MousePlanning

One of the things I anticipated most about attending a Star Wars Weekend at Disney’s Hollywood Studios was going to special character meet-n-greet opportunities!  It was great fun, but I have to say that I’m glad that I was by myself on a research trip rather than with my family.  I learned some very important things that will really help me to prepare my kids for what to expect when we go.  I’m going to pass my wisdom along to you!

First of all, special character greetings begin around 10:00am, although specific characters may appear sooner or later.  Regardless, you want to get on line early.  Here I was a solo traveler with nothing to hold me back, so I made sure to get on line as soon as I found out the location of a character I wanted to meet.  I got on line to meet Mickey Mouse in Jedi Knight robes 45 minutes before he was scheduled to appear.  There were already 20 people in front of me by the time I got on line.  About five minutes before Mickey was scheduled to appear, here is what the line looked like behind me:

I couldn’t even see the end of the line from where I was standing!  Did I mention that I was basically standing in the sun this entire time?  It was pretty hot and it was only around 10:00am.  But Mickey Mouse finally arrived!  I took a picture of him making his way to the photo location.

Mickey Mouse as a Jedi Knight

The line finally started moving as Mickey greeted the Guests.  When I was about six people away from the head of the line, Mickey took a break.  That is normal and expected.  What I didn’t expect was for Minnie Mouse, as Princess Leia, to arrive five minutes after Mickey left.  The line began to move forward, and I ended up getting a photo opportunity with Minnie instead!

Yes, that’s right.  I waited 75 minutes to meet Mickey Mouse and ended up meeting Minnie Mouse.  That’s when I learned that multiple characters meet at the same location, usually one at a time.  There is no guarantee that you’re going to be able to meet a specific character.  Who you get to see depends on who is there when you reach the front of the line.  In this particular location, I could have met Mickey (as a Jedi Knight), Minnie (as Princess Leia), Donald (as a Storm Trooper), or Goofy (as Darth Vader).  I later found out that there are signs telling you which characters appear and where.

Multiple Characters appear in rotation at a given location.

Now, as an adult, it didn’t bother me at all.  However, I’m quite sure my kids would have been extremely upset had they been on line for that long expecting to meet Ahsoka Tano and ending up meeting Ventress.  But it’s all about what they expect, and now I know how to prepare my kids for these meet-n-greets:

1. Arrive early.
2. Expect to wait.
3. Be prepared to wait exposed to the elements.
4. Don’t expect a specific character & be happy with who you get.

That being said, I had a ton of fun meeting the Star Wars characters.  They really play their parts well, some more than others.  (The best, by far, was Boba Fett! I could have watched him greet people all day long.)  I really can’t wait to go back with the kids!

Captain Rex is going to take a break.

Darth Goofy

Shaak Ti greets a Youngling

A Stormtrooper is surrounded by fans.

Princess Leia & The Mouse Planner

Jango Fett poses with Guests

Jango Fett's "handler" is more dangerous than Jango!

Chewbacca the Wookie

Anakin Skywalker and The Mouse Planner

Clone Troopers roam the Studios.

Commander Cody takes his orders from The Mouse Planner.

Boba Fett captures a notorious scoundrel.

Star Wars Weekends

Star Wars Weekend – you will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy. We must be cautious…

Oh, wait. That’s Mos Eisley Spaceport. Sorry.

Not everyone is a Star Wars fan, and you don’t have to be a Star Wars fan in order to enjoy spending time at Disney’s Hollywood Studios during a Star Wars Weekend. If you want, you can ignore all the special character meet-n-greets. You can ignore all the special Star Wars presentations. You don’t have to visit the special Star Wars merchandise tent. In fact, Star Wars Weekend won’t interfere with your enjoyment of the theme park at all.  However, if you are a Star Wars fan, you need to be prepared for what things are going to be like.

First, expect to see Guests dressed up as Star Wars characters.

From kids in simple costumes…

To kids who go all out…

From old…

To young…

From solo…

To group…

From light side…

To dark side…

In Part 2 of this series, I’ll tell you about the special character meet-n-greet opportunities at Star Wars Weekends.

I had heard a whole lot of good things about Bluezoo. Inn fact, the two Disney food lovers whose opinion I value above all others, AJ from the Disney Food Blog and Lou Mongello from WDW Radio, have outright raved about this place. Since I was going to be in Disney World without the wife and kids, I decided to take the opportunity to see if Bluezoo lived up to the hype.  Accompanied by my good friend and frequent Disney dining companion Nicole, I risked wearing pants (instead of shorts) in Florida in May in order to be appropriately dressed for a fine culinary adventure.

We arrived at the Dolphin Resort and took the escalator down to the restaurant. The sign proudly proclaimed Todd English’s name and there was a fancy waterfall in the entryway. However, I found the entryway a little underwhelming, mostly because there were no delicious aromas wafting around and enticing us to move inside.

The pleasant hostesses greeted us with a smile, but my eyes were drawn beyond them to the spectacular decor. The restaurant is certainly much more impressive on the inside than it is on the outside.  The gentleman who escorted us to our seats seemed a little wary of us.  I suspect he was wondering what I was doing going out to dinner at a fancy restaurant with a lady who looks half my age, or maybe he just thought (as my wife pointed out when she saw the pictures) that the pants I was wearing looked about five years out of style.

Once we were seated, our waitress, Rhonda, promptly appeared. Although I was a waiter for many years and I’m very understanding about how tough a server’s job is, I am also very picky about what constitutes great service.  From being patient with our many questions to making excellent (and honest) recommendations, Rhonda clearly loved her work and was a high point of our dining experience.

My first question was if they have any non-alcoholic specialty drinks. I’m always going for those since I don’t drink alcohol but I love getting drinks in fancy glasses. Sadly, they did not have Dry Soda available to pair with the meal.  (Yes, that’s right.  You can pair soda with a meal.  I’m actually surprised that more high-end restaurants don’t carry Dry Soda for that very reason.) I was given the choice of a No-jito or a virgin pina colada. I opted for the nojito since it takes a good effort to make correctly. While I can’t say it paired well with my meal, I can say that it was made perfectly and I really enjoyed drinking it!

Next came the bread service.  There were three different types of bread. I don’t remember what they were called, exactly.  One was a focaccia onion bread, another was a big yummy loaf of something, and the other was a thin sheet of crispiness.  All were accompanied by a creamy fennel butter.  If you remember my review of the Kona Cafe, you’ll remember that Nicole can really put away the bread.  Consequently, the bread didn’t last long.

At this point we began to discuss appetizers and our personal food preferences started interfering with our plans. Nicole doesn’t eat seafood at all. I don’t care for salad. This made it hard to split an appetizer.  At one point, I thought I had a solution: the Teppan Seared Jumbo Sea Scallops came with two scallops on top of braised beef short rib.  I could eat the scallops and Nicole could eat the rib meat.  Rhonda put a stop to that.  They were meant to be eaten together and we wouldn’t get the full effect of the dish if we split it up, she said.  I decided at that point I had to put aside my simple, meat-and-potatoes-kind-of-guy tastes and embrace the fancy Food Channel special attitude that I normally avoid.  I was so glad I did.  I could have happily eaten three more orders.

Additionally, Nicole decided to order the beet salad.  She loved it and fortunately couldn’t eat the whole thing.  I decided to sample what was left since my wife loves beets and would probably hit me if I didn’t try it for her when I had the chance.  I ended up eating the rest of it.  This is a really big deal for me.  I hate most salads and don’t care much for beets, but I would eat this salad any day of the week.  It was awesome.

Now for the entrees.  Nicole had decided on the Mesquite Rubbed Beef Tenderloin – celery root, asparagus, seasonal mushrooms, warm salsify gel, veal jus.

I was seriously thinking about the Ahi Tuna, but the chef’s creation was extremely tempting:  Waygu flat iron steak.  I really couldn’t decide.  Bluezoo is a seafood restaurant, but I love a good flat iron steak and this was a Waygu beef flat iron steak!  I took the coward’s way out and asked our waitress to surprise me.

Thankfully, Rhonda had excellent taste.  As she put it, not much is going to beat this special.  Keep in mind that I didn’t have (and still don’t have) any idea what most of the ingredients were in this special.  A sous vide duck egg (huh?), grano, confit ciopillini onion, charred maitake mushroom (I normally hate mushrooms), young kohlrabi, celery root lambsquarter…

Quite frankly, after one bite I didn’t care what was in it.  All I knew what that it all tasted so amazing that I had to keep eating it.  I left nothing on my plate at all. Nicole probably ate all of her steak.  I wasn’t paying much attention.  I kept staring at my empty plate hoping that another portion would magically appear so that I could continue stuffing my face.

Eventually someone came along and took my plate away.  Fortunately, my favorite course was up next — dessert!  Here is where I really am in my element.  While I like and appreciate fine dining, I can take it or leave it.  If I never ate another steak like that, I’d be perfectly fine.  I could probably eat at diners, drive-ins, and dives for the rest of my life and be happy with those kinds of meals.  What I really care about — what I live for — is dessert.

Once again there were a bunch of great options to choose from.  For some reason, the Lemon Meringue Pavlova really interested me.  The menu description was:  lemon curd, cassis agar, (hazelnut) crumble, vanilla lemon peel ice cream, lemon vanilla sauce, mini lemon macaroons.  There wasn’t any chocolate in this, and I had no idea what a pavlova was, so I was surprised to find myself thinking that I was going to order it over the Warm Chocolate Raspberry Molten Cake.  For insurance, I also ordered us the American Classics Dessert trio — a s’more, a chocolate cream beignet, and a mini strawberry sundae.  This turned out to be a big mistake.

I should have ordered two of the Lemon Meringue Pavlovas.  Don’t get me wrong; the American Classics was a great dessert (especially the beignet).  However, the Lemon Meringue Pavlova blew me away.  I tasted it and I think my head exploded.  I’ve eaten a whole lot of desserts in my lifetime, from amazing homemade desserts to desserts served in some of the best restaurants in the United States.  Never had I experienced a dessert like this before.  In one mouthful it was smooth, chewy, crunchy, silky, and light.  Three kinds of lemon flavor danced across my tastebuds accompanied by hints of vanilla and hazelnut.  After the last bite was gone, it took me over 90 minutes to stop thinking about how wonderful that dessert was.  It took me two more days to get over it and actually enjoy some other kind of dessert.

Overall, Bluezoo not only lived up to the hype, it is now on top of my list of The Best Places to Eat in Disney World.  I will certainly be returning to eat here with my wife on our next trip, and I’m positive that Nicole is already hinting to her boyfriend that she’d like to eat at Bluezoo again.  The staff, the atmosphere, the food, the service — everything about this restaurant was top notch.

One of my favorite locations in Walt Disney World is Main Street, USA. This is kind of ironic in that, on my first trip to Disney World I sped past Main Street as fast as I possibly could in order to get to 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea. As an 11 year old kid, I wanted adventure and excitement. To me, Main Street was just a street and didn’t hold much appeal except for maybe the Magic Shop and the Penny Arcade.

When I plan people’s itineraries, Main Street USA poses the biggest problems. There is so much to do and so much to see there, but when a family only has one day in the Magic Kingdom it can be critical for them to just walk right down the middle of Main Street USA in order to get to all the attractions in the other lands that they want to see that day. They often have it in their mind that Disney World is all about “rides” and, since there are no “rides” on Main Street (except the trolley and jitneys) they don’t even consider it, much as I didn’t my first time. This is nothing short of a tragedy, for Disney World is not about “rides.” It’s about “attractions,” and there are plenty of attractions on Main Street, USA.

The first attraction on Main Street USA is the opening ceremony that happens every morning at the Main Street Station. It sets the tone for the day and never fails to bring a tear to my eye. (There’s a reason I wear sunglasses to see it.) Singing, dancing, characters, and the Walt Disney World Railroad all play a role in opening up the Magic Kingdom with a little magic mixed up with pixie dust.

I consider the theming and the views on Main Street to be attractions in and of themselves, and a big part of this are the window displays. Rather than rush down to the Hub and the Castle, why not stroll down the sidewalk and look at the amazing details of the window displays?

By far my favorite attractions on Main Street USA are the live entertainment offerings. Each group is awesome in and of itself and adds to the atmosphere of Main Street. Whether you’re listening to the amazing harmonies of the Dapper Dans barbershop quartet, clapping along with the Main Street Philharmonic marching band, or watching the Main Street Trolley Show, there is always something interesting to listen to or watch. People need to be aware that these performances are worth stopping for (and participating in!). Also be on the lookout for custodians who draw pictures on the street using water, Cast Members handing out hula hoops and getting people playing jump rope, and more!

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the residents of Main Street. Sure, you can meet characters like Chip & Dale, Daisy Duck, Pluto, and even Mickey Mouse, on Main Street, but I’m talking about the residents of Main Street. People like Mayor Weaver, Fire Chief Smokey Miller, Councillor Dewey Cheatem, Inga DePoint, and Hildegard Olivia Harding. These characters are just as real as Mickey Mouse and help reinforce the story that you’re immersed in.

Wait a minute! Story? There’s a story behind Main Street USA? Yes, there is! While it’s beyond the scope of this humble blog entry to tell you why every day is the 4th of July on Main Street, you can learn a little bit about it by downloading these two episodes of the WDW Radio Show (#197 and #198) and also by purchasing Lou Mongello’s Audio Guide to Main Street USA.

These are just some of the things that I really enjoy about Main Street, U.S.A. Please, take the time to explore and enjoy this often-overlooked gem.  You just might be surprised at the memories that you create when, instead of making a mad dash for Space Mountain, you instead take a leisurely stroll through this amazing land in the Magic Kingdom.

I just wanted to bring your attention to an article written by my friend Jess.  As any experienced Disney traveler knows, Disney has developed some unique terminology that, while simple, can be confusing to someone who has never been to Disney World before.  Her article defines some of the more “confusing” terms.  Since I work so often with people going to Disney World for the first time I am in the habit of explaining this terminology to my clients, and I think it is great that Jess has taken the initiative to explain this terminology to the general public!

There is a Weenie in this picture. If you don't know what a Weenie is, check out Jess's article.

Two things that occured at the Destination D event at Disney World really got me thinking. First, there was the announcement that the Enchanted Tiki Room: Under New Management is going to be converted into something that very closely resembles the original Tiki Room Tropical Serenade.  If you read my previous blog post on the fire in the Tiki Room a few months ago, you’ll know that I consider this welcome news.

The second occurrence was the appearance of The Dreamfinder and Figment during Richard Sherman’s session at Destination D.  This got me thinking about how awesome it would be if they’d make the Imagination Pavilion into something that very closely resembles the original attraction, complete with an updated Image Works like it used to be!  Unfortunately, I don’t see Disney doing this any time soon, and I’m not going to hire an arsonist to start a fire in Journey Into Imagination With Figment as some people are encouraging me to do.

But despite the current, uninspired attraction there is one thing about the Imagination Pavilion that hasn’t really changed since the park opened. The jumping water fountains were a delight to me on my first visit to Epcot back in 1983,

and they continue to be a delight to people today. From the leapfrogging water to the jellyfish shooters to the reverse waterfall, this is one part of the Imagination Pavilion worth visiting on every trip to Epcot.  If you have children, you’d be wise to plan to spend at least 45 minutes letting your kids enjoy themselves in that area. Also, expect them to get wet. It will happen. Trust me.

I’ve had quite a busy month!

I was a guest on the Tiara Talk Podcast as part of a round-table discussion giving a recap of the WDW Radio Dream Cruise, complete with fun anecdotes and tips.  If you want to find out if I’m really Lou Mongello’s brother, just listen to Episode 2.

I also managed to appear on an episode of “See Ya’ Real Late” with Tom Corless of WDW News Today.  We were discussing the new interactive queue at the Haunted Mansion as well as the new Hitchhiking Ghost audioanimatronics and effects. Needless to say, I’m thrilled with the updates.  I think the interactive queue not only gives kids something fun to do while waiting on line, it gives kids a sense of the “fun” side of the Haunted Mansion and sets the tone for the attraction.  I’ve also been a long-time advocate of upgrading the audioanimatronic figures and effects in older attractions, provided that the upgrades don’t change the attraction.  The Imagineers got it right in this instance.

I also attended a Disney Interactive media event in New York City where they previewed three video games.

I had a chance to play all three of these games and I honestly couldn’t decide which I liked more.  Each had a different feel to it.  The Lego Pirates of the Caribbean game was just a blast with the fun puzzles and cut scenes that I’ve come to expect from Lego video games.  Cars 2 was a fun, high energy racing game that reminded me of a slick version of Mario Kart.  Phineas and Ferb was a throwback to my favorite classic adventure games from the late 1980′s or early 1990′s, but with a modern twist to it.   I’m going to have to purchase all three once they are released.

Also at the media event, I found out the Disney is celebrating the upcoming royal marriage of Prince William and Catherine Middleton with the Happily Ever After Contest. While following royal weddings isn’t really my cup of tea, getting a chance to win a free trip to Disney World is.  There are also some great activities for young Princesses to be found on the website, too.

Finally, I wrote an article for The Disney Driven Life giving tips on how to avoid losing your children when vacationing at Disney World.  If I do say so myself, it is well worth your time to read it.

The Kona Cafe, located at the Polynesian Resort, is a longtime favorite restaurant of mine and a couple of weeks ago I was able to enjoy a dinner there with my wife Charity, our baby, and friend Nicole. After spending a fun day in the Magic Kingdom, we hopped on the ferry for a beautiful sunset boat ride to the Polynesian.  The torch-lit walk from the boat dock, past the volcano pool to the Great Ceremonial House reminded me once again how the Polynesian resort is able to transport you into a different and exotic world.

The restaurant is located on the second floor of the Great Ceremonial House. I love the tropical, floral-themed decor and the lighting; it sets up just the right ambiance for a putting a person at ease.  However, with nothing but a short wall separating the restaurant from the spacious and active lobby, the Kona Cafe is not the place to go if you’re looking for a quiet dinner. (I don’t find the noise level to be particularly loud. It is more of an active social buzz that I think encourages conversation as opposed to an atmosphere where you feel you have to whisper to your dining companions.)

After dragging Charity and Nicole away from the awesome display of desserts, we sat down and decided on our meal as we stuffed ourselves with the sweet bread & macadamia nut butter.  For appetizers, I decided to get the Pot Stickers (“wok-seared duck dumplings with creamy ginger-soy sauce”), and my wife opted for the Kona Salad (“mixed greens, blue cheese, fresh fruit, red onions, and smoked almonds with citrus vinaigrette”).  Nicole chose to eat more of the bread.

After some joking about which Disney duck had been sacrificed in order to create the dumplings (we decided it must have been Darkwing Duck since he hasn’t been seen in years), we all agreed that the dumplings by themselves were just okay.  However, the ginger-soy sauce was wonderful!  The Kona Salad was a big hit with my wife, and Nicole had to ask for another loaf of bread.

For our entrées, I ordered the Tuna Oscar (“served with fried green tomatoes, tempura-fried jumbo lump crab, and Wasabi Hollandaise”), Charity chose the Pan Asian Noodles with chicken (“Asian noodles with sliced chicken, peanuts, seasonal vegetables, and soy-peanut sauce”), and Nicole had the Coconut-Almond Chicken (“breaded and baked chicken breast served with a salad of Asian greens, fresh fruit, and almonds”).

The Tuna Oscar was a great dish! The tuna was excellent, and the fried green tomatoes were near to perfect. The only place the dish came up short was the tempura-fried jumbo crab. While I’m not a big fan of crab (I ordered the dish for the tuna, fried green tomatoes, and hollandaise), even I was disappointed by the puny size of the crab cakes.

My wife’s entrée, the Pan-Asian noodles, was instantly forgettable save for the noodles — they weren’t Asian noodles at all! As far as we could tell, it was spaghetti noodles. (I’m an Irish-Italian American with a heavy emphasis on the Italian.  I know my pasta.)

Nicole’s Coconut-Almond Chicken was another win.  She had said it was her favorite dish on the menu, and after having a bite I could easily agree with her.  The chicken itself was excellent and just thinking about the coconut-almond breading on the chicken has my mouth watering. I know what I’m ordering the next time I have dinner at the Kona Cafe.

And now, I move on to my favorite part of the meal — the desserts.  Charity and Nicole had already decided to each have their own Banana-Chocolate Creme Brulee.  I opted for the Pineapple Upside Down Cake.

I detest bananas, so I didn’t even ask for a bite of the ladies’ desserts. They were both very happy about that, since they declared the dessert to be excellent.  Apparently, the layer of chocolate under the creme brulee is what really made it so great.  I left feeling a little disappointed. The pineapple upside down cake looked scrumptious and flavor-wise it was exactly what I was looking for.  But the cake overall was too dry and that overshadowed the flavor and left me begging for a glass of milk.

Overall, we enjoyed a wonderful dinner at the Kona Cafe. The food hits outnumbered the misses, and the atmosphere was pleasant as it always is. As we left the restaurant to jump on the monorail back to the Magic Kingdom, I was glad that we had made the choice to dine at the Kona Cafe once more.