Quick reviews - marathon long weekend

ckb_nc

DIS Veteran
Joined
Feb 26, 2001
Background: DD in WDW for the half marathon and parks, DS here for here for the food.

We flew in Thursday afternoon. After a quick stop at SSR and HS, we headed to Disney Springs. We were last here in October. DS and I had a plan for two things - Morimotos Ribs and the Fish and Chips from Cookes. Morimotos Ribs are an all time Family favorite. We hit up the street food outside for two orders of wings. Curiously the wings outside are 3 dollars cheaper per order. The results were - they are good but not as good inside as inside they are freshly made. Good but not great. My son is a HUGe Fish and Chips guy. He tried Cookes and like it, but would later comment that the Fish and Chips in England at Yorkshire County Fish Shop were better. Overall good food and Disney Springs remained a place to explore.

The Wave - DS and I drove down and back to WDw in October, as everyone else flew. We made it part of the trip to find the best burger. BTW - Five Guys won that trip. My original plan on Friday after hitting the race expo was to go to Geyser Point at WL. It has a great burger and a beautiful setting (the weather Friday was simply glorious). However, when we pulled up to WL we were not allowed to park. Very first time I have that happen at WL, but given it was race weekend not completely surprising. Now, I would have ignored the guy and park. But DS is a stickler for the rules. So I went to Contemporary where I could park. Our first stop was actually Contemp Cafe but it was just too loud. We headed back to the Wave. We had dinner here last October and it was great. We have been searching for a replacement for Kona Cafe. Kona was our go-to mid-price sit down place, but the new menu at Kona has been a huge disappointment to the family. We got seated right away. The Wave has one of my favorite beers on property, the Key West Sunset Ale. DS got the Chicken Sandwich while I had the Burger. My son's sandwich was good. But the Burger was the best burger I have had in a good while. That was a really fresh, cooked perfectly burger. The downside was the waffle fries. Not enough and just ok. Chic-Fil-A does not need to worry. But the Burger at the Wave was incredible.

Riverside Mill Food Court - The make your own salad was my go-to meal the night before the half marathon. Never disappoints and it is just a good meal.

The Turf Club - The place got good reviews on here and the the DIS Dining podcast. It was easy to get a ADR for Saturday night. I had the Wedge Salad from the lounge for an appetizer; I am big Wedge Salad fan and this was not quite I expected. It was good but not a traditional wedge. It was just huge and enough for two actually. Not bad but not a Wedge Salad either. My son got the Prime Rib, which was clearly the best choice of the evening. Prime rib is one of those things that is really not hard to make, so making it well is the challenge. He had this simply massive piece of Prime Rib. And it was done well, the right temp and color. I had the Strip Steak. Here is my simple take - its not the Yachtsman but it also $14 less than the Yachtsmen too. It was better than the steaks I have had at places like Kona or The Wave recently. The asparagus was good and the mashed potatoes were really outstanding. The potatoes deserve a big call out for just being really good. Service was good (I swear I had had the same server some place else). Overall, I would not hesitate to come back and agree on it being a hidden gem at WDW. With Disney Springs across the water, its gets overlooked and should not. I would totally recommend it over Olivias at OKW as an example with a same price point.
 
That's interesting that WL would turn you away from parking, but Contemporary wouldn't. I feel like it would be the other way around with the Contemporary walking distance from Magic Kingdom.
 
That's interesting that WL would turn you away from parking, but Contemporary wouldn't. I feel like it would be the other way around with the Contemporary walking distance from Magic Kingdom.

I was shocked too but had to figure with the marathon DVC was super full.
 


You're lucky you can eat salad the night before. I would never be able to eat raw vegetables before a long run. My go-to at Riverside Mill is the turkey and mashed potatoes. If I'm doing all 3 races on PHM weekend, I literally eat it 3 days in a row. lol
 



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