During each visit to Disney World I like to try new things. One of the new things I tried on this most recent trip was Chef Art Smith’s Homecomin’ in Disney Springs.
Main Street Wishes Reviews: Chef Art Smith’s Homecomin’
Category Archives: Reviews
Main Street Wishes Reviews: The Cabins at Disney’s Fort Wilderness
Disney’s Fort Wilderness is pretty big and spread out. It is set on 750 acres and has both cabins and the campgrounds. The cabins can have up to six people in them, so they are a good option for bigger travel parties.
Main Street Wishes Reviews: The Wave … of American Flavors (Breakfast Buffet)
During each visit to Disney World I like to try different restaurants on property. There are lots to choose from, so there is always an opportunity to try something new.
Main Street Wishes Reviews: The Grand Floridian Cafe
During the last trip to Disney World my friend wanted to have lunch at the Grand Floridian. We decided on the Grand Floridian Cafe, because of availability and the fact that neither of us had been there.
Cooking the Disney Way: Pollo a las Rajas
It has been a while since I have made one of the recipes from our Disney cookbook. So, I thought it was time to crack open the cookbook again. My husband and I both looked it over and we agreed on the Pollo a las Rajas from San Angel Inn Restaurante in the Mexico pavilion in Epcot.
On our next trip we are staying at the Boardwalk Villas, so we will be within walking distance of Epcot and all the wonderful dining experiences in the World Showcase. Cooking this recipe gave us a sample of what San Angel Inn Restaurante has on their menu and we we not disappointed.
For legal reasons, I cannot actually post the recipe (it being copyrighted material and all), but I can give you a review of the recipe. If it sounds good to you then you can always look for the book the next time you are in Disney. I’m not sure if you can order it directly from Disney, but it cannot hurt to call and ask. I found a Guest Services number on disneystore.com, 1-800-328-0368. The name of the cookbook is ‘Cooking with Mickey and the Disney Chefs’ by Pam Brandon and I purchased it from the gift shop at Animal Kingdom Lodge.
The copyright info from the book. I know some people do not pay attention to this, but I do not want to be on the receiving end of Disney’s legal team.
The front cover of the book, in case you would like to buy it.
Now for the recipe review. We loved it! Well, my husband and I did. Our kids are still young and sometimes it is hard to get them to try something that “looks different.” All in good time. If you like Mexican food then you will love this. It is a nice step away from the usually burritos and quesadillas. The vegetables are in a type of cream sauce, but there is a little kick to it, so it is a perfect topper for the chicken.
Cooking up the veggies!
This mixture tastes so good! 
The chicken topped with the mixture.
All of the flavors worked so well together with this recipe. So, again, if you are a fan of Mexican food chances are you will love this dish. We have decided to put San Angel Inn on the list of restaurants to try next time. I have heard good things, so we are excited to try more dishes from this restaurant.
I have tried quite a few recipes from this book and we have yet to come across a bad one. There may be some that not everyone likes, but there is always at least one person who will enjoy it. For example, for his birthday I made my husband the Coconut Curried Chicken Stew from Boma–Flavors of Africa. He loved it, but I am not that big on curry. I told him the soup was all his and I don’t think he was disappointed about that. That’s why I recommend this book. There is something for everyone. Plus, it’s fun to cook the Disney recipes and add a little Disney to your meal! Happy cooking!
Thanks for reading!
Liz ⁰o⁰
Alice In Wonderland Tea Cup
To go along with my Mickey Mouse tea kettle, it only makes sense to have a Disney themed tea cup. I have “a few”, but my favorite is my Alice in Wonderland tea cup. A few years ago, when we were in Epcot touring the World Showcase, I found this tea cup and fell in love. The design is beautiful and I love using it to drink my tea!
How cute is it?! As you can see the tea cup has both Alice and the March Hare sharing a cup of tea. If you look closely you can also see the dormouse peeking out from the tea kettle. The same scene is on the other side of the cup as well.
All the details on the tea cup are great. On the inside of the cup there is an image of a horsefly and on the saucer the horsefly appears again as well as the bread and butterflies. I love the scalloped edges of the saucer too!
The horsefly image on the inside of the cup.
Horseflies, bread and butterflies,
and flowers decorate the saucer.
The scalloped edges are a nice touch.
I love the detail on the handle.
It is a very nice looking tea cup and it has a good weight to it. So, it doesn’t feel like it is cheaply made. Like I said, I have had it for a few years and it is still in great condition. It cannot be put in the dishwasher or microwave, so make sure to hand wash them. That is probably why it is still in great condition, the paint doesn’t get worn off from the dishwasher or microwave.
I’m not sure if they still have them in the United Kingdom in Epcot, but they do have them online. Each tea cup is $24.95. So they are not cheap, but if you like tea cups this is a good one to use and it looks nice on display. I keep it on display in our kitchen and it looks really nice with my other tea cups. It has made its way onto my wishlist for Christmas, because I’d really like to have two. I’m kicking myself for only buying one when we were there. They also have a tea kettle that goes with the cups, but it is not on Disney’s website right now. I’m hoping, the closer it get to Christmas, they will restock them.
Image from Ebay
So, there are two available on Ebay for $64.95…I think I’m going to wait and see if disneystore.com restocks them. It’s a cute kettle though, isn’t it? They had mugs at one time. Maybe those well be restocked too. Fingers crossed!
Image from Amazon
There are two mugs available on Amazon for $25.63 (at least at the time of writing this that was the price). That price is actually very decent and close to the original price, plus it is Prime, so if you have Amazon Prime you won’t have to pay shipping. Love Prime!
If you are looking for a nice addition to your tea cups this one is great. The design is beautiful, it is well made, and it looks great on display. As you can tell, I love my Alice in Wonderland tea cup 🙂
Thanks for reading!
*Liz*
Review: California Grill [VIDEO]
One restaurant we really enjoy is California Grill. It is located at The Contemporary resort on the 15th floor and the views are absolutely amazing! You get to look out over the Magic Kingdom as you are dining on some very delicious food. Our group (we traveled with friends) had four kids in the group and all four of them loved being able to see the castle as we ate.
When you arrive at the Contemporary, make your way inside and you will find the desk for California Grill. There, they will take your name and check on your reservation. If it is time for your reservation, one of the cast members will escort you to the California Grill elevator. This part was pretty cool. The elevator goes directly to the 15th floor. I love that the restaurant has their own elevator!
Once you have been escorted to the restaurant, you can wait in the lounge and look over the menu, get drinks, and check out the view. This was the first time at California Grill for everyone in our group and I think everyone was pretty impressed with the view from the restaurant.
It is lined with huge windows so you can see out from any point, no matter where you are sitting. We were lucky enough to have a table right by a window, so the kids were entertained the entire time with the view. We were going to the Magic Kingdom the next day, so they were pointing out different things they wanted to see. As the sun went down, the view only got better!
Now for the food. All I can say is…delicious! I had the sweet potato gnocchi and, wow, was it good. We each ordered different meals (except Steph and I, we both got the pasta), but whether it was pasta, steak, seafood, or something off the sushi menu, everyone was very pleased with what they ordered. I can also say that the martinis were very good!
Another bonus? The kids loved their meals! They do have a separate kids menu, so you can definitely bring the kids here. They all ordered the pizza and it was a success all around! The pizzas came with a choice of water, milk or apple juice and a choice of fruit, ice cream, or yogurt parfait for dessert. We had some pretty happy kids after that meal!
I always like to check out the dessert menu (sweet tooth!) to see if anything sparks my interest. Since I have a sweet tooth, I can usually find something. My husband isn’t into desserts as much as I am, so he just ordered a scotch for dessert and I think he was very happy with his choice.
For me, I ordered the Sundae Sampler (our friend Jay did too). I had been doing research on the different restaurants we were going to dine in while on vacation and I kept seeing pictures of this Sundae Sampler at California Grill. After looking at the dessert menu, I was happy to see it was still on there. Talk about yummy! It was delicious and just enough food for dessert! I highly recommend this for anyone looking for a good dessert to follow up a delicious meal. Plus, the mini Coke bottle was super cute. I wanted to sneak it in my purse, but I figured they might notice.
Once you have finished your meal and paid the check, make sure to hold on to your receipt. If it is not time for the Wishes fireworks show at the Magic Kingdom yet, you can come back later and show your receipt. This allows you to go back up to the restaurant and watch the fireworks from their observation deck.
What a great view! Not only can you see the fireworks, but they pipe in the narration as well! You get the full effect of the show, without having to deal with the crowds. We had an hour or so before the fireworks started, so we just did the monorail loop. The kids loved it because it was like another ride to them!
Once it was time, we showed our receipt, took the elevator back up, and comfortably watched the fireworks. It was amazing and the kids had the best time. This is an especially good option if your kids don’t like loud noises. The fireworks are far enough away where they shouldn’t get scared, but you still get to see the whole show.
Everyone had such a good experience at California Grill! So much so, I believe it is definitely on the list of reservations to be made for next year. It is a splurge for us, but it’s worth it. Between the good food, the amazing view, the fireworks viewing, all the smiles from the kids…it’s definitely worth it for the memories.
Feel free to share your experience in the comments if you have dined at California Grill. It’s great to hear different experiences!
Thanks for reading!
*Liz*
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