your pager buzzes.

Photo and Waiting Area

Soon you’ll be escorted through the (usually loud and teeming) restaurant to your table; be aware that you might need to dodge a napkin-twirling Donald Duck or a curtsy-ing Minnie Mouse on your way.

A Second Seating Area

Table Setting

Settle in and order your drinks, and then you’re on your way to the delicious buffet!

So How About the Food?
The restaurant has a buffet, and the breakfast and dinner offerings are plentiful. For breakfast, our choices included biscuits and gravy, blintzes, cold and hot cereals, waffles and pancakes, omelets, turkey hash, breakfast meats, fruit, baked goods, boiled eggs, yogurt, and more. Here are a few of the items that were available on the day we were there:

Fruit and Baked Goods Station

Cheese Blintzes with Sauces

Cold Cereal

Syrup Container for Waffles and Pancakes

Breakfast Meats and Corned Beef Hash

Biscuits and Gravy

Vegetable Lasagna and Turkey Hash

Breakfast Pizza, Tots, Mickey Waffles

Fruit

Yogurt, Apples and Granola, Applesauce, Cottage Cheese

Plate 1

Carbo Plate

And here are the menus from that day as well:

Chef Mickey's Breakfast Menu

Chef Mickey's Dinner Menu

Don’t forget, the menus change all the time, so yours might not look just like these. Regardless, I can almost guarantee you’ll find something for everyone in the family.

And the Characters?
Yep — there are definitely characters! During our breakfast, we had the chance to hang out with each character twice — even though the restaurant was busy! Remember, though, that the characters have to get through the three main seating areas, so be patient.

Notice the fun chef-inspired outfits that the fab five are wearing!

Chef Mickey

Goofy

Chef Donald

Minnie

Pluto

Any Cons?
Cons would include the noise of the restaurant. This isn’t a quiet spot to have a nice breakfast. It’s loud, raucous, fun, and exciting — probably not the place to take Junior for a nap away from the park.

Also, this isn’t gourmet food. If you want five-star or very healthy food, consider another restaurant. But the food is good, plentiful, and worth the price.

Finally, Advanced Dining Reservations can be hard to get. This restaurant is as popular as Le Cellier and Cinderella’s Royal Table these days, and getting a reservation can be tricky. Don’t forget that you can now call/go online to get an ADR at 180 days in advance of your vacation.

I hope this primer has helped you to see a bit deeper into Chef Mickey’s — a restaurant we’ve all heard of, but some of us might not have had the chance to visit. It’s truly an iconic Disney restaurant, so if you have the chance to make it there for a meal someday, I’d encourage it!

A Chocolate Mickey Waffle and Holiday Dole Whip?! It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas…

By AJ 13 Comments

Extra, extra! Read all about it! The holidays bring even more fun changes to the Walt Disney World resort dining experience!

Who ever thought they’d see a chocolate Mickey waffle?! Well, here it is! This was found by Erin Foster and family at the Crystal Palace buffet!
choc mickey waffle

And when you order your Dole Whip at Aloha Isle this holiday season, get ready for a shock! It’ll be green if you order pineapple, and green and pink if you order a swirl!
holiday dole whip

Stay tuned to the Disney Food Blog for more edible Holiday treats, including a round-up of the Gingerbread Resort decor, as the season rolls on!

Thanks again to Erin Foster and family for the great photos! (I feel like I was right there on vacation with them…how about you?)

Disney World Fudge: A Primer

By AJ 34 Comments

DHS vanilla

Fudge is synonymous with the holidays for me. My Dad has perfected his fudge recipe over the years, and when the smells of bubbling chocolate, butter, and sugar start wafting from the kitchen, I know I’m truly home for the holidays.

So when Erin Foster, Disney Moms Panelist and Disney Fudge connoisseur, recently requested that we do a fudge post on the Disney Food Blog, I knew the beginning of the holiday season would be perfect timing!

Thanks to Erin and her family for sampling the newest holiday flavors in Disney World over the past week, and for providing many of the fudge photos below!

Disney Fudge Basics
There’s nothing like staring at the rows and rows of fudge in Disney World candy stores and trying to decide on a purchase. In fact, I’ll never forget buying a sampler tin of Disney fudge at the Main Street Confectionery during my first trip to Disney World as a grown-up. I became a Disney Foodie right then and there!

Disney Fudge Displays

Disney Fudge Display

That daunting array of flavors is going to greet you no matter where you buy Disney fudge, so be prepared! Disney makes most of their fudge right there in the World; in fact, if you hang around at the Magic Kingdom Confectionery for long enough, you’ll surely see them putting together a few pans.

Weighing the Cinnamon for Pumpkin Fudge

Pans of Candy Cane Fudge Cooling

By the way, if you can’t decide on a flavor, consider purchasing a few squares at the beginning of your trip, then heading back to the store to purchase more of what you liked best at the end of the trip.

NOTE: You can use your Disney Dining Plan snack credits to buy fudge, so this is the perfect way to use up those leftover snack credits!

Snag a Square for a Snack Credit

And speaking of basics, “fudge lady” Erin Foster posted a few of her own fudge-related insights in a recent Moms Panel answer:

* There are sometimes discounts for purchases of large quantities of fudge.

* The mint flavors must be wrapped separately because the intense (and intensely delicious) aroma transfers to the other flavors.

* If you want to bring fudge home, try purchasing it on your last day at WDW for maximum freshness.

* Tightly wrapped, the WDW fudge lasts for about a week — not that I’ve ever had a chance to test that out 🙂

Sampler Box of Disney Fudge

Ask About Discounts on Fudge

Disney Fudge for the Holidays
In addition to other flavors, Disney creates flavors for holidays and special promotions, such as Reese’s Pieces and Pumpkin for Halloween, and Peppermint and Eggnog for Christmas.

Reese's Pieces Fudge for Halloween

Disney's Candy Cane Fudge for the Christmas Season

No matter when you go to the World, you’re likely to find a special flavor for that time of year or for the Disney promo happening at the time.

Where to Find Disney Fudge
You can find different flavors of Disney fudge throughout the parks and resorts. Some of the most common spots with the widest selection are: the Main Street Confectionery at Magic Kingdom, the Scary Apothecary candy shop at Hollywood Studios, Bayview Gifts at the Contemporary Resort, and Goofy’s Candy Company at Downtown Disney.

Standard Flavors

Scary Apothecary Fudge Counter

Goofy's Candy Company Fudge Counter

Contemporary Resort Fudge Counter

And while you can usually count on most candy counters to carry the standard flavors, you never know what you’ll find! According to an email from Erin (and her kids, who are star fudge reporters),

We encountered fudge today at both Goofy’s Candy Co. at Downtown Disney and at
the gift shop at the Contemporary. The selection at each place was quite different, and also different from the selection at the Confectionery. We found today the following flavors that they didn’t have at the MK: vanilla raspberry, creamsicle, chocolate pecan, espresso, maple nut, maple pecan (looked totally different), chocolate caramel, Snickers, turtle cheesecake, chocolate cheesecake, and vanilla caramel.

I guess the moral of the story is, if you’re looking for specific flavors, you have to shop around.

Good to know!

Disney Fudge Recipes
I know how many of you love sampling Disney recipes, so I scouted around the internet for a few Disney fudge recipes (or recipes inspired by Disney fudge). Be sure to let me know how these turn out if you sample them!:

Cooks.com Disney World Vanilla Fudge

Cookie Madness Disney World S’mores Fudge (GREAT Disney s’mores fudge photo here!)

AllEarsNet Food and Wine Festival Canadian Maple Walnut Fudge

How About You?
Do you have a fun fudge story or recipe from Disney? Let us know via twitter, facebook, or email.

Thanks again, Erin and family!

Disney Food Post Round-Up: November 29, 2009

By AJ 3 Comments

Eat here NEWS!

A couple of very exciting news items to start out with this week!

First: have you heard about the new Surf’s Up! character meal in Disneyland? There aren’t a lot of details yet, but we’ve posted a few of the offerings as posted on the @DisneylandNews twitter account.

Also: Fulton’s Crab House is hosting a Holiday Wine Dinner on December 13th. The dinner is $49.95 and begins at 7 PM. Call 407-934-2628 for reservations.

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ROUND-UP
And now, it’s on to the week’s Disney Food Round-Up! Be sure to bookmark these websites — loads of great info and content:

Mommy Musings has a fun post and photo blog about her evening with Princess Tiana and Tyra Banks. Check out the lifelike edible teacups!

Around The Mouse has posted their take on the Best and Worst Counter Service locations in Disney World.

At Gorillas Don’t Blog, Major Pepperidge has posted a couple of old-timey (circa 1959) photos of Aunt Jemima herself in front of her Disneyland Pancake House.

Main Street Gazette shows us around the Pinocchio Village Haus in Disney World. “Always let your conscience be your guide…”

Imaginerding has a recipe for Disney-influenced, Christmas-themed dog treats — can you get more seasonal than that?!

Global Disney Pinvestigation has put up a Wishes Dessert Party review…I don’t remember seeing those yummy-looking canoli at my dessert party…

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SHOUT-OUTS TO NEWSWORTHY DISNEY FOODIES
Finally — I want to give a couple of shout-outs to some Disney foodie friends of mine:

First, a HUGE congrats and shout-out to one of my favorite food blogs — Tasty Chomps — for finishing as a finalist/runner up in the Best Local Blog/Blogger category in Orlando Sentinel’s Best Bets for 2009!

Also, remember when I posted an interview with Dawn Viola, a National Pie Champion, Orlando chef, and volunteer Disney sous chef? She was recently highlighted on the news in Orlando as a featured chef — there’s even a great video where she demonstrates the secrets to making her blue-ribbon-winning Apple Pie! Congrats, Dawn!

New Surf’s Up! Breakfast with Mickey & Friends at Disneyland’s PCH Grill

By AJ Leave a Comment

Exciting news! Starting December 11th, 2009, the Aloha Breakfast with Lilo and Stitch will switch to Surf’s Up! Breakfast with Mickey and Friends!

According to @DisneylandNews on twitter:

Beginning Dec. 11, the character breakfast at Disney’s PCH Grill will change to “Surf’s Up! Breakfast with Mickey & Friends.” New breakfast buffet will include flatbreads from a wood burning oven & signature chilaquiles with shredded beef, salsa verde & queso fresco.

Sounds good to us!

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