Remy on Board the Disney Dream – A Night to Almost Remember

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Posted on October 14, 2014

It’s been exactly a year and a half since our Disney Cruise, and I’ve just realized that I never finished blogging about our trip. Life got in the way a little bit when we got home. (To be clear, I got laid off the day we returned from vacation.) Luckily I found a new job within a few weeks and was fine, but then it was a blur of learning new things, meeting new people, etc. Blogging took a back seat.

Having now realized that I never posted the pics from our amazing evening at Remy, I thought I’d fix that. Problem is, I can’t tell you exactly what it is that we ate. Some of the items are fairly recognizable, and some more memorable than others. But as is often the case with fine dining, the final product doesn’t much resemble the ingredients. And I would be hard-pressed to tell you what these dishes actually tasted like.

So rather than a “review” I’ll give you the pics and let you decide for yourself. My memory of the meal was one of impeccable service, far too much very, very good food, and a very romantic evening with my love. I would do it again in a heartbeat. It was probably my favorite experience on our cruise.

All dressed up and no kids in sight.

A nice couple saw me taking the selfie and stopped to take our pic

The entrance to Remy. Very posh and clubby.

The complimentary Colette cocktail. Champagne, pear vodka, dried apricot, mint, blueberry. Lovely. And check that view!

First, the amuse – tomato soup! This was a Willy Wonka-esque experience. Like a perfect tomato exploding in your mouth.

A lovely, rich foie gras mousse with pistachios

I believe this was pork belly. My husband and I had different dishes.

These were little crab cigars with I believe a yuzu foam.

Maybe a crab gazpacho?

Let’s take a moment to sip our wine and drink in that sunset…

Maybe black cod? I remember I enjoyed it.

I suspect this was duck.

Wow, that’s pretty. Maybe a scallop?

On the left is potato. On the right is lobster. I remember the really dense and unique texture of the potato.

And what goes best with lobster? Yes, a side of lobster.

I’m not entirely sure what this was. Maybe beef? Duck?

I’m almost positive this is beef.

Why yes of COURSE we’ll have the cheese course. Roll over the cart. We’re not nearly full enough.

This wine was delicious.

Oooh, pretty! Probably chocolate mousse.

This was my dessert, but I could not tell you what it was. Just that I loved the Mondrian design.

Awww…they brought me a rose.

Oh yes, and two more desserts to go, in case we got hungry on our way back to our room.

I forgot how amazing this was. I want to go back!

Dinner in Magellan’s Secret Room at Tokyo DisneySea

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Posted on May 17, 2014

Things have been quiet around the MouseChow blog, mostly because I’ve been busy at work. But ALSO because I was on vacation, in JAPAN! This was easily the most incredible trip I’ve ever taken with my family, and I’m happy to be able to share a few snippets of it with you.

I thought I’d start with a very cool experience that we had at Magellan’s at Tokyo DisneySea. We spent a day and a half in the Japanese Disney parks, and could have stayed a few more. First thing you should know about eating at Tokyo Disney – every table service meal seems to be a huge fixed price, expensive, multi-course affair. Unless you’re an obsessed Disney food blogger, only plan to do one table service if you visit.

A great choice for that one meal is Magellan’s, right next to Mount Prometheus at Tokyo DisneySea. It’s classic European cuisine in a building that looks sort of like a chateau at the base of the mountain.

So let me set the scene for you. We had been walking around cold and drizzly Tokyo for three days and were completely exhausted. We had an 8:15pm reservation at Magellan’s, and if we hadn’t been completely starved would not have left our room at the MiraCosta. But we rallied (read: I forced my family to move) and we ventured out of our hotel into the park just as Fantasmic was beginning. It was getting dark and raining, and about 50 degrees and we were exhausted. We climbed the wide stairs that led up the mountain, and turned to watch the Maleficent dragon breathe fire over the lagoon, then made our way to the restaurant.

After a few seconds of language barrier confusion about our reservation, we were ushered inside, down the elevator, past the main dining room, to a bookcase in the wall. Our hostess instructed our daughter to find the hidden button (it’s not hard to find), and the bookcase swung open to reveal a hidden room designed as a wine cellar in the mountain.

There could not be a cozier spot for three bedraggled, exhausted, cold and wet people to settle into a fantastic meal.

In the “secret” wine cellar at Magellan’s

We chose one of the set menus and I ordered a Glenmorangie to warm up. We were so tired, and it was so dark and warm, it’s a miracle we stayed awake for the entire meal. There was much discussion about a new invention, the “table bed”. Sorry for the dark photos. I didn’t have the energy to pull out the real camera, so we’ve got iPhone photos in the dark. And I neglected to take a pic of the best course – a silky and umami-laden cream of cauliflower soup. Even my child who never ever eats cauliflower loved it.

Casks on the wall

Scallop dish. I seem to remember it was good. Oh yeah, with a tomato jam.

The glass contains a foie gras mousse that was delish. Also prosciutto on a stick, salmon, cress.

Melt in your mouth tender beef short rib with lots of tasty accompaniments

Perfectly executed creme brulee

Fresh and tart tangerine sorbet

Fully satisfied, we stumbled out of our cozy cocoon of a restaurant into the twinkling lights of Tokyo DisneySea at night. It had stopped raining, and everything was glossy and beautiful. We slept pretty well.

Tokyo DisneySea is gorgeous at night

Magellan’s at Tokyo DisneySea: 5 Mice

Epcot Food and Wine Festival 2013: Germany

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Posted on November 2, 2013

Continuing clockwise around World Showcase, we pass right past the Brewer’s Collection (because there’s only so much one can drink without ending up at Guest Relations) and land in Germany. If you do stop at Brewer’s Collection, there are some really interesting beers to try, including the much-hyped Schofferhofer Grapefruit (which is generally better in the bottle than what I’ve gotten at Food & Wine which last year was a bit skunky) and BraufactuM Roog Smoked Wheat Beer which I am very sad that I didn’t get to try. I’ll be on the lookout for that one.

Germany booth Epcot Food and Wine Festival

Deutschland!

But this is about the Germany booth and the food at that booth, and we DID try each of the offerings here. Sadly nothing really stands out here as a “must-try”. It’s all fine comfort food, but not terribly exciting.

First, the Schinkennudeln (Pasta Gratin with Ham and Cheese.)

Schinkennudeln at Germany booth Epcot Food and Wine 2013

That’s mac and cheese to you and me

It’s fine. Hard to go wrong with mac and cheese. I sort of wish they’d just leave out the ham though, so that there could be an additional vegetarian dish at Food and Wine. My vegetarian friends have precious few items that they can sample, and end up eating mostly desserts. It would be so easy to omit the ham here – it’s not doing much for the dish.

A little less successful is the Roast Bratwurst in a Pretzel Roll.

Roast Bratwurst in Pretzel Roll Germany Food and Wine 2013

“Not impressed,” says Mr. MouseChow

That’s one long brat! Overall it’s pretty mediocre, and we just didn’t really enjoy this. The roll is fine, though for some reason we like it much better at the Biergarten restaurant. If you’re a completist and must try everything at Food and Wine, then go for it, but otherwise I’d skip it.

And for dessert, there’s Apple Strudel with Werther’s Original(r) Karamel & Vanilla Sauce.

Apple Strudel at Germany booth Epcot Food and Wine Festival

Gotta love Werther’s Karamel

As you might expect, the apples, caramel, and vanilla sauce were really yummy. The crust though was sort of hard to eat – not flakey or crispy, so it made it hard to cut with the side of a fork. Still, this was my favorite dish in Germany.

The best part of eating in Germany though? Sitting at a little table near the fountain in the middle of the German pavilion while mini-MouseChow played the Agent P game and made Doofenshmirtz come out of the clock tower. (We also made a pass through Karamel Kuche and got some chocolate and caramel covered strawberries. Mmmmm….)