WDW Resorts: The Value, the Moderate and the Deluxe - Why Do We Care?

RESORTS OF THE WORLD

My first trip to Walt Disney World was in 1998.  After growing up in California, I was unprepared for the vast acreage The World encompasses.  In my opinion, staying on property is a MUST.  The Disney Magic starts when you cross on to property.  I am not making this up, the second you pass under the Walt Disney World arch, the signs are bright, there is no litter, things are cleaner and happier and I swear a little sunnier.  This feeling continues into each part of your vacation, giving you a little taste of Stepford only without the evil robots.  A themed resort, in various price brackets, is essential to the complete Disney experience.

For that first trip we were on a budget and stayed at a value resort.  Values are the steerage class of the Disney properties.  However this means steerage on a luxury liner as opposed to a freighter.  You still will get a better experience than staying at the Holiday Inn in Kissimmee (which I also have done).  We stayed at All Star Music.

At the time of our trip the only Value properties were All Star Sports and All Star Music.  All Star Movies was in the process of being built and Pop Century was only a glint in an Imagineers eye.  The down side of the Values are the small size of the rooms, the amount of screaming kids, the distance to any of the parks and the lack of a sit down restaurant.

When I stayed at All Star Music, I was not bothered with any of the down sides.  The rooms are small, that is true.  However if you are not spending a great deal of time in the room, the size really doesn't matter.  The rooms are about the size of your average Motel 6 but are clean and do have the small Disney touches.  Are there screaming kids?  Sure, the value resorts are the prime destination for families on a budget but if you are in the parks during the day by the time you get back (and have a night cap at the bar) most of the kids are passed out anyway.

Sure, there is no sit down restaurant but that just gives you the opportunity to eat at other resorts and check them out for future stays.  The rooms are all "outside" access meaning the doors are fronting an outdoor breezeway like a Motel 6.  Only the Deluxe resorts have rooms that are in hallways like "regular" hotels.

My next trip was to a moderate resort, Port Orleans (now renamed Port Orleans: French Quarter).

The moderates, Port Orleans, Dixie Landings (now Port Orleans: Riverside), Caribbean Beach Club and Coronado Springs are the equivalent of 2nd Class and give you a little more comfort without paying a Deluxe price.  They each have a sit down restaurant with the exception of Port Orleans: French Quarter.  Bonfamille's closed in 2000 so guests can use Boatwrights, the sit down place over at Riverside which is a 5 minute walk away.  These two resorts are "sister" resorts and share facilities.  

Of the four resorts, my favorite is Port Orleans: French Quarter.  It is the smallest of the moderates which is in your favor if you have tired kids at the end of the day.  You don't have a long walk to the bus stop.  The theming is beautiful, romantic and they have the coolest themed pool with a water slide in the shape of a sea serpent.  Both of the sister resorts share a boat to Downtown Disney which makes for one nice, relaxing bit of transportation.  Disney does provide free bus service but let's face it, during the busy times you are going to be standing and packed in with a bunch of grumpy adults and screaming kids.  It's like BART/Metro at rush hour.  No fun.

I moved up to the First Class Deluxe resort experience in 2001 and have not looked back.  I have stayed at Wilderness Lodge for my past four trips and it is truly my home away from home.

You can see why I just don't want to go back to a Value resort if I can at all help it.  The Deluxe resorts all have extra theming, amenities, one gourmet restaurant at least, inside room access, executive levels and a secondary sit down restaurant as well.

THE MAGIC KINGDOM RESORTS
Wilderness Lodge has Artist Point as it's gourmet restaurant, Whispering Canyon Cafe (which is anything but whispering), boat transport to Magic Kingdom as well as the Contemporary and Fort Wilderness.

The Grand Floridian, a Victorian Seaside getaway, has Victoria & Alberts (one of the finest 5 star restaurants you will find) as well as Citricos & Narcooses as its gourmet dining places and 1900 Park Fare as its secondary eatery.  Yes, they have more but the GF is the flagship Deluxe resort so they are entitled.  They are also on the monorail route to the Magic Kingdom as well as the Ticket & Transportation Center where you can catch a monorail to Epcot.  The monorail service is shared with the Polynesian and the Contemporary resorts as well  The Grand Floridian also has boat service to Magic Kingdom.

The Polynesian does not have a gourmet restaurant per say but they do have O'hana (which has a great character breakfast) and Kona Cafe as well as a luau called the Spirit of Aloha at Luau Cove.  They have a white sand beach, waterfalls and a general tropical islands flair.

The Contemporary (or the giant toaster as I like to call it) has California Grill as it's gourmet destination with a great view of the fireworks, Chef Mickey's (a character meal venue) and The Wave, a new upscale sit down eatery.  It is "modern" as modern was envisioned by Walt in the 1960's.  It is modular construction (each room section was built individually and craned into place) and has the monorail running straight through the building.  It also has a talking elevator.

All of the above resorts also rent water craft such as wave mice, sail boats, have fishing trips, parasailing AND get to see a little electric water parade in the evening.

THE EPCOT RESORTS
The Boardwalk boasts many great eateries as well as a functioning Boardwalk with shops, games and entertainment.  The best of the restaurants is the Flying Fish.  There is also Big River Grille & Brewery, ESPN Club, and Kouzzina (by Cat Cora).

The Beach Club has Cape May which sports character dining for breakfast and a clam bake for dinner.  It's sister resort, Yacht Club has Yachtsmans Steakhouse as its gourmet dinner destination.

These three Disney resorts have the Friendship boat that takes guests to the International Gateway of Epcot in World Showcase and makes a trip to Disney Studios as well.

In addition to these three Disney properties there are also two hotels that are not owned by Disney but are still included in our little family.  The Swan/Dolphin resorts are run by Sheridan & Marriott.  However the hotels contain all of the bonuses of a full Disney resort except for some of the theming.  It is more a "real nice hotel" as opposed to a mountain get away or a tropical paradise.  As a result you can get some great deals.  The food here is also very good and includes Kimonos sushi bar (the only place in the World you can get real sushi and that does NOT include California roll) and Todd English's Blue Zoo.

The final deluxe is really out on it's own and is the newest to the deluxe family.  Animal Kingdom Lodge is next to the Animal Kingdom and while it only has bus transportation available it does have something the other resorts don't have.  Wild animals.  You can see animals from the resort viewing areas and from Savannah view rooms 24/7.  Their gourmet restaurant is Jiko (one of my favs) and their secondary buffet dining is Boma.  They also have a fabulous bar.  The design of their lobby is similar to Wilderness Lodge and the Grand Californian in Disneyland.  All have the same designer and they are amazing!

You may want to count pennies and say "we only sleep in our rooms so why not get something cheap at Downtown Disney and save that money for the Park?"  Why?  Because you will regret it.  Unless you live locally and can go whenever you want, this is a trip most of us do not make often.  The transportation of an off property hotel is spotty at best and takes longer.  Sure you can rent a car but you will have to PAY to park if you are not staying on property.  See?  The extra money is creeping in there anyway so you might as well stay on property.  If you are on a tight budget, stay at one of the All Star resorts or Pop.  It just makes things so much easier and cheaper in the long run.  You can snag some great package deals, plan your meals ahead of time and still have the bit of Disney Magic when you return all tired at the end of the night.  This is the magic that just makes you happy to be alive and makes you feel that dreams really can come true.

The Haunted Mansion: Past, Present, Burton and Future

The Haunted Mansion opened in Disneyland on August 9th, 1969, fourteen years after the opening of the Park itself.  While Walt supervised the attraction through various incarnations, he never saw it opened to the public as he died December 15th, 1966.

THE PAST

As a child, before I made my first trip to Disneyland at eight years old, I heard stories of the Haunted Mansion.  The kids on the playground would talk about the things they heard.  Of course these were things gleaned from reliable sources like someone's cousin's brother and being kids we KNEW they were true.  We heard the Haunted Mansion glowed green in the dark.  That it was so scary a man had a heart attack on the ride and died.  We heard that Walt Disney was one of the ghosts in the graveyard, the one pedestal statue that was broken and there was a detailed story line about Master Gracey and his bride.

Well, one of the things you learn when you grow up is not to believe everything you hear.

Due to all the stories of dead people and glowing houses I was too damned scared to go inside the Haunted Mansion when I was eight.  That had to wait for my next trip a few years later.  Even on that later trip, I was TERRIFIED of the bride in the attic.  She creeped me out even as a teen and I didn't want to look at her.

I also learned that:

- the Mansion never has glowed in the dark, green or any other color.  This fable may have originated from an album that we had:

The album not only depicts the Mansion as having a green cast to it but has the story of Master Gracey (which we will talk about later).

- no one died in the Mansion of a heart attack from fright

- the broken bust in the graveyard is Thurl Ravenscroft, the voice of many Disney attractions and the voice of Tony the Tiger.  He died in 2005 at the age of 91 so in a way that is his ghost singing to you.

- there was NEVER a specific story line fleshed out for the ride when it was developed.  Yale Gracey was one of the two Imagineers that worked on the ghost effects for the mansion and the ensuing story appears to be an homage to him.  A myriad of stories have sprung up in the ensuing years around the mansion as far as story lines go, including one with a sea captain and the brief book (a dozen pages) that were included with the above record album.  In the words of animator Marc Davis "We really don't have a story, with a beginning, an end, or a plot. It's more a series of experiences building up to a climax. I call them experience rides."

THE PRESENT

As the years moved on, the Haunted Mansion has captured a special place in my heart.  I love the ride with all of its details.  The decor, the sounds, the cast member costumes, the WALL PAPER!!  Gods I would love a house like that especially with that wallpaper.

After being so comfortable with the original antebellum Mansion in my home park:

I made a trip to Walt Disney World (the World) in 1998 and had my view of the Mansion challenged by the Florida version in the Magic Kingdom.  There is no New Orleans Square.  They have Liberty Square and that is where you will find their Mansion.  It is styled after the Dutch/colonial houses of the upper New York area.  To me, while pretty, it isn't as creepy.  Judge for yourself:

Aside from small differences inside the ride (you are actually inside the Doombuggies when you travel down the entrance halls with the changing portraits) and the expansion of a few scenes.  It is basically the same ride.

One change is the cemetery.  Just like Disneyland it is on the outside before you enter the building.  While both have humorous stones and both (such a sad addition) have tombstones of Marc Davis, beloved animator and one of the original "Nine Old Men".  He animated such characters as Alice, Cinderella, Aurora and Maleficent.

What this cemetery does have is an animated Madame Leota tombstone.

If you watch, her eyes will open, then close again and they are yellow!  It is kinda creepy.  This is why it always pays to pay attention to the Disney detail.

Another part of the Florida Haunted Mansion lore was "The Infamous Ring".  Many stories sprung up about a wedding ring hurled from the mansion by Gracey when he caught his wife with another man or the Bride hurling her ring out of the window before killing herself, the list goes on and on.  Guests hear through the grapevine that the ring is embedded in the cement at the exit of the ride and HERE IT IS!!!  

Actually it isn't a ring.  What guests have been looking for, talking about and holding up exiting guests with their hunting and picture taking is... a stanchion.  A small pole if you will that was sawed off and left what looked like a ring.  Guests have tried to dig it out (to no avail).  Disney finally got sick and tired of explaining this was NOT a ring, the story was BS, it was a pole, having people block the exit with their HUGE ... cameras so a few years ago... they poured cement over it.  There ya go, no more ring.

The other difference between the two parks is the level of guest interaction.  In California we tend to have more creative, play along audiences.  Also a great many locals who are involved in the entertainment industry and have Annual Passes.  It is a tradition with TONS of people to recite the Ghost Hosts lines when you are in the stretching room elevator and when the lightening strikes and the hanging body is reveled to scream like mad in the dark!  It's fun!  We LOVE it!

Guess what?  The Florida people are NOT amused.  They like their ride, staid, traditional and no screaming please.  They get really pissy if you do it.  I think they are thinking "Look at those California wackos with their sense of Park entitlement, trying to spoil all our fun with their screaming."  Florida people, honestly we are not trying to piss in your Cheerios.  This is how we role in Cali and if you come to Disneyland, you will see what I mean.  About the park entitlement, that is true.  Our park is better, Walt walked there, be jealous and deal.

THE BURTON

Another thing to be jealous about is Christmas in Disneyland at the Haunted Mansion.  Each year since October 3, 2001, the mansion gets a Nightmare Before Christmas overlay.  Florida doesn't get this.  Sorry.  If you don't want to go to LA, you can go to Tokyo.  They are the only two parks that have this holiday change over.

Now I will say right up front I HATE The Nightmare Before Christmas movie.  So many of my friends like it and I have tried.  I watch it, try to get through it, try to like it and... I don't.  It is creepy, disturbing and I wouldn't let little kids watch this on a bet.  Tim Burton is pretty predictable in his style and that style has many disturbing elements.  I could go on and on but this isn't about his weird ass movie.  That being said, I LOVE the re-do of the Mansion.  It brings all the best parts of the movie to the fore without the disturbing bits.  The characters are more fun and "lovable".  

In March I will get to see the Classic Mansion for the first time in years.  Why?  The overlay is active from September through January and as a result I have not seen the Disneyland mansion in its regular guise for over 5 years, maybe longer.  I tend to visit the park around my birthday (which is in October) so the only "classic mansion" I've been able to see is at WDW.  The irony.

THE FUTURE

I have heard that in my absence of Classic Mansion, some changes have been made.  They have re-tooled the attic scene and the Bride that use to scare the pants off of me.  They have re-imagined her as a black widow, marrying rich men and then killing them for their dough.  I can't wait to see it.  What so many of us appreciate about all the attractions that Disney makes is their ability (for good or bad) to re-invision them, keep them new, fresh, relevant and timeless as well.

You know, once you have gone to your "Great Reward" after this life, it might not be so bad to hang out at the Haunted Mansion.  As the Ghost Host says "There's always room for one more."

Tangierine Cafe - Morocco/Epcot

Today I decided to try some counter food in Morocco. I decided to get the lamb platter with an ice tea and baklava. If you are on the dining plan like I was, they don't let you pick your dessert.  You get their pick of baklava and I have to say the lamb scared me. 

Don't get me wrong, I love lamb but there were these big cylindrical things that were turning around and people were cutting slices off them. It reminded me of Soylent Green (points if you saw that movie when it first came out!) only it was in strip form and not cracker form.

I ADORE lamb - this was a spam like lamb product. I'm sure it was lamb or mostly lamb but had the look and pressed consistency of spam so I am now scared but I soldiered on. It came with hummus (the ONLY way i will EVER eat garbanzo beans, usually I just flick them at people), tabuli and cous cous. There was also a light yogurt sauce on the lamb.

All that being said, while I would have liked real, non spam pressed lamb MUCH better, this was not bad. I especially liked all the sides. GRADE: B

Word to the wise, do NOT do what this weenie in front of me did. What did he do, you ask?  He looked at the menu, saw all the "ethnic" food, got in line and ... ordered a HOT DOG! What is WRONG with you?  Why do I care? Because you are in Morocco and if you want nitrate infused beef/pork left over parts go to AMERICA! It's NEXT DOOR! It's like ordering a hot dog in Akershus. Why? It's a waste to eat at a place when you don't like the food.

I'm glad I tried this lamb dish but next time I will try the fish & chips next time for counter service just because the pressed lamb/chicken scared me.

Raglan Road - Downtown Disney

First the restaurant is BEAUTIFUL, just gorgeous. All dark wood and cool hanging light fixtures and a wonderful bar. Now here was the main downside. As lovely as this place is, it was VERY crowded, packed with kids and they were LOUD! This was the ONLY bad kid experience we had this trip. There was one table that gave a BABY metal utensils (KNIVES) to bang together, flail around and I could hardly hear myself think. The "parents" just ignored this. In addition to annoying everyone around them, the baby could have severely injured himself but do the parents care? Nope. Not at all. Maybe they figured that they had so many kids that if they lost one, oh well. Bad parenting really gets me.

Down the Middle - a hearty Irish tomato and vegetable broth $5.50

It was really nice. Light but flavorful. Translucent onions, small bits of veggies, not too overpowering.

Goats Town - Herb-crusted grilled Irish goat's cheese salad served with fruit compote $12.00

This was a really nice salad but the berry compote was a bit sweet.

Beef Stew

The word on this dish is the beef was tender and the gravy was really good. However what was missing with this and with my soup was bread. They don't bring you any and that is a real minus. GRADE: B

Celtic Chique - baby chicken finished with a light apple cider glaze. $15.95

Sorry the picture is blurry but the camera refused to focus. The chicken was good, especially the glaze but the meat wasn't as flavorful as the chicken I make. The potatoes were OK but nothing special, nothing added. Just a nice dish, nothing to make it a standout. GRADE: B

Herb/Leek/Mushroom Risotto

I think that I should have gone with my first impulse and had the Baby Back Ribs in Guinness and honey glaze for an entree even though it is a starter for two but I went against my first impulse. Never do that.  This risotto dish was a total train wreck.  It had some kind of lawn clippings on it and shavings of cheese. It was disappointed. WHY is it that every time I'm at the World, my last meal is bad or not as good as X. The green beans on the side I ate which is a bad sign because I usually hate green beans. It's not that they were amazing but that they were better than my entree The leeks were not properly sautéed and they used too much of the green of the shaft.

Leek Anatomy 101: When cooking with leeks, you want to use the white part on the very bottom by the roots and a bit of the light green section but not too much. As the leek gets greener, it becomes more bitter.

Well this was the problem with my dish. It was too bitter and too overpowered by the leek. I could hardly eat it (even afterwards and that is UNHEARD OF). GRADE: C-

Well due to my lack of food intake while drinking my cider I am getting a little buzzed. I get up to use the ladies room, got really confused by the Gaelic names on the doors and walk into the men’s room. "hmmmmm, a line of drinking fountains - guess I am in the wrong place". Fortunately there were no occupants at the time BUT when I opened the door the urinals were right there directly in front of me so if anyone opened the door to enter the bathroom, people in the hall could see men standing there peeing - just saying.

I will add that the presentation of the fish and chips is awesome. It is in a paper cone and the cone is inserted in a metal spiral thing. At first I thought they were the missing breadsticks. They remove the paper cone and then dump the fish and chips on your plate. They looked good....

OVERALL I would give this place a B. I feel that I didn't make the best food choices and as a result would give it another chance. Maybe if I sat somewhere else or came a little earlier. I will save it for my solo return trip as my next trip is shorter and pretty much booked. We'll see.

Citricos - The Grand Floridian

Off to one of my favorite places, CITRICOS!!! We were seated promptly and our server Danny greeted us, got our drinks and gave us menus.

Now things started to take a bad turn. My fav items were gone. No Fois Gras Ravioli, no Duck Breast and no Rack of Lamb. I asked Danny about the items. He gave a good dance about keeping things fresh and animal rights activists and the price of lamb and stuff. Well I told him to see if Chef Gray could make the Raviolis for me anyway since I knew they had Fois Gras at V&A and they share a kitchen.

Then the bomb hit.. Chef Gray was gone! I can't believe it.  It seems that he is going to Narcooses in two weeks and the Narcooses chef is now at Citricos!!!!!!!

OK, I am thinking - the reason I have not gone to Narcooses before was the total lack of enthusiasm by foodies that I trust and now their Chef is at my Fav place??!!!!!!

God this can't be happening. I went on and on to Danny about how Chef Gray is a God (which he agreed with) and got the distinct feeling that some of the menu changes were due to new chef issues.

We ordered. The Manager came over to try to talk me out of going to Narcooses on my next trip. I told him that I am following Chef Gray. No offense but he turned this place around and I am following the food. He said to give them a try. Ok, here is for trying.

APPETIZERS

Warm Goat Cheese Salad: Arugula, Frisee, Lardons, and Marinated Tomatoes - $9

The presentation makes it a bit difficult to get some cheese in every bite. The filo is crispy and the cheese marries well with the bacon and the grilled tomatoes. GRADE: A-

Gateau of Crab: Jumbo Lump Crab and Orange Fennel Coulis - $12

This is very creamy and altogether a plate of yum. The crab was large, flavorful and the orange sauce was a lovely compliment. GRADE: A

At this point, Chef Anthony came by to try to convert me to his fan club. I am sure he is a nice person. Younger, tall, dark hair, I'm sure he is talented but had the tude of "I know this chick really wants Chef Gray cooking so I'm going to try to be nice but not try that hard." Try away. The winning is in the cooking so get back in the kitchen and cook! Cook like the wind. I am so not being moved. Chef Gray is nice and tells stories and ...damn.

ENTREES:

Grilled Swordfish with Vegetable Pearl Pasta and Red Pepper Coulis - $32

Very nice. Fish is perfectly cooked and the red pepper gives a nice accent to the firm fish. GRADE: A-

Pan Roasted Orange Tilefish with yellow tomato-pepper compote and spinach risotto - $31

Very nice. Fish is perfectly cooked and the red pepper gives a nice accent to the firm fish. GRADE: A-
This was very light and lovely. Fish can be hit or miss for me and this I completely finished. There was one flavor that was missing that would push it over the edge into the "I'm crying it is so good" territory and that is the yardstick that I am using. GRADE: A-

DESSERT:

Citricos Cinderellabration, Bittersweet chocolate mousse tart with orange sauce - $8

This most unfortunately named dessert was very nice and creamy. The Chocolate crown was edible. The tart had chocolate wings with oranges on them. I asked Danny if this presentation was an homage to "Soarin" since its original name at DL is Soarin over California and we grow oranges here and there is an orange grove in the ride and there is orange sauce, etc. Danny thought that was a neat idea but didn't know. WHY didn't he know or someone figure that out? GRADE: A-

Lemon Cheese Cake with raspberry sauce:  $8

This was nice and light . Not really heavy and overpowering in the lemon flavor. GRADE: A-

Danny also brought us a bottle of Evian and 3 paper cups to go (we were heading over to MK to watch Wishes) and I thought that was really nice.

Overall, the food is still very good. It was the best place we ate at this trip with Jiko and Akershus and Artist Point very close behind. However none of these items made me cry. When I return for a shorter trip next year, I will try Narcooses now that Chef Gray is there though would not eliminate this from rotation in the future. Only time will tell if their new Chef will step things up. Currently Citricos has fallen to #2 behind Napa Rose at the Grand Californian for the first time. (I don't include V&A since it is in a category all of its own).

O'hana Character Breakfast - Polynesian

Well after the bland fest in France, the next morning we headed to the Poly for luau Lilo & Stitch Breakfast fun. I have never done a character breakfast and didn't know what to expect.

We were seated pretty promptly though I thought the picture spot was LAME! They give you a ticket for your family to get a picture in front of...... tikis. Yup, tikis.   Whee.  At Akershus, they at least had pictures with Ariel. No character, just tikis. Lame. We passed

Now let me say that I have never been addicted to coffee. I will drink it on occasion but do not turn into a grumpy, sludge monster if I don't get coffee. Guess who needs coffee in our party?  Yup, cousin George.  Let's call him Grumpy.

The server didn't get to our table fast enough. OK she was a little slow and is it just me but I really think most of these servers are the oldest servers in The World. Just an observation.

So we are finally greeted, drink orders taken and then the coffee wait begins. O God, will it never end! PLEASE bring us coffee as I am dying here. Grumpy with no coffee is scary.

The characters were Stitch, Lilo, Pluto and The Mouse himself! As I am writing in my trip report book, Stitch snuck up behind me and scared me. Bad Stitch! I thought that the whole Stitch thing would annoy me but he was really fun to watch and play with. Grumpy didn't play much since he still needed coffee.

Now came the food (sorry, no pictures, we were too busy eating). They bring you a big wok with the regulars - scrambled eggs (good but a little loose/wet if you don’t like that, they may need to cook them more), bacon (very good), sausage (didn't try but heard from they were a little spicy but good), Home fried Potatoes (didn't try but heard they were good), Mickey Waffles (not as warm as I would like but fun), bread basket with biscuits, cinnamon roll and PINEAPPLE BREAD! OH MY GOD! This stuff was sooooooooooooo good. I had them bring more and then I took it with me. I snacked on this all day. It is a soft yeasty roll type bread with crushed pineapple on the bottom. It's really good warm but just as yummy cold. A little sticky but I can deal.

Pluto was very funny and then I got to see the MOUSE! He was wearing his Hawaiian shirt with a lei. I told him that he is my fav and that I love him. He got all embarrassed. I swear I will mud wrestle Minnie for The Mouse. OK, I'm getting a little carried away and weird but it is early in the morning on the west coast. Mickey signed my book and that made my morning. Lilo never came by which was fine with me since I really don't care about her. It’s all about the Mouse.

Grade: Overall Food = B-, Pineapple Bread = A-, Characters = A, Noise Level = B (Actually pretty good table spacing and not a lot of screaming), Kid Activities = B (They had a parade with noise makers)

Bistro de Paris - Epcot/France

We are off to France. I had eaten lunch at Chefs de France (downstairs) a few years back and found it mediocre.  So I decided on Bistro de Paris for this trip. It was more upscale and I liked the menu better. However it is NOT on the dining plan. So I used my Disney card points to pay for 2/3 of the meal. I should have told my table mates that France was full, gone to watch belly dancing and saved my points to buy stylish designer sunglasses.

The atmosphere was lovely. We were seated at a window with a decent view of Illuminations. They had tablecloths and silverware and cute napkins folded like dinner jackets.

Things were looking promising. The Amuse Bouche (no picture) was a piece of smoked salmon wrapped around a bit of mashed potatoes with chive. Akershus' salmon was MUCH better in texture and flavor. Grade: B+

We decided to get the Chefs Tasting Menu. It sounded good and was reasonably priced. $65 without wine pairings (which is what we had), $100 with wine pairings.

APPETIZERS:

Rare seared tuna with Jamaican Pepper, sauce of lemon comfit and banyuls vinegar, arugula coulis and a crunchy vegetable salad.

The presentation was pretty but the dish itself was a bit bland. It seemed to be missing a flavor or two. Grade: B

Grilled quail with baby frisee salad and poached egg, creamy green lentil vinaigrette and cheese chips

Bland. The egg was lukewarm, the quail was difficult to eat and the flavors were not there. I was trying to get a bit of everything on the fork to blend the flavors and had to add salt and pepper to try to give it some flavor. Beautiful presentation but little wow factor. Grade: B

FISH COURSE

Provencal bouillabaisse, scallops, shrimps, stripped bass, mussels and codfish served with aioli and toasted bread

Pretty but bland and lacking any bite or kick. The fish all took on the flavor of the tomato base with no flavors of their own coming through. Grade: B-

Seared scallops with a fleur de sel on a goat & sun dried tomato ravioli with creamy lettuce sauce

Pretty but bland. Are you seeing a pattern here? The scallops were cooked perfectly but the lack of any dynamic flavors continued this pretty but bland parade. Grade: B

SORBET

Apple sorbet with apple liquor and dried apple slice

 Say it with me now! B - L - A    N - D - Y It was palate cleansing but pedestrian. Grade: B-

Here is where I got a glass of red that had been paired with my meat. I live by Napa. I know wines. I love wines. This wine sucked. It was soooo tannic that I could clean rust off chrome with it. French wine is really over rated.

MEAT COURSE

Roasted beef tenderloin with marrow, potato boulangere with comte cheese, green asparagus, red wine and juniper berry sauce.

 This steak doesn't hold a candle to Jiko. It was very tender but bland. No real flavor. The potato gratin in the ramekin was better. A bit of flavor starting to poke its head through the snow. Grade: Meat - B, Potatoes - B+

CHEESE COURSE

This was $5 extra per person. I am allergic to blue cheese so they served all goat cheese. Wow. The 3 French goat cheeses were mild to nutty to slightly pungent. These cheeses were fair but it wasn't Red Hawk but then what is. Check out cowgirl creamery in Point Reyes. AWESOME! This cheese - ho hum. Grade: B+

DESSERT

Well only dessert left and I have not shed one tear of food joy on this whole pricey menu. I am hoping for one standout.

This assortment includes creme brulee (decent but not great - B+), Banana Tart Meringue (I don't like banana cream pie so this did nothing for me. One diner thought it was the best of the lot and gave it a B+, Warm chocolate lava cake with 70% dark chocolate (a bit dry. I ate the remainder of it for breakfast the next day. - B), Gingerbread ice cream (really good. This is a standout - FINALLY and I gave it an A-) and caramelized rice pudding (while not a rice cream, it was REALLY good. It was creamy, slightly warm with a nutmegy taste that went really well with the ice cream. ONE THING that I really liked though there was hardly any of it (Grade: A-)

Overall, our meal was bland and pedestrian. While the price for the offerings is good, the chef missed the boat. They could have been standout or even noteworthy but are just fine. What is wrong with FRANCE?! I am placing this in 10th place overall behind even Fulton’s. The chef needs to follow Chef Gray or Chef Scott around for a month or so. This place really needs some help to make it great.