New Orlean's Square: Cafe Orleans [2]

My parents and I decided to mix it up a bit and this time didn't go to Blue Bayou as per usual, we made reservations at Cafe Orleans instead. I'm beginning to really like Cafe Orleans a lot just because it does offer different food from Blue Bayou and French Market but it is all still Cajun.

Last time, when I was with my friends we kind of just wanted to eat and go on more rides so we didn't get an appetizer. With the parents, though, we were drawn into the scent of garlic and an appetizer was going to be order regardless of time. Not just any appetizer, but the appetizer.

That wonderful garlic-ness is coming from the pomme frites. They are covered in garlic and Parmesan cheese, both of which shine through all the other flavours going on. There is also a dipping sauce that adds some creaminess and spiciness to that mixture.

For dinner, I ordered the N'awlins Vegetable Ragout again only this time I ordered it with asparagus and not chicken. Honestly, I like it more with asparagus than chicken, it was a better fit to the dish.

Another great dining experience at Cafe Orleans, aside from the fact that it was starting to get kind of cold outside and that's where we were sitting. But there was a lots of spicy and good food to keep us warm and happy.

-Charlotte

Main Street U.S.A: Jolly Holiday [6]

I've never ordered hot chocolate from the Jolly Holiday Bakery because I thought it was just the same as every where else in the park. I thought wrong. Not only is it different, but you can make it your own by adding flavour shots for an extra $0.50. The hot chocolate I got was with a shot of hazelnut flavour.

Jolly Holiday also puts whipped cream on top, unlike the other, regular parks version. They spread it around the lid of your cup then place the lid on, which is why I didn't take a picture with the lid off.

It was so much better than just regular hot chocolate and was exactly what I wanted to go with my flourless chocolate cake. That is what I call a good breakfast.

-Charlotte

Garden Walk: Roy's

 Wanting a break from Disneyland for the night, my family and I made our way to the Garden Walk and went to Roy's. This is a place I've wanted to eat at for a while and was happy to finally do so. Roy's specializes in Hawaiian food, and I love Hawaiian food, my family does too so it was a natural choice to dine.

It was a Saturday night, and by the looks of some guests, prom night, so it was busy. Luckily, we had made reservations thus making our wait time not long, but without reservations, I’m sure the wait would have been too long.

We finally got seated and I read in the regular menu that there was a gluten free menu so my aunt and I got one of those to chose from.

I had been craving sushi for a while and when I saw various sushi and sashimi offered, I had to get some. The problem I ran into though was that I wanted to do a three-course meal that was at a fixed price but my starter had to be a pea and pork salad. Luckily, my dad wanted that, so he ordered California rolls and we just swapped starters.

 (One is missing because I ate it before I remembered to take a picture).

The crab was fresh snow crab instead of krab, and it was very fresh yet slightly tangy, and perfect. It was better sushi than what I was looking for. I usually don't like California roll, but this was just amazing. It also didn't fill me up so I had plenty of room for my other two courses.

My second course was a pork chop with a vanilla bean and parsnip puree, and pineapple chutney.

The chop was huge, and there was a bone but I didn't find it till the end so that large slab is mostly meat. I'm also obsessed with things with vanilla beans in them and that puree was just perfect and creamy with a nice, sweet vanilla infusion. The chop was perfectly cooked, and everything went together nicely. The pineapple was tangy and added a different flavour to the dish. The only negative was that the sauce was a bit on the salty side.

I did take some of it home because I had to leave room for dessert. Also that chop, again, was huge.

For dessert I had the chocolate soufflé with vanilla ice cream and raspberry coulis.

Gluten-free, of course, and so delicious. I was the only one that got dessert so we passed the dish around the entire table and everyone loved it. Even the ice cream, which was a simple vanilla ice cream, was amazing. It just had more vanilla flavour than most ice cream. The soufflé was rich and warm and amazing, and with the hint of raspberry mixed in there made it a great flavour combination.

It was a bit expensive which is why I had put off dining at Roy’s. My three-course meal was $35, but it was so worth every penny, and perfectly delicious.

-Charlotte

A Bug's Land: Juice Box [2]

When my family came to visit, we spent a bit of time in Bug's Land mainly because my little cousin could go on those rides and I insisted on getting a frozen drink. This time, though, instead of apple I got cherry. It did colour my lips and tongue a bit red but it was much better than the apple one.

First off, it was easier to sip. The apple one you had to melt in order to sip it where as this one you didn't have to; the ice was broken down enough to just keep on sipping.

The flavour was actually really good too. It wasn't too sweet and it tasted exactly like a slurpee from 7-11. I have been craving one for a while now and am happy I found an alternative that is close, if not better, than a slurpee. If I were to get one again, which I might, I'll get cherry- a final decision on this coming only after I taste and review the raspberry one.

Here's a picture of my cousin eagerly awaiting his own frozen drink. He likes apple juice so he got that one, and really loved it except we ran into the problem where they couldn't drink it so my uncle had to try to melt it with his hands.

 -Charlotte

Critter Country: Pooh's Corner

Pooh's Corner sells the same handmade candy that the Candy Palace sells and some at the Market house. Just like The Candy Palace, it has a window to watch the chefs make these various sweet treats. My family and I went on the Winnie the Pooh ride and emptied out into there where we watched the chefs dip marshmallows on a stick in some caramel.

I couldn't resist- no really I couldn’t, I have a problem when it comes to candy and dessert- and my father kindly gave me money to buy something thus further tempting me. Having watched the chefs at work, I decided to get the marshmallows dipped in caramel then sprinkled with cashews and then dipped in milk chocolate and drizzled with white chocolate. Is your mouth watering yet? Rest assured, it did taste as good as it sounds.

I was happy I went with the cashew choice because they added some salt that helped cut through the sweetness that would only come with marshmallows, caramel, and milk chocolate combined together. It could have been the caramel that salt was added too, and if that is the case, the cashews did add a bit of crunchiness that helped with the textural difference.

What was great about it was that since there was marshmallow in the middle, when you bit into it, all the chocolate pieces that broke off the outside, instead of falling to the ground, stuck to the marshmallow and was still there to enjoy instead of falling onto your lap, floor, or your hand.

It was very delicious but slightly large so you might want to have a friend help you eat it.

-Charlotte

Disney California Adventure: Cotton Candy

 As I mentioned when I reviewed the Disneyland Parks: Cotton Candy, both parks has the pink, classic cotton candy but Disney California Adventure also offers blue cotton candy. I finally tried some and now I know why little kids always get this flavour.

It is very sweet. I know it's pure sugar and it’s supposed to be sweet, but the flavour (I think raspberry) makes it taste like candy and makes it seem like there is more in your mouth than there actually is. It's hard to explain but it is a big difference from the classic pink one. I prefer the pink, personally, but the blue one wasn't too bad. Both are the same price, $4, but one is good enough for maybe four people.

I didn't take a picture of it but here is a picture of my cousin enjoying the last of it:

And just because he is adorable, here is a few more pictures of my cousin enjoying different treats.

Mickey shaped cookie from Jolly Holiday.

Mint Julep from the mint julep bar.

He got all the cherries in our mint juleps, well except mine, I ate those first.

And last, him enjoying a Mickey shaped pretzel.

So the cotton candy! I'm going to stick with the pinkone , but blue isn't too bad. And yeah, that's my cousin, he likes to eat.

-Charlotte

Downtown Disney: Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen

The view from our seats:

A few days ago, my roommate and I decided to go to Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen for dinner. Both of us had wanted to eat there for a while and finally we made it happen. I went and made reservations after I saw The Avengers that morning and we got them for 7 that night.

The whole night was a mess and a disappointment.

First of all, it was ridiculously busy because it was a Friday night so we couldn't find parking anywhere at the Downtown Disney parking lot so we went to Mickey and Friends parking and walked to Downtown Disney.

We got to the restaurant at 7:10 and they said they were behind in reservations and that it would be another 10-15 minute wait. We waited 45 minutes before we were able to go in. We walked upstairs to the second level and waited five more minutes for someone to take us to our seats. By this time we are starving.

Finally, we get seated on the balcony at the tables that had been empty the entire 45 minutes we were sitting downstairs waiting to go in. We know this because we were sitting outside looking at all of the empty tables. It appeared that they were over-staffed but no one seemed to actually be doing much, a lot of people were just standing around. I don't understand how they run things there.

So we sit down and look over the menu. Were expecting and hoping for typical Cajun food like jambalaya, gumbo, po boys, but it was weird. They had jambalaya pasta with Italian noodles instead of rice and their grits had flour in them- in other words, not proper Cajun food. My roommate got the jambalaya pasta thing and I wanted the shrimp and grits but because the grits had flour in them I had to get shrimp with crawfish mashed potatoes.

It was very delicious, the shrimps and mashed potatoes alike. Everything was seasoned well and tasted great but the portion was not enough. By the time we got our food we were very, very hungry and for the prices they charged we thought they could have at least offered a small salad or soup with entrees, but there was nothing, just the entree. The dishes and servings looked huge but we both finished our meals and were still very, very hungry. I didn't feel my meal was worth $30 but that’s what it cost. This is hard because the food tasted great, but I don't think I will eat at the Jazz Kitchen again.

-Charlotte

Main Street U.S.A: Jolly Holiday Bakery [5]

In case you were wondering, no I will never stop the Jolly Holiday reviews.

This time I went and had the oven-roasted turkey sandwich on a gluten free bun. Beforehand, I had gone and got a mint julep to enjoy with the sandwich. I liked this turkey sandwich more than the one from the River Belle Terrace because I could taste the turkey more and the meat to bun ratio was better here. The homemade potato chips are excellent as always- I think they should sell those as a snack and not just alongside sandwiches.

The price is about $9 but it is a good sandwich and fills you up without making you stuffed. I mention this a lot, but I feel like it is important to be full but not too full because you want to be able to do all that you came to the parks to do.

If you want a turkey sandwich from Disneyland get the one from Jolly Holiday.

-Charlotte

Adventureland: Bengal Barbecue

Located in the back of Adventureland is Bengal Barbecue. It is right across from Indiana Jones and the Temple of the Forbidden Eye and sells grilled food. It took me a while to actually eat there because it was always crowded when I walked by, but now that it is non-peak season, I was able to go without too many crowds. I had also spent some time relaxing in Adventureland that morning and went at the most opportune moment.

It is really good for a little snack that isn't sweet or popcorn. I was slightly hungry but not ready for a full meal so it was perfect. I got one order of the safari skewer, which is asparagus wrapped in bacon with a side of lime to sprinkle on top.

The idea is good and it looks really good, but I was expecting full blown bacon flavour and I was left with nothing. All I got was the texture of the bacon but it lacked the salty pork flavour one expects when something is described as 'bacon wrapped'. I don't like bacon too much but this still sounded good, and sadly I was left disappointed. I felt like I would have to get salt packets and sprinkle salt on it to make it have more flavour. It did manage to quench my slight hunger and at a little under $4, I wasn't too upset.


Plus then I went and met with Aladdin and Princess Jasmine.

-Charlotte

Main Street U.S.A: Jolly Holiday Bakery [4]

Who can tell I like the Jolly Holiday Bakery by now? Because after 4 you should know that I do. Also, I keep trying different things so I can review them and I’m not nearly done.

It was somewhat of a cool day- as cool as one can get considering this is Southern California- and I wasn't in the mood for a sandwich, when I remembered the Jolly Holiday had soup so I got of those. You just have to ask for no bread stick to make it gluten free.

The price was about $6 and it may look like a small bowl, but I felt it was just the right amount. Anymore and I would have been too full and I would have had that 'I need a nap' feeling. I also wanted cheesecake so I got that as well. Probably didn’t help the full feeling but you can’t go in there and not get a dessert.

I had the tomato basil soup as opposed to the chicken noodle. It wasn't a smooth soup, which I liked, made it more homey and rustic. The basil flavour was not over powering but you could still make it out, and basil is also a nice accompaniment to tomato. It was very delicious.

This cheesecake looks a little different from the last one I had in the fact that it has raspberries on top and not black berries. This is a more traditional way to prepare cheesecakes. I know that at the bakery I use to intern at we put raspberries on top of ours so it is a popular thing. I think I like the blackberries more just because it's different.

And here's a bird that perched on the chair across from me.

-Charlotte