Most Recent Reviews
Review of Mara - Jambo House
Reviewed by peytonshea02 Review Date: 06/05/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
We stayed 9 fabulous days @ AKL - so we had quite a few meals here. Some of the things we tried...
Breakfast:
African Inspired Breakfast Platter - Very good! I could eat chakalaka all day long. The Merguez sausage was also very good, but had a very strong flavor.
Bounty Platter, Mickey Waffle and Croissant Sandwich were also very good - the same as you will get anywhere in the World.
The Cream Cheese Coffee Cake was DD11 favorite breakfast sweet. The strawberry scone was my favorite.
For lunch/dinner:
Chicken Flatbread - interesting and quite tasty.
Vegetable Flatbread - very tasty but salty. I love artichokes and olives so this was yummy for me!
The nuggets, hand carved sandwich (turkey that day) and Angus burger were good as well.
We love AKL but the Mara is not something we consider a huge plus here. We have no complaints but it isn't a place we would rave about.
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—Review of Captain Cook's
Reviewed by peytonshea02 Review Date: 06/05/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
On our way to the Magic Kingdom, we decided last minute to stop by the Poly for a quick breakfast. We were considering staying here on our next trip so we decided to check out Captain Cook's. We ordered the bounty platter, Mickey Waffle and Tonga Toast (one of our favorites from Kona) - It was all fantastic! The Tonga Toast was outstanding. Super light and fluffy but filling. Sweet but not too sweet. It was heavenly! It was one of our favorite breakfasts in the World.
Pros:
Tonga Toast!!!Cons:
—Review of Kona Cafe Lunch/Dinner
Reviewed by peytonshea02 Review Date: 06/05/2013
Rating: (1) Not Recommended
I am so sad to write this review. 🙁
We have enjoyed many meals here and have always loved them. I was very excited to see a new menu for KONA! - I was so looking forward to our dinner here...but....read on if you dare.
DD11 had the Teriyaki Style New York Strip - it was the best dish of the night and it was not that good. Very tough piece of meat and the broccolini was one step from raw. DH had the Togarashi Spiced Ahi Tuna. The Tuna was fine - cooked well, but had very little flavor/seasoning. The deep fried veggie roll was nasty. VERY greasy and odd. A veggie roll with sushi rice and seaweed isn't something that should be deep fried. Absolutely nothing appealing about this. The winner for worst dish - was mine - Sesame Seared Sea Scallops - with rice, wakami salad and tarragon-champagne beurre blanc. Translation: 3 scallops, over cooked with no taste other than a bit of large black peppercorns cooked into them. The wakami salad was inedible. I am not sure what sort of flavor profile they were going for here..but it was a fail.
The one saving grace of this meal was the desserts. The Banana-Chocolate Creme Brulee and the Chocolate Fondue were excellent...thankfully. Had it not been for the yummy bread and desserts, I would have left hungry. It will be a very long time before we find the strength to try Kona again.
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dessertsCons:
—Reviewed by Trishadono Review Date: 06/05/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
Took my daughter for mom and me trip for her 18th bday. So fun to be met outside and walked to the Hawaii building to check in. Our request for 3rd floor balcony was met too!
We loved the new rooms. Fresh looking! The new brown sheers on the sliders are a nice relaxing touch. The new bathrooms have lots of counter space.
The lounge was just so beautiful I would sit there and just look out the windows at that fantastic view of the castle and seven seas lagoon area. The staff was great, the food tasty and there was always plenty of seating.
I made a special request which was honored too 🙂
All in all, the birthday was so special in such a great place!
Pros:
Newly remodeled lounge and roomsCons:
some construction going onReviewed by peytonshea02 Review Date: 06/05/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
This was THE surprise winner of our QS meals during our stay.
DH and the kids had pizza with side salads and really enjoyed them. I had the antipasto salad (which I was missing from another QS place) and LOVED it. It was exactly what I was craving! Super fresh greens with some yummy salami and pepperoni, sweet baby tomatoes and a perfect dressing. It was so good!
The perfect ending to the meal were the cupcakes. We are not a cupcake lovin family - but oh my! We had 2 of the cappuccino cupcakes and 2 of the Darth Vader cupcakes. The Darth ones were super moist, chocolately and filled with a light, creamy peanut butter filling. It was topped with a rich chocolate frosting and a big piece of chocolate Darth Vader. Evil but good.
My favorite - the cappuccino one. I would eat here again if for just for this. The light but super chocolately cupcake topped with a fluffy chocolate/coffee bit of heavenly frosting with crunchy little chocolate bits in it. PERFECTION! yes - my best lunch was a salad and a cupcake. I love vacation. 😉
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—Review of Tusker House Character Breakfast
Reviewed by peytonshea02 Review Date: 06/05/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
LOVE LOVE LOVE Tusker House breakfast. We had an ADR at 8:05 before the park opened at 9:00. We had a delicious breakfast. We filled up on typical breakfast items (Mickey Waffles!) and some interesting and tasty African inspired dishes. The juice is so yummy and the coffee is very good. We met Mickey, Daisy and Goofy in their snazzy safari gear. =) When we were finished, we stepped outside to an empty Africa and waited for 5 minutes before we heard the rumbling ...turned around and saw the crowd coming over the bridge (thankfully with a rope in front of them)!! The CM's, with perfect timing, dropped the rope in front of us before the masses arrived - just in time for us to walk on the safari and be on the very first truck out for the day! Perfect start of our AK day!!!
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—Review of Pizzafari
Reviewed by peytonshea02 Review Date: 06/04/2013
Rating: (5) Not Recommended
Had lunch here last week. I was so looking forward to my favorite Antipasto Salad - but sadly, it is gone. 🙁 It has been replaced by a chicken and veggie pasta salad. I gave it a try and it was terrible! Dry chicken, a few veggies, tons of chewy pasta and no dressing to save it all. Really a tasteless bowl of stuff. DH had the Italian Sandwich and thought it was fine. DD had the breadsticks, which she loves and DS had the pizza..which is what it is. The cheesecake in a glass has a very weird clear jelly on the top of it which doesn't make it the most appealing of sweets. While it is in the AC, this is definately not our favorite CS in the World - may pass on this one next time around. After that salad I may seriously consider eating BBQ in the heat with agressive birds. :/
Pros:
AC and breadsticksCons:
new chicken and pasta salad ....Reviewed by peytonshea02 Review Date: 06/04/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
We just returned from our third stay at AKL. (5/22-5/30). Like the past 2 trips we booked a Pool View room. When we checked in we were SHOCKED to find out that we had been upgraded to a savanna view! We were in room 3136 - same floor as the lobby facing the sunset savanna.
The room was ready at 9:00am and immaculate. We love the theming of the rooms at AKL. There are only 2 small details that are not perfect. 1. The lighting in the bathroom/vanity area is terrible. and 2. There are only 2 drawers for storage. The first point is not a huge deal. But the second....We are a family of 4. One drawer went to my daughter, the other to my son...so hubby and I spent 9 days living out of our suitcases. I am an organizer and never feel settled until I unpack and put everything away...this made me a bit nuts!
While we very much enjoyed the beautiful view (we saw giraffes and a few other animals 5 or 6 days during our 9 day stay) - I would never pay the significant price difference for a Savanna view over a Pool View on our future stays there.
AKL never ceases to amaze me. It is such gorgeous resort - the attention to detail is like no other. There is nothing like stepping out of the HOT FL. sun into that cool, breathtaking lobby and hearing "Welcome Home.".
The pool is beautiful - an oasis! Our kids loved the poolside activities. One night they watched Wreck It Ralph while swimming - magical!
We ate several meals at the Mara. We had different flatbreads, the African inspired breakfast, Mickey waffles and different pastries (strawberry scone was exceptionally yummy!) Everything was tasty and well prepared.
We had dinner at BOMA one night and all LOVED it.
The CM's at AKL were fabulous. Very friendly and super helpful. They truly make the resort feel like home.
We visited a few other resorts during our stay and we still have not found one that feels quite as beautiful and unique as AKL.
And one final thought: One of the most common concerns I hear about AKL is how "far away" the resort it. After staying 3 times I can honestly say that should NOT be a concern! No, it is not on the monorail or steps away from Epcot - but that is part of the beauty. It may be an additional 5-8 minutes on a bus, but you avoid the masses of vacationers. When you go home to your resort you feel like you are on vacation! If you are considering AKL - you MUST try it. You may very well never want to stay anywhere else.
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—Review of Yorkshire County Fish Shop
Reviewed by hello12345 Review Date: 06/04/2013
Rating: (9) Recommended
Best place to get fish at Disney. We eat here at least once every trip. Reasonable Disney prices without dining plan. Simple and limited menu make the line go quick. Only thing keeping it from a 10 rating is the lack of seating.
Pros:
good fishCons:
—Review of Yacht Club Resort (Deluxe Resort)
Reviewed by hello12345 Review Date: 06/04/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
Stayed 2 nights June 1-3. Small issue at check-in. Clerk appeared to not be able to find my reservation, but it was quickly resolved. We were in the 5th floor Regatta Club. I was not told at check-in that I would need to swipe my room key in elevator to reach 5th floor. I looked like an idiot for a few seconds before I figured out why the elevator would not go to 5th floor. That is it for the cons.
Our room was ready when we checked-in around 12:45 pm. This resort is located at the perfect spot in my opinion. 5-7 min walk to Epcot and 15-20 min walk to HS. The interior of the resort looks new and fresh. The Beach Club shares space, but the Yacht Club is a definite level above Beach Club. The rooms are very clean and we had no problems with room. The pool is the best in Disney. Entry is strictly controlled and the cast members are super-friendly. The pool area is actually 3 different pools, but it is blended to make it look like one big pool. Having a refill drink mug station at pool is a step above what the Boardwalk offers. I have stayed at Boardwalk twice and was a big fan. Yacht and Beach Club blow the Boardwalk away in my opinion. If all cost the same I would pick Yacht Club first every time.
