Oh the Tragedy! No Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake this time! Updates x 5 9/30
- Thread starter emmysmommy
- Start date
disneyfav4ever
No matter how your heart is grieving, if you keep
- Joined
- Mar 19, 2005
Joining in, I always love your reviews!
princess_momma
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Feb 13, 2009
Hello, hello!! I am here and SO excited to read more dining reviews from you!!
Wood Nymph
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 19, 2012
It looks like you have a great list of restaurants to review. It's a good thing that we don't have to wait too long before we find out how you missed that delicious dessert. 
MiaBella05
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Oct 7, 2006
joining in, can't wait to read another one of your fabulous TRs! 
WildGinger
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Oct 19, 2012
I am here! Can't wait to read it!!
HappyGrape
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Nov 1, 2013
this is some serious line up you got there! Looking forward reading
strawberrysh
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- May 6, 2007
following along...yay!!!
emmysmommy
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 30, 2010
Count me in! I'm looking forward to following Barb's, Paula's, and your report so I can get the 'full picture.'Sounds like a great trip, although I'm sorry Emmy couldn't join you.
And no toffee cake - uh oh! Still haven't tried that dessert, although based on the reviews it gets, I need to correct that eventually.
Mr. DDW!! I'm so glad that you are here and FIRST! You were my very first DIS dining companion so it is only fitting that you have a front row seat. Thanks for joining!
BTW: I was glad to see your 24 Hr Disney reviews.
Hi Brenda!
Like Mr. DDW, I am looking forward to reading all 3 of your reports to get everyone's take from a different perspective. I was having some serious Disney blues thinking I would not be getting to my happy place this year but now that our September trip is booked, I am looking forward to changing my ADRSs several times based on these reports!
(Already added Raglan Road thanks to Paula!)
Hey there Vicki! I'm bummed that I had to cancel September since our dates would have overlapped.
BUT - Excited for you that you can get back to your happy place!Paula influenced me with a few choice as well - particularly HDDR.
Hi there and thanks for joining!
I love your reviews! So excited for a new one
Thanks for joining and for reading my other reviews!
Thank you for the compliment. It was great to dine together and now I have the pleasure of reading their reviews and comparing notes as well.
I'm here and perhaps even made it on the first page. Can't wait for your reviews to begin!
Hi Barb!!! Thanks for joining. I'm loving your perspective and reviews already. You are off to a strong start.
That was a nice touch inserting an adorable puppy into your dining review!!
A seriously cute puppy I might add. Hi there and thank you for joining!!
Hi Paula! My second dining buddy is now checked in! Thanks for joining.... especially since you are a key part of the reviews!
great can't wait to read more
Hi Hallie and thank you for joining! I'm glad you are here.
Another TR - I'm in
Hi there! I'm glad to see you joining for this one as well. Thanks!
Welcome and thank you for joining! You are so sweet, thanks!
Thank you meema! I'm glad to see you here.
Wow! That's a lot of trips over the years. This was our first couples trip to WDW so you may see a little preview of what's to come for your couple trip in November.
Can't wait to read your report! Had a great time for the short but I was there
Hi Beth!! And now our dining team is completed!! Thanks for joining!
YAY! More Brenda! I so enjoy your other TR's and DR's and I will do better to comment this time, but I'm always reading!
Hi Jillian! Thanks for joining! No worries on commenting, I have a hard enough time keeping up with my own reports so I certainly understand.
emmysmommy
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 30, 2010
I'm in. Need some ideas for our next trip and you have hit a few places I have not tried yet.
Thanks for joining. I hope I can help with some dining suggestions. I'm glad to see your next trip is far enough out that I should complete this before your vtrip!
Brenda,
So glad to see you've started a new DR. Sorry there will be no Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake in this report, but that's an excuse to book another trip soon.
Hi Rachel! I'm so glad to see you here. Thanks for joining in.
I like your logic! Another trip even if just for the toffee cake doesn't sound bad.
Hi Karla! I'm so glad to see you here. It's been awhile. I'm going to associate your dining adventures with funnel cake now you know.
I'm glad to hear you'll be doing a DR for July. We'll need to compare dates since I'll be there in late July.
Thanks for signing on!! I'm glad you are reading.
Hi kastoney! I'm so glad to see you out of lurkdom and joining in.
Thank you! Seriously, I'm thrilled to have you join.
So sad about the Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake though, hopefully you can correct that grievous oversight soon!
Hi Carol!! It was sooooo sad. But I'm recovering so all is well.
Hi disneyfav4ever! Thank you for joining. What a kind comment, thanks.
Hi Kimmy! Thank you for joining! I see you have your first DVC trip to look forward to later this year. How exciting!
Hi ocalla! I'm glad that you are here and reading this DR as well. Thank you for joining!
It looks like you have a great list of restaurants to review. It's a good thing that we don't have to wait too long before we find out how you missed that delicious dessert.
Hi Sue! Thanks for joining. Yes, you don't have to wait too long for my sad moment in Disney dining history.
I don't comment much, but I have read all your reviews...can't wait for this one
Hi smiths and thanks for joining! I'm so glad that you are here and reading.
From your signature it looks like you are an OC native!! Hello from OC.
Thank you for joining MiaBella!! I'm glad you are here... and with your own popcorn even!
Hi WildGinger and thank you for joining. Welcome to this edition of my DR.
Thanks for joining HappyGrape!
(love your user name, it makes me think of wine!)Hi mousegear and thank you for joining the party! I'm so glad that you are here.
emmysmommy
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 30, 2010
Hi Sarah and thank you for joining!
thanks Ann! I'm glad that you are here and reading along. A special welcome to you!
Hi lauraleh! Thanks for joining and welcome to my DR. And welcome to the Disboards! I hope you find this forum helpful.
emmysmommy
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 30, 2010
Jiko Dinner - Monday April 28, 2014
Michael and I were kicking off our dining adventures with one of my favorite Signature restaurants – Jiko. This was a convenient choice since it was our arrival day. Not having to take transportation, other than an elevator downstairs, was nice, so thanks to our dining companions for indulging us in this request. We had arrived at AKL a few hours earlier and had just received our luggage so we were rushed to get changed and downstairs to meet up with our dining party.
We met up with Paula, her husband Hunter, and Barb who had already been seated by the time we arrived. Michael was introduced to everyone since this was his inaugural dining experience with a group of DISers. We had a nice surprise from Hunter who presented us with a box of hand-made chocolates and candies. Being a chocolate lover, I think Michael was pretty excited about these goodies. I believe he may have eaten 2 entire boxes during the trip.
Oscar was our server. He was nice and friendly although a bit forgetful. He didn’t remember what people ordered not long after and missed a few things. Not that my memory is fabulous but if you are not going to remember you may want to carry around a little pad of paper! Just sayin’. Poor guy, I should give him a break since I can barely remember what I had for breakfast.
There have been some changes to the menu over the course of the last year such as the bobotie is now a duck version instead of the beef that I had tried before. The salads and flatbreads had also undergone an update. In particular, the Jiko salad that previously had bitter greens, goat cheese, and walnuts with a citrus vinaigrette now included summer greens, watermelon, blueberries, almonds, and feta with a lime-date vinaigrette.
The other menu photos I have a cruddy so if you want to see some great photos and Barb’s Jiko dining review – see here!
Barb announced that she was ordering a bottle of sparkling wine for the table compliments of Linda (Linda67). We ended up getting a nice Graham Beck brute rose. We toasted to getting back together with friends and special celebrations since it was Barb’s birthday the day prior, Hunter’s birthday was in less than 2 weeks, and I had celebrated my 50th birthday a couple weeks earlier. It was also Paula and Hunter’s anniversary on May 1st so there was a lot to celebrate. Michael was just happy to be there!
Hunter and Paula requested two orders of Taste of Africa, which is an assortment of breads and dipping sauces to share with the table. The basket contained 3 types of breads – naan, poppy seed lavash, and pappadam. The 4 sauces that accompanied the breads were; buhna masala (red), sagh dahl (green sauce), Moroccan Chermoula, Kalamata hummus (my favorite). If they only served the naan bread with the olive hummus I would have been completely satisfied. The buhna masala had a spicy edge and was delicious as well.
Michael ordered the tomato/spinach salad as an appetizer. It looked fresh and tasty. However, this was a tiny salad for $15!!
Michael and Hunter ended up ordering a second appetizer to share – the Tibs and Brik.
After waiting until we were nearly finished with the Taste of Africa sampler, Oscar delivered a basket of the regular bread. I had some of the Ethiopian and honey wheat focaccia with flax seed with a generous slathering of the tandoori butter. Oh so good!
For our entrée orders, Michael went with the lamb and I stuck with the beef short ribs that I had loved the last few times. I figured why mess with a good thing. That and the fact that once I land on something that I really enjoy it is hard to pry me away from that choice. Case in point my GF Café breakfast choice that has not changed in the last 9 visits to WDW! (Barb, you know what I mean since you seem perfectly happy with a repeat performance of the French toast as well.)
Michael’s lamb dish looked pretty tasty…. It was either a small portion or delivered on a large plate. I tend to go with the small portion theory. According to Michael, this was awesome.
As for my short ribs, the photo is a little misleading since it looks like there was an oversight in the kitchen and they placed a chunk of meat on a dirty sauce-splayed plate. It looks like a hot mess. However, the short ribs were good although perhaps I’ve had them too many times that they are losing their amazingness. For comparison, the short ribs that are served at some of the other WDW restaurants are larger. In fact, Napa Rose at the Grand Californian Hotel at DLR area has a huge portion of short ribs for the same price. Jiko may be pushing it with their Signature pricing for snack size portions.
So after complaining about the portion size relative to price, I couldn’t finish all of the short ribs so encouraged Michael to be my clean up man. He isn’t really a short rib fan so I don’t think he ate much.
Our server presented us with complimentary desserts which were mini crème brulees with a madeleine each topped with a flaming candle for the 3 birthday celebrations – Hunter, Barb, and me. There was a 4th one for Paula for their anniversary but she gave that to Michael. I forget if it was good or not in fact I didn’t take a photo other than the server delivering dessert so that part of the meal is a blur. Chalk it up to having a long travel day perhaps.
We ended up chatting and enjoying each other's company so long that we were the last guests out of the restaurant that night and didn’t leave until around 11:30pm. I was able to get some decent photos of the restaurant without dirty dishes and patrons. Since it is a dark room it is hard to get low light photos without a flash.
Wood fire pizza ovens
This was a nice start to our Disney dining for the next 11 days!
Next Up: Tusker House Breakfast
We met up with Paula, her husband Hunter, and Barb who had already been seated by the time we arrived. Michael was introduced to everyone since this was his inaugural dining experience with a group of DISers. We had a nice surprise from Hunter who presented us with a box of hand-made chocolates and candies. Being a chocolate lover, I think Michael was pretty excited about these goodies. I believe he may have eaten 2 entire boxes during the trip.
Oscar was our server. He was nice and friendly although a bit forgetful. He didn’t remember what people ordered not long after and missed a few things. Not that my memory is fabulous but if you are not going to remember you may want to carry around a little pad of paper! Just sayin’. Poor guy, I should give him a break since I can barely remember what I had for breakfast.
There have been some changes to the menu over the course of the last year such as the bobotie is now a duck version instead of the beef that I had tried before. The salads and flatbreads had also undergone an update. In particular, the Jiko salad that previously had bitter greens, goat cheese, and walnuts with a citrus vinaigrette now included summer greens, watermelon, blueberries, almonds, and feta with a lime-date vinaigrette.
Menu
The other menu photos I have a cruddy so if you want to see some great photos and Barb’s Jiko dining review – see here!
Barb announced that she was ordering a bottle of sparkling wine for the table compliments of Linda (Linda67). We ended up getting a nice Graham Beck brute rose. We toasted to getting back together with friends and special celebrations since it was Barb’s birthday the day prior, Hunter’s birthday was in less than 2 weeks, and I had celebrated my 50th birthday a couple weeks earlier. It was also Paula and Hunter’s anniversary on May 1st so there was a lot to celebrate. Michael was just happy to be there!
Hunter and Paula requested two orders of Taste of Africa, which is an assortment of breads and dipping sauces to share with the table. The basket contained 3 types of breads – naan, poppy seed lavash, and pappadam. The 4 sauces that accompanied the breads were; buhna masala (red), sagh dahl (green sauce), Moroccan Chermoula, Kalamata hummus (my favorite). If they only served the naan bread with the olive hummus I would have been completely satisfied. The buhna masala had a spicy edge and was delicious as well.
Taste of Africa
Michael ordered the tomato/spinach salad as an appetizer. It looked fresh and tasty. However, this was a tiny salad for $15!!
Allan’s Mozambique Tomato Salad: Heirloom tomatoes, peaches, avocado, spinach, arugula, and goat cheese $15
Michael and Hunter ended up ordering a second appetizer to share – the Tibs and Brik.
Inguday Tibs and Brik: Mushroom, Spinach, and cheese in crispy Tunisian Filo with Apples & Curry Vinaigrette $10
After waiting until we were nearly finished with the Taste of Africa sampler, Oscar delivered a basket of the regular bread. I had some of the Ethiopian and honey wheat focaccia with flax seed with a generous slathering of the tandoori butter. Oh so good!
Bread Basket:
For our entrée orders, Michael went with the lamb and I stuck with the beef short ribs that I had loved the last few times. I figured why mess with a good thing. That and the fact that once I land on something that I really enjoy it is hard to pry me away from that choice. Case in point my GF Café breakfast choice that has not changed in the last 9 visits to WDW! (Barb, you know what I mean since you seem perfectly happy with a repeat performance of the French toast as well.)
Michael’s lamb dish looked pretty tasty…. It was either a small portion or delivered on a large plate. I tend to go with the small portion theory. According to Michael, this was awesome.
Lamb Two Ways: Baby Brussels sprouts, pumpkin seed duqqa, grilled olive ciabatta, and mango demi glace $39
As for my short ribs, the photo is a little misleading since it looks like there was an oversight in the kitchen and they placed a chunk of meat on a dirty sauce-splayed plate. It looks like a hot mess. However, the short ribs were good although perhaps I’ve had them too many times that they are losing their amazingness. For comparison, the short ribs that are served at some of the other WDW restaurants are larger. In fact, Napa Rose at the Grand Californian Hotel at DLR area has a huge portion of short ribs for the same price. Jiko may be pushing it with their Signature pricing for snack size portions.
Spicy Botswana-style “Seswaa” Beef Short Ribs: Cassava potato puree, Sambal, mushrooms, and fava beans $42
So after complaining about the portion size relative to price, I couldn’t finish all of the short ribs so encouraged Michael to be my clean up man. He isn’t really a short rib fan so I don’t think he ate much.
Our server presented us with complimentary desserts which were mini crème brulees with a madeleine each topped with a flaming candle for the 3 birthday celebrations – Hunter, Barb, and me. There was a 4th one for Paula for their anniversary but she gave that to Michael. I forget if it was good or not in fact I didn’t take a photo other than the server delivering dessert so that part of the meal is a blur. Chalk it up to having a long travel day perhaps.
We ended up chatting and enjoying each other's company so long that we were the last guests out of the restaurant that night and didn’t leave until around 11:30pm. I was able to get some decent photos of the restaurant without dirty dishes and patrons. Since it is a dark room it is hard to get low light photos without a flash.
Wood fire pizza ovens
This was a nice start to our Disney dining for the next 11 days!
Next Up: Tusker House Breakfast
mamaboogie
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jun 13, 2008
No Ooey Gooey? I simply cannot read this report...
Oh, go on then...
Hmmmm....love Jiko! Can't wait to read the rest of your reviews!
Oh, go on then...
Hmmmm....love Jiko! Can't wait to read the rest of your reviews!
jabead
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 22, 2000
Great start to your report with your Jiko review! I'm so glad that you guys had included Jiko in your dining plans, as it gave me the the needed incentive to give it another try. On my previous two visits there (last in May 2012) I had not had much luck with finding an entree that I liked. But I guess the third time's the charm, because I really enjoyed the maize-crusted fish. So anyway, thanks for reintroducing me to this great restaurant.
I'm so glad that you guys had included Jiko in your dining plans, as it gave me the the needed incentive to give it another try. On my previous two visits there (last in May 2012) I had not had much luck with finding an entree that I liked. But I guess the third time's the charm, because I really enjoyed the maize-crusted fish. So anyway, thanks for reintroducing me to this great restaurant. 
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